SUPERKIDZ magazine - SepOct2009 issue by Cindy Chin

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KEPONG

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KEPONG

Contents September-October 2009

Superkidz Club Cool benefits, discounts & giveaways from our merchant partners

From the Guest Editor

Speak Up Let kids be heard!

Check it Out Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t miss out on these, kids!

Superkid Gloson Teh: Great blogger, fantastic poet & magnificent entertainer!

Whassup Happenings in & outside your school!

16 18

Kiddie Box Office Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs G-Force

Take Five Have time out with these trivia, games & puzzles

Arts & Crafts Bring out the artist in you!

Superkidz Club Bulletin A recap & a rundown of whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s keeping our members busy

The Write Stuff Contributions from our Superkidz Club Members

Superkidz Club birthday celebrants

12 21

29 16

35 18

Contests 17

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs movie contest

G-Force movie contest

Brushh Playhouse contest

Kit W. Lim PUBLISHER Issa Rodriguez EDITOR Cindy Chin MANAGING & PRODUCTION EDITOR Ng Xin Yin GUEST EDITOR Cedric Woon GRAPHIC DESIGNER Kok Si Si ILLUSTRATOR Chuan Xin Vee, Valentina Ho SUPERKIDZ CLUB JUNIOR REPORTERS Mohd Azrin, Ng Chen Yan, Ng Xin Yin CONTRIBUTORS K. Lim ADVERTISING SALES & MARKETING TS Bee CIRCULATION & ACCOUNTS MANAGER / ADMINISTRATIVE DEPARTMENT De One Baby & Family Digital Photo Studio PHOTOGRAPHER PUBLISHER Epitome Communications Sdn Bhd (570021-X) 10.01 Wisma Lim Foo Yong 86 Jalan Raja Chulan 50200 Kuala Lumpur TELEPHONE 03-2144 5733 FAX 03-2144 6733 EMAIL kidz@epitome.com.my WEBSITE www.kidz.my

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. NO PORTION OF THIS MAGAZINE MAY BE REPRODUCED WITHOUT THE WRITTEN CONSENT OF THE PUBLISHER. OPINIONS EXPRESSED BY THE READERS, CONTRIBUTORS AND PANELISTS DO NOT NECESSARILY REFLECT THE POLICY OF THE PUBLISHER AND EDITOR. INFORMATION PROVIDED IN THIS MAGAZINE IS FOR INFORMATION ONLY AND DOES NOT CONSTITUTE OR REPLACE MEDICAL ADVICE. APPROPRIATE PROFESSIONALS SHOULD BE CONSULTED PRIOR TO IMPLEMENTING ADVICE PRESENTED. ALL LIABILITIES INCLUDING LOSS, DAMAGE, INJURY OR DEATH IS HEREBY DISCLAIMED, WHETHER CAUSED BY NEGLIGENCE, ERRORS AND OMISSIONS OR OTHERWISE. Printed using CTP Technology by: Kum Printers Sdn Bhd No 9, Jalan 51A / 243 46100 Petaling Jaya, Selangor

I WANNA BE JUST LIKE MUM! Many of us are lucky to have a mother who cares for us and loves us. But, have you ever reflected on how you treat your mother and how she might feel? Mother always puts us “first”. Mothers give the best they can afford, please us whenever we have any requests and ensure our safety at all times. They worry about us day and night and even while working in the office. Now, what would we, children, probably do when our mother rejects our requests? When they refuse to buy us the things we want, we beg, cry, get angry, and even refuse to leave the shop without it. Mostly in the end, we get what we want. Mother may probably shake her head but a smile still remains on her face. How can she do that? One word - LOVE. A mother's responsibility is heavy. They work outside and also need to take care of household matters. We shouldn’t add more rocks into their "baskets". By not craving for things that we already have or do not really need, we reduce a great burden from them. When our mother comes back from work, we must greet and talk to them, let them feel that we care and are looking forward to their return. I know mother faces lots of problems at work. I try my best to reward her with my good study results. I love her. I'll never put her into the old folks home like many people do today no matter what happens. With the great care and love I receive from her, I am inspired to be a good mother myself in the future. Just like my mother who guides me to learn the right things, with good morality which produces underestanding, positive thoughts and actions that make me a good person with a solid foundation. I want to be just like her and raise my future child in the same way. When I am a mother, I would teach my children proper values, such as no stealing, lying, to speak properly and not harm others. I would also want my children to be well-protected, free from harm and danger, and become a good contributor to society and the world as a whole. I would like to express my greatest gratitude to Superkids magazine for giving many children a chance to contribute their ideas and share their creativity. Kids can now learn and share their thoughts via Superkidz Magazine. They are like “STARs” with their photos published in the magazine. Superkidz Magazine also fulfilled my dream as a writer. I want to be as famous as J.K.Rowling when I grow up and sign thousands of books for kids who queue up to buy my books. Superkidz Magazine has provided me the first opportunity to realise my dream. I will continue on this path to be a professional writer one day. A big thanks to you Superkidz Magazine!!!

Ng Xin Yin 12 years old, student of Lorna Whiston Study Centre Terms & Conditions for all contests and redemptions:

Send your entries to:

1) Contest is open to all children aged 3 to 15 years old. 2) Photocopied contest/ redemption forms are not allowed. Only original forms are accepted. 3) Late entries will not be entertained. 4) The decision of SUPERKIDZ on all matters relating to the contest is final and no correspondence will be entertained. 5) Entries with incomplete contact details will be disqualified. 6) Winners will be notified by email only. 7) Prizes are not transferable or exchangeable for cash, credit or in kind. 8) SUPERKIDZ reserves the right to use the names and images of winners and/or entry forms in all publicity materials.

SUPERKIDZ Magazine, Epitome Communications Sdn Bhd, 10.01 Wisma Lim Foo Yong, 86 Jalan Raja Chulan, 50200 Kuala Lumpur

Speak Up Let kids be heard!

A: What do you do if a stranger tries to talk to you? J: You run away. A: But what if the stranger has a huge bag of sweets? J: You take the sweets, smile… and then scream and run for your life!

I don’t think it is fair that my baby brother gets more attention than me. I was born first, I’m bigger and I’m taller. So I should get more attention! But my mummy says he’s tiny and small and needs people to protect him. So I said ok but only if I get ice cream for one week – haha!

Big bro Ian (6)

M: Knock! Knock! N: Who’s there? M: You N: You who? M: You-who glue! (UHU Glue)

Contributed by friends Adam (6) & Jaafar (6)

Never let bullies get the better of you. If they’re nasty to you, ignore them. But if they become violent, then try to solve the problem yourself. Don’t get your parents involved (unless it gets really serious) because that’d only make you look weak, and then the bullying will never stop.

Contributed by twins Meena (4) & Neema (4)

Stand up for yourself (8)

My younger sister loves rabbits. My mummy bought us a baby rabbit, but my sister held it around the neck. I tried to teach her the right way, but I think she cannot understand me. So the baby rabbit died, so I am sad about it.

Jessie (5)

My friends say I’m fat so they don’t want to play with me. If they play with me then I get very sweaty. I feel sad when my friends talk to me like this, but I don’t think my parents will understand my sadness.

