Kids Are Great!

Funny Pictures For You to Enjoy

2009-09-23T08:26:00.001-07:00

Games for Kids!

2009-09-23T07:49:00.000-07:00

SECURITY CAUTION FOR KIDS & PARENTS: These images link to a gaming website that offers free trial versions of games for download and/or sells games. I have done business with this website in the past and they are honest and very helpful to their customers. BUT... Kids, you must never ever download anything to your computer or buy anything online unless you TELL YOUR MOM OR DAD FIRST that's what you want to do.

Do You Like to Write? [for older kids, teens, & adults]

2009-09-21T14:12:00.000-07:00

Some people write short stories and some people write movies and some people write whole novels. Some people write poetry and some people write music and words to songs and some people write business reports. Just like there's all kinds of people in this world, there's all kinds of writing.

If you like to write stories, sometimes, you can get stuck for ideas. ALL writers have this problem from time to time. It's called, "writer's block."

Sometimes, the best way to get over that is to find one little piece of an idea and just start writing... anything. Anything that idea or story starter inspires you to write, you just write it down and the more you do that, the more you start to unfreeze your brain and who knows, you might even like what you've written!

Why Do Leaves Change Color?

2009-09-18T16:56:00.000-07:00

Every autumn as the days get shorter and cooler, we see a beautiful variety of colors in leaves all around us. These color changes are caused by chemical processes inside the tree or plant. Different chemicals produce different colors and some trees have more of one chemical than another so that's why there is such a variety of colors.

During the summer, the chemical that makes the leaves green is strongest and so the green color covers up the other colors made by the weaker chemicals. It's during this time that the leaves act as food-making factories for the rest of the tree. This food-making process uses the chemical called chlorophyll and that's the chemical that makes the green color.

Other colors like orange and yellow are made by carotenes and xanthophyll pigments. Carotene is what gives carrots their orange color.

In the fall with less daylight and changes in the weather, the chlorophyll starts to break down and the other chemicals take over and their colors become visible. The leaves stop their food-making process.

As the leaves change color other things start happening, too. A special layer of cells forms at the point where the leaf attaches to the tree and it destroys the tissues that connect the leaf to the tree. The tree seals it off so by the time the leaf is blown away or just falls off, there is already a leaf scar on the tree.

Trees that have leaves that change color and fall off are called deciduous trees. That means they change with the seasons. Trees that have leaves that pretty much stay green all year round and don't lose their leaves with the seasons are called evergreens. Trees that make cones to distribute their seeds are called conifers. Most conifers are evergreens.

To learn more about leaves and their changing colors, see this Weather.com article.

To see a gallery of breathtaking autumn photos, GO HERE.

To see a gallery of cute pet fall photos, GO HERE.

Brain Juice for Your Brain

2009-09-18T06:56:00.000-07:00

Brain teasers are called "teasers" because they tease the heck out of your brain, trying to make you figure out the answer. You feel really good when you finally figure it all out. It's lots of fun to try! Here are some brain teasers for you to work on then you can try them out on somebody else:

Number One: Rebus brain teasers use words or letters in interesting orientations to represent common phrases. Can you figure out the following rebus brain teaser? It is a common phrase. Answers will be at the bottom of this post.

Salt: Good morning
Pepper: Hello

Number Two: What Doesn't Belong? This brain teaser relies on your ability to recognize what a group of words has in common so you can pick out the one word that does not belong in the group. Here's your group of words... now, which one does not belong?

Binoculars, eyeglasses, goggles, handlebars, jeans, pliers, scissors, shoes, tweezers

Number Three: Another rebus puzzle... can you decipher the musical instruments represented below?

1. P O
2. BA BA
3. ECLART
4. @ # $ %

Number Four: Homonym Sentences - The blanks in the following sentences will be filled in with three different homonyms (words that are spelled differently but sound alike) to make valid sentences. The dashes indicate the number of letters in the words. Can you fill in the blanks?

1. The cut on his _ _ _ _ won't _ _ _ _ in time for the race, so _ _ '_ _ have to drop out.

2. I couldn't _ _ _ _ _ any of the _ _ _ _ _ _ in the flower shop, because for some strange reason I had 50 _ _ _ _ _ crammed up my nose.

3. A bloodthirsty pirate will wander the _ _ _ _ and essentially _ _ _ _ _ everything he _ _ _ _.

Number Five: Word Play - Language brain teasers are those that involve the English language. You need to think about and manipulate words and letters. What do the following words have in common (aside from repeating some letters)?

Assess
Banana
Dresser
Grammar
Potato
Revive
Uneven
Voodoo

Are you ready for the answers?

Are you sure you're ready?

Well, okay. Here are your answers:

Number One: Season's Greetings

Number Two: The word "shoes" is the only "pair" that actually has 2 separate pieces.

Number Three: 1. Piano (P and O); 2. Tuba (Two BA); 3. Clarinet (CLAR in ET); 4. Cymbals (Symbols)

Number Four: 1. The cut on his HEEL won't HEAL in time for the race, so HE'LL have to drop out.
2. I couldn't SENSE any of the SCENTS in the flower shop, because for some strange reason I had 50 CENTS crammed up my nose.
3. A bloodthirsty pirate will wander the SEAS and essentially SEIZE everything he SEES.

Number Five: If you take the first letter and move it to the rear of the word, you get the same word when read backwards.

Find LOTS more brain teasers at the Braingle website.

100 Words and Phrases in Spanish

2009-09-08T07:06:00.000-07:00

It's fun to learn words in another language and it might even help you a lot one day, especially if you need to study a language in school or use another language in a job. You might be able to help someone else. Being able to communicate with other people is always a good thing so, here are some words and phrases for you to learn (I do not try to explain any grammar or rules of usage or the male and female definition of words in the Spanish language - these are vocabulary words only):

ENGLISH WORD - SPANISH WORD [PHONETIC PRONUNCIATION]

1. house - casa [caw-saw]

2. car - coche [co-che]

3. bed - cama [caw-maw]

4. table - mesa [may-sah]

5. chair - silla [see-yah]

6. door - puerta [pwhere-tah]

7. window - ventana [ven-tah-nah]

8. love - amor [ah-more]

9. "I love you." - Te amo. [tay ah-moh]

10. "Where is _____?" - ¿Dónde está ______? [Doan-day eh-staw ______?]

11. "How are you?" - FORMAL: ¿Cómo está usted? [co-moh eh-staw oo-stead?]
INFORMAL (with friends/family): ¿Cómo estás? [co-moh eh-staws?]

12. "With your permission..." - Con su permiso [cohn soo pear-meeso]

13. "I am hungry." - Tengo hambre. [tayn-go ahm-bray] (the "h" is not heard)

14. "I am thirsty." - Tengo sed. [tayn-go said]

15. "I am afraid." - Tengo miedo. [tayn-go mee-aide-oh] (long "a" sound)

16. "I am happy." - Estoy feliz. [eh-stoy fay-leez]

17. The United States of America - Los Estados Unidos de América

18. cat - gato [gah-toe] kitten - gatito [gah-tee-toe]

19. dog - perro [pear-oh] (the double "r" sound is trilled)

20. rabbit - conejo [coh-nay-hoe]

21. mouse - ratón [rah-tone] rat - rata [rah-tah]

22. breakfast - desayuno [dess-aye-oo-noh]

23. dinner - cena [say-nah]

24. the beach - la playa [lah ply-yah]

25. the mountains - las montañas [loss moan-tahn-yahs]

26. the city - la ciudad [lah see-oo-dahd]

27. mother - madre [mah-dray]

28. father - padre [pah-dray]

29. sister - hermana [air-mah-nah] (no "h" sound)

30. brother - hermano [air-mah-noh]

31. school - escuela [ehs-cway-lah] high school - escuela secundaria [ehs-cway-lah say-coon-dahr-ee-uh]

32. my job - mi trabajo [me trah-bah-hoe]

33. to work (verb) - trabajar [trah-bah-har]

34. to sleep (verb) - dormir [door-meer]

35. "She is sleeping." - Ella está durmiendo. [eh-yah eh-stah dir-mee-ehn-doe]

36. Sunday - domingo [doe-ming-go]

37. Monday - lunes [loon-ess]

38. Tuesday - martes [mar-tess]

39. Wednesday - miercoles [mee-air-coe-less]

40. Thursday - jueves [way-vess]

41. Friday - viernes [vee-air-ness]

42. Saturday - sabado [sah-bah-doe]

43. week - semana [say-mah-nah] weekend - fin de la semana [feen day lah say-mah-nah]

44. "Happy Birthday." - feliz cumpleaños [fay-lees coom-plee-ahn-yos]

45. "What time is it?" (when something is scheduled like a TV show... when is it on TV?) - ¿Cuándo es? [qwan-doe ess] "What time is it?" (asking for the time right now) - ¿Qué hora es? [kay oar-ah ess]

46. "How do you say _______ in Spanish?" - ¿Cómo se dice ________? [Coe-moh say dee-say ________] The underscore or blank line represents the word you want translated. You fill in the word.

47. "How do you say _______ in English?" - ¿Cómo se dice ________ en inglés? [Coe-moh say dee-say ________ ehn een-glace]

48. dangerous - peligroso [pay-lee-grow-soh]

49. funny (amusing) - divertido [dee-vair-tee-doh]

50. "It's a joke." - Es un chiste. [ess oon chee-stay]

51. the truth - la verdad [lah vair-dahd] Really? (Is that really true?) - ¿Verdad? [vair-dahd]

52. a lie - una mentira [oo-nah main-teer-ah] liar - mentiroso [main-teer-oh-soh]

53. freedom - libertad [lee-bear-tahd]

54. blouse or shirt - camisa [cah-mee-sah]

55. dress - bestido [vess-tee-doh]

56. pants (long pants like jeans or slacks) - pantalones [pahn-tah-loh-nays]

57. "Let's go." - Vamos. [vah-mose]

58. "I want to leave." - Quiero ir. [care-oh ear]

59. "I am sick (ill)." - Estoy infermo. (boy) [eh-stoy een-fair-moh] - Estoy inferma (girl) [eh-stoy een-fair-mah]

60. "He is sick (ill)." - Él está infermo. [ail eh-stah een-fair-moh] (my aplogies for any misspellings, two translators and two spellings for infermo - was also spelled enfermo)

61. "How old are you?" - ¿Cuántos años tiene? [qwan-tohs ahn-yos tee-ain-nay]

62. "She is eleven years old." - Ella tiene once años. [a-yah tee-ain-nay ohn-say ahn-yohs]

63. "I am thirteen years old." - Tengo trece años. [tayn-goh tray-say ahn-yohs]
Spanish uses "I have" for age instead of "I am" so literally, they are saying "I have thirteen years" instead of saying "I am thirteen years."

