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Featured Books: Special Needs

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The Adolescent and Adult Neuro-diversity Handbook: Asperger Syndrome, ADHD, Dyslexia, Dyspraxia and Related Conditions. Sarah Hendrickx, $24.95

The Adolescent and Adult Neuro-Diversity Handbook is a handy first-reference point guide to the full range of developmental conditions as they affect adolescents and adults. Each chapter focuses on a different condition, describing its history, causes and characteristics, its implications for the individual, diagnosis and assessment, treatments and approaches, and strategies for providing support and self-support. A wide range of conditions are covered, including Autistic Spectrum Disorders, Dyslexia, Dyspraxia, ADHD, OCD, Tourette's and Anxiety Disorders.


Alphabet Kids — From ADD to Zellweger Syndrome: a Guide to Developmental, Neurobiological and Psychological Disorders for Parents and Professionals. Robbie Woliver, $24.95

From ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) to ZS (Zellweger Syndrome) there seems to be an alphabet disorder for almost every behavior, from those caused by serious, rare genetic diseases to more common learning disabilities that hinder children's academic and social progress. This comprehensive, easy-to-read go-to guide will help parents to sort through all the interconnected childhood developmental, neurobiological and psychological disorders and serve as a roadmap to help start the families' journey for correct diagnoses, effective treatment and better understanding of their Alphabet Kids.


Alternate Assessment for Students with Significant Cognitive Disabilities: an Educator’s Guide. Harold Kleinert & Jacqui Farmer Kearns, et al, $43.95

To support K–12 students with significant disabilities and get an accurate picture of their skills and knowledge, schools need to implement effective alternate assessment based on alternate achievement standards (AA-AAS). To help educators ensure a high-quality inclusive education for students with disabilities, the authors include detailed, step-by-step examples of modified lessons in math, reading, science, and social studies. Readers will see how instruction and assessment can be adapted for students of all ages with a wide range of abilities and communication needs.

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Anger Management: an Anger Management Training Package for Individuals with Disabilities. Hrepsime Gulbenkoglu & Nick Hagiliassis, $61.95

Many people with intellectual disabilities have difficulty managing feelings of anger. Anger Management is a complete training package for helping people with intellectual or physical disabilities deal with anger in constructive, effective ways.

The training program consists of 12 fully-scripted sessions dealing with topics such as recognizing feelings of anger, learning to relax and think calmly, and being assertive and handling problems competently. Each session follows a standard format, including introductions, reviews of previous sessions, and explanations. Handouts, facilitator's script and evaluation sheets are provided for each session.

Designed specifically for people with intellectual disabilities, but suitable for people with physical disabilities too, this training package provides relevant and authoritative information and exercises.


Animals in Our Lives: Human-Animal Interaction in Family, Community and Therapeutic Settings. Peggy McCardle, Sandra McCune, James Griffin $49.50

What do we know about the benefits of human–animal interaction (HAI) — and what future research needs to be done to ensure high-quality, evidence-based practices? This book is a resource that presents the latest research on the positive effects of animal therapies and interactions on child health and development.

Gathering contributions from the leading experts in the field, this state-of-the-art research volume is essential for anyone interested in the impact animals have on child development, whether through interaction with pets or through more formal interventions like therapeutic horseback riding or assistance dogs. Program administrators, researchers, and practitioners will explore the current evidence on:

  • how children with disabilities — including autism — can benefit from animal therapies
  • how animals can strengthen empathy, trust, relationships, and other hallmarks of social competence
  • why animal-assisted intervention is valuable for children with mental health issues and physical illnesses
  • how animals in classrooms can motivate children to learn and enhance a wide range of developmental skills
  • which key factors help ensure ethical HAI practices
  • how to reduce risks associated with child–animal interactions, including allergies, bites, and viruses
  • why pet ownership can benefit both a child and the whole family

Whether used as a text or as a reference for researchers and decision makers (or as a source of information for pet owners and parents), this book will help readers take the first important steps toward ethical, evidence-based HAI practices that really improve child outcomes.

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Apps for Autism: a Must-Have Resource for the Special Needs Community. Lois Jean Brady, $31.95

An essential guide to over 200 effective Apps for improving communication, behavior, social skills and more.


The Art of Autism: Shifting Perceptions. Debra Hosseini, edited by Keri Bowers, $41.95

Much more than an art book, THE ART OF AUTISM: SHIFTING PERCEPTIONS has stories of overcoming challenges, inspiration, and hope. 77 visual artists and poets on the autism spectrum from around the globe are featured in this remarkable doorway into the talents and imagination of people with autism. 


The ASD Workbook: Understanding Your Autism Spectrum Disorder. Penny Kershaw, $27.95 (Ages 10 and up)

A diagnosis of an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) can be confusing and overwhelming for all involved, and it can be difficult for parents to know how best to approach the subject with their child. This easy-to-use interactive workbook gives parents the help they need to explain ASDs to their child and provide practical and emotional support following diagnosis.

Parents are invited to work through each chapter with their child as they grow older and go through adolescence, encouraging them to talk through how the ASD affects each area of their life, from making friends to problem-solving to planning a career. The information and advice is presented in a clear and positive way to help both parent and child understand more about what the diagnosis means for them. As the workbook is completed an invaluable record of development will be created for parent and child to look back on together.

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The Assessment of Functional Living Skills (AFLS™). James Partington & Michael Mueller, $159.95 (Complete Set Bundle)

The AFLS™ is comprised of The AFLS™ Guide and three unique assessment protocols that assess functional, practical, and essential skills of everyday life.  Although each assessment protocol can be used as a stand-alone assessment, all protocols are different modules of an extended assessment that exists on a continuum spanning throughout a learner’s life in home, school, and community settings.  Each module is different yet each is connected by unifying themes and overarching goals for maximizing a learner’s freedom, independence, and opportunities. The skills assessed will vary depending on the learner’s age, level of disability, language ability, living arrangements, school setting, and other considerations. 

The AFLS ™ Guide provides information about the features of the AFLS™, how to correctly score items, and how to develop program goals and objectives that clearly define and target the needs of the learner. The AFLS™ Protocols are used to score performance on the task items that allow for the tracking of a variety of specific skills that are included in each assessment.  Each protocol includes a set of grids that comprise a skills tracking system that makes it possible to observe and document the learner’s progress in the acquisition of skills.

The AFLS Complete Set Bundle includes one each of the following:

  • AFLS™ Guide
  • AFLS™ Basic Living Skills Assessment Protocol
  • AFLS™ Home Skills Assessment Protocol
  • AFLS™ Community Participation Skills Assessment Protocol

Assistive Technology: What Every Educator Needs to Know. Brian Friedlander, $13.95 (Laminated Reference Guide)

The difference between academic success and failure for students with disabilities may be the "access" to the general education curriculum that AT provides. A valuable tool for all educators working with special needs populations. This reference guide includes information on a wide range of AT hardware and software solutions to address a number of areas including Communication, Writing, Organization, Reading and Multimedia.


 

Autism and Loss. Rachel Forrester-Jones & Sarah Broadhurst, $61.95

People with autism often experience difficulty in understanding and expressing their emotions and react to losses in different ways or in ways that others do not understand. In order to provide effective support, caregivers need to have the understanding, the skills and appropriate resources to work through these emotional reactions with them. Autism and Loss is a complete resource that covers a variety of kinds of loss, including bereavement, loss of friends or staff, loss of home or possessions and loss of health.

Rooted in the latest research on loss and autism, yet written in an accessible style, the resource includes a wealth of factsheets and practical tools that provide formal and informal caregivers with authoritative, tried and tested guidance.

This is an essential resource for professional and informal caregivers working with people with autism who are coping with any kind of loss.

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Autism and Other Neurodevelopmental Disorders. Robin Hansen & Sally Rogers, Editors, $69.95

The accelerating advancement in research in neurodevelopmental disorders — including autism spectrum disorders, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, learning disorders, and more — has enormous implications for clinical practice. AUTISM AND OTHER NEURODEVELOPMENTAL DISORDERS provides clinicians with up-to-date information on the impact these advances have on the standard of care in the range of disorders commonly encountered by both primary and subspecialist physicians. The authors, affiliated with the UC-Davis MIND Institute, explain the latest findings from the biological, behavioral, and clinical sciences in ways that are accessible to clinicians and helpful to patients and their families.

  • Each chapter addresses signs and symptoms (including onset and developmental course); epidemiology and etiology (including known genetic and environmental contributors, biological mechanisms and relevant animal models); diagnostic criteria; differential diagnosis and co-morbidities; and evidence-based interventions.
  • Practical focus on psychological/behavioral and medical issues, as well as other supports and resources for patients, their families, and the community.
  • Emphasis on current, ongoing research that holds promise for future clinical care.
  • Identification of new research directions and needs.
  • A comprehensive chapter devoted to the effects each of the neurodevelopmental disorders has on language and social communication.
  • Replete with tables, illustrative figures, key points, and suggestions for further reading.

Autism Spectrum Disorders: What Every Parent Needs to Know. Alan Rosenblatt & Paul Carbone, Editors, $16.95

From autism and Asperger's syndrome through pervasive developmental disorders, this authoritative reference examines how autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) are defined and diagnosed and reviews the most current behavioral and developmental therapy treatments available. Through this evidence-based guide, which reflects the new diagnostic thinking from the American Psychiatric Association, parents and caregivers will learn about the symptoms and the incidence of ASDs, screening tools, the roles of complementary and alternative medicine, and what to expect as these children grow into adolescence and beyond. They will also gain insight into how to tap into educational resources and community services and how to access care. In addition to the detailed findings and expert advice, real-life stories included in each chapter help diffuse the isolation many parents experience and offer inspiration and support.


The Autistic Brain: Thinking Across the Spectrum. Temple Grandin & Richard Panek, $32.95

When Temple Grandin was born in 1947, autism had only just been named. Today it is more prevalent than ever, with one in 88 children diagnosed on the spectrum. And our thinking about it has undergone a transformation in her lifetime: Autism studies have moved from the realm of psychology to neurology and genetics, and there is far more hope today than ever before thanks to groundbreaking new research into causes and treatments. Now Temple Grandin reports from the forefront of autism science, bringing her singular perspective to a thrilling journey into the heart of the autism revolution.

Weaving her own experience with remarkable new discoveries, Grandin introduces the neuroimaging advances and genetic research that link brain science to behavior, even sharing her own brain scan to show us which anomalies might explain common symptoms. We meet the scientists and self-advocates who are exploring innovative theories of what causes autism and how we can diagnose and best treat it. Grandin also highlights long-ignored sensory problems and the transformative effects we can have by treating autism symptom by symptom, rather than with an umbrella diagnosis. Most exciting, she argues that raising and educating kids on the spectrum isn’t just a matter of focusing on their weaknesses; in the science that reveals their long-overlooked strengths she shows us new ways to foster their unique contributions. From the “aspies” in Silicon Valley to the five-year-old without language, Grandin understands the true meaning of the word spectrum. THE AUTISTIC BRAIN is essential reading from the most respected and beloved voices in the field.

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Becoming Verbal with Childhood Apraxia: New Insights on Piaget for Today's Therapy. Pam Marshalla, $24.95

This book helps therapists and parents learn how to help children become more vocal, verbal, communicative, imitative and interactive. Based on the original writings of Jean Piaget and Pam Marshalla's three decades of clinical work with children, it contains profound yet practical tools for helping children learn to talk.

Teach your child to speak up, speak out, play with sounds and words, engage in dialogue, imitate, and become much more expressive. If you are looking for a place to begin reading about how to help a young child with a severe expressive speech delay or disorder, this is it.


Big Picture Thinking: Using Central Coherence Theory to Support Social Skills — a Book for Students. Aileen Zeitz Collucci, $26.95

Many people who have difficulties with social cognition, including those on the autism spectrum, are not able to see the "big picture" of a situation. That is, they tend to focus, or even "hyper-focus," on the details within the larger whole of a concept, conversation, story, picture or situation, and have difficulty recognizing the main idea, topic or general point. BIG PICTURE THINKING was written to help students with cognitive deficits "see" how individual pieces of social information fit into a larger context, so that they may begin to become "big picture thinkers" and, therefore be more successful.  This practical and effective model is designed to be used by children, teens and young adults.


Brain (Foam Rubber). $4.75

Squeezing these small, blue foam rubber brains encourages kids to think more flexibly and abstractly about the size of their problems and the choices they are making. Used in lessons that encourage flexible thinking, including those in the Superflex comics and Thinking about YOU Thinking about ME, the brains offer a fun way to think about their social thinking and related skills. "Social Thinking is Flexible Thinking" is inscribed on the brains to reinforce learning.

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The Brain That Changes Itself: Stories of Personal Triumph from the Frontiers of Brain Science. Norman Doidge, $19.50

Psychiatrist and psychoanalyst Norman Doidge traveled the country to meet both the brilliant scientists championing neuroplasticity and the people whose lives they’ve transformed—people whose mental limitations or brain damage were seen as unalterable. Using these marvelous stories to probe mysteries of the body, emotion, love, sex, culture, and education, Dr. Doidge has written an immensely moving, inspiring book that will permanently alter the way we look at our brains, human nature, and human potential.


Breakthrough Parenting for Children with Special Needs: Raising the Bar of Expectations. Judy Winter, $17.99

Breakthrough Parenting for Children with Special Needs challenges families and professionals to help children with special needs to reach their full potential by using a proven motivational, how-to approach. This groundbreaking and inspiring book provides detailed information on how to let go of the “perfect-baby” dream, face and resolve grief, avoid the no-false-hope syndrome, access early intervention services, and avoid the use of limiting and outdated labels. Also included are specific guidelines for working with professionals, understanding the law and inclusion and planning for the future.


Bright Not Broken — Gifted Kids, ADHD and Autism: Why Twice-Exceptional Children are Stuck and How to Help Them. Diane Kennedy & Rebecca Banks, $29.95

The gifts and talents of some of our most brilliant kids may never be recognized because these children fall into a group known as twice exceptional. Twice exceptional kids are both gifted and diagnosed with a disability — often ADHD or an Autism Spectrum Disorder — leading teachers and parents to overlook the child's talents and focus solely on his weaknesses. Too often, these children get lost in an endless cycle of chasing diagnostic labels and are never given the tools to fully realize their own potential.

BRIGHT NOT BROKEN sheds new light on this vibrant population by identifying who twice exceptional children are and taking an unflinching look at why they're stuck. The first work to boldly examine the widespread misdiagnosis and controversies that arise from our current diagnostic system, it serves as a wake-up call for parents and professionals to question why our mental health and education systems are failing our brightest children. Most importantly, the authors show what we can do to help these exceptional children, providing a whole child model for parents and educators to strengthen and develop a child's innate gifts while also intervening to support the deficits.

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Can I Tell You about Selective Mutism? A Guide for Friends, Family and Professionals. Maggie Johnson & Alison Wintgens, $13.95

Meet Hannah — a young girl with selective mutism (SM). Hannah invites readers to learn about selective mutism from her perspective, helping them to understand what it is, what it feels like to have SM, and how they can help.

This illustrated book is packed with accessible information and will be an ideal introduction to selective mutism. It shows family, friends and teachers how they can support a child with the condition and is also a good place to start when encouraging children with SM to talk about how it affects them.


Cara's Kit: Creating Adaptations for Routines and Activities. Phillippa Campbell, Suzanne Milbourne & Alexis Kennedy, $27.95

To make sure all toddlers in your early childhood program are participating, learning, and thriving, you need to master the art of choosing and using effective adaptations. CARA's Kit is a guidebook and CD-ROM brimming with step-by-step ideas for adapting environments, activities, and materials for children 18 to 36 months. You'll use this complete kit to:

  • implement adaptations in key areas: environment, daily schedule, activities/routines, materials, and requirements or instruction
  • increase engagement and participation for all children, including those with disabilities, challenging behaviors, and other special needs
  • create and use adaptations anywhere — in a home, a child care center, or any other type of early childhood setting
  • improve every aspect of toddlers' development, including physical, social, emotional, communication, and cognitive growth
  • make daily activities run smoothly by addressing children's everyday challenges

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Career Counseling for People with Disabilities: a Practical Guide to Finding Employment. Karen Wolffe, $43.95

Useful as a primary text for rehabilitation counseling, educational psychology, and special education courses, CAREER COUNSELING FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES is also a resource for counselors and educators who are practicing in rehabilitation or education settings.

The book is divided into four sections: Introductory Materials; Career Counseling Content Areas; Career Counseling for Clients with Differing Abilities; and Future Issues and Resources. It includes reproducible handouts related to each of the career counseling content areas: self-awareness, vocational selection, job seeking skills, job maintenance skills, and job search skills.


Carly’s Voice: Breaking Through Autism. Arthur Fleischmann, with Carly Fleischmann, $18.99

At the age of two, Carly Fleischmann was diagnosed with severe autism and an oral motor condition that prevented her from speaking. Doctors predicted that she would never intellectually develop beyond the abilities of a small child. Although she made some progress after years of intensive behavioral and communication therapy, Carly remained largely unreachable. Then, at the age of ten, she had a breakthrough. While working with her devoted therapists Howie and Barb, Carly reached over to their laptop and typed in “HELP TEETH HURT,” much to everyone’s astonishment.

This was the beginning of Carly’s journey toward self-realization. Although Carly still struggles with all the symptoms of autism, which she describes with uncanny accuracy and detail, she now has regular, witty, and profound conversations on the computer with her family, her therapists, and the many thousands of people who follow her via her blog, Facebook, and Twitter.


