Rex Is a King Among Illustrators
by Reporters Liam Carmichael & Jon George-Sanchez
Coyote Trail Elementary
Adviser: Lisa Martin
Local author and illustrator Adam Rex just came to
our school for a full-day author’s visit. Since my friends
and I had read some of his books, we were invited
to interview him. We were really excited because we
have been reading one of his chapter books, “The True
Meaning of Smekday,” and love it!
If you’re thinking, “Hmm, I don’t know about this
book. Smekday?,” hear us out because this writer is
amazingly funny. This hilarious book is about an
11-year-old girl who is trying to fi nd her mom. Her mom
was abducted by aliens during an invasion. The book
is a great adventure novel for ages 8 –12. The wild
road trip that the main characters take ends up in
Tucson, so it’s a fun read during this year of the
Arizona Centennial.
Speaking of Arizona, Rex grew up in Phoenix and
lives in Tucson. He says he wanted to be an artist
since he was 5. His brother was 8 at that time and was
better than he was at everything. He once heard his
brother complain to their mom that it wasn’t fair that he
was only 5 and a better artist. Rex was thrilled that this
annoyed his brother, so he wanted to do the one thing
that his brother wasn’t good at—art.
Lucky for us, because Rex is a wonderful illustrator.
He has illustrated books for other authors and his own
books. A great picture book of his for younger readers
is “Tree Ring Circus.” His most recent chapter book is
“Cold Cereal.” It’s the fi rst book of a new series, which
will be followed
by a book
called “Unlucky
Charms.”
The main
character in
“Cold Cereal,”
Scottish Play-
Doh, aka
Scott, has
more than
an unusual
name. He
sees things that others cannot, such as an actual
leprechaun named Mick. Mick is on the run from an evil
cereal company that has plans to take over the world.
Can Scott and his friends stop this sinister plan? We
urge you to read this entertaining book to fi nd out.
Other great Adam Rex books include “Frankenstein
Makes a Sandwich,” “Frankenstein Takes the Cake,”
and “Pssst!” Find out more about Adam Rex and his
books at adamrex.com. If you want to see and hear
him LIVE, go to the Tucson Festival of Books on March
10–11 at the UofA campus. He’ll be presenting and
signing books several times throughout the weekend.
See the schedule in this issue of Bear Essential News
or check out tucsonfestivalofbooks.com.
Bike Fest Starts This Month
by Reporter Amera Roberts, Drachman Montessori
Adviser: Carol Kennedy
The Bike Fest has been around for 20 years, but it used to be called Clean
Air Days. The purpose of the celebration is to show bicycling as a safe way to get
around. There’s a lot of events going on from March 17 through April 22.
One celebration with the Bike Fest—it is called Cyclovia. It is a car-free event,
where you can walk, skate, run, bike, and talk with your neighbors. This event is on
Sunday, March 18, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. It begins downtown at Armory
Park. It makes a 5-mile circle. You can come and watch the event at
the park next to the school because it goes past our school.
Another celebration is Bike to the Zoo Day on April 21. Bike to the
Zoo is sponsored by GABA (Greater Arizona Bicycling Association).
When you get there show your helmet at the GABA
table, then you will get a free ice cream and free admission
to the zoo. They will have a bike rack to lock up your bike
on while you are walking around the zoo.
For more information go to www.bikefesttucson.com to
join all, you have to do is show up at the event.
I hope you have a nice time at the event!
Arizona Wildcat
Baseball Is a Hit!
by Reporter Trevor Andresen
Rattlesnake Ridge Elementary
After Sunday’s big game against North
Dakota State, I got to interview two Arizona
baseball players and their head coach. The
players are David Lopez and Konner Wade.
The head coach is Andy Lopez.
As of press time, the Cats are ranked
# 7 in the country! When I interviewed Coach
Lopez, he stated that he has a strong faith in
God. He expects his team to use their Godgiven
abilities and not try to do more than
they can.
Another cool thing about this year’s team
is they have moved to Hi Corbett Field.
