Dr. Temple Grandin recently paid a visit to Ivy Street School. Dr. Grandin is a scientist, animal behavior specialist, and a prominent voice in activism and advocacy for the autistic community. She is now a friend of Ivy Street School and our Skills for Life division.
On Thursday, March 17, Dr. Grandin spoke at Ivy Street’s Suzanne and John Pratt Lecture at WBUR CitySpace. Speaking on “Helping Different Kinds of Minds Solve Problems,” Dr. Grandin shared insights from her lived experience with autism and advice for parents and caregivers of autistic youth. She discussed four different types of thinkers, explaining how parents and educators can foster success by adapting and adjusting learning on an individualized basis. She pushed listeners to move away from a one-size-fits-all approach and shared specific strategies to effectively work with different minds.
On Friday, March 18, Dr. Grandin visited Ivy Street School. During her visit, Grandin toured Ivy Street School, conversed with students, staff, and family members, and hosted a discussion of her most recent book Navigating Autism: 9 Mindsets for Helping Kids on the Spectrum.
We thank the Pratt family and donors to The Suzanne & John Pratt Lecture Series for honoring John’s vision and legacy while helping us improve our work in serving neurodivergent youth. Thank you to Dr. Beverly Brown and our friends at Boston University for their continued partnership and support for last week’s events. We are deeply grateful to Dr. Grandin and the Ivy Street community for their commitment to life-long learning, thinking big, and helping our students thrive.
In case you missed it or would like to see the event again, you can view a recording of Dr. Grandin’s lecture here: