Mimi Rothschild, Home School Advocate - The Homeschooling News Café

By Mimi Rothschild

Check out the book list below, it’s specifically geared towards students with disabilities.  I only included part of the list, you can click the links to find more great books!  Let me know what you think and what you discovered.  I’d love to hear some of your recommendations!

This list has been sorted by the books’ readability levels. To find what you want, click on a readability grouping below:

AC = Adult Read to Children. For Pre-K to Grade 3, ranging from 10 to 30 pages, with illustrations; typically designed for parents to read to their children.

JE = Juvenile Easy Reader. For children who are beginning to read on their own, such as those in Grades 1-2; ranging from 30 to 80 pages; illustrations are included to break up the text.

JF = Juvenile Fiction. Children’s fiction or chapter books; for children in Grades 2-6; ranging from 60 to 200 pages, the books are generally divided into chapters, contain fewer illustrations, and have more complicated plots or concepts than either AC or JE books.

YA = Young Adult. For young adults in Grades 5-12; more complicated plots and topics of general interest to the young adult population.

A = Adult. Contains language and/or content that may be unsuitable for young adults.

• Title: Andy and His Yellow Frisbee
  Author: Mary Thompson
  Publisher: Woodbine House, 6510 Bells Mill Road, Bethesda, MD 20817; 1996
  ISBN #: ISBN-0-933149-83-2
  Disability: Autism
  Story Profile: Sarah is a new girl at school who is curious about why Andy spins his yellow frisbee every day by himself on the playground. When Sara tries to talk to Andy, Rosie, Andy’s older sister, watches and worries about how her brother may react. Rosie knows that Andy is in his own world most of the time, and that he has trouble finding the words to express himself.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: A Picture Book of Helen Keller
  Author: David A. Adler
  Publisher: Holiday House
  ISBN #: ISBN-0-8234-0818-3
  Disability: Deaf-Blind
  Story Profile: Some salient details in the life of Helen Keller are described in this pictorial biography; her frustration and untamed behavior and the radical changes effected by Anne Sullivan Macy.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: Armann and Gentle
  Author: Kristin Steinsdottir
  Publisher: Stuttering Foundation of America, PO Box 11749, Memphis, TN 38111-0749; 1997
  ISBN #: ISBN-0-933388-36-5
  Disability: Stuttering
  Story Profile: A six-year-old boy, Armann, stutters when he is frustrated.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: A Very Special Friend
  Author: Dorothy Hoffman Levi
  Publisher: Gallaudet University Press, Kendall Green, 800 Florida Ave., NE, Washington, DC 20002-3695; 1989
  ISBN #: ISBN-0-9300323-55-6
  Disability: Deafness
  Story Profile: Frannie, a lonely little girl, discovers a new friend when a deaf girl her age moves in next door.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: A Very Special Sister
  Author: Dorothy Hoffman Levi
  Publisher: Gallaudet University Press, Kendall Green, 800 Florida Ave., NE, Washington, DC 20002-3695; 1992
  ISBN #: ISBN-0-930323-96-3
  Disability: Deafness
  Story Profile: Mixed feelings are experienced by Laura, a young deaf girl, upon finding out her mother will soon give birth. Her initial excitement is replaced by worries that the new child, if able to hear, would be more lovable.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: Be Good to Eddie Lee
  Author: Virginia FilIing
  Publisher: Philomel Books, Putnam & Grosset Group, 200 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016
  ISBN #: ISBN-0-399-21993-5
  Disability: Down Syndrome
  Story Profile: Eddie Lee, a young boy with Down syndrome, follows the neighborhood children into the woods to find frog eggs. They are resentful and try to make him stay home.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: Big Brother Dustin
  Author: Alden R. Carter
  Publisher: Albert Whitman & Co., 6340 Oakton Street, Morton Grove, IL 60053-2723; 1997
  ISBN #: ISBN-0-8075-0715-6
  Disability: Down Syndrome
  Story Profile: Dustin, a young boy with Down syndrome, learns that his parents are expecting a baby.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: Cat’s Got Your Tongue?
  Author: Charles E. Schaefer, Ph.D.
  Publisher: Brunner/Mazel, Publishers, 19 Union Square, New York, NY 10003; 1992
  ISBN #: ISBN-0-945354-45-2 hard copy; ISBN-0-945354-46-0 paperback
  Disability: Communication Disorders, Mutism
  Story Profile: Anna, a kindergartner, is diagnosed as an electively mute child.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: Eukee: The Jumpy Jumpy Elephant
  Author: Clifford L. Corman and Esther Trevino
  Publisher: Specialty Press; 1995
  ISBN #: ISBN-0-921629-8-1
  Disability: Attention Deficit Disorder
  Story Profile: Eukee is a smart little elephant who likes to chase butterflies,
