Reading Books for Autistic Children
There’s a book called Kate has Autism: Special Children Book and this book reassures children that they are not the only ones who have autism. The book mentions traits that may be familiar to children and parents who deal with autism daily, such as their toys being lined up, and a timetable on the wall showing the day’s routine, etc. The book has 16 pages, and its purpose is to support children’s development and help them to achieve their potential.
There’s an excellent book called Different Like Me: My book of autism heroes by Jennifer Elder which speaks about all the famous people in the world with autism who have excelled and achieved, even though they have found it tough to fit in; people like Einstein and Lewis Carroll.
Children’s Books with Autistic Characters
Mark Haddon’s 2003 book, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time is a murder mystery in a detective style, it is written from the point of view of a child with autism. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
There’s also a book by Pat Thomas called I See Things Differently: A First Look at Autism which can be great to help classmates, friends and siblings understand how to support children with autism. The book is 32 pages, and fully illustrated.
Books for Autistic Teenagers
The 2017 book, A Boy Called Bat by Alana K. Arnold, is about a boy on the autistic spectrum, it is for young middle-grade students. It actually comes as an audio-book which is narrated by Patrick Lawlor, it has illustrations by Charles Santoso. The story is about Bat, meeting a baby skunk. The book also covers Bat’s social interactions at home, with divorced parents and his friendships at school.
There’s also the 2014 book The Reason I Jump: one boy’s voice from the silence of autism by Naoki Higashida. This is the No. 1 Sunday Times and internationally bestselling account of life as an autistic child. The book is about Higsashida who was born in Japan, and attended a school for children with special needs. He used an alphabet grid to communicate, and has since written several books, poems, fairy tales and a blog.
Books about Autism for Teachers
There are 2 books here which it would be beneficial for teachers of children with autism to read. The first is an audio-book, Ten Things Every Child with Autism Wishes You Knew it’s an audiobook by Ellen Notbohm. The book is useful to teachers, parents, social workers and clinicians. The book doesn’t want to categorize or define children with autism, instead it’s to illuminate characteristics to help people who come into contact with children with autism. It helps with communication and social processing to help children become self-sufficient and productive.
Another good book for teachers is actually by the same author, it’s 1001 Great Ideas for Teaching and Raising Children with Autism or Apserger’s again by Ellen Notbohn along with Veronica Zysk. This is a significant book that has won a silver medal in the Independent Publishers Book Awards and Learning Magazine’s Teachers Choice Award, there’s actually over 1,800 ideas in the book, with suggestions for children with autism of all ages, and how you can modify things as they get older.
