There’s a Robot in My Closet—and STEM in My Heart

What happens when curiosity meets code, and imagination meets inclusion? You get There’s a Robot in My Closet—a story that quietly (and sometimes loudly) reminds us why representation in STEM matters.

young Black girl colors in her bedroom while her robot watches her from the closet

Meet Malika, a brilliant, joyful young Black girl whose bedroom doubles as a makerspace. Tucked between toys and dreams lives Rovie, her robot companion and co-conspirator in curiosity. Together, they explore STEM not as a checklist of standards, but as play, creativity, and problem-solving rooted in joy.

At NoireSTEMinist®, this story hits home.

STEM Starts at Home (and Sometimes in a Closet)

Malika doesn’t wait for permission to be a technologist. She codes because she’s curious. She experiments because she cares. She builds because she believes. When her family is busy and skeptical—when they don’t quite see Rovie or the magic Malika sees—she experiences something many STEM kids know too well: the fear of not being understood.

But instead of shrinking, Malika codes.

She programs Rovie to:

• Draw

• Play music

• Follow colors

In other words, she uses computational thinking, creativity, and persistence to communicate what words alone cannot. That is engineering. That is problem-solving. That is STEM in the streets.

Representation That Builds Confidence

There’s a Robot in My Closet isn’t just about a robot. It’s about:

• A Black girl centered as the creator, not the consumer

• STEM as something you do, not something you wait to be invited into

• Family, community, and belonging as part of the engineering process

Malika’s journey mirrors what so many historically marginalized STEM learners experience: being ahead of the belief curve. Her success isn’t just that Rovie works—it’s that she refuses to stop loving STEM even when others don’t yet understand it.

Malika laughs as her robot Rovie plays music and dances.

Why This Story Matters

At NoireSTEMinist®, we believe:

• STEM belongs everywhere kids live, play, and dream

• Black girls deserve to see themselves as engineers early and often

• Robotics can be a bridge between imagination, identity, and impact

Malika’s determination to share her love for STEM—even after doubt—models exactly the mindset we want to cultivate in future innovators.

Because sometimes the world doesn’t believe the robot is real. And sometimes, that just means it’s time to press run again.

There's A Robot In My Closet now available at NoireSTEMinist.com shop and everywhere that books are sold.

Changing the face of STEM, one robot at a time.

Malika stares out her bedroom window at the stares sitting next to her robot, Rovie