  blow bubbles, and do cartwheels. He always feels jumpy inside, however, and can never finish the march at school. Unhappy that he doesn’t have any friends, he consents to a visit to the doctor where he learns he has ADD.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: Clover’s Secret
  Author: Christine M. Winn and David Walsh, Ph.D.
  Publisher: Fairview Press, 2450 Riverside Avenue South, Minneapolis, MN 55454; 1996
  ISBN #: ISBN-0-925190-89-6
  Disability: Child Abuse
  Story Profile: Clove attempts to hide family violence. She feels much better when she confides in her teacher and the family receives help.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: Danny and the Merry-Go-Round
  Author: Nan Holcomb
  Publisher: Jason and Nordic, Publishers, PO Box 441, Hollidaysburg, PA 16648; 1987
  ISBN #: ISBN-0-944727-00-X
  Disability: Cerebral Palsy
  Story Profile: Danny, who has cerebral palsy, visits the park with his mother and watches other children playing on a playground. He makes friends with a young girl after his mother explains cerebral palsy to her and points out that it is not contagious.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: Happy Birthday Jason
  Author: C. Jean Cutbill and Diane Rawsthorn
  Publisher: IPI Publishing Ltd., 50 Prince Arthur Avenue, Suite 306, Toronto, Ontario, M5R 1B5 Canada; 1984
  ISBN #: 0-920702-37-6
  Disability: Reading Disability, Dyslexia
  Story Profile: A delightful story that will help children better understand their world by understanding Jason’s. His story reveals that children with learning disabilities are more similar to other children than they are different.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: Having a Brother Like David
  Author: Cindy Dolby Nollette and Others
  Publisher: Minneapolis Children’s Medical Center, Early Childhood Center,
  2520 Minnehaha Ave., South, Minneapolis, MN 55404; 1985
  ISBN #: N/A
  Disability: Autism
  Story Profile: Marty’s brother, David, is autistic. Marty explains that David looks a lot like other children but has special needs.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: Ian’s Walk: A Story About Autism
  Author: Laurie Lears
  Publisher: Albert Whitman and Company, 6340 Oakton St.,
  Morton Grove, IL 60053-2723; 1998
  ISBN #: 0-8075-3480-3
  Disability: Autism
  Story Profile: Tara feels frustrated while taking a walk with her autistic brother, Ian. After she becomes separated from him, she learns to appreciate the way Ian experiences the world.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title:Keith Edward’s Different Days
  Author: Karen Melberg Schwier
  Publisher: Impact Publishers
  ISBN #: ISBN-0-915166-74-7
  Disability: Down Syndrome; Physical Disabilities
  Story Profile: Keith meets a variety of people with differences, including Down syndrome and physical differences, and learns that being different is okay.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: Knots on a Counting Rope
  Author: Bill Martin and John Archambault
  Publisher: Henry Holt
  ISBN #: ISBN-0-8050-0571-4
  Disability: Blindness
  Story Profile: A boy is told a story by his grandfather of a boy born blind.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: Lee: The Rabbit with Epilepsy
  Author: Deborah M. Moss
  Publisher: Woodbine House, 5615 Fisher’s Lane, Rockville, MD 20852; 1989
  ISBN #: ISBN-0-933149-32-8
  Disability: Epilepsy
  Story Profile: Lee is a young rabbit who experiences occasional
  blackouts and trances. After Dr. Bob, the wise owl, administers a series
  of neurological tests, Lee is told she has epilepsy.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: Leo the Late Bloomer
  Author: Robert Kraus
  Publisher: Harper Collins, 1971
  ISBN #: ISBN-0-87807-042-7
  Disability: Developmental Delays
  Story Profile: Leo is a tiger cub who just can’t keep up with what the other animals are doing. He can’t read, write, or speak, and he is a sloppy eater; he’s a late bloomer.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: Luke Has Asthma, Too
  Author: Alison Rogers
  Publisher: Waterfront Books, 98 Brookes Ave., Burlington, VT 05401; 1987
  ISBN #: ISBN-0-914525-06-9
  Disability: Asthma
  Story Profile: Luke has an older cousin who teaches him some aspects of asthma management and serves as a general role model.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: My Brother, Matthew
  Author: Mary Thompson
  Publisher: Woodbine House, 5615 Fishers Lane, Rockville, MD 20852; 1992
  ISBN #: ISBN-0-993149-47-6
  Disability: Mental Retardation
  Story Profile: David is a young boy who describes life with his younger
  brother who was born with a mental disability.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: My Mom Is Handicapped: A “Grownup” Children’s Book
  Author: Barbara Turner Brabham
  Publisher: Cornerstone Publishing, PO Box 2896, Virginia Beach, VA 23450; 1994
  ISBN #: ISBN-1-882185-22-6
  Disability: Physical Disabilities
