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Title: Don't Call Me Special: A First Look at Disability
ISBN: 0764121189
Author:
Pat Thomas
Publicate Date: 2002-04-30
Publish: 2002-04-30
List Price: $6.95
Average Customer Rating: 3.5
Format: Paperback
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Amazon Lowest New Price: $3.11
Amazon Lowest Used Price: $3.07
Amazon Merchant Price: $6.95
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| Customer Review: |
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1: Great seller. Just as discribed
With our new state regulations this will be perfect! The book was even better than I though it was going to be. Thanks so much
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2: LOVE THIS BOOK
I love this book. First I'd like to point out that this is a children's book - for children. Don't Call Me Special is intended for the typical child audience. The title itself is refreshing and pulls away from the idea that "Special Needs" children are different. We donate this book to our childrens' school libraries and have asked and been granted that our county libraries carry this book. This book is not a book about specific disabilities or about rights for your child. This information can be found in other books, at your local support group, through state agencies and your local schools. What this book DOES do is open dialog for elementary school typical children. We read this book in many of our childrens' elementary school classrooms. The first thing that the book points out to children is that we are all different and that each of us has things we are good at and things we need help with (and to not assume things just because a person has a disability). The secondary lesson is to explain why children who have disabilities get help and what some of that help is. I feel this information helps demystify where children with disabilities go if and when they leave the classroom and why they get additional help in school. To me, reading this book in the classrooms with typical students helps those students realize that having a disability is no big deal. This book is not intended to help those with disabilities. The book is intended to help typical children address concerns they have for students they share a classroom with that may have learning or physical disabilities. Get this book and use it as a tool to open up a great discussion!
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3: Parents need to be careful here...
The problem with books like this is they do not address the problem of dealing with disabilities in he Real World.
Unlike a book such as Greg Perry's Disabling America: The Unintended Consequences of the Government's Protection of the Handicapped, Don't Call Me Special is more of a reactive book instead of a proactive book that teaches children - and more importantly PARENTS - how to cope in society and how to give your kids the VERY BEST CHANCE AT SUCCESS no matter what challenges they may face.
I doubt it was the author's intent, but this book is almost like a "feel good about yourself and that you're different" and focuses on self-esteem, etc., without giving any guidance on the best way for parents and their disabled children to have the best chance to be happy and content AND, yes, successful however you define it.
If a feel-good-about-yourself book is important to you, this will probably work. But if you want answers, you need to look elsewhere. The first place to find the answers is in Perry's Disabling America: The Unintended Consequences of the Government's Protection of the Handicapped - be warned - it's a caustic book that pulls no punches about problems with the ADA, etc. But do you want answers or not? Don't you want the VERY BEST FOR YOUR CHILD? It's a prescriptive book.
Once you get a better perspective there on today's world of disability problems and how your kids can copy not only better but FAR better, then you need to check some NLP titles such as PsychoCybernetics. It's not psycho-babble in spite of the title, it's a general approach that allows anyone to overcome their challenges.
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4: A misguided attempt
This book is subtitled, a first look at disability. I ask this though; wouldn't kids get a much better first look across the lunch table at their neighbourhood school? I'm not sure why authors think that we need all of these books to teach us about disability, It seems like an n out-of-date notion to me. Give us an engaging storyline not a medical lesson.
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