Tuesday • January 17, 2012 — D1
The Sentinel at www.cumberlink.com Megan bollinger Copy Editor Phone 240-7111
Kids World
Fax 243-3121 Email mbollinger@cumberlink.com
When kids speak out, The Sentinel listens
Kids Speak Out
Tell Me A Story
I was building a snowman when... I was building a snowman when my friend came with a magic carrot for the nose. When we put the nose on it came alive and it went around town eating kids! My friend and I got away. We made a plan to destroy the evil snowman once and for all. He only eats kids and we were the only kids in town. So he chased me into a log cabin. When I got out the back door we lit a match and threw it in the cabin. It burned down and all the kids got out and the evil snowman melted. The end. Tyler Nickel, 10 (WINNER) Mt. Holly Springs Elementary I was building a snowman when the eyes started to blink, and then the eyes turned red. The arms started to move suddenly, then the branches turned into sharp fingers. The mouth began to open and close. The snowman began to sing “Frosty the Snowman.” I saw sharp teeth. The snowman began to move. The snowman appeared to be chasing me so I ran very, very, very fast but the snowman was too fast so finally he threw a snowball at me. I fell very hard to the ground and then I got up and said, “You want to play, let’s play.” So we had a snowball fight. It turns out that Frosty wasn’t scary looking. It was just in my head. Marcel Maniece, 12 (WINNER) New Cumberland Middle School Sixth Grade
I was building a snowman when it said, “Hey, don’t make me too fat or I will turn you into a unicorn!” I made him really fat, and he turned me into a unicorn. That’s why I am writing this with my hooves. KJ Keane, 10 (WINNER) Fishing Creek Elementary Fourth Grade
I was building a snowman. When I went back outside, the snowman came to life. Then more and more snowmen came. We tried to wreck them, but they didn’t wreck. We used sunshine. It worked! The snow started to rumble. It turned into a snowman. We screamed! We ran! One of us had an idea. They said, “Let’s tell the sun this ... Oh, Mr. Sun, Sun, Mr. Golden Sun. Please shine down. Please shine down on us!” And then one of us said, “And the snowman, too!” Autumn Batzel, 6 (WINNER) Newville Elementary First Grade
I was building a snowman when it came alive. Then I saw an eye blinking. I ran home. It melted. Then my sister came out of it! Bethany Schwartz, 7 St. Patrick School Grade 2B
I was building a snowman when he asked me for a party. I said no. Then he asked me for some hot coca. I said yes. Twenty minutes later he melted from the hot cocoa. The end. Kaleb, 7 Shaull Elementary School I was building a snowman when a man knocked it down. I said, “Hey! That was my snowman.” Then I realized it was no man. It was a vampire. I pulled the mask off, and guess who it was. It was my teacher. And that’s what happened that day.
I was building a snowman when he started to talk. I was happy because I had someone to play with. He drove me to South Dakota. He started to melt. I said, “Let’s get out of here.” Then he drove me to Alaska. He did not melt because it was cold. I said we should go home because my parents might be worried. So we went home. I had a fun day. Marisa Colondrillo, 7 St. Patrick School Grade 2B
Reagan Keys, 7 St. Patrick School Grade 2B
I was building a snowman when it turned into a big yellow and green monster with blue fur and sharp pink teeth. I ran away and did not ever come back.
I was building a snowman when it came to life! I was so excited! And when I get so excited, I vomit! Eww! Actually, I didn’t really do that. The snowman danced and danced until the sun came out, and the snowman melted. I was so sad! I will never see him again.
