Do you know which president got the ball rolling for National Women’s History Month? It was Jimmy Carter who did (although it started as only one week) by saying that while both men and women worked together to build America, “Too often the women were unsung and sometimes their contributions went unnoticed.” President Carter called on “libraries, schools and community organizations” to focus their observances on leaders who struggled for equality.
So in that spirit, I’m sharing several interesting resources to find material for your activities in March.
Amelia Bloomer resources:
When I start planning programs and book talks for Women’s History Month, the first thing I think about is The Amelia Bloomer Project. Born in 1818, she was a women’s rights advocate, a writer and she even invented “bloomers” or loose pants that were controversial in their day. A project of the ALA’s Feminist Task Force of the Social Responsibilities Round Table, this group creates an annual booklist of the best feminist books for young readers, ages birth through 18.
This website if filled with information for celebrating women, creating amazing book lists and sharing educational ideas. I review their suggested criteria and questions with the books I’m planning on using for book talks and programs. For example, when considering a book for their list they ask, “Do females blaze new trails for themselves and those who follow them?”
Lists from 2002-2016 are available online. They are organized from Early Readers-Fiction, Early Readers Non-Fiction, Middle Grade-Fiction, Middle Grade-Non-Fiction, Young Adult-Fiction to Young Adult-Non-Fiction.
More Amelia Bloomer resources:
Have you been to the Girl Museum online?
“Girl Museum is the first and only museum in the world dedicated to celebrating girls and girlhood. Established in March 2009, we believe girls are the key to a brighter, better future and that girls deserve to have a museum of their own.”
Explore past blog posts, book lists, and resources which include “How to Handle Bullying” and ”empower girls” organizations. My favorite section is under “Learn” where the reader can join a girl’s book club, take a girl quiz and use amazing educational resources.
ALSC Notable Children’s Books: The 2016 ALSC Notable Children’s Books Committee discussed over 200 books at ALA Midwinter in Boston and ALA Annual in San Francisco. The nominee list included many women in history children’s books:
• Queen of the Diamond: The Lizzie Murphy Story by Emily Arnold McCully
• One Plastic Bag: Isatou Ceesay and The Recycling Women of the Gambia by Miranda Paul
• Swing Sisters: The Story of the International Sweethearts of Rhythm by Karen Deans
• The House That Jane Built: A Story About Jane Addams by Tanya Lee Stone
• My Name is Truth: The Life of Sojourner Truth by Ann Turner
• Rad American Women A-Z: Rebels, Trailblazers, and Visionaries who Shaped Our History…and Our Future! by Kate Schatz
The ALSC Notable Children’s Books complete list.
More Women’s History Month Links:
- KidLit Celebrates Women’s History Month
- TIME for Kids: Women’s History Month
- Scholastic: Women’s History Month
- National Education Association: Women’s History Month for the classroom
- ALSC Great Websites for Kids: Women
My favorite non-fiction books before 2015:
• Amelia and Eleanor Go For a Ride by Pam Munoz Ryan
• My Name is Georgia: A Portrait by Jeanette Winter
• Viva Frida by Yuyi Morales
• Temple Grandin: How the Girl Who Loved Cows Embraced Autism and Changed the World by Sy Montgomery
• When Marian Sang: The True Recital of Marian Anderson by Pam Munoz Rya
Amazing Women in History riffle book list.
What are your favorite books to talk about during Women’s History Month? Please share in the comments below.
Paige Bentley-Flannery is a Community Librarian at Deschutes Public Library. For over fifteen years–from Seattle Art Museum to the New York Public Library to the Deschutes Public Library-Paige’s passion and creative style for art, poetry and literature have been combined with instructing, planning, and providing information. Paige is currently serving on the ALSC Notable Children’s Book Committee, 2015 – 2017. She is a former Chair of the ALSC Digital Content Task Force and member of the ALSC Great Websites Committee.