Disability

Awareness

Student
Booklet
By: Kelsea Jane
www.TeacherGems.com

2013 Kelsea Jane www.TeacherGems.com

Introduction
This booklet is designed to help general education teachers and/or parents teach
disability awareness. Use as part of an anti-bullying program, during Disability Awareness
Month (Oct. or March) or to kick off a new school year. Print pages 3-8 (pg. 9 is a bonus antibullying page) double-sided, fold into a booklet and staple along center crease. The following is
a sample introduction for the booklet:
Raise your hand if you have blue eyes. Raise your hand if you have green eyes. (etc.) Look
around the room. How many people can you find with brown hair? What about blonde hair? (etc.)
Raise your hand if you like pizza? How about sweet peppers? (etc.) As you can see we are all
different and we all have different likes and dislikes! Today we are going to learn about
something called disabilities. Have you heard of that word before? A disability is a physical
(body) or mental (brain) condition that limits a person's movements (move your arms and legs),
senses (point to eyes, nose, etc.), or activities. Disabilities can make things that come easy for
us, harder for some people. Does that mean they cant do the same things we can? Not
necessarily! Some people may look or act differently then we do but we are all the same on the
inside. Balloons come in all different shapes, sizes and colors but all have air in the inside. The
same is true for people! We all come in different shapes, sizes and colors but we all have
feelings on the inside. These differences are what make us unique and special!
Read through each page of the booklet and discuss with students. Allow them to ask
questions or share about someone they know with a disability (be sure to discuss confidentiality
before hand i.e. sometimes people might be embarrassed about a disability or not want to talk
about it so make sure you dont use their real nameyou could just say, someone I know. Dont
say my mom or brother either because then we will know who you are talking about.) Allow
students to color the pages afterward. The last two pages are for students to reflect on their
own strengths and weaknesses. This could also be used to spark discussion and re-emphasize
how these differences make us unique. Discuss how boring it would be if we all looked the same,
acted the same, and had the same interests. What if we were all good at math but not reading?
Who would help us learn to read better? We were designed to have different strengths and
weaknesses so we would learn to work together and help each other. Have students brainstorm
ideas of how to include people with disabilities or make accommodations for them (i.e. if you
wanted to play soccer but your friend cant use his legs, what could you do instead? [play catch],
what if your friend has a hard time understanding a story that the teacher reads? [draw a
picture for him], etc.). Be careful to direct the conversation to how we can encourage and
include students with disabilities and not how we can help them. We want students to
understand that many students with disabilities are very capable of doing things on their own
they might just need more time or other accommodations. Students should always ask a student
with a disability if they need or want help before they do something for them. One special
educator noted that her students were being treated like babies by their well-meaning peers.
Students with disabilities want to be treated like everyone else.
About the Author: Kelsea Jane is a former special education teacher turned stay at home mom
of two precious little kiddos. She has an undergraduate degree in cognitive impairments and a
masters degree in learning disabilities. In her free time she enjoys helping teachers by
providing them with information and resources on her website, blog and Facebook page. See
the last page of this product to find out where you can get more free resources like this one.

2013 Kelsea Jane www.TeacherGems.com

 2013 Kelsea Jane www.TeacherGems.com

My Disability
Awareness Booklet

2013 Kelsea Jane www.TeacherGems.com

Name:_____________________

Teacher Gems

1.

2013 Kelsea Jane www.TeacherGems.com

Sometimes peoples eyes dont work like they are

supposed to. They might have a hard time seeing things
that are far away like words on a chalkboard that look
blurry to them. Other people have a hard time seeing
things that are close by like words on a page of a book.
When our eyes dont do what they are supposed to we
may need to wear glasses to help us see better. A visual
impairment occurs when someone still has difficulty doing
everyday tasks even with the help of glasses. They may
need special books with big letters or thicker glasses to
help them see better. Some people who are blind cannot
see at all! They might use a seeing-eye dog to help them
get around without bumping into things. They may also
learn to read by using Braille where they feel small bumps
on a page that represent words.

Visual Impairments

2013 Kelsea Jane www.TeacherGems.com

Draw a picture of what

makes you special!

10.

9.

2013 Kelsea Jane www.TeacherGems.com

5. _____________________________________________

4. _____________________________________________

3. _____________________________________________

2. _____________________________________________

1. ______________________________________________

My Weaknesses and Dislikes:

5. _____________________________________________

4. _____________________________________________

3. _____________________________________________

2. _____________________________________________

1.______________________________________________

My Strengths and Likes:

Make a list of the things that make

you special and unique.

How are you special?

2013 Kelsea Jane www.TeacherGems.com

Sometimes peoples ears dont work like they should. They

may have difficulty hearing things. Some people are born
with this difficulty and other people may develop it over
time. If you listen to loud music or other loud noises too
much you could damage your eardrums. Some people with
hearing loss wear little devices in their ears called
hearing aids to help them hear better. People who are
deaf cannot hear at all. They may use sign language to
communicate with their friends. Just because they cant
hear doesnt mean they cant speak though!

