The Arts & Science Magazine for Kids Stories Activities Games Doodles Experiments & a poem Issue #17 Dirt Okido is a quarterly magazine for children aged 2 and above
ISSN 1753-3139 / ÂŁ 4 07 9
771753 313013
Hello Okido readers! This issue is all about dirt. Is dirt just dirty and full of germs or can it be yummy food for plants and worms? Dirt is certainly really good fun to play with! Let’s discover dirt! Okido is yours to read, write and draw on. Enjoy! Start by writing your name:
Okido helps children learn through play. It is full of stories, activities and games that stimulate creativity and inspire scientific interest.
Messy Monster meets the Dust Bunnies. Zim Zam and Zoom explore mud and discover germs. Squirrel Boy tries to get rid of the Dirt Monster! Foxy visits his friends who live underground. Paint with cleaning tools, discover where your food comes from, and play the compost heap maze! Read super stories, and a poem, colour in and doodle-do! Plus much, much more to make, do and draw!
! O O H C T A ‘Hey! Look it’s Messy Monster!’
‘Hey! Messy Monster! What are you doing?’
‘I’m playing with my friends the Dust Bunnies!’
Story & Illustration by Rachel Ortas
! O O H C T A
‘Hello, Dust Bunnies.’
‘Where do you come from? How did you get into our house?’
‘We came dancing on sun rays’ said the Dust Bunnies. ‘We come from the stars’
‘But now we’re not flying any more.’
‘Come with us — we will set you free.’
‘We want to dance again in the rays of light.’
‘Come on little Dust Bunnies, don’t be shy...
...follow us outside’
s’ e i nn u st B u D e y e, b y ‘B
Why should I wash my hands?
I love playing in mud! Don’t you Zim?
Not as much as you do Zam! But I am very curious... Let’s see what we can find in all this mud!
Tee-hee! I’ll go undercover and transform myself into a microscopic Zoom to see what lives in here.
Wow! There are zillions of germs living in the mud! There are germs everywhere but they particularly love rotting matter, poo, mud and soil.
Story by Dr Sophie and illustration by Alex Barrow
Questions with Zim Zam Zoom:
Koko has been playing in the mud, and is covered in dirt!
Koko’s Hands... what’s in the mud
If we put some blue gel on Koko’s hands, we can see what’s in the mud.
Hold up the page to the light. Can you see the germs?
...Germs live in everything. There are plenty in sneezes and on animals, too!
What are the germs going to do? Can they be harmful?
Look at all the germs on Koko’s hands!
Stop Koko! If you rub your eyes the germs can get inside!
The skin stops the germs getting in. But they will find their way into the body through any holes or cuts in the skin.
If any germs get in your eyes, they could get infected.
Stop Koko! There are germs on your hands, and they might make you ill!
Oki-doky! I’d better wash my hands before I touch any food, eat or rub my eyes!
Well done Koko! Always make sure your hands are clean before you eat! Bye-bye germs!
If the germs get in your mouth and you swallow them, they might give you a tummy ache
If I were a pinky pig I’d love to live in mud. I’d wallow, bathe and roll in it To soothe and cool my blood.
If I were a wiggly worm The mud would be my room. I’d wriggle, squirm and swim in it To help the garden bloom!
If I were a potato I’d sleep and take it slow. So safe and warm in lovely earth, To feed and breathe and grow…
If I were a garden spade I’d slice and dig and spread. I’d tend the plants and move the soil To make them all a bed.
And if I were a sightless mole I’d burrow deep and hide. I’d use the mud to make a house And snuggle deep inside!
Mud is really marvellous stuff Do you know what it’s worth? The base we build our world upon That’s right, it makes The Earth!
Illustration by Peter Slight
Let’s Okidoodle!
Illustration by Alex Barrow
Give these plants some soil
Draw in the creatures who live underground
Muddy kids! These kids have been playing in the mud! Draw mud on their clothes, hands and faces!
Rubbish Pile!
Draw in all the rubbish the rubbish truck has collected here
Monster footprints!
Illustration by Peter Slight
These monsters have messed up this nice clean floor. Can you match the monster with its footprint?