  Story Profile: A six-year-old boy describes life with his mother, a teacher with physical disabilities.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: Otto Learns About His Medicine: A Story About Medication for Hyperactive Children
  Author: Matthew Galvin
  Publisher: Magination Press/Brunner Mazel, 19 Union Square West, New York, NY 10003; 1995
  ISBN #: ISBN-0-945354-04-5 hard copy; ISBN-0-945354-03-7
  Disability: Hyperactivity
  Story Profile: Otto, a fidgety young car that has trouble paying attention in school, visits a special mechanic who prescribes a medicine to control his hyperactive behavior.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: Russ and the Apple Tree Surprise
  Author: Janet Elizabeth Rickert
  Publisher: Woodbine House, 5615 Fishers Lane,
  Rockville, MD 20852; 1992
  ISBN #: 1-890627-16-x
  Disability: Down Syndrome
  Story Profile: Russ, a five-year old boy with Down syndrome longs for a swing set. All his backyard has to offer is an apple tree. When his grandparents visit, Russ discovers the job of picking apples and making them into apple pie. He decides that his apple tree may be just as good as a swing set.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: Russ and the Fire House
  Author: Janet Elizabeth Rickert
  Publisher: Woodbine House, 5615 Fishers Lane,
  Rockville, MD 20852; 1992
  ISBN #: 1-890627-17-8
  Disability: Down Syndrome
  Story Profile: Russ is a young boy with Down syndrome whose everyday life experiences - not his disability - are the subject of books in this series. Russ goes “on-duty” with his Uncle, a fireman. Their shift includes a full inspection of the fire equipment, including keeping it clean. He also encounters Spark, the firehouse dog. At the end of this exciting day, all the firemen thank Russ for his hard work and invite him back for another visit.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: Russell Is Extra Special: A Book About Autism for Children
  Author: Charles A. Amenta III, M.D.
  Publisher: Brunner/Mazel, Publishers, 19 Union Square, New York, NY 10003; 1992
  ISBN #: ISBN-0-945354-43-6
  Disability: Autism
  Story Profile: This portrayal of an autistic boy and his family is designed to help children (ages 4 to 8 ) and their parents understand this serious developmental disorder.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: Silent Observer
  Author: Christy MacKinnon
  Publisher: Gallaudet University Press, Kendall Green, 800 Florida Ave. NE,
  Washington, DC 20002-3695; 1993
  ISBN #: ISBN-1-56368-022-X
  Disability: Deafness
  Story Profile: Christy MacKinnon is a young girl born in 1889 on a farm on Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, Canada who became deaf after having whooping cough. She describes her life in adjusting to deafness, her relationships with family, and her problems trying to understand and be understood by hearing individuals.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: Talking to Angels
  Author: Esther Watson
  Publisher: Harcourt Brace, 525 B Street, Suite 1900, San Diego, CA 92101-4495; 1996
  ISBN #: ISBN-0-15-201077-7
  Disability: Autism
  Story Profile: Christa is an autistic girl who is described in this picture book by her sibling. Her behavior is described and illustrated in mixed media, including her favorite sounds and textures, occasional staring and fixation on stimuli, and interactions with others.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: There’s a Little Bit of Me in Jamey
  Author: Diana M. Amadeo
  Publisher: Albert Whitman & Co., 6340 Oakton Street, Morton Grove, IL 60053-2723
  ISBN #: ISBN-0-8075-7854-1
  Disability: Leukemia
  Story Profile: Brian struggles with the fact that his brother Jamey has leukemia and submits to a bone marrow test, which leads to a transplant.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: Thomas Alva Edison: Great Inventor
  Author: David A. Adler
  Publisher: Holiday House
  ISBN #: ISBN-0-8234-0820-5
  Disability: Deafness
  Story Profile: Thomas Edison’s life and his many inventions, despite his deafness, that shape our lives today are explored in this book.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: What Do You Mean I Have a Learning Disability?
  Author: Kathleen M. Dwyer
  Publisher: Walker and Company, 720 Fifth Avenue, New York, New York 10019; 1991
  ISBN #: ISBN-0-8027-8102-0
  Disability: Learning Disabilities
  Story Profile: Ten-year-old Jimmy is having problems at school and believes he is stupid. After a parent-teacher conference, he is tested and found to have a learning disability.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: What It’s Like to Be Me
  Author: Helen Exley
  Publisher: Friendship Press, 1984
  ISBN #: ISBN-0-377-00144-9
  Disability: Various Disabilities
  Story Profile: Children from all over the world write about themselves and their disabilities. They tell us how they see themselves and how they want to be seen. All of the illustrations are created by the children.
  Reading Level: AC

