Innehållsförteckning för Issue 206 från The Week Junior US

The Security Council of the United Nations (UN, an organization of 193 nations) voted for a resolution on March 25 that calls for an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. A war between Israel and Hamas, a terrorist group based in Gaza, has been taking place there since October. While the UN talks were underway, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken traveled to the Middle East to meet with leaders there about the conflict. The US and many other countries and aid organizations are seeking solutions to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, where millions of people do not have adequate food and basic supplies. What is the resolution? The Security Council, which consists of 15 member nations working to maintain international peace and security, voted 14–0 to pass the resolution.…

SPRING STAMPS To honor the changing seasons, the US Postal Service (USPS) has issued a new Garden Delights stamp series. The four designs feature hummingbirds and the flowers they pollinate. Gardens and birds “bring joy,” the USPS said. A METAL MISSION Jace Weber, a 10-year-old from Canada, set a record for the most aluminum can tabs collected for recycling in a year. He sold 3,648 pounds of tabs as scrap metal and donated the money to charity. “If you think something is possible, you’re halfway there,” he said. SPACE-AGE FLAVORS Just in time for the total solar eclipse on April 8, Jeni’s Ice Creams released its Punk Stargonaut collection, which comes with safety glasses for watching the eclipse. The four flavors—Supermoon, Purple Star Born, Nebula Berry, and Cosmic Bloom—are “inspired…

Dogs are delightful, but being a dog owner requires a lot of work—particularly when it comes to teaching these beloved pets proper behavior. Dogs that don’t know how to behave can be a risk to people, other dogs, or even themselves. To help dogs and owners, the American Kennel Club (AKC) has a Canine Good Citizens program and test, with a list of behaviors dogs should master. And animal shelters use a variety of temperament tests to assess the dogs in their care. But many animal experts say behavior tests aren’t foolproof and they’re only one way to get to know a dog. What do you think? Should dogs have to pass a behavior test? Yes—it helps dogs and people Many behavioral and training resources are available for free from…

Ilsa, 10, Texas Marco Wendt Wildlife ambassador, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance Yes, hedgehogs absolutely have tails. Their tails are not very noticeable, since they are about an inch long and are usually hidden under hedgehogs’ spines. These little pincushions with legs can curl up into a spiky ball, tucking in their tail along with their head and their legs. Do you have a question for an animal expert? Send it to hello@theweekjunior.com. Find out more about the San Diego Zoo at sandiegozoowildlifealliance.org.…

On April 8, people across parts of North America will be able to witness a rare event: a total eclipse of the Sun. This is the first total solar eclipse visible from this part of the world since August 2017. The most recent one before that took place in 1979. What is a solar eclipse? A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon moves between Earth and the Sun and its shadow appears to cover part or all of the Sun. The Moon passes between Earth and the Sun every month, but the three celestial bodies aren’t usually lined up in a way that causes an eclipse. (Celestial means having to do with the sky.) When the Moon covers only part of the Sun, it’s called a partial solar eclipse. When…

Scientists have created a device called LightSound that converts light intensity into sound, enabling people who are blind or visually impaired to experience a solar eclipse by hearing it. The device emits a musical tone that grows deeper as the sunlight dims. LightSound can be powered by a battery or laptop and can be heard through headphones or a speaker. About 750 devices have been distributed free of charge across the US. Instructions for building a LightSound device are also available online for free so anyone can make one.…

Back in February, Beyoncé, one of the world’s most successful pop and R&B stars, surprised fans by revealing she had made an album of country songs. She released two singles from it at the time, and now the highly anticipated album, Cowboy Carter, has arrived. This is the eighth solo studio album from the singer, whose full name is Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, and a follow-up to her 2022 hit album Renaissance. She won four Grammys (top music award) for Renaissance in 2023, helping her set the record for the most Grammys of all time, with 32 wins. When her new single “Texas Hold ’Em” reached the top of the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart in February, she became the first Black female artist in history to hold that spot. Beyoncé may…

The Lion Guard (Disney Now, Disney+, or rent on other platforms) “This show is about a lion cub named Kion. His parents are Simba and Nala from The Lion King. He leads the Lion Guard, a group with Bunga the honey badger, Fuli the cheetah, Beshte the hippo, Ono the egret, and Anga the marshall eagle. There have been three seasons of the series. Kion has to defend the Pride Lands from hyena villain Janja and his evil great-uncle Scar, who was brought back from the past in the form of fire. In the third season, Kion is bitten by a snake on Scar’s side, and if the venom stays in him too long, he might turn evil. My sisters and I love this show!” Sean, 10, South Dakota Do…

