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Show Page 4 AMERICAN FORK CITIZEN Thursday, June 26, 2008 MM WE? lUlw l NEWS AND IDEAS FROM CLASSROOMS AND EDUCATORS Wonderful Linda Butler NORTH COUNTY STAFF You don't have to travel around the world to find strange and wonderful creatures. crea-tures. Dozens of different minibeasts bugs, insects, and other creepy -crawlies live right in your neighborhood. Most of the creatures we call "bugs" belong to the category known as arthropods little animals with jointed legs and hard body covering (exoskel-etons.) (exoskel-etons.) Arthropods include insects, spiders centipedes, millipedes, mil-lipedes, and crustaceans. Finding minibeasts is easy. Bugs like dark moist places. Turn over a rock and you're likely to find a spider, roly-poly bug, ant, snail or worm. Many creatures, such as worms, snails, ladybugs, crickets and roly-poly bugs can be safely picked up and examined by hand. A magnifying glass can help take an even closer look. Some bugs such as spiders and centipedes, are best picked up with gloved hands or enticed into a clear glass or plastic container con-tainer for closer examination. A "pooter," or breath-powered bug vacuum is another way to safely capture insects and is easy to build. A pooter can be made from a pint canning jar and '4-inch flexible tubing. Cut the tubing into two pieces, one 8-inches and the other 16-inches long. Snugly attach a small piece of nylon stocking with a rubber band to the end of the shorter tube. This prevents inhalation of insects. Trace and cut a circle cir-cle of cardboard (a cereal box works well) to fit inside the lid. With a hole punch, make two holes in the cardboard for the tubes. The tubes should fit snugly snug-ly through the cardboard. Use thin "ropes" of modeling clay to make an airtight seal. Put the long end of the pooter near an insect and quickly inhale. The bug will be gently sucked into the jar. After observing the minibeast, release it back into the garden. Bugs can be kept in a plastic bug house or glass jar for several sev-eral hours. Rubber band a piece of nylon stocking or thin cloth on the top to keep the bug from escaping and to allow for air circulation. Be sure to release your insects after you've studied stud-ied them. All graduates not present, but all were honored Reva Bowen NORTH COUNTY STAFF Due to a variation in graduation gradu-ation schedules and other factors, fac-tors, not all of the 250 members of the Class of 2008 of East Shore High School and Moun-tainland Moun-tainland Regional Learning Center were on hand for commencement com-mencement exercises held at Mountain View High School June 19, but they were acknowledged ac-knowledged and remembered by the 82 classmates who were present. "So many of our classmates are not here tonight because they have moved on," said Karissa Dumas in a welcoming address. "They are very much a part of our class and our celebration cel-ebration here tonight." Remarks at the graduation service took a personal turn as the student speakers shared openly some of the feelings, struggles, and experiences that had brought them to the milestone mile-stone in their lives. Jessica Eden paid tribute to her parents, teachers, and other caring individuals who encouraged encour-aged her and refused to let her "hide" or give up in her quest to graduate. Pioneer wins American History Award NORTH COUNTY Kaden Groves, a student at American Fork Junior High School, received The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation Early Ear-ly American History Award. It went to a project in the junior and senior divisions that the judges felt best displayed an event from the Colonial or revolutionary time period. After months of intensive research and success at district and state competitions, Kaden presented his project at the annual National History Day creatures -? Elissa Butler prepares to capture a small beetle with a "pooter" -vacuum. Insects make a fascinating study for children. Children enjoy watching minibeasts at work. Worms and ants are great "tunnelers." Ants are powerful and can carry car-ry up to 10-times the amount of their body's weight. Ask your child to figure how much he could carry if he were an ant. Worms are work their magic by turning decaying plants into compost. It's easy to watch the excavation powers of ants or worms when they're kept in a simple habitat. Watch worms mix dirt by filling a quart glass jar about 2 inches with loose, moist soil. Layer with h-inches of