Vacation Photos: Florida

We spend a long weekend in Florida last week and it was glorious:

Good Company

Good Food

Lots of Sleep

and Super Relaxing

Here are some photos:

Florida trees

Exploring at a beach

The Waves

At the beach

Driftwood Fish

Turtle statue 

At the Kennedy Space Center

Landing on the Moon

First Meal on the Moon

Life magazine: The astronauts...and their wives 

Disney Art

Disney celebrates Women's History Month

So hot - but these frozen drinks helped! 

As did the giant pretzel by the water 

Chocolate Peanut Butter Donuts 

Donut Truck 

All the donuts! 

Book List: Women's History Month

Happy Women's History Month:

Here are just a few of my favorite Children's Nonfiction Books to Get You Started

Books Pictured:

Little Leaders: Vasti Harrison

Count on Us by Amy Nathan

Almost Astronauts by Tanya Lee Stone

Girl Rising by Tanya Lee Stone

Bold Words from Black Women by Tamara Pizzoli (Review coming soon)

Let Me Play by Karen Blumenthal 

Yankee Doodle Gals by Amy Nathan

 

What others do you recommend for ages 7-11?

Picture Book Wednesday: Standing On Her Shoulders

 

A young girl listens to her female relatives as they talk about the women who have come before all of them and who have paved the way. They share ladies from history and the back includes a list and mini biography. 

I love the question at the end of this book. So much history and talks about breaking barriers in this book. I loved the bright illustrations. I loved the message of this book. This one is a fantastic story to read together.

Library Recommendation: A must have picture book for your school and public libraries.

Picture Book Wednesday: Women's History Month

Welcome to Women's History Month.

Here are some picture book biographies I've recently purchased for the library or been sent for review. Each of these books showcase determination, changing the rules, and hard work. They're all excellent additions to your school and public libraries. 

A Jane Austen picture book and how she found her voice. She didn't like the popular works of the time, and used that to her advantage. Her experiences added depth to her voice, fleshing out her characters.  I'm always interested in reading anything about Jane Austen. The illustrations are lovely. This book is charming.

* sent for review

Brenda Berkman wanted a job where she could help people and that was active. When she heard the announcement that the NYFD was finally going to allow women to take the exam, she signed up.  She passed the written test and trained for the physical test. But she failed and so did every other woman. Brenda didn't let her failure stop her; she knew the test wasn't fair. And she spoke up.  It wouldn't be the last time she spoke up either. 

A great picture book about discrimination, determination, and breaking glass ceilings. This book is perfect for elementary school readers. 

* Sent for review

Rosita grew up in Puerto Rico where she loved to sing and dance. But one day, she moved away with her mother leaving the rest of her family behind. They traveled to the United States where Rosita didn't fit in. She struggles to be happy and dancing makes her happy. She dances and she acts her way to Hollywood where she changes her name and plays roles she doesn't like. Until she does.

 A great picture book about dancing, breaking down barriers, and making history. 

Manon played hockey with her brothers but when her Dad needed a goalie for the game, he played his daughter. She fell in love and never looked back. She worked hard. She made leagues change their rules. She made her way to the professional leagues. 

Another great book about sports and breaking barriers and changing the rules. 

My Feminist Journey part 2

When I got to high school, I was still stuck in the fairness idealology. I was also firmly stuck in the girly doesn't equal feminist. I wish I could go back and tell my younger self that you can be both girly and a feminist. They're not exclusive.

I wasn't one of those girls who had a mirror in her locker. Or brushed my hair before lunch. I stopped wearing the horrible make-up of junior high. I didn't wear make-up comfortably for a long time. Even today, the most I ever really wear is mascara and lip gloss.

I made my feelings pretty well known. I was pretty vocal about them; calling boys out when they said something stupid. Believe me, that happened often. I'm sure I had a reputation. But that didn't bother me.

But something happened between high school and college. I became more self conscious. Sure I went to an all women's college. There were no sororities. They had a Women's Collective, a safe place for women. They held Take Back the Night demonstrations, which I participated in. Of course, some jerk would always yell terrible things out the windows at us as we marched through the streets. But that didn't stop me.

What did stop me was professor making terrible jokes in class. I wanted to say something to one professor who joked about rape with the text we were reading. It wasn't funny but for some reason I didn't feel comfortable talking up. I never did tell him my thoughts on his lecture.

Clearly there's a different between calling out boys in high school that you've known forever and calling out a professor. Still, I am disappointed in myself that I didn't share my concerns then.

Being at an all Women's College solidified my ideals, but it also broadened and deepened them.

If you missed the first part of my journey, read about it here.

My Feminist Journey (part 1)

When I was young, this hung in my room and I believed it. I had no reason not too. I actually thought it was Smurfette being a doctor; I didn't realize she was President until just now. 

My parents raised my sister and I to be feminists; We were and we still are. Nothing has changed that, but there were times when I noticed not everyone was a feminist.

I'm sure it happened in elementary school, but I don't have specific examples with the boys in my class. There was one teacher in the fifth grade - a male teacher. He was the first male teacher that I had. He was sexist and I remember being annoyed by him and how he treated boys and girls differently.

Middle school was another story; I began to notice how the boys were acting towards girls and it wasn't good. Somehow they thought we were weaker. I wanted to prove it otherwise. 

I was always a sporty tomboy kid. I played a lot of sports. For a while I was pretty good at them. But there were times when the boys wouldn't let girls play basketball at recess. They would make up stupid rules about who had the next game. That didn't work for me. And it didn't work for some of the other girls either. We took a stand one day and forced the boys to let us play, but we didn't change the feelings.

I became anti-girly. I didn't think you could be both girly and a feminist. I had little time for those who were girly - mostly because I didn't understand it. I didn't need to make my hair pretty for a basketball game - it was just a game. 

Sure, I was happy when in 7th grade, I was allowed to wear make-up. And for a while I did. I had awful shades of lipstick. This was during my very very awkward phase.  But that phase didn't last very long. And it didn't change my views on equality.

I was all about fairness and I wasn't afraid to speak my mind about it, but of course that would change.

Nasty Women's Middle Grade Books

This is by no means an extensive list, only a list of books that have stuck with me and recent reads. But if you're looking for feminist middle grade books (and who isn't?) this list is a good jumping off point.

You might also like my feminist picture books post and my Fierce Female YA books post.