Special Needs Books

Driven To Distraction : Recognizing and Coping with Attention Deficit Disorder from Childhood Through Adulthood

Edward M. Hallowell, John J. Ratey

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Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> General
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Mental Health -> General
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Personal Health -> Children's Health -> Learning Disorders

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 133 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

This clear and valuable book dispels a variety of myths about attention deficit disorder (ADD). Since both authors have ADD themselves, and both are successful medical professionals, perhaps there's no surprise that the two myths they attack most persistently are: (a) that ADD is an issue only for children; and (b) that ADD corresponds simply to limited intelligence or limited self-discipline. "The word disorder puts the syndrome entirely in the domain of pathology, where it should not entirely be. Although ADD can generate a host of problems, there are also advantages to having it, advantages that this book will stress, such as high energy, intuitiveness, creativity, and enthusiasm, and they are completely overlooked by the 'disorder' model." The authors go on to cite Mozart and Einstein as examples of probable ADD sufferers. (The problem as they see it is not so much attention deficit but attention inconsistency: "Most of us with ADD can in fact hyperfocus at times.") Although they warn against overdiagnosis, they also do a convincing job of answering the criticism that "everybody, and therefore nobody" has ADD. Using numerous case studies and a discussion of the way ADD intersects with other conditions (e.g., depression, substance abuse, and obsessive-compulsive disorder), they paint a concrete picture of the syndrome's realities. Especially helpful are the lists of tips for dealing with ADD in a child, a partner, or a family member. --Richard Farr

The Out-of-Sync Child: Recognizing and Coping with Sensory Processing Disorder, Revised Edition

Carol Stock Kranowitz

Amazon Price: $10.85 List Price: $15.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Perigee Trade Amazon Marketplace: 58 new & used starting at $7.93

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Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Personal Health -> Children's Health -> Special Needs Children
Subjects -> Parenting & Families -> Parenting -> General

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 50 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Outstanding Resource!! 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

As a clinical psychologist, I have found this book to be invaluable in learning how to screen for Sensory Integration/Processing Disorders, to make recommendations for more precise assessment & services, and to educate parents and other clinicians about this area of practice. Most mental health clinicians--and even teachers--are fairly unknowing when it comes to this topic, I have found. I know that I was certainly in the dark about it until obtaining this book. The only complaint I can make is that the actual book itself is 'poorly integrated' and just completely fell apart after a couple of years! I wish there was a hardback version, but I am going to order a copy of the revised edition and hope for an improved binding! Highly, highly recommended for clinicians, educators, and parents.

Editorial Review:

NEWLY REVISED AND UPDATED

The Out-of-Sync Child broke new ground by identifying Sensory Processing Disorder, a common but frequently misdiagnosed problem in which the central nervous system misinterprets messages from the senses. This newly revised edition features additional information from recent research on vision and hearing deficits, motor skill problems, nutrition and picky eaters, ADHA, autism, and other related disorders.

Raising Your Spirited Child Rev Ed: A Guide for Parents Whose Child Is More Intense, Sensitive, Perceptive, Persistent, and Energetic

Mary Sheedy Kurcinka

Amazon Price: $10.17 List Price: $14.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Harper Paperbacks Amazon Marketplace: 41 new & used starting at $8.53

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 26 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

Now in a NEW UPDATED version, Kurcinka offers parents the most up–to–date research, effective strategies and real life stories for:

•Managing intensity – not just the kids, but parents too

•Getting the sleep every family needs and deserves,

•Choosing their battles

•Helping children to hear their instructions

•Assisting children in getting along with siblings and peers, and

•Being successful in school and at home.

Spirited children possess traits we value in adults, yet find challenging in children. Studies now show that these children are "wired" to be more reactive to the world around them. The solution, rather than medication or punishment, is understanding temperament and working with it. Kurcinka in a supportive, warm style is able to reveal to parents how to do it, often leading them to ask, "How did she get into my home?" Winner of the Parents' Choice Award, voted one of the top twenty books for parents, and a "real life saver" for parents, this updated version is eagerly awaited by parents and professionals.

The Complete Guide to Asperger's Syndrome

Tony Attwood

Amazon Price: $16.47 List Price: $24.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Jessica Kingsley Publishers Amazon Marketplace: 34 new & used starting at $16.21

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 50 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

The Complete Guide to Asperger's Syndrome is the definitive handbook for anyone affected by Asperger's syndrome (AS). It brings together a wealth of information on all aspects of the syndrome for children through to adults.

