America Lost a Legend Michael Jackson

by Fox News
June 25, 2009

Music icon Michael Jackson, whose fame spanned from his childhood with the legendary Jackson 5 to a superstar solo career that earned him the nickname ‘King of Pop,’ died Thursday afternoon at a Los Angeles hospital, a source close to the family told FOX News. He was 50.

Debra Opri, a former Jackson family attorney, confirmed the singers death after other media reported that he had fallen into a coma. He reportedly was taken by ambulance at 12:30 p.m. local time to UCLA Medical Center, where he died at 3:15 p.m.

Multiple reports said he had gone into cardiac arrest, though the official cause of death wasn’t immediately known. A news conference is expected later Thursday at the hospital, where fans have gathered to pay tribute to the singer.

Jackson’s death brought a tragic end to a long, bizarre, sometimes farcical decline from his peak in the 1980s, when he was popular music’s premier all-around performer, a uniter of black and white music who shattered the race barrier on MTV, dominated the charts and dazzled even more on stage.

PHOTOS: Click here for photos of Michael Jackson.

Jackson was born in Indiana in 1958. He rose to fame as part of the successful pop group The Jackson 5, formed with his brothers in 1967. The group went on to earn four number one hits in 1970 alone, and the 12-year-old Jackson became the undeniable breakout star of the group

In 1972, Jackson enjoyed his first solo hit with the song “Ben.” Six years later, he made his film debut in “The Wiz,” in which he renewed his friendship with producer Quincy Jones.

Collaborating with Jones, Jackson went on to become remarkably successful with his solo efforts “Off The Wall” in 1979 and “Thriller” in 1982.

From there, Jackson went on to become the undeniable “King of Pop,” winning eight Grammy awards for “Thriller” alone.

TOPIC: Click here for the latest on Michael Jackson.

During the 1980s, he became an icon with a distinct style of fashion and performing, as well, wearing one sparkling glove, bejeweled military clothing and short pants with socks.

It was around this time that Jackson began experimenting with excessive cosmetic surgery, including lightening of his skin.

In 1992, Jackson founded the “Heal the World Foundation,” a charity that brought underprivileged children to his Neverland Ranch, where Jackson would spend time with them and allow them to stay the night.

This practice raised many eyebrows, especially when Jackson was accused of molesting a 13-year-old boy who had become a regular Neverland guest. Jackson maintained his innocence. In 1994, he settled the case out of court for an undisclosed amount.

Jackson briefly was married to Lisa Marie Presley, daughter of Elvis. The union drew intense public scrutiny, there was speculation as to whether the marriage was simply an attempt to improve Jackson’s image, though he maintained that they lived genuinely as husband and wife; however, the marriage broke up after less than two years.

From there, his career never quite recovered, but he remained in the news, making headline after headline for strange and unusual behavior, including dangling his child over a balcony in Germany in 2002.

In 2004, police raided the Neverland Ranch, issuing an arrest warrant for charges of child molestation based on allegations of a boy who had appeared in Martin Bashir’s infamous documentary about Jackson. Later that year, a man filed a lawsuit against him, alleging he had been molested 20 years earlier, explaining that he had repressed the memory until 2003. However, a judge eventually dismissed the lawsuit.

In 2005, he was cleared of charges he molested the 13-year-old cancer survivor at Neverland in 2003. He had been accused of playing the boy with alcohol and groping him. The case took a fearsome toll on his career and image, and he fell into serious financial trouble.

Jackson was preparing for what was to be his greatest comeback: He was scheduled for an unprecedented 50 shows at a London arena, with the first set for July 13. He was in rehearsals in Los Angeles for the concert, an extravaganza that was to capture the classic Jackson magic: showstopping dance moves, elaborate staging and throbbing dance beats.

Hundreds of people gathered outside the hospital as word of his death spread. The emergency entrance at the UCLA Medical Center, which is near Jackson’s rented home, was roped off with police tape.

