4Kids.org - Week of February 12, 2006

Week of February 12 , 2006

Talking Shop

Enter The Hobby Shop at www.knowitall.org/hobbyShop
for a hands-on good time. In the Microscope Lab see fruit flies swarm and cells multiply. An electrifying time is yours for the taking in Chemistry, where you can test chemicals for electrical conductivity. Choose and customize a Rocket to launch, and see what happens to your creation. Check out the Catapult and play Balloon Blast where you use velocity and angles to hit targets. Be prepared: With so many games to play, you may not want to leave.

Nominate a cool Web site at https://4Kids.org/nominations/

Visit the Featured Web sites to find the answers.

What is the periodic table made up of?

Elements
Rocks
Minerals

When did humans occupy the central area of the state?

5,000BCE
10,000BCE
8,000BCE

What class
is the element
agate in?

demi-precious
precious
semi-precious

River Adventures

Take a “float-trip” with RiverVenture at www.riverventure.org. RiverVenture is the story of South Carolina's cultural and natural landscapes as told by its rivers. Visit The Three Rivers and gather clues that disclose how water has led to population growth, changed the environment and improved industry. Visit The Estuary to figure out why people are testing the water. Log your findings in the Notebook located in the Toolbox. The Toolbox also contains a Glossary, Map, Panoramas and the River Wrap to help in your river quest.

Sparkling Trickery

Uncover The Diamond Deception at www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/
diamond. The Science Behind the Sparkle unveils how researchers create synthetic diamonds to look just like natural ones. Diamonds may be “a girl's best friend,” but anyone can build a carbon atom, the base of a diamond, with quarks and electrons by visiting Atom Builder. Become a gemologist in A Primer of Gemstones as you view other precious materials and their origins. Are there Diamonds in the Sky? Uncover the debate over the formation of tiny space jewls found in meteorites. This information is rock solid.

What is the best part of Valentine’s Day?

Speak Out Here!

Dear Amy: I need help with a PowerPoint presentation for school. — Sarah, Lenexa, Kan.

Dear Sarah: PowerPoint presentations are relatively easy once you get the hang of them. Check out this site to learn the ins and outs of creating PowerPoint slides: www.actden.com/pp. First choose the layout you want and begin with the title slide. Once you learn how to make basic slides with text, you can figure out how to add images and sound. Good luck!

Dear Amy: Why do we have daylight-saving time? — Marcus, Cheyenne, Wyo.

Dear Marcus: Daylight-saving time, which begins on the first Sunday of April, was created to make the most of the daylight. The time change in the summer allows for an extra hour of daylight in the evening so that it gets darker later. This helps workers such as farmers, to maximize their productivity when they are working outside. For more details on daylight-saving time, visit http://webexhibits.org/daylightsaving/b.html.

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