Book guide: Inventor Johanna goes Lucia
Santa, star cone and glitter
Inventor Johanna knows exactly what to dress up for. She needs a hair dryer, flour and paint. And the string of lights from the balcony. Now it's just a matter of getting started and inventing. It will be the best Christmas show ever.
InventorJohanna can invent everything!
Questions about holidays
A holiday that is celebrated during the month of December is, among other things, Lucia. Are there other holidays like in December that you know of?
A tradition is something that you do year after year at the same time, for example celebrating midsummer. What traditions do you celebrate at home? What traditions do you propose at preschool? What's funny about traditions? What could be boring?
When it is Lucia celebration, the children often get to perform in front of others, for example parents or other important people in one's life. Have you ever performed in front of an audience? How did it feel? If you haven't, what do you think might be fun about performing?
Questions about standing on heads and mischief
Inventor Johanna usually stands on her head when the ideas are stuck. Is there something you usually do to get the ideas out of the way if things get stuck?
Inventor Johanna asks her younger siblings for help. Is there anyone willing to help you? Has someone asked you for help? How did it feel to help someone else? How did it feel to be helped?
Little siblings Sten and Stanley peek through the keyhole when Johanna invents, although they are not allowed! But she didn't actually say anything about peeking through the window. What can be good about bus? What could be less good? What should one think about before playing pranks?
About being goal oriented
Being goal oriented is about several things. Partly it is about having the ability to formulate a goal, to be able to express either to yourself or to others what it is you want - to have a clear and strong will. It is also about fighting on, despite opposition and not being discouraged by adversity. There are plenty of children, young people and adults who, regardless of their gender identity, are goal-oriented - but the ingredients that make it easier are abilities that are more evident in what boys and men are more often allowed to practice, due to prevailing gender norms. These are also characteristics that those who are raised as boys and men are more often mirrored, therefore it is important to have books where girls are targeted.
About inventing
Inventing is often about breaking boundaries, going outside of what we know here and now and looking beyond it. To be able to do that requires the opportunity to challenge what is taken for granted. It also requires trust in one's own creative ability. Nowadays, it's mostly guys who practice breaking boundaries, and they also often get validation for doing it. Girls, on the other hand, are brought up to a much greater extent to follow rules, to be "good". A good girl does what someone says, she doesn't take too much of her own space and doesn't challenge. But for all children, both girls and boys, to feel that they have access to their power and creativity, it is important to encourage these abilities. In this way, all children can take part in creating our future. In that work, InventorJohanna can act as a role model.