In New York’s Times Square, a low groan went up in the crowd when a screen flashed that Jackson had died, and people began relaying the news to friends by cell phone.

“No joke. King of Pop is no more. Wow,” Michael Harris, 36, of New York City, read from a text message a friend sent to his telephone. “It’s like when Kennedy was assassinated. I will always remember being in Times Square when Michael Jackson died.”

FOXNews.com’s Allison McGevna and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News

Editor’s Note: We would like to know what you think? dan@youngchronicle.com

United We Serve

NASA New Images of the Moon

By Clara Moskowitz
June 23, 2009

A new NASA probe beamed down live images of the moon early Tuesday to reveal a stark surface littered with craters, as it flew toward a planned crash at the lunar south pole later this year.

The $79 million Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite, or LCROSS, launched toward the moon on June 18 and began sending images today at 8:20 a.m. EDT (1220 GMT).

LCROSS and an attached empty Centaur rocket stage swooped down near the lunar south pole and continued north along the far side of the moon. The spacecraft is getting into position to crash down on the surface on Oct. 9.

“I am staring at Mendeleev (Lat 5.7N, Lon 140.9E), a large ancient impact basin with uniform floor deposits,” the spacecraft (or rather, NASA spokespeople writing as the spacecraft) posted on Twitter shortly after the flyby began.

At its closest approach, LCROSS was only about 2,000 miles (3,200 km) from the moon.

During the flyby, NASA’s science team will calibrate the spacecraft’s cameras and spectrometers. To study the concentration of minerals and elements in the lunar soil, the LCROSS visible spectrometer will make the first near-ultraviolet survey of certain spots on the far-side of the moon.

“This swingby is my first test of my Medium Gain Antenna (MGA) to support high science rate,” LCROSS “tweeted” this morning.

NASA plans to slam LCROSS down near the south pole in a permanently shadowed crater. The impact is intended to create a pair of debris plumes that will be analyzed for the presence of water ice or water vapor, hydrocarbons and hydrated materials.

LCROSS’s sister spacecraft, the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), arrived at the moon a few hours earlier than LCROSS to begin a stable lunar orbit. The robotic probe is expected to spend at least one year mapping the moon for future manned missions, as well as several more years conducting science surveys.

LRO and LCROSS launched together aboard an Atlas 5 rocket last week. They comprise NASA first moon mission in more than a decade.

NASA plans to use the data and images beamed back from the two spacecraft, which together represent a $583 million mission, to aid its effort to return humans to the lunar surface by 2020.

LCROSS will not be the first spacecraft to crash into the moon this year. The Japanese space agency’s Kaguya lunar probe slammed into the lunar surface June 10, and China’s Chang’e 1 spacecraft impacted in March.

Senior Editor Tariq Malik contributed to this report from New York.

Copyright © 2009 Imaginova Corp. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Source: Fox News

Editor’s Note: We would like to know what you think? dan@youngchronicle.com

Kids out of Classroom and into White House Garden

By Madison Hartke-Weber
June 25, 2009

Many parents think that good nutrition is the key to keeping their kids healthy. President and Mrs. Obama are no exception. On June 16, First Lady Michelle Obama held a harvesting party in the First Lady’s Garden on the White House grounds in Washington, D.C.  She used the opportunity to teach about the importance of eating fresh fruits and vegetables. About 30 fifth and sixth graders were on hand to help.

“Too many kids are consuming high calorie foods with little or no nutritional value,” said Mrs. Obama at the event.

 The students were from Bancroft Elementary School in Northwest D.C. They were the same kids who helped plant the garden in March. They were invited back to help harvest, prepare, and eat the product of their hard work. Harvested vegetables included lettuce, peas, and the garden’s first cucumber.

The First Lady’s Garden is the first vegetable garden at the White House since First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt planted a victory garden during World War II. About 55 different varieties of vegetables were planted in the garden on the South Lawn.

