Kurt Fearnley levers his body out of his wheelchair and hoists himself into a yellow armchair in Anh Doh’s studio. He tucks his lifeless legs under him and grins widely at Anh who is about to paint his portrait for the ABC series ‘Anh’s Brush with Fame’. Kurt was born with a congenital disorder called […]
The Australian School Library Association has published an article of mine. See how teachers can use my books to the advantage of their students and to comply with the Australian Curriculum. ASLA article_March 2017_empathy
Last week I wrote about ways in which the national (Australian) curriculum supports students who live with a disability. This is through the General Capabilities. I mentioned the Personal and Social Capability, but there’s another – Ethical Understanding. In an ideal world we would not need to directed towards ethical behaviour but unfortunately that is not […]
Over the years since the development of a national Australian curriculum began, it has become increasingly easier for teachers to feel supported when they have children in their class who live with a disability. This should be reassuring to parents of those children. The ACARA website has pages of information on how to ensure that […]
I write stories for children that put disability front and centre. Why? Because when I published a nonfiction book on dwarfism I realised that there are so few kids books where the main character lives with a disability. So I decided to fill the gap. My first book for children is called IN MY WORLD. […]
‘Mummy, why is that man so short?’ ‘Because he didn’t eat his vegetables when he was a kid.’ The short man who overheard this conversation was Jonathan Tripp. He was born with a condition of dwarfism. While he could see the funny side of the mother’s reaction, it was just another incident in which an […]
My book Little People Big Lives was published in 2013. I self-published it because the big publishers wouldn’t take it on. The topic is too unusual and not good for sales! The book profiles people who are short-statured (little people) and provides information about dwarfism. While I was going through the process of publishing the […]
I am always pleased when synchronicity steps into my life. Recently there has been some cross-fertilisation between my editing and writing careers. I have been editing educational policy documents that deal with disability –guidelines for teachers who have students in their class who require certain adjustments to enable them to learn effectively. You can read […]
ARTICLE published in LINK DISABILITY MAGAZINE (October 2014) Angelo Olmi was born with achondroplasia, the most common condition of dwarfism. He works in the organic section of the Queen Victoria Market, Melbourne, where he has no trouble reaching the counter or till because he has undergone surgery to extend the length of his limbs. Olmi […]
My new book features renowned British actor Warwick Davis. It is a collection of stories about people living with dwarfism. Many of them belong to Short Statured People of Australia, whose president Meredith Young agrees with Warwick that this book conveys a positive message about people living with a physical difference. The book also contains […]