The Denver Post •

CK Reporter of the WeekKayla Mitchiner, Golden

In 2000, viewers were first introduced to Dora the Explorer, and with a 19-year run, it’s safe to say that she was a hit. The perpetually 7-year-old explorer spent her days

swinging around the jungle with her monkey pal Boots and solving countless audience-participation riddles.

Now, in “Dora and the Lost City of Gold,” Dora (Isabela Moner) has to face the realities of high school in the city as well as the responsibility of saving the people she cares about most.

Dora’s parents (Eva Longoria and Michael Pena) have been searching for Parapata, the Incan city of gold, for as long as she can remember.

When Dora stumbles across a map that shows the location of the ancient city, her parents send her off to Hollywood to live with her cousin Diego (Jeff Wahlberg) while they look for Parapata.

Dora may know how to avoid poisonous plants and stampeding pygmy elephants, but she has no idea what to do when it comes to navigating high school.

Nevertheless she persists, approaching every problem with a relentlessly cheerful attitude.

It’s not long before Dora has bigger problems than high school: Her parents are in trouble.

When she and some of her classmates get kidnapped on a field trip, it’s up to her to both get them home safely and save her parents.

One of the film’s biggest achievements is not attempting to whitewash the source material.

In fact, they even go a step farther than simply keeping Dora and her family Latino: Moner was specifically cast for her Peruvian heritage and she

consulted her grandmother about the proper translations and pronunciations for her lines in the ancient Incan language Quechua.

Meanwhile, Q’orianka Kilcher, who plays the Incan princess Kawillaka, is a direct descendent of the Quechua-Huachipaeri people of Peru. 

The film also shows a great deal of respect for indigenous tribes and cultures, sending the message that, while it’s okay to look for artifacts and archaeological sites for the knowledge that comes with them, it’s not okay to search for them with the intent of looting and destroying the historical sites and items.

Or as the movie puts it in terms that any six-year-old could understand, “Treasure hunting bad, exploring good.”

Moner portrays Dora with the same unstoppable energy as her cartoon counterpart. She’s always upbeat and happy, never slowing down in her

attempts to cheer up herself and others. Dora has the relentless confidence many people

wish they had, and she’s never afraid to be herself. The movie also shows a respect for indigenous

cultures that is important for children to learn. It’s an interesting movie, but the appeal of the

movie relies on the fact that people know and love Dora.

I would not recommend this movie to someone who is unfamiliar with Dora, but whether you’re a current or former Dora fan, or just one of the people who watched with the Dora fanatics as they answered her questions for hours on end, this movie is worth your time.

August 13, 2019

Sorrow, humor mix in a magnificent novel“Planet Earth is Blue,” by Nicole Panteleakos, is

a beautifully written story, one that has you weeping with sadness one minute, while

the next you’re laughing hysterically. Nova, the main character, has autism and that makes

it hard for her to speak. But, luckily her big sister Bridget has always been by her side.

Suddenly, Bridget disappears and Nova is transferred to another foster family.

She doesn’t know where Bridget is and hopes to find her before the Challenger mission takes off into space.

The Challenger, for those who don’t know, was a space shuttle and was part of the Teacher in  Space program.

Christa McAuliffe was the teacher chosen, but she passed away when the Challenger exploded 73 seconds after lift off.

Nova is excited to watch it being televised, but Bridget promised to be there, and nothing is the same without Bridget.

She’s scared Bridget won’t return, and Nova doesn’t know or understand why she would have left so suddenly.

The book is filled with different elements to keep kids engaged in the tale. A few are letters that Nova writes to Bridget, and memories that occur in Nova’s mind.

All of these things enhance the novel and really stand out.

I really liked this book, but be warned, it has moments that make you want to bury your face into a pillow and just cry.

That’s how I felt, at least. Despite the sad parts of the story, some of the

things that happen are really funny, so the story balances itself out.

This book definitely is a more mature read and is meant for kids who are older, around sixth grade and up.