Dressed in orange jeans and a bright orange and white sweater, Mrs. Obama thanked the students for helping with the garden. She then split them into groups to perform various tasks. About half of the kids picked produce with the First Lady, while the other half cleaned the vegetables with the help of associate White House chef, Sam Kass.

Like the First Family, Kass, who was the Obama’s personal chef in Chicago, believes that it is important for kids to develop good eating habits from an early age.

“Eat apples or other fruits that you don’t have to cook,” he told Scholastic Kids Press Corps when asked for the tips on how kids can incorporate fruits or vegetables into their everyday meals. “You can also eat a small salad with meals.”

After harvesting the plants, the students carried everything into the White House kitchen to cook. With help from White House chefs, they made baked chicken with rice and peas, salads with a honey dressing, and cupcakes decorated with blueberries and raspberries.

Some students worked in the kitchen along with the First Lady shelling and cooking peas. Everyone else worked outside making salads and dressing, or putting the fruit on cupcakes.

Before the meal, Mrs. Obama talked to the students about the importance of good eating habits.

“As a nation, we need to make good food more accessible,” she said.

She pointed out that many people live in places with no grocery stores or farmers’ markets nearby. They are forced to buy groceries at convenience stores and gas stations. One-third of the nation’s children are overweight or obese, she said, and likely to have “a shorter life span than their parents.”

Many schools also need to improve the quality of school lunches and teach students about the importance of nutrition. Before sitting down to eat, she thanked the “terrific young people” in front of her, for helping to educate the nation about good eating habits.

In conclusion, she urged everyone to go home and become “little ambassadors,” taking their experiences from the First Lady’s Garden back into their own communities.

Source: Scholastic News Online

Editor’s Note: We would like to know what you think? dan@youngchronicle.com

California Brings Electric Books

By Lara Anderson
June 23, 2009

Textbooks are heavy, clunky, outdated, and expensive, according to California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. That’s why he plans to do away with them, in favor of electronic textbooks. He recently announced plans to make electronic versions of math and science textbooks available in California public schools this fall. High school math and science classes will be the first to make the switch to electronic textbooks.

Critics of this plan say schools don’t have enough computers to allow each student to use electronic books. But Governor Schwarzenegger says it’s important to make the change now because it will help kids learn-and save the state millions of dollars during tough economic times.

What Are They Like?

Electronic textbooks are read on a computer screen. These textbooks are interactive, meaning students can search the text, watch videos, print pages, highlight and make notes within the text, and add bookmarks to help organize information.

“If I want to understand a calculus problem, I could click on a link in a digital textbook and watch someone solve it,” Rae Belisle, a member of California’s State Board of Education, told The Mercury News. “Better yet, I could watch them solve it over and over again.”

And unlike printed textbooks-which usually are used in the classroom for six years-electronic textbooks can be updated constantly. This gives students access to the most-up-to-date information.

Why Now?

California officials are looking for ways to cut costs in the state’s budget. They say they want to limit cuts to education programs. The Governor’s plan to introduce electronic textbooks could help save millions of dollars for the state. With six million public school students, California spent $350 million on textbooks last year.

Schwarzenegger says electronic textbooks will cost much less than printed ones. Some of the electronic textbooks being considered for use in California schools are free.

“We must do everything we can to untie educators’ hands and free up dollars so that schools can do more with fewer resources,” Schwarzenegger wrote in the San Jose Mercury News.

Electronically Challenged

But not everyone is on board just yet. A major problem is the lack of access to computers. In fact, there is just one computer for every five students in California schools. Critics of the Governor’s plan point out that any money saved by using electronic textbooks will have to go toward technology expenses.

“Every kid, every classroom, needs access to the Internet and to a computer if you’re going to talk about putting textbooks on the Internet,” Sheila Jordan, Alameda County Superintendent of Schools, told The San Francisco Chronicle.

Jennifer Black, a San Jose English teacher, agrees. “Most of my high-achieving students have computers at home, but a lot of my struggling students don’t,” she told The Mercury News. “I don’t assign homework by e-mail or ask for papers to be typed because online access is just not a daily part of their lives.”

