Innehållsförteckning för Issue 181 från The Week Junior US

On September 19, 15 young people from the US were named top winners of the 2023 Gloria Barron Prize for Young Heroes. The award recognizes children and teens who have made a significant positive impact on their community or the environment. The winners were chosen from among 25 finalists. What happened? The 15 winners range in age from 13 to 18. Each will receive $10,000, which they can use to further their service project or to help pay for college. The 10 remaining finalists, ages 10 to 18, were named honorees and received recognition for their exceptional efforts. What is the prize? The prize was created by children’s book author T.A. Barron in honor of his mother, Gloria Barron, a teacher who died at age 92. She also volunteered at…

A RARE CATCH A seafood company in France caught a blue lobster that is so rare there’s a one in 2 million chance of finding one. It was released into a no-fishing zone, where the company said “it can live a long, peaceful, and happy life.” EMBRACING A CLASSIC In May, hot dog maker Oscar Mayer changed the name of its famous Wienermobile to the Frankmobile—the first name change since its creation in 1936. People complained, and the company changed it back. “Everybody loves the Wienermobile,” a spokesperson said. SPREADING JOY Natalie Gilliard and Jonathan Yacko were tired of mowing their land in Vermont, so they planted wildflowers instead. Now their colorful meadow is a local attraction that adds beauty to the landscape, provides a habitat for bees, and brings…

Damien Wilkins, age 43, has spent a lifetime playing basketball, including several seasons in the NBA (National Basketball Association). Now he is helping to guide the next generation of players as the general manager of Overtime Elite, a new basketball league focused on developing young players. The league is the subject of a documentary series called One Shot: Overtime Elite. The six-part series, now streaming on Amazon Prime, follows some of Overtime Elite’s players as they pursue their basketball dreams. It features twins Amen and Ausar Thompson, who were top-five picks in the 2023 NBA Draft, and Somto Cyril, who has committed to play basketball at the University of Kentucky in 2024. Basketball runs in Wilkins’ family. His father, Gerald Wilkins, is a former NBA player, and one of his…

Fat Bear Week is kicking off on October 4 through 10. It will be the 10th annual celebration of the bears living in Katmai National Park in Alaska as they put on weight before they begin to hibernate (go into a deep sleep) during the winter. Bears do not eat or drink when they hibernate. During that time, they can lose up to one third of their body weight, so it’s important that they have plenty of fat to spare beforehand. The main food source for Katmai’s bears prior to hibernation season is salmon, which they start feeding on in the summer. During Fat Bear Week, bears are sorted into pairs in a bracket (a type of chart), and fans vote online for the bear in each pair that they…

Southern white rhinos In South Africa, 2,000 southern white rhinos that were bred in captivity will be released. A conservation group is planning to move the rhinos to secure areas where they will be safe from hunters while they get used to living in the wild. Birds in India A new report has identified 178 wild bird species in India that urgently need help, including 14 that were thought to be in better condition. The report said their populations are falling, in part because of climate change and pollution.…

Fastest Blink and you might miss it. In 2023, Max Park of California set the record for the fastest time to solve the Rubik’s Cube: 3.13 seconds. Blindfolded In 2023, a teenager from Florida named Tommy Cherry set a new world record for solving the rotating cube while blindfolded. He unscrambled it in 12.78 seconds. Largest The largest cube on the planet, according to Guinness World Records, is in Hong Kong. It’s about 8 feet wide by 8 feet tall and spins. The giant cube was displayed in a mall in 2021. Smallest The tiniest cube in the world is so small that players use tweezers to move its squares. It was created in the UK with a 3D printer and, at .22 inches wide, is about the size of…

From September 22 through September 24, men’s tennis stars competed at the 2023 Laver Cup in Vancouver, Canada. It is an annual team event featuring six top European players and six top players from the rest of the world. It includes singles and doubles matches, with teams getting points for each win. Team World won, 13–2, and claimed the Cup for the second year in a row. The Laver Cup was first held in 2017. The event is named after Rod Laver, an Australian who is considered one of the best tennis players of the 20th century. He is the only player in history to win more than one Calendar Grand Slam, which means winning all four major tennis tournaments in one year. He achieved this in 1962 and 1969.…

