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By Sue Thompson - Source for Nonverbal Learning Disorders
The Source for Nonverbal Learning DisordersPaperback.Sue Thompson's book demystifies the nature and needs of children with Nonverbal Learning Disabilities. She translates scholarly research into an understandable manual for the identification and treatment of these children and youths. The book is filled with useful checklists, anecdotes, methods and resources.
Unknown Binding
First published January 1, 1997
3 people are currently reading
30 people want to read
About the author
Sue Thompson
78 books2 followersThere is more than one Sue Thompson on Goodreads
Sue Thompson (1968-), military history SE Asia
Sue Thompson (1955-), social work and age discrimination
Sue Thompson (1968-), military history SE Asia
Sue Thompson (1955-), social work and age discrimination
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
May 8, 2012
It was great. I loved it. It was much better than Cats. I'd read it again and again......
It was great. I loved it. It was much better than Cats. I'd read it again and again......
It was great. I loved it. It was much better than Cats. I'd read it again and again......
See now - if I wasn't so glaringly the only person who has reviewed or rated this book - I would just let my glib little, old school SNL reference stand there by itself... a little sidebar snark that irreverently and mischievously lets me blow off a little bluster. If this was a Twilight review, it would be safely nestled, hidden among 10000's of reviews that will also never get read. And I would feel just a little bit better because I would have carefully and successfully transmuted my overwhelming frustration (not really appropriate for doctors' offices or parent teacher conferences) into a bite sized chunk of sarcastic humor - much more manageable and it doesn't scare the educators or medical professionals.
Oh well. Here goes.
If you are an educator or a a student or grad student who is going to become an educator, than this is a useful textbook. With well written anecdotes, it aptly describes this disorder and gives you a good idea of what behaviors could be red flags for this condition. The text is an easy read ,and it is nicely organized with outlines at the end of every chapter - very useful for students writing papers.
If you are a parent, I don't think this book will be quite as useful.
This disorder is rare, and this book is even rarer. You don't just go to Barnes and Noble and pluck this baby off the shelf. Someone, probably a medical professional or a well-meaning educator at an IEP meeting has recommended this book to you. Presumably, if you are a parent reading this book, then you are already way down deep in the rabbit hole of assessments, diagnoses, and evaluations. Like me, you have probably already inundated yourself with internet research, articles, pamphlets, and just about every book you can find on ADHD, learning disabilities, sensory processing disorder, Aspergers, and broad spectrum autism. At this point you could probably write your own book.
For me ,the tidal wave of anecdotes and the iteration and reiteration of salient statistics, factoids, and terms that I had to slog through were just not useful. As a parent, I am not looking to diagnose. I don't need the information pounded repeatedly into my head because I am not going to take a test or write a paper. Also, I felt that the overall text seemed just a little bit dated. Studies and breakthroughs that are mentioned in every ADHD, sensory processing, and broad spectrum autism book and article that I've read in the last year and a half aren't even given a nod here.
What I was really looking for in this book, I didn't find. I wanted some real concrete academic strategies and curriculum ideas. Thompson focuses exclusively on just one flavor of NLD – those children who are highly verbal and very early , accomplished readers. There are no strategies outlined at all for a child who has NLD and another kind of learning disability (dyslexia for example) and will be unable to rely on their advanced reading or rote memorization skills.
I was also a little taken aback by how disapproving Thompson seemed of the involvement of psychiatrists and therapists. Her assertion that once the NLD has been diagnosed and the child's curriculum and school situation have been modified the behavioral problems will recede with no or minimal outside therapy is, in many cases, erroneous. Again, if your child has multiple diagnoses – the NLD accompanied by mood disorders or clinical anxiety and depression – outside therapy is going to be essential (IMO). As with the multiple layers of learning disabilities, Ms. Thompson does not take into account the child with multiple diagnoses.
At this point, I feel that I have to put in a warning here for any parent who may use this text as a prospective resource. There is some real nightmare making anecdotes and studies detailed in this book. At the 3/4 mark there is a very chilling anecdote about a little girl who was chained and repeatedly raped while the whole thing was recorded and photographed by her attacker. This one gave me nightmares for 3 nights. I understand what Thompson was doing here; she was trying to reaffirm our natural instincts as parents to remain vigilantly protective of children with this disorder because children with NLD can be trusting and socially naive to a fault. But if you are anything other than an imbecile or a monster who has no access to TV, the internet, or any kind of current news, you've probably already figured this one out for yourself and don't really need Thompson's well-meaning, albeit condescending preaching to the choir.
In the final chapters, there is also be some equally chilling statistics about the future adulthood prospects for children with this disorder - more nightmares, more anxieties - of course the study that these statistics came from was from the 70's and there were only 8 participants. If you are at all squeamish or prone to night terrors, avoid these sections. If you feel that you absolutely must read these sections, don't do it by yourself in the middle of the night. Make sure that there are other people present and that you have access to a healthy supply of comfort food and hugs – you are probably going to need it.
