Celebrate Women's History Month - Women in "Her"story!

Statue of Sybil Ludington
Carmel, New York
Creative Commons Attribution

I want to do it because I want to do it. Women must try to do things as men have tried. When they fail their failure must be but a challenge to others." -  Amelia Earhart

March is Women’s History Month. If you are searching for some exceptional stories of extraordinary women to portray, research for your stories, or lesson plans for the classroom look no further! I hope these sites will serve you well not only in March but throughout the year. First, a few stories...

Molly Whuppie
Collected by Joseph Jacobs

Once upon a time there was a man and a wife had too many children, and they could not get meat for them, so they took the three youngest and left them in a wood. They travelled and travelled and could see never a house. It began to be dark, and they were hungry. At last they saw a light and made for it; it turned out to be a house. They knocked at the door, and a woman came to it, who said: “What do you want?” They said: “Please let us in and give us something to eat.” The woman said: “I can’t do that, as my man is a giant, and he would kill you if he comes home.” They begged hard. “Let us stop for a little while,” said they, “and we will go away before he comes...”
For the rest of the story click here

Mr. Fox
English  Folktale Collected by Joseph Jacobs

LADY Mary was young, and Lady Mary was fair. She had two brothers, and more lovers than she could count. But of them all, the bravest and most gallant, was a Mr. Fox, whom she met when she was down at her father's country-house. No one knew who Mr. Fox was; but he was certainly brave, and surely rich, and of all her lovers, Lady Mary cared for him alone. At last it was agreed upon between them that they should be married. Lady Mary asked Mr. Fox where they should live, and he described to her his castle, and where it was; but, strange to say, did not ask her, or her brothers to come and see it.

So one day, near the wedding-day, when her brothers were out, and Mr. Fox was away for a day or two on business, as he said, Lady Mary set out for Mr. Fox's castle. And after many searchings, she came at last to it, and a fine strong house it was, with high walls and a deep moat. And when she came up to the gateway she saw written on it:

Be bold, be bold.

But as the gate was open, she went through it, and found no one there. So she went up to the door. way, and over it she found written:

Be bold, be bold, but pot too bold. Still, she went on...
For the rest of the story click here.

STORIES OF AMAZING WOMEN

100 Badass Women That Changed The World We Live In Today
https://www.boredpanda.com/women-who-changed-history/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=organic

300 Women Who Changed the World - Where they lived, what they did, timelines, multimedia archives and more.
http://search.eb.com/women

American Women Through Time - A historic chronology with links to relevant websites for each period, along with research sources appropriate for the specified time period.
http://www.mtsu.edu/~kmiddlet/history/women/wh-timeline.html

Black History and Women - “Women are half the human race and they're half of black history, as well. Here are some highlights bringing together black history and women's history.” http://tinyurl.com/ybus3x7

Distinguished Women of Past and Present - This is truly an amazing site! The stories and additional links offer new insights into the remarkable contributions women have made throughout history categorized by subject matter or name. You could spend a century here and not finish!
http://www.distinguishedwomen.com/index.html

Famous Hispanic Women - “Hispanic women have contributed to the culture of the world and to American history.” Learn more about them here. http://tinyurl.com/ydwhjeg

History.com - The history of Women’s Suffrage, achievements, Hall of Fame, timeline and additional resources.
http://www.history.com/minisites/womenhist

Legends of America
Complete List of Historic Women
http://www.legendsofamerica.com/WE-WomenList.html
Native American Women
http://www.legendsofamerica.com/na-indianwomen.html
Women in the Army
http://www.legendsofamerica.com/ah-armywomen.html
Women of the American West
http://www.legendsofamerica.com/WE-Women.html

The Library of Congress: Women’s History Month - Features biographies, audio clips, images, classroom materials, and links to relevant collections and exhibits. 
https://www.womenshistorymonth.gov/about/

National Women’s History Project - An educational nonprofit organization founded in 1980. Their mission is to “recognize and celebrate the diverse and historic accomplishments of women by providing information and educational materials and programs.” Search by category, state, or discipline.
http://www.nwhp.org/

