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My Shaky World

By Cassandra Potichnyj

Here’s an awesome book introducing young readers to the world of epilepsy through the eyes of a little girl called Cashew who views her condition as a part of her unique adventure rather than a hardship. The book is written in playful rhymes and combines humor with educational content, using a “knock-knock” joke framework to keep things positive and children engaged. Cashew explains the different types of seizures, what it feels like when one comes and also what to do if you see someone with epilepsy having a seizure. Cashew isn’t alone either, she has her little crew of companions with her. This includes her loving protector Nee-Nee, her dog, her teddy bear, etc. Together, they help her navigate her life with epilepsy. In the back of the book, you can find some excellent follow up activities with vocabulary and worksheets etc (Which I always love to see!!). We were able to print some off and use them in class after we finished reading the book. The first thing that stood out to me about this book was how amazingly creative it is. I think the author did an outstanding job of presenting this topic to children. The illustrations are wonderful and the text is both playful and educational at the same time. Without a doubt, this is a perfect book to add to a classroom library… as it not only helps epileptic children feel understood, more importantly, it helps demystify the condition so other children know what to do and are able to approach it with compassion and empathy, should they encounter it at some point. I highly recommend this to all early grade school teachers. Add it to the library as soon as you get the chance, the world needs more books like this!

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Did You Say Pasghetti?

By Tammy Fortune

A wonderful and reassuring book about Dyslexia right here!! About a boy named Danny who is struggling with Dyslexia. At school he’s falling behind and dealing with insensitive classmates. At first he doesn’t realize he has Dyslexia until he visits with a reading specialist. After working with the specialist Danny learns some special techniques to help him learn things in a way that works best for him. After applying these techniques, Danny finds that his time at school is less frustrating and stressful. Dyslexia is a very common issue and I’m so happy to find a book about it. In the hands of the right adult, this book has the potential to offer much needed emotional relief to children dealing with Dyslexia. Also in an adorable twist the book is narrated by Danny’s best friend … Dusty the dog 🐶 Definitely happy to recommend this to educational professionals everywhere and consider it to be an essential addition to any children’s bookshelf.

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Liana and the Peanut Surprise 

By E. Levit

Another great book from “The little nurse series“ by E. Levit 💉🥜 The main character is a little girl named Liana who’s at a family barbecue when a boy named Charles suddenly starts having an allergic reaction to peanuts, swelling up and turning red. With no adults around, she knew she had to act fast. She remembered that her father taught her what to do in this situation. She found Charles‘s bag and took out his EpiPen. She helped give him his shot, quickly relieving his symptoms and potentially saved her friend‘s life. The adults arrive and find out what happened and congratulate Lina for her quick thinking. This was something I hadn’t covered with the first graders yet. So I figured this would be a good opportunity to introduce the concept of allergies to the kids. We talked about common allergies like peanuts, bees, pollen etc. Also looked at what an EpiPen is and how it works. This is actually a really good book to have in class. It’s a great introduction to the topic of allergies and a realistic situation where knowing about allergies and what to do, can make a huge difference.

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All About Me and Cerebral Palsy

By Desiree Da Costa

Excellent book for fostering understanding and empathy for people with special needs. Follows the story of a young girl starting second grade at a new school. She’s nervous about making friends and fitting in because she has cerebral palsy. However, she takes the initiative to introduce herself and her condition through her “All about me” book, explaining to her peers what cerebral palsy is and how it affects her daily life. She explains that she is just as smart and capable as her classmates, even though she needs a little help getting around. She points out that although she might seem different, she enjoys many of the same things as her classmates… like eating cookies, watching cartoons. In the end, she makes friends with her classmates and has a great time on her first day at school! I read it with the second graders, it’s perfect for this age group and offers a pretty good basic introduction to cerebral palsy. Definitely a must have for the classroom bookshelf!

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Conquering Allergies

By Jocelyn louie

Here’s an interesting book about food allergies. All proceeds go to fund further allergy research at Stanford. Created by a young artist who grew up with food and nut allergies. At age 11 she started participating in a food allergy study which helped her eventually find relief. The study took a year to complete and now she can proudly say she’s able to eat some nuts in moderation. The book details, her journey through the study at Stanford University. I love the artwork and the educational element to this book, it’s perfect for the classroom. There is potential here to help a lot of kids who suffer from allergies. All proceeds from this book will be donated to the Stanford children’s Packard foundation, specifically towards the Sean N. Parker Center for allergy and asthma research.

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