Books with author Elizabeth Verdick

The second book in the Adding Assets Series for Kids introduces and describes the four Empowerment Assets: Community Values Children, Children as Resources, Service to Others, and Safety. Each asset is clearly defined and introduced by a story. Kids learn simple, everyday ways to play useful roles at home and in the community, help others, and feel safer at home, at school, and in their neighborhood.

This positive, straightforward book offers kids with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) their own comprehensive resource for both understanding their condition and finding tools to cope with the challenges they face every day. Some children with ASDs are gifted; others struggle academically. Some are more introverted, while others try to be social. Some get ''''stuck'''' on things, have limited interests, or experience repeated motor movements like flapping or pacing (''''stims''''). The Survival Guide for Kids with Autism Spectrum Disorders covers all of these areas, with an emphasis on helping children gain new self - understanding and self - acceptance. Meant to be read with a parent, the book addresses questions (''''What's an ASD?'''' ''''Why me?'''') and provides strategies for communicating, making and keeping friends, and succeeding in school. Body and brain basics highlight symptom management, exercise, diet, hygiene, relaxation, sleep, and toileting. Emphasis is placed on helping kids handle intense emotions and behaviors and get support from family and their team of helpers when needed. The book includes stories from real kids, fact boxes, helpful checklists, resources, and a glossary. Sections for parents offer more detailed information.

Tests are hard. Tests are scary. In fact, tests stink! But no matter how kids (and parents, and teachers) feel about tests, they’re part of life. To succeed in school, kids need to ask, “How can I be a better test-taker?” This book has the answers. In the tradition of Trevor’s book, How to Do Homework Without Throwing Up, it offers proven strategies and practical advice . . . plus plenty of humor and goofy cartoons. As kids smile and laugh their way through the pages, they’ll discover tips and information that will help them survive and thrive in all kinds of test situations. Topics include: how to overcome test anxiety, procrastination, and perfectionism; how to prepare for specific types of tests (multiple choice, true-false, timed, take-home, standardized); how to handle cheaters; how to get extra help from tutors, mentors, and/or study groups; the pros and cons of guessing; how to feel better about tests in general; and much more. Other study guides can be dry, boring, and much toooo lonnnng. True or False? Tests Stink! is fun, entertaining, and (like Trevor’s other books) small but mighty. It can inspire even reluctant and anxious students to do and be their best on test days.

More kids than ever feel worried, stressed out, and anxious every day. Their parents and teachers may not know—because kids don’t want to talk about it, or they don’t know how to put their worries into words. Their “secret stress” surfaces as stomachaches, headaches, fatigue, trouble sleeping, loss of appetite, and an inability to concentrate. These and other stress-related symptoms can have a negative effect on school performance, family life, and friendships. Upbeat, positive, fact-filled, and friendly, this is the book on stress for kids and young adolescents.

Out in the Park one day, children, I met a little boy not bigger than you are, who told me that he liked stories about a boy and a dog and the things they did together. He said that it must be a real boy and a real dog, and there must be other animals in the story, not great, big, fierce ones, but just neighborly ones-animals a boy might, perhaps, meet when he went for walks in the woods-and take pictures of and get to know. So this is the story of the way a real boy and a real dog spent their first summer in the real country; and the fun they had together.

"A recipe for happiness: four women, one medieval Italian castle, plenty of wisteria, and solitude as needed. The women at the center of The Enchanted April are alike only in their dissatisfaction with their everyday lives. They find each other-and the castle of their dreams-through a classified ad in a London newspaper one rainy February afternoon. The ladies expect a pleasant holiday, but they don't anticipate that the month they spend in Portofino will reintroduce them to their true natures and reacquaint them with joy. Now, if the same transformation can be worked on their husbands and lovers, the enchantment will be complete."