Challenge Me! Speech and Communication Cards. Amanda Elliott, Illustrated by David Kemp, $25.95 (ages 3-12)

The Challenge Me! Speech and Communication Cards provide fun and dynamic challenges for children aged 3-12 with any form of speech problem. The cards provide a variety of fun activities designed to improve breathing techniques and use of speech apparatus such as the mouth, tongue and nose; control extra salivation; moderate volume, tempo, rhythm and intonation of speech; and improve sound production and clarity of words and sentences. These user-friendly activities will make speech training enjoyable for both children and their facilitators and are great for use in the classroom, at home, on a one-to-one basis or with a group of children.

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Challenging Kids, Challenged Teachers: Teaching Students with Tourette’s, Bipolar Disorder, Executive Dysfunction, OCD, ADHD and More. Leslie Packer & Sheryl Pruitt, $34.95

Current estimates indicate that 20% of school-aged children, K-12, have one or more neurological conditions, and of these, most have multiple diagnoses.

Challenging Kids, Challenged Teachers is an educator's go-to source for creating a supportive environment to successfully teach children with multiple neurological disorders including Tourette's Syndrome, OCD, ADHD, LD, Nonverbal Learning Disability, Pervasive Developmental Disorders, Asperger's Syndrome, Anxiety Disorders, Depression, Executive Dysfunction, Sensory Processing Disorder, Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorder Associated with Strep (PANDAS), Bipolar Disorder, "Storms" or "Rages", Oppositional Defiant Disorder, and Sleep Problems. Parents, school psychologists, and social workers will also find this book essential reading.

The wealth of practical tools and strategies discussed in this book are founded on the authors' considerable experience treating children with neurological disorders in their private practices and conducting training workshops for teachers, as well as parenting their own children with multiple diagnoses. Full of charts, graphs, lists, quotes, and vignettes, this well-organized resource makes it easy for busy teachers to find the information they need, including:

  • Understanding neurological disorders and why they may overlap, the behaviors they cause, and sanity-saving premises about understanding these students
  • Each disorder's characteristics, impacts on academics, behavior & social relationships, teacher/student-friendly strategies, other conditions to be on the lookout for
  • Conditions commonly observed in students with neurological disorders such as handwriting & visual-motor integration issues, language deficits, and difficulties with written expression, math calculation, reading, and more
  • Assistive technology, testing accommodations, homework issues, interventions to address challenging behaviors, school-based related services, positive school-home collaboration, and helping children with peer relationships

Challenging Kids, Challenged Teachers also includes a glossary and resources, and its appendix of screening tools, forms, and checklists are on the accompanying CD-ROM for easy reproduction.


A Child in Pain: What Health Professionals Can Do to Help. Leora Kuttner, $52.95

This comprehensive book is designed to help child health professionals of all disciplines gain understanding and skill in how to approach and treat children’s pain, and help children understand and cope with their own pain. The book examines children’s fears and anxieties that accompany their need for pain relief, and gives health professionals communications skills and words to calm these fears.

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Children with Disabilities, 7th Edition. Mark Batshaw, Nancy Roizen & Gaetano Lotrecchiano, $87.95

This highly anticipated new edition is the textbook of choice for courses on disability. The internationally respected editors bring together a who's who of contributors in this definitive compendium of information about developmental, clinical, family, education, and intervention issues. WHAT'S NEW:

  • All-new chapters on diagnosis, neuropsychological assessment, "new" disabilities faced by survivors of previously fatal disorders, and complementary and alternative medicine
  • New multimedia instructor materials online, including high-quality downloadable medical illustrations
  • Expanded chapters on autism and ADHD
  • New developments in neuroscience, genetics, and imaging
  • Greater focus on interdisciplinary collaboration
  • Thoroughly updated content in every chapter
  • PowerPoint slides for each chapter, easy to customize for courses

CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES retains and strengthens the student-friendly features of previous editions: concise and accessible chapters, a helpful glossary, chapter overviews, case studies that bring key concepts to life, extensive cross-referencing to make information easy to find, and resource lists for every topic. And with the complete package of new multimedia instructor materials, instructors will use this textbook effectively in their courses and prepare students for years of successful practice. An unparalleled text from the leading voices in the disability field, CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES is the cornerstone resource future professionals will keep year after year supporting their important work with children and families.


Children with School Problems: a Physician’s Manual. Debra Andrews & William Mahoney, Editors, $60.00

Doctors must be able to identify, diagnose, treat, and manage children who are struggling in school. The first book specifically tailored for the needs of physicians working with kids with learning disabilities, CHILDREN WITH SCHOOL PROBLEMS: A PHYSICIAN'S MANUAL covers such important areas as child development, diagnosing learning disabilities (including data gathering, screening and assessment, and physical examinations), management (medication, behavioral management, and educational interventions), and prevention (including literacy promotion).

Written by trusted experts from the Canadian Paediatric Society, CHILDREN WITH SCHOOL PROBLEMS is filled with practical tools and resources that physicians—including paediatricians, family physicians, and paediatric learners—can use to diagnose and treat children with learning disabilities.


Children with Seizures: a Guide for Parents, Teachers and Other Professionals. Martin Kutscher, $21.95

This concise, accessible handbook for families, friends and carers of children with seizures provides all the information they need to approach seizures from a position of strength … This reassuring, informal, and upbeat book will reinforce and help clarify the discussion with the child’s treating medical professional.


Child's Mind: How Mindfulness Can Help Our Children Be More Focused, Calm & Relaxed. Christopher Willard, $20.50

Psychotherapist Christopher Willard provides an overview of mindfulness and meditation techniques, clear and detailed exercises designed for individuals and groups, and personal stories that demonstrate the ability of mindfulness to empower children and adolescents. Child's Mind is an invaluable resource for teaching our children that confidence and power comes from the ability to be aware of and comfortable with ourselves and our surroundings.

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The Choices Game: Staying Safe in Social Situations. Christopher McMaster, $43.95

This fun, interactive game teaches vulnerable young people how to make positive choices and develop the social skills they need to stay safe in school and in the wider community.


Chronic Health-Related Disorders in Children: Collaborative Medical and Psychoeducational Interventions. LeAdelle Phelps, editor. $91.50

This engagingly written text provides current diagnostic and treatment information on a broad range of chronic health-related disorders that tend to be first diagnosed in childhood. A group of widely recognized psychologists and experts in their respective fields address common ailments, such as intestinal and respiratory disorders, as well as less frequent but challenging disorders such as neurocutaneous syndromes and disorders arising from sex chromosome anomalies. Two introductory chapters frame the overarching themes for psychologists by discussing contemporary issues in collaborative practice and service delivery. Fourteen chapters provide concise and current reviews of specific disorders, including cancer, kidney disease, endocrine disorders, and craniofacial anomalies. Each chapter defines the disorder, reviews etiology and risk factors, and provides prevalence data; outlines the behavioral, medical, psycho-educational, and socio-emotional consequences of the disorder; and presents evidence-based interventions that are intended to mitigate the negative outcomes of the disorder and improve the life-long functioning of children with chronic health-related disorders. The comprehensive medical discussions are tailored for psychologists.


Cinderella's Magical Wheelchair. Jewel Kats, illustrated by Richa Kinra, $18.95

In this updated version of the Cinderella tale, Cinderella uses her own abilities to build a future for herself. This is a strong, modern-day story of a young woman with dreams, and the strength to overcome obstacles that will inspire children of all ages and abilities.

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Combating Violence & Abuse of People with Disabilities: a Call to Action. Nancy Fitzsimmons, $40.50

People with disabilities are four to ten times more likely to experience violence and abuse than people without disabilities. This book empowers everyone — professionals, families, and self-advocates alike — to solve and prevent this widespread problem. In clear and straightforward language, abuse prevention educator Nancy Fitzsimons calls readers to action and gives them the no-nonsense guidance they need to stop violence and abuse before they start.

An eye-opening sourcebook for professionals and a must-share with anyone who has a disability, this book is the key to helping people with disabilities fight violence and abuse—and take charge of their bodies and lives.


The Common Sense Guide to Your Child’s Special Needs. Louis Pellegrino, $26.95

What does it mean when a child is having difficulty with developmental milestones like walking, talking, and learning to read and write? What are the signs that a disability might be present, and what next steps can parents take to help their child?

Pediatrician Louis Pellegrino gives you clear and down-to-earth answers in this new version of the trusted bestseller When Your Child Has a Disability. Now streamlined and reorganized by key developmental milestones rather than by disability, this book responds perfectly to the needs of parents who don't have a diagnosis yet or want to explore challenges common across disabilities. With reassuring warmth, good humor, and candor, Dr. Pellegrino offers practical guidance on what it means and what to do next when a child struggles with:

  • speech and language development
  • motor skills development
  • daily living skills
  • social skills
  • behavioral control and attention
  • learning and cognitive development
  • vision, hearing, and sensory processing
  • special medical issues

A go-to guide for families, and a highly accessible resource for professionals, this book will be a mainstay reference for everyone who picks it up. Keep it at your fingertips for a great developmental primer and the guidance you need to take first steps toward resolving a child's challenges.


Diary of a Social Detective: Real-Life Tales of Mystery, Intrigue and Interpersonal Adventure. Jeffrey Jessum, $21.50

In the proud tradition of super-sleuths everywhere, Johnny excels at solving the mysteries of the social world. Follow along with these clever stories and help him figure out the clues!

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Different Speeds and Different Needs: How to Teach Sports to Every Kid. Gary Barber, $32.95

This appealing book demonstrates how practitioners can put excitement and inspiration into the learning process and to support the creative capacities of young children. Involvement in sports can be an empowering and enriching experience for all children. But how can children with different learning needs and physical abilities break through barriers and stereotypes on the playing field to find acceptance and success? This comprehensive guide shows K–12 teachers and coaches how to establish, revamp, and sustain inclusive sports programs that benefit students with a wide range of special needs and challenges.

With this positive, motivating book — written by an expert who's also the father of two children with autism — teachers and coaches will have the guidance they need to develop inclusive sports programs where all children join in the fun.

Chapters address many different needs and abilities including:  

  • physical difficulties, coordination  and mobility challenges
  • ADHD , intellectual challenges, learning disabilities, and giftedness
  • behavioral challenges and bullying
  • autism spectrum disorders
  • Tourette syndrome
  • visual or hearing impairments
  • height and weight challenges, obesity, and eating disorders
  • anxiety, stress, and depression

Disability in Pregnancy and Childbirth. Edited by Stella Frances McKay-Moffat, $64.95

This title is directed primarily towards health care professionals outside of the United States, primary source for midwives, on the special needs of mothers with disabilities. Although an increasing number of women with disabilities are having children, the needs of this minority group are not always being effectively met. Disability in Pregnancy and Childbirth provides essential practical information to healthcare professionals working with this group.


Disabled Children Living Away from Home in Foster Care and Residential Settings. Claire Burns, editor, $41.95

Disabled children who are unable to live at home are doubly needy: in addition to their disability, they are deprived of normal family life. The book considers the key issues that must be addressed when disabled children move from the family home to new accommodation. It provides insights into the difficulties that these children face and looks at how the standards of care that they receive might be improved. It also makes suggestions about how professionals might work more effectively with each other and with the children's care-givers.

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Disability and Child Sexual Abuse: Lessons from Survivors’ Narratives for Effective Protection, Prevention and Treatment. Martina Higgins & John Swain, $43.95

Disability and Child Sexual Abuse examines the ways in which society places disabled children in situations of unacceptable risk, and how patterns of service delivery can contribute to the problem.

Through case vignettes and empirical research, the authors ask practitioners to scrutinize their current professional practice, exploring participants' experiences of hospitalization, education systems and local authorities. They consider the issue of who abuses and why, and highlight issues relating to the complexities involved in revisiting past experiences and confronting unwarranted and unwanted feelings of responsibility. The difficulty of recounting the abuse narrative is also examined within the research context.

Disconnected Kids: the Groundbreaking Brain Balance Program for Children with Autism, ADHD, Dyslexia and Other Neurological Disorders. Robert Melillo, $20.00

Dr. Robert Melillo brings a new understanding to the cause of autism, Asperger's syndrome, ADHD, dyslexia, and obsessive compulsive disorder with his revolutionary program. It has achieved fully documented results that have dramatically improved the quality of life for children and their families in every aspect: behavioral, emotional, academic, and social. Disconnected Kids shows parents how to use this drug-free approach at home, including:

  • Fully customizable exercises that target physical, sensory and academic performance
  • A behavior modification plan
  • Advice for identifying food sensitivities that play a hidden role
  • A follow-up program that helps to ensure lasting results

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Disorders of Sex Development: a Guide for Parents and Physicians. Amy Wisniewski, Steven Chernausek & Bradley Kropp, $20.50

Compassionately written by an experienced team of professionals, this book offers parents and families essential information about the causes, diagnosis, and treatment of disorders of sex development, or DSD. DSD refers to medical conditions, usually discovered at birth, in which there is disagreement between a person's genetic sex (i.e., chromosomes) and the appearance of the person's external or internal reproductive structures.

After their child is diagnosed with DSD, parents need answers to a host of questions. This concise book answers parents' questions in a reassuring and forthright way, giving affected individuals, their families, and their health care providers a current and evidence-based picture of DSD. It offers clear explanations of how newborns with DSD are evaluated, diagnosed, and treated; describes the different kinds of DSD; and pays close attention to both psychosocial and medical aspects of DSD. This guide also includes information about the importance of support groups and education for affected individuals and their families. DISORDERS OF SEX DEVELOPMENT gives the information they need to reach a meaningful understanding of their child's DSD and make informed decisions about their child's health.


Disorganized Children: a Guide for Parents and Professionals. Edited by Samuel Stein &Uttom Chowdhury, $34.95

Disorganized children may display a range of behaviours symptomatic of, for example, ADHD, autism and conduct disorders, but they often fail to meet all the criteria for a clear diagnosis. In this book, psychiatrists, speech, family and occupational therapists and neurodevelopment specialists present a range of behavioural and psychological strategies to help disorganized children improve concentration and performance in the classroom and deal with a variety of behaviour and social interaction difficulties … The combination of information, exercises and case studies makes this a valuable tool for use by parents, health care and teaching professionals, and the authors provide an insight into the mind of disorganized children and practical guidance on how best to help them achieve their full potential.

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Divorce and the Special Needs Child: a Guide for Parents. Margaret "Pegi" Price, $24.95

Going through a divorce is always tough, but when a child with special needs is involved it can be especially challenging. This book takes a clear and comprehensive look at every aspect of the legal divorce process, and addresses all of the legal issues that divorcing parents of children with special needs face. From agreeing upon child custody arrangements that meet the particular needs of the child, to making provision for child support payments, gathering together the documentation needed to prove a case, and dealing with financial issues such as debts and property distribution, no aspect of divorce is left uncovered. A set of checklists is included to ensure that parents consider everything they need to, and the book concludes with a useful list of further resources.

Written by an experienced family lawyer and divorced mother of a child with autism, this book offers much-needed guidance to divorcing parents of children with a variety of special needs.



DOWNS — the History of a Disability. David Wright, $24.95

For 150 years, Down Syndrome has constituted the archetypal mental disability, easily recognizable by distinct facial anomalies and physical stigmata. In a narrow medical sense, Down Syndrome is a common disorder caused by the presence of all or part of an extra 21st chromosome. But children and adults born with this chromosomal abnormality have an important collective history beyond their evident importance to the history of medical science.

David Wright, a Professor of History at the Institute for Health and Social Policy, McGill University, looks at the changing social responses to Down Syndrome from Medieval Europe to the present day in the first ever history of Down Syndrome.

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Drama Therapy and Storymaking in Special Education. Paula Crimmens, $29.95

Many aspects of drama therapy make it an ideal technique to use with students with special learning needs. This practical resource book for professionals covers the broad spectrum of students attending special needs schools, including those with attention deficit disorder, autism and Asperger syndrome, and students with multiple disabilities.


The Eating Game: Get Awesome Meals Everyday. Jean Nicols, $79.95

After more than 25 years working with children with Autism and witnessing the difficulties many of them have with eating healthy meals, Jean Nicols decided the time had come for a creative solution to this challenge. The result is The Eating Game, a unique planning kit based on recommendations made in Canada’s Food Guide, for children, adolescents and adults.

Using Velcro-backed pictures of a wide variety of foods form all the food groups, the kit creates a visual support that helps the user to actively participate in daily food planning.  The routine of using the kit to plan the next day’s meals provides a structure that should have positive results day after day and make mealtime more relaxing and rewarding for the whole family.

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The Energetic Brain: Understanding and Managing ADHD. Cecil Reynolds, Kimberley Vannest & Judith Harrison, $27.95

Accessible, reassuring and grounded in scientific research, THE ENERGETIC BRAIN offers parents, teachers, and adults with ADHD proven skills to solve learning and social problems and to promote success in all aspects of life.


The Essence of Interdependence: Building Community for Everyone. Al Condeluci, $29.50

By exploring the roles, expectations, behavior and stereotypes of people with and without disabilities, this manual lays the foundation for personal growth and larger societal change. Using a paradigm or model for interdependence, methods for moving from a medical model to a community approach show how to support the development, growth and independence of people with disabilities as integral figures in their communities.

Weaving together personal accounts and frank discussions with clinical expertise and social theory, this manual is engaging reading with a powerful message for all. Whether you are a clinician, educator, caregiver, family member or advocate, you will find this book engaging, insightful and challenging. Most of all, it will make you rethink your beliefs, attitudes and approach to inclusion of people with disabilities in your community.


