Building Digital Literary Bridges: The Success Story of Elefante Letrado

In 2013, under the visionary leadership of Sheila Votombel, Elefante Letrado was conceived with a distinct mission: to foster the habit of reading and improve the reading comprehension skills of Brazilian children. The initial idea sprouted from Sheila’s personal desire to provide her daughters with easy access to reading in Portuguese through a digital platform. Quickly, this vision expanded to include schools in need of a digital solution to promote children’s literature.

However, the initial challenges were robust. Creating digital children’s books in a format accessible on computers, and eventually mobile devices, required an advanced technical approach. While Elefante Letrado had started creating some book projects in a more artisanal way, the need for faster and higher quality production became evident.

It was in this context that, between 2014 and early 2015, Elefante Letrado partnered with Booknando. The collaboration aimed to accelerate the production of digital books while maintaining a high standard of quality. The partnership proved fruitful, extending over eight successful years during which Booknando was instrumental in creating over a thousand digital books for the Elefante Letrado platform.

Booknando not only accelerated production but also introduced remarkable technical innovations. The books were provided in EPUB3 format with a fixed layout, incorporating audio features. This feature, with options for recorded or AI-generated voice, was synchronized with the text, offering a karaoke effect that allows children to read and listen to the text simultaneously, enriching the reading experience.

Moreover, many of these books were enhanced with interactive elements and animations, adding an additional dimension of engagement and understanding. The partnership also extended to technical support, where Booknando assisted Elefante Letrado in crucial technical decisions to ensure efficient content delivery to schools, thus aligning with Elefante Letrado’s primary mission of promoting children’s literacy.

The collaboration between Elefante Letrado and Booknando illustrates a success story of how a strategic partnership can accelerate innovation, improve quality, and significantly contribute to the realization of an important social mission. The case highlights Booknando’s ability to understand the needs of its partners, provide robust technical solutions, and contribute to a lasting educational impact.