Anonymous (8)

Model: Superkidz Club member Lin Ga Hei If you have something to shout about regarding anything under the sun, send us an email at submit@kidz.my (Subject: Comments)

September - October 2009

Check It Out Reviewed by Junior Reporter Chuan Xin Vee (14 years old)

The Twinkletoes Series is Here! Author: Illustrator : Price: Reading level:

Thomas Koh Titian RM 15.90 8 to 12 years old

Do you breathe, eat and live football? Then Twinkletoes #1 A Star is Born and #2 The Dream Team may be just the thing you want for an engaging read. The story revolves around Leandro Giovanni Ang Soon Huat, a boy of Chinese and Brazilian parentage, who was born a footballer. As he enters Morrison High, his talent is spotted by Coach Ramsey and, since then, he has become the star of the team! The football team is like an extended family to Leandro; that is how much passion he has for the sport. As you read Twinkletoes, be greeted by the very attractive illustrations. All the characters are brightly coloured and looks really cool (I have fallen in love with cute Leandro!). Sandwiched between several chapters, you will find footballrelated jokes ‘Malcolm’s Coaching Corner’ and other little surprises. The Twinkletoes series is a good mixture of action, romance and a whole lot of excitement with a pinch of humour. What are you waiting for? Check it out!

Reviewed by Junior Reporter Valentina Ho (13 years old) The Twinkletoes series is, according to the author and illustrator themselves, for ‘kids aged six to sixty’. Though the main plot of the story revolves around football - what some may consider a boy sport - it can be enjoyed by everyone. The author Thomas, and illustrator Titian, tried to reveal things about themselves through the books, like how, for example, Thomas is a Bruce Lee fan. The reason the main character has both Brazilian and Chinese heritage is because when it comes to football, it will be more credible to associate with Brazil. It is the country that has produced many famous and talented football players, and is basically the centre of football. It was also mentioned that the author’s favourite football team is Brazil! After having read the first and second books of the series, I’m eagerly awaiting the third one! The books are incredibly easy to understand, as the key words are written in a format that displays their meanings in a colourful and creative manner. This can help kids to develop their vocabulary. On top of that, the nice illustrations are great for those who are not too fond of reading.

Twinkletoes #3: Master of the Game

Latest boo out no k w!

While Leandro was doing some homework, a mysterious monk suddenly appears. He discovers that the monk is actually an awesome footballer and warrior. Leandro pleads to be his disciple. The eccentric monk, Jimmy Chen Long, agrees and Leandro then receives some unconventional training. The monk puts him through the paces of a rigorous regime - posing as Rambo, Elvis and a ninja for dramatic effect! Leandro is thrilled to bits and realises he is now a pupil of a true master of the game! The newfound skills prove useful in Morrison High's titanic clash with Woodvale Secondary. Information on books were provided by MPH Distributors. All books featured are available at major bookstores nationwide.

These two Junior Reporters got the chance to meet the Twinkletoes team! Read about their experience on page 35. September - October 2009

Check It Out y

Programmes on TV

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September - October 2009

Superkid

Exemplary. Outstanding. Courageous. Are you a Superkid?

Great blogger Fantastic poet Magnificent entertainer Know the saying, “You’re never too old to learn”? It seems that the multi-talented Gloson Teh is out to prove the opposite – that he is not too young to learn and excel!

e was first a magician who accidentally made his own beard disappear. Later, he became an elephant hunter who lured an elephant to his house. Then he started playing the organ while reciting poems and dancing! Yes, this is the lively, multi-talented Gloson Teh! Born in Ipoh, 11-year-old Gloson, a student of Sekolah Kebangsaan USJ 20, loves lamb chops and healthy food, and the colour green. He has a very talented seven-year-old younger brother who loves to dance. “As his name suggests, my brother Rockson rocks on!” joked Gloson. At a recent event, he was invited to perform on stage, and, boy, did he perform! Dancing and jumping around, the animated Gloson mesmerised the audience with his performance – a recital of his poems. The kids in the audience, entranced by his lively and funny act, kept moving closer to the stage just so they could see him better. Such is the captivating power of Gloson.

I began writing them. My first poem is A Rotten Day. It teaches people why you shouldn’t wear roller-skates in the ice-skating rink,” remarked the young talent. In fact, Gloson was so inspired that he wrote 100 poems during his year-end school holidays that same year! His poem, My Crazy Car, was certified as a semi-finalist in the International Open Poetry Contest by www.Poetry.com. In January 2008, he submitted his poem Autumn and won the Editor’s Choice Award.

Now you may ask - why was he invited to perform? Is he famous? Well, for those who are interested in blogs, then yes; he is quite well-known in the blogging world. Since starting his own blog (www.glosonblog.com) a year ago in July 2008, he has written 99 posts, had 36,000 unique visitors to his site and received 474 comments – wow! Other than posts about events, projects he is working on or his appearances in the media, Gloson’s blog is filled with interesting and informational posts, such as tips on how to blog better and recommendations of educational sites that he has visited. Even when he blogs about something personal, like how he had an unproductive day travelling around town, he would end the post by writing about what he learned from the experience. Now isn’t that helpful!

(L-R) Mum Grace, brother Rockson, Gloson and dad Wilson

Before he started blogging, Gloson was already writing poems in 2007 when he was merely nine years old. One day, while surfing the internet, he came across some funny poems. He enjoyed reading them so much; he decided to write his own. “Dr Seuss is my favourite. I find poems very fun and entertaining to write, so The animated poet performing on stage! 12

September - October 2009

Superkid

Exemplary. Outstanding. Courageous. Are you a Superkid? “Last year, my mother heard the word ‘blog’ everywhere. ‘Blog’ ‘Blog’ here and ‘Blog’ ‘Blog’ there,” Gloson further explained. “So she encouraged me to start one since I knew how to create websites. My first blog post was actually on how to write funny poetry (www. glosonblog.com/how-to-write-funny-poetry). However, since I’m older now, I think it is quite childlike and so I’m planning to write a new guide.” He may have started blogging at nine, but IT-savvy Gloson was already creating websites at the tender age of eight. His first website was to promote a memory programme that was written by him (www.wholebrainlearning.net) – an amazing feat by anyone’s standard! Just how does a child as young as Gloson possess such highly developed skills? It seems that Gloson’s love for learning has contributed to his many talents and abilities. When he was only a few months old, even before he could speak, his mum Grace Khoong would sit and read the newspaper with him, pointing to words and pictures. Later on, they practised on flashcards. Due to Grace’s attentiveness, when Gloson was 17 months old, he had already accumulated a vocabulary of 150 characters in Mandarin as well as about 200 English words!

As extraordinary as his skills are, Grace merely remarked modestly that “Gloson is a multitalented all rounder. All these talents were due to his ability and willingness to learn them all by himself when he was younger.” Yes, Gloson is talented, so much so that he even got to meet the Prime Minister, Dato’ Seri Najib Tun Razak and the First Lady, Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor! He was invited to meet them after Grace passed his poetry book to the Prime Minister’s department. So on 10th July 2009, surrounded by journalists from major newspapers, Gloson got the chance to recite his poem If I Did Write a Poem and performed for them. “At first, I was a bit nervous,” confessed Gloson, “but when I met the friendly Prime Minister and his wife, I felt very happy. I felt very grateful to my family for supporting me too.” Gloson is a great example that with the right guidance and nurturing, coupled with a passion for learning, children can accomplish great things. He is extraordinary in more ways than one. Amazingly talented yet humble and soft-spoken, he portrays a calmness and maturity that belies his young age. For all these reasons and more, Gloson is truly a Superkid! Gloson is in the process of getting enlisted as the youngest poet and/ or blogger in the Malaysian Book of Records. Let’s all wish him the best of luck!

“My mother loves me dearly. She is a perfectionist and always makes sure I’ll do my best,” commented Gloson. “When I was a baby till I was two, my mother took time to accompany and teach me everyday. According to her, the right brain is most active during the first six years. Nurturing your children at that age is essential. I think that is why I am able to do so many things today.” Late last year, the mother-son team came up with an interesting idea for a project. They decided to publish 20 of Gloson’s best poems, and the young poet happily agreed. Other than the selfpenned poems, he also illustrated the whole book by himself! It was a daunting task, but, unperturbed, Gloson worked tirelessly for more than one month to complete it. The result – the fully coloured, abundant artistically illustrated and highly entertaining Creative & Funny Poetry for Kids.