sand, then another 2 inches of soil. Add a half inch layer of old lettuce. Cover the lettuce with about an inch of moist soil and add 2-3 worms. Cover the opening open-ing with a piece of nylon stocking stock-ing or thin cloth and secure with a rubber band or canning jar ring. Because worms like the dark, a "collar" will keep the worms happy and active. The collar is simply a tube of dark construction paper that you slide over the jar. Keep the East Shore High School "Home of the Mustangs" Number of Grads: Approximately Ap-proximately 250 Student speakers: Jessica Eden, Courtland Etsitty, and Jessalyn Sorensen Graduation theme: "Whether you think you can or think you can't, you are right": Henry Ford Quote from the ceremony: cer-emony: "Knowing what I am capable of and having faith in myself, I learned to take things I had previously thought negatively about, and turn it into opportunities opportuni-ties that would make me stronger." - Jessica Eden, student speaker "I am very proud of all the graduates that are here," Eden said. "Despite obstacles and hardships, we have accomplished accom-plished something that will stay with us forever. Finishing high school is a stepping stone for our lives ahead of us." Katherine Casselman gave a competition, held at the University Univer-sity of Maryland College Park Campus in the Washington, D.C. area June 15-19. "It was amazing to be a part of the National History Day," said Kaden. "What an honor to be one of the top participants in the nation, and to compete in such a major event." Each fail more than half a million students nationwide begin be-gin the year-long National History His-tory Day program, competing in a series of history contests in their local districts and states. The top students in each cat live outside O ... Crv: .. i o r jar in a cool spot, and look after 34 days. After a week or two, the layer of lettuce will have been eaten and the sand mixed into the soil. Worms are great for the garden, they help keep the soil loose, so plant roots can grow more easily. When you are finished with your worm habitat, set your worms free in the garden. An ant house is made in a similar manner to the worm habitat. However instead of moist soil, ants like a drier environment. Fill a canning jar about 23 full with dry sandy or crumbly soil. Add about 15-20 ants. A pooter is great for catching ants. Ants love sweets, so sprinkle a pinch of sugar on top of the soil and add a moist cotton ball so your ants can drink. Ants will also appreciate ap-preciate a dark collar to cover their jar. The darkness will encourage en-courage the ants to tunnel near the sides of the jar. Unless there is a queen ant, the colony will not reproduce and survive. Set them free after two weeks. Most insects are too quick to strong and memorable rendition rendi-tion of "This is My Now," a song with lyrics that seemed to resonate with the audience, and echoed thoughts expressed by the student speakers. "My fears behind me, gone are the shadows and doubts. That was then, this is my now," Casselman sang. The words and music were attributed in the program to Jeff Peabody and Scott Krippayne. Courtland Etsitty detailed some of the challenges he experienced ex-perienced growing up in his Navajo community in Arizona, where, he said, "struggles are a part of everyday life." He said he was raised by his non-English-speaking grandparents, and his life was affected by poverty and the alcoholism of relatives. Although he was able to "keep up" in his studies in elementary school, that "fell apart" during high school. Eventually, Etsitty was able to come to Utah and found a niche at East Shore. "I had never been to a school where students did packets on their own," Etsitty said. "... Not all of the packets were easy. Sometimes I felt like they required re-quired blood, sweat and tears." egory are selected for participation partici-pation in the national contest. Participating students choose their own topics of study and research from original sources based on the theme "Conflict and Compromise in History." National History Day students stu-dents research historic documents docu-ments and artifacts, conduct oral histories, search the Internet In-ternet for information on their topics, and travel to historic sites. They present their work in a variety of ways, by creating creat-ing museum-type exhibits, video documentaries, original your door m1 'in "5 LINDA BUTLERNorth County a breath-powered insect track, but snails move slowly and you can