Apopular immersive art exhibit is on display in the woods next to the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Arkansas. Listening Forest has eight large installations by artist Rafael Lozano-Hemmer that use light and sound and undergo changes based on the way people interact with them. It is open through December 31. Lozano-Hemmer was born in Mexico and has had his work shown in cities around the world. This is the biggest display of his outdoor installations and contains a mix of old and new pieces that use technology including artificial intelligence, sensors, microphones, thermal cameras, and digital projections. “The sound and light experience will surprise and delight guests of all ages,” the museum’s executive director, Rod Bigelow, told The Week Junior. One piece, “Remote Pulse,” can connect…

The Cat Returns Max (Prime Video or rent on demand) “This is an exciting movie and the perfect entertainment for cat lovers. It is a fantasy-adventure made by the famous Japanese animation company Studio Ghibli and a spinoff of Whisper of the Heart. In the movie, a girl named Haru saves a cat who turns out to be a prince from a cat kingdom. To thank her for what she’s done, the King of Cats tries to reward her by transporting her to the cat kingdom to marry his son. If you like cats, The Cat Returns is a great movie for you!” Fox, 10, Oregon Do you have a film or TV show to recommend to other kids? Send your review to hello@theweekjunior.com.…

(Andrews McMeel Publishing) Business at the Jewish American deli that’s been in Ellie’s family for four generations is slow. When Ellie, 11, overhears her parents’ discussion about closing the deli and moving, she makes a wish over her grandmother’s pot of matzo ball soup for sales to pick up. She and her best friend, Ava, decide to brainstorm ways to make the restaurant more modern. They come up with a plan to add a website and delivery service. Just as Ellie starts to feel optimistic about the fate of the family business, her grandmother gets sick and a restaurant group offers to buy the deli for a large sum of money. Ellie’s parents seem tempted by the offer. Will she be able to convince them that the business needs to…

J.R. Silver Writes Her World By Melissa Dassori (Christy Ottaviano Books) J.R., who has visited the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City many times with her friend Violet, has a mystery to solve. The events she writes about in her English assignments are starting to come true. What’s going on? Ages 8–12 The Mona Lisa Vanishes By Nicholas Day, illustrated by Brett Helquist (Random House Studio) The Mona Lisa by Michelangelo is one of the most popular paintings in the world, and this fascinating nonfiction book describes how the painting was stolen from the Louvre, a museum in Paris, France, in 1911 and later returned. Ages 10 and up Night at the Museum: The Junior Novelization By Leslie Goldman (Sourcebooks Young Readers) In this novel version of the…

The annual Tomatina festival in Spain is like the ultimate food fight. For one day, the streets of the town of Buñol become a battleground, using overripe tomatoes that would otherwise be thrown away. The festival was inspired by a food fight among local kids in 1945, but it has now become a major event that draws tourists to the town. This year, more than 15,000 people hurled 120 tons of tomatoes at one another. Participants wore goggles to protect their eyes from flying fruit, then hit the showers after the fight ended.…

Humphrey Herington’s plant nursery in Australia had a problem: Young seedlings kept disappearing. For months, staff watched visitors carefully, trying to spot the plant burglar. The losses mounted until one day when Herington came to work to find the thief, a koala, dozing in the sun. The evidence? Stems without leaves and a belly so stuffed the creature couldn’t move. Herington took the koala, who he named Claude, to some nearby trees. Is this story real, or is it a koa-lie?* *Real! Humphrey Herington calculated that the adorable thief had pilfered $3,800 worth of roots and shoots. “He looked very pleased with himself,” Herington told BBC News. The staff at the nursery are now erecting a koala-proof fence.…

