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The Elyrian
Like everyone else, Ace believed witches were nothing more than a bedtime story myth . . .
On a family vacation in a strange new land, Grandpa pulls Ace aside and tells him a startling truth. Not only are witches real, but they’re also taking over the world, and Ace is the only one who can stop them.
Ace is the chosen keeper of a mythical gem housing an incredible, ancient power that makes the darkness tremble—unfortunately, that also makes him and his family the witches’ biggest target.
Then, after passing the gem down to him, Grandpa mysteriously disappears, leaving Ace to fend for himself.
To learn this new power, Ace must now escape the witches chasing him and his family, venture through treacherous lands filled with strange creatures to the headquarters of his grandfather’s underground rebellion, and somehow convince a group of elite warriors that he—a twelve-year-old boy and his grandfather’s youngest descendant—must assume leadership.
Can twelve-year-old Ace save the world and protect this family?
From author D.P. Rowell for Readers 9-12.
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The International Space Station—ISS
Welcome to space all you space explorers! The International Space Station (ISS), is a remarkable laboratory floating 250 miles above our planet. The ISS is an amazing feat of exploration where astronauts collaborate and conduct experiments. Let’s buckle up and explore the International Space Station!
Five space agencies from 15 countries run the International Space Station. The ISS has been continuously occupied since November 2000. An international crew of seven people live and work while traveling at a speed of five miles per second, orbiting Earth about every 90 minutes. Sometimes more are aboard the station during a crew handover. In 24 hours, the space station makes 16 orbits of Earth, traveling through 16 sunrises and sunsets. The acre of solar panels that power the station means sometimes you can look up in the sky at night and see the spaceship flying over your home, even if you live in a big city.
The living and working space in the station is larger than a six-bedroom house (and has six sleeping quarters, two bathrooms, a gym, and a 360-degree view bay window). Since there are six bedrooms, but seven crew members, that means that at least one crew member is awake and on duty while the others sleep. To mitigate the loss of muscle and bone mass in the human body in microgravity, the astronauts work out at least two hours a day.
Astronauts and cosmonauts regularly conduct spacewalks for space station construction, maintenance, and upgrades. The solar array wingspan (356 feet, 109 meters) is longer than the world’s largest passenger aircraft, the Airbus A380 (262 feet, 80 meters).
The large modules and other pieces of the station were delivered on 42 assembly flights, 37 on the U.S. space shuttles and five on Russian Proton/Soyuz rockets.
The space station is 356 feet (109 meters) end-to-end, one yard shy of the full length of an American football field, including the end zones. Eight miles of wire connects the electrical power system aboard the space station. On-orbit software monitors approximately 350,000 sensors, ensuring station and crew health and safety.
Eight spaceships can be connected to the space station at once. While it can host over 20 different research payloads outside the station at the same time. Plus, a spacecraft can arrive at the space station as soon as four hours after launching from Earth.
Four different cargo spacecraft deliver science, cargo, and supplies: Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus, SpaceX’s Dragon, JAXA’s HTV, and the Russian Progress. The microgravity laboratory has hosted nearly 3,000 research investigations from researchers in over 108 countries. The station’s orbital path takes it over 90 percent of the Earth’s population, with astronauts taking millions of images of the planet below. The space station travels an equivalent distance to the Moon and back in about a day.
Interestingly, the Station is scheduled to orbit Earth till 2024, though some of the NASA officials confirmed that orbit will be extended till 2028. Then it will be intentionally deorbited over a stretch of ocean and most of the components will be burned up in the Earth’s atmosphere.
Some fun facts about the station begin with the fact that there is a gun placed in the International Space Station that belongs to the Russians. The purpose of the gun is to protect themselves against the bears in case the capsule lands off-target on reentry into the earth. Another fun fact is Pizza Hut made a delivery to the International Space Station in 2001. They paid the Russians $1 million to transport the Pizza. They made a commercial from it.
