The Weekly Update

If you are looking for a display idea in March, consider honoring Women's History Month!

Women’s History Month had its origins as a national celebration in 1981 when Congress passed Pub. L. 97-28 which authorized and requested the President to proclaim the week beginning March 7, 1982 as “Women’s History Week.” Throughout the next five years, Congress continued to pass joint resolutions designating a week in March as “Women’s History Week.” In 1987 after being petitioned by the National Women’s History Project, Congress passed Pub. L. 100-9 which designated the month of March 1987 as “Women’s History Month.” Between 1988 and 1994, Congress passed additional resolutions requesting and authorizing the President to proclaim March of each year as Women’s History Month. Since 1995, presidents have issued a series of annual proclamations designating the month of March as “Women’s History Month.” These proclamations celebrate the contributions women have made to the United States and recognize the specific achievements women have made over the course of American history in a variety of fields.

*from womenshistorymonth.gov

Activities to try this month for both you and your students:

• Read great books about women (click the Bitmoji library below for some ideas).
• Explore Swank K-12 Streaming for movies about women in history.
• Create a bulletin board and/or display (virtual and physical) with information and books about women.
• Research a woman from history in one of SDSL's free databases and complete a project with what you learn.

Did you know that only about 20% of computer scientists are women? This number has declined steadily since the 1990s, dropping from 35% to 26% between 1990 and 2013. Educators and parents can help girls maintain their confidence and curiosity in STEAM subjects, though, throughout the years (13-17) when there is the biggest drop in interest. Why might we want to support their interest in STEAM? According to the American Association of University Women, computer science has one of the smallest pay gaps between male and female professionals, with women earning 94% of what men earn. So, consider starting a Coding Club in your library that encourages everyone to get involved in computer science! This can be a great opportunity for all students to learn more about computer science, technology, coding, and so much more!

*Stats from computerscience.org.

For Women's History Month, you can read books about women AND you can read books by women. Gale Books and Authors, one of SDSL's free databases, allows you to do a search by filtering for female authors (and many other options!). Check it out and see what you can find!

Looking for a resource with biographies about women for Women's History Month?

BookFlix and TrueFlix both have some good information and books!

In BookFlix, click on People and Places.

In TrueFlix, click on Biographies.

The Weekly Update is a correspondence from the South Dakota State Library focusing on current topics in school libraries, best practices, resources, professional development, and more.

Email: scottie.bruch@state.sd.us
Website: library.sd.gov/LIB/SLC
Location: 800 Governors Drive, Pierre, SD, USA
Phone: 605-295-3152

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