Welcome to Picture Books for All

Children of all abilities should see themselves in the books they read. That's what makes reading fun. There are many picture books that include characters with disabilities; some are excellent in terms of their portrayal of these characters, some are pretty good, and some miss the mark. This blog features these picture books and evaluates them based on standards for quality in children's books that portray characters with disabilities. For more information, see the first post entitled "Welcome to Picture Books for All." (Click here) Welcome to Picture Books For All

Saturday, April 13, 2013

Book #16 Talking About Disability


The reason I am including this book in the blog is that I found it prominently displayed in the children’s library in Lexington, Massachusetts last month, March 2013, which was National Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month. This means that librarians, parents, and teachers might have thought it was a good starter book to share with children on the subject of disabilities, yet it is so outdated in its language that it is actually a detrimental way to introduce the subject of disability to children. Of course the author and the publishers meant well, and in 1999 and 2001 when the book was published, it may have been considered acceptable and even beneficial. Today, it would not be.  In the 1999 version of this book, which was the one on display in my library, people with disabilities are referred to as “disabled people,” making them sound like a separate category or a “sub-class” of people. People with disabilities are referred to in this book as “they,” again making them separate and somehow not as worthy as people without disabilities. Children need to understand that people with disabilities are people first who are not defined solely by their disabilities. This book does not do a good job of communicating that. While the book has some positive messages, the fact that it is still being displayed means that the people guiding children’s reading may not be aware of how outdated it is in its language.
We need more children’s authors to write good books that respectfully approach the subject of disability and the portrayal of characters with disabilities. These books should contain people-first language, emphasize the positive, and show that people are more alike than different. The standards in the second table below provide guidelines for authors interested in writing quality books about people with disabilities or about the subject of disabilities.

Related Information
Comments
Title
Talking About Disability
Original title was changed to What do we think about Disability?
Author
Jillian Powell
Illustrator
This book has photographs taken by different people.
Publisher
Originally:  Raintree Steck-Vaughn Publishers (1999)

Hodder Wayland Childrens (2001)
This was one title in a series called “Talking About . . .”

Title changed to What do we think about Disability?
Year of Pub:
1999  then 2001
ISBN:     (ISBN-13)
0-81725537-0
(ISBN-13) 978-0750232524
Age range
4-8
Type of Disability
Disability in general
Heavy emphasis on physical disabilities
Fiction or Nonfiction
Nonfiction
Informational
Category:  A

A) books that provide factual information about a disability

B) books that provide information about a disability in a story format in which the character with a disability is integral to the plot

C) books that provide stories that have a character with a disability who may or may not be integral to the storyline and who has been added to the story to achieve diversity and reflect reality

D) books that include a main character with a disability but whose focus is not necessarily the disability

Annotation:  This is a non-fiction, informational book that covers various disabilities, most of them physical. It is geared toward children at the preschool and elementary school levels. Many of the photographs show people in wheelchairs. There is a glossary at the end and a section called “Notes for parents and teachers.”
Link to publisher:
I could not find a website for Raintree Steck-Vaughn publishers. The newer title was published by Hodder Wayland Childrens in Great Britain. This publisher has published workbooks for enrichment study in the elementary grades, but it does not seem to be a mainstream, commercial publisher.
Links to professional reviews:

Awards:

                       

Standards for Quality Portrayal of Characters with a disability
Comments
1. Promotes empathy not pity
Neither

2. Promotes acceptance, not ridicule
Attempts to

3. Emphasizes success rather than, or in addition to failure
Yes

4. Promotes positive images of persons with disabilities or illness
Yes
5. Assists children in gaining accurate understanding of the disability or illness
Sometimes
6. Demonstrates respect for persons with disabilities or illness
In a very outdated manner

7. Promotes attitude of “one of us” not “one of them.”
No
Very outdated. People with disabilities are categorized as “they.”
8. Uses people-first language
Not consistently
This is a major problem with the book. Somehow, calling them “disabled people” and “they” makes them sound like aliens. It is difficult for children to relate to the people they see in the photographs when they are referred to in this demeaning way.
9. Describes the disability or person with disabilities or illness as realistic (not subhuman or superhuman)
Yes
10. Depicts people with disabilities as more similar to than different from other people
Not consistently
11. Shows peoples’ strengths and abilities along with their disabilities
Attempts to
12. Represents characters as strong, independent people who others can admire or learn from
No
13. Represents people with disabilities from different racial and cultural backgrounds, religions, age groups, and sexual orientations
Yes
Photographs include people from different ethnic groups
14. Shows people with disabilities in integrated settings and activities
Yes