Will Nova ever see Bridget again? Will Nova learn what happened to her? Read this magnificent book to find out.

Writing Is Cool!How Would You Like To Be A Real Reporter?

Find out about all the cool benefits when you apply to be a Colorado Kids reporter at Colorado NIE.com

or by emailing dplewka@denverpost.com.

Old appeal with new messages

By Maria Ciobanu,14, a CK Reporter from Denver

By Macy Gardner,14, a CK Reporter from Golden

1

Despite the sad parts of the story, some

of the things that happen are really funny,

so the story balances itself out.

Dora has the relentless confidence many

people wish they had, and she’s never

afraid to be herself. The movie also shows

a respect for indigenous cultures that is

important for children to learn.

The Denver Post •

In summertime, we go outside for picnics, camping trips, or other outdoor activities, but almost everywhere we go, we’re attacked by mosquitoes.

Here in my part of Colorado, the San Luis Valley, the mosquito invasion this year has come on full force.

Lots of rain has left standing water everywhere, giving mosquitoes many places to lay their eggs and multiply.

Fortunately, we have defenders, organized here as the Alamosa Mosquito Control District, supported by a special tax collected within its 125-square-mile area.

The District was originally established in 1966 as a way of reducing the amount of nuisance mosquitoes in the area.

“If you were going outside, your parents would have to wrap newspapers around your arms and legs,” says Sarah Cantu, the district manager. “Or you just wouldn’t go outside at all because the mosquitoes were so bad.”

In its war against mosquitoes, the District’s field operations break down into what Cantu describes as “surveillance, larvicide, and adulticide.”

The District’s field crews monitor standing water sites for mosquitoes, trapping and examining them in their laboratory.

Then they kill mosquitoes with eco-friendly poisons targeting larvae in the water or adults flying in the air.

This is an especially challenging year for the District: They typically only spray in areas where there is usually a lot of standing water, but now there are many places where water is reaching where it hasn’t fallen in years, causing dormant mosquito eggs to hatch.

“A mosquito will lay eggs in a place where she’s expecting water. It might not come, but those eggs can lay dormant for up to five to ten years,” says Cantu.

The amount of mosquitoes here has been greatly reduced since the District was established, but its fight against mosquitoes is even more serious than before.

There are many different species of mosquitoes in Colorado, and one of them can carry the West Nile virus that is now widespread in the United States.

In its surveillance work, the District sometimes finds mosquitoes that are infected with the virus, so it needs to be vigilant.

Keeping a low profile but always on the offensive against billions of voracious enemies, the Alamosa Mosquito Control District is making summers much healthier and more comfortable in the San Luis Valley.

Mosquito control a never-ending battle

What are Gloria and P. T. up to now? Ever since they saved the motel, met Cassie

McGinty, and found the Twittleham tiara in the first three books of Chris Grabenstein’s “Welcome to Wonderland” series, they’ve had nothing to do.

So it’s time for the next one: “Beach Battle Blowout.”Mr. Frumpkes is as grumpy as usual, P. T. can still spin a

good story, and Grandpa still detests the other Walt (Walt Disney) who he says stole all the business.

Everything is normal until Grandpa finds out that all the bigger attractions are not going to participate in “Florida’s Hottest Attraction.” He is overjoyed!

They finally have a chance at getting recognized for having an amazing attraction!

Now the right Walt might finally be recognized.The problem is, Grandpa didn’t read the fine print in

the magazine article. It turns out that they have to have things to do at the

motel. At least, P. T. thinks that they have many things to do,

but others don’t think the same way.When the nearby “Fun Castle” opens, all the business

goes to them. But just because they have a huge mini-golf course,

laser tag, a roller coaster, frolf (Frisbee/golf ), and a huge playground, that doesn’t make them any better than the Wonderland Motel!