In Conclusion:
For Students: 3.5 stars – Good text book, easy to read.
For Parents: 2.5 stars – Not as useful as I hoped. This book is hard to come by and very expensive. A lot of this text is going to be information that you probably already know or that you can find more cheaply on the internet. The text is a little dated and at times a little too narrow in its scope.
It was great. I loved it. It was much better than Cats. I'd read it again and again......
It was great. I loved it. It was much better than Cats. I'd read it again and again......
See now - if I wasn't so glaringly the only person who has reviewed or rated this book - I would just let my glib little, old school SNL reference stand there by itself... a little sidebar snark that irreverently and mischievously lets me blow off a little bluster. If this was a Twilight review, it would be safely nestled, hidden among 10000's of reviews that will also never get read. And I would feel just a little bit better because I would have carefully and successfully transmuted my overwhelming frustration (not really appropriate for doctors' offices or parent teacher conferences) into a bite sized chunk of sarcastic humor - much more manageable and it doesn't scare the educators or medical professionals.
Oh well. Here goes.
If you are an educator or a a student or grad student who is going to become an educator, than this is a useful textbook. With well written anecdotes, it aptly describes this disorder and gives you a good idea of what behaviors could be red flags for this condition. The text is an easy read ,and it is nicely organized with outlines at the end of every chapter - very useful for students writing papers.
If you are a parent, I don't think this book will be quite as useful.
This disorder is rare, and this book is even rarer. You don't just go to Barnes and Noble and pluck this baby off the shelf. Someone, probably a medical professional or a well-meaning educator at an IEP meeting has recommended this book to you. Presumably, if you are a parent reading this book, then you are already way down deep in the rabbit hole of assessments, diagnoses, and evaluations. Like me, you have probably already inundated yourself with internet research, articles, pamphlets, and just about every book you can find on ADHD, learning disabilities, sensory processing disorder, Aspergers, and broad spectrum autism. At this point you could probably write your own book.
For me ,the tidal wave of anecdotes and the iteration and reiteration of salient statistics, factoids, and terms that I had to slog through were just not useful. As a parent, I am not looking to diagnose. I don't need the information pounded repeatedly into my head because I am not going to take a test or write a paper. Also, I felt that the overall text seemed just a little bit dated. Studies and breakthroughs that are mentioned in every ADHD, sensory processing, and broad spectrum autism book and article that I've read in the last year and a half aren't even given a nod here.
What I was really looking for in this book, I didn't find. I wanted some real concrete academic strategies and curriculum ideas. Thompson focuses exclusively on just one flavor of NLD – those children who are highly verbal and very early , accomplished readers. There are no strategies outlined at all for a child who has NLD and another kind of learning disability (dyslexia for example) and will be unable to rely on their advanced reading or rote memorization skills.
I was also a little taken aback by how disapproving Thompson seemed of the involvement of psychiatrists and therapists. Her assertion that once the NLD has been diagnosed and the child's curriculum and school situation have been modified the behavioral problems will recede with no or minimal outside therapy is, in many cases, erroneous. Again, if your child has multiple diagnoses – the NLD accompanied by mood disorders or clinical anxiety and depression – outside therapy is going to be essential (IMO). As with the multiple layers of learning disabilities, Ms. Thompson does not take into account the child with multiple diagnoses.
At this point, I feel that I have to put in a warning here for any parent who may use this text as a prospective resource. There is some real nightmare making anecdotes and studies detailed in this book. At the 3/4 mark there is a very chilling anecdote about a little girl who was chained and repeatedly raped while the whole thing was recorded and photographed by her attacker. This one gave me nightmares for 3 nights. I understand what Thompson was doing here; she was trying to reaffirm our natural instincts as parents to remain vigilantly protective of children with this disorder because children with NLD can be trusting and socially naive to a fault. But if you are anything other than an imbecile or a monster who has no access to TV, the internet, or any kind of current news, you've probably already figured this one out for yourself and don't really need Thompson's well-meaning, albeit condescending preaching to the choir.
In the final chapters, there is also be some equally chilling statistics about the future adulthood prospects for children with this disorder - more nightmares, more anxieties - of course the study that these statistics came from was from the 70's and there were only 8 participants. If you are at all squeamish or prone to night terrors, avoid these sections. If you feel that you absolutely must read these sections, don't do it by yourself in the middle of the night. Make sure that there are other people present and that you have access to a healthy supply of comfort food and hugs – you are probably going to need it.
In Conclusion:
For Students: 3.5 stars – Good text book, easy to read.
For Parents: 2.5 stars – Not as useful as I hoped. This book is hard to come by and very expensive. A lot of this text is going to be information that you probably already know or that you can find more cheaply on the internet. The text is a little dated and at times a little too narrow in its scope.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews