Indholdsfortegnelse for January 2025 i Ladybug Stories, Poems, and Songs Magazine for Young Kids and Children

On Saturday, the animal shelter is filled with voices. Dogs scratch at their doors, baying and yelping, but in a large, wire enclosure, the kitties meow softly. The dog area is musty, but the kitty pen smells sweet, like alfalfa. I thread my fingers through the cool wire of the gate. I can't see the kitties because I'm blind. I listen hard. Do any of those meows sound like kitten meows? “I don't think I hear any kittens, Mom.” “You're right, Annie. But there are lots of cats . . . fat ones, skinny ones, some with long tails, and one with no tail!” I hold Mom’s warm hand as the shelter director, Mrs. Pat, takes us inside the cat pen. I sit down and stretch out my hands to…

Big or small, feathered or scaly, there are many kinds of pets. Some families keep soft, furry guinea pigs as pets. How can pigs be soft and furry? Guinea pigs are not really pigs. They are cousins of hamsters and gerbils. Guinea pigs like to live together, so families usually keep two instead of one. New people make guinea pigs nervous, but once they get to know somebody, they like quiet voices and gentle touches. If you ever spend time with a guinea pig, make sure a grownup is nearby to help. Guinea pigs are very chatty! They can coo with contentment and purr when they are stroked. They whistle when they are excited or looking for a friend. If a guinea pig wants to be left alone, it can…

My mom took me to the zoo, and it was there I first saw a giraffe. He was taller than most buildings I have seen, and I have seen some very tall buildings. His neck stretched up, up, up, far into the bright blue sky, almost touching the clouds. His fur was a dim shade of yellow, and dark brown polka dots bounced all over him. His long tail stretched toward the ground and swished back and forth, almost sweeping the grass. I imagined climbing on top of him—I would need a ladder, of course—and riding him through my own yard. On his back, I would be high enough to reach the branches on the trees. I would feel like I was flying through the air! It was then that…

Karate . . .…

Oh no, some puppies and kittens have gotten lost! Help them find their places in this cuddly sudoku puzzle. What You’ll Need: scissors What to Do: 1. Cut out the four puppies and kittens below along the dotted black lines. 2. Put a pet in each empty space on the game board. Each row, column, and block should have each type of pet only once. 3. When your board is full of pets, the puppies and kittens have made it home safe and sound. You did it! Helpful Hints: Start with the empty space in the top row. Which pet is missing? Try placing different pieces until you find the pet that isn’t in the row. Once you’ve placed your pet, check the column it is in. Make sure you…