Positive Thinking

Neeru Khosla is the founder of CK-12 Foundation, an organization that seeks to reduce the cost of textbook materials. Khosla supports the Governor’s call for electronic textbooks. She says that not every student needs access to a computer as long as the teacher can print out pages or use a classroom projector to display materials.

“We need to get our kids excited about learning,” Khosla told The Mercury News. She says that’s just what electronic textbooks do.

Source: Scholastic News Online

Editor’s Note: We would like to know what you think? dan@youngchronicle.com

The Fine Art of Texting

By Mike Slosberg
May 28, 2009

Back in the ’70s, Tom Robbins’s novel, Even Cowgirls Get the Blues, introduced his readers to Sissy Hankshaw, a young lady born with enormous thumbs.

I was reminded of Sissy the other morning at my local coffee shop. Waiting in line behind a bunch of teenagers yakking away, laughing, goofing around, and clutching cell phones in both hands, I was struck by their remarkable thumbs. Blurred digits, dancing across cell phone keys, at speeds approaching hummingbird wings.

Obviously, I was witness to an advanced form of text messaging. Darwin was correct. These children had taken the opposable thumb to a higher order.

One day, my old friend Rocco held out his cell phone, and blurted, “Take a look-see at this mess and please tell me what it says.”

“It’s a text message,” I answered, ever so haughtily.

“That’s just brilliant, Sherlock,” Rocco countered. “I know what it is, for crying out loud. I just can’t read the darn thing!”

I looked again and realized I couldn’t read the darn thing, either. Because right there, in front of my eyes, was a puzzling array of black uppercase letters that said:

THX BDAY 2G2BT. AAMOF UR CARD MADE ME LSHMBH. SWMBO WAS FUBAR WEN I WNTD A SLEEP O. BUT @TEOTD SHE CHILLED. TY, TY, GP. UCMU. XOXOXO TOY.

Here were familiar English letters, arranged in groups that looked a lot like word clusters, and yet I hadn’t the foggiest idea what they said.

“Pardon,” I said, leaning over the shoulder of the nearest teenager. “Do you, by any chance, speak text?”

The girl smiled. A pleasant aroma of fruity shampoo and Clearasil wafted toward me as she took the instrument.

“Oh, sure. Like no problem.” She read it with ease.

“Thanks. Birthday was too good to be true. As a matter of fact your card made me laugh so hard my belly hurt. She who must be obeyed was fouled up beyond all recognition when I wanted a sleep-over but at the end of the day she chilled. Thank you, thank you, Grandpa. You crack me up. Hugs and kisses hugs and kisses, hugs and kisses. Thinking of you.”

And I thought: Good Lord! Two revelations in one day: First, that thumbs have risen out of the muck and taken wing as a major tool for communicating, and that gibberish has become a mainstream language.

But, as in all evolution, there was a piper to be paid. Thumbs and gibberish could possibly become a technological membrane, standing between Rocco and his granddaughter.

Wait, I thought. Didn’t every generation have its own version of texting – those little quirks of communication, embraced by the young, which mystified and irritated their elders? Whether it was ancient glyphs etched on tomb walls, Beatnik vocabulary, or rap lyrics, the objective was clear: Fool the big people!

Texting is simply the latest obfuscation, filtered through two intersecting realities: technology and universal laziness, creating a brevity code where thoughts can be squeezed into short monograms.

But as I eventually discovered, texting isn’t mysterious. And even though thumbs attached to older bodies can’t move as fast, it’s a cinch to master.

The important point is this: Texting puts you at the side of your grandchild, 24/7. Once you get over the initial fear of mastering this new lingua franca, TXT MSGING turns out to be as simple to pick up as pig Latin.

Just think of acronyms and abbreviations. We all know what ASAP means, right? And FYI? And etc. Texting uses lots of them. Like LOL, for laughing out loud (it could also mean lots of love, so be careful with that one). And B4N, for bye for now.