The Wonderland Motel has many things to do, like play mini-golf, frolf, sing

along with frog karaoke, and eat some of Chef Jimbo’s monkey burgers. That used to seem to be enough for all the people at

their hotel. Now it seems like nobody cares about all those

things; They just want to go to the Fun Castle with all its extravagant attractions and ditch the Wonderland Motel.

So Gloria and P. T. have to improvise and find some money.

With many, many good and bad ideas the Motel seems to be in tip-top shape. Will that be enough for the judges?

Chris Grabenstein has told yet another wonderful story through P. T., a young schoolboy.

This story is full of humor and has many laughs.Kids ages 8-12 will enjoy this book because of its good

humor, ups and downs, and its ability to make you smile.

Fourth in the series continues the laughs

By Eva Perak,11, a CK Reporter from Denver

By Nandi Strieker,12, a CK Reporter from Antonito

2

Chasing mosquitos down with a truck is not one of the District’s tactics, but this license plate does tell the challenge they face. photo/AMCD

A mosquito will lay eggs in a place

where she’s expecting water. It might

not come, but those eggs can lay

dormant for up to five to ten years,

Kids ages 8-12 will enjoy this book

because of its good humor, ups and downs,

and its ability to make you smile.

The Denver Post •

Parrots today come in all sizes, but there was a time when they came in one other: XXL.

Paleontologists working through Flinders University in Australia have identified a New Zealand parrot from 19 million years ago that stood over three feet tall -- about the height of a three-year-old child -- and weighed a little over 15 pounds.

They’ve called the bird “Heracles inexpectatus,” “Heracles” for the mighty hero of Greek mythology, and “inexpectatus” because the discovery was such a surprise.

And they’ve nicknamed this particular fossil “Squawkzilla.”

Heracles was apparently flightless, but that would not make him unusual at the time. He would have competed for food with other large ground birds, but with the advantage of a very strong beak.

There is no nut that Heracles couldn’t crack, researchers say, but it’s also possible that the giant bird would not confine himself to a vegetarian diet.

Keas, New Zealand parrots about half the size of Heracles, have been known to attack sheep, animals that have only been in the islands since the 1700s.

It’s likely Heracles was able to find a mixed diet of fruit and meat, given the intelligence of parrots and his enormous size.

You’re gonna need a bigger bird cage

In this 1913 cartoon from Puck Magazine, Uncle Sam is getting two very different predictions about tariffs, with help from some funhouse

mirrors.The Democrats assure him that lowering our

tariffs will make him fat and prosperous, while the Republicans warn that, without high tariffs, he will starve nearly to death.

More than a century later, we’re arguing over tariffs again, with President Trump insisting they will protect our factories and Democrats warning that they will raise prices for shoppers.

What is a tariff?A tariff is an extra charge placed on goods from

other countries.The purpose of a tariff is to make imported goods more expensive so that people

will be more likely to buy things that were made or grown in this country. For instance, if a store buys a shirt made in China for $6 and sells it for $10, they

would make a profit of $4. But that’s not a profit yet.Out of that $4, they have to pay their rent, and for their electricity, and they have

to pay the people who work in the store.But, if they sell enough shirts, they can pay all their costs and still have money

left over.If a shirt made in America cost them $7, they’d

either make less money selling it for $10, or, if they need to make $4 per shirt, they’d have to sell it for $11.

Now let’s add a $2 tariff to that Chinese shirt.The shirtmaker in China still only gets $6, but

now those shirts cost the storekeeper $8.So now the American shirt costs the store less

than the Chinese shirt.That’s good for the American shirtmaker, be-

cause, if the store has to make $4 per shirt to stay in business, it must charge $12 for the Chinese shirt and $11 for the American shirt.We can even make it more complicated: If we

also added a tariff to cotton from Egypt, American cotton growers might be happy, but now the American shirtmaker would have to charge the store more.

We are often urged to “Buy American,” even if it costs us more than buying cheap imported products.

A tariff makes it an easier choice by making sure everything costs about the same.Pro-tariff people say that’s a way to support American manufacturers. Anti-tariff

people say it takes away people’s freedom to save money when they need to.