Another interesting fact about the Station is that it has a small memory device that contains the DNA of British physicist Stephen Hawking, late night TV host Stephen Colbert, and Playboy model Jo Garcia. It is known as the Immortality Drive. Plus, American astronauts can vote in elections from orbit by secure email. And some of the shooting stars in the atmosphere that you can see are actually astronauts poop burning up in the atmosphere.
NASA has a service where you can register your mobile number and they will text you the exact location of the International Space Station. Now wouldn’t that be a fun thing to show all of your friends if you have your own cell phone.
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Puzzled
Peter, an exceptionally clever junior high school kid, is pulled into an adventure where he and a few friends have to solve a series of very challenging riddles and puzzles in order to prevent a deadly disaster. Peter’s mind, which has an amazing talent for problem-solving, is needed to save the world.
This adventure sure is a big change from what Peter typically deals with in life: He gets called geek and nerd by everyone in the cool group. He tries to hide his love for learning, in a hope to stick out a little less. He fantasizes about a girl who is out of his league.
Peter and his friends must solve every confusing riddle and challenging puzzle they face. If they can’t, a powerful supernatural being will cause immense destruction and devastation.
From author P.J. Nichols for Readers 9-15.
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Pandas
What looks like a bear and acts like a bear, but isn’t a bear?
You guessed it—it is a panda. With their cute black eye patches and white faces, cuddly looking pandas are a fan favorite among zoo-goers and intrepid visitors to the China’s panda sanctuaries. For a long time, animal scientists could not decide on whether pandas were related to bears, or even possibly raccoons. But recent advances in science helped scientists realize pandas belong to an animal family all their own. It is known as Ailuridae. While bears belong to the Ursidae family and raccoons are from the Procyonidae family.
90-98% of a panda’s diet is bamboo. Unfortunately, in China, many of the bamboo forest were cut down to make room for humans to grow crops for food. As a result, the panda population almost disappeared. Scientists estimated that there were only about 1,000 pandas in all of China and they were in danger of extinction. But thankfully because they are so cute, people around the world united to help save them from extinction. Today, there are now over 1900 pandas in the wild. With a few more in select zoos around the world. They are on loan to the zoos—for a price. The money the zoos are charged goes to funding the panda sanctuaries in China and the research needed to protect them and help their population grow.
Pandas reproduce slowly and not very often. A baby panda lives with its mother until it is eighteen months old before it leaves home and goes out on its own. Then the mother is only fertile for 2-3 days in the entire year. Since pandas are solitary creatures, a female panda may not get pregnant again for many years. When they get pregnant, they may have twins. Unfortunately, many times, one twin is overlooked and dies.
To save the pandas, and increase their population, scientists came up with the idea to use the world’s zoos with their highly trained veterinarian staffs, to help the pandas with their slow reproduction problems. That is why China loans out their rare pandas to select zoos around the world. Thanks to that program, many new pandas have been born and returned to the panda sanctuaries in China.
Pandas were so rare that no European had observed a live one in the wild until Walter Stötzner’s expedition of 1913-15. The only other reported sighting before then was from a Catholic missionary named Armand David, who saw some panda furs in 1869.
China now has over 40 panda sanctuaries in the remote mountain regions of the Sichuan, Shaanxi, and Gansu provinces. The sanctuaries protect the animals against poachers and help them breed so that their population will grow.
A baby panda only weighs about 4 ounces when it is born—that’s less than a candy bar. And it is only about as long as a pencil at birth. Its eyes are closed for the first 45 days after it is born, and it is virtually helpless. It depends entirely on its mother for warmth, nourishment, positioning at the breast, and stimulating the passage of wastes.
And speaking of poop—bamboo is not very nutritious. So, a panda has to eat a lot of it in order to stay alive. A panda eats 16-19 hours a day, and that is a lot of bamboo for the panda to digest. So, it has to poop over 50 times a day to make room for all the bamboo it has to eat.
