My Brother Sammy, by Becky Edwards and David Armitage is a story that all children should read.The book is about a boy, and his brother Sammy, who is Autistic. The boy describes his feelings he has about Sammy, and about the things about Sammy that he does not understand. People are afraid of what they don't understand. If we teach people about special needs at a young age, they will understand more and be more accepting. This book was special to me because I have a child with special needs. Much like Sammy, he doesn't play the same way other children play, and he acts differently, and gets upset easily. When he was younger the difference between him and other children was obvious, but as he gets older, he seems a little less different than the other children. He's learning how to socialize, and through therapies, his world has opened up. I could really relate to this book though, looking back, not understanding why he was acting different than the other children. I now know that he is special, and I wouldn't change him for the world. He's so smart, he's so creative, and he's an all around great kid. When he gets upset by loud noises, we give him earplugs; when its a sunny day, we give him sunglasses; we buy him socks without seems and make sure all the tags are cut out of his clothes. He's different than the other children, but there is nothing wrong with him. Now that we are learning to control some of his sensory issues, he's really coming out of his shell and has been making a lot of friends. His friends know that he gets upset easily, and that he needs help in gym class, and they also know he's fun to play Pokemon with and and to color with. Its when kids are not exposed to people who are different than them that they become scared of those who are different.
The book My Brother Sammy is all about accepting Sammy for who he is, not wanting to change him. He might play differently, but he's still a lot of fun!
Genre: Special needs, character education
Theme/Skill: Accepting and understanding differences.
Grade level: Kindergarten and up.
Pre-reading activity: Class discussion: What is your favorite thing to play? What are your brother/sister/cousins/friends favorite things to play? Do you always like to play the same things? What is your favorite color? What is your favorite food? Discuss the similarities and differences between the class. Is it okay that we like different things? Is it okay to be different?
Post-reading activity: Everyone should draw a picture of their family. Some families are big, some families are small, but we all love each other. Post everyones' family pictures so students can see the similarities and differences between families.
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