Kids

A Uganda Little League Baseball team.
Kids News Sports

Canadian Little Leaguers Travel To Uganda

In the African country of Uganda, there are two million orphans. Nearly half of the children have lost their parents from AIDS, a terrible and widespread disease.

Many children are very poor. Many live in slums.

However, some children in Uganda have found something great that helps them in their lives: playing baseball.

Uganda’s Little League team is very good. So good, in fact, that last year they beat the team that had held the regional championship for 11 years, Saudi Arabia.

It was the first time that an African team had won the regional tournament.

Kids Lighter Science

Are Parents Smarter Than Their Kids In Math And Science? Maybe Not

Do you think you know more about science than your parents do? You could be right.

At a big science fair in England last November, 2,000 moms and dads were asked what sort of questions their kids had about science, and how they answer them.

Most of the parents said they found it hard to answer their children’s questions. A few of them said they think their kids know more about science than they do.

Kids News Politics

Toronto Kids Learn Lessons At City Hall

Yesterday, some schoolkids in Toronto learned first-hand what democracy is all about.

Toronto’s mayor, Rob Ford, was proposing some cuts to the city’s budget.

He said many of the city’s services should go on the chopping block to balance the city’s budget, including closing down services at: 10 arenas, three daycares, three shelters, a city zoo and a farm on Toronto Island.

The city also proposed cutting services like swimming lessons at five swimming pools in Toronto schools. That could potentially lead to the pools being closed in the future.

The parents and kids at those schools went into action to try to prevent the budget cuts.

Entertainment Kids

Justin Bieber Is Home For The Holidays

Justin Bieber came home for the holidays on Wednesday night – to Canada.

The Stratford, Ont.-born teen idol spread plenty of good cheer while visiting Toronto.

One of the first things he did on arriving in the country was to hold a benefit concert and raise $500,000 for Bieber’s Believe charity, for the Children’s Wish Foundation of Canada, Sunnybrook Foundation and Project Medishare.

The concert, held at Toronto’s historic Massey Hall, was taped for a TV special that aired on MuchMusic and CTV last night. It was called Justin Bieber: Home for the Holidays.

Kids Lighter Sports

Manchester Signs Five-Year-Old

The famous Manchester United soccer team has waited two years to sign Charlie Jackson to the team.

That’s because he was only three years old—they waited until he was five.

Coaches at United say that Jackson is going to be a superstar player.

Even at three years of age, he impressed talent scouts with his ability to handle and control the ball.

Kids Lighter News

Lady Gaga’s Message To One Toronto School

Students at the Etobicoke School of the Arts had a special guest at their anti-bullying assembly last week.

Lady Gaga sent the Toronto school a specially recorded video message.

The student council president, Jacques St. Pierre, is a huge fan of Lady Gaga.

He had sent emails to several celebrities, asking them to help launch the school’s anti-bullying campaign.

He was thrilled when Lady Gaga read his email and responded.

St. Pierre was the only student at the school who knew about the video until the assembly.

Kids News

Toronto School Bans Balls

Students at Earl Beatty Public School in Toronto aren’t allowed to play with balls in their school playground any more.

The school has banned balls – including soccer balls, footballs, baseballs and tennis balls – from its playground.

Kids can only play with soft, foam balls such as Nerf balls.

The ban was put in place after a parent was hit in the head with a soccer ball and suffered a concussion.

The school’s principal, Alicia Fernandez, said kids were often getting hurt by balls in the playground.

She said they were sometimes scared.

She also pointed out that the school has a very small outdoor play area.

Some parents say the ban is an overreaction.

Gifts
Arts Kids

Grade-One Students In Canada Getting “Gifts”

This month, every child in Grade one in Canada will receive a free book.

That will be every grade-one child, including those who are home-schooled, or in any school in the country, private or public, French-speaking or English-speaking.

The book giveaway is the product of a partnership between TD (the bank) and the Canadian Children’s Book Centre (CCBC).

The bank pays more than $1-million to have 500,000 books printed and sent out to grade-one students across the country. This is the program’s eleventh year.

This year the books the kids will get is Gifts (Cadeaux, translated into French), by author Jo Ellen Bogart and plasticine artist Barbara Reid.

Health Kids

12-Year-Old Boy Delivers His Baby Brother

Gaelan Edwards is a special kid. He’s 12 years old and lives in Campbell River, BC. He has three siblings, Gage, Rhianna and Rowan.

But it’s his newest brother whose birthday he’ll probably never forget. That’s because on Aug. 21, Gaelan delivered his brother.

Around 2 a.m., his pregnant mother woke up and shouted for Gaelan. She said she was going to have the baby.

Gaelan wondered what to do, and worried that if he didn’t catch the baby as it came out it might get hurt.

So he went into action. He pulled the baby out by the shoulders. Then, without being told, he ran to the kitchen and got a pair of scissors.

Arts Entertainment Kids Technology

Pottermore Revealed… Sort Of

Harry Potter author J. K. Rowling has finally revealed some of what Pottermore.com will have on it.

But it will be a bit difficult to understand exactly what will be on the new website until it’s fully up and running and that won’t be until October for most people.

One million lucky Harry Potter fans will be able to test the Pottermore site in a sneak preview starting on July 31, Harry’s birthday.

In a YouTube announcement and during a media conference in London, England, Rowling revealed that Pottermore will:

•Include more information and “back story” on some of the Harry Potter characters including Professor McGonagall (her childhood, ministry career, early heartbreak and her long friendship with Dumbledore), and how Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon met (at work, apparently).

•Include more than 18,000 words about Harry Potter and the characters, written by Rowling.

•Include a Pottermore shop where you can buy Harry Potter ebooks (digital books).