March 2014 Volume 2 Issue 3
Come read, learn, and draw!
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Cover art by: Copyright © 2014 Brooke Parr
Kid's Imagination Train
Kid's Imagination Train
March 2014 Volume 2 Issue 3
ISSN 2333-987X
Editor-in-Chief: Randi Lynn Mrvos
Book Reviewer: Donna Smith
Illustrator: Brooke Parr
Marketing Director: Rosemarie Gillen Illustrator: Brooke Parr
Editorial Offices:
All across the United States
Publishing Office:
4637 Spring Creek Drive
Lexington, KY 40515
Mission Statement:
Welcome to the Kid's Imagination Train, where children can take the journey of reading in a brand new way. KIT offers book reviews, fiction, poetry, and nonfiction for kids ages 5 - 12. It’s unique in that it engages children by providing the opportunity to illustrate their favorite features and have them published online. We invite you to read, to learn, and to draw!
©Kid's Imagination Train
http://kidsimaginationtrain.com
CONTENTS
Volume 2 Issue 3
What's New This Month?
3...Fiction
Kite Rider
by Guy Belleranti
4...Nonfiction
Monumental Dream
by Anne Renaud
5...Book Review
What We Found in the Sofa and How It Changed the World
What We Found in the Sofa and How It Changed the World
by Donna Smith
6...Lesson Plan
Earth Science: Landforms and Bodies of Water
by Randi Lynn Mrvos
7...Lesson Plan Activity
This is My Country
by Randi Lynn Mrvos
Kite Rider
Mars came and went. The same with Jupiter, Saturn, and Uranus. I’d read about each in school. Now I was seeing them with my very own eyes. But how much farther would we travel? I was hungry and tired.
Rocket tried, but Neptune’s gravitational pull was stronger. Would I ever see Mom, Dad and D.J. again? Tears stung my eyes and rolled down my cheeks. There was nothing I could do. Nothing at all. I wiped away the tears and set my jaw. No, there was something I could do. I could be brave. I could not give up.
“Try again, Rocket,” I yelled. “Turn.”
Then I saw a flash and felt a tug so sharp that I almost lost my hold on the kite string. We were being pulled back into space, away from Neptune. Rocket had hooked on to an asteroid!
Written by: Guy Belleranti
I was bored. I’d finished my
chores, homework, and even two library books. I called my friend, D.J., but he
couldn’t come over. I couldn’t ride my bike either ‘cause it had a flat
tire. I stomped outside. The weather was great—70s and breezy. I love
breezes. They cool you down, make neat sounds in the leaves, and
are great for flying kites.
 |
| By: Steven |
Flying kites! Yeah,
that’s what I’ll do. I ran back in the house and dug my rocket kite out of
my closet. This will be fun. In no time, the breeze whipped
up and pulled my kite high into the sky. I gripped the string and it soared up
pulling…pulling. Suddenly, I felt nothing under my feet but air. Yikes! My
kite and I flew over the people down below.
We sailed higher, above trees, above buildings, even above downtown
skyscrapers. I held on tightly. Soon, the city became a tiny toy
town. The Earth was just a blue and white ball behind me. And I was outer
space bound!
 |
| By: Taylor |
Mars came and went. The same with Jupiter, Saturn, and Uranus. I’d read about each in school. Now I was seeing them with my very own eyes. But how much farther would we travel? I was hungry and tired.
"Turn around, Rocket!" I called.
My kite partially turned. Straight toward Neptune!
“No,” I cried. “Turn more.”
 |
| By: Henry |
“Try again, Rocket,” I yelled. “Turn.”
 |
| By: Maya |
“Giddy-up, asteroid!” I shouted. “Giddy-up, Rocket!"
Past Uranus we zoomed. Past Jupiter. I saw Saturn a second time and then Mars.
“Yippee!” I shouted as we sped toward Earth. Then I sucked in my breath. Would we crash into it? I shut my eyes.
I kept them closed until I heard a voice call out. I blinked when I saw who it was. The Man in the Moon!
Suddenly, the asteroid zipped in another direction. We broke free and headed straight back to earth. Rocket and I landed safely in the soft sand of our neighborhood playground. We were immediately surrounded by Mom, Dad and D. J. What a ride I had taken! I brushed myself off and began to tell them of it—until a breeze whipped up again.
 |
| By: Margot |
 |
| By: Frances |
"Hope you had a great ride!" he called.
 |
| By: Andrew |
3
Monumental Dream
A nine-story high face is carved into a mountain in the Black Hills of South Dakota. The sculpture is the result of more than half a century of work. It honors the spirit and the nobility of a Native American called Crazy Horse. Crazy Horse was known as Tasunke Witko, a Lakota word for “a horse that can perform extraordinary feats.”
Crazy Horse
Crazy Horse was hailed as the bravest of all Sioux warriors. He was born a Lakota Sioux of the Oglala tribe in the mid-1800s. He believed that nothing was more important than freedom. His people praised him for his fight to save the Lakota way of life as the white man invaded their lands and forced them to live on reservations. Crazy Horse distinguished himself for his courage at Little Bighorn, the greatest Sioux military victory.