Start with something simple yet exquisitely guilt-inducing, such as: DRLG, Y DNT U CALL ME? It will blow your little darling’s mind to deal with Grandpa via text, and you’re likely to get a quicker reply than if you merely called that same phone. She’ll also brag to her friends about how cool you are.

And, more important, to paraphrase Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca, “This could be the beginning of a beautiful texting friendship.”

Source: Grandparents

Can Kids with Asthma Play Sports?

By Elana Pearl Ben-Joseph, MD
May 24, 2009

 

You probably know that asthma can cause breathing problems. So can kids with asthma play sports? You bet they can! Being active and playing sports is an especially good idea if you have asthma. Why? Because it can help your lungs get stronger, so they work better.

Some athletes with asthma have done more than develop stronger lungs. They’ve played professional football and basketball, and they’ve even won medals at the Olympic Games! Some sports are less likely to bother a person’s asthma. Golf and yoga are less likely to trigger flare-ups, and so are sports like baseball, football, and gymnastics.

In some sports, you need to keep going for a long time. These activities may be harder for people with asthma. They include cycling, long-distance running, soccer, basketball, cross-country skiing, and ice hockey. But that doesn’t mean you can’t play these sports if you really like them. In fact, many athletes with asthma have found that with the right training and medicine, they can do any sport they choose.

But before playing sports, it’s important that your asthma is under control. That means you aren’t having lots of symptoms or flare-ups. To make this happen, it’s very important that you take all asthma medicine just like your doctor tells you to, even when you are feeling OK.

Your doctor will also tell you some other things you can do to avoid flare-ups. This may mean skipping outdoor workouts when there is lots of pollen in the air, wearing a scarf or ski mask when you play outside during the winter, or making sure you always have time for a careful warm up and cool down.

Make sure your coach and teammates know about your asthma. That way, they will understand if you need to stop working out because of breathing trouble. It’s also helpful if your coach knows which steps to take if you have a flare-up. Listen to your body and follow the instructions your doctor gave you for handling breathing problems. And if you keep your asthma in good control, you’ll be in the game and not on the sidelines

Source: Kids Health

Staying Home Alone

By McGruff and Scruff
May 24,, 2009

 

In 1974, a neighborhood crime watch group was organized in South Dade County. Citizens met with their local law enforcement departments to ask what they could do to help the police apprehend a rapist terrorizing their community. From this first informal meeting, communities and law enforcement began to work together to keep neighborhoods safe and free from crime. An organization was formed, and Citizens’ Crime Watch of Miami-Dade County, Inc. (CCW) was registered as a 501(c) (3) non profit organization. Today, over 1,600 neighborhoods participate in the crime watch concept. In 1979, the crime watch concept was introduced into the public school system at one school. Because it succeeded in curbing school crime, the Miami-Dade County Public Schools (M-DCPS) requested we, CCW, expand its student crime watch program from one school to include all public schools in the county. Since that time, Youth Crime Watch of Miami-Dade (YCW) has functioned as an allied program of the public schools.

Methodology The public school system contracts with YCW to educate and train students in violence and crime prevention strategies. Children also learn that good citizenship and personal responsibility include watching out for family, friends, schools and community. YCW maintains a presence in all M-DCPS.

The foundation of the YCW program is built upon a “school safety survey” which is administered at the school during the first few months of the school year. It asks respondents to rank their particular safety concerns – those issues which they believe have the potential to cause harm to themselves or their schoolmates. YCW students, student advisors, and our staff are then enlisted in the effort to resolve those issues impeding the safety, health, and education of young people. The results of the survey are prioritized and comprise the core content of the YCW program.

The YCW program is structured to teach leadership skills to students who volunteer to learn about school safety. While they learn how to keep themselves safe, they also learn public speaking, critical thinking, leadership, and other skills that will serve them into their adult lives. This, in turn, reinforces their self-esteem and promotes positive involvement, again curbing misbehavior, crime and violence in the school.

