Point to Happy: For Children on the Autism Spectrum

By Miriam Smith, Margo Smithwick, Afton Fraser

Conceived of, written, and designed for children on the autism spectrum, Point to Happy combines a picture book and a pointer to create a breakthrough in reaching children who communicate best through pictures. Ingenious in its simplicity, it was created by a grandmother, Miriam Smith, and mother, Afton Fraser, for Ms Fraser's son, a young boy on the autism spectrum. Point to happy. Point to sad. Point to hug. Give me a hug. The parent reads, the child points. It turns reading into a joyful, shared experience. Dozens of friendly photographs are compelling to look at and easy to understand. The text is clear and direct. By pointing to the pictures in the book--moods, activities, everyday objects, the rituals of going to bed and getting ready in the morning--children will learn to convey their wants and needs, their experiences and, most importantly, their feelings. The simple device of the pointer, with its soft, molded hand on a wand--safety-tested and 100 percent nontoxic and PVC-and phthalate-free--begs to be held and used. And using it--the motor task of holding and pointing, again and again--is an effective tool to help a child focus.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0761157158
• ISBN13: 9780761157151
• Release Date: March 2011
• Publisher: Workman Publishing
• Length: 20 Pages
• Weight: 1.60 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 10.3" x 12.4"
• Age Range: 2 to 5 years