“I made your strawberry smoothie recipe and it was delicious!”Avani, 8, Alabama “The salmon BLT was so good. We added avocado to make it California-style!”Henrik, 8, California “Here is a picture of me reading The Week Junior while bouncing on the trampoline.”Ben, 12, Maine “I made overnight oats for my family using a recipe I found in The Week Junior. Everyone loved it!”Nupur, 8, Washington “We brought the hiking issue of The Week Junior to read during our trip to Yosemite National Park!”Tommy and Ben, 9, Massachusetts RIDDLE OF THE WEEK What is heavy going forward but is not backward? The word “ton”…

Teacher’s Name: Mrs. Hitch School: Oak Trace Elementary “Mrs. Hitch is the best principal I could ever ask for. I have known her since I was in kindergarten and she hasn’t changed a bit. She comes to class and reads us books and is always the nicest, even when we are having bad days. I am in fourth grade, so I will miss her when I go to fifth grade in a new school.” Finley, 9, Indiana Nominate your teacher for Teacher of the Week! Send your reason for the nomination, a photo of your teacher, and your school’s name and address to hello@theweekjunior.com.…

Spread across 15,818 acres, this state park has open grasslands, lakes, bogs, and hills. The park is named for the Savanna Portage Trail, which was historically used by Native Americans and, later, by European fur traders. Visitors to the park can also hike the Continental Divide trail. Water on one side of the divide flows to the Mississippi River, while the other side flows to Lake Superior. Animals such as moose, coyotes, skunks, and wolves can be found roaming the park, and birdwatchers can spot loons, Canada geese, warblers, and a variety of other songbirds.…

Sasha Winkler Biological anthropology expert, UCLA Dolphins have many ways of communicating, such as by making whistles, squawks, and clicking noises. They also show affection by swimming together, playing, touching fins, and doing other kinds of nuzzling. Maybe some of those behaviors are part of their love language! Do you have a question for an animal expert? Send it to hello@theweekjunior.com. Find out more about Sasha Winkler’s research at sashawinkler.com.…

New research has found that comedy doesn’t just make us feel good—it actually has the power to improve health. A recent study set out to test whether or not “laughter therapy” could help people who have heart disease. The study involved 26 adults, with an average age of 64. They all had coronary artery disease, which is when the supply of blood to the heart is blocked or held up by plaque (fatty substances) that grow in the coronary arteries. Coronary arteries are the big tubes that send blood to the heart. Over three months, 13 of the adults were asked to watch two hour-long comedy shows every week. The other 13 were asked to watch two documentary films on serious topics like politics and the Amazon rainforest. After this,…

Excitement is building for the first season of the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL), which will begin in January. It is made up of three Canadian teams and three US teams, which do not have names yet. Veteran players signed with teams in early September, and the PWHL held its first draft on September 18. At this event, teams selected players from colleges and from other hockey leagues. The historic first pick was the 2022 women’s college hockey player of the year, Taylor Heise. She will play for the PWHL’s Minnesota franchise. Heise grew up in the state and played hockey at the University of Minnesota. She said she was honored she could play professionally and show young girls that “anything is possible if you keep working hard.” A total…

Coach’s Name: Keith Telesca Team: Chicago White Sox (Lower Merion Little League AAAA Division) “First and foremost, he is a nice guy. He cares about everyone and puts in a lot of time and effort so we succeed and, most of all, have fun. He gives people second chances and always knows the best move for us. His focus on teamwork and getting us to play our best is one reason he’s won multiple championships. He has made me a better baseball player and person.” Tani, 11, Pennsylvania To nominate a Coach of the Week, send your coach’s name, photo, sport, and team to hello@theweekjunior.com. Include your name, age, state, and a few reasons why your coach is great.…

Gleam The Olbrich Botanical Gardens in Madison, Wisconsin, features this light installation exhibit through October 28. One piece (at right) has moths made of glass and acrylic. Georgetown Glow This annual outdoor event is held in the oldest neighborhood of Washington, DC. Last year’s show had five pieces of light artwork. This year, the event begins December 1 and runs until January 7. Canal Convergence “The Power of Play” will be the theme of this public art event in Scottsdale, Arizona, from November 3–12. It will include swings under light rainbows and a piece inspired by video games.…

