I love to get kids fired up about true stories, using their imaginations and believing in themselves as future innovators, inventors, and creators. Crayola crayons inventor Edwin Binney's story is a fabulous springboard for exploring nature, color and creativity. I love to draw and make stuff just like Binney, so his story resonated with me. The more I researched, the more I admired how he listened to what people needed and looked to nature for inspiration. I am intrigued by the origins of everyday objects. Here are some books that inspired me when I was writing, and that have that fascinating a-ha moment that spurs on innovation.
We’ve all heard of these two inventors, but I hadn’t heard of the time they met. The title immediately intrigues and hooks in readers – what did Ford and Edison learn from each other? Curiosity was a trait they shared that got them both into heaps of trouble and spurred them on to explore, innovate and create life-changing inventions. But before Henry successfully invented the Ford car, he looked longingly at Edison’s numerous successful inventions. What was the secret of his success? “Keep at it!” – such a simple, empowering tip, one that everyone can find inspiring and encouraging, especially young readers.
* 2017 NSTA Best STEM Book List K-12* * NSTA Outstanding Science Trade Book for Students K-12 * Thomas Edison and Henry Ford started off as insatiably curious tinkerers. That curiosity led them to become inventors--with very different results. As Edison invented hit after commercial hit, gaining fame and fortune, Henry struggled to make a single invention (an affordable car) work. Witnessing Thomas's glorious career from afar, a frustrated Henry wondered about the secret to his success.
This little-known story is a fresh, kid-friendly way to show how Thomas Edison and Henry Ford grew up to be the most famous…
Dr. Jeremy Kepner is head and founder of the MIT Lincoln Laboratory Supercomputing Center (LLSC), and also a Founder of the MIT-Air Force AI Accelerator. Lincoln Laboratory is a 4000-person National Laboratory whose mission is to create defensive technologies to protect our Nation and the freedoms enshrined in the Constitution of the United States. Dr. Kepner is one of five Lincoln Laboratory Fellows, a position that "recognizes the Laboratory's strongest technical talent for outstanding contributions to Laboratory programs over many years." Dr. Kepner is recognized as one of nine MIT Fellows of the Society of Industrial Applied Mathematics (SIAM), for "contributions to interactive parallel computing, matrix-based graph algorithms, green supercomputing, and big data."
What do pandemics, climate change, extreme weather, financial crises, wealth inequality, and social media all have in common? They are all well described by heavy-tail statistics, which you may have never heard about and were almost certainly never taught in your introductory statistics class. The Fundamentals of Heavy Tails is the first text that attempts to close this gap in undergraduate STEM education. This well-written text is a wonderful blend of intuition and rigorous results. The reader will be pleasantly surprised to learn that heavy-tail distributions are neither rare nor mysterious and are a natural result of multiplicative random processes.
Heavy tails -extreme events or values more common than expected -emerge everywhere: the economy, natural events, and social and information networks are just a few examples. Yet after decades of progress, they are still treated as mysterious, surprising, and even controversial, primarily because the necessary mathematical models and statistical methods are not widely known. This book, for the first time, provides a rigorous introduction to heavy-tailed distributions accessible to anyone who knows elementary probability. It tackles and tames the zoo of terminology for models and properties, demystifying topics such as the generalized central limit theorem and regular variation. It tracks…
For more than five years, we’ve been asking ourselves a question: How? How did Mister Rogers help millions of kids feel accepted, special, and safe? Was there a method to what he did? Was there a blueprint he left behind—one that we might continue to learn from today? The answer, of course, is yes. In fact, we’re only scratching the surface of what we can learn from Fred Rogers and the incredible educators, researchers, and authors who are following in his footsteps. We hope you’ll find echoes of the Neighborhood—and the feelings that Fred inspired—in each of the books we’ve listed here.
Anyone in the education world likely hears about STEM all the time.
We know, intuitively, that science and technology matter. But rarely does anyone so beautifully make the case for what great STEM learning can look like.
In What STEM Can Do for Your Classroom, author Jason McKenna provides practical advice; turnkey activities; and helpful, plainspoken research that can help teachers change students’ lives through STEM—just as McKenna’s teachers did for him.
Author and educator Jason McKenna describes how teaching STEM education in his elementary school changed his classroom and his life, improving his students’ and his own approaches to problem solving, collaboration, and general motivation to learn. Offering examples, tried and tested classroom projects, and collaborative strategies, this innovative resource opens up STEM education in K–6 classrooms in exciting and expansive new ways.
