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