Tropical Depression

We just learned that large storms in the tropics are called Tropical Cyclones and that they have many different names.

Many of these names are based on how strong the cyclone is.

The first level of tropical cyclone is called a Tropical Depression.
This means the storm clearly looks circular, but the winds are less than 39 miles per hour.


(from: wikipedia - tropical cyclone)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Shelf Clouds

Coral Snake

We just learned about the Blunthead Tree Snake.

Another type of snake is the Coral Snake.

This snake has stripes of red, yellow, white and black.

It is a very venomous snake, and it's venom can be deadly to humans if they are not taken to a hospital quickly.
Coral snakes are afraid of humans and will usually try to get away if they are seen, but sometimes if they are threatened they will bite.
Their fangs are not very long, so they can not bite through thick leather like gloves or shoes.

Other snakes like milk snakes have colors just like the coral snake, but not in the same order.
Some people have come up with ways to remember which ones are venomous, like:
Red and black, friend of Jack. Red and yellow, kills a fellow.
Yellow, Red, Stop!

Coral snakes mostly live on the ground underneath leaves, and they eat snakes, lizards, frogs, birds and rodents.

(from: wikipedia - coral snake)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Shiba Inu

Peripheral Nervous System

We just learned that the central nervous system is one part of the Nervous System.

The other main part is the Peripheral Nervous System.

This is all the long wires of nerves that go through your whole body.


(from: wikipedia - peripheral nervous system)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Palmar Digital Arteries

Lake Athabasca

We just learned about Lake Nicaragua in Central America.

The next biggest lake is in Canada, called Lake Athabasca.
This name comes from the Cree natives, meaning "where there are plants one after another".

There is a very old town in this area called Fort Chipewyan, named after the Chipewyan people who lived there.


(from: wikipedia - lake athabasca)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Mississippi

Ash Wednesday

We just learned about how on Fat Tuesday many people would have large feasts right before the season of Lent.

The first day of lent is Ash Wednesday.

For 40 days after this day, not including Sundays, people would not eat meat or even some types of fatty bread.
At church service for Ash Wednesday, some people would take old palm branches that had been saved from last year's celebration of Palm Sunday.
They would burn those palm branches and use the ashes.

Some churches sprinkle ashes above people's heads, and others would make a mark of a cross on their foreheads.

When the priest or pastor would put ashes on your head, they would say:

Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.
or
Repent, and believe in the Gospel.



(from: wikipedia - ash wednesday)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Jesus' Crucifixion - Here is your son

Cylinder Seal

We just learned about the sculpture the Lyres of Ur.

Other famous sculptures are the ancient Cylinder Seals.

Around 3,500 years ago, people would take stone, metal or even jewels and carve them into a cylinder shape.
Then they would carve a hole through the middle so they were like a tube.
On the outside of the tube they would carve pictures that would tell a story, send a message, or maybe be like a signature for someone.

Then they would roll the cylinder along some wet soft clay, and it would leave a print on clay.
The clay dried and they would have a picture.


(from: wikipedia - cylinder seal)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: No. 5, 1948 - Jackson Pollock

Italian - The chair is small

We just learned that in Italian to say this house is big you say Questa casa è grande.

Let's learn about more things we see every day.

To say The chair is small, we say La sedia è piccolo

We can break it up into four words:
The - La - sounds like lah /?/
chair - sedia - sounds like say-dee-ah /?/
is - è - Sounds like ay /?/
small - piccolo - Sounds like pee-koh-loh /?/


So all together La sedia è piccolo sounds like lah say-dee-ah ay pee-koh-loh.


(from: wikipedia - accademia della crusca)

In German:
Der Stuhl ist klein

In Spanish:
La silla es pequeña

In French:
La chaise est petit

Tropical Cyclone

We've learned a lot about tornadoes, like what an F5 Tornado is!

Now let's learn a little about tropical cyclones.

There are a few types of things known as tropical cyclones, like hurricanes, typhoons, tropical storms, cyclonic storms, tropical depressions.

They are called tropical because they are usually over the area around the equator, known as the tropics.

They are called cyclones because they spin around just like a tornado does.


(from: wikipedia - tropical cyclone)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Cloud Étages

Blunthead Tree Snake

We just learned about the southern hognose snake.

Another type of snake is the blunthead tree snake.

This type of snake is very long and skinny with a big head.
It's usually about three feet long, and brown with white stripes.

These snakes have really big eyes, and their pupils are vertical, up and down.
Most snakes use their smell and feelings to find food, but these snakes can see very well with their big eyes.


(from: wikipedia - imantodes cenchoa)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Shar Pei

Central Nervous System

Let's keep learning about the Nervous System.

One of the main parts of the nervous system is the central nervous system.

This is made up of your brain and spinal cord.


(from: wikipedia - central nervous system)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Palmar Arch

Lake Nicaragua

We just learned about Lake Titicaca.

The next biggest lake is Lake Nicaragua.

It is the biggest lake in Central America.


