Free Guides and Booklets - Learning Disabilities Association of America

Note: Most of these resources are available in PDF (Portable Document Format), a universal file format that preserves the fonts, images, graphics, and layout of any source document, regardless of the application and platform used to create it. This format enhances the look of the document when printed. To view, download and print PDF documents you will need to have Acrobat Reader installed on your computer. The Reader is available free of charge from Adobe.

	NCLB and IDEA: What Parents of Students with Disabilities Need to Know and Do by Candace Cortiella for the National Center on Educational Outcomes. (pdf - 23 pages) http://education.umn.edu/nceo/OnlinePubs/Parents.pdf
A Parent's Guide to Response-to-Intervention (RTI) (pdf - 12 pages) IDEA includes a new provision that allows states and school districts to use high quality, research-based instruction in general and special education to provide services and interventions to students who struggle with learning and may be at risk or suspected of having learning disabilities. NCLD has written this Guide to provide an overview of the RTI process, describe how it is implemented in schools and offer questions that parents can ask. http://www.ncld.org/images/stories/downloads/parent_center/rti_final.pdf A Guide to the Individualized Education Program from the U.S. Department of Education provides useful information for parents of students in special education. http://www.ed.gov/parents/needs/speced/iepguide/index.html A Parent’s Guide to Reading Basics from Schwab Learning delivers basic information about how kids learn to read. http://www.schwablearning.org/pdfs/EGuide_ReadingBasics.pdf?date=3-03-03
	Helping Your Child Become a Reader http://www.ed.gov/parents/academic/help/reader/index.html?src=rt
	Helping Your Child with Homework This booklet helps parents of elementary and junior high school students understand why homework is important and makes suggestions for helping children complete assignments successfully. http://www.ed.gov/parents/academic/help/homework/index.html

Life Success for Children with Learning Disabilities: A Parent Guide from the Frostig Center in Pasadena, California. The research traced the lives of individuals with learning disabilities in an attempt to identify factors that predicted successful life outcomes.
http://www.ldsuccess.org

Identifying and Implementing Educational Practices Supported By Rigorous Evidence: A User Friendly Guide
http://www.ed.gov/rschstat/research/pubs/rigorousevid/index.html

Identifying and Treating Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: A Resource for School And Home. This resource guide designed for families and educators provides information on how attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is identified and treated. The resource includes sections on legal requirements, treatment options and helpful hints on how to improve the quality of life at home and at school, for a child identified with ADHD.
http://www.ed.gov/rschstat/research/pubs/adhd/adhd-identifying.html

Making the "No Child Left Behind Act" Work for Children Who Struggle to Learn: A Parent's Guide
This guide introduces you to several key provisions of NCLB that you can use as tools to improve educational services for your child. We hope that it helps you to navigate the complexities of NCLB, so that your child has the best possible opportunities to learn. Available in PDF.
http://www.LD.org/NCLB

One Child at a Time . . . A Parent Handbook and Resource Directory for African American Families with Children Who Learn Differently. This booklet provides information for parents of African American children who struggle to learn and includes important information on rights and responsibilities under federal laws.
http://www.charityadvantage.com/aacld/ArticlesandPublications.asp

Put Reading First: Helping Your Child Learn to Read (Preschool Through Grade 3)
This brochure, designed for parents of young children, describes the kinds of early literacy activities that should take place at school and at home to help children learn to read successfully. It is based on the findings of the National Reading Panel and was produced by the Partnership for Reading: National Institute for Literacy; National Institute of Child Health and Human Development; and U.S. Department of Education. http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/partnershipforreading/publications/reading_first2.html
Also available in print and in PDF.
http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/partnershipforreading/publications/PFRbrochure.pdf

Put Reading First: The Research Building Blocks for Teaching Children to Read
This booklet summarizes for teachers what researchers have discovered about how to teach children to read successfully. It describes the findings of the National Reading Panel Report and provides analysis and discussion in five areas of reading instruction: phonemic awareness; phonics; fluency; vocabulary; and text comprehension. Each section suggests implications for classroom instruction as well as other information.
http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/partnershipforreading/publications/PFRbooklet.pdf (Adobe Acrobat PDF file) or http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/partnershipforreading/publications/reading_first1.html (HTML Version)

Teaching Our Youngest: A Guide for Preschool Teachers and Child Care and Family Providers
http://www.ed.gov/teachers/how/early/teachingouryoungest/page.html#title

A Toolkit for Teachers: Provides valuable information about the No Child Left Behind Act and how it supports teachers. Includes an overview of the law's "highly qualified teacher" provisions, frequently asked questions, resources, publications, and more.
http://www.ed.gov/teachers/nclbguide/nclb-teachers-toolkit.pdf

Tools for Student Success: Selected Publications for Parents and Teachers from the U.S. Department of Educations ED.gov website or in print form from EDPubs, the Department of Education's publications distribution center. Most are available in English and Spanish.
http://www.ed.gov/parents/academic/help/tools-for-success/index.html

What Works: Five Promising Remedial Reading Intervention Programs
This booklet provides background information about research-based programs that, when properly implemented, have a track record of raising student achievement significantly--particularly for at-risk students. Produced by the American Federation of Teachers. (PDF 25 pages 113 K).
http://www.aft.org/Edissues/downloads/remedial.pdf

Learning Disabilities Association of America
4156 Library Road
Pittsburgh, PA 15234-1349
Phone (412) 341-1515 Fax (412) 344-0224
www.LDAAmerica.org