This year, Children’s Book Week runs from 8th – 14th November. As part of this, we have put together a list of children’s books that celebrate neurodiversity as well as telling great stories. Some of you may have already come across these books, but perhaps you will find a new title to enjoy!
This book takes a playful look at the world of autism, and these fun feline friends will strike a chord with all those who are familiar with typical autistic traits, bringing to life common characteristics such as sensory sensitivities, social issues and communication difficulties.’
This book takes an inspiring and affectionate look at Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), featuring images from the canine world. These charming photographs bring to life a variety of traits that will be instantly recognisable to individuals with ADHD, including being restless and excitable, easily distracted and acting on impulse.
Life as a bird can be stressful! From worrying about airplanes, windows, and getting enough worms to eat, it is clear that birds can be anxious beings. Through a light-touch, quizzical depiction of bird behaviour, All Birds Have Anxiety uses colourful images and astute explanations to explore with gentle humour what it means to live with anxiety day-to-day, and how to begin to deal with it.
Full of insights about being awesome and autistic, this book celebrates the strengths of understanding the world in a different way. It looks at all the reasons being you and thinking differently can be totally awesome! It also has tips for managing tricky situations such as meltdowns, sensory differences and anxiety.
This book has been written from the point of view of a child who feels misunderstood. She finds it very difficult to read, which makes school life a struggle. She feels stupid, even though she is clever and creative. She gets told off for messing around, when the truth is she can’t do what is asked of her because she has a specific learning difficulty.
An elephant has a dream, but a crowd of people think it is silly. Will he make his dream come true or listen to the voices telling him to stop? This charmingly illustrated book is about self-esteem and self-belief, to be shared by parents and teachers with children. The story is told in verse and is aimed at 5-7 year olds.
This engaging picture book presents simple, insightful, communicative comic strips of everyday situations between the person with Asperger’s Syndrome (AS) and the Neurotypical (NT) person in their overlapping worlds. The Girl with the Curly Hair writes for anyone who wants to understand a different mind.
This illustrated children’s story explains what it feels like to be a child who is different from other children. Charley seems to keep getting into trouble all the time for doing things wrong. While not labelled in the story, Charley has a specific learning difficulty. In particular, he shows dyspraxic tendencies such as clumsiness.
Working memory issues affect a huge proportion of kids with learning differences like ADHD, dyslexia, dyscalculia, and ASD. These issues can make them feel frustrated or bored, as working memory and intelligence are two very different things. In this book Dr Tracy Packiam Alloway walks you through what working memory is, what it feels like to have problems with your working memory, and what you can do about it.
This rhyming story helps children aged 3-7 face unfamiliar surroundings and experiences and feel less anxious when they are out and about. It offers calming techniques that can help when things don’t go to plan, when you get stuck in a crowd, or when you start to feel tired at the end of a long day. Particularly suited to children with special needs and learning differences, including autism, symbols on each page help pre-readers begin to recognise words. This book can be used to help children think about situations they find tricky and better cope with feelings of anxiety.Share This Post:
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