By Lili Sandler, A Mighty Girl Senior Research Intern

Summer is here! It’s time to get outside and enjoy the long hours of sunshine! There are so many ways to explore the outdoors with the Mighty Girls in your life, and in this post we recommend a few of our favorite outdoor toys, games, and gear to consider for your adventures. If you'd like to discover more options beyond our recommendations below, you can also visit A Mighty Girl's extensive Outdoor Play section to learn about a wide range of excellent toys and games for children and teens.

INDEPENDENT ACTIVE PLAY

When it’s time to graduate from a ride-on to a two-wheeler, instead of using the typical training wheels, many studies — and more importantly, parents — agree that the best way for a child to learn to ride her own bike is by first mastering balancing. If your child can run, she is ready to try her own balance running bike with the Strider PREbike! She’ll be whizzing up and down the sidewalk in no time, and developing both pre-bicycling skills and confidence, too!

For more wheel-based fun, check out this cherry blossom skateboard from Punisher Skateboards. All that time on her balancing bike will come in handy as she weaves her way around obstacles and over bumps. This board is 31 inches long, made of Canadian Maple, and is sure to delight girls 6 and older. Continue reading → Continue reading

By Lili Sandler, A Mighty Girl Senior Research Intern

April has arrived, and with it, baseball and softball season! Both iconic and poetic, few games have captivated the American public year after year with the same level of passion and devotion. While baseball has, unfortunately, remained a male-dominated sport in the professional realm, its steadfast allure has earned it a place in the heart of many a Mighty Girl, young and old alike.

For that reason, we have pulled together a list of some of our favorite books, toys, clothes, and more for the baseball and softball lover in your life. Whether watching her favorite team on TV or at the ballpark, learning about women’s roles in the history of baseball and softball, tossing a ball around in her own backyard, or playing on a real live team, if you know a Mighty Girl with an interest in America’s pastime, there’s sure to be something for her here!

WOMEN IN BASEBALL HISTORY

While girls and women have always been interested in the game of baseball (Vassar College boasts an all-girl’s baseball team as early as 1866, only 9 years after the first national baseball association was formed) their ability to play at a professional level was limited to only 12 seasons. From 1943 - 1954, the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL) was home to more than 600 women athletes who played for 15 different teams throughout the midwestern United States. Many books have been published discussing the history of the AAGPBL, several of which you can find in our baseball and softball section.

For a survey of the AAGPBL and an introduction to some of the players therein, readers 10 and up will enjoy Sue Macy’s A Whole New Ball Game: The Story of the All American Girls Professional Baseball League. In it, Macy addresses many of the societal issues the young women of the time were forced to deal with in order to play ball, as well as the economic issues of running a baseball league.

A well-known and equally-loved movie, Penny Marshall’s A League of Their Own tells the story of the AAGPBL through the eyes of a pair of sisters who play for the Rockford Peaches. Starring Geena Davis, Madonna, Rosie O’Donnell, and Tom Hanks, this film is recommended for ages 9 and up. Continue reading → Continue reading

By Lili Sandler, A Mighty Girl Senior Research Intern

Sojourner Truth and Harriet Tubman. Rosa Parks and Coretta Scott King. We are all familiar with the names of these famous and remarkable women. But what of the lesser known queens of black history? If only we were all as familiar with names such as Claudette Colvin, Wilma Rudolph, Viola Desmond, Effa Manley, or Molly Williams.

February is well known as Black History Month in the United States and Canada. Schools, libraries, organizations, and individuals across the continent take time to honor black Americans and Canadians and their essential role in our nations’ stories throughout the second month of the year.

At A Mighty Girl, our take on this important celebration will be to focus on Black Herstory -- the too-often forgotten female half of black history -- by sharing the stories of both contemporary and historical tales of girls and women of African descent through our Facebook page and blog posts.

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By Lili Sandler, A Mighty Girl Senior Research Intern

If you’ve ever attended a baby shower for the mama-to-be of a baby girl, you’ve probably witnessed the overwhelmingly pink and princess-themed gifts that are, well, showered upon the guest of honor. In this day and age, the majority of women know the sex of their baby before she or he is born, and thus the heavily gendered gift-giving begins before the baby takes her or his first breath.

