Paralympics Power!

Oscar Pistorius: first double amputee runner at the Olympic Games!

I'm sure by now you all know about the 2012 Olympics taking place in London this week. But do you know about the Paralympic Games? They will take place immediately following the close of the Olympic Games. "Para" is the Greek word meaning "beside," used to emphasize how the two Games exist side-by-side. Paralympians are athletes with physical disabilities (such as vision impairment, limb deficiency, or intellectual impairment) that would otherwise prevent them from equally competing with other athletes. They compete in the same sport events (swimming, volleyball, rugby, archery, etc.) as other athletes, but in their own league.

Dear Dumb Diary Year 2 Giveaway!

Dear Dumb Diary Year 2 Giveaway!

Dear Dumb Diary fans know that Jamie Kelly is in Year 2 of writing her dumb diary (which you do NOT have permission to read)! But. . . in case you did happen to sneak a peek into the first book from Year 2: School. Hasn't This Gone on Long Enough?, then you might be interested to know that the next book, titled The Super-Nice Are Super-Annoying, is coming out this month. (Steal a sneak peek at the first chapter here.)

AND, you can enter for a chance to win both books from Year 2 plus an autographed print from the author, Jim Benton! When you enter your reading minutes in the Summer Challenge, you can also enter for a chance to win this amazing prize! The contest ends on June 27, so go to the Summer Challenge now.

PS. If you haven't already seen how awesome Jim Benton is, then you should also watch this random, hilarious pancake love story video. Just watch it. That's all I'm sayin'.

— Sonja, STACKS Staffer

Harry Potter and Summer Reading 2012

Are you up for the Summer Challenge?

School is almost over and it's time to start getting ready for summer. You've been working your brain muscle and sharpening your skills all year, so you've earned some fun time for swimming, hanging out with friends, going to camp, and READING! Yay!

You know that reading isn't just for school. It is an all year activity, and we're challenging you to break the world record for the most minutes read over the summer. Last year in the Scholastic Summer Challenge, kids around the world read an impressive 64,213,141 minutes. We need your help to break that record, and you can earn prizes along the way!

Take the Scholastic Summer Challenge! You can:

Win Cool Stuff! You can participate in weekly challenges and win virtual prizes. Every month, you can enter a new sweepstake to win awesome prizes. Like right now, you have the chance to win a Harry Potter complete series box-set!

Have fun reading! You can chat with fellow readers on the message boards and look at a virtual world map to see how much kids in other countries are reading. You can find activities and book lists to help you decide what to read next.

Compete with kids around the world! Logging your reading minutes will help break the world record for reading minutes! PLUS, the 20 schools with the most minutes logged will be included in the 2013 Scholastic Book of World Records! How cool is that?!

The Challenge is happening now through August 31st. Are you ready to read?

BE BIG for National Volunteer Week!

BE BIG for National Volunteer Week, April 15-21!

Did you know that next week is National Volunteer Week? For more than 30 years, National Volunteer Week has been a time to celebrate people doing extraordinary things through service.

Service comes in lots of shapes and sizes and can be as simple as helping your librarian put books back on the shelf, or as BIG as organizing a camp for young people who stutter, just as Julie and her team did with the community grant their BIG Idea received in the 2011 Clifford BE BIG in Your Community Contest. Julie and her team put their grant money towards "Camp Shout Out," an overnight camp where young people who stutter can improve their communication skills while having fun in a camp setting. BIG or small, what matters is that you are helping make your community a better place for everyone!

HandsOn Network, Scholastic’s partner in the BE BIG Campaign, has action centers all over the country that can help you get involved in your community. 

Do you have a BIG Idea? Enter the 2012 Clifford BE BIG In Your Community Contest today for a chance to bring your BIG Idea to life with a $5,000 community grant! 

*NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Open to legal residents of the fifty (50) United Sates and District of Columbia. Contest ends June 22, 2012. Void where prohibited. Subject to all applicable laws. See Official Rules for details.

Kids' Choice Awards 2012

Vote for the Kids' Choice Awards!

 Some of our very favorite books were nominated for the 2012 Kids' Choice Awards, and YOU get to choose the winner! 

Of course, here at Scholastic, we are thrilled that two of our titles were nominated in the "Favorite Book" category. The Harry Potter series and The Hunger Games trilogy are both in the running. (Harry has actually won in this category before -- seven times already!)

FUN FACT from Nickelodeon: The last name Potter was inspired by J.K Rowling's childhood neighbors.