The Ethics of Touch: Establishing and Maintaining Appropriate Boundaries In Service to People with Developmental Disabilities. Dave Hingsburger & Mary Harber, $113.95

All human beings need touch. We need to be held. We need to hold. This training package looks at the delicate issue of touch. Those who provide direct care to people with developmental disabilities are often asked to be in private places performing intimate services. From bathing to toileting to dressing, we are necessarily in close proximity to those we serve. Given this situation, it is imperative that staff be aware of how to provide these services while maintaining appropriate professional boundaries. How do we appropriately express affection toward those we serve? This video suggests new and healthy ways of helping people with disabilities fulfill their deepest needs. The package includes over two hours of lecture on 'touch', 'privacy' and 'boundaries' by renowned trainer Dave Hingsburger and a manual, co-authored by Mary Harber of the Sexual Health Resource Network, which staff can use to participate in the training.

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Eye of the Beholder: True Stories of People with Facial Differences. Laura Greenwald, $19.95

Find support, new insights, and valuable suggestions in managing difficult situations with your adopted adolescent.

Featuring true stories of people whose faces have been disfigured as a result of cancer, trauma, or a birth defect, Eye of the Beholder explores what it’s like to try and live an ordinary life behind a remarkable face. Although there are commonalities in every story, particularly regarding stigma, each person faces unique challenges and realizes different outcomes. These dramatic stories also feature medical and scientific advances, as well as the history of facial plastic surgery and face transplant. It is an excellent resource for people with facial differences and their families.


Far From the Tree: Parents, Children and the Search for Identity. Andrew Solomon, $39.99

Solomon’s startling proposition is that diversity is what unites us all. He writes about families coping with deafness, dwarfism, Down syndrome, autism, schizophrenia, multiple severe disabilities, with children who are prodigies, who are conceived in rape, who become criminals, who are transgender. While each of these characteristics is potentially isolating, the experience of difference within families is universal, as are the triumphs of love Solomon documents in every chapter.

All parenting turns on a crucial question: to what extent parents should accept their children for who they are, and to what extent they should help them become their best selves. Drawing on forty thousand pages of interview transcripts with more than three hundred families, Solomon mines the eloquence of ordinary people facing extreme challenges. Whether considering prenatal screening for genetic disorders, cochlear implants for the deaf, or gender reassignment surgery for transgender people, Solomon narrates a universal struggle toward compassion. Many families grow closer through caring for a challenging child; most discover supportive communities of others similarly affected; some are inspired to become advocates and activists, celebrating the very conditions they once feared. Woven into their courageous and affirming stories is Solomon’s journey to accepting his own identity, which culminated in his midlife decision, influenced by this research, to become a parent.

Elegantly reported by a spectacularly original thinker, FAR FROM THE TREE explores themes of generosity, acceptance, and tolerance—all rooted in the insight that love can transcend every prejudice. This crucial and revelatory book expands our definition of what it is to be human.

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Feeding Challenges in Young Children: Strategies and Specialized Interventions for Success. Deborah Bruns & Stacy Thompson, $43.95

Young children's feeding issues can be a complex challenge for early childhood professionals. This comprehensive resource provides early interventionists with specific, practical, research-based guidance on resolving a wide range of feeding issues. Ideal for a wide range of professionals working with young children birth–5 years across school, home, and child care settings, this book-and-CD set gives readers in-depth background information, how-to strategies, and helpful tools for addressing feeding challenges.

With almost 50 pages of printable tools, forms, and handouts, the included CD-ROM gives professionals practical help with every step of improving children's feeding issues. Professionals will get daily feeding logs, recordkeeping forms, quick-guides to feeding milestones and red flags, and tip sheets on critical issues such as breastfeeding, feeding team requirements, and positioning strategies and specialized feeding equipment.


Feeding and Nutrition for the Child with Special Needs: Handouts for Parents. Marsha Dunn Klein & Tracy Delaney, $165.00

When working with the feeding and nutrition concerns of parents children of all ages, OTs, therapists and home care visitors can refer to this library of handouts for information on how and what to feed children with special needs. Select from 195 reproducible, illustrated handouts that guide parents in their understanding and implementation of therapy programs. All handouts are cross-referenced with a list of related materials to supplement educational activities. Customize recommendations by adding individual information in the special instructions section provided in each handout.

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50 Great Activities for Children Who Stutter: Lessons, Insights and Ideas for Therapy Success. Peter Reitzes, $67.95

50 Great Activities for Children Who Stutter is a refreshing, practical manual for professionals working with school-age children who stutter … These fun activities make therapy both clear and successful. The presentation of the activities is down-to-earth, and includes step-by step directions, as well as delightful dialogue to use with the kids. You also get a number of activities specifically designed for therapy groups composed of children who stutter and children with language disorders.


The Firefly Junior Visual Dictionary. Jean-Claude Corbeil & Ariane Archambault, $26.95

With brief encyclopedic introductions, up-to-date terminology and detailed illustrations, this unique and practical reference allows you to name and describe objects accurately and easily.


FISH: Functional Independence Skills Handbook. William Killion, $84.95 (Complete FISH Kit includes the Assessment and Curriculum Handbook and 10 Assessment Booklets)

The Functional Independence Skills Handbook, or FISH, is used for determining a person's ability to perform certain functional activities from daily life. It was developed for special education teachers, para-educators, and parents working with individuals with severe developmental disabilities. The objective of the program is a direct increase in personal independence in those with autism and other developmental disorders. This program would also be beneficial for children with cognitive deficits, school age through adult.

FISH is a criterion-referenced series of 421 tasks. The assessment instrument and lessons are organized according to seven domains: Adaptive Behavior Skills, Affective (or Emotional) Skills, Cognitive Skills, Sensori-motor Skills, Social Skills, Speech and Language Skills, and Vocational Skills.

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Food Chaining: the Proven 6-Step Plan to Stop Picky Eating, Solve Feeding Problems and Expand Your Child’s Diet. Cheryl Fraker, Mark Fishbein, Sibyl Cox & Laura Walbert, $19.95

Initially developed by pediatric speech pathologist and oral feeding specialist Cheri Fraker in the course of treating a child who ate nothing but peanut butter, bread, and milk, Food Chaining is a breakthrough approach for dealing with picky eating and feeding problems at any age. Food Chaining emphasizes the relationship between foods in regard to taste, temperature, and texture. Now, the internationally known feeding team behind this unique method shows how to help your child enjoy new and nutritious foods, no matter what the nature of his picky eating. The guide also includes information on common food allergies, improving eating skills, advice specific to special needs kids.


Forensic Issues in Adolescents with Developmental Disabilities. Edited by Ernest Gralton, $34.95

Adolescents with developmental disabilities are a complex population who require specialized treatment and care. This interdisciplinary text examines the processes involved in working with this client group in forensic settings, and explores the ways in which their needs differ from those of other young people who engage in high risk behaviour or offending.

The book covers assessment, intervention and treatment options for adolescents with a wide range of developmental disabilities, including autism spectrum disorders, acquired brain injury, developmental traumatology, and complex comorbidities. It describes the obstacles, challenges and opportunities to consider when working with this population, and the role played by various professionals, including forensic psychiatry and psychology, occupational therapy, physiotherapy, education, art psychotherapy and social work. The book also outlines the issues to consider when working in secure and community settings as well as the legal aspects of working with this client group, and the complex issues surrounding risk assessment.


Forever Hellos, Hard Good-Byes: Inspiration, Wit, & Wisdom from Courageous Kids Facing Life-Threatening Illness. Axel Dahlberg & Janis Russell Love, $16.95

With wit, wisdom, and courage, young people ages 7–21 tell in their own words what it’s like to be ill while trying to live normally, each minute of their daily lives. Their true stories offer hope and insight to anyone touched by serious illness; their advice is of value to all those who know, love, and treat young people with illnesses or disabilities.

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41 Things to Know About Autism. Chantal Sicile-Kira, $10.99

41 THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT AUTISM provides a clear, instructive explanation of autism. This quick, straightforward guide explores the symptoms, nature and theories of autism; the emotional effects of autism on families; autistic behaviours; treatments and much more.


The Four Walls of My Freedom. Donna Thomson, $18.95

This is a riveting and redemptive family memoir. Donna Thomson's vivid descriptions of her own experience in treading delicately through daily care, medical emergencies and the medical bureaucracy as she and her family cope with her son Nicholas' cerebral palsy is both inspirational and instructive. 

Donna Thomson's own experience with adversity takes on new meaning when viewed through the lens of Nobel Prize-winning economist Amartya Sen and other philosophers' roadmaps of how to realize a good life against all odds. This lens includes not only people with disability, but also the enormous generation of post-WWII Baby Boomers who are beginning to sense the health care crisis that is looming as they deal with their own aging and increasingly infirm parents. 

Donna Thomson's brilliantly written family memoir provides a strong, original message that touches on the lives of anyone caring for the needs of another.


From Isolation to Intimacy: Making Friends without Words. Phoebe Caldwell, $22.95

If you have no language, how can you make yourself understood, let alone make friends? Phoebe Caldwell has worked for many years with people with severe intellectual disabilities and/or autistic spectrum disorder who are non-verbal, and whose inability to communicate has led to unhappy and often violent behaviour. In this new book she explores the nature of close relationships, and shows how these are based not so much on words as on the ability to listen, pay attention, and respond in terms that are familiar to the other person. Her simple methods are accessible to anyone who lives or works with such people, and can transform lives and introduce a sense of fun, participation and of intimacy, as trust and familiarity are established.

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Functional Assessment & Curriculum for Teaching Students with Disabilities — Volumes I-IV. Michael Bender, Peter Valletutti, Carol Ann Baglin & Audrey Smith Hoffnung, $62.95 each; Four Volume Set, $250.00

Now substantially revised and available in four volumes, these books are intended as a guide for educators, special education teachers, school administrators, counselors, and other professionals involved in rehabilitation services for individuals with disabilities.

Included are suggested activities that are divided into two major categories, Teacher Interventions and Family Interventions. These two categories are then divided into four subcategories of distinct age/grade levels – from infancy through secondary school/young adulthood.

All units within each volume comprise specific goals, related references, suggested readings, and selected materials/resources. 

Volume I:  Self-Care, Motor Skills, House Management and Living Skills, 4th Edition
Volume II: Nonverbal Communication, Oral Communications and Literacy Preparation, 4th Edition
Volume III: Functional Academics, 3rd Edition
Volume IV: Interpersonal, Competitive Job-Finding and Leisure-Time Skills, 2nd Edition


Gardening for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders and Special Educational Needs. Natasha Etherington, $24.95

A garden or nature setting presents the perfect opportunity for children with special needs to learn, play and strengthen body and mind. This book empowers teachers and parents with little gardening know-how to get outside and use nature to motivate young learners. Using a mindfulness approach, the book outlines the many positive physical, cognitive, sensory, emotional and social benefits of getting out into the garden and provides specially adapted gardening activities for a variety of needs, including those with:

  • Physical challenges
  • Developmental disabilities
  • ADHD and learning disabilities
  • Depression and anxiety
  • Autism Spectrum Disorders
  • Sensory Integration Disorder
  • Behavioural difficulties including anger and aggression
  • Allergies and asthma

With a focus on the therapeutic potential of nature, the book shows that gardening can help reduce feelings of anxiety, provide an outlet for physical aggression, build self-esteem through the nurturing of plants and much more. With this practical program, teachers and parents can easily adopt gardening activities into their schedules and enjoy the benefits of introducing children with special needs to nature and the rhythms of the seasons.

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Getting into the Game: Sports Programs for Kids with Autism. Veronica Smith & Stephanie  Patterson, $24.95

Participation in individual and team sports plays an important part in children's development and promotes growth in a number of areas. As well as the obvious health benefits, sport also provides the perfect backdrop to teach young people with autism about rules, strategy and teamwork —– all invaluable lessons that can be applied to wider society. By detailing six of the most popular sports: cycling, ice skating, swimming, soccer, taekwondo and tennis and including the unique experiences of families of children with autism, it offers all the information, advice and support needed to help get kids with autism engaged in fun and positive sport environments. GETTING INTO THE GAME will help families, clinicians and coaches support children with autism in taking their first steps into sport and recreation.


Getting the Message: Learning to Read Facial Expressions. Pat Crissey, $53.95

Getting the Message looks at non-verbal communication as a highly complex and subtle language, an essential one that students need to master. To this end, the book provides facial expression cards and written scenarios for use in assessments as well as in teaching activities. Students learn to “read” the expressions on the cards and in the scenarios and once mastered, to generalize this knowledge and effectively read critical social interactions and situations.


Getting Started: iPads 4 Special Needs. Sami Rahman, $27.50

The iPad can be a very powerful tool for the special needs user. This handbook addresses the everything you need to know — from which iPad to buy, to the multitude of accessories that may be necessary for the special needs user. This book will also guide you through goal setting, basic and advanced set up options, finding apps, maintenance and troubleshooting, and encouraging your user to interact with the iPad.


Gluten-Free Kids: Raising Happy, Healthy Children with Celiac Disease, Autism and Other Conditions. Danna Korn, $27.50

As public awareness has grown about the gluten-free (GF) diet being a requirement for anyone with celiac disease, so has evidence that suggests the diet can help improve other conditions; it seems to reduce the symptoms of autism, and helps diabetics lower their glycemic index. The author’s conversational, can-do attitude gives anyone the confidence and know-how to manage the challenges of the GF diet, especially those who need to maintain the diet for a lifetime. Parents, doctors, dietitians and other medical professionals who prescribe GF diets will find this a useful and practical resource.

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The Golden Hat: Talking Back to Autism. Kate Winslet & Margret Ericsdottir, $34.99

Imagine what it would be like not to be able to communicate with those we love. For many individuals living with nonverbal autism and their families, this is their everyday reality. THE GOLDEN HAT is an intimate response to this reality created by Kate Winslet, Margret Ericsdottir, and Margret’s son Keli, who has nonverbal autism. Kate shared this story with some of the world’s most famous people, posing the question: “What is important to you to express?” Their responses are a collection of intimate self-portraits and unique quotes.

All the author proceeds from this groundbreaking book will benefit the Golden Hat Foundation, founded by Kate Winslet and Margret Ericsdottir to build innovative living campuses for people with autism and raise public awareness of their intellectual capabilities.


The Guide to Good Health for Teens & Adults with Down Syndrome. Brian Chicoine & Dennis McGuire, $34.99

The authors of the bestselling Mental Wellness in Adults with Down Syndrome turn their attention to the physical health of teens and adults with Down syndrome. Drs. Chicoine and McGuire provide invaluable insight into what health problems are more common in their patients, and how medical issues can “present” differently in people with Down syndrome. In a clear, empathetic style, they discuss how to promote a healthy lifestyle to prevent problems, and how to recognize health problems early on to ensure appropriate care and the best outcome. The Guide to Good Health is a resource families and caregivers can refer to over and over again, whether it’s to find strategies to get a teen or adult to cooperate with treatment, or to consider if a symptom is being misdiagnosed or misunderstood.


Hand Made Love: a Guide for Teaching About Male Masturbation. Dave Hingsburger, $72.95 (DVD format)

This book and DVD set aimed at men with developmental disabilities discusses privacy, pleasure and the realities of sharing living spaces with others. The narrator of the video talks about myths and suggests that masturbation can be a way of learning about sex, while the book discusses masturbation from the point of view of both health and pleasure.

Finger Tips: a Guide for Teaching about Female Masturbation. Dave Hingsburger & Sandra Haar, $72.95 (DVD format)

This book and DVD set is aimed at teaching women with developmental disabilities about masturbation. It also confronts typical myths about female sexuality. A gentle, positive film that is clear, graphic and dignified. The book includes a step by step photographic essay about masturbation, and the joy of private time.

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The Handbook of High-Risk Challenging Behaviors in People with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. Edited by James Luiselli, $53.50

Aggressive and destructive behaviors are an ongoing challenge for many children, adolescents, and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD). This comprehensive text is a compendium of knowledge on addressing challenging behaviors using evidence-based, empirically supported practices. With contributions from more than 30 prominent clinicians and researchers, this book gives readers cutting-edge research and clear assessment and intervention guidelines in six key topic areas:

  • Self-Injurious Behavior
  • Aggressive Behavior
  • Sexual Offending Behavior
  • Health-Threatening Eating Disorders
  • Criminal Behavior
  • Therapeutic (Physical) Restraint

Ideal for use as a graduate-level textbook or a valuable in-service reference for psychologists, social workers, educators, and other professionals, this book gives professionals the knowledge and proven best practices they need to assess high-risk challenging behavior, intervene appropriately, and improve quality of life for the people they serve.


Handbook of Neurodevelopmental and Genetic Disorders in Children, 2nd Edition. Edited by Sam Goldstein & Cecil Reynolds, $81.50

Recognized as the definitive reference in the field, this book addresses a broad range of biologically based disorders that affect children's learning and development. Leading authorities review the genetics of each disorder; its course and outcome; associated developmental, cognitive, and psychosocial challenges; and what clinicians and educators need to know about effective approaches to assessment and intervention. Coverage encompasses more frequently diagnosed learning and behavior problems with a genetic component as well as numerous lower-incidence neurodevelopmental disabilities.

New to This Edition:

  • Incorporates the latest scientific knowledge and clinical practices.
  • Chapters on oppositional disorders and mood disorders.
  • Lower-incidence disorders not covered in prior edition: mitochondrial disease, major cortical anomalies, spina bifida, and inborn errors of metabolism.

Healing Young Brains — the Neurofeedback Solution: Drug-Free Treatment for Childhood Disorders, Including Autism, ADHD, Depression, and Anxiety. Robert Hill & Eduardo Castro, $21.95

Healing Young Brains is a parent’s guide to treating their children with neurofeedback as an alternative to drugs. Neurofeedback is a form of brainwave feedback that can help train a child's brain to overcome slow brainwave activity and increase and maintain its speed permanently. Quick, noninvasive and cost effective, neurofeedback is effective without any of the side effects associated with drugs commonly used to such childhood disorders as autism, ADHD, dyslexia, sleep disorders, and emotional problems.

