Scholastic Choices articles from February 2005

Scholastic Choices archives from February 2005

Amanda's act.(Personal Development)
February 1, 2005... HAVE YOU HEARD THE SONG "Will You Still Love Me" by Amanda? In it, the 18-year-old singer talks about being full figured. These days, Amanda is comfortable singing about her body. "I don't want to be depressed because I'm not skinny," she...

FactMonster.com.(Education)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... LOOKING FOR HELP WITH YOUR HOMEWORK? FactMonster.com can help. The Web site has loads of facts on all sorts of topics. The site's Homework Center covers subjects such as math, English, social studies, and science. The site's fun games and...

Drivers' ed.(Personal Responsibility)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... STATISTICS SHOW that teen drivers in the United States are being more responsible. The National Highway Traffic Administration (NHTA) reports that the number of people aged 15 to 20 killed while driving decreased from 3,827 in 2002 to 3,657 in...

Shoe talkers.(Careers)
February 1, 2005... SHOE TALKERS ARE LABELS WITH IMAGES and statements for shoelaces. Feeling patriotic? Try the Shoe Talker with "USA" on it. Like basketball? Try the label with the ball going through a hoop. To see more, go to www.shoetalkers.com. Did you...

Teens on the go.(Health)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... HOW ACTIVE ARE YOU? If you're like most of the teens who were recently polled on their fitness activity by the Gallup Youth Survey, you're not lazy. The survey reported that 58 percent of the kids polled were highly active. That meant that they...

The dating life: having a significant other can be fun, interesting, tough, and weird. Here are a few dating do's and don'ts to help you act mature while still having a good time.(personal responsibility)(Cover Story)
February 1, 2005... Last fall, high school freshman Samantha McLaughlin fell for Brendan, a cute, funny guy she knew from church, and he quickly became her first serious boyfriend. "We got along so well. We would talk on the phone for five hours straight, about...

Keeping your life.(personal responsibility)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... DO SPEND QUALITY TIME WITH YOUR FRIENDS--ALONE. It can be tempting to spend every free minute with the person you're dating, but it's a bad idea. You don't want your friends to feel like you don't care about them anymore. Continue doing all the...

Being mature.(personal responsibility)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... DO BE HONEST ABOUT YOUR FEELINGS. Dating should be fun so when you feel a certain way and you think your significant other won't like it, it can be tempting to keep your lips sealed. But that's not healthy for a relationship. "If you can't...

Getting dumped!(personal responsibility)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... DO EXPERIENCE THE PAIN--IT'S OK TO FEEL SAD. There's no reason to pretend that getting dumped doesn't sting. Cry. Sob. Mope around the house for a few days. It's OK to let your feelings show. "After Brendan broke up with me, I wrote a lot-of...

The breakup.(personal responsibility)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... DO BE CONSIDERATE OF HIS OR HER FEELINGS. The pressures of dating someone sometimes make it easy to forget about the other person's emotions. But it's important to be as kind as possible if you break up with your boyfriend or girlfriend. "Talk...

Smoke screen: why do tobacco ads look glamorous and sexy--when everyone knows smoking is gross? Here's how to see through the advertising haze.(substance abuse)
February 1, 2005... TRUTH IN ADVERTISING Here is a cigarette advertisement. It makes smoking look cool and fun. But the truth is smoking is really bad for your health. Myth: Most young people smoke. Fact: A recent survey of teens done by the U.S....

Violence hits home: this teen was an anti-violence activist, but that couldn't prepare him for losing a beloved family member to violence.(family)
February 1, 2005... Growing up in Oakland, California, Antonio Bibb knew about violence. His community has been plagued by murders, battles between gangs, and robberies. So when Antonio heard about an anti-violence program for high school students called Teens on...

Rescue mission: organ donation saves the lives of thousands of Americans. Charis Roberts is alive today, thanks to a family who donated the heart of their son.(health)
February 1, 2005... When Charis Roberts awoke on April 2, 2002, blue skies and sunshine greeted the Texas teen. But before the day's end, Charis would encounter the darkest moment of her life. As she and her mother headed home from an evening stroll, Charis...

Teens, drug abuse and AIDS: the deadly connection: teens who abuse drugs face a risk of getting AIDS and (get this!) of passing it on to the friends they love.(Heads up: real news about drugs and your body)
February 1, 2005... World AIDS Day takes place every year on December 1. On that day, people all over the planet focus on the challenge of trying both to cure and control its spread. When you think about what a terrible disease AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency...

Salt shakedown: salt adds flavor to food, but is that all it's doing? learn how salt can be harmful.(nutrition)
February 1, 2005... Americans consume lots of sodium. The National Academy of Sciences says that consuming 500 milligrams of sodium a day is healthy for the body. But most Americans consume about 5,000 milligrams a day. A chart of some high-sodium foods is on page...

Pretzel power: celebrate Valentine's Day by making Your teen chef's heart-shaped soft pretzels and giving them to friends and family.(recipe 101)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Ingredients 1 package of active dry yeast 1 1/4 cups of hot water 3 to 5 cups of flour 2 teaspoons of salt 6 teaspoons of baking soda Coarse (or kosher) salt for sprinkling on top What to...

Pound for pound: Dr. Marjorie Seidenfeld answers your health questions.(your body & mind)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Before trying to lose weight, make sure that you really need to drop the pounds. During puberty, a young person grows quickly and gains weight and body fat. Your body shape changes a lot during this process and you may think you are overweight...

Credit cards: paying with plastic is convenient, but if you're not careful, you can end up with a huge debt. Here's what you need to know.(your life)
February 1, 2005... What is a credit card? It's a plastic card issued to consumers by companies. People use credit cards to buy things instead of using cash. Using a credit card also builds your credit history. What is credit? Credit is a person's...

Saving lives: read how this man went from a hospital security guard to an emergency room physician.(your future)
February 1, 2005... Dr. Imo Aisiku is an emergency room physician for a hospital in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It's a job that grabbed his interest when he was studying biology in college. To help pay for school, Imo worked as a security guard at a hospital. "I...

Have a heart: make Valentine's Day special for the people in your life with these unique gifts.(10 tips)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Personalize it 1 Fill a jar with heart-shaped pieces of paper. Write a message on each. Give the jar to the person at the start of February. Have him or her pull one out on each day of the month. Make it 2 Make a scrapbook of a...

Lazy sister: advice from Choices readers.(sticky situation)(Letter to the Editor)
February 1, 2005... the problem MY SISTER NEVER DOES HER CHORES AND MOM LETS HER GET AWAY WITH IT. BUT WHEN I DON'T DO MY CHORES, I GET INTO TROUBLE. WHAT SHOULD I DO? --STUCK WITH CHORES DEAR STUCK WITH CHORES, I'm in a similar situation. My...