kidsworld news allegan 01 30 15

ew Informational Publication h

Just For Kids!Just For Kids!Kids’ World News www.kidsworldnews.net Volume 1, Issue 3, February 2015

We Welcome You to Check Out 0ur Website www.kidsworldnews.net

February 2015Allegan County

EditionFREE

For Kids To Enjoy!

ColoringContest

Entry Inside!See Page 2For Details

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Thanks!Thanks! To All Of Our Sponsors Who Are Helping Us ToProvide Great Information To Kids And Parents

February is full of celebrations as wella Here’s five reasons we celebrate! Wec

The 100th Day of School is celebrated

i It’s the celebration of love, where we show our

a Wow! That’s a lot of celebrations!

W Have a happy February!

P

www.kidsworldnews.net February 2015, Page

The coloring contest rules are as follows:

E There will be a first place winner

f The winner will

r A Kids’ World News certificate and t-

s

T Hope, Oke-

m 48864. The winners will be announcedo

[email protected]). If you would like to submit an article from yours [email protected] Kids’ World News is designed to give exposure to all area schools,r We welcome imput from all our area schools. We do however, re-s

Kids’ World News www.kidsworldnews.net February 2015,

What a wonderful month February is! February is full ofcelebrations as well as the shortest month of the year!Here’s five reasons we celebrate! We celebrate BlackHistory month where we remember and honor importantmen, women and historical events that changed our nationand the world. Ground Hog Day was February 2nd. The100th Day of School is celebrated in classrooms with funactivities and creative projects for students to enjoy.Valentine’s Day is the 14th. It’s the celebration of love,where we show our affection for friends and family withcards, candy and classroom parties. President’s Day is February 16th. Wow! That’s a lot of celebrations! Wewould like to thank our wonderful sponsors who help us bring this paper to you each month and thank you forreading it! Have a happy February!

Hi Kids!

Annual Coloring Contest!

Contest Rules:

Please join us by participating in the coloring contest! The coloring contest rules are as follows: Enterthe contest by coloring the picture provided on the Coloring Corner page in this Kids’ WorldNewspaper. There will be a first place winner from each grade (in our county) - kindergarten, 1stgrade, 2nd grade, 3rd grade, 4th grade, 5th grade and 6th grade. The winner will receive a Kids’ WorldNews certificate and t-shirt! The entries must be received by no later than February 27, 2015 at yourschool office.

The winners will be announced in the April 2015 edition!

Order Your Kids’ World Cookbook Today!Fantastic 48 page cookbook with our most popular recipes!

Name ________________________ Address __________________________________________________ Quantity ____To order: Fill out this order form. Send $6.00 each (includes shipping and handling) to:

Kids’ World News, 2418 Mount Hope, Okemos, Michigan 48864 (Allow 3 weeks for delivery)


Dix Street SchoolHour Of Code

Dix Street Elementary students take on the Hour of Code in Decemberand learn what goes into the video games they like the play.

Playing games on the computer is something many kids like to do, butthanks to the Hour of Code, they are also interested in getting behindthe scenes.

4th grade students at Dix Street Elementary were all introduced to theworld of computer programming in December. Computer ScienceEducation launched its 2nd annual week-long push to get students toexperience an hour of code. The Hour of Code encouraged teachersto have their students log on and write code, the language thatcomputers speak in order to do what you want them to do. There werevarious levels of computer programming students could try out, assimple as telling game characters what to do, to having studentsdecide on the rules of games or as complicated as creating programsfrom scratch.

Elementary technology teacher Michael Miller focused his technologyclasses on the Hour of Code so every student got at least some

exposure to computer programming, “I feel that coding/programmingis a highly sought after skill that we need to promote to students andparents.” He also encouraged teachers to check out the computer labsto fulfill the hour and many of them did.

Kindergarten through 2nd grade students played a game called TheFoos; they had to figure out how many steps or jumps the character inthe game needed to go to get a star or coin, or get away from barrelscoming at them.