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Health Matters: the Exercise and Nutrition Health Education Curriculum for People with Developmental Disabilities. Beth Marks, Jasmina Sisirak & Tamar Heller, $70.50

Adults with developmental disabilities are at significant risk for health problems. Effective health promotion can improve outcomes—and that's why adult day and residential agencies, schools, and other organizations need this invaluable program development guide. An urgent call to action and a start-to-finish framework for health promotion, this book shows administrators and service providers how to increase supports for health education, exercise and nutrition by implementing their own successful program.


Health Matters for People with Developmental Disabilities: Creating a Sustainable Promotion Program. Beth Marks, Jasmina Sisirak & Tamar Heller, $32.50

Adults with developmental disabilities are at significant risk for health problems. Effective health promotion can improve outcomes — and that's why adult day and residential agencies, schools, and other organizations need this invaluable program development guide. An urgent call to action and a start-to-finish framework for health promotion, this book shows administrators and service providers how to increase supports for health education, exercise and nutrition by implementing their own successful program.

Heart Warriors: a Family Faces Congenital Heart Disease. Amanda Rose Adams, $18.50

Five months pregnant, Amanda Adams was told her baby was missing half his heart and given two abysmal choices regarding her pregnancy: force her baby to fight for his life, or perform a late term abortion. Despite the fact that Liam's odds of death were high and his odds of suffering were absolute, Amanda chose life. She found herself redefining the usual expectations a mother has for her child. Instead of wondering where he'd go to college, she was asking, "Will he even survive past his first birthday?" That question hung heavily on Amanda's soul, which she termed "anticipatory grief." The anger and eventual acceptance of her grief helped her accept her new role as a powerful advocate.

At eight years old, Liam's small chest is lined with scars, yet they tell a story of a boy who is mature beyond his years and is aware of his tentative, yet promising, future.

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Helping Children to Build Self-Esteem: a Photocopiable Activities Book. Deborah Plummer, $34.95

Helping Children to Build Self-Esteem offers over 100 simple, practical and fun activities specifically aimed at helping children to build and maintain self-esteem … These exercises are suitable for work with individuals and groups and with all children including those with special needs or with speech and language difficulties. This unique activities book will be an invaluable resource for anyone looking for creative, enjoyable ways of helping children to build their self-esteem.


Helping Children with Down Syndrome Communicate Better: Speech and Language Skills for Ages 6-14. Libby Kumin, $28.95

Helping Children with Down Syndrome Communicate Better covers the scope of speech and language issues important for this age group, from understanding language pragmatics to building conversation skills and from using augmentative and alternative communication systems to improving speech intelligibility. Chapters include case studies, research, home and school activities for practice, and present:

  • The distinctions between language and speech
  • Factors that make speech and language difficult (articulation, grammar, fluency)
  • The evaluation process (school or private evaluation)
  • Assessment of language and speech skills
  • Language treatment (grammar, vocabulary, reading)
  • Speech treatment (articulation, fluency, apraxia)
  • Communication skills at school
  • Communication skills at home & in the community
  • Conversational skills (how to start & end conversations, take turns, stay on topic)
  • Assistive technology for communication (assessing need, types of augmentative or alternative communication, the right match for your child)

A suggested reading list, resource guide, and appendices (sample evaluations and blank forms) complement the wealth of practical suggestions and strategies. Parents, therapists, and teachers will want to refer to it often to help children make communication progress and participate fully in their lives.


Helping Children and Adolescents with Chronic and Serious Medical Conditions: a Strengths-Based Approach. Nancy Boyd Webb (Editor), $72.00

Providing an innovative inter-professional model, Helping Children and Adolescents with Chronic and Serious Medical Conditions provides a multi-disciplinary approach so that practitioners from a diverse range of helping fields, working in hospitals, out-patient clinics, agencies and schools, may be better equipped to foster children's resilience and build on their emotional strengths. This is a vital tool for a broad range of health care professionals, including social workers, school counselors, play therapists, nurses, and many others.

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Helping Your Child with Selective Mutism: Practical Steps to Overcoming a Fear of Speaking. Angela McHolm, Charles Cunningham & Melanie Vanier, $21.95

Three experts in treating selective mutism team up to provide parents with the first book to offer practical strategies for treating children with this potentially isolating anxiety disorder often referred to as "social phobia's cousin."


The Hidden Curriculum of Getting and Keeping a Job: Navigating the Social Landscape of Employment, a Guide for Individuals with Autism Spectrum and Other Social-Cognitive Challenges. Brenda Smith Myles, Judy Endow & Malcom Mayfield, $20.95

Adults on the spectrum often have difficulty getting and keeping a job that is unrelated to their job skills. This practical and easy-to-use book provides necessary yet often untaught information on a variety of topics related to getting a job, finding a mentor, networking, using agencies, interviewing, talking with supervisors, dealing with on-the-job-frustrations, understanding the social rules at work and many other topics.


High School Transition that Works! Maryellen Daston, J. Erin Riehle & Susie Rutkowski, $37.50

For more than 15 years, thousands of young adults have benefited from Project SEARCH: the business-led internship program that prepares students with disabilities for competitive, integrated employment. This book distills the program's secrets to success, giving counselors, educators, and transition coordinators practical guidance straight from the founders of Project SEARCH.

  • Teaching competitive, marketable, transferable skills in real work settings
  • Promoting effective collaboration among businesses, transition teams, and young people and families
  • Breaking down obstacles to meaningful employment for people with disabilities
  • Help students master the subtleties of appropriate workplace conduct, a major key to job retention
  • Support parents in preparing their child for success in transition programs and employment
  • Develop customized follow-along services so the student can retain employment and advance further
  • Avoid gaps in service as young people transition out of school

Filled with invaluable tips and strategies, case studies, and practical materials to help you apply principles of the Project SEARCH model, this book will inspire higher expectations for young people with disabilities and vibrant new ideas about systems change.

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How the Special Needs Brain Learns, 2nd Edition. David Sousa, $51.25

Offering practical strategies for progressive classroom work, How the Special Needs Brain Learns is an indispensable tool for teachers, school administrators and support staff who want to better understand the way children with learning challenges process and retain information.


How to Break Bad News to People with Intellectual Disabilities: a Guide for Carers and Professionals. Irene Tuffrey-Wijne, $25.95

This book offers unique and flexible guidelines that can be used by practitioners to ease the process of breaking bad news to people with intellectual disabilities. The guidelines, which are adaptable to individual communication ability and level of understanding, address the many complex needs of people with intellectual disabilities who can find understanding and accepting news that has a negative impact on their life a very difficult task. In the book, Irene Tuffrey-Wijne covers a range of different types of bad news, from bereavement and illness to more minor issues such as a change of accommodation, and offers highly practical and effective tips that will help carers and practitioners ensure that bad news is relayed as sensitively and successfully as possible.

An easy-to-use and comprehensive guide, this book will be an invaluable resource of information for carers, health professionals such as doctors and nurses as well as families of people with intellectual disabilities.


Immortal Bird: a Family Memoir. Doron Weber, $18.99

A family’s love lies at the heart of this gifted boy’s fight to survive. Born with a congenital heart defect that required surgery when he was a baby, Damon Weber lives a big life with spirit and independence that have always been a source of pride to his parents, Doron and Shealagh. But when Damon is diagnosed with a new illness as a teenager, his triumphant coming-of-age tale turns into a darker and more dramatic quest: his family’s race against time and a flawed heath care system.

IMMORTAL BIRD is a searing account of a father’s struggle to save his remarkable son, a story of a young boy’s passion for life, and a tribute to his family’s love. It is also a story of the perils of modern medicine and the redemptive power of art in the face of the unthinkable.

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Including One, Including All: a Guide to Relationship-Based Early Childhood Inclusion. Leslie Roffman, Todd Wanerman & Cassandra Britton, $46.95

Inclusive early childhood settings benefit all children, whether or not they have identifies special needs. Including One, Including All provides theoretical, conceptual, and practical information on relationship-based, inclusive practices for early childhood classrooms, an approach that strengthens every child and supports the child's behavioral, emotional, social, and learning challenges. Written by a team of professionals who are known for their successful work using this model, the book includes blueprints for organizing the important work with children and their families and addresses the challenges and rewards of inclusion in early childhood classrooms, and chronicles the experiences of two children with special needs in early childhood settings.


The Incredible 5-Point Scale, 2nd Edition: Assisting Students with Autism Spectrum Disorders in Understanding Social Interactions and Controlling Their Emotional Responses. Kari Dunn Buron & Mitzi Curtis, $20.95 (includes CD with blank scales for printing)

This much-awaited, second edition of the wildly popular INCREDIBLE 5-POINT SCALE is significantly improved and expanded. Using the same practical and user-friendly format as the first edition, Buron and Curtis let readers benefit from work done with the scales over the past 10 years, to result in refinements to the original scales, now considered "classics" in homes and classrooms across the country and abroad. As well there are lots of new scales specifically designed for young children and for those with more classic presentations of autism, including expanded use of the Anxiety Curve. Another welcome addition is a list of goals and objectives related to incorporating scales in students' IEPs.

A free CD includes blank scales, small portable scales and worksheets for easy duplication. As in their other writings, the authors emphasize the importance of self-management and self-regulation, two evidence-based practices.

Also: The Incredible 5-Point Scale DVD, $30.95 (22 minutes, teaching workshop)


Independent Living and Community Participation. Katherine Synatschk, Gary Clark & James Patton, $45.95

The skills needed for successful transition are multifaceted. Assess your students' abilities to manage independent living and monitor progress for planning after instruction. School and community-based personnel can use the instruments in Independent Living and Community Participation to obtain data in critical planning areas such as Communication, Interpersonal Skills, Self-Advocacy and Self-Determination, Daily Living Skills, Health, Community Participation, Leisure, and Transportation.

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Inside Asperger’s Looking Out. Kathy Hoopmann, $17.95

INSIDE ASPERGER'S LOOKING OUT follows in the best-selling footsteps of Kathy Hoopmann's All Cats Have Asperger Syndrome and All Dogs Have ADHD. Through engaging text and full-color photographs, this book shows neurotypicals how Aspies see and experience the world.

Each page brings to light traits that many Aspies have in common, from sensitive hearing and an aversion to bright lights and strong smells, to literal thinking and difficulty understanding social rules and reading body language and facial expressions. At the same time, the book highlights and celebrates the unique characteristics that make those with Asperger's Syndrome special.


Intimate Relationships and Sexual Health. Catherine Davies & Melissa Dubie, $31.95

A curriculum for teaching adolescents/adults with high-functioning autism spectrum disorders and other social challenges.

This comprehensive and well-researched curriculum fills a long-felt need in the autism community — a frank, up-to-date resource on sexuality tailored to the unique characteristics of high-functioning adolescents and adults on the spectrum. The authors present "all you ever wanted to know but were afraid to ask/teach", taking into the consideration the learning styles inherent in autism. The curriculum comes complete with lessons, activities, handouts, resources, and more. The accompanying CD contains all the handouts for easy duplication and individualization.


Just Because. Rebecca Elliott, $16.99

A story of the special bond between Toby and his sister Clemmie, whom he loves “just because”.

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Kayak. Debbie Spring, $12.95 (novel)

Living life in a wheelchair makes Teresa feel trapped. She spends her whole year looking forward to her family’s summer vacations on Georgian Bay, where she spends as much time as possible in her kayak. On the water, Teresa is brave, strong and unstoppable.


Kids Beyond Limits: Breakthrough Results for Children with Autism, Asperger’s, Brain Damage, ADHD and Undiagnosed Developmental Delays.  Anat Baniel, $17.00

By shifting the focus to connecting rather than “fixing”, this powerful yet simple method helps both children and parents de-stress, focus and grow. Supported by the latest brain research, the Anat Baniel Method uses simple, gentle movements to help children maximize their potential, and to help parents see the whole child, not just their diagnosis.


Kids in the Syndrome Mix of ADHD, LD, Asperger’s, Tourette’s, Bipolar and More! Martin Kutscher, $22.95

Kids in the Syndrome Mix is a concise, current, all-in-one guide to the whole range of often co-existing neurobehavioral disorders in children, from attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), obsessive-compulsive disorder, and bipolar disorder, to autistic spectrum disorders, nonverbal learning disabilities, sensory integration problems, and executive dysfunction. The author's sympathetic yet upbeat approach and skillful explanations of the inner world of children in the syndrome mix make this an invaluable companion for parents, teachers, professionals, and anyone else who needs fast and to-the-point advice on children with special needs.

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Kids Like Me Learn ABCs. Laura Ronay & Jon Wayne Kishimoto, $14.95

Kids Like Me Learn Colors. Laura Ronay & Jon Wayne Kishimoto, $13.95

Featuring adorable and diverse children with Down syndrome on every page, and many of their siblings too, these chunky, sturdy books are perfect for youngsters who are ready to start learning their colors and ABCs.


Learning in Motion: 101+ Sensory Activities for the Classroom. Patricia Angermeier, Joan Krzyzanowski & Kristina Keller Moir, $42.50

Ideal for preschool, kindergarten and primary classes, each of the 101+ activities in Learning in Motion has been developed to attract and keep children’s interest by using a multi-sensory approach in order to improve each child’s learning and behavior. Activities are organized by month so educators can quickly choose activities that correspond with seasons, holidays and educational goals throughout the year.


Life Beyond the Classroom: Transition Strategies for Young People with Disabilities, 5th Edition. Paul Wehman, $85.95

For more than two decades, the trusted LIFE BEYOND THE CLASSROOM text has shaped the practices of thousands of professionals helping students make a smooth transition from school to adulthood. Now this landmark textbook is in its fifth edition—updated with the cutting-edge information professionals need in today's changing world, as young people with disabilities face unprecedented financial, family, employment, and educational challenges. New chapters on critical topics:

  • Working with families
  • Multicultural transition planning
  • Teaching social skills
  • Secondary curriculum options
  • Online companion materials
  • All chapters completely revised and updated
  • More practical strategies, case studies
  • Updated annotated lists of helpful online resources
  • Improved, user-friendly design
  • New online companion materials
  • Comprehensive multimedia supplementary materials for college and university courses

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Life Skills Activities for Secondary Students with Special Needs. Darlene Mannix, $35.95

190+ ready-to-use lessons with reproducible worksheets to help adolescents develop the basic skills necessary to experience independence and success in everyday life.

The book provides 22 complete teaching units focusing on basic life skills such as handling money, succeeding at school, using the Internet safely, getting and keeping a job, and much more. The book also contains 90 reproducible worksheets for teaching students how to apply these life skills to real-life situations.

Life Skills Activities for Special Children. Darlene Mannix, $35.95

Over 150 ready-to-use reproducible worksheets to help children develop the basic skills necessary to experience independence and success in everyday life.

Each of the book's activities focuses on specific skills within the context of real-life situations and includes complete teacher instructions for effective use, from objective and introduction through optional extension activities and methods to assess student learning. The book includes numerous reproducible parent letters which can be sent home to help parents reinforce these lessons while children are away from school.


Living Well with Mitochondrial Disease: a Handbook for Patients, Parents and Families. Cristy Balcells, $30.95

LIVING WELL WITH MITOCHONDRIAL DISEASE helps make sense of an overwhelming and complex group of diagnoses. This guide is the first book about Mito written for patients and their families. It helps readers understand how the mitochondria work (they are the powerhouse of the cell, providing energy for the entire body), how people with mitochondrial defects are diagnosed and treated, and how to live well when you, your child, or someone you love is struggling with disabling symptoms.

Writing as a parent and nurse, the author shows adult patients, parents, family members, and caregivers how to achieve the best quality of life possible. Readers will feel empowered as they come to understand Mito, learn to manage the symptoms, avoid emergencies, and make appropriate lifestyle choices. Topics include:

  • the journey to diagnosis
  • the biochemistry of Mito
  • practical advice for the specific needs of children and adults
  • understanding and managing symptoms
  • where to find specialists and support
  • treatment approaches
  • autism and Mito

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Living with FASD: a Guide for Parents. 3rd Edition. Sara Graefe, $24.95

One percent of North Americans suffer from FASD … It's no wonder that this book is a Canadian bestseller with over 40,000 copies sold! Bringing up-to-date and comprehensive information about FASD, this edition includes the latest Institute of Medicine diagnostic criteria and terms, special considerations for infants and adolescents, parent needs, and an expanded resource list.


Living with Prenatal Drug Exposure: a Guide for Parents. Lissa Cowan & Jennifer Lee, $24.95

Modeled on the best selling Living with FASD: a Guide for Parents, this comprehensive book for parents and professionals introduces caregivers to the challenges of caring for a child prenatally exposed to drugs. The guide offers practical techniques and strategies, debunks well-known myths, explores social issues and includes a workbook section for parents and other caregivers.


Looking Good: a Curriculum on Physical Appearance and Personal Presentation for Adolescents and Young Adults with Visual Impairments. Anne Corn, Michael Bina & Sharon Zell Sacks, $52.95

Looking Good provides lessons and activities designed to teach young people with low vision and blindness how to improve their appearance and personal presentation.

Adolescents and young adults don’t always realize that their appearance affects the impression they make on peers, employers, and others they encounter. Looking Good provides a framework for young people to enhance their attributes and to present themselves in the most favorable light and addresses issues of appearance in a sensitive manner while taking into account the strengths and capabilities of students with low vision and blindness.

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Lucky Dogs, Lost Hats, and Dating Don’ts: Hi-Lo Stories about Real Life. Thomas Fish & Jillian Ober, $25.95

Informative and entertaining fiction for teens and young adults about their lives, LUCKY DOGS, LOST HATS, AND DATING DON'TS, is a collection of over a dozen hi-lo (high interest-low reading level) short stories for people with intellectual disabilities or other learning challenges.