(from: wikipedia - lake nicaragua)

This is a freshwater lake that has a river going out to the Pacific Ocean.
Even though it is freshwater, some sharks have found a way to live in this lake!
They swim up the river from the ocean and into the lake, and then back out to the ocean.

Sharks can't live in northern lakes because it gets too cold, and because they need to eat a lot of food to survive and there aren't enough big fish for them to eat in the northern lakes.

(from: wikipedia - lake nicaragua)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Minnesota

Fat Tuesday

We just learned about the season of Lent.

The Lenten season begins on a Wednesday, and the day right before that is sometimes called Fat Tuesday.

It's called that because during lent many people give up eating some types of meat or food with lots of fat in it as a way to remember Jesus living in the desert for 40 days.

So on Fat Tuesday people eat big meals and foods with lots of fat since it's the last chance they will have to eat that food, and some of the food might go bad before lent is over.

One celebration is called Paczki Day which comes from Poland, where people would make big donuts filled with jelly to use up the last of the dough before lent.


(from: wikipedia - pączki)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Jesus' Crucifixion - Father forgive them

Lyres of Ur

We just learned about the Copper Bull sculpture.

Another ancient sculpture is the Bull's Lyre, a bull's head sculpture that was part of three ancient lyres (also known as harps) discovered that were over 4,000 years old.

These lyres are believed to be the oldest stringed instruments still intact.

The sculpture of the bull's head is made of gold, with eyes made of mother-of-pearl and lapis lazuli.
Other parts of the bull's body were made of wood but they did not survive after the thousands of years it was buried.


(from: wikipedia - lyres of ur)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Little Dancer of Fourteen Years

Italian - This house is big

We just learned that in Italian, We are surprised is somo sorpresi.

Let's learn about some of the things we see every day.

To say this house is big in Italian you say Questa casa è grande.


We can break it up into four words:
This - Questa - sounds like koo-ay-stah /?/
house - casa - sounds like kah-sah /?/
is - è - Sounds like ay-ee /?/
big - grande - Sounds like g-dah-n-day /?/


So all together Questa casa è grande sounds like Koo-ay-stah kah-sah ay-ee g-dah-n-day.


(from: wikipedia - accademia della crusca)

In German:
Das Haus ist groß

In Spanish:
Esta casa es grande

In French:
Cette maison est grande

F5 Tornado

We just learned that the F4 Tornado on the Fujita Scale is houses totally blown down, small buildings blown away and cars thrown through the air.

The highest level of damage is the F5 tornado - Incredible damage.

This is when houses are lifted up and carried away, large cars are flying through the air, and large steel and concrete buildings are badly damaged.


(from: wikipedia - fujita scale)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Stratocumulus Clouds

Southern hognose snake

We just learned about the type of snake the Green Vine Snake.

Another type of snake is the Southern Hog-Nosed Snake.

This type of snake lives in the southeastern US.
They eat mostly toads and are not dangerous to humans.

These snakes won't bite people, but when they are scared they will try to pretend like they are dangerous, puffing up their body, hissing, and even pretending to strike.
If that doesn't work they will play dead like a possum!
They roll over onto their back and hang their tongue out of their mouth.
Sometimes even if they are picked up, and rolled over, they'll roll their head back, trying to prove that they really are dead.



(from: wikipedia - southern hognose snake)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Siberian Husky

Nervous System

We learned last time about the Heart Wall - Pericardium.

We've learned about the skeletal system (bones), the digestive system (eating & drinking), the respiratory system (breathing) and the circulatory system (blood & heart).

Let's learn about the Nervous System!

The nervous system is what controls your body and sends messages all over telling it what to do.

Your brain is part of your nervous system, and there are things called nerves that go all through your body that are almost like electric wires.

The brain sends out a message over these nerves to something like your hand, and your hand moves.
If you get hurt, the nerves send messages to the brain saying OUCH!

Everything from getting hungry to feeling tired to telling your legs when to jump is controlled by your nervous sytem.


(from: wikipedia - nervous system)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Radial & Ulnar Arteries

Lake Titicaca

We just learned about Lake Onega in Russia.

The next biggest lake is Lake Titicaca in Peru and Bolivia.

It is the largest lake in South America.


(from: wikipedia - lake titicaca)

The name means Rock of the Puma.
There is an island on the lake called Isla del Sol which means island of the sun.
On this island was a special place called Titi Qala a rock sculpture that was very important to the ancient Incan people.


(from: wikipedia - isla del sol)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Michigan

Lent

We just learned about the different weeks of Epiphany.

The church calendar season after that is called Lent.

The Lent season is the season leading up to Easter, and there are many different special days on the calendar.

The Lenten season is 40 days long, to help remember the time Jesus went into the desert to fast and was tempted.

Usually the decorations in the church are colored purple for this season.


(from: wikipedia - temptation of christ)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Jesus' Crucifixion - With Criminals

Copper Bull

We just learned about the ancient sculpture Ram in a Thicket.

