This collection contains materials on the topic of learning disability from the DIVerse Families bibliography. Learning disability stories discuss individuals who have trouble learning and processing information. These stories include topics such as dyslexia and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
People of all different abilities make up a growing part of the population. These stories seek to normalize people with disabilities and other health related conditions by helping them and others overcome the stigma.
Browse by Disability and Health:
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ADH-Me!
John Hutton
As far back as I can recall (starting when I was very small) I’ve daydreamed, gazing into space, climbed and jumped all over the place...” Written by a pediatrician and health literacy expert, ADH-Me! is an empathetic journey from the perspective of a child learning to live and succeed with ADHD. An accessible, rhyming narrative and inviting illustrations help families know what to expect from diagnosis through stages of treatment, while reminding all readers that love and support are the surest means to a happy ending.
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All Dogs Have ADHD
Kathy Hoopmann
All Dogs Have ADHD takes an inspiring and affectionate look at Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), using images and ideas from the canine world. Charming colour photographs of dogs bring to life familiar ADHD characteristics such as being restless and excitable, getting easily distracted, and acting on impulse.
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Army Brats
Daphne Benedis-Grab
When the Bailey family moves into an army base in Virginia there are a lot of adjustments to make; twelve-year-old Tom runs afoul of the base school bully, ten-year-old Charlotte finds herself trying too hard to make friends with the "cool" girls, and six-year-old Rosie is just being difficult as usual--but they come together to investigate a mysterious building full of weird cages, and uncover Fort Patrick's secrets.
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Catherine's Story
Genevieve Moore
What makes Catherine so special? She can't talk, she can't walk like her cousin Frances can. But Catherine listens very hard (hardly anyone does that), and she can walk in her special shoes, but when Frances tries, she just falls over! And her claps are so quiet that hardly anyone can hear them. These are the things that make Catherine special and, because her family knows how special she is, this makes them feel special too. This is the story of a child born with severe additional needs that focusses on the special nature of her abilities.
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Disability and Families
Hilary W. Poole
Looks at the many different types of disabilities that exist, and discusses how these situations can be a challenge for families, but also a source of great strength.
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(Don't) Call Me Crazy
Kelly Jensen
A Washington Post Best Children’s Book of 2018Who’s Crazy? What does it mean to be crazy? Is using the word crazy offensive? What happens when a label like that gets attached to your everyday experiences? To understand mental health, we need to talk openly about it. Because there’s no single definition of crazy, there’s no single experience that embodies it, and the word itself means different things—wild? extreme? disturbed? passionate?—to different people. In (Don’t) Call Me Crazy, thirty-three actors, athletes, writers, and artists offer essays, lists, comics, and illustrations that explore a wide range of topics:their personal experiences with mental illness,how we do and don’t talk about mental health,help for better understanding how every person’s brain is wired differently,and what, exactly, might make someone crazy. If you’ve ever struggled with your mental health, or know someone who has, come on in, turn the pages . . . and let’s get talking.
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He's My Brother
Joe Lasker
A young boy describes the experiences of his slow learning younger brother at school and at home.
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Hooper
Geoff Herbach
For Adam Reed, basketball is a passport. Adam’s basketball skills have taken him from an orphanage in Poland to a loving adoptive mother in Minnesota. When he’s tapped to play on a select AAU team along with some of the best players in the state, it just confirms that basketball is his ticket to the good life: to new friendships, to the girl of his dreams, to a better future. But life is more complicated off the court. When an incident with the police threatens to break apart the bonds Adam’s finally formed after a lifetime of struggle, he must make an impossible choice between his new family and the sport that’s given him everything.
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How I Learn: A Kids Guide to Learning Disability
Brenda S. Miles and Colleen A. Patterson
How I Learn introduces the concept of a learning disability in concrete terms for younger students. This supportive and upbeat story reassures readers that they are capable, and can use 'smart strategies' to help themselves learn. And that's better than OK. That's GREAT! A note to parents, caregivers, and professionals is included, with suggestions to guide discussion and help children identify their particular strengths and challenges.
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Hudson Hates School
Ella Hudson
Hudson, who loves to make things but hates going to school, fails a spelling test and meets with a special teacher, who discovers Hudson has a very different way of learning things.
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Janine
Maryann Cocca-Leffler
Janine is one of a kind. She focuses on the positive while navigating life with disabilities. She makes a difference just by being herself
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Janine and the Field Day Finish
Maryann Cocca-Leffler
Today is field day and even though Janine is not good at sports, she is ready to compete. Her body just doesn't work like the other kids'. But no matter what, Janine cheers for everyone and tries her best. During the big race, her classmate Abby trips and falls. Janine is right there to help. But Abby is crushed that she won't win the race. Can Janine teach Abby and her classmates that being a winner is not always about being number one?
