Apps For Kids

If you visit a National Park this summer, you might see wild animals. No matter how cute they look, remember they can be dangerous. Wild ponies, bison, moose, deer, or bears, can cause serious damage. Remember also to never feed wild animals like ducks or chipmunks. It makes them depend on humans for food.

Sometimes scientists find life, in unexpected places. An entire ecosystem lives beneath undersea volcanic vents near Central America. Using an underwater robot, a team found worms, snails, and bacteria, living underground. The world is hidden underneath the hydrothermal vents, and could hold lifeforms previously unknown to humans. They’re still studying this fascinating ecosystem.

Some kids have already started back to school, and most others will start in the next few weeks. Do you remember how to stay safe from viruses? Wash your hands often with soap, and use hand sanitizer. Wear a mask if you’re sick, to protect others. Most importantly, get vaccinated for the best protection of all.

Lefties, this day is for you! It’s International Left-Handers Day! About 10% of the population is left-handed. To stand out today, make people awkwardly shake hands with their left hands. Ask right-handers to write, or throw a ball with their left hands, for a good laugh.

The peak of the Perseid meteor showers, is tonight and tomorrow morning, before dawn. Stay up late or get up early, to watch as the Earth passes through fields of comet waste. The debris burns up, causing the shooting stars in our skies. Dark skies are best, to see the trails of light.

Elephants are the largest land mammals in the world. Their skin is an inch thick. They can weigh over 12,000 pounds, and grow 10 feet tall. They eat 300-600 pounds of food a day, with around 220 pounds coming back out as poop. Celebrate these amazing animals, for World Elephant Day!

Today is the United Nations’ International Youth Day. The theme this year, is “Different Contexts, Common Aspirations.” Kids from different cultures or economic situations, still have similar hopes for a happy life. Young people like Greta Thunberg have taken global ideas, and put them in action in their local communities. Dream big!

It’s World Calligraphy Day, celebrating the artistry of writing. You can use a fountain pen, a wide-tipped marker, a brush, or a feather quill and ink. Look up calligraphy styles, and practice writing each letter carefully. Even a shopping list can look like a fancy wedding invitation, when written in calligraphy!

Today is Vinyl Record Day. These big flat discs with a spiral groove, store sound. Dig out a record player and dance!! Or, watch the Slow Mo Guys Spin a vinyl record so fast that it shatters, on their YouTube channel. Their camera films 343,000 frames-per-second. Everything’s amazing in slow motion!

Grab your eclipse glasses, to view a solar eclipse today! The path of totality will be over Iceland, but much of Europe and North America will experience a partial eclipse, when the moon blocks part of the sun. Never look directly at the sun. Try looking at leaf shadows on the ground instead.