Drawing on case studies and personal accounts from Attwood's extensive clinical experience, and from his correspondence with individuals with AS, this book is both authoritative and extremely accessible. Chapters examine: causes and indications of the syndrome; the diagnosis and its effect on the individual; theory of mind; the perception of emotions in self and others; social interaction, including friendships; long-term relationships; teasing, bullying and mental health issues; the effect of AS on language and cognitive abilities, sensory sensitivity, movement and co-ordination skills; and career development.

There is also an invaluable frequently asked questions chapter and a section listing useful resources for anyone wishing to find further information on a particular aspect of AS, as well as literature and educational tools.

Essential reading for families and individuals affected by AS as well as teachers, professionals and employers coming in contact with people with AS, this book should be on the bookshelf of anyone who needs to know or is interested in this complex condition.

1001 Great Ideas for Teaching and Raising Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

Veronica Zysk, Ellen Notbohm

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 41 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Great resource 5 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

Full of practical information. A must have. Another book I've found helpful is He's Not Autistic But...: How We Pulled Our Son From the Mouth of the Abyss

Excellent!! Must Read!! 5 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

This is a must read for anyone working with or parenting an Autistic child. Full of useful ideas.

A Must Own Book! 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

I absolutely love this book! The ideas in this book are clear and concise. There is no technical jargon. Everything is in laymen's terms. No unnecessary wordage throughout the book It's exactly what it says it is. Strictly ideas, laid out in an easy to read format.

This book is a must have for a person who has someone anywhere on the spectrum. Not only will this book stay on my bookshelf for a long time, I bought copies for my family members.

Editorial Review:

In a snappy, can-do format, 1001 Great Ideas for Teaching and Raising Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders offers page after page of try-it-now solutions that have worked for thousands of children grappling with social, sensory, behavioral, and self-care issues, plus many more.

Delivered from Distraction: Getting the Most out of Life with Attention Deficit Disorder

Edward M. Md Hallowell, John J. Md Ratey

Amazon Price: $10.20 List Price: $15.00 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Ballantine Books Amazon Marketplace: 55 new & used starting at $7.00

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Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Self-Help -> General
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> Child Psychology -> Development
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> Child Psychology -> Psychology

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 66 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

Medication? Maybe. Marry the right person and find the right job? A must if you are an adult suffering from ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder). So say psychiatrists Edward M. Hallowell and John J. Ratey, authors of the influential Driven to Distraction, published in 1994. In their new book, Delivered from Distraction, Hallowell and Ratey survey the current medical landscape concerning ADD, combining their own clinical observations with the latest research to paint a much more complex and, in many ways, positive picture of the condition than has generally been presented.

Hallowell and Ratey embrace the idea that success in life comes more from playing to your strengths than overcoming your weaknesses. In the case of a person with ADD (child or adult), these strengths often include unusually high levels of creativity, charisma, intelligence, and energy. The authors insist that, while medication and other treatments can sometimes work wonders in reducing limitations, surrounding yourself with people who promote these positive traits, be they in your personal or professional life, is the single most important element to living well with ADD. As both Hallowell and Ratey are not only experts in the field, but "ADDers" themselves, the tips and stories they share for how to do so are fresh, funny, and far more helpful than tired arguments over drugs verse no drugs or whether there's even such a thing as ADD at all.--Patrick Jennings

The Out-of-Sync Child Has Fun, Revised Edition: Activities for Kids with Sensory Processing Disorder

Carol Stock Kranowitz

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 14 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Very Helpful 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

Contains many practical and easy activities that are fun for any child, not just "out of sync." Tried several already and found my grandson loved the originality and the use of everyday objects as situations for play.

A must have for parents of children w/autism 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

I've had this book for a couple of years and I love it. I've purchased at least twenty books on autism and this is one of the two I have kept. The ideas are practical, involve materials you can buy inexpensively (or you probably already have around the house) and it's fun for ALL kids. My nt daughter enjoys these activities just as much as my ASD son!

A wonderful book for ALL children 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

This is a wodnerful book for parents of children with special needs. Weather it be autism, ADHD,Asperger's, anything!!! Wonderful activities! It is also a great book for teacher's of ALL types of kids! I keep this book handy all the time when I'm looking for ideas of things to do with my kids.

Editorial Review:

The revised and updated edition of a groundbreaking special-needs activity guide

This revised edition of the companion volume to The Out-of-Sync Child includes new activities that parents of kids with Sensory Processing Disorder can do at home with their child, along with updated information on which activities are most appropriate for children with coexisting conditions such as Asperger's, autism, and more.

