Looking for ways to inspire curiosity, encourage exploration and teach problem-solving skills at home? Here are awesome STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) books for kids.
The Spark Experiment
$12.99; https://thesparkuniverse.com/#main-info
Offers an interactive science experience that combines fun hands-on experiments that your child can replicate at home. Designed to engage young readers, the visually stunning illustrations and compelling storytelling are sure to ignite curiosity and inspire a lifelong love for science. This accessible approach of Science Made Fun is brought to this special graphic novel with a story designed to stimulate young minds and nurture their budding curiosity and imagination.
Josephine: I Can Help by Sol Regwan
$9.99; www.schiffer-kids.com/products/josephine-i-can-help
Josephine is a small child with big dreams, and she's turning her attention to saving the earth. Young children can join Josephine in learning about the three Rs and why they are important to keeping our amazing planet healthy and clean.
Amazing Airport Adventure by Roxie Munro
$16.99; www.schiffer-kids.com/products/a-maze-ing-airport-adventure
Explore the bustling world of air travel through a series of intricately designed mazes and seek-n-find games. Young readers begin their journey at home and navigate through realistic airport settings—from check-in and security to the gates and boarding the airplane—enhancing their familiarity with real-world routines while developing critical-thinking and spatial-reasoning skills.
Maze Play by Roxie Munro
$16.99; www.schiffer-kids.com/products/a-maze-ing-airport-adventure
Imagination meets adventure. Each maze presents a unique challenge, from navigating the mind-bending perspectives of "After Escher" to exploring the whimsical "Magic Forest" and the intricate gears of "Steampunk." Along the way, young explorers will discover hidden treasures like penguins, unicorns, and even Santa Claus! Munro's vibrant illustrations and engaging puzzles encourage children to sharpen their problem-solving skills, practice spatial awareness, and foster creativity.
The Chemistry Between Art and Science byJen White
$18.99; HolidayHouse.com
The Undeniable Chemistry between Art and Science follows two children on a journey in which they discover how interconnected these two subjects are, and how they both lift the other up in inspiring ways. With nods to groundbreaking artist-scientists like George Washington Carver and Maria Sibylla Merian as well as the role of art and science in climate change solutions, space travel, and more, this picture book is perfect for kids who just want to ask questions and create, create, and create.
Galaxy Mapper: The Luminous Discoveries of Astrophysicist Hélène Courtois
$18.99; Amazon.com
Growing up in a small French village, Hélène Courtois had big questions about the world around her. Avidly, she observed the trails, roads, and water pathways traversing planet Earth; but her mind always wandered higher, toward the night sky. What would a map of “out there,” beyond the moon, look like? The question traveled with her to university, where curious Hélène—often the only woman in her science classes—learned to map the compositions of galaxies. Numbers swam with the stars in her brain, and after years of wonder and experimentation, Hélène and her team make a dazzling discovery—a supercluster of galaxies they name Laniakea, home to our very own Milky Way.
Measuring Up: How Oliver Smoot Became a Standard Unit of Measurement by Jenny Lacika
$18.99; Amazon.com
When the five-foot-seven-inch Oliver Smoot and his friends at MIT decided to play a practical joke, he drew the short straw—and was selected to be the measurement device to carry it out. The task? Measuring the length of a bridge, one lying-down Oliver Smoot at a time. Author Jenny Lacika playfully introduces the idea of nonstandard measurement in this story about the creation of a new unit: the smoot. Anna Bron captures the hijinks of college kids having some fun, getting into trouble, and in the end, making math history. Measuring Up invites readers over to the sillier side of mathematics and encourages them to play with measurement in their own lives. As for the smoot? This unorthodox unit of measure is now cemented into history, in sidewalk markings on a certain Cambridge-to-Boston bridge.
10 Small Things I Can Do to Helpo My Planet by Melanie Walsh
$17.99; Amazon.com
Do you bring leftovers for lunch? Or shop for fresh, unpackaged produce at the farmers’ market? Perhaps you opt for a bamboo toothbrush over a plastic one, or take public transportation when you go out? Creativity plays a part, too—in crafty projects like using an eggshell as a little container to grow watercress, or making a wildlife shelter in your backyard. With ten doable suggestions, bright illustrations, and short explanations of how the actions help to protect the earth, Melanie Walsh shows even the youngest eco-warriors several easy ways to weave green choices into their everyday lives.
Light: The Extraordinary Energy That Illuminates Our World by Dr. Jess Wade
$18.99; Amazon.com
From the complexities of the night sky to the inner workings of rainbows, explore and celebrate the mind-bending science of light. Combining text and beautiful, dynamic pictures, this compelling blend of curriculum essentials and cutting-edge physics inspires budding scientists and engineers to step beyond their textbooks into a world of fascinating real-world science.
Mystery Driver: The Story of Alice Johnson and the FIrst Soap Box Derby by Elizabeth Tracy
$18.99; Amazon.com
Alice loves swooping through the clouds in Daddy’s biplane. She and he even flew through a howling tornado when Alice was only three! Grounded now by the Great Depression, Alice is yearning for more thrilling adventure when she sees a newspaper ad for a soap box derby where kids will race their own homemade, gravity-powered cars. Excitement is spreading like prairie fire! But wait—the race is only for boys? Alice knows she can be a race-car driver, too. So she and Daddy work hard in his machine shop to build the speediest car they can. Ball bearings let the wheels spin smoothly, rubber tires absorb bumps in the pavement, sleek surfaces slice through the air, and the crowning glory: an airplane’s nose cone! The day of the race, forty thousand people turn out to watch hundreds of boys compete—and one Mystery Driver. At the crack of the starter pistol, Alice flies toward the checkered flag . . . Get ready for an action-packed story complete with fascinating back matter that digs deeper into the science and people involved.
Spark: Jim West's electrifying Adventures in Creatin the Microphone by Ainissa Ramirez
$18.99; Amazon.com
Young Jim West loves to pull apart whatever electronics he can get his hands on to see how they work. Those around him say there’s no path for a kid like him to become a scientist, but Jim is determined to forge his own way. His knack for all things electric (and luck in landing a summer job offering the freedom to experiment) lead him to invent an important part of the devices we rely on every day. In this picture book biography for science lovers, future inventors, and anyone aiming to inspire the next generation, author Ainissa Ramirez shares the story of the man who patented the foil-electret microphone, a unit integral to everything from cell phones to hearing aids. Just as Jim West’s advocacy for more diversity in the field paved the way for many scientists of color to follow, Spark inspires readers of all ages to follow their curiosity—and see what it ignites.
Supersquads!: Animal Heroes by Heather Lang and Jamie Harper
$18.99; Amazon.com
Did you know that when honeybees find a food source, they do a dance to convey the direction, distance, and yumminess level to their hive mates? Or that chickadees add extra “dees” to their calls to warn their flock of danger? Or that a meerkat standing like a sentry may well be guarding its mob while they eat? Sometimes the key is divvying up tasks, like when beavers build a dam, or it’s combining differences—like when a sea anemone protects a hermit crab with its stinging tentacles, then gets a ride and some tasty tidbits from the crab. Or it’s power in numbers, as when hundreds of thousands of starlings fly in a murmuration, foiling predators trying to lock in on a target. With fun, fact-filled panels, Heather Lang and Jamie Harper delve into the ways animals band together to stay safe and thrive, from orcas to ostriches, spiny lobsters to snow monkeys, leaf cutter ants to zebras and more. Aspiring naturalists can find out more about the animals in the back matter, along with an array of resources for continuing to explore.
Published: February 2026
