Communication

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Presents...

3 Check It Out! 4 Animal Chatter 6 Talking Hands 7 Klever Kodes 8 Foreign Language Bingo 10 The Lion’s Roar 11 Super Sleuths 12 Puzzles 14 What’s Your Ring Tone?

16 Write Away 17 Secret Color Writing 18 Guinea Pigs Can Talk 19 The Unbreakable Code 20 A Pair of Shoots 23 Trucker Talk 24 Speaking British 26 Comics 27 Hobo Signs and Slang 28 Max & Gracie 29 Kids Corner 30 Puzzle Solutions 2

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et’s talk. That means we are communicating. When I say hello in English, you can understand what I am saying. What if I said bonjour or ciao? If you don’t know the language that I am speaking, you wouldn’t know how to respond. Learn a new language with “Foreign Language Bingo.”

There are many ways to communicate with others. Maybe you write a letter to your grandparents, leave a thank-you note for your teacher, or email a friend. If you have a secret, you can communicate it with a secret code. Check out “Klever Kodes” and “Secret Color Writing.”

If we want to express ourselves to someone without talking, we might use our hands. How do animals communicate? They have sounds and actions that speak louder than words. You’ll find out more in “Animal Chatter,” “The Lion’s Roar,” and “Guinea Pigs Can Talk.”

A popular way to communicate in 2017 is with the cell phone. We can call, text, or email. What was it like before cell phones? “What’s Your Ring Tone?” will tell you all about it.

Enjoy reading this issue. Then communicate to us what you liked best. Send us a letter, a picture, or a drawing. Tell us your favorite way to send a message to a friend. Mail your communication to Kids Corner, PO Box 227, Bluffton, Ohio 45817-0227. Or email us at kidscorner@funforkidz.com.

We’ll get back to you and include a gift! That’s something to talk about!

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by Diane Winebar Can animals communicate with one another? They sure can! Many animals live in family groups. They have their own collection of sounds that they use to “talk” to each other.

They don’t sound like the words that people use, but they get the message across.

Let’s listen in on some vocal animal signals.

Monkey Messages and Chimp Chat Monkeys chatter constantly. They’re not just making funny sounds. They’re giving important messages to each other. Chimpanzees are apes, not monkeys.

(Monkeys have tails, but apes do not.) But like their monkey cousins, they use sounds to communicate.

• Smart Diana monkeys may be the top bananas when it comes to monkey talk. They put two or more calls together to make monkey sentences. And they have an alarm call for each of their bothersome predators. The call for jaguar is different from the call for eagle. These monkeys can even understand the calls of other monkey species.

• A tamarin monkey uses a “wait up” whistle when it realizes it’s all alone. Other tamarin monkeys whistle back to say, “We’re over here!”

• Chimpanzees use the pant-hoot call when they are excited or want to be social. It starts with soft hoos, which get louder and more frequent, until the chimpanzee is screeching! As the call ends, the hoos become softer and less frequent.

• An annoyed chimpanzee will cough or bark. A soft grunt means there’s some especially delicious food available. Whimpering or crying means “Help me.

I’m in trouble.”

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A chimpanzee’s excited hoo call is well known.

A softer hoo sound means a chimpanzee is puzzled.

Dolphin Discussion Super-intelligent dolphins have a very complex language. They even seem to talk back and forth with each other.

• Dolphins whistle, squeak, moan, make popping noises, chirp, and click. And these are just some of the sounds we know of.

Dolphins can produce sounds that are too high for the human ear to hear.

Dolphins don’t have vocal chords! To make sounds, they squeeze air back and forth between air sacs in their heads.

The sounds come out of their blowholes.

• Each bottlenose dolphin has its own signature whistle. (Like a person’s voice, each dolphin signature whistle is unique.)

Dolphins will repeat their signature whistle over and over. They are letting other dolphins know who they are.

• Another type of whistle is used when separated dolphins want to find each other. Still another whistle means a dolphin is happy or excited.

• When a dolphin is aggravated, it will let loose with a lot of buzzing clicks. When it’s in trouble or anxious, it will squeak to let others know.

Wolf Words Wolves and howling seem to go together. If one wolf begins to howl, others soon join in. But the king of the forest communicates with other sounds too.

• Growling is used as a warning to other wolves or predators to stay away.

• When two wolves are fighting, and one wolf wants to give up, it will whimper and roll onto its back. This means “You win.”

• A wolf barks when it senses danger. When defending their territory, wolves use a bark-howl to scare away intruders.

• Why do wolves howl, anyway? Wolves often roam long distances looking for food. When it’s time to call the pack back together, a long, loud howl does the trick. Wolves can hear this call from very far away and through thick forests. Another type of howl tells wolves to stay together and defend their area from intruders. Sometimes wolves howl just because they’re happy to be together.

Wolves don’t really howl at the moon. They are just communicating with each other at dawn and dusk, when they are very active and the moon is visible!

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by Joan Sprung Did you ever think about how often people “talk” to each other without being heard?

Suppose you walk into a crowded room. You see a friend, but it’s too noisy to call to him. Ah – he’s looking your way, so you wave your hand in the air. Good. He sees you. He crooks his finger to say “Come here.”