Posing after winning first prize in an IT quiz contest

What is astounding about Gloson’s achievements is the fact that he has never taken any tuition or enrichment classes. All of his skills from setting up his own blog to acting and performing on stage to using computer softwares to illustrate his poetry book - were selftaught. Not only that, he is also able to play his organ by ear after a family friend gave him some lessons several years ago. So he even composed the music for the audio version of his poetry book!

Signing autograph for a young fan!

Performing a poem for the Prime Minister

Superkid

Exemplary. Outstanding. Courageous. Are you a Superkid?

Q&A with Gloson Teh Blogging may be easier to do than ■ writing poems. Do you agree with this? Why/ why not?

What stimulates you to work harder?

When writing funny poems, you can use your imagination and write about cats, hats, mats, rats, bats, and a new blue shoe too! But coming out with a great fantabulous idea is quite hard.

■

Blogging can be easy if you know exactly what to write. However, creating a thought-provoking and well-constructed article is quite difficult.

What words of advice would you give to other young aspiring writers/ bloggers/ poets?

■

Who supports you the most in all your endeavours?

■

My mum always supports and encourages me. She always inspires me with her kind words. She also helps me sell my books and patiently supervised me when I was illustrating my book and composing the music for the audio version. Even though she hasn’t got any experience in those areas, she’s a woman with good analytical and critical thinking skills.

How do you react to all the attention and public interest?

My triumphs stimulate me to work harder. My failures stimulate me to learn from my mistakes so that I will never repeat them again.

I would tell them to be patient, because you need patience when you don’t get any visitors or comments yet. Most successful blogs are over one year old. Also, be dedicated because writing interesting articles/ poems takes time.

Read other blogs and poems too. Reading them gives you knowledge, inspiration and ideas to help you in writing. Learn from your mistakes. Everyone makes mistakes, and if you don’t, you’ll never learn. You could even make a quality post/ poem out of the lessons you’ve learnt from your mistakes.

■

Describe yourself in a simple haiku.

I enjoy my life. I’m a versatile learner. I feel really good.

I feel very honoured to be an example to other kids. I feel very grateful to my family and friends who have supported me. I am also motivated to become a better person.

Do you feel famous? Do your friends treat you differently? Yes, I am very popular in school because I met the Prime Minister and the news appeared in the media. But my mum always teaches me to be humble, so I don’t really know whether they treat me differently or not.

Now that you have published your first poem book, what do you plan to do next?

As I write more, I’ll probably publish another one. Now I am in the process of doing an audio and a video version of my book, because they would help children enjoy learning English more effectively with more fun.

September - October 2009

If you know someone who deserves to be featured as a Superkid, please email us at submit@kidz.my (Subject: Superkid Candidate)

Whassup

Happenings in and outside your school!

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Send us photos of your school events, family outings or simply of you having fun! Include name, Superkidz Club membership no., parent's name, phone number and email address. Send to: Superkidz Magazine, 10.01 Wisma Lim Foo Yong, 86 Jalan Raja Chulan, 50200 KL; OR Email to: submit@kidz.my (Subject: Whassup)

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Kiddie Box Office Fun flicks for the family

Release Date : 22nd October 2009 Genre : Animation / Comedy Director : Chris Miller & Phil Lord Screenplay by : Chris Miller & Phil Lord Based on the book : written by Judi Barrett and illustrated by Ron Barrett Producer : Pam Marsden Executive Producer : Yair Landau Cast : Bill Hader, Anna Faris, James Caan, Bruce Campbell, Andy Samberg, Mr. T, Bobb’e J. Thompson

Columbia Pictures’ and Sony Pictures Animation’s Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs promises to be the most delicious event since macaroni met cheese! Inspired by the beloved children's book, Flint Lockwood (voice of BILL HADER) is a young inventor who dreams of creating something that will improve the life of everyone. His technophobic father Tim (voice of JAMES CAAN) though, is understandably not so supportive of his efforts. Adding to Flint’s misery is the town bully Brent (voice of ANDY SAMBERG), who has terrorised him since childhood. Unperturbed, Flint perseveres and successfully creates a machine that makes food fall from the sky like rain! Mayor Shelbourne (voice of BRUCE CAMPBELL) is thrilled because he figures that Flint's invention can put the town, and more importantly himself, on the map. Covering the phenomenon is weathergirl Sam Sparks (voice of ANNA FARIS), who hides her intelligence behind a perky exterior. But with so much food falling down on the town, it’s only a matter of time that something goes wrong. Be sure to catch this yummy movie!

CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS CONTEST Simply answer the questions below and stand a chance to win great prizes!

5 x Limited Edition Umbrella 5 x Limited Edition Adult’s T-Shirt 5 x Limited Edition Kid’s T-Shirt 5 x Limited Edition Tote Bag 5 x Limited Edition Lenticular Notebook 10 x Limited Edition Activity Book Closing date for entries: 26th October 2009 1. When is CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS showing in cinemas? (a) 22nd October (b) 22nd November (c) 22nd December 2. What is the movie CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS about? (a) Hungry people (b) Food falling like rain (c) Cloudy skies 3. When was the children’s book CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS first published? (a) 2008 (b) 1981 (c) 1978 4. Connect the dots to reveal the picture below, and colour it in the most creative way.

Name : Address : Tel/Hp : Email

Age :

Kiddie Box Office Fun flicks for the family

Release Date : 17th September 2009 Genre : Comedy / Adventure Director : Hoyt H. Yeatman Jr. Screenplay by : The Wibberleys Based on a story by : Hoyt H.Yeatman Jr. & David P.I. James Producer : Jerry Bruckheimer Cast : Bill Nighy, Will Arnett, Zach Galifianakis, with the voices of Nicolas Cage, Sam Rock well, Jon Favreau, Penelope Cruz, Steve Buscemi, Tracy Morgan

G-FORCE is a comedy adventure about the latest evolution of a secret government programme to train animals to work in espionage. Darwin (voice of SAM ROCKWELL) is the guinea pig squad leader of team G-FORCE determined to succeed at all costs. In its team is Blaster (voice of TRACY MORGAN), a weapons expert with tons of attitude and a love for all things extreme, and Juarez (voice of PENELOPE CRUZ), a sexy martial arts pro. Other notable members include the reconnaissance expert Mooch (voice of DEE BRADLEY BAKER) and a star-nosed mole Speckles (voice of NICOLAS CAGE) that is the computer and information specialist. Armed with the latest high-tech spy gear, the highly trained guinea pigs discover that the fate of the world is in their paws! Along the way, the G-FORCE encounters many other members of the animal kingdom, including pet shop layabout Hurley (voice of JON FAVREAU) and the rabidly territorial hamster Bucky (voice of STEVE BUSCEMI). This 3D movie - a first for producer Jerry Bruckheimer - will take you on a high-octane thrill ride, proving once and for all that the world needs bigger heroes.

G-FORCE CONTEST Simply answer the questions below and stand a chance to win great prizes! When is G-FORCE showing in cinemas? (a) 17th September (b) 17th October (c) 17th November

5 x G-FORCE Watch 5 x G-FORCE Voice Recording Keychain 5 x G-FORCE Clip Light 5 x G-FORCE Paper Frame

2. What is the movie G-FORCE about? (a) Gravitational force (b) Force of nature (c) Highly-trained animals 3. G-FORCE is producer Jerry Bruckheimer’s ______ 3D movie. (a) first (b) second (c) third 4. Write the word ‘G-FORCE’ in the most creative way in the box provided.

