Key UC Contact
What We Did
Recognizing some students were struggling with feeling empowered, Senior lecturer Dr. Matthew Cowan left his comfort zone of chemical engineering behind to write 'Because I Cleaned My Room'. The story is about a girl named Pascale who decides she wants to change her life. Starting with one little action, Pascale soon improves her own life and the lives of others.
The illustrated book for 4-10 year olds subtly contains approaches Dr. Cowan uses to grow and empower his engineering students. Breaking large problems into small ones, offering and asking for help, bringing in friends and colleagues, practicing communicating to share what you’re doing and why.
Professional illustrator Francesca Da Sacco joined in to help Matthew self-publish the book, which is now available locally in stores such as The Beehive Collective and online to New Zealanders at https://chooice.co.nz/product/because-i-cleaned-my-room.
Who Was Involved
Matthew Cowan and Francesca Da Sacco (Italy).
Why It Matters
“I had one person say “I’m so stupid I shouldn’t even exist.” Hearing that was a heart-wrenching moment.” Matthew recalls, “I realised her perspective, that “she couldn’t do anything to affect the world”, had been repeated to her so many times that it had become true. So I created a different story for children to tell themselves and for parents to tell their children. One that empowers them to embrace and share their potential.”
This fun story for bedtime also serves as a tool to empower young children and grow a positive relationship between children and parents.
“It’s been deeply rewarding having strangers leave positive reviews about the improvement in the relationship with their children, or about their children taking it to school to share it with their class, or wanting to read it every night for a week. Achieving a positive impact on the world around us is the long-goal of my research, and it’s really nice to see the immediate effect this story has on families.”
Learn More
Anyone interested in exploring the book can order a copy via www.matthewgcowan.com/contact or via email though mcowanauthor@gmail.com