By Lindsay Currie (Sourcebooks Young Readers) After beating the buzzer on the second-largest escape room in her town, Sarah returns home to some terrible news. Her parents can no longer afford their house, and they’re going to have to sell it and move, probably far away from Sarah’s best friends West and Hannah. When West and Hannah tell Sarah a local legend about triplets who hid a treasure in an abandoned funhouse outside town, the seventh graders decide to put their escape-room skills to the test to find the prize and save Sarah’s house. Filled with secret passageways, hidden keys, mazes made of mirrors, and clues to throw them off track, the funhouse proves to be more difficult than anything they’ve encountered. The three friends end up taking a wrong…

Eclipse Chaser By Ilima Loomis, photographs by Amanda Cowan (Clarion Books) This book describes how a scientist watched a previous solar eclipse. It captures her excitement when the skies cleared for her to see the solar phenomenon. It has incredible photos and a glossary. Ages 10 and up A Few Beautiful Minutes By Kate Allen Fox, illustrated by Khoa Le (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers) Featuring illustrations, this book depicts the joy people around the world have felt while watching a solar eclipse. It contains a “What’s Happening When” timeline and instructions on how to build a sun visor. Ages 6 and up The Ultimate Kid’s Guide to the Universe By Jenny Marder (Grosset & Dunlap) Find out why the Moon and the Sun look like they’re the same…

Excitement about the total solar eclipse happening on April 8 is building across the US! And no wonder—it’s a rare astronomical event that won’t be seen again in this part of the world until 2044. More than 32 million Americans who live along what’s called “the path of totality”—which begins in Mexico, ends in eastern Canada, and encompasses 15 US states along the way—will be able to witness the eclipse to its fullest extent. But nearly everyone in North America will be able to see at least a partial eclipse, and we can all take part by learning about the fascinating science behind this interaction between the Sun, Moon, and Earth (p14), reading books about it (p23), checking out NASA’s livestream (p24), and hosting a solar eclipse party (p25). Write…

Tej, age 12, of North Carolina likes that a democracy lets everyone have an equal chance in life and that people can choose their leaders. Tej hopes the US continues to give everyone an equal chance. As a reader of The Week Junior, you may have opinions about the US. If so, we want to hear them! Go to kids.theweekjunior.com/activities to download 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 submissions on this page 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…

Teacher’s Name: Mr. Tyrone Ferrell Jr. School: Two Rivers PCS at Young Elementary School “Mr. T is always happy to help. He loves to challenge his students, and he tells us all the time that he believes in us. He is very nice and helps us start our day with uplifting music. He is always so supportive of his students and helps them when they need it. Mr. T is the best teacher ever!” Leland, 8, Washington, DC 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.…

David Sedaris has made a successful career out of humor writing, often sharing funny yet poignant stories about his life and family. Now the award-winning author of 12 books for adults has published his first children’s picture book, Pretty Ugly, which tells the story of a young ogre named Anna Van Ogre, whose beautiful monster face gets replaced by a human’s face. Sedaris, age 67, was born in Johnston City, New York, but grew up in Raleigh, North Carolina, as the second-oldest of six siblings. As a child, he dreamed of becoming a visual artist. But at age 20, he started keeping a diary and fell in love with writing. Sedaris told The Week Junior he had to be patient with himself when he first began writing. “It’s really important…

The ocean is full of wildlife, and experts estimate that as much as 91% of it has not yet been studied. Now an expedition off the coast of Chile has uncovered more than 100 new marine species. Researchers from the Schmidt Ocean Institute spent almost a month exploring the deep seafloor and seamounts (underwater mountains). They visited the Nazca and Salas y Gómez ridges, two undersea mountain chains that were previously unexplored. These ridges stretch for about 1,800 miles. The researchers sent a robotic underwater vehicle with lights and a camera down to a depth of 14,000 feet. This revealed more than 100 species that the researchers believe have never been identified before. One creature the researchers found was a new type of sea toad. Despite their name, sea toads…

Scientists found a nesting site for Cantor’s giant softshell turtles in Kerala, India. This is the first breeding population they have seen. The turtles are critically endangered, so the team is setting up a nursery where they can grow up safely. LIFE SPAN: More than 100 years HABITAT: Rivers and streams in South Asia SIZE: Up to 6.5 feet DIET: Fish, shellfish, and water plants FUN FACT: They spend most of their life lying still underground, surfacing twice a day to breathe.…

