Make 3D art featuring Dr. Temple Grandin

Quick. Name a female scientist!

How did you do? A few weeks ago I was posed this question and I thought to myself, “You know, She Loves Science should be helping you to answer that question.”  Then I decided what better way for our kids to learn about female scientists than by reading amazing books about them and doing a fun craft afterward.

Our first female scientist I want to introduce you to is… Dr. Temple Grandin

This book introduces children to a very special scientist named Temple Grandin. It tells her story in a rhyme discussing how she was a unique girl, spoke very little, and processed information through pictures. She was later diagnosed with autism. Her life began to change when she went to her aunt’s farm and observed farm animals. She could relate to these animals in ways other people could not. She also found a very special mentor at school. Temple ended up earning her doctorate degree, giving public speeches, and became a famous advocate for animal science.

The amazing lesson from the book? Learning and thinking differently from others will set you apart and might just change the world.  You can find the book here.

Making a 3D picture about Temple Grandin:

After we read this book I asked my 7 year old what would be a good craft to go along with it. She said she wanted to make a 3D picture. I thought it was a great idea since it IS about a girl who thought in pictures. And a bonus is that 3D crafts, like origami, can help strengthen her spatial skills – a skill vital in being successful in a STEM career. You can read my post here on creatively growing spatial skills.

What you need:  Color construction paper, 8.5″X 11″ white card stock, crayons, permanent marker, scissors, and tape

What you do:

• Fold the white card stock in half
• Mark dotted lines for your stands. For this card I chose 5 stands
• Cut along the dotted lines
• Open the card stock, push the stands out, and crease them to make stands for the images

• Draw and color Temple Grandin’s face and “thought” lines

• Fold in a pieces of construction paper in half and tape it to the white cardstock
• Make shapes, color, cut out, and tape to the stands to make it 3D

What’s the science: Strong spatial skills are so important for kids interested in science and engineering careers.  Imagine how architects need to visualize a building to design, surgeons need to visualize operating around overlapping organs, and engineers need to visualize a solution to an unseen problem.

Temple Grandin was an advocate for cows. My daughter loves everything about lambs. Perhaps someday she will be inspired by this girl who pursued science – Temple Grandin!

Disclaimer: This book was given to me by the publisher to give my honest review and feedback.