Dealing with Disabilities

Author: Myron Uhlberg
Title: Dad, Jackie, and Me.
Publisher: Peachtree Publishers, 2005.

Grade Level: 2-4

Summary: A boy learns about discrimination and tolerance in the 1940s when his deaf father and he become avid fans of Jackie Robinson.

Strengths: The greatest strength of this book is its tough lessons on discrimination and tolerance. The young boy learns about these tough issues by not only observing his father, but by their shared love of Jackie Robinson. At first the young boy is annoyed and does not necessarily know how to react to his father’s deafness, but as their relationship grows and he learns more about discrimination as it relates to Jackie Robinson, he is able to learn to accept his own father’s disability. There are very few books that deal directly with disabilities and I think this book does a wonderful job doing that. I also think students, particularly male students, will enjoy the athletic aspect of the book and the focus on Jackie Robinson.

Classroom Use: This book can be used as an introduction to Jackie Robinson or even to learning about disabilities. I think this would be a great way to talk about discrimination and tolerance, looking how people are discriminated against due to race, disabilities, gender, beliefs, etc.

(image from Amazon.com)