Wednesday, May 31, 2017

Waxy Monkey Tree Frog


We just learned about the Pouched Frog.

Another type of frog is the Waxy Monkey Tree Frog.

This frog gets the monkey part of it's name because it only ever walks through the trees, never hopping, so sometimes they look like monkeys.

These frogs never come down from living in the trees.
They lay eggs on leaves, and then fold the leaf over like a sandwich.
When the eggs hatch, they fall out of the leaf and drop into the water to live as tadpoles, until they become frogs and climb up into the trees.

These frogs have chemicals on their skin that have been used to create medicines as painkillers.


(from: wikipedia - phyllomedusa sauvagii)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Ring Necked Snake

Tuesday, May 30, 2017

Hair - Muscle


We just learned about the Hair - Root Sheath.

Another interesting part of human hair is the Hair Muscle.
The fancy name for this muscle is the Arrector pili.

This muscle gets used when your skin gets cold and you get goosebumps on your skin as the hair is shoved out a little.


(from: wikipedia - arrector pili muscle)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Subthalamus

Monday, May 29, 2017

Ontario


Let's learn more about the Canadian Provinces.

The province of Ontario has more people living there than any other province. About 1/3 of all the people in Canada live in southeast Ontario.
This province also has the nation's capital of Ottowa, and the nation's most populated city of Toronto.
Ontario has a border along the US of about 1,678 miles.
Almost all of that border is made up of rivers or lakes, and only less than one mile is actually connected by land.

Ontario is in east-central Canada, right above Michigan.
To the north are Hudson Bay and James Bay, and to the south it borders four of the five Great Lakes, Superior, Huron, Erie and Ontario.


(from: wikipedia - ontario)

The flag of Ontario is red, with the flag of the United Kingdom and the state shield on it.
Just like the USA, Canada was once a part of the United Kingdom.

(from: wikipedia - flag of ontario)

The coat of arms of Ontario has a black bear standing on an armored helmet which is above a red and white cross flag which is the flag of England.
Below the flag is a green shield with three golden maple leafs on it.
On the left is a Moose, and on the right is a deer. These are animals that live in Canada.
Below the animals are the Latin words "Ut incepit Fidelis sic permanet" which means "Loyal she began, loyal she remains"
This means that the people of Ontario were loyal to England, even after the American Revolution.

(from: wikipedia - coat of arms of ontario)

Niagara Falls is shared between the state of New York and the province of Ontario.

(from: wikipedia - niagara falls)

The largest nuclear power plant in the world is in Ontario, at a place called Bruce Nuclear Generating Station.

(from: wikipedia - bruce nuclear generating station)

The largest city in all of Canada is Toronto.
There are many things to see there, like the CN tower.

(from: wikipedia - toronto)

Ottawa, the capital city of Canada is in Ontario.
It is where the prime minister and parliament work for the government.

(from: wikipedia - ottawa)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Lhotse

Sunday, May 28, 2017

Psalm 137 - By the waters of Babylon


We just learned about Psalm 103 - Bless the Lord, O my soul.

Another famous chapter from the book of Psalms is Psalm 137.

This Psalm has been made into music and paintings many times, especially the beginning which starts off:

"By the waters of Babylon, there we sat down and wept,"

This Psalm was written about the time when the Israelites were forced to leave their home of Jerusalem, and they were very sad.


(from: wikipedia - psalm 137)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: All Saint's Day

Saturday, May 27, 2017

David - Michelangelo


We just learned about the Tomb of Pope Julius II.

Another Renaissance Art sculpture is David by Michelangelo in Florence, in 1504 AD.

This is a sculpture of David from the Bible, and the eyes of David are looking toward Rome, as a way to defend the city of Florence from other stronger cities.

The sculpture is 17 feet tall and made of marble.


(from: wikipedia - david (michelangelo))


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Peplos Kore

Friday, May 26, 2017

ASL - January, February


Let's learn about the months of the year in ASL!

There are no special signs for the months of the year in ASL.

To say a month, you just have to spell out the first three letters of the month.

January - J-A-N



February - F-E-B



wiktionary - appendix:sign language handshapes


Here is a helpful video to show how these signs are done.


ASL HANGOUT: HOW TO SIGN MONTHS OF THE YEAR! - Sign Duo


ASL
(from: wikipedia - american sign language)

Italian: Gennaio, Febbraio

German: Januar, Februar

Spanish: Enero, Febrero

French: Janvier, Février

Thursday, May 25, 2017

Hole Saw


We just learned about the Twist Drill Bits.

Another type of drill bit is the Hole Saw.
Sometimes you need to drill a really big hole out of a piece of wood or metal, and this type of bit can grab on to the metal with the smaller bit in the middle called the "pilot drill bit".
Then the teeth on the larger bit can cut the hole for the right shape.


(from: wikipedia - hole saw)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Metalwork