Tariffs: What are they? Who pays for them?

FAST Enterprises hosted a three week camp called “Camp.Code for Girls” this summer.

This program has been going on for three years and is only available in Colorado, though they are trying to expand to other states.

The fact that it is only in Colorado doesn’t play a big role because some people in the camp this year were from other states.

FAST created this program because they wanted to show girls that STEM related fields are not only for men and that a girl is just as capable of doing these things as a boy.

During the camp the girls participating do a variety of things.

They have the opportunity to listen to guest speakers who teach them about STEM-related things they can do in the future, and many other things.

The participants also make apps using Android Studio and the Java language. Some of these apps include a calculator, a tic – tac – toe game, a coin flipper, and

the main project, which is an Inspiration Board app. There are always at least five instructors present to help you if you get stuck while

you are coding or designing your app. Each week a new rotation of instructors from one of the company’s many world-

wide locations are at the camp. Each one is open to suggestions and they implement them as soon as they can

and, as clichéd as it sounds, they really do want every camper to enjoy the camp

and will do what they can to guarantee it. Some campers for past years also come to

the camp to help the current campers. Having been through the campy, they

know a lot about computer science and have used it in their lives.

Some use it now in their schools because they learned that they have an interest in this field.

On one day of the camp there was a field trip to the Colorado School of Mines where campers listened to and participated in a presentation and some activities.

After that they had the opportunity to have a tour of the campus.

If you know that something in the STEM path appeals to you, you should consider going to this camp because you will get hands-on experience.

There are limited spots available, so if this sounds interesting to any girls who will be entering 9th grade in 2020, keep an eye out for the application that will be available in January here: https://www.fastenter-prises.com/camp-code/

Coding camp offered girls fun and challenge

photo/Dr Brian Choo, Flinders U.

(Library of Congress)

By Suhani Agarwal,14, a CK Reporter from Centennial

Phoebe Ann Mosey was born on this date in 1860 and became famous as “Annie Oakley,” a sharpshooter in Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Shows. Our answers will begin with “S” for her friend Sitting Bull’s nickname for her: “Little Sure Shot.”

1. Breeds of this type of hunting dog include springer, cocker and King Charles.

2. Poet, author and cartoonist who wrote and illustrated “The Giving Tree” and “Where the Sidewalk Ends”

3. The capital of Sweden

4. The player between the second and third basemen

5. A common plant on the plains, an herb often used with chicken, or an X-Man

6. An 21-stringed Indian musical instrument

7. It’s easier to see this, the brightest star in the sky, this time of year, because it’s in Canis Major, a summer constellation.

8. The seat of Chaffee County, or a sign seen on exits

9. Futbol, in America

10. In medieval Japan, these noble warriors were the equivalent of knights.(answers on Page Four)

Rules: Every row across, every column down and each of the six smaller boxes must contain numerals 1,2,3,4,5 and 6, one time and one time only.

The solution to this week’s puzzle is on Page 4.

2

3

3

1

1

25

4

5

5

1

34

3

photo/FAST Enterprises

The Denver Post •

is produced by Denver Post Educational Services

Executive Editor: Dana Plewkadplewka@denverpost.com

CK Editor: Mike Petersoncoloradokidseditor@gmail.com

We welcome your comments.

For tools to extend the learning in this feature, look under “Youth Content” at:

www.ColoradoNIE.com

eEditions of the Post arefree of charge for classroom use.Contact us for information on all

our programs.

Denver Post Educational Services5990 Washington St.

Denver CO 80216(303) 954-3974(800) 336-7678

Stories without bylines were written by the editor.

(see Page Three)

10 right - Wow!

7 right - Great!

5 right - Good

3 right - See you next time!

1. spaniel 2. (Shel) Silverstein 3. Stockholm 4. shortstop 5. sage 6. sitar 7. Sirius 8. Salida 9. soccer 10. samurai

Hot Links to Cool Sites!

