This week is Deaf Awareness Week in the UK and I wanted to share a very special book with you
Can Bears Ski? has been written and illustrated by hearing aid users
This is a rare double own voices picture book and it is a hugely emotive and powerful read
Can Bears Ski? is the perfect ‘mirrors and windows’ book
It allows both hearing and deaf children (and their adults)
To understand how isolating it can be to be a Deaf child in a hearing community
The book shows us the experiences of hearing and Deaf characters
As well as the professionals who support them
It raises awareness of the different ways Deaf children may choose to communicate
In the pages of this book we learn a little about lip-reading, hearing therapy and hearing aids
After reading this book it would be good to explore other kinds of communication
Including finger spelling and British Sign Language (BSL)
This brilliant book has shown my children and I a little of what life might be like for a deaf child
For someone with hearing loss
And for their friends, family, teachers and carers
I know that this book has also acted as a very special mirror for children with hearing aids
And their families
You can find some gorgeous reviews on Instagram by searching #canbearsski
The own voice review that inspired me to buy this book
Was created on Instagram Stories by Ladybird Library
I highly recommend that you have a look at it
If you plan to read this story
The Centre for Literacy in Primary Education have written some incredibly detailed teaching notes
To accompany the book for parents and teachers who would like to use it at home or in the classroom
In my humble opinion, this book deserves a place in every school and public library
And as many homes as possible
Written by Raymond Antrobus, a deaf spoken-word poet
Illustrated by Polly Dunbar who has hearing loss
Bear feels sounds. He can tell the volume and urgency of his father’s voice by the movements in the things around him.
Banisters shake, pictures wobble, stairs flinch.
Bear is not sure that he always hears his Dad right. He seems to be asking him the same question again and again. Can bears ski?
As Bear and his Dad walk to school, Dad Bear talks a lot. Friends call hello. Bear hears only the crunch of the snow until his father asks him again, “CAN BEARS SKI?”
Bear is moved to the front of the classroom at school, he is still not quite sure what his teacher says.
When everyone laughs at lunchtime, Bear does not know what is funny.
The situation for Bear is a sad one and the beautiful illustrations and text really tug at your heart strings. You just want to make things better for Bear. You feel sad for his friends and teachers, his family, who want to include him and talk to him but do not know how.
When one day Bear is collected early from school and taken to an au-di-ol-o-gist we get to see Bear begin to get the support that he needs. A hearing test, an audiogram and a few more tests lead to hearing therapy, lip-reading classes and “plastic ears called hearing aids.”
The world is turned up for Bear. The world is opened up for Bear. It is not always easy for him or his Dad. There are adjustments for them both to make, settling into their new normal will take time, but they love one another and they have the support that they need to begin adapting. I love the way the story shows that hearing aids can help a Deaf child but are not an immediate answer to everything.
It is an incredibly emotional journey for the reader and gives a tiny taste of how that journey might feel for the parent and child, a chance for us to look through the window and begin to understand and empathise so that we may better support families that we know.
The story is also a mirror for deaf children and their families and I know from my own autistic son and dyslexic daughter how incredibly powerful it can be to feel seen in a story.
Can Bears Ski? is magnificently done and when Bear finally hears Dad reading him a story because he now knows how to ‘listen’ and Dad knows how best to read to his Bear I could not hold back the tears. It is such a beautiful moment and just so tenderly written and illustrated with empathy and knowing. A perfect picture book moment and, in my opinion, exactly what books are for!
This is a book written with heart and enriched with the real life experiences of both the author and the illustrator. The journey that Bear and his Dad travel in this story is one trodden by so many families which makes it all the more poignant and powerful because the emotion weaved through the words and pictures is tangible. It is real.
To truly appreciate this book and how it should be read, you must watch the author, Raymond Antrobus, read it aloud. Thank you Ladybird Library for signposting this.
I wish this book had been available to me when I was teaching. It would have helped me to better teach the children in my classes who experienced sound differently and enabled me to better support the families of those children as they dealt with the daily challenges that deafness can bring.
I have read this book with all of my children, aged 3 to 11, and they have all absolutely loved it and have linked the story to children and adults that they know in real life. It has answered lots of questions for us and also opened up many more.
The CLPE teaching notes are brilliant for starting discussions around this book and they also link to some brilliant resources and further reading for children who want to learn more about the Deaf community and want to improve their own ability to communicate with Deaf children and grown ups.
My children all learned very basic BSL as babies and young children. Inspired by this wonderful book and Ladybird Library on Instagram we are going to start building BSL into our home education days through stories and songs available online and key vocabulary linked to our daily routines and topics. You can see how Ladybird Library does exactly this on her Instagram posts and stories.
Here are some resources for anyone who wants to learn more for themselves and / or with their children this Deaf Awareness Week
National Deaf Children’s Society
If you are local to me then you can find information and support from the