Notable Women Ancestors - From adventurers to witches the site offers a brief synopsis for each woman with a link to additional biographical information. http://www.rootsweb.com/~nwa/index.html

Sisters Choice ~ Active Heroines in Folktales  - An index of books with annotations on strong women in folktales; a perfect place to start if you are developing a program around this theme.
http://www.sisterschoice.com/heroines.html

What did you do in the war, Grandma? - Twenty-six interviews with women who served in WW II.
http://www.stg.brown.edu/projects/WWII_Women/tocCS.html

Women and the Sea - Ahoy mates! A valuable collection of resources outlining women’s experiences and contributions as sailors, lighthouse keepers, yachting, mermaid myths, etc., dating back to 1493. There is also an extensive bibliography.
https://www.marinersmuseum.org/sites/micro/women/index.htm

Women in Black History - You'll find women who are famous and women who should be better-known, from early America and slavery to the 21st century, including the Harlem Renaissance and the civil rights movement.
http://tinyurl.com/ybmjgwb

Women of the Hall - The National Women’s Hall of Fame in Seneca, New York “is a shrine to some of the greatest women in the history of this country….” Search alphabetically or by last name.
http://www.greatwomen.org/women.php

Women Warriors from 3500BC to the 20th Century - Throughout history women have been involved in battles, sieges, and duels. This site offers a glimpse at women warriors through the centuries.The original site is no longer available but the information is still available via the Wayback Machine at this link:
https://web.archive.org/web/20050308010519/http://www.lothene.demon.co.uk/others/women.html  
http://tinyurl.com/ycawlqa

Women in American History - Heroines, ghosts, curious girls and more.

http://americanfolklore.net/folklore/2010/10/women_in_american_folklore.html

Women of the Gold Rush - Information on notable woman who took part in the Gold Rush. Good starter information to begin your research.
https://www.nps.gov/klgo/learn/historyculture/women.htm

BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Feminist Collections of Folktales - Compiled by Tina L. Hanlon
http://www2.ferrum.edu/applit/bibs/fem.htm 

BOOKS

Fearless Girls, Wise Women & Beloved Sisters by Kathleen Regan 
http://tinyurl.com/ylpzxhb 

Fiesta Femenina: Celebrating Women in Mexican Folktale by Mary-Joan Gerson http://tinyurl.com/yelf8t5 

The Serpent Slayer and Other Stories of Strong Women by Trina Schart Hyman 

http://www.amazon.com/The-Serpent-Slayer-Stories-Strong/dp/0316387010

Wise Women: Folk and Fairy Tales from Around the World by Suzanne I. Barchers.

https://www.amazon.com/Wise-Women-Fairy-Tales-Around/dp/1563085925/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=9781563085925&linkCode=qs&qid=1614647528&s=books&sr=1-1

CLASSROOM CONNECTIONS

ABC Teach
http://tinyurl.com/y9em546

Footsteps to Success
http://tinyurl.com/yld8r9e

Library of Congress: Women's History Month Resources and Multimedia http://womenshistorymonth.gov/

Long Ago and Maybe Far Away
http://tinyurl.com/yjvjvyn

Mother and Daughter Griots
http://tinyurl.com/ybyb2le

National Education Association: International Women’s Day - Inspiring Change
http://www.nea.org/home/58237.htm

Women’s History Month for the Classroom
https://www.nea.org/professional-excellence/student-engagement/tools-tips/womens-history-month-classroom

CRAFTS

20+ International Women’s Day Crafts to Celebrate
https://www.k4craft.com/womens-day-crafts-to-celebrate/

The Solidarity Quilt
http://www.womeninworldhistory.com/lesson21.html

 

Please note, websites change at a rapid pace and weblinks may change or break without notice. I cannot be responsible for redirected or broken links.  At the time of this posting all links were in working order. Thank you for understanding.

 

Karen Chace 2021 ©

This blog post was researched and compiled by Karen Chace. Permission for private use is granted. Distribution, either electronically or on paper is prohibited without my expressed written permission. For permission, please contact me at storybug@aol.com. Of course, if you wish to link to my blog via your website, blog, newsletter, Facebook page or Twitter please feel free to do so; I greatly appreciate your support and personal integrity.