Closing date for entries: 26th October 2009 Name : Age

Address : Tel/Hp : Email

Take Five

Games, Puzzles & Trivia

SPOT THE DIFFERENCE Can you spot the 7 differences between these two pictures?

MAZE MISSION Can you help Darwin find his way through the maze? Draw a path and retrieve the data disc!

Take Five

Games, Puzzles & Trivia

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Did You Know…

Fun Facts About Orang Utans Orang-utan is known as ‘man of the forest’ – the literal translation of the Malay word. It is also known as ‘kogiu’ or ‘kisau’ in Sabah native dialects. The orang-utan is part of the primate family and is related to other great apes such as the chimpanzee and gorilla. There are two major orang-utan species, the Pongo pygmaeus in Borneo and the Pongo abelii in Sumatra. The best way to differentiate between a great ape and a monkey is to look for a tail - apes do not have tails but monkeys do.

Spot the orang-utan! • • • • •

Orang-utan has shaggy, reddish-brown fur and long, strong arms. In fact, their arms are twice as long as their legs! They also have opposable thumbs and toes that let them grip objects with both their hands and feet. The male orang-utans can reach up to 5 feet 9 inches (175cm) in height and can weigh up to 300lbs (150kg). When the male reaches adulthood, they develop a throat pouch and cheek flaps. These cheek flaps are used to scare other males, but are very attractive to the females! The females are much smaller, reaching around 4 feet 2 inches (127cm) tall and weighing up to 110lbs (50kg).

• •

Some groups of orang-utans have even learned a skill they are not naturally born with - how to swim! Between 1973 – 1975, scientist Gary Shapiro taught Princess, a young female orang-utan, 40 different signs and Rinnie, another female orang-utan, 30 types of signs.

Eat like an orang-utan • • •

Orang-utans are omnivores, so they eat both plants and meat. This includes leaves, shoots, seeds, bark, insects, honey and bird eggs. At least 65% of their diet is made up of fruit. They cannot survive for long without fruits. Durians are their favourite fruit! Sometimes orang-utans may eat soil or rocks to get additional mineral nutrients to absorb toxic substances and to treat illnesses such as diarrhoea.

Where do they live?

• •

•

The orang-utan in danger

• •

Orang-utans are native to Indonesia and Malaysia. They live in lowland rainforests but can also live in tropical, swamp and mountain forests. Nowadays, orang-utans are mainly found in the rainforests of Borneo (Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei) and Sumatra, Indonesia. Pongo pygmaeus are found in Borneo while Pongo abelii live in Sumatra. In the wild, orang-utans can live up to 45 years old.

Behaving like an orang-utan • • • • •

Orang-utans are the largest tree-dwelling mammals in the world, meaning they spend most of their lives living in trees. They sometimes move on the ground by shuffling on their palms, unlike other great apes that ‘walk’ using their knuckles. Orang-utans are daylight creatures and spend most of the day climbing, clambering and swinging from branch to branch in search of food. At night, they build nests using twigs, leaves and branches to sleep in, sometimes as high as two stories above ground. Orang-utans are generally passive creatures but males are usually hostile towards other males.

How smart! • • •

Orang-utans are thought to be the most intelligent mammals after humans. They have a high learning and problem-solving ability. They have also been seen using tools - an important sign of intelligence - for their daily activities like searching for insects, collecting honey, protection against bees or to reach for branches and fruit.

• • • • •

There used to be hundreds of thousands of orang-utans. But today, the Pongo abelii is listed as critically endangered while the Pongo pygmaeus is endangered. In Sabah, the Pongo pygmaeus is listed as a Totally Protected Animal. There are only an estimated 7,300 individual Sumatran orangutans left and approximately 12,300 Bornean orang-utans left. If the threats to the orang-utans are not addressed soon, experts predict that these great apes will become extinct in the wild in 10 to 20 years.

Why is this happening?

• The largest threat to the orang-utan is the loss of their habitat lowland rainforests. • These forests have excellent timber and good soil, making them prime targets for loggers and palm oil plantations. • Forest fragmentation leaves individual orang-utans isolated in patches of forest, unable to move freely to find food or mates. • Orang-utans are also targets of poachers who hunt and kill adult orang-utans to take their young for the illegal pet trade. • Natural disasters such as drought and fire also threaten orangutans. Information provided by Pat-Lin Communications on behalf of BOH Plantations. Photos of orangutans courtesy of WWF Malaysia.

Take Five

Games, Puzzles & Trivia

9 6

Start a Blog Today! Contributed by Joanna Yeoh My name is Joanna Yeoh but most kids call me Aunty Jo Jo. My two favourite hobbies are travelling and writing. These combined hobbies have introduced me to a new world of blogging. A blog is a type of website, maintained by an individual who posts regularly about a subject of interest. Journeys of Aunty Jo Jo (www.aunty-jo-jo.blogspot.com) contains stories about my travels around the world. Some of my favourite places include the original Disneyland (in Los Angeles), Great Wall of China (in Beijing), Anne Frank Museum (in Amsterdam) and Statue of Liberty (in New York). You can even read about my adventures about skydiving, climbing Mt Kinabalu and eating scorpions! Back to BBGS (www.back2bbgs.blogspot.com) is a collection of stories about my school. Bukit Bintang Girls’School (BBGS) was one of the premier schools in Kuala Lumpur. It used to stand on the same site where the Pavilion, the most exclusive shopping mall in KL, is now located. Former students of the school from the 1950’s – 1990’s are invited to share their memories about attending BBGS. You will find many interesting photos, stories and historical articles about the school. Recently, the blog was used to help organise a gala reunion to celebrate the launch of an education fund in honour of Miss Elena Cooke, one of our pioneer headmistresses.

•

Whether it’s G.I. Joe or Hanna Montana, choose a subject that you’re PASSIONATE about. You can only continue writing for a long time if you’re really interested and excited about the topic, and are willing to spend time researching it. One major reward is that blogging will connect you with other people who are just as interested in the subject as you are.

• Write using proper grammar, spelling and vocabulary. Although it may be “cool”to use SMS language or short-form, your blog is going to represent who you are to the world. Do you want the rest of the world to think that Malaysians can’t write proper sentences in English? • Keep your blog up-to-date. Most readers will return to your blog only if it contains the most current news. As a guideline, I try to post stories on my blogs at least once a week. • For security reasons, do not place any personal contact information such as phone numbers or home addresses on your blog. An email address should be sufficient if anyone wants to contact you. So, to all of you who are going to start a blog – Good Luck and Have Fun!

So can anyone blog? Of course! Can anyone blog successfully? That takes a bit more work. Here are some tips about blogging that I’d like to share with you:

September - October 2009

Take Five

Games, Puzzles & Trivia

Aerospace Adventure Zone

(AAZ)

A Voyage through the Solar System The Asteroids & Inner Planets Mars and Earth In this issue, we will continue our flight from the outer edges of the Solar System towards our star - the Sun. In the last issue, we raced past the outer planets (gas giants) Neptune, Uranus, Saturn and Jupiter. This time we look at the inner planets - Mars, Earth, Venus and Mercury - known as the rocky planets because they consist of dense rock and solid material. .

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Hi kids, and welcome to the Aerospace Adventure Zone! This section is dedicated to those of you who get a real kick out of astronomy, space science, aeronautics and things that fly! Learn about the planets and our solar system. The asteroid belt is located between the orbits of Jupiter and Mars. There are four major asteroids in the asteroid belt, plus millions of other smaller and irregular pieces of material ranging in size from about 100km in diameter down to tiny particles of dust. Discovered in the 1800s, the first and largest asteroid is Ceres, named after the Roman goddess. After Ceres, other asteroids were also quickly discovered in similar orbits. So this gave rise to the idea that instead of having a missing planet between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter, there were actually hundreds (if not thousands) of bits and pieces that were the leftovers of the formation of the solar system.

