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Halloween is here, and we thought it would be fun to hear about YOUR Halloween costumes to try to guess what the most popular Halloween costume of 2011 will be. Our Scholastic Kids Council sent us pics of some of their Halloween costumes (past and current). We are trying to predict what the most popular Halloween costume will be this year, so let's see what the trends are. . .
Continue reading "Most Popular Halloween Costume of 2011?" »
I SPY Castle Nintendo DS Game (rated E)
Meet Sam, a producer of I SPY Castle Nintendo DS game, as he answers our questions about making this brand new game! Sam will give you a sneak peek at some exciting and unique features of this game, as well as a glimpse into the creativity behind bringing your favorite series to life on the DS screen.
Q: One unique feature of I SPY Castle is the castle environment. How did you come up with the ideas for the setting?
Sam: The setting for any I SPY game has to be immediately interesting. And it has to have cool rooms with lots of stuff in them so that you have places to hide things. A castle obviously has both of these things. Of course, creating a new setting meant that we didn’t have the I SPY book pages to give us direction, which was both a tremendous opportunity and a challenge.
Q: How did you come up with the ideas for the game narrative and story?
Sam: We started with the question, "What do kids want to do in a castle?" We imagined kids on vacation at a castle with their parents in modern times. What do they wish would happen? They want to find hidden rooms and ancient secrets. We thought about finding a lost treasure, but that felt too much like our I SPY Treasure Hunt game. We finally settled on a story about dragons where kids get to do something very, very cool at the end.
Q: Where did you get the inspiration for what the castle and each of the rooms would look like?
Sam: We looked at lots of web sites about castles, lots of floor plans, lots of castle books, and made a list of all the places that a kid would like to visit: an armory, a throne room, a princess’s bedroom, a dungeon, the top of the tower, the moat. Once we had the list, our lead designer created a floor plan.
Q: What was the most challenging part of working on I SPY Castle?
Sam: The art is almost always the most challenging part of an I SPY game because the books set such a high standard, and this is what sets I SPY games apart from other hidden object games. I’m proud of all the various, beautiful, clever scenes that the art team created.
Q: What makes I SPY Castle different from the other I SPY DS games?
Sam: I SPY Castle is the most story-intensive I SPY game that we’ve done. Most of the castle is closed at the beginning and you have to figure out how to open doors to hidden places, so the world of the game keeps getting bigger. There are really two storylines. You have a quest that you’re trying to complete in the present, and at the same time you’re finding out what happened in the castle a thousand years in the past.
Q: Do you have a favorite part of the I SPY Castle?
Sam: My favorite part is the mini-games that are hidden in every scene. You get to do things like shoot an arrow, train a falcon, mix a potion, and lots more.
--Amabel, Scholastic Media
UPDATE: The new I SPY Castle game will be one of the prizes in the STACKS Blast Sweepstakes! Sign up now so you can enter for a chance to win!
Kid Power! Kids can make a difference! Every Thursday on Ink Splot 26, we'll show you a new idea for how YOU can make the world a better place.
Have you ever noticed that when you post on any of the Ink Splot 26 blogs and Message Boards, it does not appear right away? One of the reasons for this is to prevent harmful and mean comments from being made public.
Bullies are everywhere: in school, in books, and online. We all know about popular kids who try to hurt our feelings, or people who spread rumors about us. Cyberbullying is when someone posts comments online that can hurt another person's feelings. It can also be posting personal information about another person without his or her permission. Words can be very harmful, and sometimes the things you say online can really damage another person's confidence or self-esteem. We would never want to hurt anyone's feelings and make them feel like an outcast!
Here's what YOU can do. First of all, make sure that you are not the cyberbully. Think before you post! You should always treat others the way you want to be treated. If you're not sure, talk to a trusted adult about what you can and cannot say on the internet. Remember, you should never post anything online that you can't take back. If you're about to post something, read it back first and imagine that someone is posting it about you. How does it feel? Not so nice? Don't post it.
If you see your friend posting something mean, tell him or her that it's not cool. Don't just keep quiet and go along with it because it's your friend. Stand up for what's right! Also, if you see some mean comments about someone, go out of your way to say something nice to/about that person. Your kind comments will lead by example and show others that being nice is always the best way to be. Use your Kid Power to make the other person feel good!
