Ability
Awareness
Week
Rainbow of Abilities –
Differences
Weaknesses
Strengths
Which end of your rainbow
would you want someone to focus
upon?
Weaknesses
Strengths
Some differences in ability are easy to see…
…while others are not!
Can you tell which adult was the first
to walk, talk, or read?
Similarities
Everyone needs:
• Respect
• Inclusion
• Friends
When encountering someone with
different abilities…
• DON’T feel afraid or
nervous.
• DON’T assume that they
are not smart.
• DON’T assume that they
need help. Ask first
(“Would you like some
help?”).
• Don’t stare, use hurtful
words, or passively
participate in
teasing/bullying.
• DO smile and say,
“HELLO!”
• DO focus on their
strengths.
• DO include them during
lunch, recess, games, and
parties.
• DO be patient.
Keep the rainbow bright for yourself
and empower others to do the same!
Albert Einstein
• Mathematician/Physicist
who had a learning
disability and did not speak
until age 3. He is rumored
to have had a very difficult
time doing math in school
and reportedly had had a
very difficult time
expressing himself through
writing.
Sir Isaac Newton
• Epilepsy, stuttering
• (1643 to 1727)
Credited with being the
scientist who founded
the three laws of
motion along. Believed
to have discovered
gravity by examining a
falling apple.
Julius Caesar
• Epilepsy
• This Roman
emperor is
regarded as one of
the most
influential men in
world history.
Alexander the Great
• (356 to 323 B.C.)
Also known as
Alexander III, Ancient
Greek king of Macedon
• During this time,
Epilepsy was believed to
be caused by evil spirits.
Theodore Roosevelt
• (1858 to 1919)
A soldier, historian,
explorer, naturalist,
author, and Governor of
New York, and the 26th
President of the U.S.
Also had poor eye-sight
and asthma.
George Washington
• The first U.S.
President is believed
to have had a
learning difference.
He could barely
write and had very
poor grammar skills.
Franklin D. Roosevelt
• Roosevelt is
believed to have
had Polio. He was
governor of New
York State then
elected President
of the United
States for 4 terms.
Woodrow Wilson
• U.S. President
from 1913-1921.
• He was severely
dyslexic.
Nelson Rockefeller
• Former Vice
President of the
United States: had
a learning
difference:
Dyslexia.
Winston Churchill
• Dyslexia
• Was Prime
Minister of the
UK during World
War II.
United States General George Patton
• Dyslexia
• World War II
hero.
Thomas Edison
• Edison is reported to
have had a learning
difference. He couldn't
read until he was
twelve years old and
had a very difficult time
writing even when he
was older.
Alexander Graham Bell
• Had a learning
difference
• Invented the
telephone
Henry Ford
• Dyslexic
• Invented the
motor car
Vincent van Gogh
• Accute mental illness
• Famous painter “Starry
Night”
Michelangelo
• Possible Aspergers
• The sculptor of
many of the most
renowned
sculptures of all
times.
Leonardo Da Vinci
• Dyslexic
• Responsible for some of the
greatest religious paintings
in history, Da Vinci excelled
not only in painting, but in
numerous other disciplines
as well. He was a architect,
botanist, musician, scientist,
mathematician, engineer,
inventor, anatomist, painter,
sculptor, and writer. His
paintings include the "Mona
Lisa" and "the Last Supper
of Jesus Christ."
Francisco Goya
• Spanish painter
(1746 to 1828): At
age 46, an illness left
him deaf. He went
on to create the
most famous
Spanish art of the
19th century.
Stephen Hawking
• Motor Neuron Disease
• Communicated using a
computer, uses
wheelchair to get
around independently
• This famous
astronomical physicist
has written many
books, including "A
Brief History of Time"
and "Black Holes and
Baby Universes."
Charles Dickens (Charles John Huffam Dickens)
• Possible Epilepsy
• English novelist of the
Victorian era
• Prolific Writer
• Wrote “A Christmas
Carol”, “Oliver Twist”, “A
Tale of Two Cities”
Temple Grandin
•
Temple Grandin, Ph.D., is the most
accomplished and well-known adult with
autism in the world. Dr. Grandin didn't talk
until she was three and a half years old,
communicating her frustration instead by
screaming, peeping, and humming. Even
though she was considered "weird" in her
young school years, she eventually found a
mentor, who recognized her interests and
abilities. Dr. Grandin later developed her
talents into a successful career as a livestockhandling equipment designer, one of very
few in the world. Dr. Grandin presently works
as a Professor of Animal Science at Colorado
State University. She also speaks around the
world on both autism and cattle handling. .
She has written many best selling books.
Tanni Grey-Thompson
•
•
•
This athlete is instantly recognized by
most people.
Formerly Tanni Grey - the Thompson
was added following her marriage in
1999 – she has competed in
Paralympic Games since 1988,
representing Britain at distances
ranging from 100 meters to 800
meters.
She has won fourteen paralympic
medals including nine golds, and has
broken over twenty world records. As
a wheelchair athlete she was also the
winner of five London marathons – in
1992, 1994, 1996, 1998 and 2001. In
recent years, she has established
herself as a TV presenter.
Marla Runyan
• Vision loss due to Stargardt
Disease.
• This athlete represented the
Unites States in the 1500 meter
track event at the 2000 Olympics.