NASA/JPL

Despite the belief that the asteroid belt is full of lumps of debris that may smash spacecrafts travelling to the outer solar system, the fact is that it is actually quite an empty region of space. However, some asteroids have orbits that cross our Earthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s orbit from time to time, so astronomers have to keep an eye out for any that may be on a collision course with Earth. Those that pose a potential threat are called Near Earth Objects (NEOs).

â&#x2013; Asteroid belt From Jupiter, we head towards Mars. But we will need to navigate through the treacherous regions of the asteroid belt before we get there. NASA/JPL

September - October 2009

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9 6

NASA/JPL

■ Mars Mars has long been the object of fascination since its discovery in ancient times. Even the famous philosopher Aristotle who lived over 2000 years ago mentioned Mars in his writings. It is called the red planet mainly because its surface contains high concentrations of the reddish-coloured iron oxide - better known as rust. This brown-red colour of the planet can be seen through a telescope or even with your naked eyes. Mars is about half the size of Earth and orbits the sun every 687 days. Once every two years, it comes quite close to Earth (about 60 million kilometres) in what is known as opposition. Opposition gives us a chance to look at Mars in quite amazing detail. Even with small telescopes you can clearly see surface features and the bright white polar ice caps. Astronomers originally believed they could see canals, oceans and giant forests on the surface of Mars. Soon after, there were strange stories about life on Mars and alien civilizations! When the Mariner spacecraft zoomed by Mars in 1965, it was finally revealed that Mars was a cold, dry, dusty world with a very thin atmosphere and not the sort of place where any sort of life was likely to thrive. Since then, we have sent numerous satellites into Mars’ orbit and robots to its surface to observe it in detail. The more we learn about Mars, the stranger it gets. Did you know that it has the biggest mountain and the largest valley in the solar system? The mountain is HUGE! Olympus Mons is an extinct volcano on Mars that reaches nearly 28km skyward and 600km across. In comparison, Mount Everest is a merely 8.8km tall. Valles Marineris is the largest valley in the solar system. It stretches approximately 6000km long and in some places, it is up to 10km deep. It would easily reach from one side of the USA to the other. In comparison, the Grand Canyon (Earth’s largest valley system) will look tiny next to Valles Marineris.

■ Earth

NASA/JPL

Leaving the orbit of Mars, the next planet is Earth. It is totally unique in so many ways. Firstly, it orbits at just the right distance (about 150 million kilometres) from the sun so that it is not too hot and not too cold. About 70% of the Earth’s surface is covered with liquid water. Just above the surface, we have an atmosphere of gases that are a mixture of mainly Nitrogen, Oxygen, Carbon Dioxide and traces of other gases and water vapour. Liquid water is what sustains life on Earth. The average surface temperature of Earth is about 14°C. This is mainly heat from the sun that is trapped in the Earth’s atmosphere by carbon dioxide. If there were no carbon dioxide, then it would be about -18°C … too cold for life. Another important and little known fact about Earth is that the magnetic field that surrounds Earth protects us from harmful solar and cosmic radiation. If we did not have a magnetic field, then life on our planet would have been very different. As far as we know, Earth is the only planet in the Solar System that supports life. However, places like Mars, Jupiter’s moon Europa and maybe even Saturn’s moon Enciladus, may potentially support some sort of life forms that we have yet to discover. In 2011, a special robotic rover will begin its journey towards Mars in search for signs of life, past or present. At about 12,756km in diameter, Earth is one of the smaller planets. If it were any smaller or less dense, the resulting reduction in gravitational pull might cause the atmosphere to be slowly blown away by the sun’s solar wind and be lost in space. This is believed to be the case for Mars. So Earth is a totally unique place that we must protect. For the time being, it is the only place in the whole universe that we know of that it is OK to live in, so let’s take good care of it!

In the next issue, we will plunge further towards the fiery sun to visit the hellish world of Venus and the extreme BBQlike environment of Mercury. So don’t forget to check out upcoming issues!

NASA/JPL September - October 2009

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Games, Puzzles & Trivia

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Ask AAZ ■ What exactly is a laser, and why is the light that comes out so special? Lasers and laser light are very unique and are used in many applications worldwide - from creating special effects at concerts to being used in medical science. Even at home, there are at least a few devices that use lasers, such as the DVD player or that toy pistol of yours that shoots out a little red laser light. Lasers are basically everywhere. The term laser is actually an acronym. LASER stands for Light Amplification by the Stimulated Emission of Radiation. In simpler terms, it is a very special way to focus light into a narrow beam. Take a torch or desk lamp and turn it on while standing near a wall. You will notice that the spot of light on the wall is about the same size as the light source. Now if you move back, the spot grows in size the further you move away from the wall. Laser light is very different from normal light. If you shine a laser at a wall, even if you move 1000 meters away, it will still be a small point of light! This is what makes lasers so useful and special, because the light they emit stays in a narrow beam and does not spread out like normal light. In scientific terms, this is called coherence (pronounced cohear-ants). The best way to describe it is to imagine light particles called photons marching like soldiers in a single file. Each soldier marches in step with the next soldier, always staying in a perfectly straight line. Normal light is also made up of photons, but none of these photons march in step with each other. In fact, they are quite crazy and end up flying all over the place like they don’t really know where they are going! Eventually, they spread out in all sorts of different directions. Inside a laser, the photons must be ‘trained’ and made to march in step. This is often done by bouncing them backwards and forwards between two tiny mirrors thousands of times. With each bounce they collect more energy, but always staying in perfect step with each other. After bouncing back and forth and gaining enough energy, the photons shoot out of the end of the laser as a thin beam of light. 24

September - October 2009

The first working lasers were invented in the 1960s, but Albert Einstein laid the foundations by predicting in 1917 that you could train electromagnetic waves (light) to behave in special ways. Since the first lasers were developed, their use in science and technology has been amazing. Some of the more interesting applications for lasers are:

• High-powered laser weapons for shooting down missiles • Laser radar on satellites for measuring planetary surfaces • Laser-guided missiles • Laser-powered photonic computers • Experimental laser-powered nuclear reactors that recreate the same conditions at the centre of the Sun • Laser beams being bounced off the moon to measure very precisely how far away it is If you have a laser pointer at home you can try out some cool experiments. Take a glass of water into a dark room and shine the laser through it. You should be able to see the beam clearly. Try shooting the laser at different angles or through the top of the glass and see what happens. Or, take a bowl of hot water into a dark room and shine the beam across the top of the bowl. If you flick the beam back and forth as fast as possible, you should see a cool effect as the steam rises off the water. Another cool experiment is to take a pillow into a dark room and hit it with your hand a few times while shining the laser nearby. You will see plenty of dust reflecting from the beam.

*While having fun, always remember that a laser, no matter what type, must be used sensibly. Never look directly at a laser beam and never point it at other people’s eyes.

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Games, Puzzles & Trivia

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Cool Experiments - Try it!

Cloud in a bottle

Explained ! When clouds form in the atmosphere, it is caused by two things in particular. One is warm air that is saturated with water vapour rising upwards, and the other is small particles of dust and material suspended in the atmosphere. As warm air rises, it cools rapidly and contracts or gets smaller in size. Massive amounts of water vapour literally ‘hitch a ride’ on these upward moving masses of air. Did you ever notice how a clear morning turns cloudy at around midday? That is from air that is heated by the sun in the morning shifting billions of litres of water (in the form of vapour) skyward.