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McKenna (American Girl)
Mary Casanova
Seattle fourth-grader McKenna Brooks, who lives for gymnastics, struggles with school work until Josie, a tutor confined to a wheelchair, helps her with reading comprehension and much more.
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My Friend Has Dyslexia
Amanda Doering Tourville
My friend Anna has a disability called Dyslexia. But that doesn't matter to us. We play catch, help each other with our homework, and collect food for our local food shelf. I'm glad Anna is my friend! Explains some of the challenges and rewards of having a friend with dyslexia using everyday kid-friendly examples.
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My Whirling Twirling Motor
Merriam Sarcia Saunders
Charlie feels like he has a whirling, twirling motor running inside him all the time and sometimes he just can’t settle. When his mom wants to talk to him, he figures he’s in trouble…but she has a surprise for him instead! Includes a Note to Parents, Caregivers, and Teachers with more information on ADHD, behavior management, and helping children focus on the positives.
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Nate Expectations (Better Nate Than Ever #3)
Tim Federle
Desperate to turn his life from flop to fabulous, Nate takes on a huge freshman English project with his BFF, Libby: he's going to make a musical out of Charles Dickens's Great Expectations. But when Nate's New York crush ghosts him, and his grades start to slip, he finds the only thing harder than being on Broadway is being a freshman.
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Oddly Normal: One Family's Struggle to Help Their Teenage Son Come to Terms with His Sexuality
John Schwartz
A heartfelt memoir by the father of a gay teen, and an eye-opening guide for families who hope to bring up well-adjusted gay adults. Three years ago, John Schwartz, a national correspondent at The New York Times, got the call that every parent hopes never to receive: his thirteen-year-old son, Joe, was in the hospital following a suicide attempt. Mustering the courage to come out to his classmates, Joe's disclosure--delivered in a tirade about homophobic attitudes--was greeted with unease and confusion by his fellow students. Hours later, he took an overdose of pills. In the aftermath, John and his wife, Jeanne, determined to help Joe feel more comfortable in his own skin, launched a search for services and groups that could help Joe understand that he wasn't alone. This book is Schwartz's very personal attempt to address his family's struggles within a culture that is changing fast, but not fast enough to help gay kids like Joe.
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Owning It: Stories About Teens with Disabilities
Donald R. Gallo
Presents ten stories of teenagers facing all of the usual challenges of school, parents, boyfriends and girlfriends, plus the additional complications that come with having a physical or psychological disability.
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Running on Empty
S. E. Durrant
After his grandfather dies, eleven-year-old JJ, a talented runner, assumes new responsibilities including taking care of his intellectually-challenged parents and figuring out how bills get paid.
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Some Kids Just Can't Sit Still
Sam Goldstein
Rhyming text describes how difficult life can be for a child with Attention deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and how parents, teachers, and doctors can help.
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Thank You, Mr. Falker
Patricia Polacco
At first, Trisha loves school, but her difficulty learning to read makes her feel dumb, until, in the fifth grade, a new teacher helps her understand and overcome her problem.
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That's Like Me!: Stories About Amazing People with Learning Disabilities
Jill Lauren
What do a trapeze artist, an Arctic explorer, and a soccer player have in common? Meet the fifteen kids and adults profiled in That s Like Me!, a collection of first-person accounts of successful people who learn differently. Whether it was reading, math, writing, or speech problems, each person shares his or her inspiring story of facing the challenge of school, while pursuing important goals. An invaluable resource list for adults and students included, as well as a place for kids to write their own success stories.
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The Alphabet War: A Story about Dyslexia
Diane Robb
When Adam started kindergarten, the teacher wanted him to learn about letters. But "p" looked like "q," and "b" looked like "d." Adam would rather color or mold clay. In first grade, his teacher wanted him to put the letters into words so he could read. That was the beginning of the Alphabet War. "Was" looked like "saw," and "there" looked like "then." Almost everyone else in his class was learning to read, but Adam was fighting a war against letters. In second grade, he had to learn to spell, which was also impossible. Now he was so frustrated he got into trouble and had to go to the principal's office. At last, in third grade, he got the right kind of help. Slowly he began to do better. During fourth grade, he learned that he could excel in other things. That gave him the confidence to take chances with reading. One day he found himself reading a book all by himself.
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The Art of Miss Chew
Patricia Polacco
Describes how a teacher named Miss Chew encouraged individuality, and accepted learning differences, and helped a young student with academic difficulties get extra time to take tests and permission to be in advanced art classes. Inspired by the author's memories of her art teacher.
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The Junkyard Wonders
Patricia Polacco
Inspired by a teacher who believes each of them is a genius, a class of special-needs students invents something that could convince the whole school they are justifiably proud to be "Junkyard Wonders."