Let’s talk Germs! What are the germs saying?
Use the germs secret code to write what this germ is saying Use the germs alphabet code to guess what the germs are saying
Germ Sudoku Complete the grid to have one of each germ in each column or row.
Bogey trap! Our noses trap dust and dirt to stop it going inside. Draw what the bogeys caught today!
germs
dust dirt
pollen flies
Moles Poo, too! Draw their poos!
Let’s play dirty with our cleaning tools! Toothbrush and Sponge printing You will need: • Some paint squeezed onto a paper plate or on a plastic lid • Some newspaper to protect the table • A sponge cut into little squares • An old toothbrush • Water in a pot for thinning paint • Stencils and cut-out shapes (made from plastic folders or card) Now you’re ready to play dirty!
Use the sponge to spread paint over the stencils to make your shapes; dip the toothbrush into the paint and flick the bristles to make a splatter effect.
Illustration by Sister Arrow
Find Foxy Illustration by Mathilde Nivet
Foxy lives in a den underground. Can you see him?
Lots of other animals live in the ground, too. Can you see them?
Story & Illustration by Beth Morrison
Story & Illustration by Laura Bird
Sukie and her friends have arrived in the Magic Paint Pot World. Have you ever wondered what goes underground? What lies buried beneath Sukie’s feet?
Story and Illustration by Les and Tots
The Beetle Excavators
The Beetles are good at excavating. Can you see the treasure they have yet to find?
Draw your own buried treasure
Illustration by Miqui Viars
Oooh! It’s stopped raining - I’m going to go and play outside
I love jumping in muddy puddles!
I’ll just put my wellies on...
I do!
Hello flowers, Hello duck, do you like mud?
Let’s get muddy!” Let’s make a muddy soup for the worms...
I LOVE mud! I love playing with mud so much ! But you know it’s not only me....
Mud, Mud Mud...
...Elephants love mud too..
Look, I’ve even made a doll out of mud!
Time to go home now...
...and have a jolly good wash!!
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Back issues You can also shop and buy back issues from our web site: www.okido.co.uk The themes of past issues have included the subjects of Weather, Robots, Living Things and Biodiversity, Body Noises, Heart & Blood, Emotions & Feelings, the Moon, Senses, Muscles, the Brain, Dreams, Food, Digestion, Growing and Water.
Get an iDirt Visit the the DIRT exhibition at the Wellcome Collection 183 Euston Road London NW1 2BE and ask for a family pack to get a free iDIRT to play with.
www.okido.co.uk Okido, 41 Bowen Drive London SE21 8NS info@okido.co.uk Published by Okido Studio Editor Sophie Dauvois sophie@okido.co.uk Creative Director Rachel Ortas Art Director Alex Barrow Designer Gigi Ho Design Brighten the Corners Sub-Editing, PR & Marketing Gabby Dawnay gabby@okido.co.uk Contributors Sister Arrow, Alex Barrow, Laura Bird, Gabby Dawnay, Beth Morrison, Mathilde Nivet, Paul Noble, Rachel Ortas, Lesley Saddington, Peter Slight, Miqui Viars and Charlotte Watts. Thanks to Beth, Dylan, Emil, Ethan Joe, Jaden, Leah-Joy, Ruben, Poppy and Rufus for the muddy pictures Thanks to the Wellcome Trust for its support. Okido is printed on FSC paper using biodegradable vegetable ink by Calverts print co-operative. © Okido Studio 2011. All rights reserved and reproduction forbidden.
This issue of Okido is all about dirt, mud, soil and germs... Read fabulous stories, draw, make stuff, cook, create and enjoy your new Okido. Stories
Science
Activities
Doodles
Games
& a poem
www.okido.co.uk
Okido helps children learn through play. It is full of stories, activities and games that stimulate creativity and inspire scientific interest. Issue #17 Dirt This issue has been printed on FSC paper using biodegradable vegetable inks. Get in touch Send us a postcard, a question, photos or drawings for a chance to get published on our website! We would love to hear from you. Email: myokido@okido.co.uk