Hannah Culp, 9 Fishing Creek Elementary Fourth Grade
Gabriel Gabasan, 7 St. Patrick School Grade 2B I was building a snowman when it came to life. He said, “I am Frosty the Snowman.” Then he asked, “What do you want to do?” I said, “Take me to Candy Land.” It was so much fun! I ate so much candy! I fell on a cookie, and then I was covered in chocolate. So my snow buddy got me out of the chocolate. Then I said, “Let’s go home.” So we did. But when I got home, it was summer because we were gone for 200 years. So we made a deal. It was that I will make him again when it is winter. I did, and I always saw him. Kate Williams, 7 St. Patrick School Grade 2A I was building a snowman when it started to snow ice cream. So I decided to build a snow lady out of ice cream. I used an ice cream cone for a nose, Hershey Kisses for eyes, licorice for the mouth and gum balls for buttons. The snow lady looked delicious.
It was snowing all day and I decided to go outside and play in it. But after I got out there, I realized that there was a blizzard. There was a lot of snow and a terrible mess so I went upstairs to wake up mommy and daddy. When we got out there, the neighborhood had already started cleaning up. When we were done, I went back to my house and built a snowman. Katie Miller, 6 Newville Elementary First Grade
I was building a snowman when I got a chill. I went inside and got hot cocoa. Then I went outside again and started to build again. Then I made a snow dog! It looked funny because it has a big ear, that’s why it’s funny. It is a girl. Her name is Ella because I like her name. Then it went crazy. It was funny!
Kirsten Weirich, 7 Hamilton Elementary Second Grade I was building a snowman when there was a snowstorm. All of the houses broke and all of the people ran away and screamed, “Aaaaaaaaaa!” So did I, “Aaaaaaaaa!” I said that. The end.
Naomi Cornman Newville Elementary
I was building a snowman when all of a sudden I heard a noise. It was fox. Then the fox ate my snowman. When the fox was done he was fat. I had to rebuild the snowman. I spent lots of time with my snowman. I named my snowman Ola.
Taylor Palmer, 6 Elmwood Elementary First Grade
Abby Henschke, 6 Shaull Elementary School First Grade
How you can get involved with Kids Speak Out Want To See Your Name Here?
Hey, kids! How would you like to get your story published in Kids Speak Out? Just write a short story on one of our prompts and send it to The Sentinel. You can also draw a picture to go with your story. Each week, The Sentinel will publish some of the stories we receive in KidsWorld and on www.cumberlink.com. Only the top three essay writers, published on this page, will receive KidsWorld T-shirts. To claim T-shirts, visit The Sentinel during normal business hours. You must be 5 to 13 years old to enter. Stories must be 150 words or less. Be sure to include your full name, age, address, school and grade. Mail your entry to “Kids Speak Out,” The Sentinel, 457 E. North St., Carlisle, PA 17013, drop it off at either Sentinel office or mail it to frontdoor@cumberlink.com with the subject “KidsWorld.”
Attention Teachers!
Request the new Kids Speak Out writing prompts; email mbollinger@cumberlink.com.
Upcoming Topics Due Jan. 20 It was snowing all day and I decided to... Due Jan. 27 I was ice skating on a lake when... Due Feb. 3 I made a gingerbread house and then my dog... Due Feb. 10 I’m going to give my Valentine a... Due Feb. 17 My favorite thing to do on the weekend is... Due Feb. 24 If I had a million dollars I would... Due March 2 When I’m riding the school bus I like to... Due March 9 I was eating lunch with my friends when...