And, if someone posts something negative about you, first talk to a trusted adult about it. Don't just take it! You might be able to report the username to a website administrator, and you may also have the option to block your cyberbully. By speaking up, you prevent the cyberbullying from escalating, and you stay out of trouble. Then, you should just walk away. If you give in to cyberbullies' comments, you are "letting them win." When you don't respond to a cyberbully, you show that you are the bigger person, and you have more important things to do with your life than let someone bring you down.
Cyberbullying can happen to anyone, and if you take a stand against it, you can make the world a better place. It is easy to make change, and it starts with you! For more information about how to stop bullies, check out the Stand Up to Bullying Special Report.
A few weeks ago we asked you to write in your questions for the Master of Fright, Goosebumps author, R.L. Stine. He answered questions from 10 lucky readers, so read on to see if yours was chosen!
Q from SilverSnake: Which character do you think is most like you? Which character is most unlike you?
R.L. Stine: I like to think I'm like all my crazy characters—Slappy the dummy, who's so rude and awful; Dr. Maniac; The Ooze; The Menace, the evil villain from HorrorLand. But in real life, I'm more like Evan, the poor kid who lets the Monster Blood loose and doesn't have a clue how to defeat it.
Q from Raggweed: Since Goosebumps creeps me out, how can you not be scared, and keep making them? They freak even my older relatives out, so are you afraid of your own creations too?
R.L. Stine: Scary stuff NEVER scares me. Horror always makes me laugh instead. When I go to a scary movie, I don’t get scared—I just laugh. Same for writing Goosebumps books.
Q from Mysterygirl123: If you could be a monster for a day, what monster would you choose? Why? R.L. Stine: I would be a giant jellyfish from Deep Trouble because I like to swim a lot.
Q from ArtAthena13: What would you say to a kid who wants to be an author?
R.L. Stine: Write something every day. Keep a journal or a diary. And make sure you read a LOT!
Q from cnahk: Do you ever want to write something less scary?
R.L. Stine: I love writing funny books, too. That's why I wrote the Rotten School book series. I also try to put a lot of funny stuff in Goosebumps.
Q from Niki: Who's your favorite character? Why?
R.L. Stine: Slappy the evil dummy. I like writing all the insults and rude things he says to people.
Q from AstronomyAble3: Who is your inspiration and icon?
R.L. Stine: Many writers have inspired me. I think the sci-fi author Ray Bradbury was a big influence. Also, Rod Serling, who wrote The Twilight Zone.
Q from Lexi: Are you a prankster with scaring people?
R.L. Stine: No. Maybe I scared my little brother a few times when we were kids. But I'm not really into pranks and jokes. Too busy writing!
Q from CheerfulHeart15: What's your favorite book of Goosebumps that you wrote? Were you good at telling ghost stories when you were young?
R.L. Stine: My favorite Goosebumps book is The Haunted Mask. I was too shy to tell ghost stories when I was a kid. I was a very quiet kid.
Q from OreoPie09: How do you come up with such creepy stuff and do you believe in ghosts?
R.L. Stine: I don’t know where the ideas come from. I've never seen a ghost—but I keep looking!
Q from Megan: Would you ever consider doing like a Nancy Drew type of book series for girls?
Q from Georgia: When you do your next book why not call it Zombieland?!
Q from NinjaCobra1: Why don't you make a Goosebumps book about a boy who likes scary movies, and finds out that all the monsters are coming to life?
Nice ideas. Thanks for the suggestions.
-- R.L.
Happy Halloween Spooky Splotters! We know you are big fans of Would You Rather. . . ?, so we thought we’d combine the two for some frightening fun. Ok, maybe not so frightening. . . but you get the idea!
Would you rather. . .
Last week I posted some World Series Trivia to get you psyched for the series. How did you guys do? Did you hit it out of the ballpark, or strike out? Check out the answers below!
Wahoo! We’ve been talking about The Magic School Bus a lot recently, not only because we’re some of Ms. Frizzle’s biggest fans (favorite book series, anyone?), but also because Scholastic is celebrating 25 years of adventures with The Magic School Bus!
Continue reading "Magic School Bus 25th Anniversary Celebration" »
This week our Write On! Writing Prompt comes to us from B. (How mysterious. I love our Splotter's enigmatic initial!) B challenges us:
Write a story with one of the character’s first names being Quackledorph.
Ok, here’s my go at it. . .
Once upon a time there was a girl named Annabella Quackledorph. Her friends called her Quack. But because of this, ducks started following her around everywhere. She got so annoyed. So she decided to change her look and go goth. She wore black nails, black lipstick, and black hair. But this scared her baby sister, who freaked out and cried. Her mom made her change back. So she asked her friends to call her Q instead. The name stuck. And this is how she got her new name.
