Episode
Stories that connect us: How books foster belonging in the early years
- Podcast
- The Voice of Early Childhood
- Published
- Jan 5, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 2599
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Summary
In early childhood, stories are more than words on a page. They are bridges—between experiences, identities, and possibilities. This idea sits at the heart of a powerful conversation with Laura Henry-Allain MBE: award-winning early education specialist, author, and creator of the ground-breaking CBeebies series JoJo and Gran Gran . In this podcast episode, Laura shares her insights on the transformative potential of books in early childhood settings, and how storytelling can offer every child a sense of belonging. Read the article here: https://thevoiceofearlychildhood.com/ s tories-that-connect-us-how-books-foster-belonging-in-the-early-years/ This episode is sponsored by Ladybird Books: We make growing up the best story ever! From your baby's first book to starting school, at Ladybird we publish something for every milestone. Discover a range of your little one's favourite characters, from Peppa Pig to Topsy and Tim, and much more. To find out more visit: https://www.penguin.co.uk/discover/ladybird Our 2026 conference info & tickets: https://thevoiceofearlychildhood.com/early-years-conference-2026/ Listen to more: If you enjoyed this episode, you might also like: · The value of storytelling, by Olivia Corbin-Phillip, https://thevoiceofearlychildhood.com/the-value-of-storytelling/ · Extremely early literacy, by Dan Berman, https://thevoiceofearlychildhood.com/extremely-early-literacy/ Get in touch and share your voice: Do you have thoughts, questions or feedback? Get in touch here! – https://thevoiceofearlychildhood.com/contact/ Episode break down: 00:00 – 2026 Conference: Laura Henry-Allain MBE as keynote speaker 02:20 – Introducing Laura Henry-Allain MBE 06:10 – Why books matter: emotion, curiosity, access, and "windows" for children 08:30 – Representation and belon…