Monday, December 28, 2020

Czech Republic


We just learned about the country of Cyprus

Let's learn a little about the country of Czech Republic, also called Czechia!

This is a small country in the middle of Europe, that borders Austria, Germany, Poland and Slovakia.
It is about 30,000 square miles, and 10 million people live there.

The country has had many names through the years, but one of the most famous was "Bohemia".
One of the leaders long ago was named Wenceslas, and was the person in the famous old song Good King Wenceslas.


(from: wikipedia - czech republic)

The flag of the Czech Republic is a blue triangle on the left, and a white and red stripe.
The blue is for loyalty, the white is for peace and the red is for courage.


(from: wikipedia - flag of the czech republic)

To eat in the Czech Republic you might have svíčková, which is steak with vegetables, spices and boiled in cream.


(from: wikipedia - svíčková)

Visiting the Czech Republic you might go see the famous city of Prague.

(from: wikipedia - prague)

Built in 930 AD, the St. Vitus Cathedral is the largest church in the country.

(from: wikipedia - st. vitus cathedral)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Antarctic Ice Sheet

Sunday, December 27, 2020

Luther Bible


We just learned about the Ninety-Five Theses.

Another part of early Christianity was the Luther Bible.

Just like the Wycliffe's Bible that we learned about being translated into English, Martin Luther worked to make a Bible that was in German for the people of Germany.

Historians think that there were about 200,000 of Luther's Bibles printed, which made a big difference in the way that people could read and study the Bible outside of just going to church.

They didn't have to learn Hebrew, Latin or Greek, and they could have the books at schools and libraries.


(from: wikipedia - luther bible)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Christian Nations in 600 AD

Saturday, December 26, 2020

Cubi VI - David Smith


We just learned about the sculpture of Winged Man by Richard Hunt.

Another famous American sculpture is CUBI VI by David Smith made in 1963.

In the 1960s in America, a lot of artists started making more abstract art.
Artist Roland David Smith was born in Indiana, and went to college for art, worked in a factory for a while, and then met some other famous artists.

In 1965 he started making a set of "Cubi" sculptures made out of stainless steel.
They are mostly just a bunch of shapes, but they also look like people in different positions.

There are 28 different CUBI sculptures, all numbered with roman numerals from Cubi I to Cubi XXVII.


(from: wikipedia - david smith (sculptor))


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Doctor John Witherspoon - Couper

Friday, December 25, 2020

Swahili - Red, Orange, Yellow

We just learned about the alphabet in Swahili.

Now let's learn some colors!

red - nyekundu - sounds like n-yeh-koo-n-doo - 文A


orange - machungwa - sounds like mah-ch-oo-n-g-wah - 文A


yellow - manjano - sounds like mah-n-jah-noh - 文A


swahili
(from: wikipedia - swahili language)

Russian: красный (krasnyy), оранжевый (oranzhevyy), желтый (zheltyy)

Norwegian: rød, oransje, gul

Greek: κόκκινο, πορτοκαλί, κίτρινο

ASL: red, orange, yellow

Italian: rosso, arancione, giallo

German: rot, orange, gelb

Spanish: rojo, naranja, amarillo

French: rouge, orange, jaune

Thursday, December 24, 2020

Driving Wheel


We just learned about the Leaf Spring.

Another part of a steam locomotive is the Driving Wheel.

When the steam power moves the pistons, it is connected to rods that turn the wheels.
Only some of the wheels are connected to these rods, and they are called the driving wheels.
The other wheels are just holding up the train and they turn just because the driving wheels are pulling the train along.

This is the same for most other things with wheels too, like the pedals on a bicycle usually only turn the back wheel of the bike.


(from: wikipedia - driving wheel)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Gasket

Wednesday, December 23, 2020

Egyptian Mau


We just learned about the Asian Semi-longhair.

Another type of cat is the Egyptian Mau.

These cats can be lots of different colors, like grey, black, brown, yellow, or even blue.
They all have green eyes, spots on their fur, and a long black line that goes down their back.
On their head they can either have the M shape like a tabby cat, or a shape that some people think looks like a scarab beetle.

Egyptian Maus are one of the oldest types of cats, and many people think they are where other house cats came from.
They have long back legs, which helps them run fast.
These are the fastest cats in the world, running over 30 miles per hour!





(from: wikipedia - egyptian mau)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Amebocyte

Tuesday, December 22, 2020

Pathogen


We just learned about the Thymus.

All of these parts of the lymphatic system help fight against bad things called Pathogens.

A pathogen is a living thing that can cause you to get sick.
It could be a virus, bacteria or other type of living thing that can get into your body.

The different types of cells in the lymphatic system like T cells or all work together to fight these pathogens, and keep your body healthy.

The science of these living things is called a microbioly, and the science for how these living things can hurt the body is called pathology.
(from: wikipedia - pathogen)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Eye Movement