Individual Inquiry Project
Literature plays a significant role in the way developmental disabilities are perceived throughout society; especially, children’s literature. It is through children’s literature where young children will have invaluable opportunities to learn important lessons on topics such as diversity and inclusion. Picture books, in particular, portraying children with developmental disabilities offer a great learning tool to begin addressing disability. The way an author chooses to construct a representation of a disability can have serious implications in the way children view developmental disabilities as a whole. Disability is a major part of the human experience; it is important to analyze the way a developmental disability is portrayed in picture books to create a platform to discuss what implications these representations have on society.
For many children, the first time they will encounter either individuals with disabilities
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There are many reasons why being purposeful in these decisions is so important. One of the most valuable is the implications these portrayals have on children. According to Bianquin and Sacchi reading books about individuals with disabilities constitutes a natural extension of real-life experiences with students who have special needs; this book-reading activity also provides a vehicle for discussion and reflection. For young children who do not have regular contact with students who have some kind of impairment, reading books about disabilities at home or at school may provide an important platform for discussing issues of similarity and difference at an early age (3). Beyond just developing the platform for discussing disabilities, picturebooks can invoke children’s understanding of other people as well as self