64. green - verde [vair-day]

65. blue - azul [ah-sool]

66. purple - morado [moh-raw-doh] or púrpura [poor-poor-ah] (the double "o's" in the phonetic pronunciation guide have the "oo" sound).

67. yellow - amarillo [ahm-ah-ree-yoh] (the double "L" in Spanish has a "y" sound.)

68. red -

69. pink -

70. friend (boy) -

71. friend (girl) -

72. friends (group, boys and girls) -

73. policeman -

74. emergency -

75. "I have a medical emergency." -

76. "Call the police." -

77. "I need a doctor." -

78. "I want _____."

79. "How much does this cost?" -

80. "Forgive me." -

81. "I am sorry." -

82. "Excuse me." -

83. "Of course" or "For certain" -

84. "How many?" -

85. "How many children do you have?" -

86. tree -

87. flower -

88. lake -

89. river -

90. fish -

91. bear -

92. monkey -

93. sky -

94. Heaven -

95. earth (dirt) -

96. bicycle -

97. book -

98. food (in general) -

99. "Please." -

100. "Thank you." -

FOR MORE ENGLISH-SPANISH FUN, CHECK OUT THIS FABULOUS ENGLISH-SPANISH PICTURE DICTIONARY WITH OVER 1,400 WORDS.

Volcanoes

2009-09-06T20:52:00.000-07:00

Native Hawaiians knew all about volcanoes. According to them, volcanic eruptions were caused by Pele, the beautiful but tempestuous Goddess of Volcanoes. Pele had frequent moments of anger, which brought about eruptions. She was both honored and feared. She could cause earthquakes by stamping her feet or volcanic eruptions and fiery lava by digging with her Pa'oa, her magic stick. Pele had a long and bitter argument with her older sister, Namakaokahai. The fight ended up forming the Hawaiian Islands. Read more of this story...

Discovery Kids offers you their "Volcano Explorer" where you can go inside a volcano and even make your own volcano science project! Be sure to click the link at the bottom of their page to learn all about the last days of Pompeii.

Picture by Siddharth, Age 9, India

VOLCANO WORLD is a website designed for kids that includes virtual field trips, adventure stories, help for teachers, volcano FAQ, games and fun stuff and, of course, a kids' art gallery (see sample above).

Find out how much you know about volcanoes with this fun activity from National Geographic Kids.

Mount St. Helens VolcanoCams will let you see a volcano live, as in right now, during daylight hours in the State of Washington.

You can visit Mt. Shasta in California or view it "live" on its own webcam HERE or HERE. Mt. Shasta's last major eruption was in 1786 and earned Mt. Shasta the nickname, "Lighthouse of the Pacific." Mt. Shasta is actually a series of four overlapping volcanic cones and as a mountain, it stands alone, not connected to any nearby mountain, rising abruptly to nearly 10,000 feet. Read more about Mt. Shasta HERE.

Mt. Shasta, California

Mt. Etna, Italy

Mount Etna is one of the most active volcanoes in the world and is in an almost constant state of activity.The fertile volcanic soils support extensive agriculture, with vineyards and orchards spread across the lower slopes of the mountain and the broad Plain of Catania to the south. You can view live webcams of Mt. Etna HERE.

This CBS video shows an exciting view of one of Etna's most recent eruptions:

Watch CBS Videos Online

Do you know the difference between lava and Magma? Do you know how many volcanoes there are in the world? HERE'S A WEBSITE with lots of volcano facts for kids.

And here are some great books on the subject of volcanoes. If you want to find out more about the book, just click on the image. SECURITY CAUTION FOR KIDS: Do NOT click to download or "buy" anything or put your personal information in a form on a website unless you TELL YOUR PARENTS FIRST that's what you want to do.

This Day in History

2009-09-06T20:03:00.000-07:00

What happened on your birthday in other years? A hundred years ago? What events have happened on important holidays? Pick any date and find out what happened on that date in United States history. History can be tons of fun and you can totally amaze your friends if you come up with weird stuff like knowing something famous that happened on a particular day. Hey! Find out what happened on your friends' birthdays and write it on a birthday card! Here are a few places where you can find out what happened on "this day in history":

The History of Today
Choose a date to see what happened that day in years past.

This Day in History (from the History Channel)
Daily historical trivia and search tool.

Today in History (Library of Congress)
Find out what happened today in U.S. history.

A Dog Babysitting a Chicken

2009-09-06T19:56:00.000-07:00

Dog babysitting a chicken @ Yahoo! Video

Don't try to mess with this chicken because the mama will protect her baby!

Squigly's Arts and Crafts

2009-09-06T12:42:00.000-07:00

There's lots to do here if you like arts and crafts. There's online fun as well as at-home projects. Here's enough to get you started:

Desktop Pictures and Patterns
Just for fun
Jewellery
Seasonal Crafts
Print & Colour Pictures
Online Colouring Pictures
Online Dressup Games (each game has its own link)
Create a scrapbook
Make clip on braids
Add a touch of fun to your garden with Painted Rocks.
Tell your friend's fortunes with a Cootie Catcher.
Save your coins in a papier mâché piggy bank.
Go wild! Make a wildlife scene.
Make a windmill.
Attract hummingbirds to your backyard with this recipe.
Let it snow, let it snow, with these snowflakes you make yourself.
Feed the birds
Leaf Art
Decorate some flower pots for summer.
Explore the world of underwater creatures with this water scope.
Make a braided bracelet.
Make your own beads out of paper.
Store your treasures in this.

VISIT THE WEBSITE

School Jokes

2009-09-06T11:49:00.000-07:00

Read up on some funny school jokes and when you get done with those, take a peek at the other joke categories like animals, holidays, doctors, internet, monsters, and more!

Here's just a few to get you started, but be sure to visit this funny website made just for kids...

Teacher: Class, we will have only half a day of school this morning.
Class: Hooray!
Teacher: We will have the other half this afternoon!

Son: I can't go to school today.
Father: Why not ?
Son: I don't feel well
Father: Where don't you feel well ?
Son: In school !

Pupil (on phone) : My son has a bad cold and won't be able to come to school today.
School Secretary: Who is this ?
Pupil: This is my father speaking !

MORE JOKES:

Knock-Knock Jokes

Silly Jokes

Silly American States

Kid's Food Jokes

Jokes from Kaboose

Joke Central

One last joke, okay?

What do you call a cow with a twitch?
Beef jerky.

Homework Help Websites

2009-09-02T07:34:00.000-07:00

Educational Resources from the U.S. Government

SUBJECTS:
Arts & Music
Health & Phys Ed
History & Soc Studies
Language Arts
Math
Science

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Preschool
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Yahoo! Kids Study

Animals, Ask Earl (reference questions and some have been very strange, too), Science, Reference (Dictionary and Encyclopedia), World Factbook

Basic Steps in the Research Process

First, select a topic that interests you... and the rest of this helpful guide takes you through the task of writing a research paper. This webpage is easy to follow but is relevant to older teens and adults as well as kids.

Smithsonian Education

Enchanted Learning

This is an absolutely massive website with hundreds of pages of fun activities and resources for just about any subject you can imagine. You just have to pay this site a visit to get an idea of what they are.

The Homework Spot

Part of the "StartSpot" Network of websites, this directory is organized for elementary, middle, and high schoolers with subcategories like Homeroom, Arts and Crafts, Foreign Languages, Health/Fitness, Language Arts, Math, Science, Social Studies, Technology, Study Break, and Contests. Their Reference Section includes: Ask an Expert, Current Events, Libraries, Museums, People, Reading Room, and Reference Desk. Their Front Homepage alone is jam-packed with stuff and that's just the first page!!! This website is definitely worth a look.

Discovery Education's Homework Helper

I linked to the section on Math but you can use the navigation buttons up top on this page to also reach their Homework Help on Science, English, Social Studies, and More...

The Library Spot

Another massive portal directory in the StartSpot Network of portal directories with links to hundreds of libraries around the USA and the world. There are all categories of types of libraries and their Reference Desk Section is HUGE.

Infoplease Homework Center

Geography, History, Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies, Writing, Research, Speaking & Listening, Studying, Almanacs, Atlas, Dictionary, Encyclopedia, and Biographies and lots more...

Fact Monster

World, United States, People, Sports, Science, Math and Money, Word Wise, Cool Stuff, Homework Center, Games and Quizzes, Reference Desk, Geography Guide, Language Trivia, Today in History and more...

National Geographic for Kids

I linked to their Site Index which lists ALL topics covered on the Kids Website and should help find the homework help you need.

RefDesk.com Homework Helper

Categorized for Grades 1 through College - References - Ask the Experts - Other Homework Links - Many, many links here

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Learn how to write a great biography, discover the important elements of a book report, and find some great tips for organizing your research paper with tips for completing great homework assignments.

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Homework Databases and Homework Web Sites: African-American, American History, Ancient & Classical Cultures, Animals, The Arts, Astronomy & Space, Biographies, Biology, Computers & Inventions, Costumes & Clothing, Countries & Flags, European History, Evaluating Websites, General Reference, Geography, Government & Politics, Health & Nutrition, History, Holidays & Celebrations, Other Homework Reference Resources, Language Arts, Literature & Authors, Maps, Mathematics, Music, Mysterious & Unexplained, Mythology, Native American, News & Current Events, Personal Finance, Regional Information, Religion, Science, Social Issues, Sports, States Information, Wars & World History, What Makes a Community

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English ~ Health ~ Math ~ Science ~ Social Studies ~ More Sites By Specific Topic ~ Arts ~ Finding Articles ~ Encyclopedias ~ Career Development & Occupational Studies ~ Creating a Bibliography/Works Used List ~ Study Hints ~ El Portal Latino

How to Write a Book Report

Upper Elementary School level

How to Write a Book Report

Middle and High School level

Writing Skills

Good writing skills are essential for effective communication. Learning to write well takes time and practice. TOPICS COVERED (MANY SUBHEADINGS UNDER THESE MAIN TOPICS): Essays, Writing Different Types of Essays, How to Write a Biography, How to Write a Book Report, How to Write a Research or Term Paper, How to Write a Bibliography, Sample Term Papers, How to Write a Letter, How to Write a Speech, Spelling & Grammar, Sentence Structure.

Research Skills

Research: Getting Started, Doing the Research, Using the Internet, Using Infoplease.com for Research, Documentation and Citations, How to Write a Research Paper

How to Write a Research or Term Paper

Research papers are generally longer pieces of written work than essays. Writing a research paper involves all of the steps for writing an essay plus some additional ones.

To write a research paper you must first do some research, that is, investigate your topic by reading about it in many different sources, including books, magazines, newspapers, and the Internet. In some cases you may also conduct interviews. The information you gather from these sources is then used to support the points you make in your paper.