Young teens through adults will identify with the book's true-to-life stories and their characters (some with developmental disabilities, some without), who want to live as independently as they can. And just like real life, there are episodes of hilarity, poignancy, messiness, responsibility, longing, fulfillment, and adventure. From roommate troubles to wanting a pet, and from seeking a girlfriend to going camping with friends, these appealing short stories engage readers and impart subtle life lessons. A set of questions at the end of each story encourages discussion and further self-reflection. Written by experts in literacy and inclusion for people with developmental disabilities, the stories are illustrated with large format black and white photos.


Lucky Lou Gets Game. Sarah Yates, $25.00 (novel, 12 & up)

Lou is funny and she has attitude. Lou is a teenager with cerebral palsy. Her cousin Sam has never understood why she can’t play baseball, as he does. He doesn’t take her disability as an excuse. When Sam and his friends coach Lou and her motley crew, the baseball game has unexpected results. Lou gets the boy who was never in her dreams and learns to speak up for herself.


Making Sense of Your Senses: a Workbook for Children with Sensory Processing Disorder. Judy Christopher Auer & Michelle Auer, $18.95

Help your child to overcome sensory overload — one activity at a time.

These 40 simple, fun activities teach kids to integrate their senses, develop coordination, and to practice self-calming skills. These techniques can be used anytime they feel overwhelmed or have the urge to seek out intense sensory experiences. Before long, your child will be better able to tolerate everyday sensations and prevent simulation overload.


Married with Special Needs Children: a Couple’s Guide to Keeping Connected. Laura Marshak & Fran Prezant, $28.95

This book looks at the ways in which having a child with special needs can impact the parents and how a child's challenging needs can alter the structure of a relationship. For parents looking for ways to strengthen their bond and to prevent or resolve conflict, this guide offers practical and compassionate guidance and expertise. Mental health professionals and allied professionals working with special needs families will also benefit from the insights offered in Married with Special Needs Children.

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Meet the Challenge Problem Solving Game for Persons with Asperger Syndrome and Other Social Difficulties. Autism Spectrum Program of Eastern Ontario/Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario, $52.50 (ages 12+)

MEET THE CHALLENGE PROBLEM SOLVING GAME is a multi-level game for players 12 and up that explores over 300 social problems addressing school and community issues for youth.

Developed to be played by adolescents with Asperger Syndrome, the game can also be played with any student who experiences difficulties solving social problems. The scenarios depicted on the game cards provide educators or parent the opportunity to address ‘real life’ problems. Includes facilitator manual.


Mental Wellness in Adults with Down Syndrome: a Guide to Emotional and Behavioral Strengths and Challenges. Dennis McGuire & Brian Chicoine, $28.95

Mental Wellness in Adults with Down Syndrome is an invaluable resource for parents, mental health professionals, teachers and caregivers who want to understand better how to promote mental health and resolve psychosocial problems in people with Down syndrome. This authoritative, easy-to-read guide clarifies the common behavioral characteristics of Down syndrome, how some can be mistaken for mental illness, and what are the bona fide mental health problems that occur more commonly in people with Down syndrome. In addition, the authors discuss the importance of regular assessment and how behavior and mental well-being can be affected by environmental conditions, social opportunities, and physical health.


Miracle Boy Grows Up: How the Disability Rights Revolution Saved My Sanity. Ben Mattlin, $28.95

When Ben Mattlin was born with spinal muscular atrophy, he was expected to die in childhood. Not only did Mattlin live through childhood, he became one of the first students in a wheelchair to attend Harvard, from which he graduated and became a professional writer. His advantage - Mattlin’s life happened to parallel the growth of the disability rights movement.  MIRACLE BOY GROWS UP is a witty, unsentimental memoir that you won’t forget, told with engrossing intelligence and a unique perspective on living with a disability during the years of revolutionary change in how disability is seen in America.

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Model Me Interactive™: Practicing Conversation CD-ROM, $54.95 (Ages 7-13)

MODEL ME INTERACTIVE™: PRACTICING CONVERSATION combines video modeling teaching tools with the interactive capability of software. First, video models a conversation between children. Then, the student practices the conversation using a webcam. The practice conversation is recorded and a feedback area allows teachers to comment on and grade a student's recordings.

The interactive conversation can be prompted with text or this feature may be turned off once the user becomes familiar with the lines. The text prompts may be changed by the user for an endless number of possible responses to the conversation prompts. The software is intuitive and easy to use. Clear text buttons allow for navigation by young users.


The Model Me Kids Video Series for Modeling Social Skills DVDs

THE MODEL ME KIDS VIDEO SERIES FOR MODELING SOCIAL SKILLS were created for children and youth with autism, Asperger syndrome, nonverbal learning disorders, social anxiety, learning disabilities and other developmental delays. The DVDs demonstrate a wide variety of social skills and are great teaching tools for visual learners.

MODEL ME KIDS TEACHING MANUALS AND STUDENT WORKBOOKS complement the video modeling DVDs and help extend the lessons taught in the live-action DVDs. These resources help teach social skills at home, in a classroom, social skills group, or other teaching setting. The Teaching Manual comes complete with lesson plans and the Student Workbook has numerous social skills worksheets and activities. Sold separately from the DVDs.

Teachers - Speech Language Pathologists - 
School Psychologists - Autism Service Providers
Model Me Kids® Autism Training Workshops

Model Me Kids® now offers professional training workshops. Schedule an in-service workshop for your school, designed to teach staff how to implement social skills training for children with autism using video modeling. For more information, or to schedule a training workshop, please contact: info@modelmekids.com

Learn More

Ages 9 to 17:

Model Me Confidence & Bullying Prevention DVD, $32.95 (63 minutes, Ages 9-17) models skills for building self-esteem and preventing bullying including self-advocacy, choosing friends, positive self-talk, and more.

Model Me Confidence & Bullying Prevention, Teaching Manual and Student Workbook Set. Model Me Kids, $54.95

Model Me Conversation Cues DVD, $32.95 (68 minutes; Ages 9-17) features middle and high school-aged children demonstrating social skills at school and in the community.

Model Me Conversation Cues, Teaching Manual and Student Workbook Set. Model Me Kids, $54.95

Model Me Friendship DVD, $32.95 (75 minutes; Ages 9-17) presents social skills needed to develop and maintain friendship. It features teen-aged children demonstrating appropriate social skills at school, playing on sports teams, eating at a restaurant and in other settings.

Model Me Friendship, Teaching Manual and Student Workbook Set. Model Me Kids, $54.95

Model Me Organization & Motivation DVD, $32.95 (63 minutes, Ages 9-17) watch as children model skills for staying organized, persistence, planning ahead, memorization, being on time, note-taking, flexibility, mistakes and more.

Model Me Tips and Tricks DVD, $32.95 (67 minutes; Ages 9-17) features upper elementary, middle, and high school-aged children demonstrating social skills at school and in the community.

Model Me Tips and Tricks, Teaching Manual and Student Workbook Set. Model Me Kids, $54.95

Ages 5 to 12:

Model Me I Can Do It! DVD, $32.95 (53 minutes; Ages 5-12) presents social skills in the context of challenging circumstances. It features elementary school-aged children demonstrating appropriate behavior in a variety of difficult situations.

Model Me Time for a Playdate DVD, $32.95 (67 minutes; Ages 5-12) presents social skills in the context of several playmates. It features elementary school-aged children demonstrating appropriate social skills on a playdate.

Model Me Time for School DVD, $32.95 (61 minutes; Ages 5-12) presents social skills in the context of school. It features elementary school-aged children demonstrating appropriate social skills in the classroom, library, on the playground, and in the hallway.

Model Me Time for School, Teaching Manual and Student Workbook Set. Model Me Kids, $54.95

Ages 2 to 8:

Model Me Faces and Emotions DVD, $27.50 (27 minutes; Ages 2-8) watch as young children demonstrate a wide range of faces and emotions. This is a great teaching tool for visual learners.

Model Me Going Places DVD, $27.50 (42 minutes; Ages 2-8) models appropriate behavior in community locations including the hairdresser, grocery store, dentist, doctor, mall, and more.

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Morris and Buddy: the Story of the First Seeing Eye Dog. Becky Hall, illustrated by Doris Ettinger, $21.95 (school age)

This is the real-life story of Frank Morris, who lost his sight at 16, and Buddy — the first Seeing Eye dog in America — and the legacy they created together.


Movement Based Learning for Children of All Abilities. Cecilia Koester, $35.50

This book emphasizes the basic developmental movement patterns that enhance neurological function. Each of us has a foundation of neurological patterns that allow us to continually learn and grow. If the foundation is lacking or weak we then must go back and reinforce learning at this level of primitive reflexes or developmental movement patterns. This book gives hands-on methods and techniques that will allow each and every child to reach their greatest potential. 


Movie Time Social Learning. Anna Vagin, $34.50

One of the greatest challenges in teaching social thinking is finding interesting, imaginative, and enjoyable ways for students of all ages to study complex social situations. MOVIE TIME SOCIAL LEARNING takes an activity many students already love—watching movies—and uses it as a springboard to study the intricacies of social interaction. By hitting the pause button, we freeze social situations and give students the all-so-valuable extra time to read context, interpret thoughts, feelings and plans, make predictions about social behavior, and formulate narrative language to discuss social interactions.

Author Anna Vagin’s thirty years of experience and deep understanding of social learning shine through each page as she thoughtfully explains social concepts and provides detailed, fine-tuned lessons for seven different popular movies that students will recognize and love. MOVIE TIME SOCIAL LEARNING incorporates the concepts, vocabulary, and strategies that are at the heart of Michelle Garcia Winner’s Social Thinking framework. The book comes with a CD that includes all seven lesson plans as well as ready-to-print templates, handouts, and letters.

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Music for Special Kids: Musical Activities, Songs, Instruments and Resources. Pamela Ott, $26.95

Music is a powerful means of engaging children with developmental disabilities such as Autism Spectrum Disorders, Down's Syndrome and Cerebral Palsy. Packed with inspiring tips, activities and song ideas, this practical resource will have everybody singing, clapping and playing along! It explains simple and fun ways of using songs, instruments and musical games to connect with children of all levels of ability, and includes helpful rhythm worksheets and sheet music. There is a wide range of suggestions for songs and activities that encourage communication, increase self-esteem, stimulate fine and gross motor skills and motor coordination, and promote relaxation.

This book of toe-tapping music activities is a must-have for parents, teachers, caregivers, music therapists and anybody else working with children with developmental disabilities.


My Baby Rides the Short Bus: the Unabashedly Human Experience of Raising Kids with Disabilities. Yantra Bertelli, Jennifer Silverman & Sarah Talbot, Editors. $22.50

Featuring works by “alternative” parents who have attempted to move away from mainstream thought--or remove its influence altogether--this anthology, taken as a whole, carefully considers the implications of parenting while raising children with disabilities. This assortment of authentic, shared experiences from parents at the fringe of the fringes is a partial antidote to the stories that misrepresent, ridicule, and objectify disabled kids and their parents.


My Heart vs. the Real World: Children with Heart Disease, In Photographs & Interviews. Max Gerber, $31.95

My Heart vs. the Real World is an extraordinary photo essay that explores the lives of children with congenital heart disease through striking photographs and interviews with subjects and their families. These are stories of how CHD patients and their families cope with and overcome extraordinary obstacles—and learn about themselves during the process. My Heart vs. the Real World is sometimes funny, sometimes sad, always thought–provoking, and altogether human.

Author Max Gerber is a professional photographer who was born three months premature with bradycardia (an abnormally low heart rate). He has had a pacemaker since the age of eight.

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My Holly: a Story of a Brother’s Understanding and Acceptance. Julie Leavitt Wolfe, $16.99

This is a story about a young boy named Jack, and the feelings he’s had about his little sister who has special needs. Jack sometimes feels sad because he wants his mom and dad to play with him, but they are busy taking Holly to therapy or doctor’s appointments. Jack begins to understand that his parents also try to make sure he knows he’s important and loved, and begins to believe, just like his mom, that one day Holly will be able to do anything she wants!


My Kid’s Allergic to Everything Dessert Cookbook, 2nd Edition. Mary Harris & Wilma Selzer Nachsin, $18.95

More than 100 recipes for sweets and treats the whole family will enjoy.


NEURODIVERSITY: Discovering the Extraordinary Gifts of Autism, ADHD, Dyslexia, and Other Brain Differences. Thomas Armstrong, $32.95

A new term has emerged from the disability movement in the past decade to help change the way we think about neurological disorders: Neurodiversity. It no longer makes sense to hold on to the deficit-ridden idea of neuropsychological illness. Psychologist Thomas Armstrong offers a revolutionary perspective that reframes many neuropsychological disorders as part of the natural diversity of the human brain rather than as definitive illnesses.

NEURODIVERSITY emphasizes their positive dimensions, showing how people with ADHD, bipolar disorder, autism and other conditions have inherent evolutionary advantages that, matched with the appropriate environment or ecological niche, can help them achieve dignity and wholeness in their lives.

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Neurogenetic Syndromes: Behavioral Issues and Their Treatment. Bruce Shapiro & Pasquale Accardo, $64.95

This cutting-edge volume sheds new light on neurogenetic syndromes using a promising clinical perspective: examining behavioral and psychological phenotypes, with a strong focus on the influence of genetics. Linking science with practice like no other current text on this topic, this comprehensive book combines the latest research of two dozen leading experts and shows how these advances in knowledge apply to treatment and therapy.


Non-Accidental Head Injury in Young Children: Medical, Legal and Social Responses. Cathy Cobley & Tom Sanders, $39.95

Non-accidental head injury is often referred to as being synonymous with 'shaken baby syndrome' (SBS) – a term which has attracted a great deal of controversy in recent years due to both disagreement about its cause and the reliability of eyewitness testimony. The authors investigate the existing evidence surrounding SBS and its recognition and construction, including medical versus social explanations and the difficulties involved in proving abuse. The authors argue for an examination of non-accidental head injury rather than SBS, as this term encompasses other forms of abuse as well as shaking, and caution against a blind acceptance of medical testimony, arguing that this may impede child protection agencies' ability to assess cases objectively and accurately. They also consider the effectiveness of prevention strategies in reducing the incidence of child abuse cases.

This insightful book will be essential reading for social workers, lawyers, health professionals, and those working with child protection agencies.


Optimizing Care for Young Children with Special Health Care Needs. Elisa Sobo & Paul Kurtin, $48.95

Primary care physicians and other health care providers can help families get the best care and services for young children with special health care needs (CSHCN) in this one-of-a-kind field guide to the critical issues, policies, and practices affecting medical care for CSHCN from birth to age 5.

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Ordinary Families, Special Children: a Systems Approach to Childhood Disability, 3rd Edition. Milton Seligman & Rosalyn Benjamin Darling, $43.95

Now in a revised and expanded third edition, this popular clinical reference and text provides a multi-systems perspective on childhood disability and its effects on family life. The volume examines how child, family, ecological, and socio-cultural variables intertwine to shape the ways families respond to disability, and how professionals can promote coping, adaptation, and empowerment. Accessible and engaging, the book integrates theory and research with vignettes and firsthand reflections from family members.


Pain in Children and Adults with Developmental Disabilities. Tim F. Oberlander, & Frank J. Symons, Editors, $51.95

Essential reading for a wide range of professionals across disciplines — including physicians, nurses, psychologists, rehabilitation therapists, direct care staff, and special educators — this research-based book will help professionals deliver the best possible pain management and improve the quality of life for children and adults with developmental disabilities.


Parenting Your Complex Child: Become a Powerful Advocate for the Autistic, Down Syndrome, PDD, Bipolar, or Other Special-Needs Child. Peggy Lou Morgan, $19.95

The unique tracking and documentation tools in Parenting Your Complex Child help parents adapt to their child’s challenges, create routines that support the child’s needs, communicate those needs to busy professionals and be taken seriously by them. The book also helps parents lay the groundwork for care to continue after they themselves can no longer provide it. Compassionate, practical, and proven, Parenting Your Complex Child helps parents ensure that life-changing decisions are based on the best interests of the child — and on the best information available.

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Parents with Intellectual Disabilities Past, Present and Futures. Edited by Gwynneth Llewellyn, et al, $59.95

The first international, cross-disciplinary book to explore and understand the lives of parents with intellectual disabilities, their children, and the systems and services they encounter.  The book presents a unique, pan-disciplinary overview of this growing field of study and offers a human rights approach to disability and family life. Informed by the newly adopted UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (2006), the book provides comprehensive research-based knowledge from leading figures in the field of intellectual disability.


The Picture Cookbook: No-Cook Recipes for the Special Chef. Joyce Dassonville & Ehren McDow, $34.95

The Picture Cookbook offers 51 safe, delicious and easy recipes for individuals with special needs including autism, attention deficit disorder, Down’s syndrome, Alzheimer’s disease, illiteracy, brain trauma or aging.

Instructions for teachers and caregivers on teaching someone to use the cookbook are detailed, as well as discussions of issues that can arise. The picture index allows cooks to easily spot their favourite recipes without the need to read or understand names. The book has lay-flat binding, extensive colour-coding, and beautiful colour photography.


Picture Directions: Building Independence Step by Step. Pat Crissey, $53.95

Many students can perform activities independently by following picture directions. This reproducible book features 46 lessons divided into five categories: Cooking, Crafts, Life Skills, Play and Discovery. Each lesson features an illustrated "You will need" checklist plus step-by-step instructions — four to a page. Teacher Tips help you plan your instructional strategies. The goal of this book is to teach students to follow picture directions in sequence, complete important activities independently and recognize sight words paired with the illustrations. Includes photocopy rights and CD-ROM with a printable PDFs.