The players said there isn’t much difference
playing at Hi Corbett except for the fans. They
love having more fans and like that they support
them. David Lopez is a senior and wants
to get his Masters degree in religious beliefs.
Wade is a junior and wants to continue
playing baseball for as long as he can. The
players think that when they start Pac-12 play,
every game is going to be important.
The players hope to have a good season
and hope to see you out there!
This summer Coach Lopez puts on his
Baseball Summer Camps. The camps for
youths 5–13 are July 9, 10, 11 and 12. His
high school propect camps are July 21–22
and Aug. 11–12. This is Coach Lopez’s 31st
year of doing baseball camps! He says it’s a
great experience for the kids and him because
he gets to see kids all over Tucson and
how skilled they are. At the camp you learn a
lot about baseball and the techniques of the
game. The camp will be held at Hi Corbett
fi eld. To sign up, go to the Arizona Athletics
website, arizonaathletics.com.
Keeping Wild Cat Populations Strong
by Abby Caldwell, Holladay Elementary Magnet School
Of the four wildcats living in Arizona (bobcat,
mountain lion, jaguar and ocelot), two are endangered—
the jaguar and ocelot. Habitat loss, destruction
and fragmentation due to human development
endanger wild cat populations. Human development
is when people take space to build things like roads,
towns, ranching, agriculture, etc.
Melanie Culver, a U.S. Geological Survey geneticist
at the UofA’s School of Natural Resources and
the Environment, says learning how to co-exist with
wild cats, including living in ways that maintain good
quality habitats for wild cats, would help keep wild cat
populations strong.
“Almost all zoos are working toward conservation
efforts of one species or another. Exactly which zoos
have conservation programs for cats I don’t know,
except I think all major zoos throughout the country
probably have at least one endangered or threatened
cat present at their zoo. There are 36 species of wild
cats worldwide, 26 of which are endangered, threatened
or vulnerable,” Culver says.
As a geneticist, Culver studies poop (scat). She
says the shape of scat differs between cats and dogs,
but that is not 100 percent reliable. “In the lab we extract
DNA from the scat and obtain DNA sequences.
The DNA sequence tells us the exact species the scat
originated from.”
People can learn more about wild cats at the
UofA’s Wild Cat Center, whose mission is to conduct
conservation related research for all the world’s wild
cats. Visit www.uawildcatresearch.org/index.html
for more info.
Study Skills!
by Reporter Seewa Linda Buelna
Dodge Middle School
Do you need help with studying? Well
there’s lots of different ways to help you study.
The fi rst way you can boost your learning is
by asking your teacher(s) if you could go in during
lunch and ask for extra help. You also might
ask your friends to have a study session.
If that doesn’t
work out for you,
you could make
flash cards, or
you could make a
game that helps
you remember
what you’re
studying.
Or you could just ask your friends or family to
help you.
Happy Leap Year!
by Reporters Chelse Gonzales and Kaiyer Dupree, Drachman Montessori
Adviser: Carol Kennedy
Did you know that every four years we have a leap year? Leap year is a
year when you add a day to the calendar. It takes the Earth a tad more than
3651/4 days to go around the sun. We usually have 365 days in a year, but
every four years the quarters add up to give us one extra day.
Who came up with leap year? Julius Caesar came up with leap year and
told the Romans. They thought that if we didn’t have an extra day every four
years, then the whole calendar would get mixed up. It started around 56 B.C.
Leap year day is Feb. 29, a day longer than February’s usual 28 days.
After 2012, the next leap years are 2016, 2020, 2024, and its keeps going
on by 4 years. For that “tad more,” there’s another leap year day added only
on centuries that are divisible by 400. All this to keep our calendar right!
Celebrate 100 Years Arizona
by Reporter Kaylee Wong, Alice Vail Middle School
“Celebrate Arizona” by Joan Sandin is a great educational book for young
readers. This book takes place in the early 1900s when Arizona was not yet a
state. The book guides you through a series of events that
leads up to Arizona becoming the 48th state of the United
States of America. At fi rst I didn’t know anything about
Arizona and how it became a state, but now I know lots
of important facts. For example, did you know that President
William H. Taft signed the paper that made Arizona
a state? And we just celebrated the 100th anniversary of
Arizona—the day it became a state back in Feb. 14, 1912!