Writing a research paper also involves documenting your sources of information in footnotes or endnotes. This way the reader knows where you got your information and can judge whether it is reliable.

Here are the steps to follow when writing a research paper. Click on the link to read more:

How Write a Sentence and a Paragraph

This page was created for all students who find themselves at a loss for words when they are asked to write a sentence or a paragraph! This webpage is fun and easy to follow and could be a great help to anyone who wants to brush up on their sentence-writing skills.

Homework Help

Categorized links - Homework Help Web Pages, Biographical Information, Citing Your Sources, Almanacs, Animals, Black History, Castles, Country Information, Dinosaurs, Dictionaries, Encyclopedias, Endangered Species, Environment, Flags, Government, History, Issues and Debates, Magazines, Maps, Museums, Mythology, Native Americans (Indians of North America), Rivers of the World, Safety, Science (Astronomy and Planets, Constellations, Science and Invention, and Science Experiments/Science Fair), State Information, Titanic, Utah, City Information, Women's History, Writing a Research Paper, Weather

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Scholastic.com's Homework Hub

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Provides links to helpful sites in the USA and throughout the world that would be appropriate to upper elementary, junior high, and high school students.

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Homework Help from New York City's Public Libraries

Name the subject. Anything. You know they got it.

Homework Help by Grade - FamilyEducation.com

Categorized by Grade Level (K-8), multiple subjects, other useful features like College Search and videos and various screening tools and more...

High School Ace

SUBJECTS: Biology, Chemistry, Earth Science, English, Foreign Languages, Math, Physics, U.S. History, World History. REFERENCE SITES: College Prep Guide, Nutrition Data, Pedometer, Social Issues, Street Maps, Translator Tool, Unit Conversions, World Maps. OTHER RESOURCES: BBC World News, C-SPAN, Daily News Quiz, Google News, NYTLN News, PBS News Hour, SAT Test Prep, Weather Forecast, Word of the Day. GAMES AND PUZZLES: Checkers Game, Chess Game, Crossword Puzzles, Hare & Hounds, Hex-7 / Nash, Mancala / Wari, Othello / Reversi, Peg Puzzles, Quiz Games, Slider Puzzles, Triplets. ALSO: Look stuff up in their encyclopedia or dictionary or Rhyming Dictionary.

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Search Engines and Web Directories for Kids, General Homework Help, Online References, Online Books, Language Arts and Languages, Math, Social Studies, Science and Health, Fine Arts, Computers, Practice Resources, Online Activities, Online Stories and Reading Selections, Printable Activities, Parent Resources, Recommended References for Your Child's Home Library.

Amazing Space Homework Help

Do you want to: Answer a question? Dig up a definition? Find resources for a project? Write a story? Get the latest scoop on space? Earn extra-credit points? Shed light on another subject? Compare cosmic objects? Study for a test? Debate an idea? Build a model? Celebrate the International Year of Astronomy? Have fun with Online Explorations? Capture the cosmos (Astronomy materials, by topic)? See Tonight's Sky?

County of Los Angeles Public Library Homework Help

You can get free homework help from a live, online tutor in 20 minute sessions. ... You can use Live Homework Help from home, school and even the Library.

CEO Express Homework Help

A huge portal/directory of helpful links, categorized.

Chatterbee's Homework Help Center

Reference, Arts, Web Search, Health, Social Studies, Science, Math, Free Homework Help

PLEASE USE THE COMMENTS SECTION TO ADD YOUR OWN RECOMMENDED LINKS FOR HOMEWORK HELP. THANK YOU!!!

"The Seventh Voyage of Sinbad" - See the whole movie right here!

2009-08-03T06:47:00.000-07:00

This movie was a lot of fun to watch when it first came out a very long time ago and it's so much fun, it's even fun today! After viewing "Part One" of the movie that's posted here, scroll down for Part Two, then Three and so on until you've seen the whole thing.

CONTENT ADVISORY: "The Seventh Voyage of Sinbad" makes use of wonderful special effects to create fantastical movie "monsters" that are clearly fantasy creatures and should probably not frighten most kids but very young children might find those parts of the movie to be a bit scary.

PART ONE

PART TWO

PART THREE

PART FOUR

PART FIVE

PART SIX

PART SEVEN

PART EIGHT

PART NINE

Learn to Count Money (JAVA Applet)

2009-08-01T15:22:00.000-07:00

Play Lizzie McGuire's Turbo Racer Game!

2009-08-01T14:49:00.000-07:00

Play Lizzie McGuire Turbo Racer

Play arcade games @ arcadevoid.com

Peter, Paul, & Mary - A Great Music Group

2009-08-01T13:44:00.000-07:00

Peter, Paul, & Mary first got really famous in the 1960's singing folk music and some rock n' roll but always, the songs they sang made you want to think more about the words they were singing. Sometimes serious, sometimes sad, sometimes just plain fun -- Peter, Paul & Mary's music is great for kids of today, too! They have never really stopped teaching and making us think. Their music is still popular and they are loved by several generations of fans.

Here are some of their songs. As you listen, try to imagine what they are trying to tell you. What is the theme or meaning behind each song? Did you enjoy it? Do you think you could learn to sing it?

I bet you and your Mom and Dad would have a lot of fun singing these songs together.

Where to buy school supplies?

2009-07-31T14:56:00.000-07:00

This is a list of some major retailers who have already set up shop (online) for back to school supplies. Some places listed offer school supplies to the individual student and some places offer school supplies in bulk (for teachers and homeschoolers). Some offer both.

It should be expected that other retailers like Walmart, RiteAid, Target and more will also get around to doing their own back-to-school offers.

Amazon.com	Discount School Supply
A2Z Teacher's Outlet	Dick Blick Art Materials
The Crayola Store	Geddes
Office Depot	Office Max
Oriental Trading	Really Good Stuff
Staples	Teacher's Paradise

Disney's Back-to-School Creativity

2009-07-30T08:34:00.001-07:00

Be unique and show your creative side! The Disney folks have made a list of fun crafty ideas for young people to do in preparation for going back to school. Make your own back-to-school clothes and accessories by following the easy directions here. Younger kids will need adult or older kid help. Make the other kids at school wonder how you got so trendy. This looks like a lot of fun. VISIT THE WEBPAGE where you can choose ideas like the following (not the whole list, these are just some examples):

Artful T-Shirt
Crayon Transfer Designs
Denim Details
Fancy Footwork
Mosaic Prints
Tie-Dye Like a Pro
White Glue Batik
Crystal-Clear Necklace
Friendship Bracelet
Knotted Anklet
Paper Beads
Paper Jewelry
Word for Word Necklace
Backpack Bead Dangler
Hair Ties
Lunch Money Locket
Secret Code Backpack Chains

...AND LOTS MORE, TOO! VISIT THE WEBSITE TO SEE EVERYTHING.

"Peace" in Swahili

2009-07-30T06:37:00.000-07:00

These graphics are free to you but you must download them to your own computer then you can upload them to an image hosting place like Image Shack or Photobucket. You can save any image by right-clicking then choose "Save Image As."

SECURITY WARNING FOR KIDS & PARENTS: Kids, you MUST tell your parents you want to download something before you actually do it. This is true even for pictures.

Who, What, Where? A REALLY FUN GAME

2009-07-23T17:11:00.000-07:00

I created this little game of "Who, What, Where?" to have some fun with good stuff to know. It's kind of like a mini-encyclopedia of fun facts and pictures covering all sorts of subjects. Here's how you play:

1. CAREFUL! Don't put your mouse cursor over any tiny picture pieces until you are sure you are ready to do that.

2. Look at the tiny pieces of pictures and try to guess what the main picture is... "Who" if it's a person and you think you know who, "What" if it's an animal or object, and "Where" if it is a location and exactly where do you think it is? So far, so good?

3. When you are ready to know the answers for sure, move your mouse cursor over a tiny picture piece and it will show you the main picture and give you the answer.

4. If you are the really curious type, CLICK on the tiny picture piece and a new window will pop up showing you a new webpage (not part of this blog) that gives you more details or shows something related to the main picture.

5. HAVE FUN!

A Live (Sort Of) Picture of the Sun

2009-07-19T18:55:00.000-07:00

Courtesy of NASA. Thanks, NASA.

The Discovery Channel has a whole bunch of great images of our sun here. Here's just one of them:

The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. The Earth and other matter (including other planets, asteroids, meteoroids, comets, and dust) orbit the Sun, which by itself accounts for about 99.86% of the Solar System's mass. The mean distance of the Sun from the Earth is approximately 149.6 million kilometers (93.0 million miles), and its light travels this distance in 8 minutes and 19 seconds.

Once regarded as a small and relatively insignificant star, the Sun is now known to be brighter than 85% of the stars in the galaxy, most of which are red dwarfs.
The Sun orbits the center of the Milky Way galaxy at a distance of approximately 24,000–26,000 light years from the galactic center, moving generally in the direction of Cygnus and completing one revolution in about 225–250 million years (one Galactic year).

The Sun's magnetic field gives rise to many effects that are collectively called solar activity, including sunspots on the surface of the Sun, solar flares, and variations in solar wind that carry material through the Solar System.

The sun was formed about 4.57 billion years ago when a hydrogen molecular cloud collapsed.

The above information came from this article on Wikipedia.

KidAstronomy has a bunch of great articles about the planets in our solar system and they have an article about the sun.

SunTrek is a website designed for kids to help them discover more about the Sun and its impact on Earth. There's adventure waiting there!

BOOKS ABOUT THE SUN
(various age levels)

Paint a House!

2009-07-19T13:17:00.000-07:00

That's right, you can paint a whole entire house with the JAVA applet at the Flexbon paint website. This is NOT a kid's website. It was made for adults who are thinking of painting their house and aren't sure what color combinations they want so this applet lets you try out all kinds of colors on different house types. Even though this website was made for adults, it's still FUN FOR KIDS, TOO!

Younger kids will definitely need older kid or adult help in figuring out how to use the controls on the applet.

The JAVA applet appears in its own pop-up window at the same time that the main window opens. It is not a pop-up ad. It's where you have the fun.

FROM THE WEBSITE:

Welcome to SpectraFlex - Flex Bon's Java™ enabled "point and shoot" paint applet, featuring the Flex Bon Color Source Selection of colors!

In order to paint with our applet you will need to temporarily disable any pop-up window blockers. You will also need to have a Java enabled web browser.

To paint a house, first select a color from the palette. You can scroll through the colors with the navigational buttons to the right. If you know the color number and want to find it, press the "Find color #" button and enter the number (not case sensitive).

Next, move your mouse to the area of the house you want to paint, then click. It's that easy! At any time you can press the "View selections" button to see which colors you have selected for each area of the house you've painted.

While in the "View selections" area, you can press the "Color palette" button to return to the palette screen. To select another house to paint, press the "Pick new image" button. To clear the colors you selected and start over, press "Clear list". Have fun!

