Full Description
Give teenagers a chance to say what’s on their minds and you might be surprised by what you hear. That’s exactly what Don Meyer, creator of Sibshops and author of Views from Our Shoes, did when he invited a group of 80 teenagers to come together from all over the United States and abroad. They talked openly about what it’s like to have a brother or sister with special needs.
Their unedited words are found in The Sibling Slam Book. This is a brutally honest look at the lives, experiences, and opinions of siblings who do not have disabilities but who have brothers or sisters with special needs.
Formatted like the slam books that are passed around in many junior high and high schools, this one poses a series of 50 personal questions along the lines of:
- What should we know about you?
- What do you tell your friends about your sib’s disability?
- What’s the weirdest question you have ever been asked about your sib?
- If you could change one thing about your sib (or your sib’s disability) what would it be?
- What annoys you most about how people treat your sib?
The Sibling Slam Book doesn’t “slam” in the traditional sense of the word. The answers tone and point-of-view are all over the map. Some answers are assuredly positive, a few are strikingly negative, but most reflect the complex and conflicted mix of emotions that come with the territory.
Whether they read it cover to cover or sample it at random, teenagers will surely find common ground among these pages and reassurance that they are not alone.
It is a book that parents, friends, and counselors can feel confident recommending to any teenager with a brother or sister with a disability. It is also a book for parents, relatives and counselors to read to better understand these special relationships.
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Details
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| Item | SLAM |
| Pages | 154 pages, 8.5 x 11 soft cover |
| Year | 2005 |
Contents
List of Questions- What should we know about you?
- What should we know about your sib?
- Describe yourself to someone who can’t see you.
- How would you describe your relationship with your sib?
- Do you like hanging out with your sib? What do you do?
- How do your friends describe you?
- What do you want people to know about your sib?
- Do you think your sib knows he/she has a disability? (If so, what does that mean to him/lher?)
- Got any good stories about your sib?
- Is your outlook on life different from your friends’ outlook on life? How?
- Do you think being a sib has affected your personality? How?
- What makes you proud of your sib?
- When you were younger, did you ever wish you had a disability so your parents would pay more attention to you?
- Do your friends get along with your sib? Do you tend to pick friends who are likely to get along with your sib?
- What do you tell your friends about your sib’s disability? Do they ever ask questions?
- What is your pet peeve?
- What item must you have with you all the time?
- Can you imagine what it would be like if your sibling didn’t have a disability?
- Does your sib ever frustrate you? How?
- What are some advantages - good parts - of having a sibling with a disability?
- What are some disadvantages - not so good parts - of having a sibling with special needs?
- Describe a perfect day.
- If you could change just one thing about your sib (or your sib’s disability), what would it be?
- What do you see for your sibling’s future? And what part do you think you’ll play in that future?
- What annoys you the most about how people treat your sib?
- Do your parents include you in discussions about your sib? How do you feel about that? * Has your sib ever embarrassed you?
- Do you know lots of other sibs and if so, how do you know them?
- How is your sib treated by kids in your community?
- What career choices sound good right now?
- Something you said you’d never do but did anyway:
- What is the hardest thing to do as a sibling?
- Sweetest thing someone has done for (or said to) you:
- Is there something about your sib that just makes you smile?
- Anything about your sib that just pisses you off?
- What confuses you the most about the opposite sex?
- How do the people at your school church/after-school group treat your sibling?
- What are some words or phrases you use the most?
- Has something ever happened to your sib that scared you?
- Ever feel invisible?
- If you could meet one persons dead or alive who would it be?
- If you had a choice, would you get rid of all the disabilities in the world - or just the negative reactions to them?
- Most embarrassing moment:
- What’s the best advice you’ve given or been given?
- Where you see yourself in 10 years:
- What life lesson have you learned from being a sib?
- Happiest moment:
- If you had just one day when your sibling didn’t have a disability, what would you choose to do on that day?
- What’s the toughest thing about being a sib?
- What’s the weirdest question you’ve ever been asked about your sib?
- If you had one wish for your brother or sister, what would it be?
- What’s the one question we should have asked but didn’t? (And what’s the answer?)
- Leave us with a good quote - or lyric:
Excerpts
Foreword
By David Gallagher
My little brother is the coolest kid. His name is Killian and he was diagnosed with autism when he was three. Between working on 7th Heaven and attending college, I’m not at home as much as I used to be. But when I am, it’s the greatest thing - usually! Killian certainly lets me know that he’s glad to see me. We play video games for hours and listen to music. Killian lip-syncs the words and makes funny faces and we spend most of the time laughing.
But life with Killian can be frustrating, too. Sometimes he acts like a baby when he doesn’t get what he wants or tries to do something that might get him hurt or in trouble. He reverts to crying like an infant and that can be really annoying. I always try to be patient, and in a lot of ways, Killian has taught me patience – but it is still annoying.
Life with Killian is your basic mixed bag.
That’s why I love THE SIBLING SLAM BOOK. It’s great to read about sibs who are experiencing the same things I am and feeling what I often feel. It lets you know you’re not alone!
As I read the questions and answers, it reminded me of the emotional rollercoaster my family has been on with Killian. It reminded me why my brother is so special to me and voiced the frustration I often feel about the things that aren’t so special. In a lot of important ways, this book acknowledges the unsung heroes in the lives of kids with spcia1 needs: their siblings.
Many thanks to Don Meyer and all the authors for asking me to be a part of this wonderful project. It’s a brilliant way to let brothers and sisters know there are other people out there just like them.
David Gallagher
Actor 7th Heaven, The WB Network
Youth Ambassador, CAN (Cure Autism Now)
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