take the challenge! -...
TRANSCRIPT
4 SCHOLASTIC NEWS EDITION 4 • MAY 10 & 17, 2010
Word to Knowgenre (zhahn-ruh) noun. A category of artistic, musical, or literary work characterized by a certain style, form, or content.
Would you like to help set a reading world record? Then take the
Scholastic Summer Challenge! This four-month-long event challenges kids to read FOUR OR MORE books this summer. Kids can log their reading minutes at the Scholastic Summer Challenge Web site: www .scholastic.com/summer. Kids can win virtual awards. And the 20 schools that log the most minutes will be featured in the Scholastic Book of World Records, 2011 Edition!
Kids can also join a book group for one of four genres: fantasy & adventure, thrills & chills, friends & fun, and people & places. Author Lisa Yee writes
books in the friends & fun genre. Her latest book, Bobby vs. Girls (Accidentally), is about a boy who gets into crazy situations.
Check out Yee’s thoughts on reading and writing (right). Other author interviews are on pages 8, 10, and 12!
How many books can you read this summer?
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Q Why should kids take the time to read?
A Reading is like a free ride to anywhere in the
universe. You can meet inventors, explorers, historical figures, or even a kid who lives in a closet under the stairs. Time spent reading is never wasted.
Q What advice would you give to kids who want to
become authors?
A Read, write, and read some more. The more
you read, the more you will be able to identify the kind of writing you want to do. Then, start slowly—just a few sentences a day—and work up to a steady pace. Don’t worry if your writing isn’t great at the beginning. You’ve got to keep at it.
Q What drew you to write about kids’ lives,
friendships, and fun?
A For me, friends are so important. When you’re
down or troubled, a friend is someone you turn to.
Q May is Asian-American and Pacific Islander
Heritage Month. In what way has your heritage influenced your writing?
A There are Asian-American characters in
many of my books. I feel that we could use more Asian-American kids in literature. When I was growing up, you know how many Asian-American kids were in the books I read? ZERO. I felt invisible. Now that I’m an author, I’m trying to change that. n
Reading and Writing Questions for Lisa Yee:
Lisa Yee
Take the Challenge!
Q What are your favorite types of books to read?
A Mysteries and thrillers. I like old-fashioned
detective novels with lots of plot twists.
Q How does reading help you become a good writer?
A If you read a lot of different authors, you
pick up their styles, tricks, and skills without even realizing it. You learn how to
phrase things. You learn how to build a story.
You cannot be a good writer unless you know how other people do it.
Q How do you get ideas for your books?
A I think of a good title first, like a Goosebumps
HorrorLand book I wrote this year—Little Shop of Hamsters. Once I thought up that title, I began to think of what the story could be about. How could I make hamsters scary? Almost all of my ideas come from dreaming up a title first.
Q What do you hope that readers get from reading
your books?
A I hope my readers get a lot of thrills and chills—some
good creepy scares—and a lot of laughs.
Do you like books that make you screech, scream, or shudder? Then fan Thrills & Chills at the Scholastic Summer Challenge (see page 4 for more details)! Author R.L. Stine shares his thoughts on writing in this genre:
SUMMER READINGSUMMER READING
SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY
SCHOLASTIC NEWS | MAY 10 & 17, 2010 | EDITION 4
THURSDAY
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20Father’s Day
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1 2 3 4Marie Thible of France became the first woman to fly in a hot-air balloon, in 1784.
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11Lee Richmond of the Worcester Ruby Legs pitched baseball’s first perfect game, in 1880.
World Oceans Day
The first comic book with the Superman character was released on this day in 1938.
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2827 Meteor Watch Day. Be on the lookout for meteor showers!
Edition 4
Toy Story 3 hits theaters today!
Native American Citizenship Day. In 1924, Congress officially recognized Native Americans as U.S. citizens.
Stay With Us All Summer!Kids can track the news all summer long with the Scholastic Kids Press Corps at www.scholastic.com/kidspress.
Happy birthday, Helen Keller (1880-1968). The famous author and lecturer, who was deaf and blind, was born on this date.
U.S. Open Golf Championship begins in Pebble Beach, California.
National Handshake Day
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor turns 56. She is the first Hispanic to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court . She joined the Court in 2009.
Introduction of the bar code (1974). It has made paying for groceries a lot faster!
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Flag Day
22Summer Solstice, the day of the year with the most daylight. First Day of Summer
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Questions for R.L. Stine, author of the Goosebumps series
R.L. Stine
Nice to meet you, Donald Duck! In 1934, the cartoon character made his on-screen debut.
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National Repeat Day. Have you recently discovered something you really like doing? Do it again!
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Illustrations by Dean MacAdam
America’s Leading News Source For Kids
America’s Leading News Source For Kids
America’s Leading News Source For Kids
America’s Leading News Source For Kids
America’s Leading News Source For Kids
America’s Leading News Source For Kids
JUNE
SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY
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Happy Birthday, America! It’s Inde-pendence Day.
Parents’ Day–Pay tribute to all moms and dads!
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Summer Challenge Book List! Need more suggestions for books to read? Go to www.scholastic.com/summer!
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SCHOLASTIC NEWS | MAY 10 & 17, 2010 | EDITION 4
5Happy Birthday, George W. Bush! The 43rd U.S. President was born on this date in 1946.
Disneyland, America’s first theme park, opened 55 years ago today.
Q How old were you when you first started writing?
What inspired you to write about fantastic adventures?
A I started writing when I was 12, but my earlier books
leaned more toward humor. It wasn’t until much later that I wrote the Island series, my first adventure books. More recently, I’ve tried to mix the two genres, with books like the Swindle series.