Please Note: These computer video simulations only approximate the dry paint color. The actual color will vary depending on the vehicle, gloss level, application technique, film thickness variances, substrate and light source. For critical color matches, a sample of paint should be applied, allowed to dry and checked before proceeding with the entire job.

The optimal color palette setting for your video display is 24 bit (16M colors) or higher.

P.S. Yep, I "painted" those houses you see up there.

50 Great Websites for Kids

2009-07-18T05:32:00.000-07:00

KABOOSE.COM - Parenting, food, software & movie reviews, games, contests, learning, downloads, clip art, coloring, crafts, links to other kid sites.

EnchantedLearning.com - this website is so massive and so comprehensive, covers so many subjects, crafts, activities, printables, games, coloring, homework help that I can barely get started trying to describe it. Not to be missed. Especially helpful to homeschoolers and teachers.

KidzWorld.com - Games, Entertainment, sports zone, brain candy, toys, chat, boards, contests

Squigley's Playhouse -
Fun and safe activities, variety of games, online coloring, arts and crafts, pencil puzzles, e-cards, jokes, brain teasers, writing... The site is a popular resource for teachers, service club leaders, home schoolers and parents.

Discovery Kids - Discovery Kids TV, Bindi Irwin, Animals, Yucky!, Fun and Games, Webcams, Space Adventures, Sci Squad, Dinosaurs, History, more...

The Willy Wonka Candy Factory - "Feed Your Imagination" - visually entertaining website - what's good, what's happening, what's new, music, create, viewing room, registration may be necessary to get into the fun zones (this website used to be more easily accessible).

Alfy.com - Another site that uses Flash to pleasing effect with games and coloring and all sorts of fun! Alfy is free but they are promoting their pay-to-use website here. Games, clip art, puzzles, polls, forums, prizes, arts and crafts

Disney.com - This website is almost as much of an adventure as going to Disneyland - there is so much to explore, too much to describe here. Younger kids will need help navigating here. All categories represented here.

Nickelodeon - Flash. Main categories: All Nick, Games, Music, WebLab, Blab (Chat), Your World, Shop, videos, shows on channel, more...

Nick, Jr. - for parents and preschoolers to explore together - Dora the Explorer, game arcade, recipes, shows, activities, travel, videos, parenting, more...

PBS for Kids - Links to all PBS kids' shows, games, stories, polls, music, coloring, behind the scenes, get real, search site

PBS Parents - This deserves its own mention because the resources here for parents and teachers are humungous! Fun, too. A must-see.

NASA for Kids - Play games, do activities, learn how astronauts live in space, follow NASA events, clubhouse, wonderful photo gallery of outer space

Also see NASA QUEST for classroom activities.

Kids.com - Games, webtoons, adventures, kids chat, message boards, e-cards, kids' homepages, create your own stuff, music, gadgets, jokes, stories, join club, parent talk, & Kids JR.

FunBrain - Kids Section, Teachers and Parent Sections, game arcade, quizzes, numbers, words, universe, culture, more...

Pauly's Playhouse - Flash website with cartoons, games, sounds, lab, outside links, shop...

Cyberkids - Fun and games, creative works, reviews, learning center, shopping, links to other kid sites, Parents section

KidsGov - Official government portal for kids Grade Levels K-8 - Find links to government and other kids' sites - Explore, learn, and have fun!

Yahoo Kids - Games, movies, music, Ask Earl, Jokes, Sports, Ecards, Horoscope, Study Zone, Parents... NOTE: Yahoo has other websites frequented by children which are NOT kidsafe. My hope is that the websites here, which are kid-specific, are moderated and supervised.

Fact Monster - Web portal for kids from Information Please - Online Almanac, Dictionary, Encyclopedia, Homework Help, Games & Quizzes, World, USA, People, Sports, Science, More...

Surfing the Net With Kids - reviews of websites geared toward kids - covers many categories, provides links to approved websites.

National Park Service for Kids - online fun at the national parks around the USA

The White House for Kids - Go Inside the President's House, Our Presidents, Fun Facts, First Pets...

The House of Representatives for Kids - learn about our government and how laws get made and how to contact your representative in Congress

Library of Congress for Kids and Families - this is America's Library packed full of wonderful and fascinating resources.

The C.I.A. for Kids (don't miss their World Fact Book!)

American Revolution for Kids - A fifth grade class organized some great resources including a timeline, important battles, maps, symbols, reasons for the Revolution and more.

Berit's Best Sites for Children - A directory of categorized websites that were made with kids in mind.

ALA's Great Websites for Kids - from librarians, folks! Good stuff here.

Crayola.com - over 4,000 coloring pages, crafts, games and lesson plans - you can even create your OWN coloring pages!

National Geographic for Kids - Animals, Games, Videos, Stories, Activities, People and Places, Photos, more...

KidSites.com - guide to great websites for kids, categorized.

Time Magazine for Kids - Grades K-6 - worksheets, quizzes, graphic organizers, articles, special subjects, teacher resources...

Kulture Kids - Learning about the world's cultures is fun! Categories include: Games, Recipes, Crafts, Oral Traditions, True Stories, and Didja Know?

Kids Online Resources - Kindergarten through College - Art/Music · Early Childhood · Entertainment · Fun/Favorites · Games/Toys · General Education · · Geography · History · Homeschool/Curriculum · Internet Safety · Kids of the World · Language Arts · Math · · Parents Resources · Reference · Science · Special Education · Technical Support · Teen Resources · · Zoos/Animals ·

KidsClick.com - major web directory (portal) with many, many categories

Mexico for Kids - Play games and do other activities and learn about Mexico's history and culture, biodiversity, food, government... "this website belongs to the President of Mexico"

Canada for Kids - fifth grade class made a website about Canada, pretty comprehensive.

The Why Files - "the science behind the news"

Gamequarium - printables, math, science, in the news, reading, many videos, school...

CybersleuthKids.com - an internet search guide for the K-12 student - many categories

BillyBear4Kids - Lots of fun stuff here - Clipart& Fonts, Animal Scoop, Show & Tell, Fun & Games, Holidays, Post Office, Desktop Themes, Screensavers, Computer Storybooks, more...

Ask for Kids (formerly Ask Jeeves for Kids) - Schoolhouse, Movies, Games, Video, Images

PrimaryGames.com - games, arcade, puzzles, virtual worlds, postcards, print zone, downloads, widgets, much more...

LearningPlanet.com - from pre-K through 7+ - activities, worksheets, games, quizzes, puzzles, teacher tools...

MysteryNet's Kids Mysteries - Mysteries to solve, scary stories, and magic tricks

The Kidz Page - Games, Clip Art, Toys, Movies, Puzzles, Downloads, Coloring, Holidays, more...

A+ Math -developed to help students improve their math skills - game room, flash cards, word find, worksheets, homework helper, more...

Funology.com - "The Science of Having Fun!" - Jokes & Riddles, Boredom Busters, Games, Arcade Games, Wacky Facts, Magic Tricks, Yummy Recipes, Weird Science, more...

Barbie's Official Website - Games, Videos, Closet, Bedroom, Garden, Shop, Virtual World, Email, more...

Lifesaver's Candystand.com - 5 minute games, action games, Flash games, Match-3 games, Racing Games, Tower Defense Games, Sports, Arcade, Puzzle, Multiplayer, more...

Pony Bead Craft from Kaboose

2009-07-17T11:15:00.000-07:00

Difficulty: Easy
Age: 5 and up
Parental supervision is recommended
This little pin is fun to make and helps develop fine motor skills for those wee hands. Be sure to check out all of their jewelry crafts, wearable crafts and crafts for teens.

CLICK HERE to do the Flower Ponybead Craft from Kaboose.

SMILIES!

2009-07-17T10:26:00.000-07:00

Right-click and choose "Save Picture As" then save the image to your own hard drive. Upload to an image hosting service like Photobucket or Image Shack or your own webhosting space. Please do not direct link to the images here. Thank you.

SMILIES!

2009-07-17T09:54:00.000-07:00

SMILIES!

2009-07-17T08:22:00.000-07:00

SMILIES!

2009-07-17T06:42:00.000-07:00

SMILIES!

2009-07-17T05:21:00.000-07:00

SMILIES!

2009-07-16T21:32:00.000-07:00

SMILIES!

2009-07-16T19:22:00.000-07:00

SMILIES!

2009-07-16T18:47:00.000-07:00

SMILIES!

2009-07-16T17:53:00.000-07:00

SMILIES!

2009-07-16T16:40:00.000-07:00

What Pet is Right for You?

2009-07-15T09:41:00.000-07:00

Teddy bears and Beanie Babies may be cute and cuddly, but they won't lick your face, play games with you or entertain you for hours on end. For that, only a real, live animal will do.

If you are responsible and able to provide a safe and loving home, perhaps you're ready to get a pet.

But what kind? To help you choose the right pet for you, we've produced the handy-dandy interactive KidsPost Pet-O-Matic. When you reach the end, you'll find the type of animal that best fits you and information on what it's like, how to care for it and how much it costs.

Of course, you need to ask your parents first. And the main question you'll have to answer is this: Are you ready for the work involved in taking another living being into your house? "So many people take on an animal without giving it any thought," says Debbie Duel, who works at the Washington Humane Society. "There needs to be a whole lot of family thought."

Click Here to Start the KidsPost Pet-O-Matic!

LINK TO THIS ARTICLE

WANTED: TEENAGERS' OPINIONS

2009-07-15T09:21:00.000-07:00

A very interesting news article:

Media execs rocked by 15-year-old's blunt, blistering analysis

Teens don't use Twitter, nor do they read newspapers. They also hate advertisements, and they're really, really into free music.

Nope, those aren't the results of some bone-headed new survey; instead, they come straight from the keyboard of one Matthew Robson, a 15-year-old Morgan Stanley intern whose candid report on his friends' TV, music, and online habits set the media world on fire this week.

According to The Guardian, Robson's bosses at Morgan Stanley's European Media group were so impressed with the teen's report—"one of the clearest and most through-provoking insights we have seen," one Morgan Stanley exec said—that they promptly sent it out to their C-level clients.

The response, apparently, was immediate, with "dozens and dozens" of high-level clients "e-mailing and calling all day," the Guardian reports.

[...]

And so I challenge you, my teen readers (or those of you older than 13, anyway) to do what Robson did: write up a clear, concise, honest report on what you and your friends are watching, listening to, texting, and tweeting (or not, as the case may be). Send it right here (please be sure to include your first name, age, and your home town), and I'll include the best excerpts in a future post. Go ahead and let us have it, straight—the floor is yours.

