Anika and the Difficult Drone: A fun, diverse children's book that encourages STEM learning and patience

Anika is working hard to build her new drone, but it's much more complicated than she thought. There's lots of parts to assemble and programming to do... she needs a little help Her family is so busy though, they all have work, studies or things to do. How will Anika build her drone? Will anyone spend time with her?

With bright, colorful illustrations, this is a great way to illustrate the importance of STEM subjects, being inquisitive, as well as patience and determination. To help overcome stereotyping, the story features girls coding, mothers as working professionals, dad's that work from home and mixed families.

Girls aren't sidekicks. That isn't well enough represented in children's books. Having female lead characters, both good & bad, is important to teaching children that there's their gender makes no difference. It's very hard to feel equal when majority of the lead & speaking roles are males. That's why this story features a female protagonist.

The best way to stop unconscious bias is to never let it set in. People of color should be seen equally as leaders, colleagues, friends and family. Showing children that mixed ethnicity families are normal is essential step to changing the realities of today.

The gender stereotypes that children are exposed to in their early years has a strong influence on what they choose to do. Which is why it's important for boys and girls to be exposed to women in non-gender stereotype roles. It's essential to creating an environment where girls feel comfortable choosing whatever career they want, and where boys actively support girls. A career isn't an act of rebellion. That's why in this story, the mum is a professional that works outside, and dad works from home.

The reality of 2020 is that many people are working and studying from home. Learning patience has never been so important. Understanding that adults are present but busy is a hard lesson for children to digest. We hope to remind children that their parents love them, even if they're working.

STEM subjects aren't just for boys Cultivating an interest and curiosity in technology from an early age is important, especially in our ever more digital world. We hope that this book inspires your little ones to tinker