In the older grades, like the 4th graders in Mrs. Kloster-Larkey and Mr.Jewett’s class, students experimented with online video games wherethey could decide what happens. For example, if a ball drops on theground, they could decide if you get a point or if they game is over.Mr. Jewett’s class played a game called Flappy Bird, “They learnedhow to make the bird move and dodge the different obstaclesthroughout the game. They also had to come up with rules for whatcaused the bird to die or make the game over,” Mr. Jewett explained.But the programming didn’t end there, “Students had to learn how toprogram the game with different codes so that someone else couldplay it.”

The rules of the game were up to them. Once it was decided, the kidscould actually share the web address of what they created and otherscould play their game, “My students seemed to love it,” he says.

Overall, the week was asuccess with kids cominghome to tell their parentsabout making videogames. For more on theHour of Code or to try outany of the games andtutorials that our studentslearned, you can do thatany time at www.code.org.

Mr. Jewett's 4th graders create their own rules for a video game while working on their Hour of Code.


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February 2015, Page

Name__________________

School__________________

Grade__________________

T-Shirt Size__________________

Official Annual Coloring Contest Picture - See Rules On Page 2


East Martin Christian

In January, our fifth througheighth grade students spend aday downhill skiing.

Since some fifth grade studentshave never skied, P. E. teacherChris Bierenga instructs studentson the basics before they hit theslopes. By the end of P.E. ski day,every one is skiing successfully,and some snowboard as well. Itis a day the older students lookforward to every winter.

Come spring, our middle school students also have a track and field day withother schools. Students train for several weeks and have a chance to test theirskills in a fun and competitive setting.

At East Martin Christian School, we are blessed to help our students developacademically, socially, and spiritually, as well as provide many experiences thathelp them grow into adults who enjoy an active, healthy lifestyle.

Students at East Martin Christian participate in several special activity daysthroughout the year. We encourage our students to develop skills that lead to awell-rounded life both now and as they mature. Every December, our entireschool goes roller-skating. Older students pair up with younger students to helpthem learn to roller-skate, and to promote strong bonds between studentsacross the grade levels. By the time we head back to school, even our youngeststudents have learned the basics of skating, and the older students improve yearby year.

Promoting strong bonds between students across the grade levels


Rules For The Kitchen!1. Always ask an adult if you can use the kitchen.2. Have all the ingredients before you start.3. Wash your hands before you touch food.4. Wear an apron or towel to keep your clothes clean.5. Always clean up when you are finished.

Cookin’ FunCookin’ Fun

Heart Shaped Pizza

Prepared Pizza DoughMozzarella Cheese, shreddedPizza SauceToppings of your choice

Spread out the pizza dough and cut into balls using a smallbowl. Shape it by forming the top of the circle like the top of aheart. Make a point on the bottom half. Top with pizza sauce,cheese and toppings of your choice. Then bake until done usingthe standard pizza directions.

Valentine Crispy Treats

1/2 cup butter10 cups Crispy Rice Cereal9 cups Miniature Marshmallows2 cups Candy Hearts (tiny red spiceones)Candy Hears (the ones with messages)3/4 cups Miniature Chocolate ChipsRed Food Coloring

Melt butter and marshmallows in a sauce pan over low heatand stir until smooth. In a large bowl, mix rice cereal, candyhearts (tiny red ones) and miniature chocolate chips together. Tomarshmallow mixture, blend in 2 drops of red food coloring. Addmarshmallow mixture to cereal mixture and stir quickly to com-bine them. Spread out in a large buttered pan and smooth withbuttered hands. While warm, press on the candy hearts withmessages and space them about 2 inches apart. Refrigerate andcut into squares.

Valentine Pretzels

White Chocolate ChipsWhole Pretzel RodsRed, white and/or pink sprinklesWax paper

Melt chocolate in the microwave - besure to stir it often until smooth. Dip 1/2of the pretzel rod in the chocolate andplace on the wax paper. After thechocolate has hardened, dip again andthen roll the pretzel rod in the sprinkles.Place it on a new sheet of wax paper toharden.

