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The very readable and enjoyable autobiography of a dyslexic who has become a widely recognized expert on what dyslexia really is and especially what dyslexia isn't.
by Don McCabe
W663 – $14.95
5½x8½ 288 pp.   ISBN:  1-56400-004-4

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  •  In this personal and somewhat irreverent look at his life... Don McCabe reminds us of the diversity and strengths of (dyslexics.)... He emphasizes the importance of family support and the need for preparing teachers who understand dyslexia and its effects. Especially useful is the section on effective teaching strategies based on the structure of written English.

          - Marcia Henry, Ph.D., Former President, International Dyslexia Assn.

  •  This is more than an autobiography of a distinguished educator. It's a blueprint long overdue that school systems can use to teach reading and writing.

    - Carl Smith, Ph.D., Director Family Literacy Center, Indiana University.

  •  It takes a dyslexic like Don McCabe to teach us what dyslexia really is. It can be more a gift than it is a handicap. What he has achieved, other dyslexics can achieve-- with the proper help from teachers who understand the logic behind the dyslexic mind. Dyslexics may not make Who's Who (as McCabe) but they certainly can become good readers, good spellers and good citizens living happy and productive lives.

    - Eldo Bergman, M.D., Texas Reading Institute, Houston Texas

  •  Flint, Michigan can be justly proud of being more the the home of General Motors, Roger and Me, the great sit-down strike, and the C.S. Mott Foundation. From a Flint Public high school that had no gymnasium, no swimming pool, no auditorium, no cafeteria, no library, and no athletic field has come Don McCabe, a teacher, scholar, and researcher whose ideas, if accepted by the academic world, could lead to the eradication of illiteracy and even the elimination of the word dyslexia.

         - Linda Nevin, President, Tri-County Literacy Council

The book is divided into three parts:

  1. The why of my dyslexia and how it was overcome

  2. Twists and turns of fate that prepared and led a dyslexic (me) into teaching dyslexics and finding out what dyslexia is all about:

  3. Educational Research: In which directions should AVKO go?

    For a sample of the writing (the complete chapters!), click on any of the three highlighted chapter titles below:

    Chapter 1- Thank God for ignorance and a loving family 

    Chapter 2 - Thank God for Cook School and great expectations 

    Chapter 3 - Puberty, St. Mikes, diagramming and parsing 

    Chapter 4 - Flint Tech: a high school without a gym!

    Chapter 5 - Junior College: chess, pinochle, and bridge

    Chapter 6 - University of Detroit, Piled Higher and Better

    Chapter 7 - The Army Security Agency: Learning Russian and Teaching English in Japan.

    Chapter 8 - Time out to write a novel and get married

    Chapter 9 - Teacher certification: a time consuming farce

    Chapter 10 -Teaching the bright.  Babysitting the others.

    Chapter 11 - Teacher unions:  getting involved, getting punished instead of promoted

    Chapter 12 - Teaching the unteachable

    Chapter 13 - My principals and their principles

    Chapter 14 - Breaking away and forming the AVKO foundation.  BINGO!

    Chapter 15 - Free Daily Tutoring at AVKO's clinic

    Chapter 16 - The teaching of reading: religious cults in conflict.  What the researchers refuse to research and The Mechanics of English Spelling.

    Chapter 17 - First things first.  What needs to be taught?

    Chapter 18 - Breaking the code:  Sequential handwriting and spelling

    Chapter 19 - Parents need help to tutor their kids.  Where are our schools when we need them?

    Chapter 20 - The AVKO Word Difficulty Dictionary

    Chapter 21 - Get outta my face.  Get offa my case.

    Chapter 22 - The frustrations of trying to find an organization to accept a multi-million dollar bequest

    Chapter 23 - Start your own band wagon.  Don't just jump on the popular one, especially when they don't know where they're going.  Organize your own reading/writing curriculum using measurable minimum standards of achievement

    Chapter 24 - What is dyslexia?  Official definitions defined.

    Chapter 25 - Common misconceptions about dyslexia 

    Chapter 26 - Computers can be part of the solution but beware of GIGO, garbage in garbage out.