The trolls and the great big cat Norwegian tale
adapted by Amy Friedman illustrated by Jillian Gilliland
Once upon a time in a village in the snowy Norwegian mountains, there lived a tailor and his family. Every year during the holiday season, the trolls moved into their house. They were so difficult that the family had to move away and the trolls took over. Each year, hoping this would be the last, the family prepared their house for the invasion of the trolls. They set their big table with sweets and sausages, fish and fruit, cakes and cream and porridge. They left behind great jugs of wine and beer. But every year the same thing happened. The trolls were greedy and heartless creatures. Some of them were big and tall, with legs as long as tree trunks. Some were tiny with long, twisty tails. Some had no tails at all but had instead big, bulbous noses. Some had eyes like black marbles that rolled in the sockets. Some were cruel and monstrously fat. Some were small and shrunken. But they had one thing in common: They loved to eat and drink. And they could never get enough! Every year after the trolls had eaten everything on the table, and after they had drunk up every last drop in the jugs, they began to search the house for more. They turned over the furniture and tore apart the pillows and quilts. They ripped up the tailor’s material and spilled his pins. They unspooled his threads. They climbed the curtains and tossed books and trinkets. In their search for more, every year they destroyed the house. One day not long before Christmas an animal trainer was passing through town, and he stopped and knocked upon the tailor’s door. When the tailor answered, the trainer said, “Please, sir, would you be kind enough to offer my pet and me a place to stay?” “Ah,” the tailor sighed, “it’s fine for you to stay the night, but tomorrow we leave. The trolls will be coming. Every holiday season they take over our house.” “I don’t mind trolls,” the trainer said. “We’re so cold, my pet and I, we’d just like to be warm.” And with that an enormous white bear stepped from behind the trainer. When the tailor saw the bear, he stepped back in fear; he had never been so near such a big bear. The animal trainer said quickly, “Please, don’t worry, he’s very well trained.” And that big white bear bowed hello to the tailor. Outside the snow was falling in sheets, and the wind was roaring, and the sky was forbidding. The tailor’s heart went out to the trainer and his bear. “Please, both of you, come in for the night,” he said. “So we shall!” the trainer said, and in he walked, the bear right behind. They curled up beside the woodstove and there they happily warmed their faces and their feet. They were happy to have a roof over their heads. The very next morning the tailor, his wife and their children packed their bags. “We’re leaving,” they said to the trainer. “The trolls will be here any moment now. You’ll want to be going, too.” The animal trainer shook his head. “Perhaps we could stay?” He had no desire to leave the warmth of the woodstove, and neither did his big white bear. “But the trolls ...” the tailor cautioned. The trainer waved away the tailor’s concerns. “I’m a trainer, remember? We’ll be just fine. Perhaps I’ll even train the trolls.” The tailor laughed at the thought, but he left the trainer and his bear behind, and a few hours later the trolls came. They roared into the house and quickly gobbled up the sweets and the sausages, the porridge and the cream. They downed the jugs of wine and beer. Then suddenly one of the tiny trolls spotted two big eyes staring out from under the stove. Curious, he picked up a sausage and walked toward the stove. “Here kitty, kitty,” he said, holding out that sausage. At that the bear emerged from beneath the stove, stood upon his hind legs and let out a tremendous roar. At that sound, the trolls turned and saw the monster -- bigger than the biggest troll, with longer claws and sharper teeth and rounder eyes. They shrieked and dropped their plates and cups and bowls. “Watch out!” cried the grandfather troll. And one after the other, they raced out the door. When the holidays were done, the tailor and his family returned home, but when he opened the door, the tailor could not believe his eyes. The house was in perfect order. On the table stood sweets and sausages, porridge and cream, jugs of wine and beer. It was as if nothing had been disturbed. Even the trainer and his bear were gone. A few weeks later, the tailor was walking through the woods when suddenly he heard a voice calling from behind a grove of pines. “Tailor!” the voice cried. “Is that you?” The tailor recognized the voice of the grandfather troll. “It is,” he answered, and his heart sank, for he had hoped those trolls were long gone. “Do you still have that big cat of yours?” asked the grandfather troll. That’s when the tailor understood. He held back a smile. “I do,” he said. “She’s still lying under the stove.” “And will she be there next holiday season?” asked the troll. “Indeed she will,” the tailor said. “And soon she’ll be having kittens, so there will be many more cats there.” “You shan’t be seeing us again, then!” the troll cried. Then there was silence. And sure enough, the trolls never again appeared in the Norwegian mountains.
