Disabilities Books

I am the behavior intervention coordinator for a coop that serves several school districts. This book provides a good usable overview, in common language, to some thechnically sound nonaversive bahavioral intervention strategies. I particularly recomend this book to classroom teachers and other direct service providers. For consultants and psychologists or other specialists doing more detailed assessments and support plans and want a more complete discussion I would recommend "Alternatives to Punishment" by the same authors. It generally covers the same material with more depth and technical language.

I found Progress Without Punishment to be a useful, usable guide to behavioral strategies in the classroom. My copy is nearly worn out from frequent use. I would recommend this book to anyone seeking a guide to implementation of positive reinforcement in the classroom.

This book has helped me a great deal as a guidance counselor working with multiply disabled students. It is logical and provides guidelines that I can implement with students on an individual and group basis. I am always happy when I find resources that can help my students and can add to my professional arsenal.

"Promoting Self-Determination In Students With Developmental Disabilities" by Professor of Special Education Michael L. Wehmeyer (who is also the Associate Director of the Beach Center on Disability at the University of Kansas, and the Director of the Kansas University Center on Developmental Disabilities) is based on the finding that self-determination is a significant factor in improving educational performance and transition outcomes in students with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Professor Wehmeyer surveys and assesses various methods for teaching components of self-determination (including making choices, problem solving, decision making, goal setting, self-advocacy, and self-regulated learning) and makes practical recommendations that classroom teachers can immediately apply within their classrooms and within their curriculums regardless of the subject matter. A work of seminal scholarship which is enhanced with reproducible worksheets and forms, extensive references, and a comprehensive index, "Promoting Self-Determination In Students With Developmental Disabilities" is a the latest title in the impressive 'What Works for Special-Needs Learners' series from Guilford Publications. Also available in a hardcover edition (9781593854614, $48.00), "Promoting Self-Determination In Students With Developmental Disabilities is strongly recommended reading for the teachers and counselors of special needs students.

As someone who is not disabled, I found this book to be very education and informative. It gave me a taste for what differently abled dykes experience and how they view and are perceived in the world. I was especially moved by the poem by Dragonsani Renteria titled, "Rejection". This book is a must read!

This book is an excellent read for poetry and autobiographical works about sexuality, disability, and the interactions between the two. Really a must read for people investigating experiences about womanhood, ability, queer sexuality, family, women of color, classism, and much more. Very reflective and intense but well-written and enjoyable.

Janet Sonnenberg's book tells a story of the emotional & logical roller coaster that as a mother & woman went through in a tragedy her, her son & family experienced. All of which grow her Faith & integrity, her family as well.
It's a tremendous story of horrific tragedy that is turned into tears of joy. The pictures inside show what the words do not. Above all, a primary message to all people is that no matter what happens to you, its what happens in you that decides your future. It also gives handfuls of examples of where God steps in his always perfect timing to take care of the situation at hand. Once you read this book, you'll also want her son Joel's book "Joel".
Jeff

This book is a journey inside a Christian mother's heart and memory, but not just any mother - a mother whose worst nightmare has come true. On the surface, it's a story of the gruesome events. But behind the events is another tale - of the kind of courage and determination which can only come from the Lord; indeed, even Joel's mother herself initially wished that the stranger had not saved her son's life. As such, it plunges all believers down into the testing waters concerning the sanctity of life and then lifts them back up again, victorious in the sure knowledge that all things are possible in Him who strengthens us. Janet Sonnenberg is a hero for all of us - and so is her son Joel.

This is a fantastic book for school professionals to read. It's easy reading and puts it in a format to help the teacher and others at the school know what your child needs and how to attain it.

This is by far the most helpful book we have read so far on FASD. If you are raising a child with featl alcohol syndrome disorder, then this is the book for you! Very helpful and great ideas you can use.

I've seen this program in action. The reading scores for the district went from dismal to above average, and ALL readers were on grade level...there was NO difference between the races, new-to-English learners, or sexes.

In other words, NCLB happened. You owe it to yourself to get this book and implement it in EVERY school in EVERY instance.

This is the best book I've ever seen to buy if you are a K-5 teacher (general ed or special ed) concerned with teaching children to read well and to enjoy reading. It is presented in a straightforward, very user-friendly format that lends itself to immediate application in the classroom. There are chapters on specific aspects of reading instruction -- familiar ones, like phonemic awareness, vocabulary and comprehension, but also ones on advanced word reading skills (sometimes a big hurdle for children in 4th and 5th grades) and fluency. There are no long-winded, turgid pages of text to plow through: every chapter is beautifully laid out, in a Q and A format (also included in the table of contents)). There are repeated sections in various chapters focusing on Differentiating Instruction, Reflective Practice, Using Technology, Research to Practice, Bridging the Gap, Effective Teacher at Work, Seizing the Teachable moment, etc. Each of these highlights an effective and PRACTICAL approach to the matter at hand.

