by Frances Laing

Created on: August 05, 2009

Choosing a story book which highlights the joys and challenges of living with a disability is an awesome but vitally important task. Your choice is going to depend very much on the age of your child - and which disabilities you want to focus on. Many people believe children learn primarily through example - if you subscribe to this philosophy - any book you might use will not 'teach' your child but will simply serve as a focus for discussion.

The content of the stories you choose needs careful thought. We'd probably all agree that you'll be wanting to present some positive role models. At the same time you want to be real about the challenges living with a disability can present.

Talking about invisible disabilities like Multiple Sclerosis is a case in point and can be particularly challenging. "My mum is special" was presented to our family by an M.S. nurse when my child was small. Many people love this book. It is the only title I know which tells the story of a parent with M.S. and that's a shame because it illustrates some of the problems authors may encounter when portraying disabilities. The book shows a positive role model - the mother in the family - who continues to work and lead an active family life despite her disability. However this book portrays only one treatment option (regular Copaxone injections) for someone with M.S. There's no mention of alternative treatment options in the book. For children under ten parents, carers and children may want to watch the M.S. Society children's video series instead.

Widening the spectrum - there are hundreds of other publications. You can find a small list which 'depicts inclusive community-building and inclusion of children of diverse abilities in typical classrooms, schools and neighbourhoods' here. The Paralysis Resource Centre also has an extensive list of books about people using wheel chairs, crutches and mobility aids which you can access here.

My top tip for finding a favourite book to talk to children about disabilities is very simple. Make or write your own. This is easier than it sounds. Get hold of a large scrap book and start to talk to your child about people with different talents and abilities. Collect images and make drawings or take photographs to stick into it. You could make it very personal with a title like: 'The people in our street/neighbourhood'. Or you could start collecting information on television personalities that have disabilities and do this as a project. Don't forget there are many recognised disabilities which you cannot see, but often celebrities are willing to share information about their disabilities in the interests of raising awareness. To start you off with this project have a look at this list of famous people with disabilities.

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