As you parent your girls to chase their dreams, fuel their creativity and inspiration with these picture books. You’ll read about ground-breaking women in the fields of math, science, literature, art, and more. What they all have in common is a drive to succeed and a determination to never give up on their dreams.
Alabama Spitfire: The Story of Harper Lee and To Kill a Mockingbird by Bethany Hegedus
As a young girl growing up in Monroeville, Alabama, Nelle Harper Lee didn’t quite fit in. A tomboy who preferred overalls to dresses and climbing trees to dolls and tea parties, Nelle dreamed of becoming a writer. This book traces her journey to becoming a renowned author whose unusual childhood provided the inspiration for one of the most well-known books of all time.
Hidden Figures: The True Story of Four Black Women and the Space Race by Margot Lee Shetterly
This book follows four mathematicians who overcame gender and racial barriers to work for NASA. They contributed to some of NASA’s finest moments, providing the calculations that allowed America’s first space travels. These women changed the world with their genius and their persistence.
Jane Goodall: Little People, Big Dreams by Maria Isabella Sanchez Vegara
Perfect for your littlest animal lover, this book traces the life of Jane Goodall from the stuffed chimpanzee that inspired her love of animals to her work as a ground-breaking ecologist. The “Little People, Big Dreams” series provides a simple, easy to read introductions to female artists, authors, scientists of history that spark curiosity to learn more.
Ordinary, Extraordinary Jane Austen: The Story of Six Novels, Three Notebooks, a Writing Box, and One Clever Girl by Deborah Hopkinson
Playful water-color drawings and relatable storytelling invite girls into the world of Jane Austen. A shy, simple girl with a gift for noticing people, Jane’s ordinary English childhood provided the springboard to extraordinary achievement as a female writer. With a timeline of her life and quotes from her famous novels, your young bibliophiles will be inspired to pursue creative greatness like Jane.
Maya Lin: Artist-Architect of Light and Lines by Jeanne Walker Harvey
The fascinating story of the artist who designed the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, this beautiful picture book follows Maya’s life from her childhood observing wild animals and crafting houses from scrap paper to her career as a designer and her commitment to her artistic vision in the face of criticism.
Nothing Stopped Sophie: The Story of Unshakable Mathematician Sophie Germain by Cheryl Bardoe
In the late 1700s Sophie could not stop thinking about mathematics. Everyone around her tried to stop her. Her parents took away her candles so she couldn’t do math. Her professors shut her down. But Sophie didn’t give up. Your girls are sure to love this picture book biography of a young woman who took on mathematical conundrums her male counterparts said would never be solved!
Who Says Women Can’t Be Computer Programmers?: The Story of Ada Lovelace by Tanya Lee Stone
This whimsical picture book biography celebrates a girl with a wild imagination. Ada envisioned the computer 100 years before its invention. Considered to be the first computer programmer, she used her creativity and inventive thinking to propel the fields of science and engineering to new places.
The Flying Girl: How Ada Acosta Learned to Soar by Margarita Engle
As a young American woman visiting Paris at the beginning of the 20th century, Aida looked up one day and saw a flying airship. That started her on her quest to pilot herself. No woman or girl had ever flown before, but Aida didn’t let that stop her.
Aim for the Skies: Jerrie Mock and Joan Merriam Smith’s Race to Complete Amelia Earhart’s Quest by Aimee Bissonette
As young girls, both Jerrie and Joan were captivated by the story of Amelia Earhart. When the two women independently planned to circle the globe following Amelia’s exact route, unwittingly choosing identical departure dates, an air race was born that made history.
Trailblazer: The Story of Ballerina Raven Wilkinson by Leda Schubert
This elegant picture book tells the tale of Raven Wilkinson, the first African-American ballerina to dance with a major American touring troupe. From the moment her parents took her to her first ballet at age 5, all Raven wanted to do was dance. Breaking barriers with perseverance and grace, Raven inspired a generation of young ballerinas including Misty Copeland who penned the introduction.
We hope you enjoy these great titles! For more ideas on how to enrich your homeschooling with picture books, check out our Learning Through Picture Books track.