FUN FACT from Nickelodeon: The Hunger Games author, Suzanne Collins, used to write for the old school Nick show, Clarissa Explains It All.

Winners will be announced on the Kids' Choice Awards Show on March 31!

And PS, cutie boy band One Direction will be performing at the Awards Show too. Have you read our hilarious One Direction interview?

Kid Power! No Texting While Walking

Pedestrian Safety

Everyone knows that texting, playing Angry Birds, or listening to music through headphones while driving is extremely dangerous. You know that, right? RIGHT?? Well, recently, people have been wondering if it's even safe to walk or ride your bike while using distracting gadgets. If it keeps you from paying attention to the traffic, it could be dangerous.

Here are some facts from Grolier Online. Did you know. . .

• The number of traffic deaths involving pedestrians (walking people) increased in 2010.
• According to Hal Pashler, a brain scientist at the University of California, San Diego, even if you try to listen for traffic, loud music through your headphones can still confuse your brain.
• State Senator Carl Kruger of New York is now trying to pass a law that would fine citizens $100 for using electronic devices while crossing the street.
• In California, State Senator Joe Simitian is trying to pass a similar law to ban bicyclists from using tech gadgets.

It's easy to get distracted and forget to look for cars, especially when your song comes on and you start singing it real loud and dancing. (Yeah, you know who you are! I've seen you!) If the driver hears HIS song at that moment while you're crossing the street, and he's singing real loud and not paying attention, and texting his friend too. . . well, the next thing you know, KABLAM!

I am saying this because I love you. I don't want to scare you, but Kid Power means being responsible for yourself and not letting your brains get confused. Now that you know about the dangers, please tell your friends. Make posters and hang them up at school. Don't let anyone you know get distractified by their tech toys! And that includes your parents. You could save a life.

OK. That's all for now. I'm glad we had this little talk.

— Sonja, STACKS Staffer

Kids' Favorite Holiday Traditions

You met our Scholastic Kids Council on Halloween when they showed us their awesome Halloween costumes. This month, we wanted to find out what their favorite holiday traditions are. Everybody has different traditions but they all sound so cool!

Marlo, age 11, New Jersey

11-11-11

Hi everybody! Today is November 11, 2011: 11/11/11! Freaky, right?

Here is a trick to amaze your friends and family. Add your age to the last two digits of your birth year. The answer will be 11. For example, if you are 10 and were born in 2001 . . .
10 + 01 = 11

Try it. It will work with everyone born in this century. For people born in the 1900s, the answer will be 111 on account of we're older. Test it on your friends, your parents, your dog. (Wait, it might not work in dog years. But if it does, leave a Comment letting us know!)

I don't know why it works, but it does. It must be some fluke-y thing about 11, so Happy 11/11/11 Day! The numbers will never line up like this again in your lifetime unless you live another hundred years. Although . . . some people think the world is going to end in 2012. Personally, I'm not worried one bit. I think the world will still be around for 12/12/12 and beyond.

— Sonja, STACKS Staffer

Most Popular Halloween Costume of 2011?

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. . .

Magic School Bus 25th Anniversary Celebration

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!

Magic School Bus 25th Anniversary

Celebrating the 25th Anniversary of The Magic School Bus at Scholastic makes me think a lot about how much Ms. Frizzle and the bus influenced me growing up. In school, my favorite teachers always reminded me of Ms. Frizzle. OK — sometimes it was because of their really crazy hair — but usually it was the way they got me excited about learning, or even special field trips they would plan just for my class (the BEST kinds of field trips).

Even hearing a bus honk now takes me back to 5th grade science when we would watch the show or read the book in class and then talk about what the Friz and her class found inside of Ralphie, why our school bus couldn’t take us to outer space, or the importance of preserving ecosystems. The Magic School Bus made science so much easier to learn because it made everything so fun.

If you love The Magic School Bus too, check out the new Where Will the Bus Take You? online game to see where Ms. Frizzle is blasting off to! 

Seeing or reading The Magic School Bus makes me remember about my favorite classes and teachers. What does The Magic School Bus make YOU think of? Leave a Comment with your favorite Magic School Bus memories.

— Caitlin, Scholastic Media Staffer

Hurricane Trivia Quiz Answers

Beware Hurricane Season! Last week, the East Coast endured Hurricane Irene, and here on the STACKS, we tested your knowledge of hurricanes with a Hurricane Trivia Quiz. How much do you know about these brutal storms? Read on for the answers.