Rosie Reads Dinosaur Lady

Written by Linda Skeers and illustrated by Marta Alvarez Miguens, Dinosaur Lady: The Daring Discoveries of Mary Anning, the First Paleontologist (published in 2020), explores Anning’s remarkable life. She scoured the seaside cliffs of her coastal home in England during the early 1800s, discovering fossils of the mysterious and “monstrous” creatures that we now know as dinosaurs!

When you’re finished reading Dinosaur Lady, ask kids these comprehension questions:

• What was the name of the first dinosaur that Anning discovered? What does its name mean?
• What are bezoars? Where did Anning discover them?
• Why wasn’t Anning allowed to join the Geological Society of London, or teach university classes, or attend lectures?

It took a very long time for scholars to give Anning credit for her achievements, and unfortunately, this is true for many women in STEM. For our Rosie Reads activity, ask kids to help change this! Assign them the task of researching their favorite branch of science or engineering – aerospace, zoology, mathematics, etc. – and read about its history. Have them note if any women were mentioned. If yes, who were they and what did they achieve? If no, have kids do some more research and see if they can discover a figure like Mary Anning, who revolutionized her field but was not recognized for her contributions until recently.