“OK,” you signal, making a circle with your thumb and index finger. He pats the chair next to him to let you know it’s saved for you. You respond with a grin and a “thumbs up” sign.

You’ve had a whole conversation with your hands, and you’ve understood each other perfectly!

We communicate with hand-talk every day. We point with a finger when we mean “Look at this.” A raised hand tells the teacher we have something to say. A gesture that mimes wiping perspiration from our forehead means “Whew, that was close!”

Referees at sporting events use hand signals to tell that a team scored points, a player broke a rule, or a time-out is being called. Have you ever noticed how people fiddle with their hair or clothes when they’re nervous? Their body language gives away their feelings.

Native Americans used signs when they met members of tribes who spoke different languages. They could let strangers know where there was water and good hunting or warn them of danger.

Many deaf people use American Sign Language (ASL), which enables them to say anything a hearing person can say. They just use their hands. They can argue and joke, and, using the signs for each number and letter of the alphabet, do math and spell.

Hands help people understand each other. Watch and see. Hands communicate as clearly as voices.

saying “Surprise!” in This common gesture means “I can’t believe it!”

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American Sign Language

by Linda Judd What better way to share a secret than with a secret code?

Here are two you can use with your friends and family.

ROT-13 (“ROT” is short for “ROTATE”) There are 26 letters in the English alphabet, so it is possible to rotate the last 13 letters to the front of the alphabet and the first 13 letters to the end. This makes an easy key for you and your friends to use.

Original Letters: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z Code Letters: N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z A B C D E F G H I J K L M Use the code letter under the original letter you want to write. For example, if you want to write “school,” you will write: F P U B B Y. Can you use the ROT-13 key to decipher this message?

ZRRG

ZR

NG GUR OHF

FGBC. .

TIC-TAC-TALK This fun code will puzzle anyone who doesn’t know the key.

A

B

C

D

E

F

G

H

I

J K L M

N

O

P

Q

R

S

T

U

V

W X Y Z

In this code, an “A” would be written like this because this is the shape of the Tic-Tac-Talk lines forming the “A” space. Similarly, M=

O =

Y =

Can you decode this message?

. .

Answers are on page 30.

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by Holly Faith Cepeda • illustrations by Joan Waites Do you know someone who speaks a different language? It might be someone in your neighborhood or a classmate. Would you like to learn to speak with them in their language?

You don’t have to go to their country to learn this. Here is a game you can make that will teach you Spanish words. You can make this with different languages. Look for foreign language dictionaries in your library.

Show this game to your teacher. Wouldn’t it be fun if your class made and played this game together? Take a picture of your class and send it to us!

What You Need: • 34 note cards or index cards • markers or crayons • 10 sheets of paper • buttons or beans to use as markers

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Step 1:

Draw a simple picture on a note card, then label it with its Spanish word. For example, draw a cat, and label it “el gato.” Draw a different picture on 34 different note cards, and label each one.

Step 2: Make 10 bingo cards. On each sheet of paper, draw 3 lines across and 3 lines

down to make 16 squares. In each square, draw one of your word pictures with its label.

Don’t repeat any picture on any one card.

Step 3: Get together with a couple of friends and play! Someone calls out the note

card words, pronouncing them correctly. The words are easy to pronounce if you say the words one part at a time. Players repeat the words. This helps them learn the words better. If a word is on your card, mark it with a button. Four marked pictures in a row in any direction wins! In another version, the first player to fill the entire card is the winner.

Each time you play, take turns being the one to call out words. Switch cards so each player has a chance to learn different words.

Here are Spanish words you can use: 1. one – uno (oo-noh) 2. two – dos (dohs) 3. three – tres (trehs) 4. four – cuatro (koo-wah-troh) 5. five – cinco (seen-koh) 6. six – seis (seh-ees) 7. seven – siete (see-eh-teh) 8. eight – ocho (oh-choh) 9. nine – nueve (noo-eh-veh) 10. ten – diez (dee-ehs) 11. the tree – el arbol (ehl ahr-bohl) 12. the flower – la flor (lah flohr) 13. the hat – el sombrero (ehl sohm-breh-roh) 14. the shoe – el zapato (ehl sah-pah-toh) 15. the sock – el calcetin (ehl kahl-seh-teen) 16. the girl – la muchacha (lah moo-chah-chah) 17. the boy – el muchacho (ehl moo-chah-choh)

18. the orange – la naranja (lah nah-rahng-hah) 19. the grapes – las uvas (lahs oo-vahs) 20. the apple – la manzana (lah mahn-sah-nah) 21. the ice cream – la nieve (lah nee-eh-veh) 22. the pear – la pera (lah peh-rah) 23. the banana – el platano (ehl plah-tah-noh) 24. the frog – la rana (lah rah-nah) 25. the cat – el gato (ehl gah-toh) 26. the dog – el perro (ehl peh-roh) 27. the rabbit – el conejo (ehl cohn-neh-hoh) 28. the bird – el pajaro (ehl pah-hah-roh) 29. the guitar – la guitarra (lah gee-tah-rah) 30. the star – la estrella (lah ehs-treh-yah) 31. the drum – el tambor (ehl tahm-bohr) 32. the balloon – el globo (ehl gloh-boh) 33. the pencil – el lapiz (ehl lah-pees) 34. the heart – el corazon (ehl kohr-ah-sohn)

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Lions make many different sounds when they are together. They meow, purr, and roar. They grunt, moan, snarl, and growl. Lions even let out occasional woofs. These are lion calls, and they all mean something different. The roar is the most famous lion call. Did you know each lion has a different roar?

