Products and Publications for People with Developmental Disabilities

Products  
(To Publications)

Automobile Adaptation - Lifts-Aids has been providing the finest quality accessibility lifts and vehicle modification equipment to meet the ever-changing needs of the physically challenged for more than 35 years in the Dallas/Ft. Worth Metroplex. Ask for Jim Chavez.

Accessible mini-vans - Viewpoint Mobility. The "Vision" rear entrance lowered floor wheelchair accessible mini-van conversion. (Wheelchairs, Scooters, Bicycles, and Tricycles roll in and out of this minivan with ease.) The Vision Wheelchair Van, is North America's highest quality rear-entry wheelchair accessible minivan conversion. Request a copy of Vision's FREE VIDEO and brochure to see all of the benefits and features. 1-877-368-6022. Ask for Matt Wermer.

Clothing and Accessories for people with disabilities - Check out the Professional Fit Clothing website. For more information, call 1-800-422-2348, 818-563-1975 or e-mail sales@professionalfit.com . Ask for Tom Pirruccello. 

CD-Rom Flash Pro 2 - color images parents can print and use as flash cards to teach children with learning disabilities. Developed by parents and now used in special schools and homes across the US, UK, Europe and Australia. Web site also includes teaching tips. Visit ABA Materials at the Early Learning website.

Equipment - Walkers, standers, chairs, tricycles, bath chairs and toileting systems that can be adjusted to meet the needs of as many disabled peoples as possible. Adaptive equipment which helps normal positioning opens a whole new world for children and adults with disabilities.  www.rifton.com 

Equipment - Liko - Portable lifts, floor lifts, overhead ceiling & pool lifts and slings. Manufacturing lifts and slings to optimize safety and comfort for the physically challenged since 1979. Contact Jim Chavez, jim@lift-aids.com, or call 1-888-545-6671.

Pip Squeakers - Fun Baby and Toddler Shoes -  Babies with vision or mobility disabilities are motivated while enhancing their auditory skills.  Parents with disabilities are able to hear when their quick moving toddler is on the go.  www.pipsqueakers.com

Prevent scalding in the shower with an easy-to-install device by Memry Corporation of Brookfield, Connecticut, also low in cost.

Vision Vehicles are rear entrance lowered floor wheelchair minivan conversion by Viewpoint Mobility.  See Vision Vehicles at:  www.viewpointmobility.com  

Audio and Video Tape Lending from The Arc of Texas/Inclusion Works! Project. Find out more by visiting www.thearcoftexas.org/Inclusion_works/charlenepage6.html

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Publications

Booklets     Catalogues      Children's Books      Education     Reference     Fiction Nonfiction       Video

Catalogues:
The Catalog of Catalogs VI, The Complete Mail-Order Area Directory, by Edward L. Palder, noted on cover - "If it's not in this book, you probably don't need it."

Children's Books (inclusive)
Check out Kane/Miller Book Publishers or call 800-968-1930. They sent us copies of some wonderfully illustrated international books that promoted the respect and inclusion of people with disabilities and differences. Here are the titles we enjoyed:
Paul and Sebastian, by Rene Escudie and Ulises Wensell, first published in France. Paul lives in a green trailer with blue curtains. Sebastian lives in a blue apartment with green curtains. Their parents don't want them to play together. But in time, as is the way of children, they become best friends, and in the process teach the adults something about "differences."
The Giantess, by Eveline Hasler and Renate Seelig, first published in Germany. Beautifully illustrated. Through the friendship of a kind neighbor, a young giantess discovers that her height is no obstacle to happiness.
Sosu's Call, by Meshack Asare, first published in Ghana. Sosu lives in a small village on a narrow strip of land between the sea and the lagoon. He tries his best to fit in, to be just another boy. But many in the village feel a boy with legs that don't work is bad luck, and his father is told to keep Sosu at home. So he sits in the yard, day after day, while his dog Fusa tries vainly to cheer him up. Then one day, a terrible storm threatens the village while most everyone is out farming or fishing. Only the elderly remain behind to take care of the young children. Sosu knows he must do something. But what?