With his grand, distinctive designs and his embrace of unusual materials, Frank Gehry changed the world of architecture. Early years Frank Gehry was born Ephraim Owen Goldberg in 1929 in Toronto, Canada. As a boy, he built pretend cities with pieces of wood from his grandfather’s hardware store. In 1947, he moved with his family to Los Angeles, California. In his architecture classes at Los Angeles City College, he loved the variety of possibilities in design but was not a skilled draftsman (person who makes detailed technical drawings). His teachers were encouraging, however, and modernist architect Raphael Soriano mentored him. Gehry won scholarships to the University of Southern California’s School of Architecture and graduated in 1954. He soon changed his name professionally to Frank Gehry. Path to a profession Gehry…

During the total solar eclipse in 2017, scientists observed how different animals responded to the extraordinary event. They will do the same this year and are asking the public to help them gather information. During the total eclipse in 2017, researchers observed 17 different species of animals at the Riverbanks Zoo in Columbia, South Carolina. When totality occurred and it got dark, most animals behaved as they typically do at night. For example, komodo dragons, gorillas, and giraffes tried to go indoors, where they sleep. Birds called tawny frogmouths, which are active at night, moved around more. Many species also seemed anxious. A male gorilla charged his exhibit’s glass, and a group of giraffes began galloping. Flamingos huddled together and looked around constantly. Galapagos tortoises moved faster than usual and…

From March 18 to March 24, the 2024 International Skating Union (ISU) World Figure Skating Championships were held in Montreal, Canada. The best skaters from around the globe competed in four events: men’s singles, women’s singles, pairs, and ice dance. The competition is considered the most prestigious annual event in figure skating. US skaters made history at Worlds by winning two gold medals for the first time since 1996. The champions were Ilia Malinin, who won his first world title in men’s singles, and ice dancers Madison Chock and Evan Bates. The pair successfully defended their 2023 ice dance title for their fifth world title overall. They are the first US ice dancers to win back-to-back titles at Worlds. Malinin, age 19, is the current US champion and is known…

Coach’s Name: Jon Weekes Team: Harrison United (soccer) “Coach Jon is one of my favorite people. He brings our team together and makes us all feel important. He never gets mad if we make a mistake, and he brings out the best in each of us. If we do something wrong, he just shows us how to do it right or better. He makes practice fun because he creates unique drills and makes us laugh a lot. Coach Jon is the best coach I’ve ever had and I truly value his leadership.” Brandon, 10, New York 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.…

Fright Krewe (Hulu) (Peacock) This animated horror series for kids follows a group of misfit teens in New Orleans, Louisiana, who get supernatural powers. In the newly released second season, they team up with vampires and werewolf-like rougarous to battle demons and save the world. Is It Cake? (Netflix) The popular competition series has returned for a third season. The latest group of skilled bakers use cake to make realistic replicas of items such as a water bottle, a fire hydrant, and an octopus. It’s fun to play along with the celebrity judges as they try to figure out what is edible. Madu (Disney+) In 2020, a video of a boy named Anthony Madu doing ballet on a rainy street in Lagos, Nigeria, went viral. This new documentary follows the…

What inspired this book? This book was inspired by doing escape rooms with my family. I like that when you’re in an escape room you discover skills others have that you didn’t know they had until you’re with them. What makes this story appealing to kids? I think kids will like that in this mystery, the characters go out and solve something that the adults in their life aren’t able to figure out. How do you like to spend your free time? I love taking walks. That’s when I come up with the majority of my inspiration for books. Three words to describe friendship? Loyalty, understanding, and trust. Funhouse or haunted house? Funhouse! Even though I’ve written books with spooky stories and I love Halloween, I don’t love haunted houses.…

On the afternoon of April 8, there will be a total solar eclipse—when the Moon passes between the Sun and Earth and blocks the face of the Sun. (Find out about the science of the eclipse in “Rare total solar eclipse arrives” on page 14.) To enjoy this special event, here’s how to get started. Know where to watch The eclipse’s path will travel from Mexico to Canada over the US (see the map on the next page). About 32 million people live in “the path of totality” (the parts of the US where people can see the maximum phase of a total solar eclipse, when the Moon completely covers the face of the Sun). Some Americans have plans to travel to be in the path of totality. However, everyone…

Word ladder To change the word JOKE into the word SHOP, use each clue to fill in a word that is only one letter different from the word before it. If you get stuck, try solving from the bottom up. STEPPING STONES Each figure hides a seven-letter name for a kind of laughter. To find each one, start anywhere and move in an unbroken path through letters that share a border (no jumping!), using each letter once. DETOURS Draw one continuous path from START to END that goes through every single square without crossing itself. For squares with signs, you may only enter at the arrow’s base, and you may only make a turn in the direction of an arrow shown. (NEED A HINT? Check the bottom of the page.)…