D2 — The Sentinel at www.cumberlink.com Megan bollinger Copy Editor Phone 240-7111
Tuesday • January 17, 2012
Kids World
Fax 243-3121 Email mbollinger@cumberlink.com
When kids speak out, The Sentinel listens 2-1 (12)
release dates: January 14-20
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The Ancient Maya
The pyramid at Chichen Itza in Mexico was built for the serpent god Kukulcan. The Maya believed that when he returned each spring, his tail raised the winds and swept the earth clean before the coming rains.
art courtesy Houston Museum of Natural Science
Amazing scientists
Pyramids
The Maya developed one of the most complex civilizations of the ancient world. They were astronomers with an advanced system of writing. Unlike many other ancient people, they developed in isolation (eyesuh-LAY-shun), or away from other civilizations. Other ancient cultures, such as the Egyptians and Greeks, learned a lot from other peoples. The Maya had to discover all on their own. They built great structures without metal tools, beasts of burden*, or vehicles with wheels, such as carts.
The Maya built great pyramids that were lined up to follow the movements of the sun. For example, on the shortest day of the year, or the winter solstice (SOHL-stis), the sun rose at a certain spot over a pyramid temple. Priests knew that from that day forward, the sun would rise a bit to the north each day. When the sun finally rose directly to the north of the pyramid, the rains would come. Other pyramids were lined up with the setting sun. They were all built to predict the rains.
*Beasts of burden are big animals tame enough to help people carry heavy loads.
photo by Jaap Buitendijk Š 2011 GK Films LLC. All Rights Reserved
Chloe Grace Moretz stars as Isabelle IN THE MOVIE h(UGO v 3HE HAS STARRED IN several TV shows and movies, including h$IARY OF A 7IMPY +ID v 3HE IS THE VOICE OF $ARBY IN THE $ISNEY 46 SHOW h-Y &RIENDS 4IGGER 0OOH v Chloe, 14, was born in Atlanta, Ga. She began modeling and appearing in COMMERCIALS WHEN SHE WAS 7HEN SHE WAS SHE MOVED WITH HER FAMILY FROM .EW 9ORK TO ,OS !NGELES She enjoys gymnastics, swimming, ballet, basketball and her dogs and cat. She is an ambassador for the Starlight Children’s Foundation, which helps children who suffer from serious illness. from The Mini Page Š 2012 Universal Uclick
from The Mini Page Š 2012 Universal Uclick
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Supersport: Jeff Skinner
Birthdate: 5-16-92 Hometown: Markham, Ontario, Canada
When watching Carolina Hurricane Jeff Skinner skate, blow by defenders and handle the puck, it’s hard to believe he’s still a teenager. Months away from celebrating his 20th birthday, Skinner is as cool as the ice beneath his feet and flashes the skill of a veteran. Last year — at age 18 — he became the youngest NHL Rookie of the Year winner and the youngest to play in an All-Star Game. 3KINNER PLAYING SINCE AGE ALSO HAS A PERSONALITY TO MATCH HIS TALENT !WAY FROM HOCKEY HIS INTERESTS INCLUDE WATCHING h&RIENDSv AND FOOTBALL on TV and listening to country music. But if you put a song to his game, it would have a rock ‘n’ roll beat. And this year the beat goes on with more goals and assists.
The Maya used two different calendars throughout the year. One calendar gave the times to perform rituals. Today, this kind of calendar could help us keep track of events like planting and harvesting crops. The Mayan ritual calendar covered DAYS )T WAS MADE UP OF numbers and 20 names. Their second calendar was a yearLONG CALENDAR MADE UP OF DAYS It was divided into 18 months of 20 days each. The Maya added five extra days to finish off the year. The Maya used this calendar to help them keep track of events like birthdays and holidays.
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What to do:
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The Mini Page’s popular series of issues about each state is collected here in a 156-page softcover book. Conveniently spiral-bound for ease of use, this invaluable resource contains A-to-Z facts about each state, along with the District of Columbia. Illustrated with colorful photographs and art, and complete with updated information, The Mini Page Book of States will be a favorite in classrooms and homes for years to come.
