On August 5, the second book in the LAYLA AND THE BOTS series will be released! I wanted to tell you a little bit about why I wrote these books and give you a sneak peek into Book 2, BUILT FOR SPEED.
Before becoming a children’s book writer, I spent 6 years at Intel and Google designing technology experiences for kids. Through that work, I learned some important things.
For example, did you know that girls start doubting their STEM intelligence by the time they are 6 yrs old [Atlantic]? Or that Black & Hispanic students have lesser access and exposure to CS resources [Google/Gallup Report]? Or that computer literacy and computational thinking skills are critical for everybody, not just computer engineers? [CMU]?
These are just a few of the reasons I was inspired to write STEAM books for kids. I wanted to create engaging and accessible stories to promote computer literacy. I wanted to share my love for technology and creativity. I wanted to feature strong protagonist girls of color that would inspire and empower kids in creativity, coding, and technology.
In case you’re new to the series, Layla is a rockstar/inventor with a band of bots, Beep, Boop, and Bop. They work together to solve problems in their town with their awesome inventions.
In Book 2, they are performing at their local go-kart race and modify a go-kart for Tina, a girl who uses a wheelchair. As with every Layla and the Bots book, they embark on a product design mission, complete with investigation (research), ideation (brainstorming), implementation (building and coding), and iteration (debugging and revising). And as always, their inventions are fantastic and spectacular! But when the mayor refuses to allow the modified go-kart, Layla and the Bots must find a creative way to save the day – and Tina’s race.
This story explores accessible design and the user-centric design process through a fun, jet-pack-fueled story. I hope these books help kids to see the awesome, imaginative, and meaningful possibilities of technology—And inspire them to rock out on their own!
Vicky Fang is a product designer who spent 5 years designing kids’ technology experiences for both Google and Intel, often to inspire and empower kids in coding and technology. She started writing to support the growing need for early coding education, particularly for girls and kids of color. Her goal is for her books to inspire computer literacy for a wide range of kids—while letting their imaginations run wild with the possibilities of technology! She is the author of INVENT-A-PET, as well as the LAYLA AND THE BOTS early chapter book series, and the I CAN CODE board book series. Find out more about Vicky by following her on Twitter at @fangmous or on her website at www.vickyfang.com.
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