Reviewer: Allison Martin

A Parent's Guide to Developmental Delays by Laurie LeConner is a must have resource for anyone who wishes to learn more about identifying and parenting babies and children with developmental delays. The quality of the identification and explanation of the various types of delays and disabilities is exceptional and will be useful to any parent who is worried about these issues. Normal development, indications of problems, specific examples, parenting suggestions, and treatment are presented in each chapter in a well thought out and informative manner. The overall tone of the book is encouraging and supportive for parents who are concerned about their children.

This book covers a wide variety of developmental delays and disabilities - cognition (thinking), speech and language, motor (movement), behavior (social and emotional), and sensory integration. Identifying the specific issues and finding the correct terminology is fundamental for parents who wish to help their children. This organization of different types of developmental disabilities and delays with descriptions of each is worth the price of the book alone, as identification by the variety of professionals involved is a very complex and (frankly) disorganized process.

For each major developmental area LeConner provides definitions and examples of specific diagnoses. For example, for Cognition she provides an overview of cognitive difficulties and then breaks out specific examples of Learning Disabilities (visual perception, auditory, memory, characterization), Mental Retardation, and Interfering Conditions (e.g., Nonverbal Learning Disability NVLD). For Sensory Integration, she provides an overview of sensory issues with specific examples of Tactile, Vestibular and Oral issues, Bilateral Integration, Proprioceptive Dysfunction and Distortions. Disorders she discusses under other categories include autism, bipolar, obsessive-compulsive, anxiety, etc. In addition, many important, related topics are addressed such as parental role in identification (crucial!), medication, prematurity, evaluations, therapy, and educational placement.

This book provides a wealth of information for parents and professionals. It would be an invaluable addition to any library and for any teacher, doctor or therapist who works with parents.

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ADHD
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