Sandin herself painted the great watercolor pictures
depicting these historic times around the state. You get to
see Arizona and how its people looked 100 years ago! I enjoyed the rhyming
couplet poems about Arizona that go along with the pictures. There’s also a
timeline of how Arizona achieved statehood. It shows how President Taft decides
to put Arizona territory to statehood. So if you’re interested in finding out
facts about how Arizona became a state, get “Celebrate Arizona!”
The Story Behind St. Patrick’s Day
by Reporter Levi Fallavollita, Old Vail Middle School
The 2003 U.S. Census found that 34 million Americans have Irish ancestry.
Since I’m among them, I wanted to find out more.
Born in Britain, St. Patrick was captured when he was 16 by Irish raiders
and sold into slavery. During his six-year captivity, St. Patrick had religious
visions which gave him strength through faith. He escaped to France, joined a
monastery and became a priest.
St. Patrick’s real name was Maewyn Succat. He took the name of Patrick
after becoming a priest. He eventually returned to Ireland as a missionary and
used the three-leaved green shamrock to explain the Holy Trinity to the Irish.
St. Patrick’s Day is an Irish holiday held each year on March 17 to honor
St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, who is credited with bringing Christianity
to Ireland. St. Patrick spent 30 years in Ireland establishing schools, churches
and monasteries. St. Patrick’s Day is the most widely celebrated saint’s day in
the world.
Originally a religious holiday, St. Patrick’s Day is now practiced by many
people throughout the world with food, drink, parades and everything green.
Some cities such as Chicago even dye their rivers green to celebrate!
Tucson’s 25th annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade & Festival will be March 17.
The Festival begins at 10 a.m. in the El Presidio Plaza and the parade begins
at 11 a.m. at Pennington & Stone Avenues. In memory of the Irish who died in
the potato famine, the food bank will be accepting canned food donations at
the parade area, along the route and at Armory Park.
New Menu Is Healthy, Yummy!
by Reporter Erica Brooks, Prince Elementary
On Feb. 26, Chef Albert Hall and Haile Thomas made a new kids’ menu at
the restaurant Acacia at Campbell and Skyline. There were kids from all over
Tucson to taste test, especially me! If you’re asking, “Who’s Haile?,” I can tell
you—Haile is the head member of the HGA Club. She wants to make America’s
food healthier, especially for kids!
HGA stands for Healthy Girl Adventure Club. Any girl in America can join.
There are online meetings for members like me to discuss what their plans.
Haile did this because she kept seeing hamburgers, french fries, hot dogs
and other unhealthy foods on the kids menu, while the adult menu was much
healthier. Haile replaced macaroni and cheese with grilled chicken-pineapple
pizza. They practiced six different healthier recipes than previous options.
There were seven kids, including me, and we all enjoyed each healthy entree!
The cooks made three different juices. Although, most people liked the pineapple-
orange juice, the pineapple-coconut juice was excellent, too. We rated each
menu item with a survey on paper. Check it out at www.hgaclub.com.
Set Out on an Adventure
With ‘Puss In Boots’
by Reporter Amanda Shake, Catalina Foothills High
We all know and love Puss In Boots, the charismatic
crime-fi ghting kitty from Shrek. Yet, have you ever wondered
what his life was like BEFORE he met Shrek and
Donkey? Now you can fi nd out with “Puss In Boots,” just
released on DVD and Blu-ray!
Long ago, Puss’ partner in crime, Humpty Alexander
Dumpty, framed Puss for stealing money from their
hometown, San Ricardo. The only way Puss can pay back San Ricardo is to
team up with the traitorous egg and his new assistant, Kitty Softpaws, to fi nd legendary
golden eggs. Humpty and Puss must put their differences aside to fi ght
for what they both love the most. Along the journey, there will be action, romance,
twists and turns, including an ending you’ll never expect!
