Meet Me Where I'm At, by Cindy Best and Joyce Shor Johnson

One of the challenges of having a child with disabilities is introducing him or her to a new teacher or caregiver.  This is especially challenging if the child is nonverbal.  Out of this type of experience, Cindy Best and Joyce Shor Johnson have written Meet Me Where I'm At.  Best notes that this book is based on a "guidebook" she made for her son when he was young "in order for his teachers to understand him."  She "wanted to have a way to inform each teacher, coach, or adult he encountered along his journey that this is how he is wired."

Throughout, the plea is to "Meet me where I'm at."  If the child runs away, can't sit still, doesn't seem attentive, or has trouble understanding, Best and Johnson offer some explanations and solutions.  Even better, they leave space for your child to fill in his or her own needs.  For example:

What works best for me is _________!
To learn best, sometimes I need to _________.
To quiet myself down, I _________.

In fact, these fill-in-the-blank sections have the greatest potential to make this book useful for each child or family.  Some of Best's descriptions may fit your child's behaviors exactly.  But every child is so different that you will want to add plenty of your own content.  The best use for Meet Me Where I'm At is probably as a model.  Use it as a template for writing your own personalized book, with pictures of your child, descriptions of his or her behavior and needs, and input from the child.  This is what my wife has done, and all of my daughter's caregivers and teachers have been delighted to know exactly how to meet her where she's at.



Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!