Special Needs Children Books

Hand, Heart, and Mind is an awesome book! It really touched me because I know 3 deaf people. I never knew the hardships that those people went through. I thuroughly enjoyed this book!

An intriguing history of the education of the deaf starting with ancient times to the middle ages. In the early 1800s, Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet went to Europe and one year later returned with Laurent Clerc, a deaf priest and teacher of the deaf. Together they began the American School for the Deaf. Alexander Graham Bell who was a strong advocate of oralism while Gallaudet endorsed using American Sign Language. These two famous people started a raging war that continues today. There is extensive coverage about the "Deaf President Now" revolt that occurred in 1988 when a hearing president was selected for Gallaudet University (the only university for the deaf). The students successfully demanded that their school have a deaf president. An excellent book about the history of how the deaf have been repressed and slowly becoming liberated. As the mother of a deaf daughter, I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book.

A very useful book on ADD for families with children, teachers and mental health practitioners. The symptoms that children can experience are well illustrated and serve as a learning tool for parents,children and others. You are not alone in this, is a key message in the text. Help can be got by families to normalize family life. There is hope for homes with ADD, the authors tell us from their clinical experience.

This book is comprehensive! It moves from the symtoms of ADD, who can help, and some good things about ADD. It tells children that ADD is not their fault and has the potential to increase the self-esteem of children. It focuses on the types of help children can get- I imagine a child could use this as a reference when they first find out about ADD. It depends on the age, but this information could be a bit much to read all at once. It has information on the differences between a psychologist, therapist, pediatrician, and neurologist (I would think it would be scary for some kids when they are told they have to go see these people). Overall, a great tool to help children who have ADD and their peers that may not understand ADD.

This is an excellent, easy to understand and navigate resource for all persons affected by Autism. Parents, grandparents, friends and caregivers alike can all benefit from reading this book. It gives many ways to help your child and give you guidance in understanding your neuro-atypical child.

This book is easy to comprehend. It is broken down into stages. You are set up to analyze your child, your family, your life. The purpose of the book is to help you bring you family dynamics back where they should be. The first thing you're told to do is identify stressors. Then you examine yourself to see how you react to stress. Then you find ways to reduce your stress. It even gives warnings about depression and anxiety and advice for seeing a doctor for yourself. As a parent we all know that if we cannot function, the family cannot function. And when dealing with special needs, we need to be calm and in control or our child will not be calm and in control. The book is also full of helpful advice. For example, there are helper phrases that you can use to explain to your non-ASD children about why the rules and consequences are different for your ASD child. And as you walk through the book step by step, you are building a personalized plan for your very own family. A plan to get your family working together as a team. And your ASD child is PART OF THE TEAM. As you move along, your children will feel more equal. I LOVE that this book focuses on family. All too often I have had therapists and specialists telling me what I need to do for him. Finally there is a book that stresses the importance of everyone in the family being healthy. For too long our family has revolved around our child with ASD and everyone notices. I am excited to work through the entire book and see the results. So far it's been terrific.

High IQ Kids: Collected Insights, Information, and Personal Stories from the Experts

I really like this book with all the different perspectives it offers from its many different writers. Its biggest plus point is that it draws from a vast variety of writers with articles ranging from good to really great. I would highly recommend this book to anyone with a suspected HG+ child. It was also personally illuminating, reflecting back on my own childhood difficulties and how some of them could have been avoided...

High IQ Kids- Collected Insights, Information, and Personal Stories from the Experts is not a guidebook on how to raise a profoundly gifted child. It is, rather, a collection of deeply moving personal experiences from parents of highly to profoundly gifted children packaged together with professional observations from some of the world's foremost experts on these children. Children who are twice exceptional are given center stage, which is not surprising, as Kiesa Kay, the project's originator, is a well known champion of children who are both profoundly gifted and also learning disabled or challenged. Kay is co-editor of the book, along with Deborah Robson and Judy Fort Brenneman.

High IQ Kids is for both parents and for educators who may be searching for answers as to how to address the needs of a child who is "way out there" on the far right of the bell curve. Stories alternate between touching and humorous; informative and inspirational. Unfortunately, there is no single "right" way to raise and educate these enigmas. Highly gifted children are different both inside and out, and they tend to learn in a manner that is unusual; not just faster than the norm.

I particularly loved Annemarie Roeper's chapter on the SAI model of education. Roeper says, "Giftedness includes heart and soul and is not limited to intelligence and achievement." I find her ideas on education and life for profoundly gifted kids to be very uplifting. She views gifted individuals holistically, and not just as a set of numbers on a test.

Carolyn K., founder of the number one online resource for and about gifted children, Hoagie's Gifted, outlines her family's struggles with school advocacy. Eldest child "Dolphin" is followed through the ups and downs of her public school career. As one with some insider information, I believe it would enhance the story to have included details of Dolphin's more recent success with early college.

"Normal Kids Don't Quack" by Cathy Marciniak is a hilarious look at life with high IQ children. Cathy muses, "My life is full of things that other parents can't relate to." A baby who quacks, a seven year old who wonders if she should pick up her beanie babies in a, "sequential, chronological,or alphabetical" order... normal is a relative term, isn't it?