“I love The Week Junior, and I love to protect the ocean and the coral reefs in them. I started open water diving when I was 10 years old, and I became a certified reef renewal diver in February. Coral reefs are dying, and as a result, the fish that depend on them for survival are also suffering. In reef renewal, we give corals a helping hand. We clean and prune them and plant new corals that have grown in nurseries. When I go diving, I love seeing fish move around the pretty corals. I encourage other people to find some way to help coral reefs, including picking up trash that might otherwise end up in the ocean. We can do this! Let’s save our coral reefs. ” Have you…

“I was so happy to read about Ruth Gottesman’s donation to a New York City medical school. I hope one day that doctors will find out the causes for rare diseases like idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura. She is a superhero.” Alby, 8, New York “I was excited to see that the Women’s History Month issue had one of my favorite figure skaters, Michelle Kwan, on the cover. So many things in the magazine related to my everyday life!” Stella, 12, Minnesota “I love the Kansas City Chiefs and The Week Junior!” Rhys, 8, Pennsylvania…

1 What is Beyoncé’s new album called? 2 True or false? Sea toads, including a new species discovered near Chile, are a kind of fish. True □ False □ 3 A cabin in the city of Gatlinburg, Tennessee, is modeled after what classic breakfast food? a) Pancakes b) Toast c) Waffles a □ b □ c □ 4 What is US men’s figure skater Ilia Malinin’s nickname? 5 True or false? The last total solar eclipse visible in North America occurred in 1979. True □ False □ 6 What is the name of the main character in Pretty Ugly, the new book by David Sedaris? 7 Which country recently banned the capture of Asian elephants? a) Bangladesh b) Bolivia c) Bhutan a □ b □ c □ 8 In the…

Cinnamon frogs Zookeepers at Cotswold Wildlife Park in the UK have successfully bred five cinnamon frogs for the second time in the park’s history. This amphibian species, which is native to tropical forests in Southeast Asia, is at risk in the wild. Birds in Antarctica Cases of a deadly avian flu have been confirmed in Antarctica for the first time. Experts found two dead skua birds that had contracted the disease, and they suspect more cases will be seen in other parts of the continent.…

Fish lamps Gehry (left) once famously called fish “a perfect form.” Between 1984 and 1986, he designed a series of illuminated sculptures called Fish Lamps. The works are made of a translucent material so the light glows from within and are designed to appear as if the fish are swimming. Jewelry for Tiffany & Co. In the mid-2000s, Gehry designed six collections for the famous jewelry retailer Tiffany. They included asymmetrical rings, pendants, and earrings using materials such as precious metals, stones, and wood. He also created small household objects, including vases. A hat for Lady Gaga For the pop star’s performance at a Los Angeles art museum in 2009, Gehry designed a hat that was equal parts fashion and sculpture. Gehry used the same asymmetrical style he uses in…

MLB: The Show 24 is a new sports video game. It is out now for the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation platforms, and Xbox systems. It is the official game of Major League Baseball (MLB). This year’s MLB: The Show cover star is Vladimir Guerrero Jr. of the Toronto Blue Jays. His father, Vladimir Guerrero Sr., a former MLB player, was on the cover of MLB 2006, an earlier franchise. The new game has updated features, such as 400 new animations, bigger bases, and more legends from baseball history. The most significant change, however, is the addition of female players, which helps represent the diversity of the sport. In the new career mode Road to the Show: Women Pave Their Way, gamers can create and play with a female ballplayer. As the…

Lulu the Broadway Mouse By Jenna Gavigan ”This book is told from the point of view of Lucy, a mouse who is otherwise known as Lulu. Lulu lives in a theater with her mom and dad and four brothers. Unlike the other mice, Lulu dreams of being on the Broadway stage, but for now she helps the crew backstage. When her favorite cast member has to leave and a new kid comes to replace her, will Lulu’s dreams be crushed?” Lucy, 8, California Do you have a book to recommend? Send your review to hello@theweekjunior.com.…

Rodeo riders take to the slopes A fast-paced sport that combines rodeo and ski culture is catching on in the American West. In “skijoring,” people on skis are pulled through a course by horses, dogs, cars, or snowmobiles. They zoom over jumps and around obstacles while trying to throw batons through hoops. There is no official set of rules, but the sport has grown in popularity, with more than 1,000 participants competing in front of as many as 10,000 spectators at events across the US. Enthusiasts hope it will become an official Olympic sport. “It’s just magnificent,” said one. Little fish making a big noise It may be less than half an inch long, but a fish species named Danionella cerebrum makes a sound as loud as a jackhammer. After…