Who was Marie Curie?

Title: Who was Marie Curie?
Author: Megan Stine
Age: 8+

We chanced upon this book at Barnes and Noble while looking for a birthday present for one of D's friends. I am a sucker for anything and everything that has a strong female presence and needless to say I picked up this book the moment it caught my eye. I have been consciously introducing a lot of topics to D that question gender stereotypes because it is something that is very important and close to my heart. I want D to be mentally strong and challenge every stereotype out there, be it at school, at playground and later when she grows up, at her workplace. This book proved to be yet another brilliant one at doing exactly that.

This is a fantastic book that describes the life of Marie Curie from start to end.  Along with learning about how she made one of the most important contributions to science - polonium and radium, we read about the hardships she had to face at every step and how she fought against all of them and won a Nobel Prize at the end. She was forbidden to attend the male-only University of Warsaw and hence enrolled at the Sorbonne in Paris to study Physics and Math. She was the only female scientist to win a Nobel Prize and the first woman in Europe to get a doctorate degree and become a professor.

This is a great little book for kids and especially for little girls. Look forward to reading the other books in the "Who was" series.

Dino Dana

One day, as I walked into the house from work, I hear A running up to me and saying - "Mommy, this video is very fun!". D and A were watching an episode from this Amazon Original Series and I was well on my way to giving them and my husband(duh!) my usual lectures on the harmful effects of screen time on children's brains. Lo and behold, 30 minutes later, I was sitting on the couch with them completely hooked on to the episode!

Dino Dana follows the adventures of a 9 year old girl, Dana Jain who is obsessed with dinosaurs and is able to see real life dinosaurs in her neighborhood with the help of a Dino Field Guide. The Dino Field Guide contains experiments that encourage Dana to explore and interact with the dinosaurs.
Honestly, as a mother of a girl, I am so thankful for this series as this is one of the firsts that has sparked a curiosity and love for science in D. The series has been so educational for all four of us and often times we talk about evolution and pre historic creatures and even quiz each other sometimes!

Here is what my kids love about Dino Dana:

• The hundreds of different kinds of dinosaurs and the experiments Dana performs on them. Surprisingly, A understands so much about them when we didn't really expect him to. Towards the end of all the seasons, he knew pretty much all of their names just by looking at them and each of their associated features/behavior.
• D loves Dana who's become a great role model for her. She's not only learnt a great deal about dinosaurs but some important life lessons like passion, compassion, camaraderie and sportsmanship! 
• She even managed to convince me to get her a sketchbook just like the one Dana has!

Here is what I love about Dino Dana:

• Apart from the educational value of this series, I love the entire cast. No points for guessing who is my favorite of all - Dana. I adore her. The inherent quirkiness, her costume and the things she carries around in her backpack - I could relate to all of them, I used to be and wanted to be very much like her when I was a kid. Dana is just so much fun! Her energy is so contagious.
• The tightly knit Jain family - The way Dana's parents encourage her with the experiments and even look up facts related to them to fuel her passion makes them a role model for me as a parent. And Dana's father who's into crafting! - Do I need to say more? If there is one TV series out there which shatters all gender stereotypes - this has to be it!
• The bond between the step sisters - Dana and Saara is heartwarming. The way they squabble but also make up and are supportive of each other is so nice to watch. 
• The strong female cast - Dana, Saara, Dana's mother and grandmother and none of them talking about boys or men. 

Overall, Dino Dana gets a gold star from me. It is a breath of fresh air amidst all the cliched princess and barbies series out there. Thank you Dana for not being a princess and for taking over our lives and house with your Dino experiments! We love you!