LINK TO THIS ARTICLE

Gross Subject: Avoiding Motion Sickness

2009-07-13T22:44:00.000-07:00

I was a Girl Scout Troop Leader, Junior Program Specialist, Outdoor Consultant and Camp Director for Girl Scouts over the course of about ten years and that gives me a bit of insight into travel with kids. But, even more than all that, when I was a kid, I was the car-sickiest kid you'd never want travelling in the back seat of your car. I KNOW this subject well.

Even though it's gross to talk about, if anything I've learned or picked up on the internet and can pass along here can spare one kid the misery of car sickness and spare adults the chore of cleaning up, then that's a good thing as Martha Stewart would say.

It's sometimes called "motion sickness" but that really doesn't tell the whole story. In most cases, it's not just motion that's the problem. The problem with backseat car travel and kids seems to be a disconnect between what the eyes are seeing and the inner ear is balancing with the result confusing the brain until car sickness is the result.

When you ride in the backseat, your view of the road is through the side backseat passenger windows unless you really want to get a sore neck trying to see around the adults in the front seat in order to look out the front window. Most kids are going to look out that side window.

The world whizzes by in a blur and your eyes are sending funny signals to your brain. The brain can't compensate fast enough because your inner ear (the Balance Center of your universe) is telling your brain its own story as in, "Hey! This car is moving, this body is moving and I have to adjust for it to stay balanced but what the heck, Brain, you're telling me the Eyes are seeing one thing when I'm actually feeling something quite different!"

Somewhere in this conversation, The Stomach pipes up, "Okay, you guys did it to me again and now I'm gonna PUKE!" And uuuuuurrrrpp, there she blows.

Kids who are sensitive to this sort of thing would be greatly helped by being allowed to ride in the front seat so their eyes are only seeing out the front window and if the front seat is not attainable, allow them to sit in the middle of the back seat and encourage them to look out the front window and avoid looking out those side windows. To keep their eyes front and center, make up games that can only be played by looking through the FRONT window at the distance ahead. What's seen out the side windows does not count.

Letting them sleep is also another possibly helpful idea because that shuts down the eye-brain-inner ear conflict. If you have more than one child in the car, this may not be possible. Also, their chin should not be allowed to slump down onto their neck as their head drops forward. If this happens, wake them up and/or tilt them over against an arm rest or an adjacent sibling. The head dropping and chin coming forward thing can restrict the intake of oxygen which can produce feelings of nausea almost immediately upon awakening and it may take some time to get over that sensation.

If you plan on car rides that last for more than an hour, build bathroom break time (i.e., activity and moving around time) into the trip even if nobody has to go to the potty. Make them go, anyway. Yes, that's what I said. Everybody has to take a turn at least trying to go. You'd be surprised how many really do have to go but just don't want to admit it. Mandated bathroom breaks on long car rides relieves kids of any embarrassment of having to ask for a break. Surprising how that works miracles.

We all dread those windy mountain roads when kids are in the back seat but did you know that altitude has as much to do with the problem as the winding turns? Lots of people unaccustomed to higher altitudes (and it can even be a difference as small as sea level to 3,000 feet) can feel a bit queasy as the car keeps climbing.

Even after the car's stopped, all your gear is unpacked, you're safely in your motel room or campsite... you or the kids can still get the urpies at the higher altitude and it's caused many times by dehydration. If one or more of your group starts with the vague complaints of headaches or upset tummies or "flu-like" feelings when you are in a high altitude zone, make sure that person has a glass of water and does not get too physically active for a while. When you are at altitudes higher than you're used to, remember to drink water at least every hour. Even at snow camp. Yep, even then.

Even though kids in a backseat are supposed to not look out a side window, I did find that being next to a window and letting my face get hit with a constant blast of fresh air did wonders to combat car sickness. I sure couldn't see out the front window if I was sitting behind my Mom in the front passenger seat but the air felt good. So you have to figure out what will help the most.

The old original chalky-white awful tasting Rolaids also did miraculous wonders to save me from the brink of barfing so many times I can't even remember how many times. Chewing Doublemint gum also helped, but not any other flavor. I think the act of chewing gum also did something to help relieve the inner ear problem.

My Grandma used to give me a peppermint (the round pink ones, not the white ones) for upset tummies and though they did relieve very mild nausea they would not have stopped a full-blown onset of barfarama if that was imminent. Rolaids could have, though. Stopped it dead in its tracks every time.

When I had to go whale-watching and knew I couldn't take Dramamine because it would put me to sleep on the boat, my Mom told me I could avoid sea-sickness by constantly eating while on the boat, even if it was only oranges and crackers. Sounds weird, huh? You eat to avoid getting seasick. You know what's even weirder? It worked! Some of my classmates were practically gagging and saying, "How can you eat???" but hey, it worked for me.

Years after that whale-watching trip, an R.N. told me that an empty stomach can actually cause nausea. I take care of my bedridden mother and she was complaining of an upset tummy one day when the nurse was there and I said I was afraid for my Mom to eat and the nurse suggested I give her something mild, but just something. She said the empty stomach was "more aware of itself" if that makes sense to you.

Breathing and air seemed to be great nausea-relievers and you're like, "D'oh. Of course you need to breathe." But, I'm talking about the slow drainage of fresh air from the back of a vehicle that the adults never notice and a lot of kids are unaware is part of the problem they are having. A window needs to be open somewhere. Even in cold weather. It's not enough for the front dashboard to have the fans on, kids in the back seat never get the full benefit of that but you should probably have the air conditioning on if it's very hot outside. The problem with using the air conditioning is that it uses up your gas faster and your car will overheat if you are going up an incline. So, you can't really use it then. Plus, it takes an awfully long time for kids in the backseat to feel ANYTHING from that air conditioner.

And NO SMOKING when kids are in the car! If you need that cigarette, pull over and take a cigarette break outside the car while the kids get out and stretch their legs.

Plain club soda is a good nausea reliever. I was a waitress for a while and many times adults and kids would have a tummy upset while the rest of their hungry group would order food (and they couldn't). I'd bring them a glass of club soda and some saltine crackers and they always felt better afterwards.

Speaking of crackers, plain unsalted matzo crackers are fantastic for upset tummies but there's a trick to it. They come in a box and one large matzo cracker looks like a huge king-sized saltine cracker (but without the salt). The trick is to take the teeniest tiniest nibble you can possibly bite with your two front teeth and chew it as slowly as you possibly can and let it just absorb into your mouth rather than swallowing a chunk of food and then take your next teeny tiny nibble and repeat. Again and again and concentrate on the act of nibbling then absorbing then slowly letting each morsel just melt.

The concentration involved takes your mind (or your child's mind) off the focus on the upset tummy and by the time the entire huge cracker is absorbed, the nausea is usually gone or greatly relieved. I suspect this will not work with regular saltines since part of the magic here involves the blandness of the matzo.

There are now acupressure wristlets or bracelets that can be worn to relieve motion sickness and reports are good on their success rate. There are numerous brands and companies involved in the manufacture and sale of these items and even though I am not advocating one over another, I will give you a short list of some places where you can find them online (and there's lots more):
Biobands
Travel-Eze Bands
Sea Band Motion Sickness Wrist Bands For Kids
Psi Bands® Drug-Free Wrist Bands for the Relief of Nausea
NO-QWEEZ™ Motion Sickness Wrist Bands

These motion sickness acupressure bands are also reported effective for pregnancy-caused nausea and the nausea you might feel after having anaesthesia for surgery.

Avoid having your child be involved in any activity while inside a car that makes the child have to look downward in their lap (such as reading or playing handheld games or watching a small DVD player). Do not keep your child's focus INSIDE the car and all of those things I just mentioned will do exactly that. Play "I Spy" games or the alphabet game or any other game that brings your child's attention to the world outside that FRONT dashboard window.

As much as possible, help your child's brain orient to the OUTSIDE. Fresh air blasting in, eyes out the front, chatter about what you'll be doing once the car stops... anything to relieve the feeling of being stuck in a car. And remember... lots of pit stops and activity breaks.

Okay, so I have to tell at least one barfing horror story. When I was a Girl Scout Troop Leader, I allowed my carload of girls to have something to drink just before getting into the car and yes, with the assumption that we would not be driving straight home, that there would be at least one potty stop along the way.

The girls fell alseep, every one of them and I thought, hey it's lonely but this is fantastic because I'll just get them home sooner (unless someone woke up and that would mean the potty break).

We did get back to our own neighborhood after about a 90-minute drive and I gently woke up each girl as we pulled up in front of her house, making sure she got inside okay. The girls were considerate enough to not wake each other up as each one left so each girl was sleeping almost right up to her own doorstep.

Then I pull up before the last girl's house whose Mom was one of my best friends. I gently woke this girl up who'd been sleeping completely bent forward and leaned over for the entire ride (yes, her seat belt was on the whole time).

As we walked up to her front door she mumbled, "I don't feel so good..." and the very moment her Mom opened the front door, she barfed all over her Mom, the front door, the porch, and her Mom was screaming, "Get her to the bushes!" and I was tugging this poor little thing over to her Mom's plants to let her finish the job right there in her own front yard.

It seems the slight carbonation in the fizzy drink she had before getting in my car had nowhere to go once she fell asleep leaning forward and compressing her stomach. So, the very moment she was upright again, that carbonation had just been waiting for its opportunity to set itself free... all over Mom's rose bushes.

And before she actually made it inside her house, she said to her Mom, "Don't worry, I don't feel sick. I'm fine." It was just the compressed carbonation but I never dreamed of that scenario and it just didn't sink into my brain it was going to be a problem for that child.

So, I guess there are certain foods and drinks that are not good for travel or just before we go on the road. And the tummy should not be squished in and the child must be in a normal relaxed posture and not all the way bent over at an awkward angle. Live and learn.

MAD LIBS!

2009-07-13T18:23:00.000-07:00

I love this game because it's so goofy and you never know how it's going to end up until you're actually done with it. Very young kids will need help understanding parts of speech. CLICK HERE TO PLAY!

Playing Bride Dress-Up and Other Online Dress-Up Games

2009-07-13T16:13:00.000-07:00

CLICK HERE to go to the wedding dress-up page. There are other dress-up games there, too, like Pirate Girl and School and dress-ups based on celebrities popular with teens and pre-teens.

In addition to the dress-up games, they have other free online games like Makeover Games and Hair Games and more.

Some themes are more for teenagers but the games are very simplistic and the actual playing of them is geared for even young kids. It's kind of like the old Colorforms, only online.

Oh yeah, see that picture up there? That's the wedding gown I designed.

Webcams Are Fun!

2009-07-12T16:18:00.001-07:00

I love checking out all kinds of stuff on webcams from all over the place. Try these, I think you'll enjoy them. If a webcam looks dark, it's either night time where the camera is or the webcam only operates during certain hours.

