March is Women’s History Month and we are celebrating in the Fox Hill Learning Commons by studying books by and about female authors. Come visit the Fox Hill Learning Commons this month and check out a book! We have books about many famous women such as Coretta Scott King, J.K. Rowling, Malala Yousafzai, and Amelia Earhart just to name a few. We also have a fantastic collection of books about women who, while they may not be household names, are no less important to our society and culture, and have made incredibly important contributions to our world. Highlighted here are several books about some fascinating women who you may not have heard of before but will want to learn more about now! These books highlight women who helped and are helping science move forward by leaps and bounds! Additionally, all of these books were written and illustrated by women as well!
Ada Lovelace – Poet of Science by Diane Stanley and Jessie Hartland
Ada Lovelace was the daughter of the poet Lord Byron, but her true interests were in science and math. In 1800s Victorian England, she began experiments and building machines that could compute numbers using punchcards. It was a form of the earliest computer programming and Lovelace built machines to add numbers before there was available electricity! As early as the 1840s she was even writing about whether a computer could create artificial intelligence. She was quite famous in her time and was admired for her work by people like Charles Dickens and Charles Darwin. Next time you turn on your iPad, you’ve got Ada Lovelace to thank!
Caroline’s Comets by Emily Arnold McCully
This book tells the story of Caroline Herschel, who in 1786, was the first woman to discover a comet. She was also the first woman in history to be paid for her scientific research. She named the first comet The Ladies Comet and went on to discover seven more! She didn’t just watch the skies though. She built telescopes and learned how to make the glass for the lenses. Not an easy job in 1786! Caroline and her discoveries opened the door for astronomers and astrophysicists that came after her. Check out her story today!
The Women in STEM series.
This fantastic series highlights both legendary women in science, like Jane Goodall and Rachel Carson, and emerging scientists like Majora Carter and Sandra Steingraber. Often girls are discouraged from developing an interest in science and technology. This series is designed to change that by empowering girls through showing them successful women to look up to. Topics in this series cover subjects like computer science, conservation, earth and space science, engineering, medicine, and physical science, so from animals to outer space, there is something for everyone. In another twenty years, I’m expecting to see our Fox Hill scientists being featured in the updated series!
Happy Women’s History Month! Girls can do anything!
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