Why do lions roar? Sometimes they roar together, as if they were singing a song.

This encourages unity within a family group, or pride, of lions. When lions travel to hunt or just roam around, they roar to let each other know where they are. Roars can be heard five miles away! Prides protect their territory. If unknown lions or predators try to intrude, roaring warns them away. Wouldn’t you run if you heard a roar?

When lion cubs stray, mother lions call for them with a soft roar. They want the cubs to stay away from strangers. Father lions also use a soft roar when playing with their cubs.

Lions communicate in other ways. They greet each other by rubbing their heads together. When lions lick each other, they are showing affection. Every pride of lions has a smell all its own. By smelling each other, lions know which pride each belongs to.

When males are unhappy with each other, they swat their paws or gently bite the back of one another’s necks. This way, they keep each other in line. When a male lion is threatened, he’ll show his sharp teeth and huge claws. A loud roar scares his challenger. He’ll even make himself look bigger by standing on his tiptoes and hunching his back. By doing this, a big mane of fur looks even larger and more intimidating.

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The next time you visit a zoo, see and hear how the lions are communicating with one another.

written and illustrated by Rebecca Spohn Jenny, Dylan, and Tanya are three kids with a nose for adventure!

They call themselves “Super Sleuths” – detectives who love learning new things as they try to solve the mysteries of the world.

You can be a Super Sleuth too!

I can’t imagine what it was like living in the olden days.

No kidding! What did people do without cell phones, email, Internet, laptops, smartphones, DVD’s, CD’s, digital cameras, and text messaging?

This book says that keeping in touch with a friend who lived far away wasn’t easy. Mail took a really long time. Some people sent letters by Pony Express.

One form of communication used over 150 years ago is still used today. In the 1840s, Samuel Morse invented a way of communicating using dots and dashes to stand for letters and numbers. A telegraph operator would tap the message on an electric telegraph machine and send the code across wires.

Morse code is a cool way to communicate with someone!

We can use flashlights to send each other Morse code messages at night!

Turn your flashlight on and off quickly for each dot in your message.

Leave it on longer for each dash. Leave your flashlight off for five seconds between words. You can also send a secret Morse code message by email!

See the Morse code puzzle on page 12. Just follow the chart!

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Before Telephones

A B C D E F G H I J K L M

by Evelyn B. Christensen

This is the first message sent over the first official American telegraph line in 1844. Can you figure out what it says?

. _ _ . . . . . _ _ . . . . . _ _ . . . . ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___

_ _ . _ _ _ _ . . . _ _ . _ . _ _ _ . . _ _ _ . .. . . _ ___ ____ ___ ___ ___ ____ ___ ___ ____ ___ ?

Can you write your name in Morse code? Try creating secret messages for friends in the code, and see if they can decode them.

• Cross out all the vowels in columns 1, 3, and 4.

• Cross out all the consonants in columns 2 and 5.

• Then, starting with the top row and going across, write the remaining letters in the blank spaces.

1

2

3

4

5

N A L S E F W S U N W E

O G S A U P B R L M A T

E S E L T R I H G E A V

D M O E A U N R W K O I

T I E T E O V U I M S E

Seven forms of quiet communication: ___, _____, ______, _____, _____, ____, ____

First: Find your way through the letter maze by connecting all letters except Q’s and Z’s.

Second: Write these connected letters (except Q’s and Z’s) in the blank spaces to discover nine forms of happy communication.

Start

L A Z Q Z S C Z Q E Z

Q Z U Z H Q Z H E Z R

Q Q Z G Q Z Q Q Z Q S

Z S Q Q Z A L P P A Z

M Z E S U Z Z Q Q Z Q

I Z Z Z Q Z G S W Q Z

Z L E Z H U Q Z Z A Q

Z Q Q S Z Q Z Z Q Z V

Q C Q Q Z G G I Z Q E

H Q S E L Q Q Q G S Z

U Z Z Q Q I Q Z Z Z Q

C Q Z Q H Q G Q Q V Z

K Z Q S Q Z H Q I Z E

Z L E Z Z Z Q F Z Q S Finish

Nine forms of happy communication: ______, ______,

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_. ___ .__. __._ ._. ... _ .._ ..._ .__ _.._ _.__ __..

by Guy Belleranti

by Guy Belleranti

Seven forms of quiet communication are hidden in the columns of letters.