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Kids exercise all the time without even thinking about it. Justbeing active, like when you run around outside or play dodge ballat school is a kind of exercise. What else counts as exercise?Playing sports, dancing, doing push-ups and even reaching downto touch your toes. When you exercise, you’re helping build astrong body that will be able to move around and do all the stuffyou need it to do.

Exercise Makes Your Heart HappyYou may already know that your heart is a muscle. It works hard,

pumping blood every day of your life. You can help this importantmuscle get stronger by doing aerobic exercise!What is aerobic? Aerobic means “with air” so aerobic exercise

is a kind of activity that requires oxygen. When you breathe, youtake in oxygen and if you’re doing aerobic exercise, you may no-tice you’re breathing faster than normal. Aerobic activity can getyour heart pumping, make you sweaty, and quicken your breath-ing.When you give your heart this kind of workout on a regular basis,

your heart will get even better at its job - delivering oxygen (in theform of oxygen-carrying blood cells) to all parts of your body.Aerobic exercises include swimming, basketball, ice or roller

hockey, jogging (or walking quickly), in-line skating, soccer, cross-country skiing, biking or rowing. And don’t forget that skipping,jumping rope, and playing hopscotch are aerobic activities.

Exercise Strengthens MusclesAnother kind of exercise can help make your muscles stronger.

Did you ever to a push-up or swing across the monkey bars at theplayground? Those are exercises that can build strength. Byusing your muscles to do powerful things, you can make themstronger. Exercises and activities that build strong muscles arepush-ups, pull-ups, running, in-line skating and bike riding.

Exercise Makes You FlexibleCan you touch your toes easily without yelling ouch? Most kids

are pretty flexible, which means that they can bend and stretchtheir bodies without too much trouble. This kind of exercise often

Exercise Does MoreThan You Think!

feels really good, like when you take a big stretch in the morningafter waking up. Being flexible is having “full range or motion,”which means you can move your arms and legs freely without feel-ing tightness or pain. It’s easy to find things to do for good flexibilitysuch as tumbling, gymnastics, yoga, dancing (especially ballet)and martial arts. Simple stretches such as touching your toes orside stretches are good too!

Exercise Keeps The BalanceFood gives your body fuel in the form of calories, which are a

kind of energy. Your body needs a certain amount of calories everyday just to function, breathe, walk around and do all the basic stuff.But if you’re active, your body needs an extra measure of caloriesor energy. If you’re not very active, your body won’t need as manycalories. Whatever your calorie need is, if you eat enough to meetthe need, your body weight will stay about the same. If you eatmore calories than your body needs, it may be stored as excessfat.

Exercise Makes You Feel GoodIt feels good to have a strong, flexible body that can do all the ac-

tivities you enjoy - like running, jumping and playing with yourfriends. But you may not know that exercise can actually put youin a better mood.When you exercise, your brain releases a chemical called en-

dorphins which may make you feel happier. It’s just another rea-son why exercise is cool!

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Mechanics or Automotive Service Technicians fix cars or trucksthat have broken down. Today, it is a high technology job as carsand trucks are run by electronic systems and computers.Mechanics have to be able to figure out the source of the prob-

lem quickly and correctly. The modern vehicle’s computer will tellthe mechanic how well the car is performing and then he or shemust be able to work with this electronic equipment that will pin-point the problems with the vehicle. Knowledge of how the partsof the car or truck work together is required. A mechanic alsoneeds to be able to read and understand manuals on machinerythat is computer based. Working with power tools and hand tools,some places of business require the service technician to workwith their own tools.

I Want To Be AnAuto Technician!

