About this event
BookTrust Cymru Early Years Practitioner Conference – Equality, Diversity and Reading for Pleasure in the Early Years
This year’s BookTrust Cymru Early Years Practitioner Conference brings together high-profile voices including children’s authors and illustrators, early years organisations and practitioners, as well as other important figureheads working in the world of children’s books. It will explore why equality, diversity and inclusion are vital in reading for pleasure and what we can do in the Early Years to give young children the opportunity to feel represented and empowered.
We know that learning about the world, your identity and those around you starts in the Early Years, and that books, stories and rhymes are powerful tools that can be used to help children understand their lived experiences. When we talk about diversity, we are championing the need for inclusion in all areas, so that all children and families are represented and valued.
More can be done to ensure that all children are able to see themselves in the books that they are exposed to from an early age and also to provide access to books for all children so they can experience the transformative powers of reading for pleasure.
The conference takes place as a series of online webinars spread over four days. These webinars will be in the format of a panel discussion, two workshops and four practice sharing sessions, with contributions and insights from:
Dapo Adeola, Children’s Author and Illustrator, and BookTrust’s most recent Writer in Residence
Connor Allen, Children’s Laureate Wales 2021 – 2023
Jo Bowers, Early Years Reading for Pleasure Specialist
Margaret Holt, Bookstart Coordinator, Cardiff Libraries
Natalie Jerome, Deputy Chair of Literature Wales
Jeremy Miles MS, Minister for Education and Welsh Language
Ruth Morgan, Award Winning Primary Practitioner and Children’s Author
Lucy Owen, Presenter and Author
Cymraeg i Blant, Progamme Supporting Families with young children to bring the Welsh Language Into their Homes
Books Council of Wales, National Charity Supporting the Publishing Industry in Wales
BookTrust, the UK’s largest children’s reading charity
When registering for the conference, you will receive links to attend each of the webinars detailed below. We would encourage you to attend each webinar but if this is not possible, recordings will be made available soon after the event.
The first 450 attendees to register will receive a BookTrust Cymru Superbox containing a printed Conference Handbook which explores the themes of the event, as well as a collection of 20 early years books to use within your setting and share with families. These will be sent via post soon after the event. A digital version of the Conference Handbook will also be made available online.
All webinars will take place online via Zoom.
Webinar Information
Title: Equality & Diversity and Reading for Pleasure in the Early Years – Conference Plenary Session
Date: Monday 21st March 2pm-3.15pm
Format: Reflections on Equality, Diversity and Reading for Pleasure in the Early Years: A mixture of presentations and facilitated discussions with contributions from all of our keynote speakers
Featuring: Dapo Adeola, Connor Allen, Jo Bowers, Natalie Jerome, Jeremy Miles MS & BookTrust Cymru
Facilitated by: Lucy Owen
Language: English
Title: Diversity and Representation in Children’s Books
Date: Tuesday 22nd March 11.30am-12.30pm
Format: Workshop
Featuring: Ruth Morgan, Natalie Jerome
Language: English
Title: Equality of Access to Reading – What Can be Done?
Date: Wednesday 23rd March 1pm-2pm
Format: Workshop
Featuring: Julie Hayward and Claire Taylor, BookTrust
Language: English
Title: Bilingual Books to Explore Diversity and Inclusion with Small Children
Date: Thursday 24th March 10am-11am
Format: Practice Sharing Session
Featuring: Cymraeg i Blant
Language: Welsh with simultaneous English translation
Title: Reaching communities through reading
Date: Thursday 24th March 1pm-1.45pm
Format: Practice Sharing Session
Featuring: Margaret Holt, Cardiff Libraries
Language: English
Title: A showcase of Bilingual Books that Explore Diversity and Inclusion
Date: Thursday 24th March 2pm-2.45pm
Format: Practice Sharing Session
Featuring: Ilid Haf, Books Council of Wales
Language: Welsh with simultaneous English translation
Illustration: Erika Meza