When they aren’t foraging for food to eat. Pandas like to play. That’s why pandas like living in the zoos. There they don’t have to spend all their days searching for bamboo to eat. Instead, they get to spend their time playing and entertaining visitors. And they live longer, too. Captive pandas may live beyond 30 years in captivity, but their life span in the wild is estimated at about 20 years.
Although they are cute and cuddly looking, male pandas can grow to be six feet tall and weigh over two hundred pounds. Females are usually smaller. Although they are usually slow moving and clumsy, Pandas do climb high in a tree to reach the bamboo they need to eat.
Unlike most other bears, pandas do not hibernate. When winter approaches, they head lower down their mountain homes to warmer temperatures, where they continue to chomp away on bamboo! And thanks to conservation efforts panda bear numbers are increasing in the wild. Though there’s still lots of work to be done, the species is no longer considered endangered. Hooray!
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Fearless: A Dog Story
Eleven-year-old Jessie Nelson fears her soldier Mom won’t make it home from the War in Afghanistan. So, Jessie and her dad move in with Grandpa for the summer in small-town southern Minnesota where a historic tornado has made the townspeople fearful. With new friends in tow, Jessie and the boys stumble onto an old barn with terrified dogs inside. Jessie wants to save them all but knows she can’t. So, she saves one — the one dog cocking its head to the side and watching Jessie with its melty eyes. Soon Jessie learns the dog suffers from PTSD and needs TLC in order to trust again. Jessie hides the fearful dog in her bedroom until another tornado strikes and changes everything.
From author Kristin Johnson for Readers 8-12.
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Robots–A Kid’s New Best Friend
From science fiction tales to real-life applications, robots have captured our imaginations and are shaping the world we live in. They have been around since the middle of the last century and some of us even have them in our homes in the form of mobile vacuum cleaners. (If your family has one, I bet you didn’t know that it was a robot.)
What is a robot and what is robotics?
First, the modern term robot is derived from the Czech word robota, which means “forced labor” or “serf.” It was first used by Czech playwright Karel Čapek in his 1920 stage play R.U.R.
A robot is any automatically operated machine that replaces human effort. Robots come in many different shapes and sizes from very tiny to very large. One of the most famous robots that you know about is the Mars Rover. It is collecting and analyzing samples, along with data, from the Red Planet and transmitting the information back to us here on Earth.
The car industry is one of the biggest, and longest, users of robots in their assembly plants. In fact, robotic arms assembled most of your family’s car on the assembly line.
Robotics, on the other hand, is the engineering and research that deals with the design, construction, and operation of robots. Engineers, coders, designers, and even kids are involved in robotics today.
The first common robots were the mechanical assembly arms used in the manufacturing assembly line. But today we have far more human-like robots to help and entertain us. They range from droids, like C3PO in Star Wars, to combat drones being used in the war in Ukraine.
The word droid comes from the term android. A droid is a robot with some physical resemblance to a human, like C3PO. While an android is a robot designed to look and act like a human, like the Terminator. (Okay, the Terminator started out acting like a “evil human.” But eventually he turned out to be a “good” guy by helping the heroine.)
Thanks to the lightning-fast advances being made in computer processors today. Robot development is making great strides towards becoming more and more human-like. Especially when they are paired with artificial intelligence.
Like computers, robots are becoming so commonplace in our lives that we are learning about them in school where kids are learning about robotics. Because STEM literacy is so important nowadays in our lives, students are encouraged to start learning about robotics as early as possible.
Robotics can help you gain skills like coding, problem-solving, communication, teamwork, and creativity. It provides you with the skills needed for almost any kind of education or job that you might want to pursue when you get older.
Some people are afraid of robots because they fear that, along with A.I., they will some day take over the world and enslave humans. But, like A.I., it is our responsibility as their creators to teach them how to get along with us.
Besides being helpful, robots can entertain and amuse us as toys, TV shows, and movies. To get an idea of what is out there, all you have to do is a computer search for “robots.” It is interesting and fun to see what is out there already. And to imagine just what kind of new robots the experts are going to come up with in the future.