Puss returns with all his wonderful qualities: his charming accent, his incredible
skills, and—who can forget?—his adorable eyes. However, in addition to
seeing this memorable character again, you will meet new characters that you’ll
never forget, from the flair of Kitty Softpaws to the hilarity of Humpty Dumpty. See
all this and more in “Puss In Boots”! The movie is rated PG.
Humane Society Miracles
by Reporter Sierra Squires, Lulu Walker Elementary
The Humane Society is a non-killing place for animals to be put in
homes. The animals there get love, exercise, and cared for every day.
Dogs like Sarah get home with people that keep them for the rest
of their lives. Unfortunately Sarah has been in the Humane Society
for a couple months or so. Other dogs like Ice get adopted because
they are sweet and kind. Ice was hit by a car a couple years ago, someone found
him and brought him to the Humane Society. Some dogs like Chewy, get taken to
the Humane Society because they get blamed for problems. Chewy was a small
black Chihuahua who was taken to the Humane Scoiety because the kids in his
fi rst house were beating him, so he would bite to defend himself; he’s a sweet
little boy who got adopted by a family with sweet kids. One of the most surprising
stories I heard was about Caya. Caya is a Siberian Husky that got the painful
valley fever; she limped to the Humane Society and was lucky to be alive!
They nursed Caya back to health and now she is healthy and happy pup.
Cats like Misty, end up in the Humane Society for several months. Misty
is a seven year old cat that has been the pet of the month for two months
because no one has adopted her. Some people just don’t think before they
get a cat when they have dogs at home, Phoebe was brought to the Humane
Society because when she was taken home the owners had large dogs that
tossed her around. Some cats like Stoney end up alone because the owners
can no longer take care of them. So you see animals have miracles, too.
Happy Hooves at TRAK
by Reporter Mariella Chavez, Ventana Vista
How can you tell if horses are happy? If
If they’re horses at TRAK, they probably
are! TRAK stands for Therapeutic Ranch
for Animals & Kids. There are lots of other
happy animals there, too, like sheep,
goats, pot-bellied pigs, ducks, geese,
chickens, rabbits, cows, donkeys, miniature
horses, dogs and cats. Many animals
are donated; others are rescue animals.
There are many different ways to get
to know the animals at TRAK. During
“members only” hours, you can spend time
with the animals and learn how to care for
them. “The animals have a way of making
you feel at home,” says Scott Tilley, ranch manager. Annual family memberships
($100) are tax deductible. You can also have your birthday party there!
In June, TRAK offers week-long camps for kids aged 5–12. Activities include
dyeing sheep’s wool, a watermelon-eating contest with a pig, milking a
goat and making goat’s milk ice cream, animal-themed arts and crafts, and of
course, horseback rides! (Private riding lessons are available, too.)
If you’re at least 10, you can volunteer at TRAK. According to Tilley, volunteering
teaches a sense of responsibility and leadership skills.
One amazing story involves a brown horse named Chum. Three years
ago, Chum, a starved and frightened horse, came to TRAK. “I knew Chum
was a special horse; he was just starving to death,” says Tilley. Today, Chum
is friendly, happy, and healthy too.
TRAK’s motto is “Kids, Animals and Service Together for the Tucson Community.”
For more information about TRAK, go to its website: traktucson.org
or call (520) 298-9808.
The Story of Sculptures
by Reporter Davion West, Holladay Elementary Magnet
Many sculptures have stories behind them, and these stories can be sculpted
with clay, mud, marble, metal and sand. Artists shape their materials the same way
a writer shapes a story!
“There are many war memorials and civil rights memorials that show a scene
from that period in history that is relevant to the issue that is being depicted,” says
Veronica Bell-Sandler, an art teacher at Holladay.
According to Bell-Sandler, the fi rst step is to think of an idea and fi nd pictures
of the subject. The photos should be from different angles so that the artist knows
how to create it in three dimensions. The next step depends on the size of the
sculpture. If it’s small, the sculptor may make a sketch. If it’s big they might make a
scaled model.
