Books To Explain Autism To A Child

بِسْمِ ٱللَّٰهِ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ

As well as being a blogger, I am also a children’s book author. Alhamdulilah (All praise to Allah), I published my first book in 2020 which was called Rio followed by Rio Goes To The Zoo.

Rio is a fun and exciting rhyme book about a young boy of African descent who is on the autism spectrum. The book follows the journey of Rio and his father and the challenges Rio may face on a daily basis.

Rio & Autism Awareness

Autism is a lifelong developmental disability that affects how people communicate and interact with the world. According to the CDC, about 1 in 44 children in the world have been identified with Autism Spectrum Disorder (which I am sure that you will agree, is a surprisingly high number)- yet despite the growing number, many children are not familiar with Autism or they are ununiformed to recognise what exactly Autism is.

Having worked with children with autism for over five years in a number of different schools and also having family members that have been diagnosed with Autism, I felt that there were not many resources to explain to children what Autism is. Many of our children will have classmates, siblings, family members with autism and if not, then they will definitely cross paths with children on the Autism spectrum at some point. It is our responsibility as parents to equip children with understanding, acceptance and appreciation of all our differences.

Autism can be a complex concept for children to grasp as the spectrum is extremely wide and children with autism can present different behaviours. The Rio books are a great tool to help you to introduce the concept of Autism to your child. Rio is made up of simple rhymes as well as clear and eye-catching 2D images that children will enjoy. Most importantly children will learn just how brilliant and wonderful the mind of a child with autism is and that we are ALL different and that is perfectly okay.

Rio & Ethnic Diversity

Our earliest perceptions of the world and its cultures are shaped by what and who we see around us. The best way for our children to see a true reflection of our society is in the books that they read.
Growing up in the 90s, I do not remember reading books with characters that looked like or reflected me in either race or religion. All of the main characters in books that I read were predominantly white with the possible exception of the odd character here and there. Though the Rio books don’t focus on Rio’s race, it was very important for me to write books that reflected a wider representation of society and had characters that are diverse.

The Rio Book Series are the best books to read with your child if you are looking to engage and educate them in neuro-diversity in a sensitive and respectful manner.
The books have a catchy rhyme and rhythm as we as 2D, eye-catching images that are not overly stimulating or distracting so children can really focus on the important lessons the book conveys about Autism.

Rio and Rio Goes To The Zoo are both now available for purchase.