I’m McGruff the Crime Dog – world famous for my advice on how to stop crime before it happens, and for my great sense of humor. But seriously, my job is to help people, especially kids, learn how to be safe and make their neighborhood safer. Something else you should know about me is that I go all over the country to talk to people about how they can take a bite out of crime. So if you see me in your town, come on up and say hi. You can recognize me by my tan trench coat – I never go anywhere without it.

This here is my nephew Scruff. He helps me show kids how they can stay safe. Scruff’s a good pup but sometimes gets himself into a bit of trouble. Lucky for him he’s got a good memory – eventually he remembers the right thing to do to get out of trouble. Want to know more about me and Scruff?

You can read more about yours truly in the story How McGruff Became the Crime Dog, and you can read some of Scruff’s adventures in these comic books.

Staying Home Alone

A lot of kids stay home alone while their parents are at work or running errands. Sometimes this can be scary, but it doesn’t have to be. Here are some things you can do to stay safe when home alone.

• Don’t let anyone know you’re home alone. If a stranger knocks at your door, don’t answer it. If someone calls and asks for your mom, say “She can’t come to the phone right now” and ask to take a message. Remember not to brag about staying home alone – you don’t want other kids to try to take advantage of your empty house.
• Lock it up. Learn how to lock and unlock all doors and windows. That way no one can get in, but you can get out if you need to.
• Know your numbers. Learn your phone number (and your area code), address (even your zip code), your mom or dad’s work and cell phone numbers, and the phone number of an adult who lives nearby and can help you quickly in an emergency.
• Check in with your parents. Ask your parents for permission before you go anywhere, and call to tell them when you get home. If your parents know where you are all the time, they’ll know where to look for you if they need to.
• Practice what to do in emergencies. Practice deciding whether to call 911 or “0,” a neighbor, or your parents.
• Choose a safe house. With your parents, ask a neighbor if you can go to his or her house if you need help fast.
• Be alert. If something doesn’t look right when you arrive home, like a broken window or open door, don’t go inside your house. Go to your safe house and ask for help.

Source: Mcgruff

Brothers and Sisters You got to Love them

By Mary L. Gavin
May 24, 2009

When we asked about brothers and sisters, you guys didn’t hold back! More than 2,000 kids wrote in to tell us – often in great detail – about their wonderful brothers and sisters. OK, not everyone said they were wonderful. But just about everyone said that their brothers and sisters were great at least some of the time – even when they ate all the best cereal, or talked like a baby too much, or pulled their hair. Ouch! Not nice!

 

Poems

Lots of kids even took the time to write poems about their sisters and bros. Here are some of our favorites:

Thanks for letting me use the stuff that wasn’t always mine.
Thanks for laughs and the fun times, too.
Thanks for not hitting me with your shoe.
Even when you wanted to.
– by Bailey, 11, about her 17-year-old brother Zachary

My sister is Sally
She’s silly and strange,
But she’s my sister and we’re both the same.
Sometimes we fight like all people do,
But I know she loves me and I do her, too.
– by Dean, 12, about his 15-year-old sister, Sally

Uh oh, Here comes Tamsin,
And here comes a fight,
A bubbling volcano, pushing out the walls,
Destroying a lovely day,
Smashing and bashing thoughts,
I think I’m going to pop.
And what does she say?
“How was your day, Caitlin?” I am sooooooo astounded!!!!
– by Caitlin, 10, about her 7-year-old sister Tamsin

Do you see that fighting comes up an awful lot? Just about everyone mentioned the fighting. Brothers and sisters do a lot of it, according to our survey. More than half of kids said they fight with their siblings at least once a day, with 38% saying they argue more than once a day. Oh dear, that’s a lot.

