Sunday, 13 April 2008

The dreaded haircut - could this be your family?

Lynn Johnston's gentle comic strip of everyday family life with the Pattersons, For Better or For Worse (R), takes a wry look at episodes of family life that will often hit right home for parents of children with disabilities, like this one from last Sunday (6th April). Could this have been your family at some time - or right now?

In October 2004, Lynn Johnston introduced a new character, Shannon Lake, a teenage girl with an intellectual disability into her cast. Shannon was developed with the help of her niece, Stephanie who has special needs. Together they are a powerful advocacy team in their own community and to the wider world. Spend some time looking through Shannon's own website for a wealth of material, and for the strips in which Shannon has featured.

These two strips from 2004 introduced Shannon in 2004
There's some real food for thought in these comic strips, and the background material that could make very effective teaching and learning resources and ideas, about developing a sense of self, self esteem, and dealing with teasing and bullying. And perhaps all the better for not being in a textbook!

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