Grade 
Print this resourceAda Lovelace is recognized as the first computer programmer and we couldn’t be more excited to share her story! Tanya Lee Stone’s Who Says Women Can’t Be Computer Programmers?: The Story of Ada Lovelace, was whimsically illustrated by Majorie Priceman and published in 2018. The book chronicles Ada’s life and her unique ability to unite math and imagination, which ultimately led her to see the possibilities of computing well before others did. Born in London in 1815, she wrote the world’s first computer program – in the notes to an academic paper by another author no less! – in 1842-43.
When you’re finished reading Who Says Women Can’t Be Computer Programmers?, ask kids these comprehension questions:
- Why did Ada’s mother encourage her early education in math?
- What did Ada design and dream up using her imagination?
For our Rosie Reads activity, ask kids to think about how they’d like to unite math and imagination. Would they come up with a a new way to do math (or a new kind of math)? Would they invent and design things like Ada did? Encourage them to get creative, and document their ideas – they could write about it, draw it, design a presentation for it – the possibilities are endless!