 

The Complaint Department

From what kids reported, being annoying or rude is often what most gets on their nerves about their brothers or sisters. Other complaints included:

• being too competitive
• ignoring people
• getting too much attention
• not respecting privacy (like barging into someone’s room without knocking)
• having an “attitude”
• being whiny

When they fight, most kids say they yell at their siblings or call them mean names. Almost half said they hit each other. But some of the kids – about 20% – say they ask their mom or dad to help them work out a solution to the problem. That’s a lot better than hitting and hurting each other. And even more kids – almost 40% – say that after a fight, they apologize to their brother or sister and go back to being close.

More good news is that lots of kids said they wanted to stop yelling and fighting with their siblings as much as they do. Alaina, 9, wishes she could stop screaming and crying when she gets angry with her older brother. Here, in her poem, she describes how she’s trying to get along better with him:

I’m not always mad.
His jokes keep me from being sad.
So from now on, I’ll always love him.
Try not to bug him.
And be the sweetest sister you’ve ever seen.

And Caitlin, who wrote the poem about her “volcanic” sister Tamsin, said she needs to make some changes, too. “I would like to change the number of fights we have a day to ZERO!” she said. “I would also like to change the way I do not include her in some of my things, or make her the loser and idiotic character in my games.”

Those are really good things for Caitlin to work on. It’s not always easy, but if brothers and sisters try hard, they might be able to cut down on the fighting. Maybe start with just one day and make it “No Fight Day.” Oh, how happy your mom and dad will be! And even if it doesn’t last all day, agree to have some rules about what’s OK and what’s not OK when you argue. For instance, hitting and hurting is never OK.

 

The Good News!

Enough about fighting! Let’s talk about the good stuff – like 60% of kids said they’re nice to their siblings most of the time or all of the time.

And 71% said they consider their brother or sister a friend. Even Nicholas, 8, who said he’d like his 10-year-old brother to be nicer to him. In fact, Nicholas likes his brother a lot. Just read his poem about him:

Roses are red
Violets are blue
You’re funny and nice, and smart, too!!!!!!!!!!!

Amaris, 9, wishes her younger brother Philip would start knocking on her door before coming into her room. But she really appreciates how he comes to her ball games and cheers for her.

And 12-year-old Nick said he loves that his younger sister Lexy is really competitive. It makes her fun to play with, he said. Here’s his poem:

My sister’s name is Lexy
She can sometimes be a pain!
But she’s someone to play with, when you can’t go in the rain.
We fight sometimes when we get mad, like bros and sisses will do.
Though I can always count on her,
In life, all the way through!

 

Into the Future

A lot of kids agreed with Nick about brothers and sisters sticking together through the years. In fact, 75% of kids said they expected to still hang out with their brothers or sisters even when they’re grownups.

That’s a funny thing to think about. Today, you’re sharing the back seat of the car, but one day you will be all grown up and driving the car! And maybe your kids and your brother’s or sister’s kids will be sitting together in the back seat. They’ll be cousins. Do you think they’ll fight too? Probably not as much as brothers or sisters would. Oh no, when you are grown up, you’ll be the parent having to break up the fights!

But for now, you’re still a kid. Life with brothers and sisters can be rough and tumble sometimes, but there’s a lot of fun and good times to be had too. The next time you want to complain about your brother or sister, consider this: We asked only-children (kids who don’t have brothers or sisters) if they wished they had a brother or sister. What do you think they said?

Nearly all said…YES

Source: Kids Health

Playing after-school sports

By Alexander
May 24, 2009

Dear Alexander,

My friends are playing after-school sports. I’d like to play with them, but how can I stay safe when there will be so many different people around me?

You need to be prepared and to tell everyone about your food allergies. Talk about your situation with the coach. Your parents will want to talk to your doctor to get advice, so they can pass this advice and their knowledge on to the coach. The coach should know whether or not it is possible for you to play safely.

Once you’re playing, you’ll always want to have epinephrine on the sidelines, and you should make sure that there is an adult present who can use it at all times. Bring your own snacks and water. Luckily, in sports, snacks are usually eaten only at the end of the game.

Good luck!

Your friend,

Alexander 

Source: Faan Kids

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