• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Menu
  • Science Experiments For Kids
  • Science Fair Projects
  • Preschool Science
  • Science Facts
  • Printable Experiments
  • Science Sparks Books
  • Science Questions
  • Contact Me
Science Experiments for Kids
Menu
  • STEM Challenges
  • Early Years Science
    • Preschool Science
    • Sensory and Messy Play
    • Understanding of the World
    • Pirate Science Experiments
  • Primary Science
    • Baking Soda Experiments
    • Candy Experiments
    • Biology
    • Climate Change for Kids
    • Coding for Kids
    • Chemistry
    • Electricity for Kids
    • Magic Science Experiments
    • Harry Potter Experiments
    • Human Body Science
    • Air Pressure Experiments
    • Life Cycles
    • LEGO Science Experiments
    • Kitchen Science
    • Famous Scientists
    • Forces and Motion
    • Science Sparks Snippets
    • Key Stage 1 Science
      • Animals
      • Everyday Materials
      • Plants
      • Coding Activities
      • Humans and Health
      • Fine Motor skills
      • Science and Literacy
    • Key Stage 2 Science
      • Animals, Including Humans
      • Electricity
      • Light
      • Plants
      • Materials and their Properties
  • Key Stage 3
  • Holiday Science
    • Christmas Science
    • Halloween Science
    • Easter Science
  • Storybook Themed Science Experiments
  • Wonderful Women in STEM
menu icon
go to homepage
search icon
Homepage link
  • FREE Experiments
  • Science for Kids
    • Kitchen Science
    • Climate Change
    • Egg Experiments
    • Fairy Tale Science
    • Edible Science
    • Human Health
    • Chemistry
    • Inspirational Women
    • Forces and Motion
  • Science Fair Projects
  • STEM Challenges
  • Science Sparks Books
  • Contact Science Sparks
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • ×

    Home » Inspirational Women in Science » Wonderful Women in STEM

    Wonderful Women in STEM

    January 26, 2022 By Emma Vanstone Leave a Comment

    Inspirational Women in Science

    History is full of the incredible female scientists. Not only have they made groundbreaking discoveries but have also had to fight against gender stereotypes, racial discrimination and the social expectations of their time. Can you imagine being told you couldn’t be educated past a certain age because of your gender? Or that because you were a woman you should be a servant not a scientist?

    Elizabeth Blackwell ( born in 1821 ) applied to 29 medical schools. They all turned her down because she was a woman.

    In 1903 Marie Curie almost didn’t receive the Nobel Prize for her work because of her gender.

    Katherine Johnson’s family moved house so she could attend high school as her hometown didn’t allow African American children to be educated past a certain age.

    These wonderful, trailblazing women have transformed people’s ideas of what women can achieve if they are given the same opportunities as men, helping generations of girls after them to achieve their own dreams!

    Worldwide there’s still a huge amount of work to do before we achieve gender equality. Even in the richer countries of the world there’s a large gap between the number of men and women working in STEM fields.

    According to UNICEF only 49% of countries in the world have achieved gender parity in primary education, a figure which drops to 24% by upper secondary education.

    collage of a fact file about women in STEM

    I’ve created a series of fact files to celebrate the life and work of some fantastic female scientists. They lived in different times and faced different difficulties and prejudices but all have made a massive contribution to our understanding of science today.

    Inspirational Female Scientists

    I’m going to keep adding to this collection of women in STEM fact files as often as I can, so do keep popping back!

    Each fact file is an A4 sheet with a brief history of the life of the person and a mini science investigation related to their work.

    Fact File about Katherine Johnson and her achievements
    Fact file about Rosalind Franklin
    Fact file about Ada Lovelace and her inspirational work.
    Marie Curie Fact File
    Marie Curie
    Fact file about Marie Daly

    Find out more – Women in STEM

    Articles to read

    This Women in STEM fields article on Wikipedia is a great overview of current data and statistics for women working in STEM and the difficulties they face.

    Read about the changing roles of women in technology with STEM Women.

    Films to watch

    Hidden Figures

    Get ready to be inspired by the work of Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan and Mary Jackson as they play a vital role in the launch of John Glenn into orbit around the Earth.

    Hidden Figures is the most incredible story of three driven women battling challenges from all angles.

    Radioactive

    Radioactive tells the story of the Marie Curie. Her bravery and brilliance during difficult times are nothing short of incredible.

    Outbreak

    This one is fictional but my daughter has been massively inspired by Rene Russo’s character Dr. Roberta Keogh who works as a scientist for the CDC. Outbreak is a great movie for anyone interested in viruses and how they spread. It is a little gory in places though, so be mindful of the age rating.

    Books about Women in STEM

    There are many, many wonderful books about inspirational women scientists. Some of favourites are below. If you have any recommendations please let me know.

    Last Updated on May 21, 2022 by Emma Vanstone

    « Frog Rescue – Ice Excavation
    Baking Soda Rocket »

    Safety Notice

    Science Sparks ( Wild Sparks Enterprises Ltd ) are not liable for the actions of activity of any person who uses the information in this resource or in any of the suggested further resources. Science Sparks assume no liability with regard to injuries or damage to property that may occur as a result of using the information and carrying out the practical activities contained in this resource or in any of the suggested further resources.

    These activities are designed to be carried out by children working with a parent, guardian or other appropriate adult. The adult involved is fully responsible for ensuring that the activities are carried out safely.

    Reader Interactions

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Primary Sidebar

    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Twitter
    • YouTube

    What are you looking for?

    JOIN US!

    Get new experiments straight into your inbox every week!!

    Thank you!

    You have successfully joined our subscriber list.

    .

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    Science Sparks - FREE science experiments for kids

    Newsletter

    • Sign Up! for emails and updates

    Contact

    • Contact
    • Privacy Policy
    • Services
    • Media Kit
    • FAQ

    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Copyright © 2022 Science Sparks - Wild Sparks Enterprises Ltd