NASA’s Space Placehttp://tinyurl.com/ckspace

NIE Special Reporthttp://tinyurl.com/ckniereport

Headline Geographyhttp://tinyurl.com/ckgeography

Pulse of the Planethttp://tinyurl.com/ckpulseplanet

How to become a CK Reporter!http://tinyurl.com/COkidsReporter

To read the sources for these storiesGiant prehistoric parrot

Tariffs

go to http://www.tinyurl.com/ckstorylinks

If you haven’t been to the Da Vinci exhibit at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, you might be wondering why a science museum has an artist’s work on display.

If you have been, you know that Leonardo da Vinci was both one of the world’s great art-ists and a super-talented engineer who sketched out inventions like helicopters that it would take hundreds of years for other scientists and engineers to bring to reality.

And whether it would be your first visit to the exhibit or one of many, you have the chance on Tuesday, August 20, at 7 pm, to find out just how Leonardo da Vinci’s brilliance as a scientist and engineer and his incredible talent as an artist fit together.

Dr. George R. Bent, Sidney Gause Childress Professor of the Arts at Washington and Lee Uni-versity, examines one of Leonardo’s most important scientific exercises—his detailed study of human anatomy—and connects this work to his truly advanced approach to representing the human form in his paintings.

Leonardo’s art, he will demonstrate, depended on his scientific discoveries, but his scientific contributions also could not have come about without his total mastery of art.

This is not a children’s lecture, but if you are curious and ready to learn, it might be for you.Tickets for this special event are $12 for members, $15 for non-members. For tickets and

more information, visit https://www.dmns.org/visit/events-and-activities/

Tonight!Digital Moon, Denver Museum of Nature and Science, Gates Planetarium 7pm. Take a

trip to the moon with space scientists to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission. Using the full dome of Gates Planetarium, visit the sites where lunar landers have touched down. Details: https://www.dmns.org/visit/events-and-activities/

Wednesday August 14“The Angry Birds Movie 2” (PG) opens at area theaters. The flightless birds and scheming

green pigs take their beef to the next level.

Thursday August 15Cirque du Soleil’s Corteo opens at Pepsi Center through August 22. Ticket information at

https://centerdenver.com/pepsi/index.php

Friday, August 16“Asian Elephant Appreciation Day” at the Denver Zoo, 10 am - 2 pm. Zookeeper talks, el-

ephant demonstrations, activities and more to discover the importance of Asian elephants in the wild and how you can help this endangered species.

Thursday, August 22“Turtle Odyssey 3D” opens at DMNS’s Phipps IMAX Theater. Swim alongside an Australian

green sea turtle as she takes an incredible journey across thousands of miles of open ocean from hatchling to adulthood,

Saturday August 24Teddy Bear Clinic at the Denver Zoo, in partnership with Children’s Hospital Colorado.

Bring your stuffed animal for special “clinical treatment” and learn how the zoo takes care of its live animals. More information: https://www.denverzoo.org/events/teddy-bear-clinic/

Friday, August 30“Playmobil the Movie” opens at area theaters. Animated feature film inspired by the Play-

mobil brand toys.Tuesday, September 3

Second Star to the Right Bookstore on Pearl Street will have a “book launch” -- the debut of a brand new book -- at 6:30 for Colorado author Linsday Lackey’s new middle grade novel “All the Impossible Things.” Meet the author, see the book!

Friday, September 13“Extreme Sports: Beyond Human Limits” opens at the Denver Museum of Nature and

Science. Explore the psychology science behind some of the riskier sports, such as wingsuit flying, ice and rock climbing, parkour and free diving with simulations and other activities.

Hidden TreasuresThings we think you wouldn’t want to miss.

CK Calendar

4

1

2

5

3

6

6

2

1

3

5

4

5

3

4

6

1

2

1

6

3

4

2

5

2

4

5

1

6

3

3

5

6

2

4

1

4

Should scientists also be artists?