To find them:

N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

._ _... _._. _.. . .._. __. .... .. .___ _._ ._.. __

______,

____,

________,

________,

_____, ____

_______,

_____

Fraction-nition The first 2/7 of COMPOST

Communication Word Search

The middle 1/5 of LINES

by Gertrude Knabbe

by David Lindo

Find the letters described by the fraction given in each statement.

Print the letters you select, in the order provided, into the boxes.

The middle 1/3 of INVEST The last 1/2 of JARS The first 1/3 of AIR The last 1/2 of VACATION What can you hold without ever touching it?

by Evelyn B. Christensen

Emails and texting are popular ways to communicate today. Only a few short years ago, they didn’t exist! Do you wonder what kinds of communication will be available when you’re an adult?

S A

A

I L I

M S

E S M

L E I

Look forward, backward, up, down, and diagonally to find the following words in capital letters. Cross the word off the list.

After all the words are found, the remaining letters will spell something relating to communication.

ADVERTISE DIARY IDEA INFORM INTERCOM INTERNET LETTER LISTEN MAGAZINE MAIL MEDIA MEMO NEWSPAPER NEWS NOTE POLL PRINT ___

RADIO READ REMARK REPEAT SIGN SIREN TALK TAPE TELEPHONE TELEVISION TOLD TYPEWRITER VOICE WIRE WRITE YELL

___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___

T A

I

T A E

T N D

I

E E

V W P

I

P

E R A D

A R Y E K L

I

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O

A M

P N L R M R E

L R O R E A E O A T O E M E

I

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S D S

E A P R P L

L T

H L W E W L R

I

T F C M O

S N I

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R A E

T N E R T

O E

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R A E E V S

N T

I

S A Y N E O E N T O

E T A D T O D L E E

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S

T T K R

E R

I W V

T E D E T N A S O

N R T E

F R N T

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R E T

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R W E

Y T N G C

D A

D E M A G A Z

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P

___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___

___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___

E E I

I

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N E

___ ___

___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___.

? ? ?

30

S

Fill in the squares so that each row, column, and 6-square section has the letters E-M-A-I-L-S.

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The phone is ringing! Long ago, clanging bells let you know when someone was calling. Now you can choose whatever sound you want on your cell phone. Early phones were big and clunky.

Now phones are so small, you can hold them in your hand. At first, phones were just for talking.

With today’s phones, you can surf the Internet, take pictures, listen to music, and do many other things. How did we get from the first phones to what we have now? Let’s take a look.

Large Box Telephone - 1876 When Alexander Graham Bell demonstrated one of his first telephones, people were amazed! He spoke into the mouth piece on the right, and his voice came through a similar machine 15 miles away.

Wooden Wall-Mounted Telephone - 1880s To place a call on this phone, you had to turn the crank on the right.

This signaled a telephone operator. You told the operator the number you wanted to call, and she connected you.

Desk Telephone These phones were a big step up because you didn’t need to crank for an operator. You just picked up the phone, and the operator was there.

Desk Dial Telephone When dials were put on desk phones, people could dial the number they wanted to place the call themselves. They didn’t need to talk to an operator.

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Push-Button Telephone

Cordless Telephone

As the years went on, desk phones became lighter and came in different shapes and colors.

Dials were replaced with push-button keypads.

Finally, a portable phone! You couldn’t stray too far from the phone’s base, but at least you could talk as you moved around the house.

The First Cell Phones

Flip Phones

This very early cell phone looked like a walkie-talkie.

It weighed almost 2 lbs., was 13 inches tall, and cost nearly $4000! You couldn’t do anything but talk with it.

People flipped this phone open to talk into it. Cell phones were getting smaller, slimmer, and more powerful. Now you could take photos and send text messages.

Smartphones Today’s cell phones have touchscreens and sophisticated digital cameras. All the many apps are like little programs for your hand-held computer.

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by Diane H. Thomas • illustration by Deborah Johnson It’s fun to call or email your friends. What if you lived before telephones and computers were invented? How would you communicate with a friend who lived far away? You guessed it! You would write a letter, put a stamp on the envelope, and drop it into the mailbox.

Today sending letters by regular mail is sometimes called using “snail mail.” That’s because emails are received in just seconds, while it takes days to send a handwritten letter through the post office. But writing letters and notes by hand can be fun and creative! How? Did your mom cook your favorite meal? Write her a thank-you note – on a paper towel – and leave it where she will find it.

Let’s say your parents want to invite the family next door to a cookout. Volunteer to write the invitation. Carefully remove the label from a can of baked beans. Use the blank side of the label to tell your neighbors when and where to come. Add ribbon or string so you can hang it from their doorknob. What a surprise for them!

For your next sleepover, make special invitations. Use construction paper and a glue stick to form a “pillowcase.” Decorate the “hem” of the pillowcase any way you like.

Write your invitation on a 3 x 5 index card, and slip it inside the open end. You’ve created a unique invitation!

Think of the fun you could have writing to a pen pal in a different country. You could even save the interesting-looking stamps. With a parent, use the Internet to find an international kids’ pen pal organization. Or check with your local library.

Finally, try writing a letter to someone using secret color writing.

See page 17 to find out how.

Now you know writing can be fun!