Healing ADD: The Breakthrough Program That Allows You to See and Heal the 6 Types of ADD

Daniel G. Amen

Amazon Price: $10.85 List Price: $15.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Berkley Trade Amazon Marketplace: 66 new & used starting at $5.95

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Subjects -> Parenting & Families -> Special Needs -> Hyperactivity

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 108 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

Hard, visual data make a compelling case for the existence of attention deficit disorder (ADD) in this pioneering work by Daniel G. Amen, M.D. Using a nuclear medicine technique called "single photon emission computed tomography" (SPECT)--a controversial step, according to some of his peers--Dr. Amen scans patients' brains to identify various abnormalities. From more than 8,000 such studies and more than 12,000 patient evaluations, Dr. Amen concludes that six--not the formerly presumed two--different types of ADD exist. This book encompasses the full spectrum of Dr. Amen's work: from symptom identification to clinical evaluation, to diet and medication recommendations, to everyday strategies for living with ADD (whether the reader is a parent of an ADD child, or has been diagnosed with the disease.)

No stranger to the skepticism surrounding this topic, Dr. Amen begins with a list of dead-on myths (including "ADD is overdiagnosed") and surprising facts ("Many people with ADD are never hyperactive"). From this intriguing beginning flows a highly readable chapter on the signs and manifestations of ADD in all ages. Dr. Amen's full description of SPECT imaging includes multiple brain scan photos that nicely support his theories. But the most satisfying element of this well-researched presentation occurs in the final half of the book; here, Amen thoroughly explores the biological (diet, exercise, medication), psychological (from personal coaching to psychotherapy), and social support (parenting and school strategies) needed to heal each type of ADD. This book will prove a valuable tool for parents, adult sufferers, and medical professionals seeking practical support for managing this increasingly recognized condition. --Liane Thomas

The Price of Privilege: How Parental Pressure and Material Advantage Are Creating a Generation of Disconnected and Unhappy Kids

Madeline Levine

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Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> Adolescent Psychology
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Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> General

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 37 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

excellent 5 out of 5 stars.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.

this is a fabulous book. the love of money over people and the disregard for substantive values are destroying our society. this book sheds a great deal of light on the ways that we are hurting our children and ourselves. it is extremely well-written and intelligent. you won't be disappointed.

Editorial Review:

In recent years, numerous studies have shown that bright, charming, seemingly confident and socially skilled teenagers from affluent, loving families are experiencing epidemic rates of depression, substance abuse, and anxiety disorders—rates higher than in any other socioeconomic group of American adolescents. Materialism, pressure to achieve, perfectionism, and disconnection are combining to create a perfect storm that is devastating children of privilege and their parents alike.

In this eye-opening, provocative, and essential book, clinical psychologist Madeline Levine explodes one child-rearing myth after another. With empathy and candor, she identifies toxic cultural influences and well-intentioned, but misguided, parenting practices that are detrimental to a child's healthy self-development. Her thoughtful, practical advice provides solutions that will enable parents to help their emotionally troubled "star" child cultivate an authentic sense of self.

Overcoming Dyslexia: A New and Complete Science-Based Program for Reading Problems at Any Level

Sally Md Shaywitz

Amazon Price: $10.85 List Price: $15.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Vintage Amazon Marketplace: 59 new & used starting at $8.24

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Subjects -> Nonfiction -> Education -> Special Education -> General

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 59 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

FOR EVERYONE WHO STRUGGLES TO READ!
Clear, practical, science-based information and advice for successful results

One in five American children has trouble reading. But they are not stupid or lazy. In Overcoming Dyslexia, Dr. Sally Shaywitz, codirector of the Yale Center for the Study of Learning and Attention and a leader in the new research into how the brain works, offers the latest information about reading problems and proven, practical techniques that, along with hard work and the right help, can enable anyone to overcome them. Here are the tools that parents and teachers need to help the dyslexic child, age by age, grade by grade, step by step.

--What dyslexia is and why some intelligent, gifted people read slowly and painfully
--How to identify dyslexia in preschoolers, schoolchildren, young adults, and adults
--How to find the best school and how to work productively with your child’s teacher
--Exercises to help children use the parts of the brain that control reading
--A 20-minute nightly home program to enhance reading
--The 150 most common problem words–a list that can give your child a head start
--Ways to raise and preserve a child’s self-esteem aqnd reveal his strengths
--Stories of successful men and women who are dyslexic