Ridiculous? I’m afraid so. I know you guys can do better! Leave your story featuring a character named Quackledorph in the Comments below. B, if you’re out there, let us know what you think of the stories. And if you can, give us a clue what the “B” stands for!
—Ratha, Stacks Writer
Last year, when the How to Train Your Dragon DVD came out, we had a Q & A with Hiccup where he answered questions submitted by you, loyal readers! Well, some of you asked if there was going to be another movie, and guess what? There is! DreamWorks Dragons, a double DVD and Online Video Game Pack, will be released on November 15.
On Disc 1, the epic story of Hiccup and Toothless continues as they take flight in a thrilling, all-new adventure to discover an island of never-before-seen dragons. You'll discover new mythology and training secrets from Hiccup, Astrid and Gobber. Then on Disc 2, test your skills in the Dragons Online Video Game where you create your own avatar then battle and train new dragons, win badges and become the ultimate dragon trainer.
We know you have all kinds of questions, and since we had Hiccup here last time, for this DVD, Astrid and Gobber will visit for a Q & A! Now is your chance to ask Astrid and Gobber everything you want to know about dragons, what it's like to be a Viking movie star, and what they really think about Hiccup!
Leave your questions for Astrid and Gobber in the Comments and come back on November 11 for the answers.
UPDATE 11/10/11: Thanks so much for all your wonderful questions, but we have bad news. We just found out that Astrid and Gobber will not be able to visit the STACKS to answer them. We are so sorry!
Image Courtesy DreamWorks
Kid Power! Kids can make a difference! Every Thursday on Ink Splot 26, we’ll show you a new idea for how YOU can make the world a better place.
“Be the change you wish to see in the world.” This quote by Mahatma Ghandi means that if you want to make a difference, you can start with yourself. Get involved in your community, school, and neighborhood! You may be thinking, “I want to make a difference, but I don’t know how and for what?” This is easy. Start by asking yourself, “What am I passionate about?” Do you love animals? How do you feel about equal opportunities? Do you feel like more people need to be informed about health issues? Choose a few causes and see which one makes your heart pump the hardest, which one drives you to want immediate change.
Locks of Love is one example of how you can help other kids. Locks of Love is an organization that makes hairpieces with donated hair and gives them to children who have lost their hair due to a medical condition. That way, kids suffering from hair loss get to feel happy and confident again!
12-year-old Ashlyn Stewart, Scholastic News Kids Press reporter, donated 12 inches of her hair to Locks of Love. One of her close friends was getting teased about her hair loss from the skin condition, alopecia, and Ashlyn decided it was time to take action. Read more about Ashlyn’s experience.
As you can see, making a difference can be a simple and genuine act. Ashlyn saw her friend being teased, and she did something about it. You can start anywhere: you can help out a friend, volunteer to walk a neighbor’s dog, sign up for a national organization, and the list goes on. And, you don’t have to restrict yourself to just one cause; you can always support your friends’ causes as well. Ask your parents or school about how to get more involved.
Are you interested in donating your hair to Locks of Love? Go for it! Click here to find out how. And keep reading Ink Splot 26 every Thursday for more ways to use your Kid Power to make the world a better place!
Thrills & Chills! With the weather getting chilly and daylight hours getting shorter, it's getting to be that time of year again. . . Halloween! From all the talk in the hallways about what costumes to wear, to the snarling jack-o-lanterns guarding the neighbors' front porches, Halloween preparations are well under way! For those of you who are looking for more frightful fun than "trick-or-treat," October is the perfect month to pick up your favorite scary stories, or sink your teeth into some new ones for an added chill factor! Leave it to Goosebumps to get you in the mood for the thrills and chills of the season.
Last week, you got a sneak peek of the new Hall of Horrors: Why I Quit Zombie School. This week, we want to invite you to Get Goosebumps. Get your terrific-ly terrifying creative hats on and write a caption for the Goosebumps picture below of the troublemaking ventriloquist dummy.
Dare to get Goosebumps? Post your caption in the Comments below.
—Amabel, Scholastic Media
If you are a baseball fan, you know what's going down on October 19th. Only the biggest baseball series of the year, the World Series. So batter up for some World Series Baseball Trivia. Will you score a homerun? Or strike out? Step up to the plate!
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