The girl who thought in pictures. The story of Dr. Temple Grandin written by Julia Finley Mosca and illustrated by Daniel Rieley.

The girl who thought in pictures. The story of Dr. Temple Grandin written by Julia Finley Mosca and illustrated by Daniel Rieley.

With end pages adorned with cows and a dedication to ‘any child who’s ever felt alone’, we knew this book would be one we would enjoy.

Dr. Temple Grandin, who we now know as a pioneer in the farming industry, spent a lot of time researching how livestock felt as they were moved around, milked, vaccinated cared for. She came up with new ways that livestock could be transported and many of these methods are still being used today.

However, Dr. Temple Grandin also paved the way for society to realise that people with autism can function in society and contribute. Born in 1947, even with the intervention her mother sought for her, it was still difficult for her to get by in the mainstream classroom and with other people who did not understand how she felt and thought.

It wasn’t until she moved to a farm at 14 for a few months that she truly felt her calling.

The collaboration between Julia Finley Mosca and Daniel Rieley is amazing. They tell the story through words and pictures, bringing to life the emotions young Temple felt, how she saw the world and how her mind worked.

Children can see her thought processes and the time she took to solve the problems, they can see the hard work she did in order to achieve her goals and of course some real pictures so children can see what she really looks like!

Having a story that shows the development of a high achieving adult from the time they were small is so important for young children. It shows them that they can be and do anything as long as they put in the hard work and dedication.

This story shows children that being different is great as when we see the world differently, we can come up with ideas that perhaps no one has thought about before.

So, as stated in the final page of the story:

Don’t let doubt hold you back, not for one minute more. STAND TALL, and like Temple, MARCH RIGHT THROUGH THAT DOOR!

 

So what else can you do with this book?

Literacy: Biographies

This is a wonderful story to use as inspiration when writing biographies.

Science

Farming techniques – look beyond what we do now but compare and contrast how farming has changed over the years for the better (or the worse!?)

Testimonials – Jack and Jill Kindergarten, Berowra.

Testimonials - Jack and Jill Kindergarten, Berowra.

Thanks so much Vanessa for coming out and sharing your book “The Bee Detectives” with our children 3-5 years old. The experience allowed them to learn so much more about Bees. We have had our native Bees for several years and had beekeepers out before. Your book took an in-depth look into classification, different ways they live, how they collect pollen and make honey.  It created lots of meaningful conversation with the children; your interactive book reading allowed them to share these ideas with each other. The extended activity afterwards of the magnifiers provided by Vanessa was a great extension to the book. The children were so excited to be their very own Bee detectives and really extended their learning.

Vanessa Ryan-Rendall
2021-05-17T03:33:47+00:00

Testimonials - Jack and Jill Kindergarten, Berowra. Thanks so much Vanessa for coming out and sharing your book “The Bee Detectives” with our children 3-5 years old. The experience allowed them to learn so much more about Bees. We have had our native Bees for several years and had beekeepers out before. Your book took an in-depth look into classification, different ways they live, how they collect pollen and make honey.  It created lots of meaningful conversation with the children; your interactive book reading allowed them to share these ideas with each other. The extended activity afterwards of the magnifiers provided by Vanessa was a great extension to the book. The children were so excited to be their very own Bee detectives and really extended their learning.

Author Visit: Jack and Jill Kindergarten Berowra

Thanks so much Vanessa for coming out and sharing your book “The Bee Detectives” with our children 3-5 years old. The experience allowed them to learn so much more about Bees. We have had our native Bees for several years and had beekeepers out before. Your book took an in-depth look into classification, different ways they live, how they collect pollen and make honey.  It created lots of meaningful conversation with the children; your interactive book reading allowed them to share these ideas with each other. The extended activity afterwards of the magnifiers provided by Vanessa was a great extension to the book. The children were so excited to be their very own Bee detectives and really extended their learning. 

Teacher notes written by Vanessa
2021-04-21T02:54:08+00:00

Thanks so much Vanessa for coming out and sharing your book “The Bee Detectives” with our children 3-5 years old. The experience allowed them to learn so much more about Bees. We have had our native Bees for several years and had beekeepers out before. Your book took an in-depth look into classification, different ways they live, how they collect pollen and make honey.  It created lots of meaningful conversation with the children; your interactive book reading allowed them to share these ideas with each other. The extended activity afterwards of the magnifiers provided by Vanessa was a great extension to the book. The children were so excited to be their very own Bee detectives and really extended their learning. 


Georgie Donaghey

I was impressed with Vanessa’s professionalism in preparing the teacher notes for my picture book, In the Shadow of an Elephant. Her depth of knowledge on the multitude of topics covered was just incredible! She has compiled a 15-page document that will allow Educators and students an opportunity to explore conversations and discover different layers within the book.

Georgie Donaghey

Teacher notes written by Vanessa
2020-08-01T07:42:45+00:00

I was impressed with Vanessa’s professionalism in preparing the teacher notes for my picture book, In the Shadow of an Elephant. Her depth of knowledge on the multitude of topics covered was just incredible! She has compiled a 15-page document that will allow Educators and students an opportunity to explore conversations and discover different layers within the book. Georgie Donaghey