K–6 educators will:
Understand the benefits and importance of STEM in elementary schools
Build resiliency and curiosity in students
Discover a variety of classroom instruction strategies to approach STEM assessment
Read vignettes discussing STEM implementation across grade levels…
I'm a British writer, (though I now live and work in California) and a Stanford professor who is passionate about helping everyone know they have endless potential and that math is a subject of creativity, connections, and beautiful ideas. I spend time battling against math elitism, systemic racism, and the other barriers that have stopped women and people of color from going forward in STEM. I am the cofounder of youcubed, a site that inspires millions of educators and their students, with creative mathematics and mindset messages. I've also made a math app, designed to help students feel good about struggling, called Struggly.com. I love to write books that help people develop their mathematical superpowers!
I love all of Eugenia’s books, she is a cool mathematician working to educate the public about real mathematics – a subject of deep explorations and connected ideas.
Eugenia shares the creativity in mathematics, and the importance of pushing against boundaries, including the gender boundaries that often stop girls and women going forward in STEM. Her playful use of mathematical ideas to disrupt the myths of narrow and inequitable mathematics and the dominance of men in the field, is so fascinating, especially for those of us perturbed by the inequities in STEM.
This is a great book for those who would like to love mathematics a little more than they do now.
One of the world’s most creative mathematicians offers a new way to look at math—focusing on questions, not answers
Where do we learn math: From rules in a textbook? From logic and deduction? Not really, according to mathematician Eugenia Cheng: we learn it from human curiosity—most importantly, from asking questions. This may come as a surprise to those who think that math is about finding the one right answer, or those who were told that the “dumb” question they asked just proved they were bad at math. But Cheng shows why people who ask questions like “Why does 1 +…
As a Sr. Mechanical Engineer, STEM advocate, TEDx international speaker and international best-selling author of children's books, I have a deep expertise and passion for inspiring young minds in the world of science, technology, engineering, and math. Through my books, including What Can I Be? STEM Careers from A to Z and the STEM Crew Kids Adventures series, I aim to introduce kids to diverse STEM careers and empower them to pursue their dreams fearlessly. My background in engineering and dedication to youth mentorship drives me to promote STEM education and underrepresented voices. I believe in the power of books to spark curiosity and open doors to endless possibilities for future innovators and problem-solvers.
Andrew Learns about Engineers is a captivating STEM children's book that sparks curiosity in young minds. Through Andrew's imaginative journey, kids discover the importance of engineers in shaping our world.
This easy-to-read book features diverse images of engineering pioneers like Garrett Morgan and Katherine Johnson, fostering inclusivity. It's an ideal resource for introducing kids to the profession and celebrating engineers' contributions. With phonetic assistance and a reader glossary, it's accessible to early readers.
The book's free learning activities and supplemental lesson plan make it a valuable addition to classrooms. Andrew Learns about Engineers is a must-have to inspire children's interest in STEM and help them envision a career in engineering.
For as long as I can remember, I’ve yearned to be part of a BFF-ship, like Anne Shirley-Cuthbert searching for her Diana Barry or Nancy Drew seeking her crewmates Bess and George. As I grew, I realized what I really wanted was to be part of something bigger than myself, working toward a common goal and solving problems bravely and creatively. In any given role, I’ve sought to find the best possible team for the job. Now that I’m a full-time creator, I’ve continued to prioritize people and collaborative practice over any given outcome. Sometimes, we win, sometimes we learn. But the important thing is that we try/learn together.
This book has everything: found family, family scandal and mystery, and sports drama galore!
As someone who always wanted to play softball but was scared of striking out, the bravery of this story on all fronts inspired and thrilled me. Stone balances sports and STEM in such a creative way, showing rather than telling young fans they don’t have to go all in for one column or clique. They can be a little bit of everything and never be “too much” for their true team.
Heather Clark is the author of Red Comet: The Short Life and Blazing Art of Sylvia Plath which was a finalist for the 2021 Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Award in Biography, and a Book of the Year at The Guardian, O the Oprah Magazine, Entertainment Weekly, The Times (London), Lit Hub, Good Morning America Book Club, and elsewhere. She is currently working on a new group biography about the Boston years of Sylvia Plath, Anne Sexton, Adrienne Rich, and Maxine Kumin, under contract with Knopf. She is a professor of Contemporary Poetry at the University of Huddersfield in Yorkshire, England.