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If you want to send a secret message to a friend, you can do it in code. Suppose you want to send your friend a secret PICTURE? How can you draw a picture that only your friend can see? If you know about color FILTERS, it’s easy!

What You Need: • a blue crayon and a red crayon • a sheet of white paper • a sheet of red cellophane from a craft store, or red cellophane used to wrap presents.

What You Do Draw a picture on the sheet of paper with the BLUE crayon. THIS IS IMPORTANT: Draw very lightly so you can just BARELY see it! Don’t worry. You will be able to see the picture. Now you must hide it.

Take the RED crayon, and rub it all over the drawing. Rub it hard. Cover your blue drawing completely. You should not be able to see the blue drawing when you are done.

Your secret drawing will look like a big red scribble. NOBODY will be able to see your secret drawing, not even you or your friend.

BUT you both can see it if you know . . .

The Science Secret Lay the sheet of red cellophane on top of the drawing. You should be able to see the blue drawing through the red cellophane. If you can’t, fold the cellophane to make it a darker red. You may have to fold it several times, but, eventually, you will see the drawing. It will look black, but there it is! Amazing!

The red cellophane serves as a filter. When you lay the red filter on the paper, the whole sheet looks red. The red crayon rubbing blends in, but the blue lines show through.

Use this cool science trick to write secret messages as well as drawings!

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G

by Elisabeth Aikins

uinea pigs have their own secret language! They use an interesting mixture of sounds to tell you what they need and how they’re feeling. If you ever get the chance to own or spend time with them, here’s what to look and listen for.

Chut/Chubble – When guinea pigs are at their happiest, they make a perky, bubbly chut, chut, chut, sound.

Wheeking – The very loud WHEEK! WHEEK! sound is one of excitement. It’s used

when guinea pigs hear or smell food. They also use it to tell their owners, “Look at me!”

Purring – If the purr is gentle, and the guinea pig has a relaxed body, it means it’s happy and comfortable. A high-pitched purr and a tense body means it’s annoyed. A short purr with a durr sound and a rigid body means it has been surprised.

Cooing – Momma guinea pigs make this sound to let their babies know everything’s OK. When made for their owners, it means pigs consider them part of their herd.

Rumbling – This sounds a lot like a purr, but it’s much deeper, and the guinea pig’s body vibrates. When a male does this to another male, it means “I’m the boss!” If a male does it to a female, he’s trying to get her attention.

Shrieking – If you hear a piercing, high-pitched squeal, check your guinea pig right away! They shriek out of fear or pain. It can also be an alarm call to other pigs.

Teeth Chattering – When a guinea pig does this while showing its teeth, it means “Stay away!” The pig is very angry or upset, and you might get bit! Keep it away from other pigs until it calms down.

Chirping – This is the rarest of all guinea pig sounds. If you hear it, you are very lucky! When they do this, other pigs will stop and listen.

If you learn to understand guinea pigs’ unique language, it will make your time with them even more special.

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by Catherine Grace Jones During the early days of World War II, Japanese code breakers figured out every secret code the Americans used. How could the military communicate its secrets?

Philip Johnston had lived with the Navajos since the age of four. He was one of the few non-Navajos who could speak their language. He had an idea. Why not use the complicated Navajo language as a secret code? The language, with no written form, was almost impossible for anyone outside Navajoland to learn. If Navajo words were used for modern military terms, even the Japanese could not decipher them.

The Marines agreed to try Johnston’s plan. They recruited 29 young Navajos who could speak both English and Navajo to develop the code. Navajo words would represent the letters of the English alphabet. Here are some of the code words they used:

Navajo Word

English Term

Translation

da-he-tih-hi

fighter plane

hummingbird

gini

dive bomber

chicken hawk

besh-lo

submarine

iron fish

lo-tso

battleship

whale

wo-chi

flare

light streak

a-ye-shi

bombs

eggs

gah-bih-tkeen

route

rabbit trail

The Code Talkers memorized over 400 code words. They practiced every possible message they might later send or receive by radio. For example: “Army platoon in vicinity of Victory Ridge” was translated into Navajo as: “Dog faces mud in there about of Victor Ice Cat Turkey Owl Rabbit Yucca Rabbit Ice Dog Goat Elk” Other American code breakers recorded some of the Navajos’ radio messages and tried to break their code. Even after three weeks, they couldn’t begin to translate the words!

By the end of the war, 420 trained Navajo Code Talkers proudly served in the US Marine Corps. This Navajo code is the only spoken military code that was never cracked.

Navajo Code Talkers pass on orders using their secret code. Private first class Preston Toledo (left) and his cousin, private first class Frank Toledo.

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by J.T. Waite • illustrated by Pamela Harden “There’s nothing to do,” Jimmy moaned, as only an eight-year-old faced with such a tragedy can. “I’m bored!” He dragged himself to the kitchen table and sat down.

His sister Karen looked up from her cookies and milk. “Mom, Jimmy’s boring,” she said.

“I’m not boring,” her big brother protested. “I’m bored. There’s nothing to do.”

“You could have a cookie,” Karen said.

“I don’t want something to eat,” Jimmy said, reaching for a cookie anyway.