If you mouse over a link (before actually clicking it), you will see a preview of what the webcam might look like. HELPFUL HINT: HOLD YOUR MOUSE CURSOR ON THE LEFT-MOST SIDE OF THE HYPERLINKED TEXT AND THAT WILL GIVE THE PREVIEW PICTURE MORE ROOM (easier for you to see the whole thing). Enjoy!

SECURITY WARNING FOR KIDS AND PARENTS: I picked these webcam views myself so I know they are all family-friendly. However, if your young person wants to go searching out even more webcams to look at, you need to know the search results could lead to content that is not family-friendly or, even if not X-rated itself, might still have links on its page that could lead to content that you would not want your young person to have to deal with so maybe an adult (somebody over 18) should be in charge of webcam searches. Just a thought.

How Good Are You at Trivia?

2009-07-10T20:41:00.000-07:00

Oh boy, there's a whole lot of resources for trivia on the internet. Mostly, they're family-friendly places even if some of the questions are tough (yes, even for adults -- ha ha, we're not naturally smart just because we're old... we have to work at it!).

I found some pretty good links for kid's trivia if you want to have a look (meanwhile, Parents, here are some guidelines for online kid's trivia that you might want to take a look at.):

Kid's Music Trivia from Squidoo (see ALL Squidoo Kid's Trivia HERE)

The Kids Only Quiz - No Adults Allowed! (hey, I'm just telling you what it says.)

Kids Related Trivia & Useless Facts (Kermit the Frog is left-handed. Did you know that? I didn't know that).

Trivia & Quizzes (WOW!!!!!!! There's a lot of STUFF listed here. Tons of links!)

Presidential Trivia for Kids

Trivia Questions for Kids (printables in .pdf format - includes Harry Potter trivia and nursery rhyme trivia and more)

Weird and Scary Nonfiction Trivia Books for Kids (I love weird stuff! EXAMPLES FROM THESE BOOKS: Do you know you have as many hairs on your body as a gorilla – and possibly more? Are you aware that most of the dust in your house is actually made of your dead skin? And did it ever occur to you that your nose can smell in stereo?)

Big Brain from Activity TV - nice-looking website, more stuff besides trivia, too.

Mount Rushmore Presidential Trivia

Kids' Valentine Trivia

Trivia Time (very fun website!)

Trivia Games About Kid's Books

Kids Konnect Trivia

NASA Trivia Quiz About Eating in Outer Space

Kids Quiz Jar - Free Kids Trivia Questions

Trivia and Useless Facts About Animals - did you know a donkey will sink in quicksand but a mule won't?

Trivia Games from Thinks.com

Animated Films Trivia from MSN Gamezone (free, online)

Michael Jackson Trivia from MSN Gamezone (free, online)

90's Trivia from Candystand (this game is set up in a fun way but, I think some of the questions are really for teens and adults)

BBC Trivia Machine - wow, this looks like great fun!

CIA World Exploration Trivia Game (very nice)

GeoNet (really fun online game!)

World Capitals Trivia

Quizlet - trivia quizzes for 8th grade and older

Fun with Kaleidoscopes

2009-07-10T08:46:00.000-07:00

THE KALEIDOSCOPE PAINTER

This is one of my favorite places to goof off while online. The JAVA Applet allows you to move your mouse around to "paint" a kaleidoscope. You can change brush size, too. The above image was made by me using their "Dynabrush" option which changes brush size automatically and constantly as you paint. I've used this applet to make images for web graphics or at least, tiles and textures that are then used to create other images. Here are some more variations (resized to be much smaller than their original size so they don't take up too much space here):

When you combine them all together in an animation "timeline," this is what you get:

You are welcome to save any of these images to your own computer and use them on your own webpage or blog or email, but kids need to tell their parents FIRST before they download (save) ANYTHING to their computer.

There are even more ways to have fun with kaleidoscopes besides this applet. To make your own kaleidoscope, GO HERE. To have fun with FREE online kaleidoscope coloring pages, GO HERE.

Here are a collection of online resources for kaleidoscopes:

And here are some great books and other fun with kaleidoscopes... Kids, remember, these places are selling something and you need to show this to your Mom and Dad. Don't try to buy anything online all by yourself.

Have fun with this interactive kaleidoscope! Just move your mouse cursor over it and see it change:

The Hubble Site

2009-07-09T16:54:00.000-07:00

FROM THE WEBSITE:

Since the earliest days of astronomy, since the time of Galileo, astronomers have shared a single goal — to see more, see farther, see deeper.

The Hubble Space Telescope's launch in 1990 sped humanity to one of its greatest advances in that journey. Hubble is a telescope that orbits Earth. Its position above the atmosphere, which distorts and blocks the light that reaches our planet, gives it a view of the universe that typically far surpasses that of ground-based telescopes.

Hubble is one of NASA's most successful and long-lasting science missions. It has beamed hundreds of thousands of images back to Earth, shedding light on many of the great mysteries of astronomy. Its gaze has helped determine the age of the universe, the identity of quasars, and the existence of dark energy.

The Hubble Site is such a massive resource, I could spend days and days there and never run out of things to see and do and learn. I love this website! You will, too.

The number one fascinating thing (for me) about this website are the incredible picture galleries that show our solar system, planets, nebulae and more. It is always amazing to look at these photographs of what's out there in space. It really is a magical universe. Be sure to click on the top link above the main picture - the link says, "Picture Album."

If you want to make your own model of the Hubble Space Telescope, you can do it because this webpage shows you step-by-step how to build it. What a great idea for a science fair project!

There's a special section here for teachers and a reference desk that everyone can use. Kids, you'll find some homework help here but the WHOLE website is fun and packed with great stuff that I know will help you in school.

Try the Glossary to brush up on your outer space vocabulary. Do you know what an "Accelerating Universe" is? What's the difference between a blue star and a brown dwarf? Exactly what is radiation, anyway? Think you're an expert on outer space? Go ahead. Take a peek.

Plan on spending a whole lot of time here because you can really get into this stuff. This place is 100% NOT boring. It is F-U-N.

And here's a fun list of books about the subjects of the Hubble Space Telescope and outer space. Remember, a book list is also a list of things to buy and kids need their parents' permission and help to do anything like that. I'm making book lists because I think parents and teachers appreciate that sort of stuff.

Ice Cream!

2009-07-07T07:41:00.000-07:00

Do you like ice cream? Millions and millions of people all around the world love ice cream. Ice cream was probably first made in China by combining fruit with ice and then found its way to Europe. King Tang (A.D. 618-97) of Shang, China was known to have combined fruit and ice and milk to make an iced cream product.

As far back as 345 B.C., after Alexander the Great conquered Egypt, he ordered that fifteen huge trenches be dug in the ground and filled with ice imported from a far distance just so he could have his favorite iced fruit dessert. 2,000 years later, that favorite dessert is still served up pretty much the same way and we call it a snow cone.

The Roman emperor Nero (A.D. 37-68) was an ice cream lover.

Ice cream has been around the USA since the early origins of our country. George Washington and Thomas Jefferson as well as Dolly Madison and other famous Americans served it to guests. New York City is home to America's very first ice cream parlor which opened in 1776 (the year America declared its independence!).

When ice started being mixed with salt in the production of ice cream, that provided a major breakthrough in ice cream technology. The hand-cranked feezer came along in the 1800's with more than one person applying for a patent, claiming they were first to invent it.

When mechanical refrigeration was invented, the ice cream shop or soda fountain parlor was born. 31 Flavors Ice Cream, anyone?

The first ice cream cones that you could hold in your hand and walk around with were first served at the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair. Chocolate-covered ice cream (also known as Eskimo Pies) was created in 1920 by Chris Nelson who owned an ice cream shop in Iowa and noticed that one of his customers was having a hard time choosing between an ice cream sandwich and a chocolate bar.

Find out even more information about ice cream here (not very young kid-oriented, exactly, but it is a great resource for older kids and parents and teachers).

Americans annually consume about 6 gallons of ice cream per person -- that's roughly 19,200 calories. What flavor of ice cream is YOUR favorite? How many other people say it's their favorite, too? Here is one top ten list made by news channel, CNN:

1. Vanilla (29%)
2. Chocolate (8.9%)
3. Butter Pecan (5.3%)
4. Strawberry (5.3%)
5. Neopolitan (4.2%)
6. Chocolate Chip (3.9%)
7. French Vanilla (3.8%)
8. Cookies n' Cream (3.6%)
9. Fudge Ripple (2.6%)
10. Praline (2.7%)

The Top 10 Ice Cream Consuming Countries in the World are:

1. United States
2. New Zealand
3. Denmark
4. Australia
5. Belgium / Luxembourg
6. Sweden
7. Canada
8. Norway
9. Ireland
10. Switzerland

If you and your family enjoy making your own ice cream, you can find some good recipes here, here, here, and here.

Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream Website has a special fun section for kids. SAFETY WARNING FOR KIDS AND PARENTS: Even though I'm sure this is a safe website, it does offer downloads of fun stuff so, kids, you must tell your parents FIRST that you want to download something before you actually do it. That same advice goes for the following webpages that offer lots of fun activities all having to do with ice cream:

If you like to make your own webpages or you like to have fun email stationery or you need pictures of ice cream for any reason, you are welcome to use any of these images and backgrounds:

And here's a fun list of books about the subject of ice cream. Some are stories and some are recipes and other things. I think there's something here for every age level so check out the whole list. Remember, a book list is also a list of things to buy and kids need their parents' permission and help to do anything like that. I'm making book lists because I think parents and teachers appreciate that sort of stuff.

Waterfall Puzzles!

2009-07-06T21:23:00.000-07:00

If you like waterfalls, you're going to have a lot of fun with these waterfall puzzles from National Geographic. You choose jigsaw or slider and if you pick jigsaw, you get to pick how many pieces are in the puzzle. There are four different beautiful waterfall pictures. CHECK IT OUT.

Rare Views of the Statue of Liberty

2009-07-06T20:44:00.000-07:00

Photographed from a rare vantage point, several of the Statue of Liberty's 25 observation windows look out over New York Harbor in an undated picture. Visitor access to the Statue of Liberty's crown reopens on the Fourth of July for the first time since 9/11. (Full story: "Statue of Liberty Facts: July 4th Reopening and More.") SEE THE PICTURE SLIDESHOW HERE

Alabama

2009-07-06T06:38:00.001-07:00

The State Flag

Alabama

The State Seal

State Bird Yellowhammer	State Tree Longleaf Pine	State Flower Camellia
State Fruit Blackberry	State Butterfly Tiger Swallowtail	State Gem Blue Quartz

Alabama is the 22nd State (admitted to the United States of America on December 14, 1819).

The word Alabama is believed to have originated from the Choctaw language and was later adopted by the Alabama tribe as their name. The word comes from the Choctaw words alba (meaning "plants" or "weeds") and amo (meaning "to cut", "to trim", or "to gather"). It may refer to the clearing of land for the purpose of planting crops or to the collection of medicinal plants by medicine men.

