43 pages • 1 hour read
Temple GrandinThinking in Pictures: My Life With Autism
Nonfiction | Autobiography / Memoir | Adult | Published in 1995A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapters 5-7Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 5 Summary: “The Ways of the World: Developing Autistic Talent”
Grandin turns the spotlight on noteworthy adults who supported her talent. She credits teachers who understood how to draw her out of her daydreams, and a governess that taught a variety of life skills and art, as well as opportunities for cultivating creativity. Through her experiences, Grandin encourages structure, hands-on activities, and consistent and repetitive lessons to promote learning.
Grandin praises multiple mentors. “As I grew older, the people who were of the greatest assistance were always the more creative, unconventional types” (103). A high school science teacher, Mr. Carlock, represents an important quality of a mentor: “The other teachers and professionals at the school wanted to discourage my weird interests and make me more normal, but Mr. Carlock took my interests and used them as motivators for doing schoolwork” (104). Another motivator for learning is the tendency of those with autism to fixate on an interest. Tasks integrated with fixations help engage interest and effort.
Other mentors help Grandin to maneuver college, social skills in the work place, and even issues related to hygiene. These include Tom Rohrer, Jim Uhl, and Emil Winnisky. She details how her own characteristics, such as fixation and connection with 
