Identity Books for Families to Explore: Ability

Sharing days with her best friends in their second-grade class, Zulay, a blind student, surprises her teacher by asking if she can run a race on field day and achieves her goal with the help of an aide and the support of loved ones.

All his life, Chang has not been able to speak. The only sounds he can make are the squawks and caws of the cormorants his father trains for fishing. Chang loves the birds, and is thrilled when he is finally old enough to help raise a cormorant chick. But this is more challenging than Chang expects, for in the process he must learn hard lessons about untrustworthy friends and what it really means to prove himself. Elizabeth Starr Hill's poignant story, set on the Li River in southern China, is accompanied by the evocative illustrations of Taiwanese artist Lesley Liu.

Everybody wants to help Davey. "Let me open that." "Do you want to hold my hand?" Davey has one answer for all, "Thanks, but no thanks." Davey is blind'and he is perfectly capable of doing everything on his own. His well- meaning classmates stop offering help when they see how able Davey is. They respect his self-reliance'until he tries to play kickball. After several missed kicks and a trampled base keeper, no one wants Davey on his team. Working together, the children figure out a way to offer help that respects Davey's unique abilities and his desire for freedom. In this seamless tale, based on a true story, the children realize that interdependence can be just as important and rewarding as independence.

Moses and his school friends are deaf, but like most children, they have a lot to say. They communicate in American Sigh Language, using visual signs and facial expressions. This is called signing. And even though they can't hear, they can enjoy many activities through their other senses. Today, Moses and his classmates are going to a concert. Their teacher, Mr. Samuels, has two surprises in store for them, to make this particular concert a special event. Isaac Millman tells Moses's story in pictures and written English, and in American Sign Language (ASL), introducing hearing children to the signs for some of the key words and ideas. At the end of the book are two full conversations in sign language and a page showing the hand alphabet. You can learn sign language, too.

Moses goes to a special school, a public school for the deaf. He and all of his classmates are deaf or hard-of-hearing, but that doesn't mean they don't have a lot to say to each other! They communicate in American Sign Language (ASL), using visual signs and facial expressions. Isaac Millman follows Moses through a school day, telling the story in pictures and written English, and in ASL, introducing hearing children to the signs for some of the key words and ideas. At the end is a favorite song -- "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" -- in sign!

Moses and his family are going to the circus. Not just any
circus but the Big Apple’s Circus of the Senses! In a single ring, there are acts by trapeze artists, acrobats, elephants, horses, and clowns – all specially designed for the deaf and hard-of-hearing and the blind. Moses’s little sister, Renee, isn’t deaf but is learning sign language, and Moses loves teaching her the signs for their day at the circus.

Actors from the Little Theatre of the Deaf are coming to Moses' school, and Moses and his classmates are going to see a play! A class from another school joins them, and Moses is introduced to Manuel, who has just moved to the United States. Manuel doesn't know English or sign language yet. Moses, being deaf, knows how hard it can be when no one understands you, so he tries communicating with Manuel using body gestures, while also teaching him some simple signs.

Rescue thought he’d grow up to be a Seeing Eye dog — it’s the family business, after all. When he gets the news that he’s better suited to being a service dog, he’s worried that he’s not up to the task. Then he meets Jessica, a girl whose life is turning out differently than the way she'd imagined it, too. Now Jessica needs Rescue by her side to help her accomplish everyday tasks. And it turns out that Rescue can help Jessica see after all: a way forward, together, one step at a time. An endnote from the authors tells more about the training and extraordinary abilities of service dogs, particularly their real-life best friend and black lab, Rescue.

When a child has a "bad speech day" at school, his father gives him a new perspective on his stuttering.

A hearing boy and his deaf parents from Brooklyn enjoy the rides, food, and sights of 1930's Coney Island where the father longs to know about how everything sounds and his son tries to interpret the noisy surroundings through sign language and a wealth of new words learned from a trip to the library.

At first, Trisha loves school, but her difficulty learning to read makes her feel dumb, until, in the fifth grade, a new teacher helps her understand and overcome her problem.

A little boy brings his older brother, born with one hand, for show-and-tell. The students ask him all sorts of questions about how he does things with one hand and realize that he can do anything they can do, he just does it differently. Along the way, they notice that we're all different in one way or another, leading to the realization that not only are differences a similarity we all share, but, they are what make us unique - AND AWESOME!

A nonfiction picture book biography celebrating Evelyn Glennie, a deaf woman, who became the first full-time solo percussionist in the world.

Sonia and her friends plant a garden, and each one contributes in his or her own special way, in a book that celebrates the many differences among humans.

Joe, a young boy trying to play pirates at the playground, keeps getting interrupted with questions about what happened to his leg, and gets more and more fed up until the kids finally understand they don't need to know what happened.

Bruno's friend Sanjay has his own room and a pet iguana. Bruno's brother, Mateo, who is visually impaired, has a dog named Rocco who helps him get around, and Mateo is a fantastic storyteller. Bruno doesn't have a pet, and he has to share his room, but he still feels like the luckiest of all to have such a great brother and amazing friend.

Henry, a first grader on the autism spectrum, attempts to navigate friendships, and sudden changes in classroom routines--like a parade on Friday instead of share time.