Communication Disorders in Children’s Literature

eachers are challenged with creating a learning environment for children with diverse language and cognitive levels. As society becomes more inclusive, so do our classrooms. Successful in-clusion of children with communication dis-orders involves not only empowering the child but also providing an accepting environment. Interactions with children’s literature in the classroom are an important ve-hicle by which children amass experience with and knowl-edge about character development. Using books that include strong, dynamic characters with communication impairments can be an effective tool for teachers and stu-dents. This article has two purposes: 1. Provide a listing of contemporary children’s books that involve main characters with communication impairments who are actively involved in the plot. These books could easily be integrated into the general education curriculum. 2. Give suggestions to teachers on how to use children’s literature to (a) provide positive role models for stu-Using quality children’s literature with portrayals of characters that have communication impairments can be an effective teaching tool. Storybook characters with communication disorders can provide positive role models and promote understanding of diverse popu-lations. Eighteen children’s books were selected based on the fol-lowing criteria: publication dates between 1994 and 2001, reading levels between preschool and eighth grade, and main characters with speech, language, or hearing disorders. Curriculum topics were sum-marized for integration into state academic content areas