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Play for Children with Special Needs: Supporting Children with Learning Differences, 3-9, Second Edition. Christine Macintyre, $40.50

Play for Children with Special Needs enables practitioners to appreciate the contribution that play makes to the education of all children. Christine Macintyre emphasis the importance of creating an environment where children become confident, independent learners, increasingly able to use their imaginations, care for others and to take safe risks.


Pocket Guide to Children with Special Health Care and Nutritional Needs. Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, Edited Jacque DeVore & Andrea Shotton, $35.50

This easy-to-use guide for practitioners provides information on the nutritional needs of children with conditions such as Down syndrome, autism, cerebral palsy, and gastrointestinal orders. Topics include:

  • The role of growth in determining important nutrition interventions
  • Nutrition assessment methods and tools
  • Feeding problems and menu modifications
  • Consideration for non-oral enteral feeding and limited oral feeding
  • Community services

Case studies, a glossary, and resources for additional information make this a comprehensive guide that you will refer to often.


The Pocket Occupational Therapist for Families of Children with Special Needs. Cara Koscinski, $22.95

If you are unsure about what occupational therapy (OT) is and how it can help your child, this accessible overview is for you. Answering all of the common questions about the issues an occupational therapist might address with a child with special needs, including core muscle strength, feeding, fine motor skills, sensory sensitivities, transitions and life-skills, this book also offers simple activities to practice at home that are inexpensive, fun and, most-importantly, OT-approved.

This will be an illuminating and essential guide for parents and carers of children with physical and developmental disabilities or parents of children in rehabilitation from illness or injury. Professionals who want to learn more about the principles and practicalities of occupational therapy will also find it useful.

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Positioning for Play: Interactive Activities to Enhance Movement and Sensory Exploration, 2nd Edition.  Rachel Diamant & Allison Whiteside, $74.95 (Birth to 3 years)

Young children learn best from engaging in regular movement and activities with family and friends in a supportive environment; the child develops motor, sensory, cognitive, language, communication, and social skills. This expanded collection of practical reproducible activities is designed for use by early interventionists, early childhood educators, occupational therapists, physical therapist, speech pathologists, and community health nurses who work with families with young children who have or are at risk for developmental delays. The activity sheets, grouped into ten sections according to developmental position, are designed to illustrate ways that caregivers can hold, position, and play with a child while using toys, objects, materials, and family members that are available. Furthermore, the sheets demonstrate proper body mechanics for both child and caregiver. Space is provided for notes.


Positive Discipline for Children with Special Needs: Raising and Teaching All Children to Become Resilient, Responsible and Respectful. Jane Nelsen, Steven Foster & Arlene Raphael, $19.00

Every child deserves to lead a happy and fulfilling life. For parents and teachers of children with special needs, helping their child to not only negotiate daily challenges, but to live fulfilling, meaningful lives, can be the most difficult challenge they will face. Over the years, millions of parents and teachers have come to trust Jane Nelsen’s classic Positive Discipline series for its consistent, commonsense approach to childrearing. Now, the bestselling series addresses the specific challenges that parents and teachers of children with special needs face, and offers them straightforward advice for supporting them in positive ways. In these pages are practical solutions to challenges such as:

Learning to look beyond diagnostic labels • Believing in each child's potential regardless of his/her stage of development • Helping children integrate socially and interact with their peers • Coping with the frustration that inevitably occurs when a child is being difficult • Strengthening a child's sense of belonging and significance • And Many More!


The Potty Journey. Judith Coucouvanis, $21.50

A guide to toilet training children with special needs, including autism and related disorders.

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The Power of Neurodiversity: Unleashing the Advantages of Your Differently Wired Brain. Thomas Armstrong, $18.50

In THE POWER OF NEURODIVERSITY, Thomas Armstrong explains how we've become a "culture of disabilities," and need to spend more time focusing on the strengths — rather than the deficits — of those with mental health labels.  He provides practical tools to empower individuals with neurological differences such as ADD/ADHD, autism, dyslexia and more, including advice on:

  • how to construct an ideal niche
  • how to use assistive technologies
  • how to think about career development as a pathway to success, and
  • why inclusive classrooms offer the best learning experiences for neurodiverse children.

Preparing Students with Disabilities for College Success: a Practical Guide to Transition Planning. Stan Shaw, Joseph Madaus & Lyman Dukess, $40.95

For students with mild to moderate, non-visible disabilities, navigating a college education without the support team they had in high school can be challenging. Help students become effective self-advocates and maximize their postsecondary possibilities with this cutting-edge book, which balances current research with the most practical guidance to date on this topic. Readers will learn how early, coordinated, student-centered planning helps students develop the academic and personal skills required to successfully transition to college. User-friendly checklists, tip boxes, activities, and illustrative vignettes translate extensive research into immediate practice with students and families.

Secondary transition personnel, counselors, and educators in high school settings will turn to this book first for comprehensive, accessible information on helping students transition to college—and lay the critical groundwork for future employment success. 

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Preventing Autism: What You Can Do To Protect Your Children Before and After Birth. Jay Gordon, $21.95

This groundbreaking approach to preventing autism — from renowned pediatrician Dr. Jay Gordon — offers a practical plan for safeguarding the neurological development of your children, from pre-pregnancy preparation through your baby’s first twenty-four months. PREVENTING AUTISM presents a comprehensive program that covers:

  • The latest research on the causes of ASD and the relationship between genetic factors and toxins that trigger developmental delays
  • How to reduce toxic exposure from your food, home, clothing, and cleaning and personal care products
  • The male biological clock, and advice on keeping sperm healthy
  • Planning a nursery that is a healthy nest
  • Dietary guidance for moms-to-be, babies, and nursing mothers
  • Dr. Gordon’s sensible approach to decisions about vaccinations

Promoting Psychological Well-Being in Children with Acute and Chronic Illness. Melinda Edwards & Penny Titman, $34.95

Living with a chronic illness can have a significant psychological impact on a child and his or her family, and it is essential that this aspect of their care is not overlooked.

Promoting Psychological Well-Being in Children with Acute and Chronic Illness provides a comprehensive guide to promoting the psychological well-being of children with chronic illnesses and medical conditions, covering support within health, social services and education. It discusses issues such as the impact of diagnosis and the experiences of children and their families in managing their medical condition and treatment. Strategies to support children and help them to cope with medical conditions are demonstrated, including cognitive behavioural and systemic approaches, and techniques such as relaxation and motivational interviewing. Case examples from clinical practice are given to illustrate the application of psychological ideas and frameworks to a variety of medical conditions and psychological difficulties. The book also includes a comprehensive resources section of where to look for further information.

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Promoting Social Interaction for Individuals with Communicative Impairments. Edited by M. Suzanne Zeedyk, $31.95

All humans have an innate need to communicate with others, and this book presents successful approaches to nurturing communicative abilities in people who have some type of communication impairment. Covering both the theory and practical implementation of different interventions, this book will be invaluable for health and social work professionals, psychologists, psychotherapists, counselors, speech and language therapists, as well as researchers, teachers and students in these fields.


Psychological Interventions in Childhood Chronic Illness. Dennis Drotar, $71.95

Children and adolescents with chronic illnesses face extraordinary psychological stressors, which often occur alongside or because of burdensome medical treatment regimens. Illness-related pressure and worry plague family members as well. These children and families need psychological support to help them comply with doctors’ orders and to cope with issues such as restricted physical activity, frequent absences from school, and social problems. This book is designed to advance scientific understanding of interventions that promote psychological adaptation and adherence to treatment for children and adolescents with chronic health conditions … Psychologists who provide clinical care in pediatric settings will learn about new interventions that can be tailored to the individual needs of children and families coping with asthma, diabetes, cancer, sickle-cell anemia, arthritis, and cystic fibrosis. Researchers will find guidance on the design, methodology, measurement, and ethics of testing interventions with children and families.


Quinn at School: Relating, Connecting and Responding at School, a Book for Children Ages 3-7. Rick Warren, $19.75

Meet Quinn — an irresistible young child who is trying to learn the "ropes" of social interactions at school. Colorful illustrations, interactive activities and a fun poster make this educational tool more than just a good story!

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Raising a Child with Arthritis: from Infancy to Young Adulthood. Charlotte Huff, $14.95

Raising a Child with Arthritis provides solutions for the daily challenges in your child’s life.


Raising Cubby: a Father and Son’s Adventures with Asperger’s, Trains, Tractors, and High Explosives. John Elder Robinson, $32.95

Misfit, truant, delinquent. John Robison was never a model child, and he wasn’t a model dad either. Diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome at the age of forty, he approached fatherhood as a series of logic puzzles and practical jokes. When his son, Cubby, asked, “Where did I come from?” John said he’d bought him at the Kid Store and that the salesman had cheated him by promising Cubby would “do all chores.” He read electrical engineering manuals to Cubby at bedtime. He told Cubby that wizards turned children into stone when they misbehaved.

Still, John got the basics right. The one thing John couldn’t figure out was what to do when school authorities decided that Cubby was dumb and stubborn—the very same thing he had been told as a child. Did Cubby have Asperger’s too? The answer was unclear. One thing was clear, though: By the time he turned seventeen, Cubby had become a brilliant chemist—smart enough to make military-grade explosives and bring state and federal agents calling. Afterward, with Cubby facing up to sixty years in prison, both father and son were forced to take stock of their lives, finally coming to terms with being “on the spectrum” as both a challenge and a unique gift. 


Raising and Educating a Deaf Child: a Comprehensive Guide to the Choices, Controversies and Decisions Faced by Parents and Educators, 2nd Edition. Marc Marschark, $48.00

Raising and Educating a Deaf Child is not a how-to book or one with all the "right" answers for raising a deaf child; rather, it is a guide through the conflicting suggestions and programs for raising deaf children, as well as the likely implications of taking one direction or the other.

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Raising Special Kids: a Group Program for Parents of Children with Special Needs, Facilitator's Manual. Jared Massanari & Alice Massanari, $15.95

Raising Special Kids: a Group Program for Parents of Children with Special Needs, Parent Guidebook. Jared Massanari & Alice Massanari, $21.95

This eight-session group program is a mutual support program that allows parents to share stories and explore what works and what doesn't in their unique relationships between their children and families. Each chapter presents a central theme that weaves together their own needs and the needs of their child. The program focuses on:

  • Encouraging parents to explore their own very intense emotional responses to raising a child with special needs.
  • Helping parents identify their lost dreams, express feelings that accompany loss, and, at the same time, deeply love the child now in their lives.
  • Helping parents experience the gifts that their child offers.
  • Encouraging parents to practice self-care and appreciate all that they do for their child.
  • Strengthening both the parent-child connection and the family as a whole.
  • Improving family communication and developing skills to help children reach optimal potential.

Raising Special Kids offers insights and guidance for any parent facing the challenges of raising a child with physical, developmental, behavioral, or emotional special needs.


Ready, Set, Potty! Toilet Training for Children with Autism and Other Developmental Disorders. Brenda Batts, $18.95

Potty training a child with developmental disorders can be a real challenge, and sometimes the extra difficulties make you feel as though you've tried everything, and failed.

Bursting with ideas on how to see past conventional strategies and adapt toilet training to suit your child, this book outlines methods that have helped even the most despairing of parents and caregivers. Examples of success stories range from two-year-olds to adults aged 20, and show that no matter how difficult it may seem, a little creativity and adaptation can get anyone toilet trained, even when all previous attempts have failed. The program itself is supported by plenty of helpful hints and tips, and covers all you need to get your child past the diaper stage and help them to achieve a big step towards independence.


A Room of Golden Shells: 100 Works by Artists and Writers with Down Syndrome. Woodbine House, $35.95

Created by artists from the United States and Canada, the 100 works were solicited via a contest and judged by Woodbine House staff. This dynamic collection of painting, ceramics, poetry, and prose marks one of the rare occasions that the creative talents of teenagers and adults with Down syndrome have been showcased outside their own community. Inspired by nature, popular culture, travel, master artists, faith, and dreams, these pieces dazzle us with mastery of craft, captivate us with a novel metaphor (such as the "golden shells" in 14-year-old Fiona Morris's poem), and tell us how it feels to live with a disability.

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Secrets to Success for Professionals in the Autism Field: an Insider's Guide to Understanding the Autism Spectrum, the Environment and Your Role. Gunilla Gerland, $34.95

In a highly readable style, with many inspiring examples, this book offers original explanations of the impairments associated with autism, showing how to discover the root cause of behaviours that are challenging, not just how to manage them superficially. It looks objectively and non-judgmentally at the common pitfalls and difficulties that autism professionals may encounter, explaining how to deal with these and transition to more effective working relationships. An important section on ethics and reflection equips the reader with the knowledge and skills needed to grow professionally in the field.

Packed with original insights and practical, hands-on tools and strategies, this is essential reading for teachers, teaching assistants, support workers, counsellors, social workers and anyone else working with individuals of any age on the autism spectrum.


Sensory Parenting from Newborns to Toddlers. Britt Collins & Jackie Linder Olson, $21.50

Sensory Parenting: the Elementary Years. Britt Collins & Jackie Linder Olson, $20.95

All of us have a sensory issue at one time or another and most of us learn to adapt or to avoid the things that irritate us without giving them a second thought. But for children with sensory processing disorders, even the simplest daily activities can create anxiety and stress that challenge the entire family’s ability to cope.  

These two books offer a wealth of information for parents of kids with sensory issues, loaded with tips and solutions to manage everyday situations and get to the bottom of the challenging behaviors, while helping parents to understand their child’s sensory world.


Set for Success: Activities for Teaching Emotional, Social and Organizational Skills. Josie Santomauro & Margaret Anne Carter, $34.95

To be successful in today's world, all children need to become competent in emotional, social and organizational skills. This book of easy-to-implement strategies will be an invaluable tool for teaching these essential life skills to children of all abilities. Each chapter provides objectives, lesson ideas, activities and photocopiable worksheets, and adopts an engaging theme appealing to a wide range of interests including science, music, cookery and sports. Set for Success offers a series of structured yet fun-filled exercises that cater to all learning styles and levels of emotional and social proficiency.

This practical resource is ideal for children aged 3-10.

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The Silent Child: Exploring the World of Children Who Do Not Speak. Laurent Danon-Boileau, $19.95

The Silent Child offers case-based analysis of how children with pathology ranging from autism to aphasia find their way towards speech. It includes narrated real-life treatment sessions and draws general conclusions from both a linguistic and a psychoanalytic perspective.


Six Mothers — Six Stories of Disability. Golder Wilson, $20.50

A must-read for parents and the healthcare providers alike, Six Mothers — Six Stories of Disability is an intimate look at the lives of six mothers who have children with differing disabilities. These women give advice on what to do and how best to handle different situations regarding home, school and health care. Dr. Wilson then gives his perspective to help physicians better relate to families with disabled children. You will read how these women and their families have dealt with emotional challenges, met obligations, and developed happy, fulfilling lives.

Social Behavior and Self-Management: 5-Point Scales for Adolescents and Adults. Kari Dunn Buron, Jane Thierfeld Brown, Mitzi Curtis & Lisa King, $21.50

Building on the success of the INCREDIBLE 5-POINT SCALE, by Buron and Curtis, this book also uses scales as a way of explaining social and emotional concepts to individuals who have difficulty understanding such information but have a relative strength in understanding systems. The 5-point scales can be used to increase communication between the person on the spectrum and their support person. It can increase self-management skills and, once learned, it can serve as an excelled self-advocacy tool. As such, it is invaluable at school, on the job and in the community.

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Social Fortune or Social Fate: a Social Thinking Graphic Novel Map for Social Quest Seekers. Michelle Garcia Winner & Pam Crooke, $24.95

Utilizing the graphic novel with anime illustrations concept to capture the attention of teens, we have developed this book to teach the core concepts related to Michelle Garcia Winner’s Social Behavior Mapping (SBM). The core of the book consists of 10 social scenarios, each one scenario is played out through the lens of Social Fortune or Social Fate by demonstrating visually how a situation can change quickly based on how someone reacts within it. Every scenario begins with a mini-story told through a four pictured comic strip which then leads the protagonist to a decision making point. If the decision made leads to others feeling good and ultimately the character feeling good about him or herself, this will be represented as “social fortune.”  However, if the protagonist makes a decision that traps him/her and peers/adults in an uncomfortable or frustrating situation, this leads to “social fate.”

This book is unique in its layout and format. The first cover depicts the Social Fortune side of the book; but when the reader turns the book over, the back side of the cover appears up-side down. This is the Social Fate side — a playful way to point out two different points of view.  


The Social Play Record: a Toolkit for Assessing and Developing Social Play from Infancy to Adolescence. Chris White, $52.95

Parents, teachers and professionals working with or caring for a child with social interaction difficulties will find this toolkit an essential assessment resource. The Social Play Record is a practical resource for assessing and developing social play in children with autistic spectrum disorders (ASDs) or difficulties with social interaction.


Social Skills Activities for Secondary Students with Special Needs, Grades 6-12, 2nd Edition. Darlene Mannix, $35.95

200 ready-to-use lessons and worksheets to help students learn social skills for home, school, work and the community.

The updated new edition of this valuable resource offers an exciting collection of worksheets to help adolescents build the social skills they need to interact effectively with others and learn how to apply these skills to various real-life settings, situations, and problems. The book provides complete teaching units focusing on 20 basic social skills, such as being a good listener, "reading" other people, and using common sense.

Social Skills Activities for Special Children, Grades K-5, 2nd Edition. Darlene Mannix, $32.95

Over 160 ready-to-use lessons and worksheets to help children use social skills inside and outside the classroom.

Each lesson places a specific skill within the context of real-life situations, giving teachers a means to guide students to think about why the social skill is important. The hands-on activity that accompanies each lesson helps students to work through, think about, discuss, and practice the skill in or outside of the classroom.