“I want something to do.”

Mom turned from the counter, where she was chopping carrots for soup. “There’s always homework,” she offered.

“Aww, Mom,” Jimmy complained, pouring himself a glass of milk. “I did my homework on the bus. All we had to do was look over the words for our spelling test tomorrow, and I know them already. They all end in the letters A-T-I-O-N. Listen.

Celebration, C-E-L-E-B-R-A-T-I-O-N. Demonstration, D-E-M-O-N-S-T-R-A-T-I-O-N. Fascination, F-A-S-C . . .”

Mom raised her hands in mock surrender. “OK, OK. I believe you. Why don’t you play a game with your sister?”

“Mom!” Jimmy cried.

Karen frowned. “I could play.”

“Well, then,” Mom said, “where’s your friend Marty? I thought you two were joined at the hip.”

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Karen’s eyes grew wide. “Jimmy and Marty?”

“I just mean they spend a lot of time together, Honey,” Mom reassured her. “It’s only an expression. Jimmy’s hips are fine.”

“Marty has his trumpet lesson every Thursday, Mom. He spends every Wednesday afternoon practicing. And today’s Wednesday.”

“All right,” Mom laughed. “Then I guess you’ll just have to use another one of those A-T-I-O-N words.”

“Huh?” “Your imagination!” Mom said. “If there’s nothing to do, make something up. Pretend.”

Jimmy thought for a moment. “I suppose I could pretend to be a pirate or a skydiver or something,” he said.

“What’s a skydiver?” Karen asked.

“Someone who jumps out of airplanes with a parachute,” Jimmy answered.

“A pair of shoots?”

“No,” Jimmy laughed, “a parachute. It’s like this big silk umbrella that helps you float in the air. But I don’t have one.”

“Then make one.” Mom pointed to the junk drawer in the kitchen counter.

“Look in that drawer over there. There’s paper, glue, scissors, and – well – junk.

All you need to add is a little imagination.”

Jimmy began rummaging through the drawer. “Look at all this stuff.

You could make anything. Two of anything!”

“I don’t understand,” Karen said. “Why does Jimmy need to make a pair of shoots, Mom? Isn’t one enough for floating?”

Jimmy laughed. “I need to make a pair, Short Stuff, because I’m going to make one parachute for you and one for me!”

“Really?” Karen asked.

Jimmy nodded. “All it takes is a little imagination.”

21

Make your own skydiver and a “pair of shoots” with these simple things!

What You Need: • a piece of smooth, thin cardboard (the kind that comes with new shirts) • a pencil and crayons or colored pencils • scissors • tube of plastic cement • one 3/4" clasp paper clip • fishing line or thick black thread • a hole puncher • gummed reinforced hole guards • a basket-type 8-12-cup paper coffee filter

What You Do: 1. Trace the bigger skydiver onto your thin cardboard. Cut it out. Draw in and color the helmet, goggles, and jumpsuit. (See Figure 1.)

2. Use plastic cement to glue the clasp paper clip onto the “belt” of your skydiver. (See Figure 2.) Let the glue dry COMPLETELY! 3. With the hole puncher, punch out six holes evenly spaced around the outer edge of the coffee filter. Strengthen these holes with gummed hole reinforcers.

4. Cut six 12” pieces of fishing line or thread. Tie one end of each piece to each of the reinforced holes on the filter. Tie the other end to the clasp paper clip that you glued to your skydiver. (See Figure 2 again.)

5. Gently toss your skydiver into the air, and watch it float down!

22

by Susan Fowler

Truck drivers have a language all their own when they communicate using CB radios. My uncle is a truck driver. He delivers groceries to various supermarkets. His CB handle (radio name) is Wild Bill.

“Stepping on down the highway double nickel. Got a parking lot to my left and a plain wrapper to my right. There is an alligator straight out in front of me. I’m making tracks to the chicken coop,” Uncle Bill says.

What he means is he is driving down the highway at 55 mph (double nickel), and there is a huge truck hauling several cars piggyback (parking lot) to the left of him. To his right is an unmarked police car (plain wrapper). There is a large piece of tire (alligator) lying in the middle of road in front of him.

And he needs to stop at the next weigh station (chicken coop) to check the weight of his truck.

All his deliveries are made. He starts back home dead head (his truck now empty) to his better half (spouse). He passes a bobtail (a cab with no trailer attached) on his way. It starts to snow, and the salt shakers (snow plows) fill the road.

“Ten-four, good neighbor,” Uncle Bill says, “Catch ya on the flip flop!” (OK, good friend, see you on the return trip!)

Want to learn more trucker talk? Can you figure out how these phrases came to be?

bumper sticker – a car that follows too closely covered wagon – a gravel trailer topped with a tarp dragon wagon – a tow truck granny lane – right slow lane on an interstate highway thermos bottle – a tanker trailer stage coach – a tour bus smokin’ scooter – a motorcycle cop

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24

25

by Joseph Bore

“If it weren’t for our refrigerator, we wouldn’t know what’s going on around here.”

by James Browne

“I don’t mind if he talks all the time, but does he have to be right all the time?”

