Vol.21 Issue 1
Th e re G o e s t h e Ne ighb o u r h o o d
Read about the surprising history of gunpowder.
Did the earth need global warming a long, long time ago?
Meet Benny, Iva, and Gary!
Contents The Big story
04
How Big Bear Got Stuck in the Sky
The Second Big Story 13 There Goes the Neighbourhood
The Third Big Story
20
The Day the Medicine Exploded
The
Editorial Team
Managing Editor Dr Henry Toi
Editor Janet Chui
Special writers Kathleen Muldoon Tina Tocco
Writers Corrine Lin Marla Menon Cheryl Chan
Art Sean Teo Robert Meganck Francesca Gambatesa Thor Wickstrom
Layout / Publishing Executive Jason Ong
Big Character
19
Big Problems
18
Big Things
24
Responsible Ophelia
Big Craft
28
Tinted Glass Jar
Big Eat
30
Peanut Butter Balls
How warm is too warm? Vaccines
The Adventures of Benny, Iva & Gary
10
Return to School
Big Fun
31
Big Jokes
12
Big News
27
Pandemics
Big Numbers
11
Our Solar System
Vol 21, Issue 1 Big is published by Nurture Craft International Pte Ltd. Material in this issue may not be reproduced, in whole or in part, without prior permission from the publisher. In Singapore, contact Nurture Craft International Pte Ltd.
© 2021 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. PRINTED IN SINGAPORE
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by Art by art © 2018 by
A N ATIVE A MERICAN L EGEND NCE UPON A time when Earth was young, Winter ruled. Snow and ice covered mountains and rivers, fields and forests. So hard was the floor between Earth and Sky that Sun could not peek through to warm the ground. Animals that survived this harsh cold hunted to provide what little food they could for their young. A big bear, called Fisher because the magic in his tail helped him catch fish, decided it was time to bring Summer to Earth. So Fisher invited all of Earth’s creatures to a meeting. “We will find a way to warm Earth,” he said. “Sun will bring grass and flowers and birds. We must reach the Great Spirit and ask for help. Who will go with me to the place where Earth is closest to Sky?” Otter, Lynx, and Wolverine agreed to accompany Fisher on his journey. They travelled across frozen lakes and rivers. Icy twigs snapped as they tramped through snowy woods. They climbed hills and slid through valleys. Fisher swished his magical, stubby tail in the frigid waters and caught fish for them to eat along the way. After many days, he led them to the top of the tallest mountain on Earth, so high it almost tickled Sky. There Fisher stood on his back paws and stretched, swiping his front claws on Sky’s floor. But he made only a tiny scratch. He could not break through to Sky. “Let me try,” cried Otter. Thistle and I thought we’d accompany you— join you—here at the pond. And root for the Leeches!
Retold by Kathleen Muldoon Art by Robert Meganck
Good thing! We’re up against the Fire Ants.
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Numbers It takes 248 earth years for Pluto to revolve around the sun. So saying “see you next year!” has a whole different meaning.
Neptune’s temperature is minus 200 Celsius. Your ice cream will never melt!
Earth is quite small. You need about 1300 to fill up Jupiter. How many Plutos do you need to fill up Jupiter? (see answer on page 31)
The rings of Saturn are about 400,000 km wide. That’s the distance between the earth and its moon!
Did you know that Venus and Earth have almost the same gravity?
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Problems Dennis D. Dragon is traveling with a fox, a goose, and a bag of beans. During his journey, he comes across a river with a boat to cross it. Dennis can only fit one thing in the boat with him at a time. If left alone together, the fox will eat the goose or the goose will eat the beans. How does Dennis get everything across the river safely?
Gertrude’s Dad, George, moved into a new house with three light switches outside of a room. The light can warm the room and George wanted to warm up just his room. The switches are labeled number one, number two, and number three. The door to the room is closed and you can’t see into the room. All three switches are off. Help George figure out which switch belongs to which warmer light. You can use the switches however you want to but can only enter the room once. What would you tell George to do?
Send in your answers to the 2 Big problems and win prizes. The first 3 correct answers to both BIG problems will win a $10 Popular Bookstore Voucher each.” Send your answers to box@nurturecraft.com.sg with the subject“Big answers”. Please include: your name, school, class level, and your mailing address.
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The Day the Medicine Long ago in ancient China, alchemists spent a lot of time looking for a magic potion that would make them live forever. They also made medicines. My stomach hurts.
I need a lotion for my knee!
I wonder what would happen if I mix the white powder with the yellow powder and charcoal?
They used potassium nitrate, or saltpetre, to purify metals and make spooky white fires.
Goodness! Oh dear!
Yeoww!
He had just accidentally invented gunpowder!
Now you tell me!
Hey, that would be a very scary weapon! I’ll give you lots of gold if you make me some!
!!
Many alchemists warned against the dangerous mixture. But the fiery powder was too interesting to ignore.
I’m not even listening!
art © 2016 by Thor Wickstrom
This makes smoke and big flames! Many have gotten bad burns and even burned their houses down! This gives alchemy a bad name, so don’t try it!
TION!! THIS PO E K A M DO NOT
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Achoo!
One day, around the year 850…
Some of their cures used powdered sulphur, a funny yellow rock with a strong smell.
der ! Fire Pow ur ger lph u s h c in an P D r saltpete es charcoal av honey le heat d Mix an
Next!
News Pandemics
A pandemic is a disease that breaks out not just in one place, but in many around the world. Most recently, the world has been facing the outbreak of COVID-19. This disease started in China but within a few months, had spread around the world and infected people from many different walks of life. It’s pretty amazing that a virus, something measured in nanometres (there are 1,000,000,000 nanometres in 1 meter), can cause so much trouble and change how we live to keep ourselves healthy! So how do they spread? Viruses need to live inside something else. They will die quickly without the living cells of a person or animal to house them. For example, imagine person A had the flu and coughed into his hand, just before opening a door and touching the door knob with the same hand. If no one else touched
that door knob, the virus would die after enough time, sitting there waiting for a living cell. However, if person B came along and used the same door knob, the virus would happily jump onto his hand, quite possibly infecting him with the same flu. Therefore, it is very important to wash your hands after visiting public places, especially bathrooms, hospitals, and clinics. Pandemics spread like this, with viruses moving from person to person or sometimes from animals to humans. Fast-moving viruses spread quickly— the most recent Coronavirus travelled around the world before anyone was able to figure out what was going on! To prevent any more global pandemics, we need to take care of our health and make sure to maintain good hygiene. Wearing a mask when you are sick and washing your hands after being in public places are easy ways to do this.
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Craft
Home Made Tinted Glass Jars for Tea Lights Materials Needed: • 1 mason jars or other empty glass jars • Food colouring or watercolour paint • Non-toxic white glue (water-based) • 1 small bowl for mixing paint • 1 paintbrush • Twigs • 1 tea light or candle from the dollar store Tint your Mason jar or glass jar 1. Put some white glue and water into the mixing bowl. Add food colouring or watercolour paint of your choice and stir it up. You can mix different
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