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Social Town Citizens Discover 82 New Unthinkables for Superflex® to Outsmart! Introducing Superflex’s Very Cool Five-Step Power Plan and the Unthinkables©. Stephanie Madrigal, Michelle Garcia Winner & Pamela Crooke, $35.95 (includes CD-ROM for handouts)

This latest edition in the Superflex® series is a compilation work that introduces 82 new Unthinkables and 14 new Thinkables submitted by Social Town citizens of all ages. Unthinkables and Thinkables are grouped by theme/category for easy reference by student or adult, and each entry includes the character’s power, related information about its characteristics, and strategies to defeat the Unthinkable or bolster a Thinkable's help. The focal point of the book is a brand new teaching strategy developed by Stephanie Madrigal and Michelle Garcia Winner called Superflex’s Very Cool Five-Step Power Plan. It provides students with even more tools to strengthen their social processing.


Socially ADDept: Teaching Social Skills to Children with ADHD, LD and Asperger's. Janet Giler, $35.95 (ages 8-13)

Socially ADDept helps educators and parents teach the hidden rules of social behavior to children with limited social skills, notably those with special needs like ADHD, learning disabilities, Asperger's and high-functioning autism, Tourette Syndrome, and nonverbal learning disabilities. The author provides all the information parents and professionals need to know to help kids learn social skills in simple, concise explanations. The book is divided into eight sections that educators can use as teaching units or parents can work through one week (or month) at a time.

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The easy-to-read books in the Understanding Differences Series introduce emergent and early readers to the challenges some children with special needs may face.

Some Kids are Blind. Lola Schaefer, $6.95
Some Kids are Deaf. Lola Schaefer, $6.95
Some Kids Use Wheelchairs. Lola Schaefer, $6.95
Some Kids Wear Leg Braces. Lola Schaefer, $6.95


Song Without Words: Discovering My Deafness Halfway through Life. Gerald Shea, $29.00

An intimate and original view into the hidden world of deafness by an international lawyer who survived Andover, Yale, Columbia Law School and partnership in a prestigious New York law despite severe hearing loss not diagnosed until he was 34.


The Space Place — We Have Lift Off! Catalyst Video Ltd., $65.95

The Space Place is designed to help young children have a better understanding of emotions and social interaction. The series features a space museum full of model space vehicles and rockets with friendly faces.  When George, the caretaker, locks up at night, all the models come to life and the fun begins!

Twelve episodes, each focusing on one emotion, are the central part of this DVD. Also included are interactive games and activities, a set of playing cards featuring emotions and a bonus CD with a special 3D game.

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Speaking of Apraxia: a Parent's Guide to Childhood Apraxia of Speech. Leslie Lindsay, $30.95

Written in an empathic style by a parent who "has been there", SPEAKING OF APRAXIA offers hope and practical advice for parents of toddlers to teens with this neurologically-based motor speech disorder. Characterized by difficulties with planning and producing the complex set of movements necessary for intelligible speech, childhood apraxia of speech (CAS) can be a child's only diagnosis or can be accompanied by other special needs such as learning disabilities, Down syndrome, or autism. Parents and professionals will appreciate the author's clear explanations of everything from diagnosing CAS and working with speech-language pathologists (SLPs), to understanding how to distinguish it from other speech disorders, and getting appropriate early intervention and special education support.

SPEAKING OF APRAXIA is a comprehensive and authoritative resource any family, SLP, occupational therapist, or pediatric practice will be glad to own or recommend. 


Special Diets for Special Kids. Lisa Lewis, $37.50

Over 200 gluten-free, casein-free recipes are included in this new edition of Special Diets for Special Kids. Combining volumes 1 and 2 into a new and updated edition, this jam-packed resource includes information on the latest research into the effects of diet for children with autism, ADHD, allergies, celiac disease and more. The recipes are easy to make and delicious. Best of all — this new edition comes with a CD-ROM of printable recipes.


The Special Educator’s Toolkit: Everything You Need to Organize, Manage, & Monitor Your Classroom. Cindy Golden, $42.95

Reduce your stress and support student success with this practical toolkit for whole-classroom organization. A lifesaver for special educators in any K–12 setting, this book and CD-ROM set will help teachers expertly manage everything, from schedules and paperwork to student supports and behavior plans with this innovative approach to creating effective classrooms for students with all types of disabilities. Special educators will get step-by-step, ready-to-use guidance on managing six key aspects of their daily work:

  • Environment. Make the most of every inch of classroom space! Clean out clutter, arrange furniture to improve traffic flow, and construct classroom zones, work stations, and bulletin board displays that support learning.
  • Communication. Implement low-cost communication supports that meet student needs. Make simple picture symbol books, interactive schedules, labels for classroom areas and objects, and more.
  • Teaching Methods and Materials. Determine student needs, create schedules, simplify the IEP process, and pinpoint the best methods for teaching academic, vocational, behavioral, social, and life skills.
  • Behavioral Systems. Organize a successful behavioral system that motivates students, helps them improve behavior and social skills, and uses positive reinforcement techniques.
  • Data and Paperwork. Learn the secrets to creating a simple, logical, highly efficient system for managing paperwork—so more time can be spent on teaching.
  • Staff and Home Supports. Build trusting, respectful relationships with classroom staff and parents with stress-free strategies like team meetings and home communication notebooks.

For each of these critical areas, special educators will discover dozens of proven strategies, vivid examples, and clever tips and tricks to help them make immediate improvements in their classroom. The book includes a CD-ROM with more than 60 printable forms and tools to support learning, safety, and positive behavior. This is the ultimate guide for every special educator, from the first-year teacher setting up a new classroom to the seasoned veteran who wants a down-to-earth guide to current best practices.

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Special Needs Kids Go Pharm-Free. Judy Converse, $20.00

At last — nutrition strategies designed to lessen dependence on prescription medications and to help your child thrive. The book’s nutrition-focused tools help minimize meds and maximize health and well-being. Covers autism, asthma, ADHD, allergies, mood disorders and learning problems.


From the Special Kids in School Series® — Helping to build awareness and understanding of children with chronic illness. Each of the books in this series is designed to educate classroom peers about children living with different illnesses. Each title also includes "Ten Tips for Teachers" and "Kids' Quiz". A must for parents, teachers, school nurses, counselors and caregivers.

Titles in this series, $14.50 each:

Taking A.D.D. to School; Taking Arthritis to School; Taking Asthma to School; Taking Autism to School; Taking Cancer to School; Taking Cerebral Palsy to School; Taking Cystic Fibrosis to School; Taking Depression to School; Taking Diabetes to School; Taking Down Syndrome to School; Taking Dyslexia to School; Taking Food Allergies to School; Taking Hearing Impairments to School; Taking Seizure Disorders to School; Taking Speech Disorders to School; Taking Tourette Syndrome to School; Taking Visual Impairments to School; Taking Weight Problems to School.

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Special Stories for Disability Awareness: Stories and Activities for Teachers, Parents and Professionals. Mal Leicester, illustrated by Taryn Shrigley-Wightman, $34.95

Special Stories on Disability Awareness provides stories that fire the imagination and promote disability awareness and discussion among children aged 4–11 about universal issues such as fear, loss, feeling 'different', bullying, exclusion, joy, success, friendship and emotional growth. The stories provide a safe environment for young children to discuss painful emotions as well as a tool for teachers, parents and professionals to understand the experiences of disabled children. Each chapter features an engaging story, linked discussion and learning materials as well as suggestions for activities and photocopy-ready handouts. All those who work in early education or support young children will find this an invaluable resource.


Spiritual Healing with Children with Special Needs. Bob Woodward, $24.95

Spiritual Healing with Children with Special Needs gives a fascinating account of individual healing sessions with children with complex special needs and moderate to severe learning difficulties. From his perspective as both spiritual healer and curative educator, the author demonstrates the benefits of spiritual healing for these children as a natural, non-invasive, holistic approach that restores balance and harmony to body, soul and spirit.


S.T.A.R.S.: a Social Skills Training Guide for Teaching Assertiveness, Relationship Skills and Sexual Awareness. Susan Heighway & Susan Kidd Webster, $21.50

Specially designed for teaching adolescents and adults with developmental disabilities, the STARS model focuses on four areas: Understanding Relationships, Social Skills Training, Sexual Awareness and Assertiveness—with the goals of promoting positive sexuality and preventing sexual abuse. Assessment tools help identify the strengths and needs of each individual, and then the activities can be catered to address specific needs. Goals and activities cover a variety of important skills:

• Building a Positive Self-Image • Making Choices • Learning Relationship-Appropriate Behaviors • Engaging in Mature Relationships • Identifying Body Parts and Understanding Their Functions • Understanding Public and Private Behavior • Understanding Sexual Feelings and Behaviors • Understanding Reproduction • Health Issues Related to Sexual Awareness • Recognizing a Situation as Potentially Unsafe • Learning to Say “No” and Using Basic Self-Protection • And many more!

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Starting a Conversation: School Children with Congenital Heart Disease. Jillian Roberts & Sheryle MacMath, $26.95

This book is for everyone who would like to learn about congenital heart disease. This book will inspire people to see the child, rather than the illness. This is the dream of these children. Starting a Conversation provides accessibility to the wealth of knowledge that has been generated by researchers so that teachers, school personnel, and parents can work together to create the best school environment possible. Together, a school environment can be established that supports, guides, and enriches the lives of children with congenital heart disease. Often, it is just a matter of starting a conversation.


Stickler Syndrome: Learning the Facts, DVD. Symmetree Media, $20.00 (29 minutes)

Stickler Syndrome is an under-diagnosed disease with profound medical consequences particularly with respect to vision and mobility. A genetic malfunction in the collagen found in bones, eyes, ears and the face, can lead to blindness, hearing loss, degenerative joint disease, chronic pain and facial effects. This new DVD, Stickler Syndrome: Learning the Facts aims to increase awareness of what can happen, the possible treatment options and provides support to those with and affected by Stickler Syndrome.


Story Drama in the Special Needs Classroom: Step-by-Step Lesson Plans for Teaching through Dramatic Play. Jessica Perich Carleton, $25.95

Introducing drama to the learning experience is guaranteed to enrich a child's development, and is an especially effective approach for children with special educational needs, including those with autism spectrum disorders. This practical handbook offers teachers an array of simple and easy-to-implement theatrical techniques that will enhance students' learning and encourage artistic expression.

The author demonstrates how drama can be applied to a diverse range of school subjects and recreational settings. 'The Little Red Hen', for example, covers themes that are relevant to literacy (rhyming and rhythm), maths (counting seeds), science (discussing farming), and art lessons (designing costumes). Step-by-step lesson plans take teachers through every aspect of running fun and engaging story dramas, including warm ups, movement, songs and props. Handy tips throughout suggest ideas for developing the plays further and ways to adapt them according to the needs of the group.


Supportive Parenting: Becoming an Advocate for Your Child with Special Needs. Jan Starr Campito, $28.95

When Jan Campito first entered the world of special needs, she trusted the experts to tell her how to proceed. An articulate, well-educated and confident person, she found she became passive and trusting when it came to assuming people would tell her what was wrong with her children's development and what to do to help them. Since no one else was stepping up to find appropriate help for her children, she realized that she needed to take on that responsibility. In Supportive Parenting, Jan Campito shares with other parents her experiences and offers valuable insight into the advocacy process for both parents and professionals.

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The Survival Guide for Kids with Autism Spectrum Disorders (and Their Parents). Elizabeth Verdick & Elizabeth Reeve, $18.99 (ages 8 and up)

This positive, straightforward book offers kids with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) their own comprehensive resource for both understanding their condition and finding tools to cope with the challenges they face every day. THE SURVIVAL GUIDE FOR KIDS WITH AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDERS places an emphasis on helping children gain new self-understanding and self-acceptance.

Meant to be read with a parent, the book addresses questions and provides strategies for communicating, making and keeping friends, and succeeding in school. Body and brain basics highlight symptom management, exercise, diet, hygiene, relaxation, sleep, and toileting. Emphasis is placed on helping kids handle intense emotions and behaviors and get support from family and their team of helpers when needed. The book includes stories from real kids, fact boxes, helpful checklists, and resources. Sections for parents offer additional information.


Taking On a Learning Disability: at the Crossroads of Special Education and Adolescent Literacy Learning.  Erin McCloskey, $50.95

In the United States, approximately 2.5 million students are diagnosed as having a learning disability and the majority of those children are placed in special education because of an inability to read as expected. As a result of this diagnosis, these children may be placed in special education classrooms — classrooms that are separate from the ‘mainstream’ population. For children with learning disabilities, there is likely no place, other than in school, where a student’s inability to read as expected leads to this separation from his/her peers. Once school is over, these children play alongside the kids in their neighborhoods, participate in sports teams, and attend community activities. This book looks at the impact of being labeled as learning disabled and separated from peers in school through the eyes of Samson, a middle school student described both as learning disabled and a non-reader. This qualitative case study explores how Samson, his family, his teachers and this researcher make sense of special education and the complexities of learning to read as an adolescent.

Through the three years that Samson was in middle school, this book investigates his perspective on his classes, his interpretation of what it means to ‘be’ a student in special education, and the process by which he learns to read. How disability gets created, contested, and discussed is highlighted through the many contexts that allow disability to be recognized and to fade into the background.


Talkabout for Children: Developing Self Awareness and Self Esteem. Alex Kelly, $70.95

This practical resource is packed with activities and games for developing self awareness and self esteem.  Self awareness and self esteem is an essential prerequisite to developing social skills and so this book is an excellent first step to any social skills programme. The book includes:

  • Over 40 activities to develop self awareness and self esteem
  • A CD with colour versions of the activities to print out and use
  • A year's teaching plan to help teachers incorporate groups into the school curriculum
  • A short introduction to working with children with low self esteem and social skills difficulties
  • A short assessment of self awareness and self esteem
  • 25 excellent group cohesion activities to use within in your groups
  • Forms and evaluation sheets to help with the smooth running of groups.

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Tasks Galore. Laurie Eckenrode, Pat Fennell & Kathy Hearsey, $46.95

Creative ideas for teachers, therapists, and parents working with exceptional children. Full-color pictorial series of multi-modal tasks, used in programs for children with autism. Applicable to any early education or leaning environment.

The authors are all current or former employees of TEACCH, and together have over sixty years of experience working with exceptional children and adults.


Tasks Galore for the Real World. Kathy Hearsey, Laurie Eckenrode & Pat Fennell, $46.95

Tasks Galore for the Real World, the second book in the Tasks Galore set, is a valuable tool for preparing older elementary students, adolescents, and adults for independence in the home, school, community, or workplace. Forty-three colorful photo pages present task ideas in these categories:

  • Developing and Teaching Functional Goals
  • Domestic Skills
  • Vocational Skills
  • Independent Living Skills
  • Job Sites & School Transition Ideas

Tasks Galore Let’s Play: Structured Steps to Social Engagement and Symbolic Play. Laurie Eckenrode, Kathy Hearsey, Pat Fennell & Beth Reynolds, $65.95

The fourth book in the popular Tasks Galore resource series for parents, teachers and therapists utilizes play as the program foundation for learning. These strategies are based on evolving evidence that teaching play skills can increase young children’s symbolic understanding and, thus, have an impact on their imitation, language and social skills.

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Tasks Galore Literature-Based Thematic Units. Laurie Eckenrode & Pat Fennell, $73.95

TASKS GALORE: LITERATURE-BASED THEMATIC UNITS, the fifth book in the popular resource series for parents, teachers, and therapists, integrates instruction across core curriculum areas by utilizing multisensory learning. 

Using the storybook, I’M HUNGRY, I’M HUNGRY, WHAT SHALL I DO? as a guide for creating literature-based thematic units, the authors have designed hands-on activities for use with young learners and students with special needs. The strategies employed encourage responsiveness to literature while enhancing vocabulary and language. Tasks illustrate how to make learning more meaningful by:

  • using organizational strategies and visual cues
  • connecting themes to everyday experiences
  • adapting skills for 21st century learning, and
  • individualizing for differing learning styles

Tasks Galore: Making Groups Meaningful. Laurie Eckenrode, Pat Fennell & Kathy Hearsey, $54.95

The third book in the series, Tasks Galore: Making Groups Meaningful is designed to aid teachers, parents and therapists in applying structured teaching techniques within classroom groups, school specials, and even parties! Photos depict preschool and elementary groups. Concepts are applicable to all ages.

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Teaching by Design: Using Your Computer to Create Materials for Students with Learning Differences. Kimberly Voss, $43.95

Teaching by Design shows readers how to use the computer to design meaningful educational materials for children and adults with special needs. A synthesis of computer graphics, education, and crafting, this book represents the author’s considerable expertise in customizing educational materials for her daughter with multiple disabilities as well as teaching other parents and teachers to create them too. Full of instructions for designing and adapting materials and strategies for using them, including a time-saving CD-ROM of templates, Teaching by Design is useful to parents and teachers of students of all ages with a wide range of disabilities. Design and customize lotto boards, interactive spelling cards, game pieces, playing cards, matching games, menus, fill-in-the-blank decals, handwriting transparencies, and more, to teach visual perception, math, language, communication, reading, handwriting, and self-help skills.


Teaching Communication Skills to Children with Autism. Pat Crissey, $28.95 (Grades K-12)

Teaching Communication Skills to Children with Autism offers a comprehensive overview of methods and strategies for developing functional communication in children with autism. It addresses the needs of non-verbal and beginning communicators, as well as verbal children with high functioning autism and Asperger Syndrome. Includes a license to reprint PDF forms and handouts.