If you're looking for alternatives to stereotypical baby shower gifts — ones that celebrate the whole girl, even as they recognize and celebrate the joyous fact that she is, indeed, a girl — you'll find them in this selection of baby gifts perfect for any new mom or dad to share with their baby girl!

For more recommendations beyond those included in this post, you'll find many girl-empowering baby toys and gifts in A Mighty Girl's For Baby section. Continue reading → Continue reading

By Lili Sandler, A Mighty Girl Senior Research Intern

Amelia Earhart, the aviation pioneer, equal rights activist, and all around courageous heroine for generations of girls and women was born on this day in 1897. An icon of twentieth century bravery — but also that of mystery — Earhart is most well-known as the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean, and to disappear during her attempted flight around the world.

As a child, Amelia Earhart had little to no interest in airplanes, but filled her days by exploring her neighborhood with her younger sister, reading voraciously, or following and collecting various critters found in her explorations. As a teen, Amelia kept a scrapbook filled with stories of women who were successful in careers dominated by men at the time.

After working as a nurse’s aide during World War I, Earhart went for her first ride in an airplane in 1920. It was that very flight — only ten minutes long, but that was all it took to change her life — that made Amelia Earhart say: “By the time I got two or three hundred feet off the ground, I knew I had to fly.”

On January 3, 1921, Amelia Earhart started flying lessons, and six months later, she owned her very own airplane, nicknamed “The Canary”. It was with that plane that she set a world record for female pilots in 1922, being the first to reach an altitude of 14,000 feet. On May 15, 1923, she became the 16th woman to receive a pilot’s license from the Fédération Aèronatique Internationale.

In April of 1928, Earhart received a phone call asking her if she’d like to be the first woman to fly across the Atlantic Ocean. While she was a passenger and not the the pilot of this June 1928 flight, its news coverage helped to promote her to a level of celebrity, leading to her nicknames of “Lady Lindy” or the “Queen of the Air”. Continue reading → Continue reading

By Lili Sandler, A Mighty Girl Senior Research Intern

Each May the United States celebrates the history and culture of Asians and Pacific Islanders in the U.S. during Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month. The month of May was selected to commemorate the diverse and important roles of Asian-Pacific Americans for two reasons. First, early Japanese immigrants arrived in the United States on May 7, 1843, and second, the transcontinental railroad -- built predominantly by Chinese immigrants -- was completed on May 10, 1869.

Asian-Pacific heritage encompasses a broad and diverse array of cultures from an expansive geographic region. All of the Asian continent, as well as the Pacific islands of Polynesia, Micronesia, and Melanesia are included in this celebration. In honor of the essential role all of these cultures play in modern-day American culture, we’ve selected a dozen books which tell different stories of Asian-Pacific American girls. We’ve organized these selections by the age group for which they’re intended, and hope that you’ll enjoy our choices as much as we do! Continue reading → Continue reading

By Lili Sandler, A Mighty Girl Senior Research Intern

Happy Earth Day! Earth Day is celebrated on April 22nd in almost 200 countries all over the world as a day to support and protect the Earth. Many communities have volunteer opportunities during the entire week -- often referred to as Earth Week -- so that individuals can take part in environmental activities to help care for the Earth.

At A Mighty Girl, our Earth Week focus is on the Mighty Girls and women of the environmental movement. How have girls and women contributed to our global understanding of ecology, recycling, alternative energies, and many other environmental issues? More ways than you can count!

Below you’ll find many of our favorite books and films about real-life environmentalists to share with the eco-kids in your life! And, if you missed the first two blogs in our Earth Day series, you can learn more great fictional stories about the environment starring Mighty Girl in our post on Ten Mighty Girl Books to Inspire Young Environmentalists and about toys to teach children about the environment in our post on post on Eco-Toys, Games, and Gear for Green Girls. Continue reading → Continue reading

By Lili Sandler, A Mighty Girl Senior Research Intern

As we prepare for Earth Day, we’re excited to share a selection of ecologically-focused toys, kits, and gear for the young environmentalist in your life. Whether she’s interested in science, prefers artistic pursuits, enjoys a game or puzzle, or shows her Earth pride by choosing reusable products, we at A Mighty Girl are thrilled to support every girls’ dedication to protecting the Earth. And, for those children who aren't yet sure what it means to 'go green,' there are plenty of toys and games to help them learn about protecting the environment -- all while having fun!