“If you are making a huge sculpture, like the big one outside the downtown
library or on the UofA campus, you would make a small model to show your customer,”
says Bell-Sandler. Stories can be made from any material, of any size and
on any scale. The artist may not have had the same story in mind as the buyer of
the sculpture. In the end the buyer will have a story of his or her own.
Keep Your Teeth When You’re 102
by Reporter Mary Ruiz, Holladay Elementary Magnet
Do you want to know why you should go to the dentist? You can keep good
teeth while still enjoying all your holiday candy is only one of the reasons why. If
you get a cavity it can spread bacteria in your tooth, through the blood system and
even spread to your heart. It could kill you! Dentists can prevent it from going to the
rest of your body.
The good news is that you can have the same adult teeth for your whole life!
“A cavity is a problem that can destroy an entire tooth and spread to other teeth
and destroy them as well. So if the dentist fi nds a cavity and fi xes it while it’s small
it can save your tooth,” says dentist Jacqueline Gloria Twarog-Huckabee at Tucson
Mountain Dental.
Dental hygienist, John Wisthoff says, “if you catch a cavity when it is small you
will just need a small fi lling, sometimes not even needing to get numb.”
But “if there is a cavity and it is not fi xed, it can get bigger and bigger until the
tooth breaks or it gets into the nerve and causes a toothache and an abscess,
which is an infection,” Dr. Twarog-Huckabee says. “Then the tooth may need a
lot more work to save it. If it’s really bad, we can’t even fi x it. It’s much smarter to
prevent cavities,” says Dr. Twarog-Huckabee.
“You should be seen by a dentist soon after you get your fi rst teeth—when
you’re 1 year old,” Dr. Twarog-Huckabee says.
Wisthoff points out, “We see patients from all ages ranging from (babies) to 100
years old—they all have good things, so I wouldn’t say there is a best age for a
patient.”
Meteorite Man Lands in Glendale
by Reporter Thomas Abshire, Homeschool
Rock star/Meteorite Man Geoffrey Notkin dropped in at the
Challenger Space Center as the guest of honor for some special
events. But beforehand, after blazing by rush hour traffi c for our Glendale
interview, he highlighted how many meteorites he’s found, his most
amazing fi nd, how he started, his favorite meteorite and the largest one
his team found.
His team—including Meteorite Man Steve Arnold—has found more
than 1,000 meteorites! Surprisingly, most of them weigh
less than a pound.
Notkin’s most amazing fi nd is a
meteorite from a fi reball in Texas.
It was seen from over a hundred
miles away, and its light was bright
enough to be seen in daylight!
Born in New York, but raised in England, young Geoffrey already liked searching for fossils and looking through his dad’s telescope. At age 7, Geoffrey got a metal detector from his dad. Geoffrey’s mom took him to the London Geological Museum many, many times. From then, meteorite work began taking so much of his time he decided to make it his career.
His favorite kind of meteorite is called a Sikhote-Alin, named after the Russian mountain where it hit in 1947. He likes it because of its surface features—it looks like a sculpture of thumbprints!
The largest meteorite the team found is a 1,400-pound pallasite meteorite, which is a mixture of iron and nickel with olive-colored crystals. The name of this meteorite comes from a zoologist/explorer, Peter Pallas.
Notkin lives in Tucson and was the guest of honor for a fundraising dinner put on by Challenger Space Center Arizona on Feb. 18. His show, “Meteorite Men,” is in its third season on the Science Channel.
When it comes to meteorites, Geoffrey Notkin wishes us all “good hunting!”
Come Fly at Arizona Museum for Youth
by Reporter Lauren Bukoskey, Cheyenne Traditional School
Right now at Arizona Museum for Youth, the exhibit
“Wing It! Things That Fly” offers a fun fi lled visit for the
whole family that has so many activities, you’re going to
be there for hours!
Jeffory Morris is the museum’s curator. He says the
favorite activity in the exhibit is “Flying Over Mesa,”
where kids can dress up as almost any animal that can
fly, and watch themselves fly over the beautiful city of
Mesa through the magic of green screen technology.
