^and how does that prevent school staff sharing stories and cuddles while talking about how books work? and how does it prevent the child talking home a book with words to share with a parent ... or can you only learn how books work from wordless books?
Very few children need wordless books ...^
I don't think you quite understand the emotional, cultural and literal poverty that these children come from. They don't have books at home because books are not seen as useful, valuable, or as having any kind of point. They would require the adult to interact with the child in a way that the adult doesn't know how to. The point of wordless books is that the child can make his or her own story, without requiring the adult to read to them or with them, encouraging the child to find a story, to find entertainment, in a place that is not the tv.
As for staff sharing stories and cuddles, our reception staff read to children - clearly the Handling Policy prevents cuddles. They don't have time to sit with every child individually, as a parent should do, should want to, should be able to, because they have also to teach the numeracy, the social skills, the topic work, as well as deal with the wet bottoms from children who are not fully day toilet trained at 4.
If you don't understand that, then I am glad for you, and for your children. I was like you, I didn't see how a person grew without books, I didn't understand how parents didn't want to read with a child. My son had a story every night, even before he was born.
But now I do understand, and I can see that some parents, some of the subcultures of Britain have different priorities, caused by economic pressures, and a lack of opportunity which continues through generations. If ORT books help that, then I'm all for them. Even if I have to listen to "The Magic Key" a thousand more times.