Long Count The Maya recorded long periods of time in a Long Count calendar. They used the Long Count to tell about their history and to tell the future. Altogether, the current Long Count calendar covers more than YEARS ENDING IN 4HE Maya used this Long Count to describe when kings ruled or great battles were fought. They did not try to predict the end of the world. from The Mini Page Š 2012 Universal Uclick
from The Mini Page Š 2012 Universal Uclick
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art courtesy Houston Museum of Natural Science
The city of Uxmal (USHmal) was founded to store rain during the dry season. The Maya built giant cisterns (SISterns), or tanks, to store rainwater. The pyramid there was designed so that during the dry season, the shadows would climb up the pyramid as the days grew longer. In two 20-day months, the sun would shine directly overhead at noon. After that, the rains would come.
Destroying their environment
art courtesy Houston Museum of Natural Science
The Maya joined their two short calendars to form a third calendar that went about 52 years. It was designed to cover one person’s lifetime. The two calendars worked together with a kind of gear system. This new calendar was called the Calendar Round.
Much like we divide our calendars into days, years and centuries, the Maya had their own time periods. s A kin DAY s A winal DAYS s A tun NEARLY A YEAR s A katun ALMOST YEARS s A baktun JUST OVER YEARS The Maya celebrated the beginning of katuns and baktuns.
The Maya cut down thousands of trees to burn in ovens to make a special coating for their pyramids. They also cut down rainforests to create more farmland for their growing population. Once the trees were cut down, rain patterns changed and Mayan cities were in more danger from drought. At the height of their civilization, the Maya faced the worst drought in thousands of years. People starved. Within 100 years, the Maya abandoned their wonderful cities and moved back into the rainforests. By the time the Spanish arrived hundreds of years later, the Mayan cities were long abandoned and overgrown. The Mayans were not even able to predict the end of their own civilization, much less the end of the world.
The Mini Page Staff
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Maya time periods
Betty Debnam - Founding Editor and Editor at Large Lisa Tarry - Managing Editor Lucy Lien - Associate Editor Wendy Daley - Artist
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Calendars
The Maya recorded important history and predictions in books and on buildings. Unfortunately, when the Spanish discovered the Mayas’ abandoned cities, they burned most of the books. Much of what we know is from writing on buildings. One of three surviving books is the Dresden Codex. A codex +/% DEKS is an ancient book manuscript. A picture of a giant monster with sky symbols on its body is on the last page of the Dresden Codex. Water is gushing from its mouth. Some people think this picture is a prophecy of the The serpent god end of the world by a great flood or a When spring hurricane. constellations appeared in the Precious water sky, it looked In the area where the Maya lived, AS IF +UKULCAN there were few rivers or natural was coiled to lakes to collect water above ground. If rains did not come, people suffered. strike. Then the Priests who could predict rainfall had Maya offered A LOT OF POWER +INGS BUILT PYRAMIDS him sacrifices so he’d send and temples to beg the gods to bring rain. The most rain. The priests believed The Maya of Chichen Itza built an valuable thing Kukulcan was most they had to offer powerful when he, as observatory to watch their serpent Venus, appeared in was human GOD +UKULCAN WHO APPEARED IN a certain spot in the blood, so they the skies as the planet Venus. His spring sky. sacrificed, or appearances were tied to the rains. killed, people for him. The most prized blood was The Mini Page thanks Dr. Carolyn Sumners, ROYAL BLOOD +INGS AND QUEENS CUT vice president of astronomy and physics, themselves, catching the blood on the Houston Museum of Natural Science, for help with this issue. paper and burning it as an offering.
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Rookie Cookie’s Recipe
The Maya used a system of 20 to count. This number was based on the number of fingers and toes people have. (We base our number system on 10.) Mayan calendars were also based on the number 20.