Safety is an important part of the mechanic’s career. Liftingheavy parts and tools, minor cuts and bruises are common. Sincemost service shops are indoors, it is important they keep their areaof the facility clean in order to prevent accidents. Many service technicians have a check list that they follow for the

company they work for. They check belts, hoses, plugs, brakes,fuel systems, etc. Some will only work on certain parts of a car ortruck - like a brake specialist or air conditioning specialist.Most auto mechanics work at least a 40 hour week and many

service shops are open on the weekend or evenings. Since theywork with customers, people skills are a requirement. A mechanicalso needs to have good reading, math, and computer skills. Formal training programs in the classroom and hands-on prac-

tice is needed to enter this field. This can be gotten from voca-tional schools or community colleges. The training can last sixmonths to two years. When the training is completed and passed,the mechanic can get a certificate or with a two year college edu-cation, an associates degree. Plus to keep up with the new vehi-cle repair, additional training and schooling may be needed overthe years.

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Mon.-Fri. 8am-6:30pm, Sat. 8am-1pm, Closed Sunday


www.midwestmotorsonline.com

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(269) 685-9197Auto Sales and Service - Plainwell

The American car: few things define an individual better than the car they driveand nothing better defines a movie or TV series than the car the lead characterdrives. For years people from all walks of life were known by their cars andthat recognition spilled over into TV shows and movies in a big way.WHAT WERE SOME OF THE ICONIC CARS OF THE 80s?• MIAMI VICE – 1986 FERRARI TESTAROSSA • KNIGHT RIDER – 1982 CUSTOMIZED PONTIAC TRANS AM• THE A-TEAM – 1983 GMC G-15• BACK TO THE FUTURE - 1982 DELOREAN DMC-12• GHOSTBUSTERS – 1959 CADILLAC MILLER-METEOR HEARSE

MIDWEST MOTORS

ATeam

February 2014, Page

On November 19, 1831, James Garfield was born in a log cabinin what is now Moreland Hills, Ohio. He was the last of the logcabin presidents. Fatherless at 17 months old, he was brought upby his mother Eliza Ballou, his sisters and his uncle. They had towork for everything starting at a young age. His education waslocal in Orange City Schools, then Eclectic Institute (later calledHiram College) and then transferring to Williams College in Mas-sachusetts. He graduated in 1856 as an outstanding student.On November 11, 1858, he married Lucretia Randolph. They

had a large family of seven children.He preached for a short time at Franklin Circle Christian Church.

Then taught at Eclectic Institute as an instructor in classical lan-guages before he became the president of the institute from 1857to 1860. Garfield studied law privately and was admitted to theOhio bar in 1860.He was elected as an Ohio State Senator in 1859. There, he

worked at encouraging the Southern states back into the Union.With the start of the Civil War, Garfield was commissioned as alieutenant colonel in the 42nd Regiment of Ohio volunteers. In1862, he led a brigade at Middle Creek, Kentucky against the Con-

federate troopswhich was suc-cessful. The Con-federates had5,000 men and 12cannons, Garfieldhad only 1,100men. The battlewas one of themost importantminor battles ofthe war. At theage of 31, he be-came a BrigadierGeneral.In 1862, he was

James Abram GarfieldOur 20th President (1881)

elected to the Congress. At the urging of Lincoln, he resigned fromthe military and took his post. Garfield repeatedly won re-electionfor 18 years and became the leading Republican in the House. Hewas elected as a United States Senator (while still in the House ofRepresentatives) in 1880, but became president instead.He was elected President by a margin of 10,000 popular votes.

He was the first member of the House of Representatives to beelected President. As President, he took a stand against politicalcorruption. The growing strength of his administration and popu-larity continued to grow.Garfield was shot in a Washington railroad station on July 2,

1881, twice. One bullet grazed his arm and the other entered hisback and lodged itself somewhere in his body. He died Septem-ber 19, 1881, living only a few months after being shot. Garfieldbecame the second president to be assassinated - Abraham Lin-coln being the first. He also served the second shortest term asPresident of the United States.

