Sunday, April 11, 2021

BOOKS FOR KIDS by (and about) TEMPLE GRANDIN - CELEBRATING WORLD AUTISM MONTH


Temple Grandin is a professor of animal sciences at Colorado State University and specializes in the humane treatment of livestock animals. She has written numerous scientific papers about the humane treatment of animals as well as books about caring for and understanding animals such as Animals Make Us Human: Creating the Best Life for Animals and Animals in Translation: Using the Mysteries of Autism to Decode Animal Behavior.

Temple is also autistic and often speaks at educational conferences about her experiences growing up on the spectrum. She has written books on that subject for adult audiences such as Thinking in Pictures: My Life with Autism and Emergence: Labeled Autistic

She has also written books for kids, mostly about the sciences, but weaving in her personal experiences such as Calling All Minds: How to Think and Create Like an Inventor pictured above. This book looks at the science and methodology behind various inventions and shows kids how to think like an inventor. Temple talks about the inventions she created as a child. It is 240 pages long and is for kids in grades 3-7. 

Out just this past week is a new book by Temple - The Outdoor Scientist: The Wonder of Observing the Natural World. pictured above. This book is 208 pages long for grades 3-7 and contains 40 outdoor projects as well as information about Temple and other scientists who explore the natural world.


Many other people have written books for children about Temple Grandin and her experiences with autism. How to Build a Hug: Temple Grandin and Her Amazing Squeeze Machine written by Amy Guglielmo and Jacqueline Tourville and illustrated by Giselle Potter, is a 48-page picture book for grades PreK-3.

The Girl Who Thought In Picture: The Story of Dr. Temple Grandin (Amazing Scientists)  written by Julia Finley Mosca and illustrated by Daniel Rieley is for grades K-5 is told in rhyme with cartoon illustrations and is 40 pages in length.

For middle-grade readers, there is Who Is Temple Grandin? written by Patricia Brennan DeMuth and illustrated by Robert Squler. This book is from the Who Was series and is 112 pages in length for grades 3-7. The black and white illustrations provide a nice addition to the story. It is written like a narrative of Temple's life from her early struggles with autism to her great achievements as an adult.

Temple Grandin: How the Girl Who Loved Cows Embraced Autism and Changed the World by Sy Montgomery has a foreword written by Temple Grandin.  It is 160 pages long and for grades 5-7 and is written as traditional non-fiction with numerous facts and photographs.

Watch for next week's post where I will interview another author on the autism spectrum - Lyn Miller-Lachmann who has been diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome. Her book, Rogue, is for grades 7-10 and features a main character with Asperger's who identifies with the X-Men character, Rogue, because she has so much trouble fitting in with her peers. She eventually discovers her own unique gifts and this helps her begin to find her place in the world.

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