Education:
Inclusion: A Practical Guide for Parents, Tools to Enhance Your Child’s Success, by Lorraine O. Moore
Negotiating the Special Education Maze, A Guide for Parents and Teachers, by Winfred Anderson, Stephen Chitwood, Deidre Hayden, Third Edition
Read it Again! Books to Prepare Children for Inclusion, by Stuart J. Schleien, M. Tipton Ray, and Frederick P. Green
The Educator's Guide to Feeding Children with Disabilities, by Dianne Koontz Lowman & Suzanne McKeever Murphy, Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co., Inc., 1998.
The Functional Independence Skills Handbook, Available: http://webpages.charter.net/fishscales/index.html
Toward Successful Inclusion of Students with Disabilities: The Architecture of Instruction, by Edward J. Kameenui, Deborah C. Simmons

Reference:
Children with Mental Retardation, A Parent's Guide, edited by Romayne Smith, M.A., CCC-SLP, part of "The Special Needs Collection", noted on cover - "The first book that families should read."
Developing Personal Safety Skills in Children with Disabilities, by Freda Briggs, Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co., Inc., 1995.
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, A Guide for Families and Communities, by Ann Streissguth, Ph.D., Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co., Inc., 1997.
Your Child Has a Disability, A Complete Sourcebook of Daily and Medical Care, by Mark L. Batshaw, M.D., Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co., Inc., 1998

Fiction:
Jewel, by Bret Lott, one of Oprah's Book Club selections, chronicles the experiences of a family and their life with a child who has Down syndrome. The story unwinds like a meandering river and is told in first person, Southern style. Jewel's last child, a baby girl, is born with Down syndrome. The setting is the backwoods of Mississippi in 1943, a time when institutionalizing infants with disabilities was commonplace. Jewel refused the notion and opted to raise her new infant, Brenda Kay, at home. While the main focus of the book is on Brenda Kay and the struggles and triumphs involved with raising her, Jewel's life story and her love of family gently intertwines and brings the reader up to contemporary times. I recommend this as a book worth reading with one footnote. An offensive epithet appears throughout the book, yet it depicted the reality of the time and place of the setting. With this understanding, the reader will get past this offensiveness early on.

Expecting Adam, by Martha Beck was similar in story line to Jewel, yet it offers a completely different experience. The jacket accurately describes the contents as "A true story of birth, rebirth and everyday magic". While Jewel gently unfolds, Expecting Adam reads like a barrel ride down a rushing river. It is also written in the first person, but Harvard style. The setting is the 1990's, and an expectant mother discovers through prenatal testing that her child has Down syndrome. While her peers anticipate that she will abort, she and her husband decide they want the baby, Adam, even more. The story of the strange spiritual and esoteric events that invade the couple's lives in separate and different ways leaves the reader intrigued.

Nonfiction: 
Nobody Nowhere: The Remarkable Autobiography of an Autistic Girl, by Donna Williams, 
Donna Williams was a child with more labels than a jam jar; deaf, wild, disturbed, stupid, insane… In her own words, she was a Nobody Nowhere as she swung violently between a battle to join the world and a battle to keep the world out, a battle she waged from where she lived in what she called 'a world under glass'. The book Nobody Nowhere is disturbing, eloquent and ticklishly funny: an account of the soul of someone who lived the word 'autism' and survived an unsympathetic environment despite intense inner chaos and incomprehension.  Despite the odds, Donna came to live independently, achieve a place at university and write this incredible international bestseller, now in over 14 languages throughout the world.  This is a book that will stay with you as one of the most exceptional works you will ever read. For more information as well as more books, visit www.donnawilliams.net. 

In This Together: The Story of a Mother and Child. Dawn Atkinson has authored a touching story about courage and devotion. When faced with the trauma of her son's birth injuries, Dawn gathers her strength in order to accept the realization that her son's life will be a lifelong struggle. For information, please visit www.dawnatkinson.net

Video: 
Autism and Law Enforcement Video. Please visit http://www.risingbird.net/asr/email.html for more information.

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