Toggle Labs for Kids

Welcome to

Toggle Labs for Kids!

A Learning Innovation Collaborative

creating award-winning STEAM children's books and resources

that help children see interconnections,

build empathy,

and grow into confident problem solvers.

LEARN MORE

Where Big Ideas Come to Play

What do you see?

A bird eating a cherry.
Yes -- but there’s more. That cherry becomes waste, feeding the soil that grows more trees, more cherries, more birds. Waste becomes food, and the cycle continues.

This is just one way children discover the principles of living systems, how everything

connects, renews, and evolves.

"Waste = Food" illustration by Guy Billout, from Connected Wisdom: Living Stories about Living Systems, a collection of global folktales for kids.
The image also inspired Linda’s forthcoming book, Do Bees Pee? (HarperCollins, 2026).

We all live in systems...

...but where do we learn about them?

Global Leader: Systems Thinking

& Systemic Change

Children are growing up in

complex world.

Our job isn’t to shield them from that complexity, but to help them step into it with confidence, curiosity, and joy. Sound science combined with wonder, story, and humor are good places to start.

All the materials you’ll find here—from books to research-backed guides to games, are designed to help children and the adults in their lives explore the big, interconnected systems of life in ways that feel doable, delightful, and real.

I would love to hear from you!

Choose Your Path

Books

Browse titles, awards

& reviews

Talks

Invite Linda to schools, libraries, & festivals

For Educators

Guides, lesson plans, & classroom activities

Resources

Fun stuff, research, kindred thinkers

Watch kid-friendly clips & educator talks

Latest events,

press, & more.

What's New

Videos

Making Big Ideas Simple
Panel at the Sharjah Children’s Reading Festival, 2025

PBS Learning Media Video:
What are Systems?

We don’t see systems walking around. There’s no line drawn between the connections that shape our world. We have to visualize those connections ourselves. That’s where systems thinking gives us tools to see the patterns of connection so, together, we can shift them.

Click on video to learn more.

Click here for more videos >

Why Toggle Labs for Kids?

Young people often feel overwhelmed by the polarization they hear every day and the complexity of pandemics, fragile food systems, and a changing climate. Yet while they’re experiencing what Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. called “the interrelated nature of reality,” few have opportunities to learn how complex systems actually work or how to engage them creatively and constructively. I founded Toggle Labs for Kids to help fill that gap.

As a mother of three and an educator, I’ve seen how children are wired to connect, and how systems literacy tools — language, stories, visuals, and playful learning — help them make sense of complexity, enrich their school experiences, build empathy, and grow into thoughtful, confident problem solvers.

We are actively seeking partners to help grow this work; if you have ideas for collaboration or funding, please get in touch.