You can also check your wingspan and compare it with
other birds. Wooden birds hang all over the exhibit and
were created by a variety of American artists.
My favorite activity is the Black Light Room, which
is just like camping out under the stars with the sounds
of all different kinds of birds and camping gear. The
Arizona Museum of Youth created the whole amazing
exhibit with the City of Culture Department. Morris knew
three years ago that he wanted to design some sort of
flying exhibit displaying different flying animals, and it all
started in September 2010. It took him four months to
fi nd the right artists to work on the exhibit.
From dragons to eagles, when it comes to
flying animals, Morris is most fascinated by the tiny
hummingbird! He had a hummingbird feeder as a kid,
and at fi rst wanted
to make the entire
exhibit about
hummingbirds.
Fortunately, he
expanded Wing It!
to a variety of flying
creatures.
Morris, just like
everyone else,
dreams of soaring
through the sky. And
he thinks he knows
why. “Even when cave
men existed, they would probably look up in the sky and
think, wow I wonder what the birds see.”
“Wing It! Things That Fly” exhibit lands at the Arizona
Museum of Youth from Feb. 10 through May 6. One
visitor said, “I’m glad I took both my kids to come and
see this because the kids and I haven’t seen anything
like this. I was very pleased.”
I couldn’t say it better myself.
Dr. Seuss!
by Reporter Emma Suttell
Esperanza Elementary
Dr. Seuss’
birthday is
March 2. Most
kids can name
at least a couple
of his great
books like “The
Cat in the Hat,”
“The Lorax,”
and “Green Eggs and Ham.”
Many schools have Dr. Seuss days
where they play games, eat food and
read books. Four major motion pictures
are based on Dr. Seuss’ books—“Horton
Hears a Who” (2008), “How The Grinch
Stole Christmas” (2000) and “The Cat In
The Hat” (2003). And now “The Lorax” is
hitting theaters. This classic Dr. Seuss story
is about a creature named a Lorax, who
insists he speaks for the trees, the Truffula
Trees. The Truffula Trees are fluffy trees in
various colors.
Amazingly, “The Lorax” was published
way back in 1941. On a bus tour at San
Diego Zoo, a tour guide stated, “Seuss
got his inspiration for the Truffula Trees
from San Diego Zoo, from all the trees
surrounding the zoo.
Seuss’ rhymes and characters also have
been made into the musicals “Seussical”
and “Seussical Jr.” Some Seussical
characters are the Cat In The Hat, JoJo,
Yertle the Turtle, Sour Kangaroo, Horton,
Mayzie and Gertrude McFuzz.
This musical includes songs like “Oh
The Thinks You Can Think” that describes
the world of Seuss. This musical has been
performed in Broadway for years and is
ALWAYS interesting to watch. Why don’t
you check out some of these awesome
topics!
New Study for Alzheimer’s
by Reporter Farah Eltohamy, BASIS Chandler
Scientists in Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
discovered a new and extraordinary cure for Alzheimer’s disease in mice. This
research is considered a breakthrough in the medical fi eld and set high hopes
for Alzheimer’s patients. In addition, this successful story was even published in
the journal Science. During the study, researchers gave mice large dosages of
a drug named Bexarotene, which is used to treat skin cancer.
During the experiment, mice were tested on their memory by being placed
in a cage with a shocker. Before the mice were treated with the drug, the mice
entered into a cage where they got an electric shock. After treatment, the mice
remembered their bad experience and refused to enter the cage.
Mice and humans alike who suffer from Alzheimer’s disease have an
excessive amount of amyloid beta in their brains. Within the three days of the
start of the project, the mice showed improvement in memory and most of the
material that causes Alzheimer’s disease, amyloid beta levels, were lowered by
more than 50% in the brains of the mice. Further, tests showed that Bexarotene
increased the levels of apolipoprotein E, and lowered amyloid beta levels,
which helped to reverse Alzheimer’s disease in mice. Researchers are going to
try this study on humans in the very near future to see if it has the same results.