“Heather! I didn’t recognize you without your cell phone!”

“Your lightning bugs don’t like being in there. They keep blinking SOS.”

by James Browne

by Joseph Bore

by Guy Belleranti

2. How do dogs and trees communicate?

by bark

26

“He says, ‘Arf,’ so I’m texting him back ‘Woof.’”

1. How do astronauts communicate?

by tell-escope

by Bill & Bob Thomas

by Susan Buchanan

Years ago, hobos “rode the rails” from town to town in railroad cars. Hobos are people who travel for work. When they talked to each other, they had their own slang words. In hobo slang, a bull is not a four-legged animal with horns. Bulls are railroad yard security persons. Their job is to make sure hobos keep away from the trains.

It’s dangerous and illegal to try to “catch out,” or hop on, a freight train. You should never try to catch out!

While waiting to catch out, hobos would hang out in hobo “jungles.” These were camps near railroad yards. Hobos would wait until the right train came along. Sometimes this would be a “piggyback,” a flat train that carries goods or containers. On hot summer days, a good train to hop on would be a “reefer,” a refrigerated box car. The best train for a fast trip was a “hotshot,” a train that could go ahead of other trains.

When they were in towns, hobos drew special signs to leave other hobos important messages. They would draw on poles, sidewalks, and even houses! These symbols would tell everything from what places to avoid to where they could get a hot meal.

Here are some hobo symbols. Can you guess what they mean? Find the answers on page 30.

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Seattle, Washington 9:15 PM Rained all day long!

Max and Gracie and their owners, Linda, Craig, and their seven-year-old son, Ed, are driving the back roads of America. Perhaps you have seen Max and Gracie with their heads out the window. If not, here is a letter describing their most recent adventure.

nod to let her know: aling Ed might be under the bed. I sign ts, poin and paw her s raise cie Gra message received. ng under the bed. And one way to know for sure if he’s hidi Ed’s feet are so stinky, there’s only y socks giving off his Otherwise, it could be one of his stink that is to put my head under there. ss the cabin floor to out-for-three-years scent. I slink acro smells-like-sauerkraut-that’s-been-lefte. I peek under the chok ril-filling blast of foul air, I almost get a better whiff. Taking in a big nost e, all right. bed linens. Oh, yeah, he’s under ther been found. d floor to communicate to Gracie: Ed’s I thump my tail twice on the hardwoo it my next sign.

Gracie lightly jumps on the bed to awa away. I switch my tail n Ed sees me, he screams and rolls I quickly scoot under the bed. Whe coming out on the right side. to the right letting Gracie know he’s feet, Gracie pounces on Just as he starts to scramble to his Ed barrel rolls from under the bed. his back. Tag! e. s headed to the kitchen. Ed and I smil It’s Gracie’s turn to hide. Already, she’ y Ever try. pan the in f shel om bott under the We both know Gracie is going to hide we find her. time it’s been her turn, that’s where my ing his hands over his eyes. I place Ed starts to count down from 10, putt both know where to find Gracie. paws over my eyes, even though we to find.

Truth be told, all three of us are easy (behind out s Anywhere I hide, my long tail stick g my alin reve r), a curtain, under the closet doo t get can’ ly simp who location. Then there’s Ed, self! lly away from his sme

Max

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Dear Readers, Send us your artwork, poetry, and other creations for publication! Write us a letter, and tell what you think about Fun For Kidz. We love hearing from you!

Email to: kidscorner@funforkidz.com, or mail to: Kids Corner, PO Box 227, Bluffton, OH 45817-0227.

To Fun For Kidz Readers, These jokes go with the January 2017 Fire and Ice issue and the March 2017 Birds and More Birds issue.

Q: What did one volcano say to the other volcano?

A: I lava you.

Q: What do you get when you cross a parrot and a centipede?

A: a walkie-talkie!

by Tanisha Joshi, age 4-1/2 Redmond, WA

by Alanna Horst, age 11 Richfield, PA

from Brent Crews, age 9 San Leandro, CA

Dear Readers, Would you like to join Zip’s Pen Pal Club?

It’s easy!

Dear Editor, My name is Sara. I am 8 and I do homeschool. I like reading Fun For Kidz. The January 2017 Fire and Ice issue is my favorite.

Polar bears are my favorite animal. There were pictures of them in this issue! I did the volcano experiment. It was great!

Your friend, Sara Jurado Cicero, NY

Dear Editor, Hi! We are new subscribers. There are two boys and one girl in our family. I am Xander and I am 10. We love the magazine, especially the story cartoons. We live on a farm. We have pigs and chickens and raise crops. It’s fun. Well, see you later.

Your big fans, Clark, Xander, and Kelly Meier Union, IA

1. Send your name, age, full address, and up to four interests to Zip’s Pen Pal Club, PO Box 227, Bluffton, OH 45817-0227.

2. Your name, age, and interests will be listed with others who want a pen pal in a future issue of Fun For Kidz.

3. When the list appears, you can choose one or more pen pals. Then mail us a self-addressed, stamped envelope, and we’ll send you the full addresses within four weeks.

