Apps For Kids

Today is World Penguin Day. Emperor penguins can grow to nearly 4 feet tall, while little blue penguins only reach 16 inches. Some people knit sweaters for penguins, to protect them from oil spills. There are no penguins at the North Pole. Except for the Galapagos penguin, they all live in the Southern Hemisphere!

Today is Telephone Day! Can you imagine a time without phones? In 1876, Alexander Graham Bell received the first patent for a telephone. Patents give the owner the rights to their invention. Elisha Gray and Antonio Meucci also invented versions of the telephone, but Bell got his patent first. Call someone on a phone today!

Nearly everyone has used a Crayola crayon in their life. The first box of kid-safe crayons, sold in 19-oh-3, cost a nickel, and had 8 colors. More than 750 colors have been developed since then, including a box with 24 different skin tones, so everyone can find their perfect match. Happy Crayola Day!

Here’s a fun experiment to try, since it’s Sense Of Smell Day. Hold your nose, then eat something. Could you taste it? The nose and mouth connect through the same passageway. That’s why sometimes when your nose is stuffed-up, you can’t taste anything. Now you know how to eat the yucky foods you hate!

Today is Malaria Day, but the disease is nothing to celebrate. Malaria is spread by infected mosquitoes, mostly in Sub-Saharan Africa. That’s one reason why mosquitoes are the world’s deadliest animal, killing 750,000 people a year! Birds and bats love to eat mosquitoes. Since it’s also Zucchini Bread Day, I’ll eat that instead!

Paleontologists in South Korea, have studied fossil footprints, to tell a prehistoric story. The evidence suggests a large, flying reptile, galloping across the ground in pursuit of a small animal. The chase occurred 106 million years ago. Since the footprints continued past the fossil slab, we’ll never know if the pterosaur caught its prey.

A rabbit in England named Herbie, is officially the oldest rabbit alive. The lionhead rabbit is more than 15 years old, which is double his life expectancy. One of Herbie’s favorite games when he was younger, was making his human friends chase him, then waiting until they caught up. Now, he likes to snuggle.

Trees are awesome. They clean pollution out of the air, and produce oxygen for us to breathe. They are food and shelter for wildlife. Trees give us shade, flowers, fruit and nuts, and wood. Today is Arbor Day, created to encourage everyone to plant a tree. What kind of tree will you plant?

Did you know it’s Scream Day? Have a screaming contest with your family, to see who’s the loudest. Find a place that echoes, to hear yourself scream back. Look at photos from the Screamotron3000, created by photographer Billy Hunt. In New Jersey, texting the Scream Truck, will bring an ice cream truck to you!

Today is Pig In A Blanket Day! Pretend you’re a little piglet and snuggle up in a blanket, while you eat bite-sized sausages wrapped in dough. It’s also Bucket List Day. Make a list of all the things you want to try in your life, and check them off in the years to come.