Tag: grade 7

Kids News Technology

New Video Game Helps Kids With Autism

An amazing new “video game” is helping kids with autism show their emotions in their facial expressions.

Autism affects the brain’s development of social and communication skills.

People with autism typically have difficulty recognizing facial expressions and emotions.

The new video game, called FaceMaze, was developed to help kids with autism recognize what certain emotions look like, and what they mean—for instance, smiling, frowning or looking sad.

The video game looks and plays a lot like Pac-Man, a popular video game from the 1980s.

Breaking News News Politics

Two Canadian Political Parties In Hot Water Over Use Of Technology

During elections, people often get a recorded message on their telephone that reminds them to vote and tells them where to go, to vote.

These messages, which use pre-recorded voices, are known as robo-calls.

Canada’s federal Conservative party is being accused of using robo-calls to mislead the public, during last year’s election.

The RCMP and Elections Canada (the group that makes the rules for elections), are looking into accusations that some robo-calls steered voters to the wrong polling station, or to polling stations that didn’t even exist, which would be illegal.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper says he doesn’t know anything about the illegal robo-calls.

Breaking News News Politics

Scotland May Hold Independence Referendum

For the first time in three centuries, the united part of the United Kingdom may be in trouble.

The Scottish National Party (SNP), the party that runs Scotland day-to-day, is urging the Scottish people to support independence from Britain. However it still wants to keep the Queen as official leader.

Last week, British Prime Minister Gordon Cameron went to Scotland to argue that Scotland should not separate from Great Britain.

Scotland and England have been together since 1707 when the Kingdom of Great Britain was formed under the rule of the British. Ireland and Wales were already under British rule at that time.

News Politics

Syria’s “New Constitution” Ignites Further Conflict

Syria is a country in the Middle East.

Many Syrians have been protesting against its government, which has been accused of doing terrible things to its own people.

The leader of Syria is President Bashar al-Assad.

The fighting between the Syrian government and its opponents this year has been intense and very violent.

Many Syrians want al-Assad to step down as leader. They want to be able to elect a new leader. (Bashar al-Assad’s family has ruled Syria for more than 40 years.)

Animals Environment News

World’s Smallest Chameleon Discovered

Scientists have discovered a chameleon so small it could sit on your little finger.

The chameleon, which is about three centimetres long, lives on a small island called Nosy Hara, off the coast of Madagascar, in the Indian Ocean.

It is the smallest chameleon and possibly the smallest reptile ever discovered. It lives among rocks and leaves on the forest floor. At night it sleeps on plants, about five to 10 centimetres above the ground.

It is mostly grey and brown with an orange tail, and it doesn’t change colour like most chameleons do. The scientists say this is because it’s already the right colour to blend in with its surroundings.

Breaking News News Politics

Greece To Get New €130B Bailout

Greece was in trouble because it took on too much debt.

But other countries have agreed to help Greece by lending the country more than 130-billion euros. Euros (€) are the units of money used in 17 countries in Europe including Greece, France and Germany.

The countries that have agreed to bail Greece out of its money problems are demanding something in return. They are insisting that the government of Greece spend less.

News Politics

Head Of TTC Fired; Toronto Council Divided About Transit

The head of the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) was fired from his job this week.

Most people think it’s because he disagreed with Toronto’s mayor’s plans for public transit.

In this case, public transit refers to the city’s system of buses, subways and streetcars.

Gary Webster has worked at the TTC since 1986; for nearly six years he has been the TTC’s Chief General Manager.

As the head of the TTC, part of Webster’s job was to advise Toronto’s politicians about how the city’s transit system should operate.

News

Is The Colosseum Crumbling?

The Italian government is trying to figure out if there is any truth to reports that rock is falling from the Colosseum.

The Colosseum is a world-famous landmark in Rome, Italy. It is the place where gladiators fought during the time of the Roman Empire (around 80 AD).

It has been damaged over the years by earthquakes and stone robbers, but it remains one of Rome’s most popular tourist attractions.

News Sports

Who is Jeremy Lin?

On Feb. 4, The New York Knicks basketball team played the New Jersey Nets at Madison Square Gardens in New York City.

The Nets played hard, but they simply couldn’t beat this Knicks team. There was something special about them… and that was Jeremy Lin.

Jeremy Lin turned heads during that game by scoring 25 points and adding seven assists.

Good numbers for any player, but especially for an undrafted player with only a handful of games under his belt.

But this where the story really gets good.

News

Dramatic Rescue In Pacific Ocean For Three Canadians

Nine-year-old West James was sailing to Hawaii with his father, Brad, and his uncle, Mitchell last week.

The boy had permission from his mother and teacher to take the trip if he documented (wrote about) the voyage.

The three were in the Pacific Ocean on their way to Mexico when they ran into a series of squalls, sudden storms with high winds and waves.

The storms flooded the sailboat’s engine and damaged their boat’s mast. They tried to rig a new sail, but it blew away.

When Mitchell James tried to fix the mast, he fell into the cold, choppy water. The others got him back in the boat but they feared he had a concussion (head injury).