Our+Picks

The Educating Peers page provides a great outline of children's literature on ASD. Throughout our research, we have also discovered and read some very thought provoking and informative adult literature. This page is dedicated the adult literature we consider "must reads" for future teachers!



Grandin, T. (1996). //**Emergence: Labelled Autistic**.// Warner Books.

This book is very inspiring and tells the story of a courageous woman who beat the odds and became a high functioning person with autism. Her story allows us to see autistm from the "inside" and demonstrates the powerful effect a loving and involved teacher can make on another's life and future.



Grandin, T. (1996). //**Thinking in Pictures: and Other Reports from My Life with Autism**.// Reed Business Information.

This is an easy to read, informative book. It provides the reader with a greater understanding of the wide spectrum of autism and provides guidance of what to do with someone with autism. Grandin has the ability to understand both the worlds of non-autistics and autistics. Through the books, she explains how confusing the world is to someone with autism, in terms of relationships, social codes, and our reliance on verbal thinking. She brings forth concrete ways in which people with autistism can be helped and integrated into society. Here is a link to the [|first chapter]of //Thinking in Pictures//

Kluth, P. (2003) //**"Your Going to Love This Kid!"**// Brooks Publishing Company

This book provides strategies and concepts to aid educators in creating an inclusive environment for students with autism in both primary and secondary schools, covering such topics as collaboration, lesson plans, supports, and community. The chapters are designed to highlight how any student with autism spectrum disorders can be supported to participate in academic instruction, school routines, and social activities. The book uses examples of how to plan lessons, engineer a safe and comfortable classroom, provide communication opportunities, and understand and support challenging behaviors. The author uses her own classroom and school observations and her experiences as an elementary and high school educator to explore methods of adapting the school environment to be comfortable and appropriate for students with autism and autism spectrum disorders

Here is the link to [|Paula Kluth's website]full of great information and inspiration.

Kluth, P. (2009) **The Autism Checklist: A Practical Refernce for Parents and Teachers** Jossey-Bass

this useful, accessible guide offers teachers and parents a better understanding of children on the autism spectrum and provides them with the kinds of support and intervention they need. Written in an easy-to-read checklist format, the book is filled with up-to-date research, practical advice, and helpful resources on a wide range of topics. The book covers five areas: basic information on autism, checklists for parents, checklists for teachers, effective support strategies, and helpful resources.



Picoult, J. (2010). **H**//**ouse Rules**.// New York. Atria Books: Washington Square Press.

Synopsis (from Picoult's [|site]): "HOUSE RULES is about Jacob Hunt, a teenage boy with Asperger’s Syndrome. He’s hopeless at reading social cues or expressing himself well to others, and like many kids with AS, Jacob has a special focus on one subject – in his case, forensic analysis. He’s always showing up at crime scenes, thanks to the police scanner he keeps in his room, and telling the cops what they need to do…and he’s usually right. But then one day his tutor is found dead, and the police come to question him. All of the hallmark behaviors of Asperger’s – not looking someone in the eye, stimulatory tics and twitches, inappropriate affect – can look a heck of a lot like guilt to law enforcement personnel -- and suddenly, Jacob finds himself accused of murder. HOUSE RULES looks at what it means to be different in our society, how autism affects a family, and how our legal system works well for people who communicate a certain way – but lousy for those who don’t."

Check out Picout's podcast about //House Rules:// media type="youtube" key="8OIn4kz_Fo0" height="315" width="560"