Apps For Kids

Have you ever heard thunder, while at the pool? The lifeguards make everyone exit the water, because a lightning strike would conduct electricity through the whole pool. That’s why you should also avoid taking a shower or washing dishes during a thunderstorm. Electrical and telephone cords can also provide a path for lightning.

Butter is made from milk, which comes from a cow. But sometimes, a cow is made from butter. The Illinois State Fair, unveiled its annual 500-pound butter cow sculpture. The 105th Butter Cow is accompanied by butter sculptures of a woman eating ice cream, and her dog on a scooter.

Bees are essential to pollinate crops, but honey bee populations have been declining. You can help the honey bees by planting more flowers, setting out water for them, and not using pesticides. Or start a beehive! Say thank you to a bee today, for World Honey Bee Day!

Do you do the same thing every day? Even if it’s something you love, like playing video games, your brain would like to try something new for Break The Monotony Day. Start with something new for breakfast. Next, how about a treasure hunt, for Geocaching Day? Check out Geocaching.com, to get started. Good luck!

How do you like to relax? Floating in a pool? Swinging in a hammock? Reading a good book? It’s Relaxation Day, so find the thing that relieves your stress, and do it! If it involves eating pie, even better, since it’s Lemon Meringue Pie Day. I’ll be eating mine outside, while listening to birds!

Today is World Lizard Day. From the giant 6-foot-long Komodo dragon, to the teeny-tiny 1-inch-long nano-chameleon, these amazing reptiles live all over the world. There are more than 7000 different lizard species. Chameleons can change color, geckos can walk on ceilings, and basilisks can run on water. Which scaly critter is your favorite?

On this day in 1457, the Mainz Psalter was the first book ever printed in blue, red, and black ink, using different-sized fonts. Celebrate Color Book Day, by reading a picture book. It’s also Wiffle Ball Day, invented nearly 500 years later. It’s like baseball, without the fear of breaking any windows.

Today is Creamsicle Day! Creamsicles are vanilla ice cream on a popsicle stick, covered with an orange flavored coating. 11 year-old Frank Epperson, made the original creamsicle in 1905, when he experimented with freezing orange juice around a vanilla ice cream popsicle. He originally called his inventions, “Epsicles”!

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.