The Black Hills
It had long been rumored that the sacred Black Hills of the Sioux were rich with gold. When prospectors confirmed the rumors in 1873, the United States government announced it wanted to buy the land from the Sioux. But the Sioux refused to give up their sacred Black Hills. The Black Hills were regarded as home of the Great Spirit. The land was given to them in 1868 according to the Fort Laramie Treaty.
In the fall of 1875, the government issued an ultimatum to all Sioux. They would voluntarily proceed to the Great Sioux Reservation by January of 1876 or be forcibly removed. Crazy Horse and his people stood their ground. Then on June 25, 1876, Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer and the Seventh Cavalry Regiment moved along the Bighorn River to Crazy Horse’s encampment. They prepared to attack. After the battle however, Custer and all of his men lay dead.
The Sioux victory was short-lived. From then on, soldiers far outnumbered the Indians in every battle they fought. And in 1877, Crazy Horse was captured. He died of a mortal bayonet wound at Fort Robinson.
The Making of a Monument
At the invitation of Chief Henry Standing Bear, sculptor Korczak Ziolkowski visited the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota in 1940. After learning about Crazy Horse and his people, he agreed to build the memorial. Work on the Crazy Horse Memorial began in 1948. Ziolkowski spent almost half of his life on the mountain. He had blasted off several million tons of granite. After his death in 1982, his wife and family continued the sculptor’s work on the educational and cultural project. Sixteen years later, the 88-foot high face of Crazy Horse was completed.
In the future, the mountain sculpture-in-the-round will dominate the landscape. Work is currently underway on the horse’s head. A hogan-style Indian Museum of North America will be built across a reflecting pool from the mountain. A poem penned by Ziolkowski will be carved on the mountain face in letters that will stand three-feet tall. The Crazy Horse Memorial will measure 641 feet long and stand 563 feet high. When it is completed, it will become the world’s largest sculpture.
Written by: Anne Renaud 4
A nine-story high face is carved into a mountain in the Black Hills of South Dakota. The sculpture is the result of more than half a century of work. It honors the spirit and the nobility of a Native American called Crazy Horse. Crazy Horse was known as Tasunke Witko, a Lakota word for “a horse that can perform extraordinary feats.”
Crazy Horse
Crazy Horse was hailed as the bravest of all Sioux warriors. He was born a Lakota Sioux of the Oglala tribe in the mid-1800s. He believed that nothing was more important than freedom. His people praised him for his fight to save the Lakota way of life as the white man invaded their lands and forced them to live on reservations. Crazy Horse distinguished himself for his courage at Little Bighorn, the greatest Sioux military victory.
The Black Hills
It had long been rumored that the sacred Black Hills of the Sioux were rich with gold. When prospectors confirmed the rumors in 1873, the United States government announced it wanted to buy the land from the Sioux. But the Sioux refused to give up their sacred Black Hills. The Black Hills were regarded as home of the Great Spirit. The land was given to them in 1868 according to the Fort Laramie Treaty.
In the fall of 1875, the government issued an ultimatum to all Sioux. They would voluntarily proceed to the Great Sioux Reservation by January of 1876 or be forcibly removed. Crazy Horse and his people stood their ground. Then on June 25, 1876, Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer and the Seventh Cavalry Regiment moved along the Bighorn River to Crazy Horse’s encampment. They prepared to attack. After the battle however, Custer and all of his men lay dead.
The Sioux victory was short-lived. From then on, soldiers far outnumbered the Indians in every battle they fought. And in 1877, Crazy Horse was captured. He died of a mortal bayonet wound at Fort Robinson.
The Making of a Monument
At the invitation of Chief Henry Standing Bear, sculptor Korczak Ziolkowski visited the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota in 1940. After learning about Crazy Horse and his people, he agreed to build the memorial. Work on the Crazy Horse Memorial began in 1948. Ziolkowski spent almost half of his life on the mountain. He had blasted off several million tons of granite. After his death in 1982, his wife and family continued the sculptor’s work on the educational and cultural project. Sixteen years later, the 88-foot high face of Crazy Horse was completed.
In the future, the mountain sculpture-in-the-round will dominate the landscape. Work is currently underway on the horse’s head. A hogan-style Indian Museum of North America will be built across a reflecting pool from the mountain. A poem penned by Ziolkowski will be carved on the mountain face in letters that will stand three-feet tall. The Crazy Horse Memorial will measure 641 feet long and stand 563 feet high. When it is completed, it will become the world’s largest sculpture.
Written by: Anne Renaud 4
Book Review:
What We Found in the Sofa and How It Saved the World
Name of Book: What We Found In the Sofa and How It Saved the World
Author: Henry ClarkYear Published: 2013
Age Range of Book: 9 - 12 years
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company
ISBN: 978-0-316-20666-2
Price: $13.56
The only hope for saving the world is a sofa, three middle school kids, and a rare zucchini-colored crayon.
