About Dorothy Nolte
Lived 1924 – 2005 (aged 81). Dorothy Nolte was an American writer, poet and author.
Dorothy Law Nolte (January 12, 1924 – November 6, 2005) was an American writer and family counselor.
Biography Dorothy Law Nolte was born in Los Angeles, California, January 12, 1924.
She wrote a poem on childrearing, "Children Learn What They Live", for a weekly family column for The Torrance Herald in 1954. The poem was widely circulated by readers as well as distributed to millions of new parents by a maker of baby formula. She copyrighted it in 1972, and in 1998 expanded it into a book, co-authored with Rachel Harris, Children Learn What They Live: Parenting to Inspire Values. At the time of Nolte's death, the book had more than 3 million copies in print worldwide and had been translated into 18 languages, according to its publisher, Workman Publishing. Nolte and Harris also collaborated on Teenagers Learn What They Live: Parenting to Inspire Integrity and Independence (Workman Publishing, 2002).
With her second husband, Claude Nolte, Nolte also co-authored the book Wake Up in Bed, Together! A Handbook for Sexual Repatterning (Stein & Day, 1975).
Nolte died of cancer at the age of 81 at her home in Rancho Santa Margarita, California.
Legacy Nolte's family is currently managing her numerous unpublished works. In 2019, they launched the website ChildrenLearnWhatTheyLive.com containing historical information, new poems, her books available for sale, and parenting resource information. Also compiled by her family in 2019, is an eBook entitled, Living With Children: A collection of inspirational poems to guide us along the path of parenting by Dorothy Law Nolte.
Selected works Dorothy Law Nolte PhD, Rachel Harris LCSW, PhD. Children Learn What They Live: Parenting to Inspire Values. Workman Publishing Company, 1998. Dorothy Law Nolte PhD, Rachel Harris LCSW, PhD. Teenagers Learn What They Live: Parenting to Inspire Integrity & Independence. Workman Publishing Company, 2002. Dorothy Law Nolte PhD. Living With Children: A Collection of Inspirational Poems to Guide Us Along the Path of Parenting. eBook Partnerships, 2019.
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Frequently asked questions
Who was Dorothy Nolte?
American writer
When was Dorothy Nolte born?
Dorothy Nolte was born on 12 January 1924 in Los Angeles.
When did Dorothy Nolte die?
Dorothy Nolte died on 6 November 2005.
What was Dorothy Nolte's occupation?
Dorothy Nolte was a writer, poet and author.
What nationality was Dorothy Nolte?
Dorothy Nolte was American.
Sources & further reading
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Dorothy Nolte. https://biography.guide/dorothy-nolte/
MLA: "Dorothy Nolte." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/dorothy-nolte/.
Chicago: "Dorothy Nolte." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/dorothy-nolte/.
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