I adore picture books and am always looking at my classroom library to see what type of books are missing. About a month ago, I decided my students would benefit from having book bins dedicated to texts about strong women. I wanted books about women of all races and backgrounds who have done amazing things. I headed over to Amazon to begin my search, and found SO many wonderful books. March is Women's History Month and I am going to share some of my favorite picture books about strong women weekly. The links on my blog are affiliate links which means I'll get a small percent of any sales made through them, which helps me get supplies for my classroom. 😊 Here are some of my favorite books in no particular order!
Pocket Full Of Colors: The Magical World of Mary Blair, Disney Artist Extraordinaire
By: Amy Guglielmo and Jacqueline Tourville
Illustrated by: Brigette Barrager
This book is beautiful! The pages are full of amazing illustrations with bright and vibrant colors. It tells the story of Mary Blair a Disney artist. She had to stand up for herself and stay true to her design style (lots and lots of colors) to achieve her goals. Mary eventually designed the ride, It's A Small World in Orlando! After reading this book with my class we watched a YouTube video of the ride so students could see her creation come to life. I have yet to meet a student who doesn't love Disney and this is the perfect book engage your readers and teach them about an amazing woman!
Hidden Figures: The True Story of Four Black Women and the Space Race
By: Margot Lee Shetterly
Illustrated By: Laura Freeman
This book tells the story of Dorothy Vaughan, Mary Jackson, Katherine Johnson, and Christine Darden -- women who made a huge impact at NASA and did amazing things for our country. This book clearly states the adversity they had to overcome during the time of segregation. These women ultimately helped NASA put men on the moon for the first time. This book is simply beautiful -- words cannot do it justice. The end of the book includes a timeline and short biography for each of the women. I really believe that all students should know the story of these remarkable women who did so much for their country and persisted despite unfair treatment and racism.
If your students are anything like mine, they love STEM challenges and coding! My students were fascinated by Grace Hopper and all she did for the world of coding. This book is beautifully illustrated and is filled with great quotes too. One part of the book my students loved was learning why Grace is the reason we say a computer has a "bug". This is a great book to share with students how their interests can turn into an fantastic career.
Maya Lin: Artist-Architect of Light and Lines
By: Jeanne Walker Harvey
Illustrated By: Dow Phumiruk
This book tells the story of how Maya Lin became the designer of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. The book starts by giving a short background of her life as a child. Both of her parents were artists and Maya decided that she wanted to be an architect. She enetered a contest to design the Vietnam Memorial and won. She was faced with adversity as judges were shocked she had won and when people didn't like her design they challenged it. However, she didn't back down and her design is now a memorial that is visited daily.
Fantastically Great Women Who Changed the World
By: Kate Pankhurst
This book features so many amazing women in one book! It is a great way to get students interested in certain women and guide their library selections! It is a very visual book -- perfect to help young readers understand the content. This book also has a glossary in the back to help students learn and understand new words! Some of the women this book teaches about are: Rosa Parks, Sacagawea, Emmeline Pankhurst, Coco Chanel, Frida Kahlo, and more!
Dolores Huerta: A Hero to Migrant Workers
By: Sarah Warren
Illustrated by: Robert Casilla
This amazing book is about Dolores Huerta. She is a teacher and activist. Dolores noticed that her students came to school hungry and didn't have proper clothing. When she spoke with parents they told her that their bosses didn't pay them enough money to buy clothes and food for their children. The parents picked grapes in unfair conditions. She lead the famers to a strike and this book tells how she did that. It's a book that captivated my students as they were outraged by the conditions the famers were expected to work in. It ends with a timeline full of great information.