Teaching Perspective-Taking Skills to Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders. Lynn Cohen Brennan, $47.95

Educators, psychologists, speech and language pathologists, school adjustment counselors and parents can use the teaching guidelines in this manual to help children on the autism spectrum acquire the social perspective taking skills that are so vital to social competency.  Beginning with basic non-verbal communication skills such as eye contact and pointing skills, and using concrete, step-by-step instructions, the manual provides systematic teaching programs designed to build progressively more complex social perspective-taking skills including joint attention and pretend play skills, identifying and predicting emotions in themselves and others, making social inferences, understanding false and nested belief and faux pas.  Teaching scenarios, with corresponding illustrations designed to enhance comprehension, are provided as well as recommended activities for promoting the generalization of acquired skills. Includes manual and CD-ROM with reproducibles.

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Thrifty Nifty Stuff for Little Kids: Developmental Play Using Home Resources, Birth to 5. Dee Blose & Laura Smith, $56.50

Assist young children with special needs by adapting ordinary household objects into more than 230 creative activities. You'll have complete instructions for making inexpensive and easy-to-construct therapeutic toys. Use these in activities to improve language, fine motor, gross motor, and cognitive skills in young children. Plus, a description of typical development for each age range is included.

These fresh ideas enable professionals to develop new ways to build skills and to adapt toys, equipment and ideas for sensory-based activities.


Through a Dog's Eyes: Service Dogs and the People Whose Lives They've Changed, DVD. Written by Don Campbell, Featuring Jennifer Arnold, Narrated by Neil Patrick Harris, $28.95 (60 minutes)

This PBS documentary follows the stories of people with disabilities as they experience the heartwarming and sometimes challenging process of being matched with a service dog.  These journeys provide powerful insights into one of life's most extraordinary relationships- the human/canine bond.


Together Is Better: Creating a Community Where Each Belongs. Al Condeluci, $23.50

TOGETHER IS BETTER is about change and about how to make things better by fostering community inclusion for persons with disabilities.

Building on the simple concept of community, it explores the complexities, challenges and rewards of working to develop a community where each person belongs – young and old, children and adults, with and without disabilities.

As an interactive manual, the book guides the reader through exercises with narratives that teach about communities and demonstrates methods for becoming a valued member. Written for persons of all abilities and ages, it can be used by parents of children with special needs, by professionals to assist participants, people with disabilities or consumers, and by individuals for personal growth.


Touch and Go Joe: an Adolescent’s Experience with OCD. Joe Wells, $17.95

As many as 2 in every 100 people suffers from Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD), and 16-year-old Joe Wells is one of them. In Touch and Go Joe, he tells the story of his battle with OCD from its insidious beginnings at age 9 and increasingly intrusive symptoms, to diagnosis at age 12. Having struggled to keep the condition a secret for years, he is now able to talk and write openly about OCD and how he battled to overcome it.

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Treatment of Language Disorders in Children. Rebecca J. McCauley & Marc E. Fey, editors, $73.50 (includes DVD)

An essential text for future practitioners and an ideal resource for in-service professional development, Treatment of Language Disorders in Children is the key to choosing and implementing the best interventions for children with language disorders. Expert contributors take a balanced, in-depth look at 15 widely used interventions, examining how they should be applied, what evidence demonstrates that they really work, and what SLPs should do to support and refine the approaches. Includes DVD clips of each approach in action, providing vivid illustrations of the interventions.


Understanding Dyspraxia: a Guide for Parents and Teachers, 2nd edition. Maureen Boon, $18.95

Maureen Boon draws on her considerable experience of working with children with movement disorders to identify the characteristics of dyspraxia, explaining assessment procedures and identifying what can be done to help. Understanding Dyspraxia is a concise yet comprehensive handbook for parents and teachers. Its clear structure and practical, positive advice will make it an invaluable resource for anyone involved with a dyspraxic child.


Understanding Facial Recognition Difficulties in Children: Prosopagnosia Management Strategies for Parents and Professionals. Nancy Mindick, $22.95

Can you imagine not being able to recognize those you know if they wore glasses, changed their hairstyle, or perhaps put on a hat? Prosopagnosia is a severe facial recognition disorder that is thought to impact around two per cent of the population. Frequently found in children on the autism spectrum, those with the condition have difficulties distinguishing between one face and the next, meaning that they may not recognize even those who are closest to them.

Nancy Mindick provides parents, teachers, and other professionals with an accessible explanation of the different types, causes, and characteristics of prosopagnosia. Providing an insider's perspective on the condition, she suggests ways to recognize the signs of facial recognition difficulties in children, and offers specific ideas for ensuring that they are properly supported in their learning and social development. The issues of diagnosis and disclosure are explored, and the author offers practical management strategies for helping children to cope with the condition and to navigate the many different social situations they will encounter at home, at school, and in the community.

This book offers specific, practical information for parents, teachers, child psychologists, and anyone else who wishes to support the learning and development of a child with a facial recognition disorder.

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Understanding Fragile X Syndrome: a Guide for Families and Professionals. Isabel Fernändez Carvajal & David Aldridge, $22.95

Fragile X syndrome is one of the main causes of child developmental delay and autism spectrum disorders. A pre-mutated form of the same gene is also the basis for neurological disabilities in adults. This book breaks down the complex science of this genetic disorder and provides the facts and advice that every bewildered parent or professional needs to support individuals with Fragile X syndrome.

This is a straightforward introduction that clearly explains the condition on both a scientific and practical level. With sections on diagnosis, symptoms and treatment, as well as discussions of various emotional and behavioural considerations, this guide covers all aspects of Fragile X syndrome, its implications, and the possibilities open to families affected by it. It demonstrates how, with the right therapies, progress can be made and emphasizes how music can be used effectively to promote communication, interaction, fine motor skills and responsiveness in children with the condition.

This is an essential reference tool for families of individuals with Fragile X syndrome, as well as therapists and healthcare professionals who are unfamiliar with the condition and are looking to find out more.


Understanding Motor Skills in Children with Dyspraxia, ADHD, Autism, and Other Learning Disabilities: a Guide to Improving Coordination. Lisa Kurtz, $22.95

Children with learning disabilities often have coordination problems that make everyday activities such as mealtimes, dressing, playing sports, and learning to write challenging.

This accessible manual for parents and professionals offers advice on how to recognize normal and abnormal motor development, when and how to seek help and specific teaching strategies to assist children with coordination difficulties in succeeding in the classroom, playground, and at home. Full of practical help, this is essential reading for anyone caring for, or working with, children with developmental motor concerns.


Understanding Nonverbal Learning Disabilities: a Common Sense Guide for Parents and Professionals. Maggie Mamen, $24.95

This easy-to-read guide offers a complete overview of Nonverbal Learning Disabilities (NLDs) and the wide variety of symptoms which different types of NLD present.

Maggie Mamen enables readers to select the most relevant strategies for coping with and managing particular symptoms. She provides a wealth of practical advice on key skills such as developing written and verbal communication, understanding social clues, managing behaviour, self-regulation and improving organization. She also covers relevant teaching methods for the classroom.

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Understanding Regulation Disorders of Sensory Processing in Children: Management Strategies for Parents and Professionals. Pratibha Reebye & Aileen Stalker, $22.95

Children with regulation disorders of sensory processing struggle to regulate their emotions and behaviors in response to sensory stimulation. This book explains how to recognize these disorders, which are often misdiagnosed, and offers practical ways of helping children with regulation disorders.

The authors describe the everyday experiences and distinguishing characteristics, symptoms, diagnosis, assessment and treatment approaches for the disorder. Focusing on early intervention, they present a range of management strategies for sensory sensitivities, motor problems, over- or under-reaction, and extremes of behavior. This concise book will be of interest to those who assess, educate and parent children with regulation disorders.


Using Storytelling to Support Children and Adults with Special Needs: Transforming Lives through Telling Tales. Edited by Nicola Grove, $48.50

This innovative and wide-ranging book shows how storytelling can open new worlds for learners with or without special educational needs. With sections that outline both therapeutic and educational approaches, this practical resource provides a highly accessible combination of theory and practice. Using STORYTELLING TO SUPPORT CHILDREN AND ADULTS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS will be of interest to all education professionals as well as therapists, youth workers, counsellors, and storytellers and theatre practitioners working in special education.


Video Modeling for Young Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders: a Practical Guide for Parents and Professionals. Sarah Murray & Brenna Noland, $24.95

Video modeling takes visual learning to the next level by using new technologies to create an effective teaching tool. This book explains how professionals and parents can use innovative video modeling techniques to support the development of young children with autism spectrum disorders in school, home or community settings.

Offering practical step-by-step guidance, the book shows how to film and edit personalized videos that highlight the exact skill that is being taught. Whether the focus is increasing attention, peer interaction, getting dressed or creative play, these videos are easy to incorporate into daily routines. They allow the child to learn new skills quickly and with less hands-on adult support leading to greater independence. Three video modeling strategies are presented – Basic Video Modeling, Video Self-Modeling and Point-of-view Video Modeling – along with all the information needed for readers to start using the techniques for themselves. The research behind the approach is also discussed and each chapter includes detailed case studies that demonstrate the techniques in action.

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What Did You Say? A Guide to Speech Intelligibility in People with Down Syndrome. DVD 59 minutes Libby Kumin, $34.95

This comprehensive overview of speech intelligibility problems is useful to parents of young children who speak but are not easily understood. The DVD features dozens of boys and girls with Down syndrome, from preschool age to young adulthood, showing various levels of speech intelligibility. The DVD also features a bonus section with useful tips on writing effective Individualized Education Program (IEP) goals related to speech intelligibility. What Did You Say is also an excellent companion to Libby Kumin's book Early Communication Skills for Children with Down Syndrome.


What Do You Use to Help Your Body? Jewel Kats, $18.95 (ages 4-8)

Maggie and her mother are out for a walk. Along the way they stop and talk to the people in their neighbourhood, and Maggie discovers that lots of people use different things to help their bodies. Maggie discovers that many people with disabilities use aids, and just how they work!


What is Autism? Understanding Life with Autism or Asperger's. Chantal Sicile-Kira, $16.50

Though in recent years the diagnosis of autism has reached epidemic proportions, it is far from understood. In WHAT IS AUTISM Chantal Sicile-Kira provides a clear, instructive explanation of autism spectrum disorders and what life is like for those on the spectrum. WHAT IS AUTISM explores in a simple question-answer format topics such as the causes of autism, prevention, symptoms, behavior, and emotional effects of autism on families.

"A wonderful first introduction to autism for parents, teachers, relatives, and neighbors of a child on the autism spectrum." —Temple Grandin, author of Thinking in Pictures


When Down Syndrome and Autism Intersect: a Guide to DS-ASD for Parents and Professionals. Margaret Froehlke & Robin Zaborek, $35.95

WHEN DOWN SYNDROME AND AUTISM INTERSECT offers a thorough examination of the unique profile of a Down Syndrome-Autism Spectrum Disorder (DS-ASD) diagnosis and best practices for screening, treatment, and caretaking through the lifespan. This one-stop resource, the first of its kind, will greatly benefit families whose child is already diagnosed, and also those who suspect something more than Down syndrome. Professionals, too, will find information on how to distinguish DS-ASD from a diagnosis of just Down syndrome, and guidance on providing services for children and adults.

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When Someone Dies: an Accessible Guide to Bereavement for People with Learning Disabilities. Michelle Mansfield, et al, $12.95

This booklet has been designed by people with developmental delays for use by others with learning or cognitive disorders. The aim of the booklet is to guide them in learning to deal with their loss and to assist their caregivers in supporting them.


Why Do You Do That? A Book about Tourette Syndrome for Children and Young People. Uttom Chowdhury & Mary Robertson, $17.95

Written specifically for siblings, friends and classmates of children with Tourette Syndrome (TS), Why Do You Do That describes tics and Tourette's in clear, child-friendly terms and provides a simple explanation of the biological causes. Other chapters focus on living with someone who has TS, associated features such as obsessive-compulsive disorder, ADD/HD and aggression, and what siblings can do to help. The authors also offer practical tips on how to deal with issues such as problems at school and bullying.


The Woman Who Changed Her Brain and Other Inspiring Stories of Pioneering Brain Transformation. Barbara Arrowsmith-Young, $29.99

Barbara Arrowsmith-Young was born with severe learning disabilities that caused teachers to label her slow, stubborn — or worse. As a child, she read and wrote everything backward, struggled to process concepts in language, continually got lost, and was physically uncoordinated. She could make no sense of an analogue clock. But by relying on her formidable memory and iron will, she made her way to graduate school, where she chanced upon research that inspired her to invent cognitive exercises to "fix" her own brain. THE WOMAN WHO CHANGED HER BRAIN interweaves her personal tale with riveting case histories from her more than thirty years of working with both children and adults.

THE WOMAN WHO CHANGED HER BRAIN powerfully and poignantly illustrates how the lives of children and adults struggling with learning disorders can be dramatically transformed. This remarkable book deepens our understanding of how the brain works and of the brain's profound impact on how we participate in the world. Our brains shape us, but this book offers clear and hopeful evidence of the corollary: we can shape our brains. 

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Working with Parents and Families of Exceptional Children and Youth: Techniques for Successful Conferencing and Collaboration, 4th Edition. Richard Simpson & Nancy Mundschenk, $53.95

The primary theme of Working with Parents and Families of Exceptional Children and Youth is that educators and related service professionals must be involved in helping parents and families to contend with the challenges of raising, living with and educating a child who has an exceptionality. This text maintains a focus on developing critical knowledge and skills for conferencing and collaborating that springs from a strength-based approach when working with families to develop responsive practitioners. Additionally, it offers professionals current evidence-based methods and related resources for building knowledge and skill sets needed for effective parent and family involvement.


Yoga Therapy for Every Special Child: Meeting Needs in a Natural Setting. Nancy Williams, Illustrated by Leslie White, $22.95

Yoga therapy is gaining rapid recognition as a form of treatment that can improve the physical and mental wellbeing of children with a variety of complex needs. This book contains a specially-designed yoga program for use with children of all abilities, and provides both parents and professionals with the knowledge they need to carry out the therapy themselves.

The program consists of a series of postures, each of which is explained and accompanied by an illustration. The postures are designed to help children understand and use their bodies, and work towards positive changes such as realigning the spine, encouraging eye-contact, and promoting calm and steady breathing. Consideration is given to creating the right setting for carrying out the therapy, assessing an individual child's particular needs, and making the sessions fun using games and props. Sections on yoga therapy for specific conditions such as autistic spectrum disorder, Down syndrome, and cerebral palsy are included, and the book concludes with child and parent reports on how the program has worked for them, and a list of useful contacts and resources.

This practical book is a must for parents, teachers, therapists and other professionals, and anybody else who wants to help a child to develop through enjoyable and therapeutic yoga sessions.


Yogarilla Exercises and Activities: 55 Card Yoga Deck. Kimberly Mielke & Megan-Lynette Richmond, $38.50 (ages 3 & up)

OTis, the OT gorilla, is here to teach children traditional and original yoga poses in a new, fun, and engaging way!

The 55 yoga poses and 110 activities in this oversized, colorfully illustrated card deck help children understand how their bodies and minds work together. Occupational therapists, speech-language pathologists, physical therapists, teachers, and parents can use yoga in the classroom, at home, or in treatment to improve fine and gross motor skills, sensory processing, attention, communication, and cognition.

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You Don't Look Like Anyone I Know: a True Story of Family, Face Blindness and Forgiveness. Heather Sellers, $18.50

Heather Sellers is face-blind — that is, she has prosopagnosia, a rare neurological condition that prevents her from reliably recognizing people's faces. Growing up, unaware of the reason for her perpetual confusion and anxiety, she took what cues she could from speech, hairstyle, and gait. The truth was revealed two decades later when Heather took the man she would marry home to meet her parents and discovered the astonishing truth about her family and about herself. In this uplifting memoir, Sellers illuminates a deeper truth: that even in the most chaotic and heartbreaking of families, love may be seen and felt.


You, Me and My OT. Paulette Bourgeois, illustrated by Kristi Bridgeman, $11.95

Emma wants to be an astronaut for a school project. She also has a disability. So Emma and her occupational therapist make plans to help her blast off with the rest of her class!


You, Your Child, and "Special" Education: a Guide to Dealing with the System; Revised Edition.  Barbara Coyne Cutler, $27.50

Going far beyond abstract advice, You, Your Child, and "Special" Education makes successful advocacy come to life through sample letters and dialogues, realistic vignettes, practical materials like a detailed classroom observation checklist, and solutions to large and small problems that might arise. This is an essential resource for every professional to share with the families they serve. Parents will discover how to become strong, independent, and effective advocates—and their children will get an inclusive and appropriate education that helps them reach their full potential.

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Young Children with Disabilities in Natural Environments: Methods & Procedures. Mary Jo Noonan & Linda McCormick, $60.95

Focusing on children from birth to age five, Young Children with Disabilities in Natural Environments offers a wealth of specific, practical knowledge on a range of critical procedures for working with children effectively. Pre-service practitioners will benefit from the features that set this book apart from other early intervention texts, including in-depth, practical information on assessing and intervening with children who have severe disabilities and an integrated, non-categorical approach that weaves together information across disabilities, developmental domains, and ages.

Reader-friendly features make this book a useful resource for students, as well as for professional development with in-service interventionists and educators.


Your Struggling Child: a Guide to Understanding & Advocating for Your Child with Learning, Behavior or Emotional Problems. Robert Newby, $32.50

Here is a practical, compassionate book parents can turn to when they first recognize that their child has a "problem" but aren't sure what it is or where to seek help. This book explains the different and overlapping symptoms of learning, mood, and behavior disorders and guides parents in getting the right diagnosis and treatment. Clear and comprehensive, this supportive guide will be every parent's first line of defense in helping a troubled child.

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