Weekly Reader, Senior Edition (including Science Spin) articles from December 2003

Weekly Reader, Senior Edition (including Science Spin) archives from December 2003

Nosing around.(Feature Story; Children Against Land Mines Program uses detection dogs to raise children's awareness of dangers posed by hidden mines)
December 12, 2003... Her paws are big, her nose is wet, and her coat is fluffy. But Rosa doesn't live a dog's life. The 9-year-old Belgian Malenois is a land mine--detection dog. Her keen sense of smell has enabled her to sniff out some of the world's 50...

Robots rock!(Cover Story)
December 12, 2003... They build cars, explore the deepest regions of outer space, and entertain you. So when was the last time anyone said "thank you" to a robot? Probably never. That's why Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh decided to open a Robot...

All in the cards.(News Shorts; Bryan Berg builds skyscrapers out of cards)(Interview)
December 12, 2003... Some people try to build a house of cards. Bryan Berg builds massive skyscrapers out of them! Berg, 29, is an expert at card stacking. He uses thousands of playing cards to create buildings and towers. He holds the Guinness World...

History Buffy.
December 12, 2003... "This is one fast and groovy airplane," Buffy says as she sits in the cabin of the world's first supersonic passenger jet. It's March 1969, and the British- and French-made jet has just roared down the runway and climbed into the sky on...

What a drag.(The Buzz; 12-year-old Jessica Goodwin competes in drag races)
December 12, 2003... Weekends are usually a drag for Jessica Goodwin. The 12-year-old from Farmington, Ark., competes in drag races against other kids her age. Jessica has raced at tracks in the Midwest, and in her home state. This year, she won twice...

Brain teaser.
December 12, 2003... Laura bought 31 vegetables and fruits for $11. The prices are on the sign. The amount she spent on each kind of vegetable was a multiple of 50 cents. She spent the most on tomatoes. The cost of peppers she bought was the same as the cost of...

Know the news.(Brain Builders)
December 12, 2003... Fill in the oval in front of the correct answer. 1. In which state did students help raise money to purchase a land mine-detection dog? (A) New York (B) Wyoming (C) Vermont 2. About how many countries have problems with...

Vocabulary.(Brain Builders)
December 12, 2003... Circle the best definition for the emphasized word in each sentence. The page number shows where the sentence can be found in this issue. 1. Her keen sense of smell has enabled her to sniff out some of the world's 50 million land mines....

Read the chart.(Brain Builders; land mine casualties)(Brief Article)
December 12, 2003... Fill in the oval in front of the correct answer. 1. According to the chart, which country had the most land mine casualties in 2001? (A) Afghanistan (B) Cambodia (C) Sri Lanka 2. In which country did land mine...

Those crazy idioms.(from the desk of)(Brief Article)
December 12, 2003... An idiom is a phrase that says one thing but actually means something quite different. For example, when someone says "it's never too late to mend," the person really means people always have time to improve themselves and change their ways....

News quiz.(Weekly Reader)
December 12, 2003... How well do you remember your Weekly Reader news? The questions below relate to stories in Weekly Reader Senior Edition issues 13 to 16. Circle the letter in front of the correct answer. 1. In which state did a federal appeals court rule...

After the firestorm.(Feature Story; wildfires across southern California)
December 5, 2003... The ashes tell the story for Robert and Harriett Guttman. A raging wildfire reduced their hilltop home in Claremont, Calif., to a charred skeleton. About the only thing left untouched by the inferno was a for-sale sign in their front yard....

Reaching for the sky.(Wright brothers)(Cover Story)
December 5, 2003... December 17, 1903, dawned cool and windy on the remote island of Kitty Hawk, N.C. A thin sheet of ice had formed overnight on puddles and ponds. The wind howled at around 25 miles per hour. It was cold, but not cold enough for Orville and...

History Buffy.
December 5, 2003... "He's not Superman. but boy, can that guy fly," Buffy says as she watches this American shatter the world long-jump record at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City. He jumped so far that no one would break his record for more than 20 years....

Show of hands.(The Buzz; Rob Krueger wins "Rock, Paper, Scissors" tournament)
December 5, 2003... He is no relation to the horror film slasher Freddy Krueger, but Canadian Rob Krueger can use his hands to make a mess of his opponents. The Toronto resident recently shook his fists better than 320 other competitors to become the world RPS...

Mystery photo.
December 5, 2003... A little butter and salt on this would sure taste good. What is this a mystery photo of? ANSWER KEY kernels of corn

The real School of Rock.(News Shorts)("Little Kids Rock" program)
December 5, 2003... In the hit movie School of Rock, a rock-and-roll musician pretends to be a teacher. In the real-life school of rock, dozens of famous musicians are teachers. Across the United States, hundreds of students are hitting the high notes as...

Know the news.(Brain Builders)
December 5, 2003... Fill in the oval in front of the correct answer. 1. About how many acres burned during the recent wildfires in California? (A) 100,000 (B) 750,000 (C) 860,000 2. At the peak of the California wildfires, how many...

Vocabulary.(Brain Builders)
December 5, 2003... Circle the best definition for the emphasized word in each sentence. The page number shows you where the sentence can be found in this issue. 1. The only thing left untouched by the inferno was a for-sale sign in their front yard. (page...

Read the chart.(Brain Builders)
December 5, 2003... 1. According to the chart, you can infer that -- is the best-selling type of music. (A) rock & roll (B) country (C) pop 2. In 1997, sales of country music accounted for -- percent of total sales revenue. (A) 32.5 ...

Spelling words with digraphs.(Brief Article)
December 5, 2003... A digraph is two consonant letters pronounced as one consonant sound. Here are three digraphs:/sh/as in shell; /ch/as in chew; and/th/as in thin. Directions: Write in sh, ch, or th, to complete each word below, and then use those words...