She finished in eighth position,
3.20 seconds behind the gold
medal winner. In 1996, Marla set
several track and field records at
the Paralympics in Atlanta,
Georgia.
• Following that success, Marla
competed in the 2000 Olympics
in Sydney, where she became the
first legally blind athlete to
compete in an Olympics.
Bruce Jenner
• Dyslexic
• Olympic Athlete and
Sportscaster
Greg Louganis
• Dyslexic
• Olympic Swimmer
Ludwig von Beethoven
• Deaf & Asthma
• Most noted for his Fifth
Symphony.
Ludwig van Beethoven
• Acquired Deafness near
the age of 45.
• World renowned pianist
and composer from the
early 19th Century.
Neil Young
• This Canadian-born
(1945) musician and
environmentalist.
Regarded by many to be
one of the greatest
guitarists of his time. In
addition to Epilepsy, he
is a person with Polio
and Diabetes.
Michael Bolton
• Singer
• Famous for ballads from the 1980’s
• Deaf in one ear
Paul Stanley
Born with a defect of
the outer ear, deaf in
right ear
Lead singer of KISS
Ray Charles
• Disability: Blind since
childhood.
• Famous for his hits in
the 1950's & 1960's,
including "Hit the
Road Jack."
Itzhak Perlman
• Contracted polio at age 4,
both legs paralyzed as a
result.
• Famous violinist. He walks
with crutches and performs
seated. Perlman actively
promotes building and
transportation accessibility
laws. This Israeli violinist is
well-known for the
technical mastery he has of
the violin.
Stevie Wonder
• Blind since birth
• Had numerous hits
between the
1960's and
1980's.
Rick Allen
• Amputation of arm
• Famous drummer in the
band – Def Leppard.
The sudden loss of an
arm did not stop his
career as a drummer!
He rearranged his drum
kit to compensate and
continued as the band's
drummer.
Tony Iommi & Ozzy Osbourne
• Tony Iommi
– Amputation of 2 fingers
– Continued his career by
creating 2 plastic "fingers"
designed to assist him in
playing the guitar. Gained
fame as the guitar player in
Heavy Metal band – Black
Sabbath.
• Ozzy Osbourne
– Dyslexia
– Sang as lead vocals in the
band - Black Sabbath and had
several solo hits, including
"Bark at the Moon."
Nick Jonas
• Nick Jonas of the Jonas
Brothers, has type 1
diabetes, a disease that
results when the body
does not produce the
hormone insulin that is
needed to convert sugar
into energy.
• He must take insulin
daily.
Walt Disney
• Dyslexia
• Created many cartoon
films, including
"Fantasia" and "Snow
White & The Seven
Dwarfs". His first film
was the Mickey Mouse
cartoon – "Plane Crazy."
Tom Cruise
• Dyslexic
• Hollywood Star
• Actor: Mission
Impossible, Rain
Man
Robin Williams
• This Hollywood Star was
diagnosed with
Attention Deficit
Hyperactivity Disorder
(ADHD) as a child. He
never refuses a role
related to medicine "Awakenings" and
"Patch Adams" are two
examples.
Marlee Matlin
• Marlee Matlin is a
stand-up comedian and
an actress. In 1987, she
won the Academy
Award for Best Actress
in "Children of a Lesser
God". Marlee Matlin
lost her hearing during
infancy due to Roseola
infantum.
Bud Abbott
• Epilepsy
• American producer,
comedian and actor.
James Earl Jones
• Difference: Stuttering
• Played the voice of Darth
Vader in the movie "Star
Wars"; played role as
Shakespeare's Othello;
appeared in the movie
"Conan the Barbarian"; and
portrayed a stutterer in the
movie "A Family Thing."
• In his autobiography "Voice
and Silences", Jones wrote
that he was "virtually mute"
as a child.
Christopher Reeve
• Never has a person with
an ability challenge
commanded so much
media attention in recent
history. Christopher
Reeve, unable to walk
after a horse-riding injury,
dedicated the rest of his
life to help others stand
confident. He strove to
harness the power of
medical research to get
up & ride again.
Bruce Willis
• Stuttering
• Starred in a
number of films,
including the "Die
Hard" series.
Cher
• Dyslexia
• Performed as part of the
Sonny & Cher musical
duo. Recorded charttopping hits from the
1960s to late 1990's.
Whoopi Goldberg
• Learning Difference
• Actress and comedian
Michael J. Fox
•
•
•
•
Neurological Disorder – Parkinson’s
Actor
Starred in Back to the Future movies, television
Founded Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s
Research
Lou Ferrigno
• 60% deaf, resulting
from infections during
childhood.
• Starred as the
Incredible Hulk in the
1970's TV series.
Danny Glover
• This American actor and
star of the movies,
“Angels in the Outfield”,
"Lethal Weapon" and
"Predator 2", was
labeled as "retarded"
during his youth by
school staff.
Helen Keller
• She was a
person with
blindness,
deafness, and
was unable to
speak.
Harriett Tubman
• Abolitionist (1830 to
1913): As a child she
was struck by an
overseer. The blow
fractured her skull and
resulted in narcolepsy
for the rest of her life.
She rescued hundreds
of slaves on the
underground railroad.
Thank you for
caring!