For the first part of our Earth Day series on environmental-themed stories, visit our post on Ten Mighty Girl Books to Inspire Young Environmentalists.

SCIENCE, GONE GREEN!

If you haven’t yet heard of Snap Circuits, you’re in for a treat. Consistently very highly-rated by parents and teachers alike, Snap Circuits are like Legos in that they’re plastic shapes that snap together, but unlike Legos, the goal is to create an electrical circuit or device. With the Snap Circuits Alternative Energy Kit, young electrical engineers can experiment with creating 125 project focused on learning about electricity and alternative energy. Highly recommended for ages 8 and up, Snap Circuits are sure to be a hit!

With the Power House: Green Essentials Edition, young environmentalists can learn all about alternative energy, sustainable living, and replenishing resources by building energy-related models and conducting experiments. Projects include, but are not limited to: a greenhouse, a wind turbine, a hydrometer, a lemon battery, and the power house itself. Recommended for ages 10 and up, this kit also includes a diary with entries from a young group of explorers on an island who are learning to live a sustainable existence. Continue reading → Continue reading

By Lili Sandler, A Mighty Girl Senior Research Intern

Here in the northern hemisphere, tomorrow is the first day of spring! There is something very special about the days getting longer, the birds chirping from the trees, and those first daffodil buds peeking through the cold soil. It’s a reminder that the cold is coming to an end and that days of sunshine and warmth are just around the corner.

Whether you’re celebrating spring’s arrival by going for a walk in the rain, planting seeds for a flower or vegetable garden, or peeking in birds’ nests in search of hatchlings, one thing is certain: there are many wonderful books to share with the young people in your life that celebrate spring and all that comes with it.

EXPLORING YOUR WORLD IN SPRING

The youngest outdoor explorers are sure to love Gerda Muller’s Spring, recommended for ages 2 - 4. In board book format, this book is without text, but the detailed and beautiful illustrations provide endless opportunities for little ones to make up their own stories, or to simply identify all of the wonderful signs of spring shown throughout this book.

In The Listening Walk author Paul Showers and illustrator Aliki reveal all the wonderful things you can hear in the outdoors. From the “zoooom” of a lawnmower, to the “twick twick” of a dog’s nails or the “dop dup, dop dup” of her father’s shoes on the sidewalk, each sound in this story is observed with a relaxed quiet by a happy little girl. Best for ages 3 - 7, this book is sure to inspire other Mighty Girls to take “listening walks” of their own.

Sometimes, spring can be wet. Really, really wet. But this is not always a bad thing! In Who Likes Rain?, by Wong Herbert Lee, a little girl suits up in her rain gear and heads out into the wet spring world in search of the answer to her question: Who likes rain? With lyrical text and delightful illustrations, we join the young heroine as she splashes in puddles and discovers how different plants and animals react to a spring rain. Recommended for ages 2 - 5, you’ll almost feel the rain falling as you read this lovely book. Continue reading → Continue reading

Lola at the Library

By Lili Sandler, A Mighty Girl Senior Research Intern

As a final tribute in our celebration of Black History Month this year, we’re sharing ten of our favorite picture books featuring little Mighty Girls girls of color for the youngest readers. This is only a sampling of what’s available on the site; there are so many fabulous picture books for babies, preschoolers, and beyond with diverse protagonists that we couldn’t possibly highlight them all in one blog post!

It’s never too early to share a love of reading with little ones, and going to the library is one of the best ways to accomplish that goal! With Anna McQuinn’s book, Lola at the Library, your little one will learn to look forward to visiting the library just like Lola does. With bright, vibrant illustrations courtesy of Rosalind Beardshaw, this book is not only a delight to read, but a delight to look at as well.

Another book sure to be a hit with babies and toddlers is Rachel Isadora’s Peekaboo Morning. Every toddler loves to play peekaboo, and they’ll have such fun following the active and adorable protagonist of this story going through her morning, playing peekaboo with her mommy, her daddy, her puppy, and more! This is one of those books your child will want to read again and again. Continue reading → Continue reading