The authors include numerous examples, teaching formats that illustrate how to introduce and structure a lesson, how to give students effective feedback and assess progress, and many more of the small details that go into effective teacher-student interaction. Illustrative examples and case studies, applications, examples of how to use a variety of strategies and resources, from Word Walls to advance organizers, even more effectively. There are links to valuable web-based resources and informative articles, and an excellent DVD enclosed with the book that briefly illustrates a number of different teacher-led activities.

For those who are not that tech-savvy, there's a very clear and easy-to-follow guide that shows you how to make graphs of student progress with Excel. It's quick and rewarding! Model lessons and many examples of strategies, resources and teaching techniques and how to use them make this a must-have book. It's nicely printed with varying typefaces and text boxes, easy to read, and lies flat if you are wanting to use it in class and refer back to it.

While it is an excellent book for newer teachers, it has plenty of useful and informative content for experienced ones, and references at the end of each chapter for those wanting to further their knowledge. The lucidity of the writing, and the clear layout and comprehensive, grounded-in-reality coverage of all the essential components of reading (including motivating readers and application to writing) are what make this book stand out head and shoulders above many others in the field.

I think I own nearly all the major books on teaching reading, and many of them are also excellent, but this is one that I feel every committed classroom practitioner should have. I keep coming back to it over and over.

"Regaining Control: When Love Becomes Prison" by Tami Brady is an unusual guide to the treacherous terrain of codependence. The author is not a mental health professional. Everything she writes about she has experienced first-hand. The book is a great stand-alone guide to dependence in relationships, how to identify it, and how to cope with it. It is brimming with exercises and lists of useful resources, including an impressive array of online help and information Websites. The author's advice emerges from a coherent philosophy of life and this lends the book pragmatic sagacity that many other, far heftier tomes, lack. Recommended.

Reviewed by Vicki Landes for Reader Views (2/07)

In a society where we think equality is a given, Tami Brady opens eyes. She begins her book, "Regaining Control: When Love Becomes a Prison" with some shocking statistics - "only 1% of the world's assets are held in the name of women" and "over half of the women of this generation do not themselves receive, from either employment or the state, enough to `get by'." When considering these statements, it's not hard to understand why many women stay in damaging relationships for the sake of financial security. Unfortunately, this only worsens their self-esteem, keeps the cycle of abuse going, and teaches the next generation that it's okay to live a degrading situation.

"Regaining Control: When Love Becomes a Prison" is workbook that takes an in-depth look at what's holding you back and how you can reclaim your self-confidence. Beautifully written in a gentle, guiding tone, Brady's text digs into the triggers that cause dependence problems. With these answers in hand, the reader utilizes her easy-to-follow steps for an individualized recovery.

Probably the most surprising part of this book is learning that not all abuse and devaluing behavior is intentional. Brady notes, "Sometimes, even people with the best of intentions unwittingly and unknowingly help eat away at our self worth. In their minds, they are just helping out in times of trouble or are supporting you..." For those that see abuse as entirely intended this is truly an unexpected realization. Although when considering those situations where the mistreatment is deliberate, Brady includes additional resources for domestic violence, emergency contacts, support groups, and further research.

"Regaining Control" is meant for women who are trapped in dependent relationships - whether that relationship is with a controlling spouse, family member, or a caregiver. This dependence can stem from financial problems, validation for self worth, help for mobility issues, or emotional support and isolating oneself from the rest of the world. Women with any combination of these issues would greatly benefit from contemplating the soul-searching questions in this workbook.

"Regaining Control" is a fresh alternative in a sea of self-help books. Brady shows how to break free of a debilitating prison of low self-esteem while strengthening the independent woman waiting to be released Her thought-provoking questions lead her readers to gain independence, confidence, and get their lives back on the road it was meant to take. Hope is within - and Brady has the keys.

Wendell's book is an important contribution to the emerging field of disability studies because it includes women's perspectives on disability. This may not seem to be a significant contribution, but it should be understood that since disability has largely been constructed within a medical framework, the experiences of women with disabilities have been ignored, discounted, and obliterated.

What's even better is that Wendell teaches us how to think about disability and feminism without having the bends over postmodernism or the French feminists.

In other words, the book is readable. I highly recommend it.

Susan Wendel examines how disability is inherently a sociopolitical construction. Replacing previous medical models, Wendel persuasively argues that women with disabilities are a multiply oppressed class, echoing the works of Gloria Anzaldua...etc.