The town of Cheshire isn’t an idyllic place to call home. Fiona, River, and Freak are kids who live on the edge of town that borders an area deemed Hellsboro because of an underground coal fire that has been burning for twelve years. The abandoned Rodmore Chemical plant sits at the center of Hellsboro.
After Fiona, River, and Freak find a sofa near their bus stop, they become involved in a mission to stop the evil Edward M. Disin from taking over the world. As the three face indecision about who to trust, they learn to rely on each other to stop Disin while discovering the truth behind the their own personal tragedies.
Henry Clark’s novel is filled with action and mystery along with threads of science fiction sewn into the story. Clark really makes the reader believe that someday your sofa could become more than a just a stuffed piece of furniture. The story entertains the reader with a spooky encounter, a life-altering twist, and a villain who would be comfortable in the company of Count Olaf and Voldemor.
Clark is a self-proclaimed couch potato, which may be why a sofa is an integral part of his story. He’s written articles for MAD magazine and he’s had stories appear in Isaac Asimov’s Science Fiction Magazine. In addition, he’s the head phrenologist at the living history museum, Old Bethpage Village Restoration, in New York.
Rating for the book: *****
Visit Donna Smith’s website: www.smithswritingstudio.com
<http://www.smithswritingstudio.com>
5
Clark is a self-proclaimed couch potato, which may be why a sofa is an integral part of his story. He’s written articles for MAD magazine and he’s had stories appear in Isaac Asimov’s Science Fiction Magazine. In addition, he’s the head phrenologist at the living history museum, Old Bethpage Village Restoration, in New York.
Rating for the book: *****
Visit Donna Smith’s website: www.smithswritingstudio.com
<http://www.smithswritingstudio.com>
5
Lesson Plan: Landforms and Bodies of Water
Landforms are
the natural features of a landscape. They are defined by their surface form and location in the landscape. Landforms have different shapes and sizes.
Some landforms are tall, like mountains.
Others are smaller, such as hills.
Landforms can form chains or circles in water, or be surrounded entirely
by water.
Bodies of water can take on
many sizes and shapes, too. Some bodies
of water can be partly enclosed by land, like gulfs. They can also be shaped like a horseshoe,
such as coves. Oceans are the largest
bodies of water, covering more than two-thirds of the Earth’s surface.
Landform Definitions:
Alluvial fan – a fan shaped
deposit of earth material caused by the flowing of a stream
from a steep slope onto flatter land
Barrier Sand Bar – a long, narrow strip of sand that results as waves
deposit particles
Basin – an area of land which is largely enclosed by higher
land
Canyon – a deep valley with very steep sides, often carved
by a river
Delta – the land
built up by the deposits of silt and sand at the mouth of some rivers
Divide – the highest ridge of land that separates river
basins
Glacier – a large body of slow moving ice
Hill – a raised portion of earth with sloping sides
Island – a piece of land surrounded by water
Isthmus – the narrow strip of land connecting two land
masses
Mountain – very tall places, higher than hills
Peninsula – a body of land that is surrounded by water on 3
sides
Plain – low areas of the earth which have been eroded nearly
level
Plateau – high, nearly level
uplifted areas made of horizontal layers of rocks
Valley – low area of land between mountains or hills
Volcano – a cone-shaped mountain
formed out of rock, usually with an opening or a
depression
at the top
Bodies of Water Definitions
Gulf – part of the
sea or ocean that is partly surrounded by land; usually larger than a bay
Harbor – a sheltered
area of water where ships may anchor safely
Ocean – the largest
body of salt water
River – a flowing body of water that usually empties into
sea or ocean
River Mouth – the place where a
river empties into a larger body of water
River Source – the place where a river or stream begins
Sound – a large
ocean inlet or deep bay
Strait – a narrow
body of water that connects two larger bodies of water
Tributary – a stream that flows to a larger stream or body of water
Waterfall – a place
where running water makes a steep drop, usually over a cliff
Written by: Randi Lynn Mrvos 6
Lesson Plan Activity: This is My Country
Materials: Landform and bodies of water chart, cardboard, spoon, paint, paint brush, marker, hair dryer
Salt Map: ¼ cup
of salt, ¼ cup of flour, water to make paste
Directions:
1. Make copies of the
Landform Definitions and the Bodies of Water Definitions on the
the previous page.
Cut out each definition.
2. Turn them upside
down. Have your child choose at least
six.
3. Use these
landforms to design a country.
4. On a piece of
cardboard, draw an imaginary country to include the landforms.
5. Mix up the
ingredients for a salt map.
6. Use a spoon or paintbrush
to apply salt-flour mixture onto the cardboard.
7. Let it dry
overnight or speed up the dying with a hair dryer.
8. Paint the salt map
with acrylic or tempera paints.
9. Label the
landmarks with a marker and give the country a name.
Written by: Randi Lynn Mrvos 7
For more details contact: Randi.lynn.mrvos@twc.com
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