Annette Revel Sheeley and Linda Silverman collaborate on a chapter titled, "Defining the Few" which opens the book and sets the stage for later reading with a clear description of the various levels of giftedness. This entire book is based upon the "old" SBLM standards, so referenced IQ scores are on a scale that measures beyond two hundred. Sheeley and Silverman continue to recommend the Stanford Binet form L-M for children who have taken a more modern IQ test and scored 99th percentile on two or more subtests. These more commonly used tests, such as the Wechslers, have an upper limit of 160.

An excellent piece on homeschooling profoundly gifted children by Kathryn Finn might just nudge parents on the fence into giving it a try. Homeschooling has become a commonplace educational solution for gifted kids, and it offers many advantages.

There are many other notable contributors to High IQ Kids, including Dierdre Lovecky, Karen Rogers, Sally Reis, Miraca Gross, and Stephanie Tolan.

I was captivated by this book from the beginning.First she explains the differences between learning disabilities and normal variations in learning styles.Then she deals with parental academic expections and realistic ones.She also dispells the myth that homeschooling is the magical cure for learning disabilities,rather the opportunity to tailor a program to best suit the individual.This book is packed full of resources to help with a specific need or area .She combines her child develpment and special education knowledge with the honesty and humility of a mother who homeschools three children, one who is autistic. I would reccomend this book to anyone.

This book would be very helpful to any homeschooling parent with a "high needs" child, whether or not the child has a disability label. Sharon Hensley does an amazing job of including both very practical information along with inspiring and uplifting viewpoints. The book is compact, and easy to read, yet not simplistic. Before I started to home school my children, I was a special education teacher for many years, and have a Master's Degree in special education. Even though I've done a lot of reading and research, I still found this book to be very useful.

Regan is determined to become a professional dancer: and with talent and flare she seems certain to achieve her goals, especially when she successfully hosts a weekly aerobic exercise program. Suddenly a mysterious ailment strikes down her dreams - in coping with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, will she become crippled and lose her dreams of dancing? A realistic story of adjustment and courage.

Homeroom Exercise is a wonderful and deeply felt story about the hopes and desires of a young dancer and the obstacles put in her path by fate. Regan is a 12 year old with big goals of a dancing career. She is stricken with Juvenille Rheumatoid Arthritis at a time in her life where she is on top of the world and everything seems certain. She had just auditioned and won the coveted position as host of a televised middle school exercise program called Homeroom Exercise. Throughout the book the authors talent for description lends the book an authenticity of experience and feeling that take you right into each scene and into the heart of Regan. I recommend this book highly to all children over 9 and parents as well.

A book that will lift your spirits and warm your heart!

Willy was once an abandoned, handicapped chihuahua puppy dumped on the streets in a cardboard box.

Thanks to his adopter, who discovered the world of wheelchairs for dogs, Willy learned to fly!

Adults and children adore this book, and it is especially significant to the handicapped who share a special bond with Willy.

How Willy Got His Wheels and How Willy Got His Wings are wonderful stories! Willy is a real dog with real challenges... children can relate to him and learn. Parents and teachers will love sharing them with their children!

I purchased this book and another titled "Talking to My Mom is Like Talking to a Brick Wall" for an alcoholic friend. She recently made a commitment to sober living. She found it hard to explain to her young children the heartache of alcoholism and the solution of a personal recovery program. These books addressed perfectly the damage of alcoholism to a family unit, but also the miracle of a personal recovery program. I strongly recommend these books.

I purchased this book, and the other by the same author, "Talking to My Mom is Like Talking to a Brick Wall." If you have a friend or family member who suffers from substance abuse (not just alcoholism) and are having difficulty explaining what is happening to children in the family, this is an absolute perfect book for you. It is written in a child-friendly way, which is perfect given the intensity of the subject matter. I highly recommend!

We bought this Wonderful Book for our lovely Grandaughter ,The Authur is very talented! Love this book and looking forward to more books by this great author!
Sincerely,
Grandma

This is such a great book, and will inspire many people. I personally know the author and, I can certainly testify to what a sweet, intelligent young woman she is! Way to go Lauren, I'm so excited for you!

This book captured my heart. It made me laugh, it made me cry, and it made me think. I have never read anything more powerful and precise about ADHD and brother and sister rivalry than this one. Make sure to read it! It's a keeper!!

Those who have read Eagle Eyes by the same author will recognize Emily, Ben's older sister. Emily's parents and brother have done an excellent job of understanding and addressing Ben's AD/HD. However, Emily feels that her parents are ignoring her. She feels that they expect her to maintain perfect behavior so that the parents can focus on Ben's problems. Emily and the rest of the family work with Ben's therapist to gain an understanding of Emily's own needs.

The book deals with psychotherapy and family issues in a clear but relatively sophisticated manner. I liked the fact that it addressed Emily's feelings about her parents' time-consuming involvement with advocacy groups. Family involvement in advocacy organizations is critical, but parents also need to seek a balance that includes regular family down time.

This book may also be useful for any girl who feels that her over-committed family expects her to be too perfect.

This book is aimed at the older elementary school or middle school child. There is more text and relatively few illustrations.