4. IMPORTANT: Make sure your parent signs your note to us giving their permission.

We won’t publish your name or send you the address list without their permission.

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Note to Parents: Zip’s Pen Pal Club is a place where kids can meet new friends and share friendly letters. Your child’s (children’s) full address will not appear in the pages of Fun For Kidz. Only the city and state (or province and country, if other than the US) will be used. We will never sell or trade your child’s (children’s) address.

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Emails Sudoku on page 13 Communication Word Search on page 13 T A

I

T A E

T N D

I

E E

V W P

I

P

E R A D

A R Y E K L

I

I

S L I M A E A E S L I M M I L E S A

O

A M

P N L R M R E

I A E S M L L S M A E I E M A I L S

L R O R E A E O A T O E M E

I

E A P R P

P

S D S

L

L T

H L W E W L R

I

T F C M O

S N I

I

R A E

T N E R T

O E

I

R A E E V S

N T

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S A Y N E O E N T O

E T A D T O D L

T T K R

E R

Quiet Communication on page 12

I W V

T E D E T N A S O

1

2

3

4

5

N R T E

F R N T

I

R E T

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R W E

Y T N G C

D A

D E M A G A Z

N A L S E F W S U N W E

O G S A U P B R L M A T

E S E L T R I H G E A V

D M O E A U N R W K O I

T I E T E O V U I M S E

E E

I

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S

P

E E

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N E

Answer: I wrote a letter to a distant friend.

A-Maze-ing Happy Communication on page 12 Start

L A Z Q Z S C Z Q E Z

Q Z U Z H Q Z H E Z R

Q Q Z G Q Z Q Q Z Q S

Z S Q Q Z A L P P A Z

M Z E S U Z Z Q Q Z Q

I Z Z Z Q Z G S W Q Z

Z L E Z H U Q Z Z A Q

Z Q Q S Z Q Z Z Q Z V

Q C Q Q Z G G I Z Q E

H Q S E L Q Q Q G S Z

U Z Z Q Q I Q Z Z Z Q

C Q Z Q H Q G Q Q V Z

K Z Q S Q Z H Q I Z E

Z L E Z Z Z Q F Z Q S Finish

Nine forms of happy communication: LAUGHS, CHEERS, APPLAUSE, SMILES, HUGS, WAVES, GIGGLES, CHUCKLES, HIGH FIVES

Fraction-nition on page 13 What can you hold without ever touching it?

CONVERSATION

Before Telephones on page 12 WHAT HATH GOD WROUGHT? (“WROUGHT” means “formed.”)

Klever Kodes on page 7 ROT-13 message: Meet me at the bus stop.

30

Tic-Tac-Talk message: Codes are cool.

Seven forms of quiet communication: NOD, SMILE, SALUTE, FROWN, SHRUG, WINK, WAVE

Hobo Signs and Slang on page 27 1. These people are rich.

2. A gentleman lives here.

3. You can camp here.

4. This is not a safe place.

5. OK. All right.

6. Good road to follow.

7. Kind lady lives here.

8. Man with gun lives here.

9. Vicious dog lives here.

10. Keep quiet.

11. Food here if you work.

12. This way 13. Fresh water, safe campsite 14. Dangerous neighborhood 15. Dangerous drinking water 16. Hit the road, quick!

17. jail 18. If you are sick, they will care for you.

19. halt 20. The sky is the limit.

Photo Credits: 123rf.com: Copyright: Sergey Novikov 3; Copyright: Marcos Calvo Mesa 6 (left); Copyright: wckiw 6 (right); Copyright: Ramzi Hachicho 14 (bottom-right); Copyright: Wong Sze Yuen 16; Copyright: vitpho 23. Wikimedia Commons: Rama (Own work) [CC BY-SA 2.0 fr] 15 (top-right); ALFRM (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0] 15 (bottom-left); USMC Archives from Quantico, USA [CC BY 2.0] 19.

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V i s i t U s O n l i n e ! F a c e b o o k . c o m / F u n F o r K i d z • w w w. F u n F o r K i d z . c o m Vol. 16 No. 3 • May/June 2017 Publisher: Thomas M. Edwards Editor: Marilyn Edwards Associate Editor: Diane Winebar Graphic Design: Gaurakisora Tucker Marketing Director: Jonathan Edwards

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FUN FOR KIDZ, INC. accepts no responsibility whatsoever for Article, Photo & Artwork Submissions: We accept and any injuries arising out of the use or misuse of ideas, materials, encourage article, photo and artwork submissions. Unsolicited and activities featured in its publications or products. materials will be considered for publication and will be returned Science Editor: Larry White Copyright © 2017 by the Bluffton News Publishing and Printing if accompanied by sufficient first-class postage. Guidelines are Co. All rights reserved. No portion of this publication may be available with a SASE. The publisher accepts no responsibility Science Illustrator: Alan Wassilak reproduced without the written permission of the publisher.

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Animals Predict the Weather

Tornadoes and Hurricanes

Blizzards and Snowstorms

Remarkable Rainbows

Weather Wizards of Ancient Times

Weather Wiz Kids