Experts offer tips for parents on building girls' confidence in math.

“Why do smart people enjoy saying that they are bad at math?” laments Petra Bonfert-Taylor, a professor of engineering at Dartmouth College. “Few people would consider proudly announcing that they are bad at writing or reading.” After seeing one too many examples of adults “passing on [mathematical anxiety] like a virus,” Bonfert-Taylor has an important message for math-phobic parents and educators: “We are passing on from generation to generation the phobia for mathematics... [and] as a result, too many of us have lost the ability to examine a real-world problem, translate it into numbers, solve the problem and interpret the solution.” Continue reading → Continue reading

A Mighty Girl's top picks of girl-empowering books for celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month!

"The Latina in me is an ember that blazes forever." — Sonia Sotomayor, first United States Supreme Court Justice of Hispanic heritage

Happy Hispanic Heritage Month! Every year, from September 15 to October 15, Americans celebrate the histories, cultures and contributions of American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America. To recognize this special month, we've put together a selection of our favorite books for children and teens starring Latina Mighty Girls! Continue reading → Continue reading

A Mighty Girl's top picks of spooky and suspenseful books for tweens & teens.

As Halloween approaches, it's fun to read spooky stories that send shivers up and down your spine! While in the past, many thrilling tales of suspense and mystery played up the stereotype of the screaming girl who needs rescuing, there are many great books available today starring Mighty Girls who use their courage, their wits, and their strength to untangle the mystery and face down whatever is lurking in the shadows. Continue reading → Continue reading

Our favorite fun and spooky Mighty Girl stories to bewitch kids of all ages this Halloween!

Halloween is coming fast, and most kids’ eyes gleam at the thought: the costumes, the candy, the fun, and, of course, the chance to enjoy some spooky and fun stories! So that you can stock your bookshelf with some great Mighty Girl books to enjoy this Halloween, we’ve highlighted all of our seasonal favorites in a new blog post. There's a spooky (or not-so-spooky) story for every young Halloween lover in our collection! Continue reading → Continue reading

Our top picks of books for children and teens about the girls and women who fought for workers' rights.

For many children today, Labor Day is just a holiday marking the end of the summer; what they often don't know is that this special day commemorates the history of the struggle for workers' rights — one in which girls and women played important and too often forgotten roles. Held on the first Monday in September in the U.S. and Canada, Labor Day celebrates the contributions of workers and remembers the hardships they endured in their fight for justice. Continue reading → Continue reading

A Mighty Girl's top picks of math toys and games for curious Mighty Girls from toddlers to teens.

Math is all around us! From making a purchase to doubling a recipe to estimating how much longer a trip will take, we use math every day. Yet for many people there's a pervasive myth that you're either "good at math" or "bad at math" — that it's a talent you're born with, not a skill you can grow and develop with practice. And this misperception often has a significant effect on girls, who are prone to believing that their math ability is innate and that girls are less gifted at math than boys. Continue reading → Continue reading

"There is a real need to draw a distinction between behavior that is rude, behavior that is mean and behavior that is characteristic of bullying.”

Signe Whitson, a child and adolescent therapist and author of 8 Keys to End Bullying and The 8 Keys to End Bullying Activity Book for Kids & Tweens, has a timely message for parents and educators: “there is a real need to draw a distinction between behavior that is rude, behavior that is mean and behavior that is characteristic of bullying.” In Psychology Today, she clarifies the way she identifies the difference and asks adults to remember that distinguishing between them allows “teachers, school administrators, police, youth workers, parents and kids all know what to pay attention to and when to intervene.” Continue reading → Continue reading

Katherine Johnson calculated -- by hand -- the flight trajectories for a number of historic missions, including the Apollo 11 flight to the Moon in 1969.

When President Barack Obama awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Katherine Johnson in 2015, few people had even heard her name — but thanks to the smash success of the book Hidden Figures and its movie adaptation, this groundbreaking mathematician has become an inspiration for girls everywhere! Continue reading → Continue reading

A Mighty Girl's top picks of books about the love between girls and their grandparents.

Many Mighty Girls know how special a relationship with grandparents can be: from special treats to family traditions, grandparents can offer a unique family connection to girls of all ages. And while these relationships can't always be physically close — and sometimes face obstacles, from different languages to a different perspective on the world — grandparents play an important role in the lives of many Mighty Girls. Continue reading → Continue reading

A Mighty Girl's top picks of picture books about trailblazing girls and women throughout history.

If you flip through a typical history book, you might think, as historian Gerda Lerner once wrote, that "ostensibly one-half the human race is doing everything significant and the other half doesn’t exist." Far too often, women's contributions have been neglected in history books and school curriculums — fortunately, there are growing numbers of wonderful books being published for young readers about girls and women who made their mark on history. And, there's no better time to share these stories and make sure that the next generation — girls and boys alike — appreciates the important and diverse roles that women have played in history! Continue reading → Continue reading