Teacher G
ems

Hearing Impairments

2.

3.

2013 Kelsea Jane www.TeacherGems.com

We all have strengths and weaknesses, likes and dislikes. Some

people with autism may be really good at math or reading. They
may have a harder time expressing themselves (telling you what
they are thinking), starting and holding conversations (talking to
people) and making friends. Managing stressful situations and
waiting their turn can also cause frustration. When they are
playing they may demonstrate rigid behaviors like demanding to
use a certain color or making sure everything is lined up
perfectly straight. They may display repetitive behaviors such as
rocking and in severe cases they may not be able to speak at all.
Some children with autism may have an interest in one thing like
trains and want to learn all they can about trains. Does that
mean all people who like trains have autism? No! Is it bad to have
an interest in something? Absolutely not! In fact, some people
with autism become experts at the things that interest them.
There are lots of different types and levels of autism and no two
people are the same!

Teacher Gems

Autism

2013 Kelsea Jane www.TeacherGems.com

Think about your brain as being made up of all kinds of

wires. What happens when you touch two wires together?
They spark! Well the same sort of thing happens in our
brains. When the wires in our brains connect they might
spark a new idea which we call learning. When the wires do
not connect properly we call it a learning disability. Maybe
the wires are too short and cant reach each other.
People with learning disabilities are just as smart as their
friends but they may need extra strategies to help them
learn. A strategy might be drawing a picture to help them
understand. We can think of these strategies as a long
stick that can help the two wires reach each other.
Learning disabilities can happen in math, reading, writing
and other areas.

Te
ache
r Gem
s

Learning Disabilities

8.

7.

2013 Kelsea Jane www.TeacherGems.com

Cognitive is just a big word that means thinking. Thinking

takes place in our brains. Sometimes if our brains do not work
the way they should, we may have trouble thinking or learning.
Someone with a cognitive impairment may need more time to
learn a new skill. They may need help getting dressed or
feeding themselves even as they get older. Some people are
born with cognitive impairments like Down Syndrome. Other
people may develop cognitive impairments through old age or
a head injury.

Cognitive Impairments

2013 Kelsea Jane www.TeacherGems.com

Have you ever been sad or angry? It is normal to have

different emotions. Some people with emotional
impairments may seem sad or angry all the time. Some may
not know how to deal appropriately with these feelings and
may pick a fight with their friends or throw a temper
tantrum. Sometimes they may be very kind but worry a lot.
They might worry so much that it makes their tummy hurt
all the time. If you see a friend who is alone and sad maybe
you could ask them if they want to play or if they need a
hug!

Emotional Impairments

4.

Physical Impairments

Teacher Gems

5.

2013 Kelsea Jane www.TeacherGems.com

Sometimes different parts of our body dont work like they

should. Some people are born with certain parts of their body
not working correctly. Other people may injure part of their body
in an accident. Some physical impairments are temporary like
when you break your arm and need to wear a cast for a few
weeks. Other physical impairments are permanent like being
paralyzed where the person needs to use a wheelchair. Sometimes
people use wheelchairs for temporary injuries too like if they had
surgery or if they broke a leg (or both legs). If someone uses a
wheelchair or has a cast on their arm, does that mean they
arent smart or cant learn? No way! Sure it might take them
longer to write with a cast or be more difficult to play certain
games with a wheelchair but that doesnt mean they cant!

Speech or Language
Impairments

2013 Kelsea Jane www.TeacherGems.com

6.

Some people have difficulty speaking clearly because they can't

say certain sounds correctly.Sometimes they stutter (repeat
words) or seem to get stuck and can't say anything.
Sometimes they don't know how to change their volume and
always talk too loud or too quiet. Other people talk clearly, but
have difficulty understanding or using language correctly.
Language is the way we combine words to communicate with
people. These people may have difficulty finding the right
words to use, following directions or knowing how to ask or
answer questions.Other people may not talk at all and need to
use pictures or computers to communicate. Some people are
born with communication impairments; others have them due
to head injuries or health problems.At school, these students
work with the speech therapist (speech teacher). If you have a
friend who has a communication impairment, offer to help them
practice talking so they can improve their skills!

Teacher Gems

How can you be a

Friend?

Color all the hearts that are good examples of being a friend to someone with a disability.
Add your own ideas in the blank hearts.

Sta
nd
som up for
eon
the
tea e tries m if
se t
hem to

2013 Kelsea Jane www.TeacherGems.com

Special Thanks for their Editorial Reviews:

The Bender Bunch, LyndaSLP123, Autism Educators,
Elizabeth McGovern, School Bells N Whistles

Copyright 2014 Kelsea Jane www.TeacherGems.com

All rights reserved by author.Permission to copy for single
classroom use only. Electronic distribution is prohibited.
Not for public display.
If you enjoyed this product you may want to check out my
blog series, Fear of the Unknown for more resources and
freebies on this topic or these related products!

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Be d!
se
es
l
B

a
e
s
l
e
~K

Children ar
e a gift
from the Lo
rd
Psalm 127:
3