Fright Krewe (Hulu) (Peacock) This new animated horror series for kids follows a group of misfit teen friends in New Orleans, Louisiana, who are granted superpowers. Their city is said to be one of the most haunted places in America, so now they have to protect it from ancient demon creatures. The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar (Netflix) Roald Dahl’s short story collection The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar and Six More is the basis for this short film. It stars Benedict Cumberbatch (Marvel’s Dr. Strange) as a man who finds a way to see without using his eyes. Holey Moley (Netflix) Past episodes are now streaming of this wild ABC competition series that combines mini golf and epic obstacle courses. The show is hosted by basketball star Steph Curry…

Among the Impostors By Margaret Peterson Haddix “This book is about a boy named Luke who is an illegal third child in a futuristic sci-fi world who finally comes out of hiding. He gets a fake ID and gets transferred to a school for boys. During his time at the school, he makes friends and many enemies. This book is part of a series. It has a lot of drama and action and is really fun to read in your free time.” Aria, 12, California Do you have a book to recommend? Send your review to hello@theweekjunior.com.…

Genealogy (the study of family history) is a popular hobby in the US and around the world. Finding out about your close relatives as well as your ancestors (family members who lived in past times) can help you learn more about your cultural background, feel closer to your family, and strengthen your sense of identity. Here’s how you can get started. Make a family tree One fun way to begin is by making a family tree. This is a chart that lists people you’re related to. (There are many templates online that will give you an idea of how the tree could look.) On a large piece of paper, write the names of the people in your immediate family (your parents and siblings) across the bottom. With help from a…

It can be worthwhile to look at the labels on food packages. This is because some foods are made with ingredients that can be harmful to the environment. Palm oil, for example, found in about half of packaged foods, is a cause of deforestation in Asia. (Deforestation is when trees are cut down and new ones aren’t planted to replace them.) Although some palm oil is grown in a way that doesn’t harm the environment, some people think it is better to avoid the ingredient if possible. Something else to look for is how far away a product was made. If the product had to be transported on a plane to get to your area, gases were released into the environment.…

I am so impressed with the recipients of the Gloria Barron Prize, announced this week (p2). The 15 winners and 10 finalists, all ages 10 to 18, were honored for their service projects that made a positive difference in the world. I especially liked prize founder T.A. Barron’s reference to his mother’s “quiet heroism” in describing why the awards are named for her. I imagine she was someone very special, and I like to think that all of us can be heroes in our own lives, one way or another. Congratulations to everyone who received this meaningful prize. At The Week Junior, we sponsor our own contest to bring together young people who want to make a difference in the world. The next session of our Junior Council will begin…

Everett—who is 9 years old and from Tennessee—said his grandparents are always looking after him and caring for him. They are kind and gentle, and a favorite memory is going to Disney World with them. To celebrate your grandparent or any special older person, go to kidstheweekjunior.com/activities to print out a form (like the one at right). Fill it out, then have an adult email it to us at hello@theweekjunior.com. We’ll feature some of the responses in future issues. IT’S YOUR TURN Email your news, views, and photos to hello@theweekjunior.com. We want to hear from you! To have your letters, photos, nominations, recommendations, or ideas considered for inclusion in the magazine, please include your full name, age, and state with your submission. By emailing your submission to us, you give…

1 Which big chunky bear was the winner of Fat Bear Week 2022? a) 480 Otis b) Bear 747 c) Bear 901 2 What labor union was on strike for 146 days before reaching an agreement with Hollywood studios and streaming services? 3 How many core Power Rangers will there be in the new series Power Rangers: Cosmic Fury? a) Five b) Seven c) Nine 4 True or false? The giant pandas Mei Xiang and Tian Tian arrived at the Smithsonian National Zoo in 1972. True False 5 A teenager in Alabama discovered a fossil of which prehistoric creature? a) Whale b) Crocodile c) Shark 6 Max Park of California set a world record in 2023 by solving a Rubik’s Cube in how many seconds? 7 Who was the first…

