Book Review: She Can STEM

March is Women’s History Month, so it’s a great time for kids and adults alike to learn more about women in history that we should already know about.

Talking about women in STEM is popular because it’s a field that’s only going to continue to grow and girls aren’t always exposed to it as a career option for them, or they don’t see stories about women in STEM they can aspire to.

The book She Can STEM by Liz Lee Heinecke introduces readers to 50 women in science from throughout history to show that women have always been a part of biology, chemistry, ecology and physics.

Each person highlighted is given a two-page spread, with a full-page illustration and a page long biography exploring their role in science, where they lived and how scientists do similar work today. There’s also a STEM related idea for readers to try.

For example the first woman in the book, Tapputi-Belaktikallim, was the manager of a royal household in ancient Mesopotamia, who also made perfume for the royal family, making her the world’s first known chemical engineer. The experiment asks readers to crush flowers to release their essential oils, which would have been done to make ancient perfumes.

Some of these scientists are people you’ve probably heard of, like Marie Curie, Rachel Carson and Rosalind Franklin, but most of them are names you probably don’t know (unless you’re a scientist). To name a few chosen at random:

Mary Agnes Chase, an expert in grasses who traveled the world and documented more than 20,000 species of grass
Ruby Payne Scott, an Australian radar expert whose research on sunspots and radio astronomy helped scientists discover black holes and understand the effect solar storms have on earth
Oceanographer Sylvia Earle, the first woman to lead the National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration, she’s also the person who has walked deepest in the ocean while untethered
Valerie L. Thomas, whose illusion transmitter was the forerunner of today’s 3-D technology
Aparajita Datta, an Indian ecologist whose work showed that hornbill birds were largely responsible for seed dispersion within their habitats, which has led to efforts to protect the birds
Raychelle Burks, a chemist who developed a chemical sensor similar to the fictional tricorders used on Star Trek

While the biographies of each scientist are brief, they give readers a jumping off point for further learning and scientific experimentation of their own. They might also open up your mind to areas of scientific inquiry you didn’t even know existed, like olfactory chemistry, crystallography and the study of termites.

About the book: 112 pages, hardcover, published 2024 by Quarto Books, suggested retail price $19.99.

Learn about Women Artists

Greece is officially the Hellenic Republic, and it’s made up of thousands of islands as well as a mainland on the Mediterranean Sea. It’s considered the birthplace of western civilization, so there’s a lot to learn about this ancient and beautiful land.

Greece Basics

Mainland Greece is on the Balkan peninsula and is bordered by Albania, North Macedonia, Bulgaria, and Turkey, as well as the Ionian and Aegean seas. It is home to about 10 million people, with the capital, Athens, being the largest city. About two thirds of Greeks live in urban areas.

The total area is about 50,949 square miles, or 131,957 square kilometers. The official language is Greek and the vast majority of people are Greek Orthodox.

It has a parliamentary republic form of government, with a president, prime minister and parliament.

The name comes from Graeci, one of the first ancient Greek tribes to settle in what’s now southern Italy.

The land of modern day Greece was largely united in the second century, but it was broken up after the Crusades in 1204. It was largely under control of the Ottoman empire from the mid-15th century, and gained independence in 1830. It has had dictators both royal and military, was occupied during World War II and began its transition to democracy in 1974.

It is considered the birthplace of democracy as well as western philosophy, history, and many major scientific and mathematical discoveries, as well as the home of the original Olympic Games.

Modern day Greece is considered to have a high income economy with shipping and tourism as major sectors. It has one of the lowest fertility rates in the world and its median age is 44.2 years, which is the seventh highest in the world.

Greek National Symbols

The Greek flag has alternating stripes of blue and white, with a white cross on a blue background at the top left corner. The cross is s symbol of Christianity, and while the number of stripes (nine) doesn’t have an official meaning, there are also nine geographical regions in Greece. This flag has been in use since 1978, and the coat of arms features the same white cross on a blue background, surrounded by laurel branches.

The national anthem is known as “Hymn to Liberty” or “Hymn to Freedom” and is part of a poem written in 1823 first set to music in 1828. It became the national anthem in 1864 and is also the national anthem of Cyprus.

There are lots of symbols and people from mythology that are considered national symbols, including the Phoenix and Hellas, the ancient personification of Greece. The little owl, Athene noctua, is also considered a national symbol as it was a companion of the goddesses Athena and Minerva.

Learning about Greece for Kids

Of course there are tons of resources for learning about ancient Greece for kids. To name just a few:

Design your own Greek vase with this coloring page from Kids Puzzles and Games.
Get more Ancient Greece coloring pages with facts from Kindergarten Worksheets and Games. They also have more activity sheets and fun facts here.
Most of the resources at Teachers Pay Teachers have to do with Ancient Greece.
Kids Activities Blog has fun facts and printable worksheets.
Grab an Ancient Greece mini book printable from 123 Homeschool 4 Me. They also have other worksheets and notebooking pages for older kids.
Check out some Greek myths for kids from DLTK Kids. There’s also some great stories and resources at the BBC.

Darcy Miller Designs has a pretty laurel wreath template you can download, or draw and cut out your own leaves to make laurel crowns while you learn the history of the Olympics from National Geographic Kids.

Check out a virtual tour of Athens from Rick Steves, or check out the city via drone tour. I also found a cool 3D reconstruction of ancient Athens if you want to compare it to the present day. There are of course a ton of other places you can check out virtually in the country.

Check out some traditional Greek music and dance, learn to write your name in Greek, and learn a bit about Greek philosophy for kids.

There are lots of great Greek foods to try, and if you’d like to make some at home, Budget Bytes has a great collection. And don’t forget the baklava; you can find a recipe for that at Natasha’s Kitchen.

Have you read?

Greece Basics

Greek National Symbols

Learning about Greece for Kids

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