Customer Reviews

Steps to Independence: Teaching Everyday Skills to Children with Special Needs

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

No parent OR special education teacher should be without this book! Easy to read, and the content is excellent! Step-by-step approaches to teaching everyday skills to children with special needs, but would be just as valuable to ANY parent! After reading this book, I have found it easier to establish goals for my students and everyone is using the same approach to teaching everyday living skills (play, toileting, self-help, PLUS behavior management)! It is working fabulous! The students are learning more with less frustration! A must-have for your resource library!

I love this book. I have a son with Down syndrome and I use this book to help him achieve independent skills like toileting (great chapter!) and self-help skills. Also has a great section on behavior. Very comprehensive. I recommend buying a copy for yourself and your child's teacher/aide!

I've been looking for a book like this for quite some time. Here's what it covers:
Chapter 1: Setting Out
Chapter 2: Targeting a Skill
Chapter 3: Establishing Steps
Chapter 4: Picking Rewards
Chapter 5: Setting the Stage
Chapter 6: Teaching
Chapter 7: Observing Progress and Troubleshooting
Chapter 8: Get Ready Skills
Chapter 9: Self-Help Skills
Chapter 10: Toilet Training
Chapter 11: Play Skills
Chapter 12: Independent Living: Self-Care Skills
Chapter 13: Independent Living: Home-Care Skills
Chapter 14: Independent Living: Information Skills
Chapter 15: Plugging into the Personal Computer Revolution
Chapter 16: Behavior Problems
Chapter 17: Initiating a Behavior Management Program
Appendix A: Get Ready Skills
Appendix B: Self-Help Skills Inventory
Appendix C: Self-Help Skills Programs
Appendix D: Play Skills Programs
Appendix E: Information Skills Programs
Index

This book is great. Not only does each chapter breaks down into specific steps on how to teach everyday skills like toilet training, homecare skills (dressing, feeding) as well as behaviour management - it contains advice and charts on how to monitor and assess improvement in a systematic way. Also explains the use of rewards for motivation etc.

No doubt one of the most comprehensive and useful books I have bought. Has helped me construct a program to help my dyspraxic son establish a routine and confidence performing everyday skills consistently.

Recommended purchase!

I do find this book helpful and it breaks many tasks down into manageable steps. It is comprehensive and easy to read. Be aware that the book uses a behaviorist model of teaching / training and rewards are an integral part of the teaching method. Those who are troubled by this approach may find the book less helpful. The book (as do most in the field) also assumes that the child is in a school or intervention program and does not address the somewhat differing needs of children who are homeschooled or receiving all their therapies at home.

This book is a must have for parents struggling with training there children independence skills. It ofter so many easy to do exercise to get your little or big one independence. My 3 year old is finally bushing his teeth, because this book showed easy to do steps to get him going. I highly recommend this book to any parent struggling with training there children independence. It offers easy steps by step solutions in teaching your child what you have been trying to teach them for months . Try it, its a great training tool for independence.

The book is formatted very well. It has helped me approach my child in a new manner with excellent results. Some of the tasks we take for granted are broken into smaller steps that can be overlooked. This book helps you identify missing steps and provides multiple methods of application. It isn't a "one size fits all" approach. It gives good ideas for praise and correction if consistently followed.

The page layouts are easy to read and the cartoons are cute. Everything addressed in this book has samples to serve as a guide for you. The appendices has more ideas for aiding with independence. Overall, the application of this book, used in a routine, is great for any age and any skill level.

I read so many books to try to give my high functioning autistic son the best chance possible in life. This book gives detailed ideas for preparing your child for adolescence and adulthood. I really liked that they give examples of skill your child will need to develop in order for them to be independent. As a parent, we know the obvious things like personal care but some things I wouldn't have thought of.

This book makes a teacher out of every one who reads it. Whether you are a parent, guardian, relative, teacher of a child with special needs, this book will give you the tools to teach essential skills and enable you to use them effectively.
This book was recommended to me and I recommend it to every else.

My husband and I read this together in efforts to help our five year old autistic son become more independent. This was great for us. It has great strategies for helping with all sorts of needs for ANY child. We have put this book's ideas in place in our home and we have noticed a HUGE difference in both our children, not just the one with special needs.
Great tool for any parent struggling with giving in and children self-helping!