Let’s make your own cloud in a bottle. For this, you will need to be supervised by an adult. Take a normal clear plastic soft drink bottle. The 1 liter bottle is perfect for this experiment. Fill the bottle about two thirds full with normal tap water. Now get mum or dad to light a match. When the match is burning, hold it near the neck of the bottle and then blow it out. As soon as the flame has gone, drop the match into the bottle. Hopefully it will still be smoking a bit. Once the match has fallen into the water put the bottle cap on as quickly as possible. Now here is where the interesting bit starts. If you’re just a small kid then get mum or dad to help again. What you have to do now is squeeze the bottle as hard as you can. Hold it squeezed for a few seconds and then let go. As soon as you let the pressure off you should see something happen at the top of the bottle. To repeat the experiment, you will need to replace the water and start over.

Now water vapour needs one more thing before it can turn into cloud. What generally happens is that tiny water droplets like to attach themselves to something solid, like a speck of dust or a small particle of smoke. Eventually, more and more droplets cling together until they begin to turn into masses of cloud that we can see. The air mass moves upwards and cools rapidly as it does so. When enough droplets attach together, they become too heavy and fall back towards Earth as rain. Rain has a very important function of helping to keep our atmosphere clean. In the experiment, you have recreated almost the exact same condition as in the atmosphere. When you squeeze the bottle, you raise the temperature and the pressure of the air inside. When you let go of it, the temperature and pressure falls rapidly and the water droplets that are already suspended in the air grab hold of the nearest solid matter they can find. In this case, it is the smoke left from the burning match.

Watch out for the next issue where more interesting facts and extraordinary discoveries will be revealed about what is going on in space and on earth. Be amazed with the incredible world around you and beyond! Don’t miss an issue of Superkidz magazine!

Aerospace Education Services Sdn Bhd

Aerospace Education Services will be participating in the 2009 International Year of Astronomy. For those interested in the world of robotics and electronics, there is a special course that any budding whiz kids will love. Our Robotics and Electronic Technology course will see you building some really amazing electronic circuits and then building and programming your very own robots.

For those with a passion for design, animation and gaming, there is the Computer Aided Design (CAD) or Kidz CAD for a whole new experience in computer usage. Design your own crazy characters and then animate them, learn how to make your own computer games, begin your career as a design engineer or architect. Come and find out more about these and other exciting activities conducted at our amazing headquarters in Subang. For more info, email info@ aerospacedu.com or visit www.aerospacedu.com

September - October 2009

Take Five

Games &Puzzles Games, Puzzles& Trivia

12 9

3 6

Only 1 1 entrance entrance will will lead lead Only you to to the the delicious delicious you ice-cream, so so find find ice-cream, you way way carefully! carefully! you

September - October 2009

? ip es h

? le

Ag for iant tre ss? A

Arts & Crafts

g n u

Brushh Playhouse CONTEST

j What would A your dream playhouse look A huge like? ?

The Brushh Playhouse range is made of recycled cardboard with pre-cut windows and doors. Once completed in six simple folds, it comes up to 70cm in height, 54cm wide and 104cm long - big enough to comfortably fit up to four kids inside!

Or a secret cave?

So don’t delay – start designing & stand a chance to win great prizes!

rocket

Design your own playhouse and colour it in the most creative way!

Closing date for entries: 26th October 2009

Name : Address :

Age :

Tel/Hp : Email :

Three Brush Playh h ouse sets up for grabs !

Arts & Crafts

During the recent Kidz Day Out Costume Tea Party, kids took part in a fun colouring contest. They were all so talented - it was so hard to select the winners! Let's have a look at the winning entries - don't they look great!

Group A Winners (3 - 7 years old)

Louis Fong, 7 years old

Prize

Vennesa Wong, 7 years old

Prize

Wong Zi En, 7 years old

Group B Winners (8 - 15 years old) st

Prize

Prize Chin Wui Teng, 15 years old Carmen Leong, 11 years old

Sangkharii, 9 years old 28

September - October 2009

mo v scre ie pre v eni ng iew

CMY

Up, up and away we went! On 16th August (Sunday), Cathay Cineplex Damansara was packed with Superkidz Club members and their families and friends. What were they doing there? Why, to catch the preview screening of the movie UP of course! Especially organised for Superkidz Club members, many arrived early and couldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t wait for the movie to start. The movie was entertaining and funny and got everyone tickled pink. Throughout the screening, bursts of laughter can be heard from all corners of the cinema hall!

Superkid Club Bulletin

News & views, charities & activities, birthdays & bashes

A Swelluva Day Out with Kidz We had planned it as a simple tea party for current and wannabe Superkidz Club members. What went down was riotous family fun which should leave those of you who missed it wishing and waiting for the next. Event photographer: Yap Rueh Yinn The 1st of August filled the Kidz Smart Academy in Kelana Jaya with more parents and kids than it was ready for. Nothing could have also prepared the Kidz and Superkidz team for the merrymaking that followed.

Publisher Kit Lim welcomed all guests who were raring and eager to party on!

Aunty Winnie narrated and acted out characters with much gusto at the storytelling session to the sheer delight and undivided attention of the kids. .

September - October 2009

storytelling

Superkid Club Bulletin

News & views, charities & activities, birthdays & bashes

Super Friends or Justice League? Virtually all the kids came in an amusing assortment of costumes; you’d think you were in a DC comics or Marvel Heroes reunion! But not only Batman, Robin and Spiderman were around, it was also a parade of other heroes – a girl firefighter, a spaceman, a cowboy, princes and princesses ... some kids came garbed in their traditional costumes (one even came as a crab!).

colouring contest Many DaVincis-in-the-making emerged at the colouring contest. Competition was stiff as many “professional” (translation: art class students) contenders came equipped with their own art paraphernalia – from their own mini tables to huge sets of crayons and colour pencils! It was impossible to distract these kids as they focused their full concentration on the most creative ways possible to come up with their own masterpieces!

September - October 2009

Superkid Club Bulletin

News & views, charities & activities, birthdays & bashes

posing contest Who’s the cutest and the cheekiest of them all? The posing contest that followed saw many a future top model! Striking their most disarming poses, the kids really got into it in all their costume, hair, make-up and accessories’ splendour! What was supposed to be a photo session conducted in groups of five turned out to be complete chaos as stage mums and dads refused to leave the room and packed the place with their excitement and enthusiasm!

Amazing Race The Amazing Race, Kidz Edition! Imitating everything from the famous TV reality game show, the Kidz version of the race had the works – everything from the game master to the clues, the marshals, the tasks, the detours, the road blocks to the pit stops! More teams of parent-child registered than expected, so much so that we had to turn away many others that had hoped to join. The family tandems scrambled around the venue in an effort to outsmart, outrun and outdo other teams and reach the final pit stop as Team Number One!

The next task was a Detour: a choice of two tasks called Brain or Brawn. Brainiac teams who chose Brain put their IQ to the test with mind-boggling IQ questions. Teams who chose to take the Brawn route had to hurdle over benches and other obstacles. All teams completed their tasks with balloon bursting. They huffed and puffed to the realisation that bursting balloons is actually not easy using only your hands, legs and sheer body weight.

T h e n came the final task which led to the ultimate race to the final pit stop … the guess-what-I’m-writingwith-my-bum task! Jaws locked as everyone was tickled to the bone with the wriggling antics of the participants. Some really struggled to “write” the letters as they bobbed around and used their whole bodies to the delight of onlookers and the team members themselves. One girl, frustrated with not being able to guess the word, even told her Dad, “I think you better go home and study the alphabet again Dad!”

September - October 2009

Most everyone breezed through the Search for Sweets task. Too easy? Wait till you see what’s coming next!

In the end, the victors were crowned and all winners of the activities richly awarded with great prizes! The best takehome from the whole event? Tons of fun memories with the family and the Kidz team … and an eager longing for the next Kidz Day Out!

The Write Stuff

Read all about it from the Superkids themselves!