Birthplace ofPresident Garfield


Music Appreciation - TheKalamazoo Symphony Orchestra has along history as a supporter of schoolmusic programs. They recentlycollaborated with Allegan schools toprovide a String Quartet to visitDawson Elementary. Students weretreated to a short concert and a lessonregarding stringed instruments. In thephoto, students were asked to raisetheir hands as the music got louder. Abig THANK YOU to the KSO forproviding this opportunity.

Dawson Elementary

West Ward Elementary

It sounds like a simple premise….but it never hurts tobe reminded! Students at West Ward Elementary areengaged in a positive behavior, anti-bullying initiative thatfocuses on school-wide change through simple daily actions.NICE stands for:

N – NoticeI – InviteC – ChallengeE – Empower

The photo shows the kickoff assembly for the Be NICE campaign,which was funded in part by the West Ward PTO. Students arelearning how to invite others to play, make someone laugh, give acompliment, and more!

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If you would like to see Kids’ World News at your schoolor if you would like to be one of our proud sponsors

please call Community Shoppers Guide - (269)694-9431.

Kids’ World News is designed to giveexposure to all schools in Allegan County,

recognition of students and staff members.We welcome input from all our area schools.We do however reserve the right to edit.

Be NICE!


North Ward Elementary NORTH WARD ELEMENTARY (Allegan Public Schools)

Cooking For Kids – Students at all four Alleganelementary schools have been participating in a cookingand nutrition class, sponsored by Van Buren ISD throughthe “Cooking Matters” program. The three-week sessionis free for 3rd-5th graders and takes place after school inthe middle school home-ec room. Students learn aboutfood safety, basic cooking skills, nutritious food choices,budgeting, and new flavors!

PINE TRAILS ELEMENTARY (Allegan Public Schools)SPELLING BEE – Eleven 5th grade students participated in a Spelling Bee at Pine Trails Elementary on January 8. The winner (pictured on right) wasAlexis Neff from Mrs. Herlein’s class and the runner-up was Gabriel Harnel from Ms.Guy’s/Mr. Berlin’s class (pictured on left). Also pictured is 5th gradeteacher Mrs. Herlein who organized the Spelling Bee. The two winners will go on to compete in the Regional Spelling Bee in Wayland on February 10. Inthe group photo, all 5th grade participants included: (front row) Charlie Wedge, Gabe Harlan, Kyan Grauman, Kylee Sayles, Jonathan Sebesta, Aedin Allenand (back row) Olivia Clearwater, Alexis Neff, Brooke Houser, Ethan Houser, and Dalton Neese.

Pine Trails Elementary


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tions, and homes. This means a lot of their wildlife is being threat-ened. High at the top of the Monte Cristo mountain, there is a cloudforest in a national preserve. The governments of El Salvador, Hon-duras, and Guatemala are all working to protect this piece of na-ture.• Although there is no official religion, Catholicism is the most com-monly practiced religion. • Major agricultural exports include coffee, sugar, corn, rice, shrimp,and beef. • There is a lot of biodiversity in El Salvador! The ocelot is native tothe country, as well as the torogoz, which is the national bird. Manyorganizations are working to protect the forests and wildlife. • Their forests are growing! It is one of the only countries where re-forestation is taking place.

Republic OfEl Salvador

• El Salvador is the smallest country in Central America. It is onlyabout 8,100 square miles. It is the only Central American countrythat doesn’t have a coastline on the Caribbean Sea. El Salvadorborders the Pacific Ocean on the south, and the countries ofGuatemala to the west and Honduras to the north and east.• The capital of El Salvador is San Salvador. • The population is over 6 million people!• The currency of El Salvador is the U.S. dollar. El Salvador hasthe third-largest economy in South America and has been themost industrialized country in the region. • The government is a republic.• El Salvador has a tropical climate, with a dry and a wet season.Hurricanes can occur, but not very often. More common naturaldisasters in El Salvador are droughts and heavy rainfall. • El Salvador is known for it’s volcanoes! The country suffers fromfrequent earthquakes and volcanic activity. • The most commonly spoken and official language in El Salvadoris Spanish. • El Salvador gained independence from Spain in 1821 and againfrom the Central American Federation in 1939. September 15 istheir national holiday. • El Salvador is known for it’s beaches as well! Some of the beau-tiful beaches are home to international surfing competitions. • The El Salvador flag has two colors and a crest in the middle.The two colors are blue and white.• The most popular sport in El Salvador is soccer.• Many forests in El Salvador have been used for wood, planta-