Who knows? Your robotics classes could lead to you inventing the next great robot.
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Secret Agent 6th Grader: Selfies Are Forever
The name’s Valentine, Brody Valentine, and I’m back with my fourth case. The sixth graders of Buchanan School are on a trip to the mall to watch our award winning show choir perform in the food court. Sounds like a pretty sweet gig, right? Not when there’s danger lurking in the background. Someone’s decided to use this trip to string along the last members of Glitch by forcing us on a wild selfie chase, but as it turns out, that was just the tip of the iceberg. Now, one of the best days of the school year is in danger of becoming one of the worst. If I want to keep Glitch alive, I’ve gotta try and solve this case before the show choir takes the stage, but in a case with more twists than a pretzel, things might knot work out for anyone… and they might feel a little salty… and these puns are kind of cinnamon crunchy… wait, that last one didn’t work.
From authors Marcus Emerson and Noah Child for Readers 8-12.
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Machu Picchu—Mysteries of the Lost City
This ancient Incan city is hidden amidst the lush greenery and the towering peaks of the Andes Mountains. It isn’t just a collection of ruins; it’s a testament to the ingenuity and brilliance of an ancient civilization. And it has captured the imaginations of people around the world.
Here’s a cool fact about the discovery of this lost city—the place probably would never have been discovered without the help of a kid just like you. You see, after two years of research to pinpoint the location of the “Lost City of the Incas” and raise money for his expedition, intrepid American historian and explorer Hiram Bingham set off into the Peruvian jungle in 1911 with nothing more than an educated guess as to where it might be. He eventually only found the spot with the aid of an 11-year-old Quechua Indian boy.
Upon discovering the site, Bingham wondered, “What could this place be?” A century later, we still don’t know why they constructed this place on a spot that practically touches the sky. Nobody is quite sure when Machu Picchu was first built—educated guesses put it at around 1450—or why it was abandoned a century later. Researchers still aren’t sure what its original function might have been—a place of worship, a royal estate, an astronomical observatory? And nobody can say with any certainty what became of its original inhabitants.
The Inca were the end result of 5,000 years of a civilization that started at the same time as Egypt and Mesopotamia. Because of conquest and disease, however, they were only around for 100 years. But they left behind this undisturbed site that is just incredible.
About a third of the ruins have been reconstructed. And it’s easy to imagine how the city must have looked in Inca times, clinging to the top of an emerald green mountain ridge in the rain forest. The site comprises a main plaza—flanked by stone homes, temples, workshops, bathing areas, and a royal palace, surrounded by stone terraces where maize and other crops were grown. Estimates put the population at no more than 1,000 at any given time. Although the reconstructed temples are the most impressive buildings, Machu Picchu’s most important structure is the Intihuatana or “hitching post of the sun,” a mysterious abstract stone construction that ancient priests may have used to study the heavens and make astrological predictions.
At the Temple of the Condor, you can see how the large stone in the middle of the structure has been carved to resemble the head and neck feathers of a huge Andean bird, and how the rocks behind are shaped into outspread condor wings. And gazing down on the Temple of the Sun, you can see the Serpent Window, which, according to legend, was used to admit snakes to the shrine.
Even without knowing the background, cosmology (cosmology is the study of the origin and development of the universe), or history of the Inca and Machu Picchu, it is incredibly impressive. The more you observe and see, the more you wonder about it. How did these people do this? And why?
Machu Picchu was built on two fault lines, so it is no stranger to earthquakes. When one occurs, the stones bounce like they are dancing and then fall back into place. It is because of this engineering feat that the site still stands today.
Some more interesting facts about the place. More than a hundred skeletons were found at the site. Today, we now know that they were close to evenly split between women and men.
Hiram Bingham thought he had discovered the Lost City of Vilcabamba, even though we now know it was Machu Picchu. Unbeknownst to him, he had also traveled through Vilcabamba in 1911.