Another ancient sculpture is the Copper Bull.

This sculpture was discovered in 1923 in the country of Iraq, and it was made over 4,000 years ago.

The sculpture was made of wood covered in sticky black bitumen (also known as asphalt), and then copper plates were nailed to the outside of it.


(from: wikipedia - copper bull)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: The Snail - Henri Matisse

Italian - We are surprised

We just learned that I am happy in Italian is Sono felice, you are sad is Sei triste, he is angry is Lui è arrabbiato and they are excited is Sono eccitati.

Let's learn how to say We are surprised.

Siamo sorpresi.

We can break it up into two words:
We are - Siamo - sounds like see-ah-moh /?/
surprised - sorpresi - Sounds like soh-d-p-day-see /?/


So all together Siamo sorpresi sounds like See-ah-moh soh-d-p-day-see.


(from: wikipedia - accademia della crusca)

In German:
Wir sind begeistert

In Spanish:
Estamos sorprendido

In French:
Nous sommes surpris

F4 Tornado

We just learned that the F3 Tornado on the Fujita Scale is roofs and walls torn off, trains overturned, forests uprooted and cars thrown.

The next level of damage is the F4 tornado - Devastating damage.
This is when houses are totally blown down. Small buildings like garages are blown away. Cars are thrown through the air.


(from: wikipedia - fujita scale)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Altocumulus Cloud

Green Vine Snake

We just learned about the striped house snake.

Another type of snake is called the green vine snake, or the Ahaetulla nasuta.

It is a skinny green tree snake that lives in Asia.

This snake has venom but it's bite will only make your skin swell up for a few days, like a bee sting.
It mostly just eats frogs and lizards.


(from: wikipedia - ahaetulla nasuta)

When it gets scared it puffs up it's body and you can see a black and white skin underneath it's scales.

(from: wikipedia - ahaetulla nasuta)

There was a legend long ago that if one of these snakes looked at you, it's eyes would make you blind.


(from: wikipedia - ahaetulla nasuta)

Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Basset Hound

Heart Wall - Pericardium

We've learned that the heart wall's soft inner most layer is the endocardium, the second layer of muscle is the myocardium and the third protective layer is the epicardium

There is a protective bag outside the heart that is called the pericardium.
The pericardium has liquids in it, and it keeps the heart from getting shaken with every movement the body makes.


(from: wikipedia - pericardium)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Brachial Artery

Lake Onega

We just learned about Lake Balkhash in Kazakhstan.

The next biggest lake is Lake Onega in Russia.
The lake is shaped like a giant crayfish.



(from: wikipedia - lake onega)

There are many islands on this lake, and on Kizhi island are many very old churches like the Church of the Transfiguration.


(from: wikipedia - kizhi pogost)

Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Massachusetts

Epiphany - Transfiguration

We just learned about the time in Epiphany celebrating the baptism of Jesus.

The last part of the Epiphany season is Transfiguration.

This is the time that churches remember when Jesus went up on a mountain with his apostles, and a bright light came on him. Moses and Elijah appeared by him, and God told them that Jesus was his son.

Matthew 17:

After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light. Just then there appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus.

Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you wish, I will put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.”

While he was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”


(from: wikipedia - feast of the transfiguration)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Jesus' Crucifixion - Nailed to the cross

Ram in a Thicket

We just learned about the ancient sculpture the Trundholm Sun Chariot.

Another ancient sculpture is called Ram in a Thicket.

This is a sculpture of a ram that is caught in some sort of a bush. There were two of these sculptures found, and they seem to be a pair that stood across from each other.

The person that found them named them ram in a thicket after the story of Abraham where God provided a ram for him to sacrifice.

Since it was very old and had been buried under a lot of dirt, some parts of the statue were rotten and had to be remade to try and make it look like it did long ago.

This sculpture has a wooden middle, that was carved for the face and legs.
The head and legs are covered in gold leaf hammered to the wood and stuck there with a sticky black gooey oil called bitumen or asphalt.
The ears are made of copper which has turned green.
The ram's horns and fleece on it's shoulders are made of lapis lazuli.
The fleece on the body is made of shells stuck to bituman.
It's belly is made of silver plate.
The tree or bush is covered in gold leaf and gold flowers.
It is standing on a small rectangle covered in shells, red limestone and lapis lazuli.
There used to be small silver chains around the ram and trees, but those were too old to recover.



(from: wikipedia - ram in a thicket)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Relativity - M.C. Escher

Italian - They are excited

We just learned that I am happy in Italian is Sono felice, you are sad is Sei triste and he is angry is Lui è arrabbiato.

Let's learn how to say they are excited.
Sono eccitati

They are - Sono - sounds like soh-no /?/
excited - eccitati - Sounds like eh-chee-tah-tee /?/


So all together Sono eccitati sounds like Soh-no eh-chee-tah-tee.


(from: wikipedia - accademia della crusca)

In German:
Sie sind aufgeregt

In Spanish:
Ellos estan emocionados

In French:
Ils sont excité