follow their movement. move-ment. Have snail races by placing several snails inside a circle of string or a hula hoop that's about 2-feet in diameter. See which snail crawls out first. A small dab of paint on a snail's shell can make it easier to identify. You may want to keep track of where your snail explores over the next several hours or even the next day or two. Most bugs are silent. But crickets, though difficult to see, are easy to hear. You can use a cricket as a thermometer. The warmer the weather, the more quickly a cricket chirps. Count the number of cricket chirps in 13 seconds, then add 40 to get the temperature in degrees Fahrenheit. Minibeasts are all around us. Most are harmless, and many, such as bees and worms, are very helpful. Take time this summer getting acquainted with some of these tiny but interesting in-teresting neighbors. In a service corps class, Etsitty Etsit-ty said he had the opportunity to hike Mount Timpanogos, go on multiple bike rides, participate partici-pate in a theater production and a Brigham Young University project, and train to run 5K, half, and full marathons. A highlight occurred when Etsitty was able to finish the Salt Lake Marathon. "I will never forget that day, and plan to keep on running," he said. Referring to his graduating gradu-ating classmates, he noted, "We all struggled, just as I have, but here we all made it." Jessalyn Sorensen said that at age 18, she is the mother of a "beautiful boy," and the wife of a soldier who recently returned from Iraq. While her husband was away, she decided to finish high school as a way to help her family. "I accomplished a lot of things that 1 never thought were even possible," Sorensen said, "and the reason that I could was because I never gave up, and I would not let anything stand in my way not even my truest enemies, laziness and procrastination." performances, or traditional research papers. Kaden chose to do a documentary, entitled "Bacon's Rebellion: The Selfish Conflict." More than 300 historians and other education professionals evaluate the students' work at the National Competition. $150,000 worth of scholarships were awarded at the National Awards Ceremony to select students, and approximately 100 students took home cash prizes between $250 and $5,000 for superior work in a particular category of judging. Golftryouts American Fork High School has announced tryout dates for the boys golf team for incoming ninth through 12th grade students. The tryout schedule follows: Monday, July 7, 1-2 p.m. Fox Hollow Golf Club (Formerly (For-merly Tri-City Golf Course), Free voluntary one-hour clinic conducted by club professional, profes-sional, Rick Roberts. Tuesday, July 8, 1 p.m. Mandatory first day of tryouts, 9 hole stroke play, Fox Hollow. Wednesday July 9, 1 p.m. Mandatory second day of try-outs, try-outs, 9 hole stroke play, Fox Hollow . (Cuts may be made after Day 1 and 2 by the coaching staff). Thursday, July 10, 1 p.m. Mandatory third and final day of tryouts, 18 hole stroke play, Fox Hollow (Team roster will be posted on high school gym doors by 11:30 p.m.) Those who wish to try out must attend American Fork High School, have paid their greens fees prior to play, have a GPA of at least 2.0 from the last report card and no more than one F grade. They must have handed in pre-participa- tion physicals and the tryout checklist form. Information on those is available at More information is avail able from coach Lynn Ander son at 362-8743. Utah Arts Festival Celebrate all the arts vi sual, musical, literary, and performing arts at the Utah Arts Festival, June 26-29 at Library Square, 200 E. 400 South, Salt Lake City, from noon to 1 1 p.m. Many child-friendly child-friendly activities and areas are at the Arts Festival. Tickets Tick-ets are $10 for adults (ages 13 and up), $5 Seniors. Children 12 and under are free. Com plete festival information may be found at www.uaf. Heber Valley Powwow and Mountain Man Rendezvous Experience Native Ameri can music, dance, and culture at the Heber Valley Powwow June 27-29 at Soldier Hollow in Midway. Admission $6. Children 6 and under are free. Friday at 6 p.m. is the grand entry and intertribal dancing danc-ing until 10 p.m. Saturday and Sunday gates open at 11 a.m., dancing begins at noon and continues until 10 p.m. The Powwow is a unique opportunity op-portunity to view a range of traditional dance styles and regalia, as well as to hear storytellers, and see Native American arts and crafts and taste traditional