Where is Alabama located? It is in the southern region of the United States.

What other States does Alabama touch? ANSWER: Mississippi (West), Georgia (East), Tennessee (North), and Florida (South).

Alabama is unofficially nicknamed the Yellowhammer State, which is also the name of the state bird. Alabama's official Mascot and State butterfly is the Eastern Tiger Swallowtail. Alabama is also known as the "Heart of Dixie". The State tree is the Longleaf Pine, the State flower is the Camellia. Alabama's State fruit is the blackberry.

The State song is, "Alabama." Alabama's State Motto is, "We Dare Maintain Our Rights."

A complete list of Alabama symbols and emblems can be found here.

The capital of Alabama is Montgomery, and the largest city by population is Birmingham. The largest city by total land area is Huntsville. The oldest European settler (French) founded city is Mobile (1702). The people who were already living in the area that became Alabama when European settlers arrived were the Alabama (Alibamu), Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek, Koasati, and Mobile.

Alabama's main industries today are aerospace, agriculture, education, health care, banking, automobile manufacturing, mineral extraction, steel production and fabrication. The U.S. Space & Rocket Center/U.S. Space Camp is located in Huntsville. Alabama's early industry was heavily based on agriculture (growing cotton, for example) and depended on slavery. All the slaves were freed by 1865. One hundred years later, the Selma to Montgomery marches were three marches in 1965 that marked the political and emotional peak of the American civil rights movement.

In 1861 Alabama declared its secession from the Union and joined the Confederate States of America. While few battles were fought in the state, Alabama contributed about 120,000 soldiers to the Civil War. Following Reconstruction, Alabama was restored to the Union in 1868.

Summers in Alabama are among the hottest in the United States and southern Alabama reports more thunderstorms than any part of the U.S. Winters are generally mild.

Famous people from Alabama include Hank Aaron, Tallulah Bankhead, Charles Barkley, Hugo L. Black, Paul W. (Bear) Bryant, Jimmy Buffett, Bo Bice, George Washington Carver, Nat King Cole, Courteney Cox Arquette, Zelda Fitzgerald, William C. Handy, Taylor Hicks, Bo Jackson, Kate Jackson, Helen Keller, Coretta Scott King, Harper Lee, Joe Louis, Willie Mays, Jim Nabors, Randy Owen, Jesse Owens, Satchel Paige, Rosa Parks, Wilson Pickett, Condoleezza Rice, Lionel Richie, Bart Starr, Ruben Studdard, George Wallace, Booker T. Washington, and Hank Williams.

If you are planning to visit Alabama, a good place to start looking for information would be Alabama's official tourism website. The Encyclopedia of Alabama is also a very large resource for information on the State.

Other fun things to do and interesting things to learn about Alabama can be found at these places:

EnchantedLearning.com has many resources and fun activities (including printables) on the State of Alabama. Fun for kids and a fantastic resource for parents and teachers.

Science Fair Central

2009-07-05T21:04:00.000-07:00

I used to have a hard time with science fairs and mostly, it was because I never liked any of the ideas I came up with or, if I had "kind of" a good idea, I never really knew how to put the whole thing together. This website put on by Discovery Education takes you through all the steps and even has a great guide for parents!

The website takes students through three major steps: 1.) Getting Started; 2.) Science Fair Projects and; 3.) Science Fair Presentations. If you read through these three steps, you'll be sure to improve your own science project and maybe even end up the star of the show. I especially liked the picture in the Science Fair Presentations that showed the three-sided backing and labelled each essential part of it so you can follow their explanations about what makes a great presentation.

This website is definitely worth a visit.

Paper Toys

2009-07-05T19:56:00.000-07:00

Wow. Here's a website with all kinds of paper models you can cut out and make. We're not just talking your simple little airplanes here. Want to make a paper model of Bill Gates' house? They got that. How about a Mississippi Riverboat or a school bus or the White House or even the Taj Mahal? THEY GOT IT. You just have to see this place and check out ALL their models. The best part is, it's FREE.

A boy from Israel sent in to the Paper Toys website this photo of the models he's made... so far.

SAFETY AND HELP WARNING: Very young children may need assistance in using scissors and cutting things out as well as putting things together. They can color and draw on the models and with an adult's help, feel proud of their accomplishment. Older kids to teens and adults will have a lot of fun here.

Happy 4th of July! (MASSIVE LINKS HERE)

2009-07-04T08:20:00.000-07:00

On this day in 1776, the Declaration of Independence was approved by the Continental Congress, starting the 13 colonies on the road to becoming their own country, independent from England. If you are an American citizen or you live in the United States, you are very lucky because we are a great country that loves freedom very much. In this country, you can dream any dream of what you want to be and you can work toward making that dream come true.

I have collected a lot of great stuff for you to look at, learn from, enjoy, play with and just have fun and it all has to do with the 4th of July and/or our great country. Pick a place that you would like to visit from the menu list below. That webpage should open up in a new window.

SECURITY NOTE FOR BOTH KIDS AND ADULTS: Almost ALL websites use some kind of advertising or they ask for donations. You will probably see that at many of the links I provide here. That's not necessarily something bad but I think it's fair to tell you it will be there. KIDS, you must NEVER give your email address or any other personal information about yourself to any website without telling your parents FIRST that's what you want to do. That's also true if a website says you can download something to your computer (yes, even if it's for free). NEVER DOWNLOAD ANYTHING TO YOUR COMPUTER without telling your parents first that's what you want to do.

GAMES TO PLAY! FOR FREE!

2009-07-02T20:30:00.000-07:00

You can play any of these games for free just by clicking on the link for the game you want to try.

Some games may require rapid hand-eye coordination which may be difficult for very young children.

The Scruffs

Uncover Grandpa's secret and help The Scruffs save their family home.

Play this free game now!!

Monster Trucks Nitro

Drive massive Monster trucks over crazy cool tracks

Play this free game now!!

8 Ball Quick Fire Pool

Pocket as many pool balls as you can before the time runs out!

Play this free game now!!

Mahjong Daily

Play a different puzzle everyday in this classic Mahjong game.

Play this free game now!!

Pharaoh's Tomb

Collect as much gold as you can, avoid monsters and traps!

Play this free game now!!

Storybook

Spot the difference in the pop-up storybook.

Play this free game now!!

Penguin Push

Push all the ice blocks into the yellow holes.

Play this free game now!!

Simon Says

Do what Simon Says.

Play this free game now!!

Basketball Slam

Hear the crowd roar as you slam dunk your way to victory.

Play this free game now!!

Carnival Jackpot

Form a line of three in a row and win the carnival jackpot!

Play this free game now!!

SECURITY WARNING FOR KIDS AND PARENTS: The games I link to are okay, in my opinion, for kids to play HOWEVER, this and ALL other game websites exist by advertising and so you will see ads to buy games and/or other stuff. I think it is fair to warn kids and parents that they will be seeing ads. Kids, NEVER download anything to your computer without letting your parents know first that you want to do that.

GAME: Bowling (Play now! Free!)

2009-07-02T20:16:00.000-07:00

Free myspace games - Free blog games

People Fun

2009-07-02T14:18:00.000-07:00

Biographies for Kids presents stories of presidents, inventors, educators, scientists, and business men and women to inspire the student to follow their examples of courage, determination, honesty and willingness to work.

Each story features 7 free printables:

multi-choice test, word search, crossword puzzle, word scramble, study sheet, student worksheet, and picture to color

And, there are 7 online activites for each biography:

Online computer-graded tests, online games, jigsaw puzzles, crossword puzzles,word searches, scrambled word puzzles, and pictures to paint

Please do visit the main entry page for this great website. Meanwhile, here are just a few of the very fascinating people featured here:

News for Kids

2009-07-02T06:25:00.001-07:00

I had the idea of collecting some news (current events) resources for kids and put that into Google and one of the first websites listed is Scholastic.com and a good thing it is, too. I am simply amazed by this website. It is not only H-U-G-E, it is well organized by interest level from primary grades through teen years. The base (or "parent") website deals not just with news but with all means of making learning something fun and relevant, meaning it really matters in your life and it's not just dumb stuff you're forced to do because you're in school.

Kids, this is one website you definitely want to bookmark and keep in your "Favorites" list. Parents, that goes for you, too, because this website also has resources for parents and teachers.

Teachers, I just know you already know about this website.

The Statue of Liberty is featured in the graphic I made for this website because it just happens to be their featured news story of the week.

I will definitely be revisiting this website and will highlight other features of it. Now, on to more news resources for kids:

ABC News 4 Kids

New York Times Student Connections

Online News Hour Extra from PBS (Grades 7-12)

Time Magazine for Kids

Weekly Reader (kids through teens)

National Wildlife Federation

Science News for Kids

National Geographic's News Bites

Science News

NASA's Kids Science News Network

Business News for Kids (kids through teens)

News for Teens

Y?Press Youth News Network

L.A. Times Kids' Reading Room

Popcorn News (great site published by 8th-graders)

Wall Street Journal Classroom Edition

CNN Student News

Big News Network

The Current Events

Kids Are Heroes

2009-07-01T17:18:00.000-07:00

Do you know a kid who is a hero? Does she or he deserve to be recognized for something wonderful they did? This website is the place to honor really great kids who are already making a difference in this world. Read the stories that are here and get inspired to do something great. Or, add a new name and recognize someone who's earned the honor. You can make a difference!

I want to feature just two stories here, but I really think you should go visit this great website.

STORY ONE: When Tyler Page was 9 he watched his first episode of Oprah with his mom. She was featuring a story on children being sold into slavery by their own parents for as little as $20. Fishermen would take them miles away and make them fish for 14 hours with one small meal a day. He couldn't believe how these children were being treated and when he found out that just $240 would keep one child out of slavery for an entire year he asked her to pause the show. He asked if he could have a fundraiser in order to raise that money. His mom asked what he would do and how he would do it and three weeks later, in March of 2007 he and his buddies had their first car wash. They didn't raise the $240 but $1,200! He decided not to stop and kept having more fundraisers with more and more children wanting to help at all of them. He set a $50,000 goal, started a non-profit organization called Kids Helping Kids Leadership Academy, Inc. and surpassed that goal in just 17 months. Kids from all over wanted to help so his mom started a leadership academy where kids come and learn about integrity, honesty, communication, time management, money management and a lot more. It is truly amazing how a 9 year old boy's simple heartfelt idea could have turned into so much. Pure intentions and team work have certainly paid off.!!

Check out

his Web site.