From the past to the future
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Counting by 20s
Gods and Rain
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Mayan Calendars
Meet Chloe Grace Moretz
Height: 5-11 Weight: 193
In this piece of art, a Mayan priest faces the sunrise on top of the pyramid at the ancient city of Tikal. The pyramids at Mayan cities towered above the rainforest. They were built as observatories to tell the date from the position of the sun. From the top of the pyramids, priests could also map the motions of Venus. Venus was even more important to the Maya than the sun for predicting rainfall. They thought Venus was really their god Kukulcan (KOO-kuhl-kahn).
art courtesy Houston Museum of Natural Science
art courtesy Houston Museum of Natural Science
Have you been hearing stories that the ancient Maya predicted the world would end this year? Don’t worry. They did no such thing. The 2012 prophecies are just made-up stories. The Maya had an advanced civilization in the area of Mexico and Central America about 2,000 years ago. They were astronomers who developed an incredible calendar to keep track of events over many thousands of years. It just so happens that this calendar begins a new cycle in 2012, as our calendar did in the year 2000. People are having fun saying this means the end of the world. But it just means that the calendar passed a milestone. The Mini Page talked with Dr. Carolyn Sumners at the Houston Museum of Natural Science to learn more about the real story.
All the following jokes have something in common. Can you guess the common theme or category? Paula: How can a broken pizza be ďŹ xed? Peter: With tomato paste! Pam: What do you have if you cross a tomato, some cheese and a mail carrier? Patton: A pizza that delivers itself! Patty: What would you get if you stacked up thousands of pizzas? Parker: The Leaning Tower of Pizzas! from The Mini Page Š 2012 Universal Uclick
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try ’n find
Maya
Words that remind us of the Maya are hidden in the block below. Some words are hidden backward or diagonally. See if you can find: ADVANCED, ASTRONOMERS, CALENDARS, CIVILIZATION, CODEX, DAY, END, KUKULCAN, MEXICO, MONSTER, PROPHECY, PYRAMID, RAIN, RAINFOREST, SACRIFICE, SKY, SNAKE, SUN, VENUS, WORLD. What’s on your calendar this year?
C P R O P H E C Y
S O R M E X I C O
E U D A W O R L D
K N N E I M S S N
T E D L X N R R O
S C E D D R A E I
E I K E I E D M T
R F A C M T N O A
O I N N A S E N Z
F R S A R N L O I
N C D V Y O A R L
I A A D P M C T I
A S Y A S K Y S V
R K V E N U S A I
K U K U L C A N C
from The Mini Page Š 2012 Universal Uclick
ready resources
The Mini Page provides ideas for websites, books or other resources that will help you learn more about this week’s topics. On the Web: s SPACEUPDATE COM PLANETARIUM?SHOWS s HMNS ORG INDEX PHP OPTION COM?CONTENT VIEW ARTICLE ID ) TEMID s HISTORY COM TOPICS MAYA At the library: s h!MAZING -AYAN )NVENTIONS 9OU #AN "UILD 9OURSELFv BY 3HERI Bell-Rehwoldt s h.ATIONAL 'EOGRAPHIC )NVESTIGATES !NCIENT -AYA !RCHAEOLOGY 5NLOCKS THE 3ECRETS OF THE -AYA S 0ASTv BY .ATHANIEL (ARRIS s h3ECRETS IN 3TONE !LL !BOUT -AYA (IEROGLYPHSv BY ,AURIE Coulter
To order, send $15.99 ($19.99 Canada) plus $5 postage and handling for each copy. Make check or money order (U.S. funds only) payable to Universal Uclick. Send to The Mini Page Book of States, Universal Uclick, P.O. Box 6814, Leawood, KS 66206. Or call tollfree 800-591-2097 or go to www.smartwarehousing.com. Please send ______ copies of The Mini Page Book of States (Item #0-7407-8549-4) at $20.99 each, total cost. (Bulk discount information available upon request.) Name: ________________________________________________________________________ Address: _______________________________________________________________________ City: _________________________________________ State: _________ Zip: ________________