• Title: You Can Call Me Willy. A Story for Children About AIDS
  Author: Joan C. Verniero
  Publisher: Brunner/Mazel Publishers, 19 Union Square West, New York, NY 10003; 1995
  ISBN #: ISBN-0-945354-60-6
  Disability: Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS)
  Story Profile: Willy is an eight-year-old girl with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). Describing her life, she shares her hobbies, friends, family life, and aspects of her medical care and how it impacts her activities.
  Reading Level: AC

By Mimi Rothschild

Michael Smith, co-founder and president of the Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA), wrote an interesting article in The Washington Times earlier this week about home schooling’s success in America. Smith is ecstatic, as we all should be, that U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas recognized home schooling as a viable educational option in his opinion of Morse v. Frederick.

Morse v. Frederick examined the constitutionality of public schools ability to regulate a student’s speech. The case was heavily discussed among the media. The Supreme Court, in a 5-4 ruling, said Principal Deborah Morse did not violate Joseph Frederick’s rights to free speech when she took down his poster which advocated marijuana use.

In his opinion of Morse v. Frederick, Supreme Court Justice Thomas said, “If parents do not like the rules imposed by those schools, they can seek redress in school boards or legislatures; they can send their children to private schools or home school them; or they can simply move.”

The Supreme Court judge’s suggestion that parents can choose home schooling along with their right to choose private or parochial schools is a step in the right direction for the home schooling movement. Justice Thomas also put home schooling on the same level with both public and private schools which is rarely done by someone who isn’t a part of the home schooling community. Smith writes, “After 24 years, it is gratifying to read the words of a Supreme Court justice who rightfully placed home schooling on a level playing field with public and private schools. This kind of recognition is tremendously significant to the home school community.”

Read the rest of Michael Smith’s compelling article here.

By Mimi Rothschild

One of the best aspects of homeschooling is that it allows families to have flexible schedules while also allowing home schooling students the opportunity to pursue their passions. If a student wants to learn more about World War Two then he or she can learn more. If a student wants to study the affects of new media on society then he or she can study it. If a student wants to learn an instrument or play a sport then they are certainly welcome to do so.