County: Contra Costa CA, USA
School: Adams Middle School

And then there's this one: I came across this wonderful (Kids Are Heroes) website and story a few weeks ago from a link that was sent to me. My daughter Mia who is 5 years old overheard the news cast that was playing and she had a lot of questions. I explained to her what the website was, and what a good deed meant. On her own she thought of helping a man on our street who had a brain bleed and has been left paralyzed. She said "Mamma, we could help Mr. Doug!" We thought together we could plant flowers for him, so we did. Since that day she thinks of something every week that we could do to help him. This week it's washing his windows. So I just wanted to say thank you for this great thing you've passed on to her. It has been a great opportunity to teach her compassion and doing unto others.

City: Burlington ON, Canada
School: Pauline Johnson Preschool

GO AHEAD! MAKE A DIFFERENCE!

Fun Science Projects & Experiments

2009-07-01T12:41:00.000-07:00

Are you ready to have fun? Let's go!

How to Make a Tornado in a Bottle

How to Make Virtual Vomit

How to Make Flubber or Slime

How to Blow Up a Balloon With Baking Soda & Vinegar

Diet Coke and Mentos

Name That Candy Bar!

2009-07-01T12:14:00.001-07:00

Can you identify the candybar by looking at the cross section? GO THERE.

Whales and Dolphins (Cetaceans)

2009-06-30T18:59:00.000-07:00

Cetaceans are mammals that live their entire lives in the water. They include whales, dolphins and porpoises. The largest living creature on the Planet Earth is the Blue Whale. Watch this video about the Blue Whale and you will be amazed:

Sometimes, whales sing songs to one another because that's how they communicate. A lot of people like to listen to recordings of whale songs. This next video lets you hear songs of the humpback whale:
Dolphins' brains are as intelligent in their own dolphin way as we humans are in our way of thinking. Like humans, dolphins love to play and have fun even after they become adults. This video shows the playful behavior of dolphins, showing off their surfing skills during a human surfing contest: If you've enjoyed these videos and you'd like to learn more about dolphins and whales, you'd probably like these websites:

Dolphin Picture Gallery from hi-tech dolphin.com -- I used some of their photos in the mini-slideshow below this list (as well as pictures from other sources). This website is not designed for small children but it does have numerous resources on dolphins.

What is a Whale? from Enchanted Learning -- a fantastic website! Be sure to check out ALL of their whale links.

National Geographic for Kids has a whole interactive section on the bottlenose dolphin with pictures and videos and even e-cards that you can send!

The Dolphin Institute in Hawaii takes you on an interactive journey exploring the world of whales and dolphins. I linked to the Kids Section.

Dolphin Research Center -- Wow, they have games, fun facts, adopt-a-dolphin, dolphin camp, help marine mammals, and coloring!

The Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary -- sections for teachers and students and even a Kid's Corner with fun activities.

"Whale" from Wikipedia -- tons of information and links to resources and other topics having to do with whales and marine life.

"Dolphin" from Wikipedia -- also has tons of information and links to resources and other topics having to do with Dolphins and marine life.

Save the Whales -- learn their song and join children around the world on Thursday, May 13, 2010 to sing for the whales! Save the Whales focuses on educating the public, especially children, about marine mammals and the fragile ocean environment.

Whales.org -- great information resource with pictures and video.

The Latest News on Dolphins and Whales -- from Science Daily.

David's Dolphin and Whale Photos -- one of the largest collection of dolphin and whale pictures on the Web! This is the place for all fans of whales and dolphins.

Whale-Watching-Web -- All the large whale species and many dolphins and porpoises can be seen regularly on a wide range of tours, lasting from an hour to two weeks. Whale watching is a non-consumptive use of whales with economic, recreational, educational and scientific dimensions.

WhaleNet -- has sections for teachers, students, and the general public.

And here's a fun list of books about the subjects of Dolphins and Whales. Remember, a book list is also a list of things to buy and kids need their parents' permission and help to do anything like that. I'm making book lists because I think parents and teachers appreciate that sort of stuff.

Do You Play Computer Games?

2009-06-30T17:54:00.000-07:00

Sometimes, it can get very frustrating when you are really enjoying a game and you get stuck because you can't figure out what to do next. That's when you need to look at a walkthrough or tip sheet on how to play the game. One of the very best websites for this is called "Universal Hint System" or just "UHS" for short.

UHS puts their hints on compartmentalized lists so you only see the hints for one little piece of the game at a time. That way, you don't spoil the fun and adventure of doing the game for yourself. You only see the hints you really need to see. Of course, you can read through the entire thing if you really want to do that.

My only problem with UHS is that they are so detailed and so well-organized and my brain is NOT organized so I sometimes get lost and don't know how to backtrack to where I really want to be. Try to remember where you are in their hint system. Don't get lost like me.

UHS does not have hints for every single game that was ever created but they do have a lot of them. Other ideas for getting hints and helps for games might be to put the name of your game into a kidsafe search engine along with the word "walkthrough."

Sometimes, the company that makes the game will have a user manual, either free or you have to pay for it (sometimes, as much as you paid for the game). Some websites that offer downloads of games also have forums and blogs that provide game walkthroughs.

How's the Weather Near You?

2009-06-30T16:54:00.000-07:00

What's the weather like near you? Would you like to show everyone what's happening right now in your area? You can get weather news and forecasts and "weather stickers" to put on your own webpage or blog by going to Weather Underground and putting any city into the search engine. That city's weather along with a whole lot of other information and goodies will show up for you.

One of the features of this website that I enjoy are the photos taken by just regular people like you and me that show the scenery in their area. There's also advice from people about travelling to different cities so if your family is planning a vacation, this would be a good website for your Mom and Dad to check out.

This website could be a great resource for school reports and homework.

Anyway, here are a few weather stickers from around the country and the world that show what's happening right now:

Book Report Now! Website

2009-06-30T13:03:00.000-07:00

This is a very helpful website when you have to do a book report and your brain starts fuzzing over and you doubt yourself and wonder, "Um, where do I start?" This website will take you through all the steps. Really, really helpful for all age levels.

U.S. Geography Game

2009-06-30T12:31:00.000-07:00

How much do YOU know about U.S. geography and where individual States are located? Can you find them all on the map? As the little guy flies by in his plane, you click on the State named in his fly-by banner. Easy!

Bejeweled Game

2009-06-30T11:58:00.000-07:00

Jigsaw Puzzles Online

2009-06-30T09:30:00.000-07:00

I have a collection of many, many online jigsaw puzzles with great pictures that you'll love to put together. I'll show just some of them right now but check back with this blog because I'll always be adding something new!

The really fun thing about these puzzles is that even if I start out a puzzle as "very simple" or "difficult" or anything inbetween, YOU CAN ALWAYS CHANGE THAT. When the puzzle pops up, on the left side are choices that let you change the number of puzzle pieces and even the shapes of the pieces. Maybe I liked to make a jigsaw out of bird shapes but you want tetris shapes. You can do that. Below, you will see thumbnail images of puzzles with a text link beside them. Click to start your jigsaw puzzle fun!

White House Jigsaw Puzzle
Simple - 6 pieces - regular shapes

Ribbons Jigsaw Puzzle
Simple - 12 pieces - zig-zag shapes

Quilt Jigsaw Puzzle
Kind of Hard - 48 pieces - regular

Hungary Jigsaw Puzzle
Medium - 22 pieces - wavy shapes

Gumballs Jigsaw Puzzle
Hard - 41 pieces - Tetris shapes

Crayons Jigsaw Puzzle
Kind of Hard - 40 Pieces - Bird shapes

Purple Daisy Jigsaw Puzzle
Medium - 22 pieces - polygon shapes

Gumdrops Jigsaw Puzzle
Very Hard - 67 pieces - regular shapes

Patriotic Jigsaw Puzzle
Medium - 48 pieces - USA shapes

Hamburger Jigsaw Puzzle
Kind of Hard - 48 Pieces - regular shapes

Mount Rushmore Jigsaw Puzzle
Easy - 20 pieces - regular shapes

Kitten Jigsaw Puzzle
Easy - 20 pieces - regular shapes

Soccer Ball Jigsaw Puzzle
Medium - 32 pieces - round

Valentine Hearts Jigsaw Puzzle
Very Hard - 79 pieces - brick shapes

Rumwood Court Jigsaw Puzzle
Kind of Hard - 48 pieces - regular shapes

Online Coloring

2009-06-30T08:23:00.001-07:00

Do you like to color? I do! I have a great collection of links to coloring pages, both online (color and paint now) and printables (print out a picture to color later). I organized my links that way plus I added the category for adults. Adults, like me, like to have fun, too! Plus, the adult category not only contains links to coloring that are just for fun but also links to coloring that might be useful to teachers and parents.

PLEASE NOTE: The color and paint now "online" pages usually use a JAVA applet or Shockwave or Flash and your computer needs to have those things to see those coloring pages.

Also, the printables that you download and print are sometimes in a .pdf file and your computer needs to have Adobe Acrobat Reader (usually) to see and use those pages.

SAFETY WARNING FOR KIDS: Always ask your parents if it is a good idea to download anything to your computer even if you find the link to do it on a nice friendly blog page like this one.

If you cannot see the drop-down menus below, you can CLICK HERE to view them in a pop-up window.

Did You Know...

2009-06-30T06:10:00.000-07:00

Did you know the average life expectancy of your one-dollar bill is just 18 months or that you can fold a dollar bill 8,000 times before it will tear?

Did you know the dollar bill isn't actually paper? US bills are 75% cotton and 25% linen.

Did you know that 38 million bills are printed each day by the Bureaus of Engraving and Printing? That's all denominations of our paper money for a grand total of $541 million dollars.

Did you know it takes a stack of 490 bills to weigh just one pound? Did you know a dollar bill is .0043" thick?

Did you know the word "dollar," which appears on both sides of the bill, is a variation of the German word Taler, the name of a silver piece that was 1st coined in 1518?

Did you know the first paper currency issued by the U.S. Department of the Treasury were Demand Notes Series 1861?

Did you know if you had 10 billion $1 notes and spent one every second of every day, it would require 317 years for you to go broke?

Did you know Martha Washington is the only woman whose portrait has appeared on a U.S. currency note? It appeared on the face of the $1 Silver Certificate of 1886 and 1891, and the back of the $1 Silver Certificate of 1896.

Did you know the very first one-dollar bill had a picture of Salmon Chase on it? Chase was the sixth Chief Justice of the Supreme Court and Secretary of the Treasury under President Abraham Lincoln. The one-dollar bill featuring President George Washington was released in 1869.

Did you know nearly one-half of all bills printed in the United States are one-dollar bills?

Did you know that the eagle seal on the back of the dollar bill is actually taken from a centuries old seal of the 6-Nations of the Iroquois? (Except the 6-Nations seal didn't have the E Pluribus Unum banner, and it was holding 6 arrows in its talon instead of the current 13).

Did you know there are 293 ways to make change for a US dollar?