food. Enjoy Mountain Man demos on Saturday Sat-urday and Sunday. Lavender Days Celebrate the Lavender harvest June 27 and 28 at Young Living Lavender Farm in Mona. Young Living is the largest lavender farm in North America. Experience 120 acres of lavender in full bloom. Enjoy cooking and gardening classes, paddleboat rides, pony rides, professional jousting, live music, and more. Tickets are available at the gate: $8.50 adults; $4.50 children chil-dren ages 4-12, children 3 and under are free. Gates open at 9 a.m. and close at 8 p.m. Reel Science or Real Science? July 1 is science movie night at the Salt Lake City public library, 210 E. 400 South. A free screening of "Them," a 1954 classic terror-ific big bug movie. 6:30 p.m. The A-bomb has spawned a colony of giant gi-ant murderous ants bent on destruction. After the movie, join Maggie Shao, Assistant Professor of Horticulture at Utah State University, for a discussion on insects and horticulture. hor-ticulture. Note, parking meters are free after 6 p.m. "We The People" Musical Revue Come hear the legendary Janie Thompson in her last public performance. "We The People" is a 45-minute Broadway-style review celebrating our great American heritage. This performance will appeal to both young and old. The free performances are at the Provo Tabernacle, 100 South University Ave., Provo, on July 2 and 3 at 6 and 8 p.m., and on July 4 at 2 and 4 p.m. Colonial Days Step back in time and celebrate the Fourth of July with the Founding Fathers (and Mothers) at the Crandall Historical Printing Museum in downtown Provo. Colonial Days is a free four-day celebration cel-ebration July 2-5. The area on around the Printing Museum,' 275 E. Center, Provo, becomes a Colonial Village featuring men and women dressed in period clothing, demonstrations demonstra-tions of candle making, leath-erworking, leath-erworking, butter churning; stage productions, Colonial encampments, a Mayflower replica, Indian Village, and a grand march on Friday at 10 a.m. The colonial village will be open from 10 a.m. to dusk, except on July 4 when it will open after the parade (approximately (ap-proximately 11:30 a.m.) Hogle Zoo Military Appreciation Day On July 2, all military personnel, per-sonnel, veterans, and their immediate family (spouse and children under 18) will receive free admission to the zoo with a military or veteran ID. The zoo's gate hours are daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (zoo grounds are open until 6:30 p.m.) Regular admission is $8 for adults, $6 for childrenseniors, chil-drenseniors, children under 2 are free. The zoo is located at 2600 E. Sunnyside Ave., Salt Lake City. Earn a free book Kids in grades 1-6 can earn a free book from Barnes and Noble when they read 8 books during the summer. Fill in the Summer Reading Journal (available at the store or download from www. for each book read. Have a parent sign the completed com-pleted journal and bring it to a Barnes & Noble bookstore by Sept. 2 to receive a coupon for a free book. Chess for Kids and Open Chess Improve your chess skills every Thursday at the Orem Library. Volunteers are available avail-able to help children at Kid's Chess from 4-6 p.m. and players play-ers of any age during Open Chess from 6:30-9 p.m. Bring your own board if possible and meet on the main floor in the Storytelling area. No charge. Giant Outdoor Chess Enjoy a game of "ginnt chess" on the outd(xr chessboard chess-board on the south side of the SCERA theater. A set of chess pieces that are over u foot tall can be checked out from the manager from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday-Friday, and from noon to 9 p.m. on Saturdays. There is no charge to use the chess pieces, but a driver's license Ls required. Chess pieces may be reserved by calling April at 225-25(59 xlOll. Orem Heritage Museum Located on the second floor of the SCERA building, 745 S. State, Orem, the Orem Heritage Museum is a permanent perma-nent collection of over 30,000 artifacts of local history. The museum includes Indian and pioneer artifacts including a large arrowhead collection, rocks and minerals, veterans and POW exhibit, a model of Orem in the 1940s with a working miniature railroad, a model circus, antique agricultural agri-cultural and household tools, household treasures including includ-ing a working Victrola, and a motorcycle ridden by the "Mormon Daredevil." Admission Admis-sion is free. Summer hours: Monday-Friday, noon-7 p.m., Saturday, 12:304:30 p.m. |