Session 4: What if…?

Ideas inspired by Booktrust and the Quentin Blake Award

This is a template for a workshop aimed at all children

Location – Anywhere with access to a variety of children’s picture books.

Aim and outcome

The aim of this exercise is to look at current picture books and produce children’s versions of the pictures that include disabled children.

Session plan

Start the session by asking the children what books they can think of that feature a disabled character. How is disability shown in books and why do they think this is?

Look at some well-known books/illustrations; discuss how the pictures/stories could be altered to include disabled characters. Introduce what they will be doing – putting disabled children in the picture by redrawing existing illustrations to include disabled children.

Then start work!

The children could work individually or in pairs. Allow them to use the selection of books available for reference and inspiration.

Look at a selection of the pictures and discuss any problems the children had including images of disabled children in the illustrations.

How could these be overcome? How could they encourage illustrators and authors that it is possible to include images of disabled children in their work?

This idea was taken from an activity used as part of Booktrust’s Quentin Blake Award project. For further inspiration from Booktrust and the Quentin Blake Award, visit the Bookmark website at www.bookmark.org.uk, which features a downloadable list of activities to encourage children to think about disability in children’s books.