Captured by pirates Ng Xin Yin

(12 years old, student of Lorna Whiston Study Centre)

It was a misty morning when I woke up. I stepped out of my little hut not far away from the beach. There was no one on the beach. I could hear the cries of the seagulls and the sound of the waves crashing onto the shore. I loitered on the beach for some time. Then, suddenly, just across the distance, I could see a ship. I couldn’t tell whether it was a trading ship or a pirate ship. I was a foolish person; because I was curious, I just stood there and waited for the ship to come closer. Then suddenly, a few men holding daggers rushed at me. I actually thought they were mad men who escaped from the hospital nearby. They stabbed me on the hand and carried me off to the ship. There, on the ship, were many pirates. They stalked at me with their persuasive eyes, and they even named me “lad”. I didn’t know what they meant, but anyway, they made me sign this contract. Because I didn’t want to make them unhappy or upset, I signed it – I was taught to be nice. So, after that, I lived on this ship for years. It wasn’t what I called home. They often bullied me because I didn’t own a house of my own. Once I spotted a rat

scampering on the deck. I ignored it, because I feared that the crew members might kill it. But alas, they still found it, so they killed it. There it lay on the deck, dead as a door nail. Poor thing didn’t even get to utter its last words. As years passed, we sailed all over the world attacking other ships. But I never got to take part. My job was to peel potatoes. It was quite enjoyable actually. One day, we sailed to an island. We then got off to explore. I went deep into the forest, and, in the middle, I saw a large building called ‘Sit here’. There was a chair outside the building, so I sat on it. Immediately, invisible strings were strapped around me, I was blindfolded and a helmet and air tank was strapped to my back. And. suddenly, ‘woosh’, the chair sprang off into the air. It didn’t seem to stop. I am currently in space but, I am still flying. I don’t know what happened to the crew, but I am happy I am not on earth. September - October 2009

The Write Stuff

Read all about it from the Superkids themselves!

The Killing M a c h i n e Ng Chen Yan

(15 years old, student of Lorna Whiston Study Centre) Whilst you are eagerly trying to chip the encrustation of lime from what is possibly a gold ingot on the deck of the Vlinder, the machine arrives. Ignorant of the machine’s presence a few metres behind you, you find yourself amazed by the structures of the Vlinder. Despite being underwater for a long time, the Dutch ship still has the remains of its once glorious moments. The machine follows you as you swim on to the deck. Without wanting its presence to be noticed, the machine circles the Vlinder slowly. Positioning yourself directly on top of the deck, you suddenly feel a chill going up your back. You look around in the dark but can’t find anything. You shrug it off as a superstition and continue your search. The gold ingot you noticed a while ago lay oddly on the far corner of the deck. Just as you start to walk towards the ingot, a big shadow looms beside you. You unconsciously swim away and quickly find yourself drawn to a shiny object on a fish-shaped rock. The machine finds you abandoning the ingot and swims towards you. It then hides behind another rock opposite what looks like a fish. When you reach the fish-shaped rock, the machine rises upwards, opens its jaws and chomps down on your oxygen tank. Stunned by the sudden lack of oxygen, you are pulled downwards, you look down and see the machine’s jaws open wide. In fear, you suddenly lose your strength. You struggle in the water. The machine closes its jaws over you.

There is only a pair of goggles found on top of the fish-shaped rock.

My Mother Dedicated to my amazing mum

Mohd Azrin Bin Mohd Parveen

(13 years old, student of Lorna Whiston Study Centre) Everybody says they have the best mother in the world. It is true, not all mothers are the same. They are different, from the way they teach, from the way they brought us up, but all in a good way. But to me, though, there is only one mother in this world who is truly one in a million. And that is my mother.

will stay patient and try to calm herself down. Even if she has to wait, she will stay cool and calm.

My mother’s name is Huziyah Ahammu. She was born in Terengganu in the year 1958, and was brought up in the suburbs of Kemaman. Ever since she was a kid, she has always been a cheerful and friendly person, and would never refuse a bowl of soup.

But her patience is not the only thing I like about her. It’s how loving and caring she is. When I feel tense, and badly need someone to talk to, my mother will always be there for me. She will shower me with love and advice, and that is also why I trust her with all my heart.

She enjoys travelling, and soon became a flight attendant in her early 20s. She also has a passion for good food and some of the world’s finest music. She is very religious, and would never miss a prayer. But besides all that, she is also a cool mum who loves going out with her kids and friends.

My mother, without a flicker of a doubt, is the best mother in this world. Somehow words just cannot describe her enough. Mother, I love you.

One thing I really, really like about my mum is that she is a very patient person. When she finds herself in a sticky situation, she will not break down or be stressed up, but instead, she

The Write Stuff

Read all about it from the Superkids themselves!

TEAM

Meet & Greet Fans

Author Thomas Koh and Illustrator Titian of the children's book series Twinkletoes recently made a trip to KL in July 2009 to meet their local fans! As the magazine's Junior Reporters, Superkidz Club members got the chance to meet this dynamic duo up close and personal! Read about their experience!

(L - R) Author Thomas, Valentina, Xin Vee, illustrator Titian

By Junior Reporter Valentina Ho

hen I was told that I was chosen as one of the two junior reporters to interview Thomas Koh and Titian, the author and illustrator of “Twinkletoes”, I was extremely excited but at the same time nervous. This would be my first time conducting an interview with an author and an illustrator. There was another factor that made this interview challenging: I had not read the books before the day. This limited the choice of questions I could ask, seeing as there might already be questions that will be answered at the back of the book. However, I tried to come up with meaningful questions anyway. Before the interview began, I had a chance to browse through the books so I did get an idea as to the storyline and made some changes to the questions together with my co-reporter Xin Vee. In the beginning, it seemed as if not many people were going to show up. Though, as time passed, I noticed more people flocking towards the area, perhaps either curious as to what was going on or a ready fan of the book series and wanted an autograph. Perhaps they didn’t even know the book series, but had purchased the book(s) for the sole reason of getting that autograph. It sounds a little silly, but it could happen.

The author and the illustrator met while they were in the Singapore National Service. Thomas Koh was a former sports reporter. During the interview, he gave us tips on how to be good reporters by reminding us of the 5 W’s and 1 H: who, what, when, where, why, and how. It was mentioned in the book that Titian was the name of the illustrator’s dog. Titian was also the alias of a sixteenth century painter better known by that name. When questioned as to what his REAL name was, it remained undisclosed. This is to separate his ‘serious’ work from his ‘fun’ work. His ‘serious’ work is apparently quite well-known. One thing I noted was that Thomas and Titian were both very softspoken. During the whole course of the interview, their voices didn’t raise above the normal speaking level at all. In fact, most of the time it seemed to be slightly below the average speaking level. It had been mentioned beforehand that they did not like speaking about themselves, and during the signing of autographs they barely spoke. When we asked about what was in store for the upcoming third book in the series, they revealed that it’d be very different from the first two, along with giving us these five words: monk, policeman, soldier, ninja, and rock-star. It was also hinted that there will be budding romance in the third book.

Xin Vee and I were given the opportunity to do an interview after the autograph session was over. As far as how many books they’re planning to have in the series, the sky’s the limit. Somewhere along the lines, they might collaborate to do other books as well.

Getting the autographs was a fun experience on its own. Thomas would sign his name along with a small message and Titian would sketch a quick portrait of the person the book was being signed for. They also gave away various freebies including miniature footballs and bookmarks. It was really a oncein-a-lifetime opportunity as it is not often that you get an illustration of yourself when getting a book signed. Xin Vee and I both compared our autographs and illustrations.

September - October 2009

The Write Stuff

Read all about it from the Superkids themselves!