Home schooling students in central Pennsylvania exemplify this pro-active attitude of learning and doing. The Central Pennsylvania Homeschool Ensemble is alive and well according to The Patriot News. Some people worried that the home school ensemble would collapse after Pennsylvania finally allowed the state’s 25,000 home school students to participate in public school’s extracurricular activities in 2005. The orchestra is still going strong under the direction of its conductor Barry Clay. The central Pennsylvania Orchestra has twenty-four members, ages ranging from nine to nineteen.

It’s great that this ensemble is still going strong and it makes a statement too. Often times home schooling students get inaccurately labeled as not being properly “socialized”. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Home schoolers, on average, participate in five activities. That is a lot of venues for home schooling students to socialize with their peers.

Home schooling students, like the ones in the Central Pennsylvania Home School Ensemble, pursue their interests while socializing too. The bottom line is this: home schoolers are socially active amongst other home schoolers and also amongst non-home schooling students.

By Mimi Rothschild

One of the most appealing aspects of home schooling is that home schoolers receive all of the teacher’s attention, instead of sharing it with hundreds of students. Home schooling is especially effective when the parent is able to devote the majority of their attention to a home schooler with special needs, like dyslexia. The ability to solely focus on one student or a few students is next to impossible for teachers in traditional schools.

The Houston Independent School District has been in the news recently because of its inability to provide that attention to students who have been identified with dyslexia. Houston is just one example of a much larger problem within the public school system. Texas law requires “districts to identify and tutor students with dyslexia, a learning disability that affects 5 percent to 20 percent of all children” (Jennifer Radcliffe, “Schools fail to meet law on dyslexia”). This school year the Houston Independent School District only gave 256 of its 200,000 dyslexic students extra help. But who pays in end? Taxpayers like you and me. The National Right to Read Foundation estimates the nation spends nearly $225 billion a year on social services and lost income stemming from the problem of dyslexic students who aren’t receiving the proper help.

Crowded classrooms and bureaucratic policies make it hard for dyslexic public school students to receive the sort of attention they need. Home schooling students with special needs can work at their own pace and be given full attention by their home schooling teachers. Home schoolers with dyslexia and other disabilities greatly benefit from home schooling’s environment, flexible schedule, and the fact that their teachers are usually available for them 24/7.

To read more about the crisis in Houston and all around the nation click here.

By Mimi Rothschild

In a recent series of articles, Jonah Goldberg of The National Review Online and David Gelernter of The Weekly Standard both propose that America might be better off without public schools and discuss how we might decide whether to have them or not. Both writers cite public school’s well documented shortcomings.

“Americans want universal education, just as they want universally safe food. But nobody believes that the government should run 90 percent of the restaurants, farms, and supermarkets. Why should it run 90 percent of the schools — particularly when it gets terrible results?” says Goldberg.

Why not liberate all the vast resources we spend on public schools to be re-channeled to private schools chosen by the nation’s parents? Any public school offering an education that parents will actually pay for (of their own free will) would presumably be replaced by a private school offering essentially the same thing. But a vast array of new private schools would germinate also. And a vast number of failed public schools would disappear.

“In the system I am picturing, education would continue to be free and accessible to every child, and all taxpayers would continue to pay for it. Parents would be guaranteed access to ‘reasonable’ schools that cost them nothing beyond what they pay in taxes. It would all be just like today–except that public schools would have vanished” says David Gelertner.

“Many sources agree that, on the whole, American public schools are rotten. In 2000, a whopping 12 percent of graduating seniors were rated ‘proficient’ in science, and international surveys rank our graduating seniors 19th overall out of 21 nations. In 2002, the Washington Post summarized a different survey: ‘Nearly six in 10 of the nation’s high school seniors lack even a basic knowledge of U.S. history,’” says Gelerneter.

The article raises the question if private entities would be capable of providing enough new schools to replace existing public ones? Can America’s private organizations build enough hospitals to care for it’s sick, enough nursery schools to teach its very young and enough grocery stores to feed it’s population. Of course! Will these privately run schools be good enough? They would have to be or no one would attend them and they would go out of business. Competition among the newly formed schools would force them to give the public the best product at the lowest price, just like every other business in this country.

