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Exercise Your Body and Your Mind!

by Reporter George Ballenger
Holladay Intermediate Magnet

Being fit is fun. That was the message at Healthy Kids Day on April 16 in downtown Tucson.

"It’s important for children to stay healthy, and you have to be fit to be healthy," says Thomas Linn, a trainer at the YMCA. "Also, it’s fun!"

Healthy Kids Day encourages healthy minds, spirits and bodies. Kids did activities like shooting hoops, completing an agility run, exercising the mind with chess, being creative by sculpting sand, learning about sugar and watching cooking demonstrations. Performances were scheduled throughout the day and included mariachi, karate, dancing, juggling and puppets. Kids who participated in activities or watched performances would get prizes, including time in an inflatable obstacle course, face painting or a discounted YMCA program.

Jessica Schultz, a pediatrician, says it’s important to have one hour of exercise every day. It can be an organized sport, individual activity or just having fun outside. People should watch less than two hours of television each day. She also talked about healthy eating, especially when it comes to sugar— water has no sugar, milk has the equivalent of four sugar cubes and juice has the equivalent of a whopping 13 sugar cubes. In addition to limiting sugar, people should eat at least five servings of fruits and vegetables every day.

Physical activities, exercise for your mind and eating healthy foods can be fun. Healthy Kids Day allowed participants to learn about healthy choices through hands-

Bird-napping a Riot in ‘Rio’

by Reporter Amanda Shake,
Esperero Canyon Middle School

Do you like movies like “Ice Age” and “Horton Hears A Who”? Do you love it when animals go on zany, worldwide adventures? Would you love to see an awesome movie this spring? Then, look no further! “Rio” is the perfect flick!

Blu is the last male bird of his kind. If he wants to save his species, he’s going to have to find the only female of his kind—Jewel. But there’s one small problem with that: Blu lives in Mooselake, Minn., and Jewel lives in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil! Blu has to travel all the way there to meet Jewel, but things just keep getting worse. An evil bird, Nigel, is plotting to kidnap the two to make money off of them, so he sends them off on a wild goose chase, separating Blu from his beloved owner, Linda. Now, it’s their job to find their way back without Nigel stopping them! Oh, and did I mention Blu can’t fly? All this adds up to the crazy, mixed-up adventure that is ‘Rio’! ‘Rio’ is rated G and is recommended for kids and tweens.

“Rio” has every aspect of an awesome film. The characters are lovable and memorable, ranging from Blu, the all-knowing, intelligent “nerd bird”, to the wacky, sambaloving Nico and Pedro. Not only that, but it has an all-star voice cast! Included are Anne Hathaway from “The Princess Diaries,” George Lopez from “Beverly Hills Chihuahua,” Jake T. Austin from “Wizards of Waverly Place,” will.i.am. from “Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa” and many more. You’re sure to find someone from a movie you’ve seen and loved. Plus, the lively music will make you want to get up and dance. With songs sung by characters like Nigel and by pop singers like Taio Cruz, you’ll have a hard time staying in your seat!

All in all, if you want to see a great, fun movie this spring, wait no longer to see “Rio”!

Injustice Affects Diverse People

by Reporter Nadira Mitchell
Holladay Intermediate

What is social justice? My definition is for people to be fair and respect each other. In April, my mom and dad took me to see Dr. Cornell West give a lecture called “Border Democracy” at a teacher’s conference. West talked about educating ourselves about social injustice in our community. He talked about how different people suffer social injustices— like indigenous people, the poor, African Americans and Asians.

The Holladay chorus performed a Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. reading theater piece with songs at the conference. Afterward, workshop participants asked us questions about social justice. They asked: Would you be unpopular if you helped someone to not get bullied? I say, well, I will just be unpopular. So what? They also asked if any of us would want to meet different people or try different foods. We all raised our hands and agreed we would do that.

Some of my classmates talked about teasing and bullying. If we follow the advice of Drs. King and West, we would reduce the amount of social injustice in the world.

Mariachis Make Music in Tucson

by Reporter Gabriel Martin,
BASIS Middle School

The Tucson International Mariachi Conference happens every year in April at the Tucson Convention Center. Mariachi musicians come from all over the country and the world to study, perform, and enjoy this form of music that originated in Mexico. This year’s conference was April 26–30.

Lots of exciting events happen. There are mariachi instrument sales. Conference goers can also participate in music workshops. And there are performances every night.

Last year, we set a new Guinness World Record for the largest mariachi group performing together. There were 555 of us, and we played four songs, including the mariachi classic, “La Negra.” You can find details and see some great pictures of this awesome event online at http://community.guinnessworldrecor ds.com/_Most-mariachisperforming/ BLOG/2323683/7691.htm.

It was so fun and cool to play with so many other mariachi musicians. I enjoy the workshops, playing on stage and getting to hear so many other great mariachi performances. There are workshops for folklórico dancers as well.

This year, the big concert with world famous mariachi bands took place on April 27 in the TCC arena. Tucson’s own Mariachi Cobre, which is celebrating its 40th anniversary, and Mariachi Los Camperos de Nati Cano performed! My band, Mariachi Sensacional, played at the Reid Park Band Shell on April 28 along with many other wonderful bands.

Korean Girl Band Rocks the World

by Reporter Christina Huynh,
Doolen Middle School

SNS, or Girl’s Generation, is a popular, nine-member Korean girl group or band. It was formed around 2007. The group so far has released two full albums, two mini-albums, and many hit singles. One of its popular songs is called “Gee” and was produced in 2009. It holds the record as the longest running song; it’s well known even in North America!

Girl’s Generation also has popular music videos, which you can find on Google or Youtube. The band is my favorite Korean girl group.

Every group has to have a leader, right? SNSD’s leader is Taeyeon. Most of the members are 21, but Seo Hyun is the youngest at 19.

Girl's Generation is popular almost worldwide. They are K-Pop's divas!

Author Writes About Desert Critters

by Reporter Harley Galaz,
Coyote Trail Elementary
Adviser: Lisa Martin

An awardwinning author named Conrad Storad recently visited Coyote Trail! Conrad writes fun, nonfiction books mostly about desert creatures like snakes, tarantulas, scorpions and gila monsters.

Storad says he had never been in the desert until he moved here in 1982 from what he described as a “woodsy Ohio town.” He started writing as an editor and reporter for newspapers and magazines. Then a photographer asked him if he’d like to write a children’s book with her. He went for it!

When he reads, Storad enjoys science fiction, historical fiction and police mystery stories. He loves to go hiking with his dog, a weiner dog he calls Princess Sophia of Tempe.

My favorite of his books is “Don’t Call Me Pig,” which is about javelinas. So far, he has written 32 children’s books! His newest is “Rattlesnake Rules.” To learn more about Conrad and his books, check out www.ConradStorad.com.

May Has Many Days to Celebrate!

by Reporter Ysie Garcia
Holladay Intermediate Magnet

May is More Than Just A Pretty Face Month, National Egg Month and Creative Beginnings Month.

According to “The Big Book of Girl Stuff,” by Bart King and his five sisters, May also contains Cinco de Mayo, National Stuttering Awareness Week, National Wildflower Week and National Backyard Games Week. Also in May: Mother Goose Day,

Save the Rhino Day, Siblings Appreciation Day, Lumpy Rug Day, No Socks Day, Trust Your Intuition Day, Hug Your Cat Day, International Sea Monkey Day and Cyrillic Alphabet Day.

May and other months have unusual holidays. Have fun every month celebrating new holidays that you may not have even known existed. But this May, definitely don’t forget to wish your mom a happy Mother’s Day!

Sorry, no Scoop stories this month.