Discovery at Paradise Island (Printed in Open Dyslexic Font - Especially Helpful for Individuals with Dyslexia)

Book excerpt: Discovery at Paradise Island is my new children’s story book that has been reproduced in open dyslexic font. This book was originally published ten years ago in Lucinda Handwriting Font. I have been working in supporting individuals with dyslexia over the past ten years, since I originally published the book. In that time the open dyslexic font has been developed as one of the solutions to help support people who experience dyslexia. It is not a quick fix, but it is a tool that has been created to make reading the font a little easier for some. The feedback as to why it works and what it creates is quite exciting for some people. When the font is looked at you can see that the base of each letter is quite heavy and darker. When the reader’s eyes move across the page the letters are more stable and the usual movement is cut down. This makes the reading process calmer and more manageable. As with all of the issues that surround dyslexia not every person is the same in the way that they read and interact with the text. However, it seems that according to the research that surrounds this font it does have impact and help in the majority of cases. In the feedback I have had about the reprint of my dyslexic text children’s book most of the feedback is very positive about the engagement with the text and the story. Children stay reading the book and the majority of them finish the story over a number of weeks. This to me is very positive and the reason why I will continue to reproduce the next text run of the book using this international font.The fun and discovery starts as soon as Alexandria and Sarah arrive at Paradise Island. What would usually be a relaxing holiday on a tropical island turns into an exciting adventure. Sarah thinks because Alexandria’s mum is in a wheelchair their holiday will be quite boring. How wrong is she? The island activities, a mystery code, digging for pirate treasure, clues and discovery make for a surprising holiday and Sarah discovers some things she didn’t know before she went away with Alexandria’s family.' Discovery at Paradise Island is a children's adventure storybook written for audiences aged seven to twelve years. The story gives children a chance to learn and discover about disability. This book aims to develop children’s literacy, numeracy and social intelligence, while at the same time making it exciting and fun to read. It integrates into the school SOSE syllabus and also critical literacies and numeracy with the code breaking work. It has teacher and parent directed activities included and engagement questions at the end of each chapter to encourage children to think about what they have read and apply it to their own lives. Written by an author with a strong educational background and a thorough knowledge of disability both from a practical perspective and a theoretical framework this book explores a variety of social justice issues through the eyes of a child. Because this book can be used as a teaching resource across the curriculum and because it has a particular focus on disability it would be an invaluable classroom tool. The book links into the SOSE syllabus especially the Culture and Identity strand, as well as critical literacy and numeracy. It also is a much needed resource in the area of disability awareness. The engagement questions at the end of each chapter encourage children to think about the issues they are reading about and to apply them to their own lives. At the conclusion of the book it has a section containing teacher and parent directed activities. These can be used to develop a unit of work or activities based around the book and the themes contained within it. Sharon Boyce is available to come to your school to participate in author visits and also disability awareness sessions. Sharon is a registered teacher and is trained to work across all year levels. Sharon won the Disability Action Week Award for Individuals for this books first edition.