Machu Picchu is built on a mountain ridge that is 7,970 feet high (2,430 meters). 5,280 feet equals one mile. So, Machu Picchu is almost 1 and one-half miles high. Think how long it would take you to hike all the way to the top of that mountain ridge since it is almost straight up in the air. That’s a lot of climbing to do.
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Jinxed
The Golden Compass meets the digital age! When a coding star enters an elite technology academy, she discovers a world of competition, intrigue, and family secrets—plus a robotic companion that isn’t what it seems.
Lacey Chu is a girl who codes. She has always dreamed of working as an engineer for MONCHA, the biggest tech firm in the world and the company behind the “baku”—a customizable “pet” with all the capabilities of a smartphone. But when Lacey is rejected by the elite academy that promises that future, she’s crushed.
One night, Lacey comes across the broken form of a highly advanced baku. After she repairs it, the cat-shaped baku she calls Jinx opens its eyes and somehow gets her into her dream school. But Jinx is different than any other baku she’s ever seen…He seems real.
As Lacey settles into life at school, competing with the best students in a battle of the bakus that tests her abilities, she learns that Jinx is part of a dangerous secret. Can Lacey hold on to Jinx and her dreams for the future?
From author Amy McCulloch for Readers 9-12.
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Hiking–Exploring Nature’s Playground
The warm sunshine on your face, the sound of the wind rushing through the trees overhead, and the soft earthy feel of the trail under your boots. Not only are these experiences enjoyable to have, but they’re good for you, too. Hiking offers physical exercise and emotional relief.
Hiking is one of the best ways to get exercise. Whether you scramble up a steep incline or are walking on a winding dirt path, hiking is the perfect opportunity to get a workout!
Being in nature can boost your mood and improve your mental health. Spending quality time in the great outdoors reduces stress and calms anxiety. Hiking, taking in the sights and smells of nature, is good for you.
Hiking with a friend or a group of friends is fun. And the fun fact is that you can hike just about anywhere, as long as you are careful and tell others where you are going. The opportunities and benefits of hiking are waiting for you. All you have to do is go.
To get started, you need to choose the right hike. And you need to be aware of some safety tips when you are going on an extended Nature hike.
The first step to pleasurable hiking is gauging your physical limits and choosing a trip to fit your physical abilities. Key factors to consider are distance, elevation change and the type of terrain.
If you’re a newbie, start with short, simple walks and work your way up. If possible, hike with a companion or in a group with more experience. Not only will it be safer and more fun, you can share in others’ knowledge and skills. Clubs and guided walks are also great ways to learn the basics.
For the more adventuresome among you—consider going on longer hikes in Nature. For those of you who want to venture away from your city with its parks and hiking paths, here are some safety tips you will want to consider. But, whatever you do, just make sure that you let somebody know where you will be hiking and when you expect to return. Plus, do not hike alone. Just in case an accident or a serious incident happens to you while you are out hiking, a companion can help save your life by getting help for you.
To begin your long hike, start by wearing layered clothing to protect yourself from the elements and to help regulate your body temperature. With layered clothing, you can add or subtract as needed. A dependable waterproof jacket is vital, of course. As is a hat—broad-brim for sunny days, a woolly hat for the cold. The general rule of thumb is always to be prepared for the worst conditions.
So, pay attention to the weather.
Choose good boots—your feet and ankles will thank you. So will your back and the rest of your body.
Carry a comfortable backpack. If you’re going to carry a heavy load for long periods, get a backpack with a good harness. A properly fitted backpack allows freedom of movement, but doesn’t swing from side to side.
Pack lightly for long hikes, including lightweight food in plastic bags. Also, make sure you have water. Food is your fuel, so pack foods that are high energy and nutritious. Tasty treats such as chocolate can also work wonders.
Pace yourself. Enjoyable hiking depends on endurance, not speed. Take regular rest stops to take the weight off, rehydrate, and nibble some nuts—three moves guaranteed to keep you smiling.
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