St. Patrick’s Day Legends
by Reporters Chelse Gonzales and Pelyel Robles
Drachman Montessori School
Adviser: Carol Kennedy
Do you know why St. Patrick’s Day became a celebration? It is because of
St. Patrick’s death. St. Patrick brought Christianity to Ireland. St. Patrick was
born in the late fourth century and he died on March 17, AD 461.
Ireland also liked St. Patrick because he got rid of all the snakes. At the age
of 16 he got kidnapped and sent to slavery, and was treated really badly. St.
Patrick became Christian, so when he escaped from slavery he went to Ireland
and that’s how he brought Christianity to the country.
The fi rst parade took place in New York City in the year 1766. On the parade
they decorated the floats with shamrocks, pots of gold, and leprechauns. You
should wear green on St. Patrick’s Day so you won’t be pinched.
If you fi nd a leprechaun, he will be forced to tell where he hides his pot of
gold, but if you look away the leprechaun will vanish along with his treasure.
People say a four-leafed clover is good luck, but the three-leafed clovers are
the most common. Clovers and shamrocks are the same thing. Both are green.
St. Patrick’s Day is on a Saturday, March 17 this year and remember to wear
green! Have a great St. Patrick’s Day!
Webkinz Offers Online Fun
by Reporter Gabriel Martineau, Copperwood Elementary
Webkinz is an online computer game that is lots of fun!
You can go online any day, anytime you want. First you
have to buy a Webkinz stuffed animal at the store. There
are so many different types of stuffed animals to choose
from. There are deer, mammoth, fi sh, dogs, cats and
everything in between. Then go to webkinz.com and enter
the code on the Webkinz tag.
You choose if your animal is a boy or girl. Then you give it a name. You
can print out an adoption certifi cate. You can play at Webkinz World with your
pet. You can go to the arcade and play games. You can also go to the store
to buy food, furniture and more! The furniture is to decorate the room that you
get when you sign up. You can buy more rooms with Kinzcash. When you play
games at the arcade you get Kinzcash. You can also go to the clubhouse and
chat with your friends online. My favorite Webkinz is Rex the Reindeer and I
love playing Wishing Well 2 with him! So, get a favorite Webkinz and meet me in
the Webkinz World!
SciTech Goes Renaissance
by Reporter Ri'Ann Holmes, Homeschool
The Renaissance Festival welcomed the Arizona SciTech Festival to
their grounds to promote education for the state in science, technology and
innovation. I was assigned to be their SciTech reporter for the day with the
Cox7 Arizona camera crew fi lming my adventures.
At the start of the day I was introduced to Lord Chancellor, the King’s
Chancellor, who acquainted me with his village during which I was fi tted in royal
16th century attire.
The fi lming began with a brief
introduction to the village by Lord
Chancellor. Soon after we made our way to
the Pleasure Feast building where Galilei
Galileo and Leonardo Da Vinci showcased
their inventions and discoveries. Tony
LaConte of 'Stargazing for Everyone' also
had a display of stargazing apparatuses
located next to Master Da Vinci and Master Galileo. From the brief chat with
both parties I learned about locating sunspots, the phases of Venus, moons of
Jupiter and the consequences of questioning theory in that era.
After departing the Pleasure Feast yard I met one of the Plague Ladies
who enticed me with her knowledge of this
devastating disease. The merchant ships
delivering in certain European countries
carried fleas and rats that had this fatal
disease, and since hygiene and cleanliness
weren’t prevalent among peasants and
villages in the 14th century the Plague spread
quickly.
My final stop was at the local blacksmith’s
shop where the resident metalworker showed
me how to make a horseshoe and explained
the difference between a blacksmith and a
whitesmith—one who works with cold metals.
At the end of the event I thanked Lord Chancellor for welcoming me to his
village and bid him farewell. The festival was as educational as it was exciting
and will fascinate anyone who has interest in the past.
Majestic Monument
Colorado National Monument Gift Shop.
Davis and other photographers looked
at the pictures they had, then weeded
the pictures. Pictures from a museum
were also used. The book “Monumental
Majesty” was published in May 2011.
Davis hopes people learn about the
National Park.
Be Creative!