Teens are getting more homework than they used to, according to a recent national study. Today, they have an average of one hour of homework each night, which is twice as much homework as teenagers in the mid-1990s had. It’s also more homework than students receive in other countries. That includes Japan and Denmark, where students regularly perform better than American kids do on standardized tests. The amount of homework US students get varies from one school to another, but some schools have gotten rid of homework altogether. What do you think? Should homework be eliminated? Yes—kids need downtime Kids spend a big part of their day on schoolwork. Why should they have to do homework, too? It’s tiring and means you have less free time for family or hobbies.…

A small cube with colorful sides that began as a math lesson became the most popular puzzle toy in history. Who invented the Rubik’s Cube? The cube was created by a Hungarian sculptor and professor of architecture, Erno Rubik, in 1974. He was interested in geometry (a branch of math focusing on measurement) and wanted to find a way to demonstrate 3D (three-dimensional) movement to his students. Using wood blocks, Rubik built a “Magic Cube.” Once he showed the invention to his students, Rubik said he found it “nearly impossible to put down.” A toy takes off In 1975, Rubik obtained a Hungarian patent (exclusive rights held by the inventor of something) for his creation. In 1977, he started selling the cube, eventually renamed Rubik’s Cube, as a toy in…

A new airless bicycle tire is flexible and sustainable and will never go flat. Instead of pressurized air, the METL tire, made by Smart Tire Company, has a spring inside. It’s made using a mix of metals that NASA is testing for use on future missions to the Moon and Mars. The special metal allows the spring to stretch and bend under pressure, then quickly bounce back to its original shape. It’s covered by a replaceable tread that the company said uses about half as much rubber as a regular bike tire. That’s helpful for the environment.…

Harvest Moon: The Winds of Anthos is a new fantasy farm life game. It is out now for the Nintendo Switch, Xbox systems, PlayStation platforms, and the PC. The game is part of the Harvest Moon franchise, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary. The story in the game takes place in the enchanted land of Anthos, where people lived and farmed in peace. They were protected by the Harvest Goddess and the Harvest Sprites, magical elfin people who have appeared in many Harvest Moon games. After a sudden volcano eruption, Anthos split into five separate villages. The game’s action starts 10 years later, when the main character finds a letter written by the Harvest Goddess and decides to reunite the villages. Once you arrive in Anthos, you get right to…

What inspired this book? I had a vision of a girl with magical soup. I wanted to write a story about a family business with grandparents who are very involved in a character’s daily life. All those pieces came together for this book. What makes matzo ball soup special to you? My Bubbie’s chicken matzo ball soup is the best food I’ve ever had in my whole life. It was the ultimate comfort. Like Ellie, did you have sisters growing up? I didn’t, but I always had this fantasy of having a sister because it’s a built-in best friend you can talk to about anything. Best advice for kids? Keep a journal. It sounds so…

Create a collage Before your next family gathering, ask everyone to bring copies of old family photos. Use them to create a group collage on posterboard. Match baby photos Another fun thing to do at a family gathering: Put a baby picture of each person on the table, and write a number beside each. Have attendees guess who’s who. The person with the most correct guesses wins! Assemble a scrapbook A scrapbook is a great gift for a special family member. Ask relatives to share photos, keepsakes, and memories to include. Make your own gift tags When you exchange gifts with your family members, print out current or old photos of the recipients and use double-sided tape to attach them to wrapped presents. Everyone can quickly identify their gifts by…

Crisscross Each of these types of fabrics fits into this grid. Can you find where each one goes to complete the grid? 4 letters FELT WOOL 5 letters DENIM KHAKI SUEDE TOILE TWEED TWILL 6 letters FLEECE VELOUR 7 letters FISHNET FLANNEL LEATHER OILSKIN SPANDEX 8 letters CASHMERE 9 letters POLYESTER VELVETEEN Take five Five 5-letter things on a breakfast table are hidden in this grid. For each one, the first letter is somewhere in the first column, the second is somewhere in the second column, and so on. Can you find all five? ALL THE SAME Each answer contains the letters B-A-R. Those letters have been placed for you. Can you figure out the words? (NEED A HINT? Check the bottom of the page.) 1. Famous doll and 2023…