An activevolcano inYzalco,

El Salvador

Michigan has designated the Chlorastrolite or Isle Royale Green-stone as the official state gem by Michigan’s 76th Legislature (Act56, PA 1972) in 1973. It was introduced by Representative Rus-sell Hellman of Dollar Bay. It is a variety of the mineral pumpel-lyite. The chlorastrolite or greenstone is a bluish-green stone witha pattern of slender, star-like crystals which results in what iscalled a “turtle back” pattern.

The greenstone is found in the Keweenaw Peninsula in theUpper Peninsulaof Michigan andIsle Royale inLake Superior. Itis however, pro-hibited to searchfor these gem-stones on IsleRoyale.They appear as

dark green, smallround or almondshaped nodules inthe basaltic rock.In some casesthese noduleshave weatheredout of the volcanicrock and can befound along theshoreline. Unfor-tunately, only asmall percentage

Michigan’s Offical Gem:The Chlorastrolite or Greenstone

of the green nodules are actual greenstones, as most are chlo-ride, prehnite or some other mix of minerals. And of course, of allthe greenstones found, perhaps only a few out of every hundredare gem quality.It is difficult to identify an unpolished pebble of chlorastrolite. Mostgem quality greenstones are very small, and it is rare to find onethat is larger than a half inch. The largest gem quality stone is inthe Smithsonian and measures 1.5 by 3 inches.Polished stones are used for stickpins, rings, earrings, cufflinks,

pendants, and sometimes incorporated into inlays and mosaics.


Kid’s Love ToExplore Michigan!

www.kidsworldnews.net February 2015, Page

There are some legends when it comes to Valentine’s Day. Weautomatically have given cards, candy, gifts to our loved ones andjust assume the holiday has always been. But every holiday be-gins somewhere and here are some of the legends.It was named after St. Valentine. Just who is that mysterious pa-

tron saint? St. Valentine was a priest that served during the thirdcentury in Rome. When Emperor Claudius II decided that singlemen made better soldiers than those with wives and families, heoutlawed marriage for young men since they were the potentialsoldiers. The priest named Valentine, who realized the wrong-ness of this decree, went against Claudius II and married couplesin secret. This was against the law. When his actions were dis-covered, Claudius ordered that he be put to death.According to another legend, Valentine actually sent the first

“Valentine” greeting himself. While in prison, it is believed thatValentine fell in love with a young girl - who may have been the

jailor’s daughter- who came andvisited him. Be-fore his death, itis said that hewrote her a letterwhich he signed,“from yourValentine” andthat expressionis still usedtoday.

Valentine’sDay cards didnot become pop-

Valentine’s DayTrivia!

ular until the 18th century in Western countries. Handmade cardswere often the gifts, but confections like chocolate were given also.The first person that mass produced paper valentine’s in Americawas Ester A. Howland in the late 19th century. Now over 1 billionValentine’s Day cards are sent every year.

Here’s Some Trivia!In Wales, wooden love spoons were carved and given as gifts on

February 14th. Hearts, keys and keyholes were favorite decora-tions on the spoons. The decoration meant, “You unlock myheart.”In the Middle Ages, young men and women drew names from a

bowl to see who their valentines would be. They would wear thesenames on their sleeves for one week. To wear your heart on yoursleeve now means that it is easy for other people to know how youare feeling.In some countries, a young woman may receive a gift of cloth-

ing from a young man. If she keeps the gift, it means she willmarry him!

ColorMe!


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