15. Shows people with disabilities in valued occupations and diverse roles.
Yes

16. Shows people with disabilities in reciprocal relationships
No
Hard to tell from the photographs; the relationships of people with disabilities are not emphasized in the text.
17. Main character develops and grows emotionally as a result of what happens in the story
N.A.
There is no main character



Thursday, April 4, 2013

Book #15 Understanding Sam and Asperger Syndrome




This story is unique because it is about a child who at the beginning of the story has not yet been diagnosed. Sam’s parents and peers are not sure what to make of his somewhat strange behaviors. Not surprisingly, Sam gets teased for his “differentness,” and his parents are not sure how to respond to his extreme emotional reactions or sensory issues.  When Sam’s behaviors become dangerous (leaving the house alone at night) and more extreme (crying and saying he does not want to go to school), his parents realize they should take him to the doctor. Once he receives the help and support he needs, things get easier for Sam, and he is able to function better in the company of his peers.

Related Information
Comments
Title
Understanding Sam and Asperger Syndrome

Author
Clarabelle van Niekerk & Liezl Venter

Illustrator
Clarabelle van Niekerk
http://www.clarabelle.net/
Publisher
Skeezel Press

Year of Pub:
2006

ISBN:     (ISBN-13)
978-0-9747217-1-2

Age range
4-8

Type of Disability
Asperger Syndrome

Fiction or Nonfiction
Fiction

Category:  A, B

A) books that provide factual information about a disability

B) books that provide information about a disability in a story format in which the character with a disability is integral to the plot

C) books that provide stories that have a character with a disability who may or may not be integral to the storyline and who has been added to the story to achieve diversity and reflect reality

D) books that include a main character with a disability but whose focus is not necessarily the disability

Annotation:  Sam is a child who experiences difficulty controlling his impulses and his emotions. He demonstrates repetitive behaviors and acts differently from his peers. When he leaves home alone at night to go back to the Ferris wheel at the local carnival, his parents realize they need to get Sam some help. Once doctors and therapists get involved and Sam gets a diagnosis of Asperger’s Syndrome, he is able to function better because the people around him understand him better and know how to support him.
Link to publisher:
Links to professional reviews:
I could not find online reviews from Kirkus or Publisher’s Weekly.
Awards:
The 2010 Dolly Gray Children's Literature Award, which recognizes high-quality children's literature that includes positive and realistic characters with developmental disabilities.

The National Parenting Center Seal of Approval Winner Holiday 2008
                       

Standards for Quality Portrayal of Characters with a disability
Comments
1. Promotes empathy not pity
Both
While the reader empathizes with Sam’s inability to pull himself together (especially the adult reader), Sam cries so much in the story that child readers/listeners could feel pity.
2. Promotes acceptance, not ridicule
Yes, in the end.
Sam has musical talent, which may be one reason he is accepted and even admired. The story shows that children like Sam can easily be ridiculed by peers. 
3. Emphasizes success rather than, or in addition to failure
Yes

4. Promotes positive images of persons with disabilities or illness
Yes
Sam is presented in all his realism—he can be very sad, disorganized, and helpless and he can also be very accomplished, calm, and happy.
5. Assists children in gaining accurate understanding of the disability or illness
Yes

6. Demonstrates respect for persons with disabilities or illness
Yes

7. Promotes attitude of “one of us” not “one of them.”
Yes
(There is no “them” in this story.)
8. Uses people-first language
Yes

9. Describes the disability or person with disabilities or illness as realistic (not subhuman or superhuman)
Yes

10. Depicts people with disabilities as more similar to than different from other people
Yes
Although Sam cries more than most children his age and does not like rough and tumble play, he likes puzzles, Ferris wheels, and playing the cello, and he wants to succeed just like his peers.
11. Shows peoples’ strengths and abilities along with their disabilities
Yes

12. Represents characters as strong, independent people who others can admire or learn from
Yes, in the end.
Sam succeeds in performing in the school concert.
13. Represents people with disabilities from different racial and cultural backgrounds, religions, age groups, and sexual orientations
No
Main character is white, but the children in Sam’s classroom are ethnically diverse.
14. Shows people with disabilities in integrated settings and activities
Yes

15. Shows people with disabilities in valued occupations and diverse roles.
Yes

16. Shows people with disabilities in reciprocal relationships
No
Sam does not have any special relationships in this story except that with his father.
17. Main character develops and grows emotionally as a result of what happens in the story
Somewhat
Sam gets help from doctors and therapists after he goes to the fair at night by himself. Then he is able to function better. Whether Sam grows emotionally as a result of the experience is not specifically addressed, although he gives a beautiful concert without incident at the end of the story.