Q How did you get to be an author?
A I wrote my first book as part of an English project
during the second half of my seventh-grade year. I was the
class monitor for Scholastic book orders, so I mailed it to the address on the flyers. It was kind of a fluke that I got it published, but I’ve been writing kids books ever since.
Q What would you tell kids
who want to become authors when they grow up?
A I’d say why wait to grow
up? Write for a school newspaper or literary magazine. Begin to assemble a portfolio of your work. Read. Write. Revise. Edit. Write more. Never give up! And when you’re out there in print, the first fan letter welcoming you to the club will be from me.
America’s Leading News Source For Kids
America’s Leading News Source For Kids
America’s Leading News Source For Kids
America’s Leading News Source For Kids
America’s Leading News Source For Kids
America’s Leading News Source For Kids
Edition 4
IndependenceDay
Questions for Gordon Korman, author of The 39 Clues: The Emperor’s Code
If you like books that keep you on the edge of your seat, then fan Fantasy & Adventure at the
Scholastic Summer Challenge (see page 4 for details)! Author Gordon Korman shares his thoughts on
writing in this genre:
Illustrations by Dean MacAdam
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GordonKorman
JULY
National Ice Cream Day
11Babe Ruth made his professional baseball debut 96 years ago today.
Pay tribute to the rabbit as a house pet during National Rabbit Week. ( July 15-21)
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It’s Canada Day.
2Halfway point of 2010. At noon, 182½ days of the year will have passed and 182½ will remain.
16Apollo 11 blasted off on this date in 1969. It carried the astronauts who became the first humans to walk on the moon.
10120th anniversary of Wyoming becoming the 44th U.S. state.
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Yee-haw! It’s National Day of the Cowboy.
Happy Birthday, Harry Potter! J. K. Rowling, the author of the Harry Potter series, gave the boy wizard her own birth date. She turns 45!
Ramona and Beezus, based on the children’s book by Beverly Cleary, hits theaters.
2322Happy Birthday, Selena Gomez! The Disney Channel star turns 18.
The first Special Olympics was held on this date in 1968. The games spot-light the many people worldwide with intellectual disabilities.
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27Happy Birthday, Rubik’s Cube! The famous toy turns 30.
SUMMER READINGSUMMER READING
news mapnews map
news mapnews map
show what you knowshow what you know
show what you know
what do you thinkwhat do you think
what do you thinkwhat do you think
cover storycover story
show what you know
SUMMER READINGSUMMER READING
AUGUST
Illustrations by Dean MacAdam
Q How old were you when you first started writing? What
inspired you to write about history and famous people?
A I have loved writing since I was a kid. I can
remember telling my siblings that one day I was going to write a book. I remember it so well because they laughed at me! I began writing historical fiction because I’ve always been a history buff and found history textbooks to be rather dry. By imagining the way historical events affected one child or one family, I felt as though I was making the events more real.
Q How did you get to be an author? Did you have to take
special classes?
A Reading a ton—that’s the best training ground for
an author. Grab a book by an author you admire or like, and try to understand why his or her writing affects you. Writing is one of those rare arts you can learn without formal instruction.
Q What would you tell kids
who want to be authors?
A Write every day, and have fun with
your writing. Be patient—many times the story or poem isn’t going to go the way you want it to. Don’t give up. Once you’ve learned how to write and can move a story around with skill, develop your own style.
Do you enjoy reading books that take you on a ride back in time or into the present to meet athletes, celebrities, or kids just like you? Then fan People & Places at the Scholastic Summer Challenge (see page 4 for details)! Christopher Paul Curtis shares his thoughts on writing in this genre:
SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY
7The U.S. satellite Explorer VI took the first picture of Earth from a satellite in orbit on this date in 1959.
The 35th Twins Day Festival (Aug. 6-8) takes place in Twinsburg, Ohio.
Happy Birthday, President Barack Obama! He turns 49 today.
Christopher Columbus set sail for the “New World” on this date in 1492.
The Declaration of Independence was signed on this date in 1776.
The first U.S. census is taken in 1790. It is the nation’s official count of the population.
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2827• RobertoClemente: 75th birth anniversary
The 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which gave women the right to vote, was rati-fied, or approved, on this date in 1920.
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19 20Play ball! Little League Baseball World Series starts today and ends on Aug. 29.
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Assistance Dog Week (Aug. 8-14) honors dogs that help people who are disabled.
Every Minute Counts, Readers!August is the last full month to log your reading minutes. Will your school be featured in the Scholastic Book of World Records? Go to www.scholastic.com/summer.
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Kool-Aid Day in Hastings, Nebraska, the birthplace of Kool-Aid
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In 1893, Esther Cleveland becomes the first child of a President (Grover Cleveland) to be born in the White House.
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Pluto is removed from the list of planets on this date in 2006.
The classic motion picture The Wizard of Oz is released in 1939 on this date.
SCHOLASTIC NEWS | MAY 10 & 17, 2010 | EDITION 4
Rocky Mountain Balloon Festival (Aug. 27-29) in Denver, Colorado.
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America’s Leading News Source For Kids
America’s Leading News Source For Kids
America’s Leading News Source For Kids
America’s Leading News Source For Kids
America’s Leading News Source For Kids
America’s Leading News Source For Kids
Edition 4
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Questions for Christopher Paul Curtis, author of Elijah of Buxton
Christopher Paul Curtis
Track-and-field star Usain Bolt was born in Trelawny, Jamaica, on this date in 1986.