Janice P. Nimura digs deep into the diaries and letters of the Blackwell sisters, who were among the very first women in America to be trained as doctors. The book reads like a novel without sacrificing historical accuracy and scholarly rigor. I found myself deeply moved by the sisters’ struggles to be taken seriously as physicians in an entirely male world. Jeered in lecture halls and treated as curiosities off-campus, they maintained a dignified courage and a relentless work ethic. Eventually, they shamed their skeptics and opened the doors for future generations of women doctors. This is a compelling tale told well.
Elizabeth Blackwell believed from an early age that she was destined for a mission beyond the scope of "ordinary" womanhood. Though the world at first recoiled at the notion of a woman studying medicine, her intelligence and intensity ultimately won her the acceptance of the male medical establishment. In 1849, she became the first woman in America to receive an M.D. She was soon joined in her iconic achievement by her younger sister, Emily, who was actually the more brilliant physician.
Exploring the sisters' allies, enemies, and enduring partnership, Janice P. Nimura presents a story of trial and triumph. Together,…
A pathway to a Ph.D. can be brutal–more so when the goal
is a doctorate in STEM domains, especially in what was once a “man’s world.”
Despite these challenges, ground-breaking women weathered the taxing obstacle
course to professional success in research, teaching, the corporate road, and academia. They cleared the way for today’s generations of scientists,
professors, and innovators.
In Lessons Learned, Deborah Shlian collected and shared the
fascinating personal stories of thirty-one of these diverse women who persevered in
difficult and often unwelcoming environments and who serve as inspirations
for all who seek careers or are currently engaged in STEM realms.
Mentors and colleagues of all genders will find the
stories of perseverance in often inequitable situations illuminating and can
take in the wisdom shared by the contributors. As a female MD, having had similar experiences as one of a few female
medical students in the early 1970s, I…
As a Sr. Mechanical Engineer, STEM advocate, TEDx international speaker and international best-selling author of children's books, I have a deep expertise and passion for inspiring young minds in the world of science, technology, engineering, and math. Through my books, including What Can I Be? STEM Careers from A to Z and the STEM Crew Kids Adventures series, I aim to introduce kids to diverse STEM careers and empower them to pursue their dreams fearlessly. My background in engineering and dedication to youth mentorship drives me to promote STEM education and underrepresented voices. I believe in the power of books to spark curiosity and open doors to endless possibilities for future innovators and problem-solvers.
If you're looking for a fantastic book to engage kids in STEM, Lamar and Maya Build a Robot is the perfect pick!
Picture recommending this book to a friend, you'd rave about its celebration of teamwork and robotics. Personally, I loved this book because it beautifully teaches kids about collaboration, problem-solving, and perseverance in a fun and exciting way.
As I read through Lamar and Maya's journey, I learned the importance of working together and following instructions while exploring the world of robotics. It made me feel inspired and reminded me of the joy of friendship and the power of imagination.
This book is an excellent resource for young readers, and they'll be captivated by the story while unknowingly absorbing valuable STEM concepts. Grab this gem for the little ones!
As a Sr. Mechanical Engineer, STEM advocate, TEDx international speaker and international best-selling author of children's books, I have a deep expertise and passion for inspiring young minds in the world of science, technology, engineering, and math. Through my books, including What Can I Be? STEM Careers from A to Z and the STEM Crew Kids Adventures series, I aim to introduce kids to diverse STEM careers and empower them to pursue their dreams fearlessly. My background in engineering and dedication to youth mentorship drives me to promote STEM education and underrepresented voices. I believe in the power of books to spark curiosity and open doors to endless possibilities for future innovators and problem-solvers.
This book is an inspiring and easy-to-read children's book that encourages self-belief and diverse representation in STEM careers.
Through illustrations and stories, it showcases 10 children from different backgrounds, demonstrating that anyone can visualize themselves in a successful STEM path. The book emphasizes collaboration among children from diverse backgrounds for collective success. Its empowering message instills hope and motivation, teaching young readers that possibilities are limitless with self-belief.
Diversed In STEM is a must-read to nurture young minds' passion for STEM and foster an inclusive and bright future in the field.
“Diversed In STEM” Premium is an inspiring and easy to read children’s book. This book contains new STEM coloring pages from each amazing character. Along with affirmations from each character showing their believe in thyself.
This book teaches children about different possible STEM Careers. And with the help of illustrations and stories, your child will learn that no matter what background you are from you can visualize yourself in a particular STEM Career. This book portrays the life of 10 different children with diverse backgrounds and qualities. As well as a teacher who helps teach…
