Kids News - Articles for Grades 2-3

Lions have been called the 'King of Beasts' for centuries and for good reason too - Not only are they majestic looking, but also, at the top of the food chain. Granted, it is the males that are awarded this designation, but the females are no slouches either. After all, they are the ones that do all the hunting....

The world's most complicated watch, a 1933 timepiece made by luxury watchmaker Patek Phillipe was sold for an astounding $24.4 million USD at a Sotheby's auction in Switzerland on November 11th. The historic price for the aptly named 'Supercomplication' masterpiece smashed the world record set by same watch in 1999, when it was bought by Sheikh Saud Bin Mohammed Bin Ali Al-Thani, a member of Qatar's royal family, for $11 million USD....

On Wednesday, November 12th, an unmanned spacecraft made history by landing perfectly on its target - a speeding comet that lies at a distance of 310 million miles from earth. According to the European Space Agency (ESA), the brainchild behind this audacious project, the Rosetta space probe that housed the 220-pound washing machine-sized Philae lander, released its passenger to its destination perfectly - not an easy feat given that the Comet 67P was hurtling through space at a speed of 41,000 mph....

The recent report of the sighting of a few Kashmir musk deer has given conservationists hope that the species may be alive and well amongst the forests in Afghanistan. The study published by the World Wildlife Foundation in the November edition of the journal Oryx, states that a team of researchers scouring the country's Nuristan Province in 2008 and 2009, encountered the animals on five separate occasions....

For all you middle-school presidents, secretaries and treasurers that aspire to lead the country some day, here is some encouraging news - Elise Stefanik, the youngest woman ever to be elected to the US Congress started the same way. The 30-year-old who defeated Democratic incumbent Aaron Woolf in New York's 21st Congressional District in the November 4th midterm elections, began her political career in sixth grade, as student council secretary....

It was the classic David vs. Goliath scenario, except in this case, the boy was represented by a seemingly helpless porcupine and Goliath, by a pride of 17 hungry lions that would have loved to add the quill-bearing rodent to their dinner menu. Fortunately, the struggle ended just like the story, with the lions scurrying away in defeat!...

Most animals are skittish around people which makes observing them in the wild, a challenging endeavor for researchers. The issue is exacerbated with naturally shy creatures like emperor penguins, who show signs of physical distress in the presence of humans....

For those that love labyrinths, there is nothing like the Cool Patch Pumpkins corn maze in Dixon, California. The intricate collection of winding paths, twists, turns and loops that is hand-cut by farm owners and brothers, Matt and Mark Cooley, can disorient even the most experienced "maze runner". This year's creation was particularly bewildering given that the brothers had expanded their already large puzzle into a 60-acre behemoth, a feat that earned them a second Guinness World Record!...

With a population of 156 million, Bangladesh ranks amongst the world's most populous nations. What makes the situation worse is that most of the country is situated on the low-lying Ganges delta, formed by the confluence of three major rivers - Ganges, Brahamputra and Meghna. As a result, it is highly susceptible to flooding especially during the rainy season from July to October, when the rivers rise as much as 12-feet, making many areas accessible only by boat....