Because prioritizing among disability, sex and other idenities is impossible, Wendel instead advances an analysis which intergrates all components into a social justice tool.

Some women with disabilities also desire to become mothers, but the state maintains (albeit in more 'covert' language than eugenics statues) restrictions against the sexuality of women with disabilities. The idea that women with disabilities are also sexual beings remains a shocking concept.

For all of society's theoretical tolerance, it still panics whenever people do not have 'perfect bodies' especially because of disability. Since women still are judged by their bodies, this schema ultimately amplifies our subordination...and inadvertently provides resistance incentive.

Reviewed by Cathy Yanda for Reader Views (10/06)

Diana Lund's story cannot help but inspire anyone who reads "Remind Me Why I'm Here." As the reader is increasingly drawn into her daily life, one quickly realizes how different her life has become. One day she is a top-ranked project manager; the next, she is struggling to be able to focus on her computer monitor. One day she is able to keep track of work and social commitments; the next she sits and cannot concentrate on even one small task. One day she is a woman in love, thinking of marriage and children; the next she is dependant on him for everything from grocery shopping to keeping appointments straight. One day she is a loving daughter; the next she doesn't recognize her mother in a restaurant. There is much more.

As the reader walks with Diana in her daily life, watching her trying to fit into her previous work and social life, continuing to do her best to research what is going on with her, one can't help but develop great respect for this remarkable woman. This is not only a memoir. It is an eye opening look into something that could happen to any of us. Diana learns to set the laundry basket in the middle of the living room floor to remind her that she has a load of laundry in the washing machine. She puts a sign in the kitchen to remind herself to set a timer when she puts food on the stove so it will not burn. She discloses many other tricks that could be helpful to those who are aging.

Over time, Diana's relationship with her boyfriend fizzles, she loses her job, and she loses track of her finances. Many of us would have given up on things. She did not. She worked harder to learn all she could, to write things down because she knew wouldn't remember them, and to keep the journal that eventually contributed to this book. Diana, now in love with a wonderful man, writes, "I am at peace with who I am. My new life of work brings joy, creativity and goodness to me, as does my partner-for-life." She is not a whisper of the woman she was before the injury, but truly a shouting voice for those who have endured brain trauma. "Remind Me Why I'm Here" is beautifully written and should be in the waiting area of every neurologist. Personally, I am eager to read her second memoir.

"Respect requires a memory." This is just one discovery Diana Lund makes during her journey as a brain-injured individual. This book is amazing on many levels. In Remind Me Why I'm Here, the author tells the inside story of brain injury. It is filled with minute detail cataloging the day-to-day progression of how her life changed after what she thought was a relatively minor car accident.

Even though the author has a degree in psychology, this is not an essay final, nor is it a thesis paper. Without question, however, it is extremely useful material for psychologists, neurologists and those associated with rehabilitative medicine. Even if you are not in these fields of study, it makes for interesting reading. Diana Lund is a truly unique individual. Clearly an intelligent, educated and highly capable woman, she started a journal of all of her actions shortly after the accident when she noticed her odd and changed behavior. Had she not done this, it seems this book would have been impossible to write. She recalls things as silly as leaving the milk on the counter instead of returning it to the refrigerator, as well as things more alarming, like having no memory of a conversation had only five minutes prior. She burned her food. She took hours to write simple notes. Her IQ dropped 30 points. She couldn't get through her in-box at work, and she even had difficulty recognizing her own mother. Through this personal and brave journey, the reader not only gains respect for the fragility of what we perceive to be a normal life, but also the importance of emotional support for the disabled.

It is a well-written medical and psychological journey of discovery and rediscovery and should be required reading for anyone associated with a brain-injured individual.

As a mother of a child with CP, I found this book to be a wonderful resource offering both solid advise and spiritual hope. Living with a child with a disability is often difficult, and the author truly understands those negative feelings and challenges, and really knows how to help the reader overcome the challenges with positive action, changes of emotional strategies, and looking in the right places for the support that is needed.

I recommend this book not only for anyone with a disabled child or family member, but for anyone dealing with a disability in their extended family or circle of friends because the advise and hope it provides goes beyond the immediate family.
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The Resilient Family: Living With Your Child's Illness Or Disability by rehabilitation counseling experts Paul W. Power & Arthur Dell Orto, is a practical, "reader friendly" instructional guide for families in crisis, addressing immediate and long-term problems, including the means to work with and overcome them. The Resilient Family expertly and accessibly addresses such issues as how to handle stress, the process of working with professionals, successful means of coping with crises, and more. The Resilient Family is a general yet highly useful resource for balancing both emotional and physical difficulties and especially recommended reading for families having children with long-term special needs.