Home schooling has received some positive press lately and it may be due to the fact that the media has begun to expose the inadequacies of the public school system. It is frightening to think that entire generations of Americans aren’t being properly educated.

Home schooling offers world-class educations to millions of American students, but unfortunately homeschoolers are still in the minority right now.

Read David Gelernter’s article: A World Without Public Schools.

To read Jonah Goldberg’s article: Public Ed 101.

By Mimi Rothschild

What are your homeschoolers doing this summer? Going back in time? Sailing on the high seas? Hanging out with the three little pigs? Summer is the perfect time for homeschoolers to improve their readings skills and have a blast while doing it. We’ve compiled a comprehensive summer reading list for each Grace Academy grade so that your homeschoolers can improve their reading skills over the summer and have fun reading a variety of amazing stories. Encourage your homeschooler to read everyday and see their reading skills improve dramatically over the summer!

Homeschool parents should also check out our homeschool summer school program. Our summer school program helps homeschoolers grow their minds, gain credit toward a high school diploma, and surge ahead academically instead of developing lazy habits. Have a great summer!!!

By Mimi Rothschild

On April 10th two different speakers encouraged students at Boulder Valley High School in Colorado to have sex and use drugs at a required attendance lecture entitled “STDs: Sex, Teens and Drugs.” State lawmakers are furious over what was said at the lecture and are trying to fire Superintendent George Garcia.

What was actually said is quite shocking and disturbing. Read two of the quotes from the speakers below:

“I’m going to encourage you to have sex and I’m going to encourage you to use drugs appropriately. Why I’m going to take that position is because you’re going to do it anyway, so my approach to this is to be realistic, and I think as a psychologist and a health educator, it’s more important to educate you in a direction you might actually stick to.” - Joel Becker, associate clinical professor of psychology at the University of California at Los Angeles

“Find some balance with having the fun and experimenting, and enjoying what you’re doing — whether it’s learning or sexually or with drugs and alcohol and hanging out with your friends — but keep focused, because it is your life.” - Andee Gerhart, Ernst & Young International Accounting Firm

While some parents, teachers, and politicians are angry at this lecture it still shows that certain individuals in public schools will go to certain lengths just to get their agenda across, especially to vulnerable high school students. Telling high school students to have sex and try drugs is an absolute disgrace, but it certainly isn’t the first time public schools have embarrassed themselves.

Public school teachers and administrators are constantly trying to push their agenda onto the young people of America. Homeschool students don’t have to deal with any of that nonsense or the rest of the chaos that comes with a public school education. Homeschool students have already proven to be better students and learn more than their public school counterparts.

The question in 2007 shouldn’t be “Why homeschool?” It should be “Why not homeschool?” Public schools are failing the young people of America and confusing them with lectures like “STDs: Sex, Teens and Drugs.” Does anyone else find it amazing that students can be encouraged to have sex and do drugs at public schools, but cannot be taught The Bible?

Read more about the lecture in Colorado here.

By Mimi Rothschild

Some of the most famous artists, composers, writers, judges, inventors, religious leaders, and presidents in the world were homeschooled. It’s no coincidence that some of the most brilliant minds in history were developed and challenged in homeschools.

A homeschooler’s education isn’t limited by one dimensional curriculums like those offered by public schools. Homeschool students learn in unique and education focused environments which are why homeschoolers, on average, test 30-37% higher than public school students in all subjects! A homeschooler’s mind is challenged academically on a daily basis because the curriculum is custom made to fit their strengths and weaknesses.

Homeschoolers don’t have to deal with the consistent distractions that plague public schools. Homeschoolers can learn in a quiet setting that allows them to interact with adults in a mature way.

Some of the greatest leaders, artists, and writers ever, who are fervently studied in most schools, excelled because of their homeschool educations. It is exciting to think about which one of our Grace Academy homeschoolers will become the next Thomas Edison, Leonardo Da Vinci, C.S. Lewis, or Abraham Lincoln.

Click here to see the complete list of famous homeschoolers.