Thomas’ advice to up and coming authors is to read a lot. As a child he read a lot of Enid Blyton books. It is my opinion that reading not only helps you to learn new things, it expands your vocabulary as well. Another favourite author of his is Barbara Cartland. My mother told me that Barbara Cartland wrote romance novels. Perhaps this was where he had got his inspiration and ideas for the romance in the third book. Publishing a book is as easy as your passion goes, but it does involve a lot of people and a lot of time.

By Junior Reporter Chuan Xin Vee

The man behind the inspiration for the character of the football coach “Malcolm Ramsey”

“Soccer is a global sport. Thus, these books serve as a vehicle to express who we are and what we like,’ he is quoted as saying, when asked why he picked football over other sports. The third book is coming out soon! Woohoo! It is regarding a master of disguise who turns into a monk, police, rock star, soldier and ninja. I’m definitely looking forward to it!

t was a once-in-a-lifetime experience for me. I had the opportunity to meet and interview the author and illustrator of the Twinkletoes series! I have never been a Junior Reporter before this, so, naturally, I felt butterflies in my stomach. We started off the session by introducing ourselves and getting our copies signed. Thomas Koh, the author was very friendly and smiley. (There is a big grin on his happy face on every picture!)The illustrator, Titian, is one cool dude. Everyone present must be very impressed when he drew our faces on the spot! (How cool is that?)

The crowd at the “Meet the Author and Illustrator” session.

After fans had queued up for their autographs, we began our interview. We learnt that they have been friends since 1987. Thomas claimed that he doesn’t have any special writing routine, all is written solely on inspiration. He used to work for the Singapore Straits Times and have to cope with tight deadlines. For Titian, dedication and interest combined is the key to successful illustration. He even revealed that ‘Titian’ is also the name of an established Italian artist! As you know, ‘Twinkletoes’ is a cross between pictures and words. They felt that children will be attracted to the colourful pictures and, thus, the reading habit is developed. You must know that everyone is ‘a kid a heart’. They told us that a 60-yearold even asked them to sign the books. Wow! 36

September - October 2009

My very own illustration!

Superkidz Club Birthdays

Yasmeen Haniff (July 5)

Belated wish - “A Happy Birthday to our beautiful darling girl, Yasmeen From Mummy, Papa and bro Haris.”

Chin Wei Wei (Sep' 19) “Happy Birthday to our beloved Wei Wei, lots of luv and kisses from mummy and daddy!”

Zoe Tay Shiao Shuen (Sep' 1)

Adrianna Rudino (Sep' 20)

Lim Chyi Ean (Sep' 5)

Ravjeet Singh (Sep' 22)

“Happy Birthday, princess! You'll always be our precious darling and we love you very much.”

“Happy 7th Birthday to our princess! We love you!”

“A Superb Birthday to our Sayang Big Girl, Love & Kisses, Daddy & Mummy.”

SEPTEMBER BIRTHDAYS

Date of Birth

“A very happy 6th Birthday to our adorable little boy, from Mummy, Papa & Reena.”

SEPTEMBER BIRTHDAYS

Date of Birth

Kok Ee Tyng

1-Sep-2005

Chin Wei Wei

19-Sep-2005

Siti Aisyah Abdurrani

1-Sep-2009

Roxanne Tan Li Thong

19-Sep-2006

Zoe Tay Shiao Shuen

1-Sep-2004

Tan Xiao Xuan

19-Sep-2006

Boey Chai

2-Sep-2004

Adrianna Rudino

20-Sep-2002

Koh Jo Vee

5-Sep-1996

Elizabeth Renee

20-Sep-1997

Lim Chyi Ean

5-Sep-2003

Ravjeet Singh

22-Sep-2003

Sangkaran S/O Sakthyvel

8-Sep-2004

Sangkharii Kalaithason

22-Sep-2000

Tang Kai Yuan

10-Sep-2001

Carrie Er

28-Sep-2004

Nur Amirah Zulaikha

10-Sep-2004

Hemmandt Kalaithason

28-Sep-2005

Sofea Nabila

11-Sep-2004

Ryan Khoo Teng Han

29-Sep-1998

Emira Aisya

17-Sep-2004

Chia Yih Shuan

30-Sep-2003

Alicia Carmen Theseira

18-Sep-2002

Have a read parents! Imagine your children’s delight and squeals of joy when they discover their photographs published in SUPERKIDZ magazine on their birthdays! There are a maximum of 16 slots of Birthday Wishes available for the months of November and December, so start sending in those photos. (Deadline: 9th October 2009) • Send photograph along with a message from you (not more than 15 words), and kindly include these details: • Your child’s: ∙Name ∙Gender ∙Date of birth (DD/MM/YY) ∙School • Parent’s: ∙Name ∙Address ∙Contact No. (Home & Mobile) ∙Email address

September - October 2009

Superkidz Club Birthdays

Sangkharii Kalaithason (Sep' 22)

Cheong Kang Min (Oct' 22)

“Happy Birthday to my princess. We will always love you.”

“Happy Birthday Kang Min! Hugs & Love from daddy, mummy, Kang Yan & Kang Jie.”

Carrie Er (Sep' 28)

“You're 5 years old now! With love from Mummy, Papa, Ashley and Aaron.”

Hemmandt Kalaithason (Sep' 28) “Happy 4th birthday ‘super cowboy’ son and all the best.”

OCTOBER BIRTHDAYS

Date of Birth

Cheong Kang Yan (Oct' 27) “Happy Birthday Kang Yan! Hugs & Love from daddy, mummy, Kang Jie & Kang Min.”

OCTOBER BIRTHDAYS

Date of Birth

Marcus Ho

1-Oct-2001

Zul Aiman Bin Zul Munawir

20-Oct-1999

Ng Lim Wei Shuen

2-Oct-1996

Cheong Kang Ming

22-Oct-2006

Sriviknaharjun

2-Oct-2002

Denise Liew

22-Oct-2001

Trishapreet Kaur

4-Oct-2006

Vincent Wong

24-Oct-2000

Chioi Hao Wen

6-Oct-2003

Dev Ananda a/l M. Saravanan

26-Oct-2005

Nurul Huda Binti Nor Azmi

7-Oct-2000

Cheong Kang Yan

27-Oct-2001

Selina Lai

8-Oct-2002

Myra Koh

28-Oct-1996

Kamalinee Kamalakaran

9-Oct-2003

Wong Xiao Qing

29-Oct-2004

Sarah Jane Khoo

11-Oct-1999

Jonathan Lee Rong Sheng

30-Oct-2002

Soh Guan Yu

11-Oct-2001

Rania Balasubrananiam

30-Oct-2005

Charlotte Amanda Gan

13-Oct-2002

Muhammad Haziq Amsyar

31-Oct-2005

Email: kidz@epitome.com.my (Subject: Birthday Greeting); OR Send to: SUPERKIDZ Magazine, 10.01 Wisma Lim Foo Yong, 86 Jalan Raja Chulan, 50200 KL (Subject: Birthday Greeting) Terms & Conditions 1) Open to all Superkidz Club members. 2) Photos submitted are non-returnable. 3) Image files sent via email must be clear, of good quality and saved in JPEG format. 4) All photos must be accompanied with a birthday wish of not more than 15 words from parents. 5) Incomplete or inaccurate contact details may result in photos not being selected. 6) Selection is at the sole and utter discretion of SUPERKIDZ. Hence, the decision of SUPERKIDZ on all matters relating to photos and greetings is final and no correspondence will be entertained. 7) SUPERKIDZ reserves the right to edit/ resize all photos and/ or greetings where appropriate. 8) SUPERKIDZ reserves the right to use the names and images in all publicity materials. Participants thereby grant Epitome Communications Sdn Bhd full copyright (and without limitation) to do so. 9) Submission of photos does not guarantee publication.

September - October 2009