Laura Paoletti

Rachel Andrews' life changed when she was 5-years-old. The doctors told her parents she would never walk again after a terrible accident and was placed in a wheelchair. As Rachel and her family move to a small town in Mississippi, she is a little nervous about making friends. She then meets Christopher who encourages her to try out for the basketball team. After tryouts go terribly with other girls teasing Rachel, Christopher finds a new chance at basketball with the YMCA and the Special Olympics. Read on and discover how Rachel finds her strength, and new friends along the way About the Author Laura Paoletti was a swimming and bowling competitor in the Special Olympics. She lives in Naples, Florida with her parents and seven dogs.

For courses in Introductory Programming for Java and Alice Learn programming basics in a creative context that’s more engaging and less complicated Taking a computer programming course can be challenging, time-consuming, and downright frustrating–but there’s a better way. Alice 3 to Java: Learning Creative Programming through Storytelling and Gaming, First Edition introduces readers to programming in a creative context that’s more engaging and less complicated, while still covering all the essential concepts you’d expect to see in an introductory programming course. Readers are invited to step into the world of creating 3D animations through chapters that present programming concepts with hands-on examples. Throughout the text, readers create a short story or game centered on Lawrence Prenderghast’s Haunted Circus, a story by Laura Paoletti. Students bring the story to life through projects and exercises using Alice, an animation tool similar to professional software used by studios like Pixar and DreamWorks. Later in the book, students may apply what they’ve learned in Alice to using Java, a professional, production-level programming course.