Feature stories for kids that focus on unusual and interesting write-ups on the world we live in. About its customs, ways of life, about cinema, sport, champions, rare feats and artists. Cool reading for kids.
156 items in this section. Displaying page 10 of 16
Hopscotch
Ever played hopscotch as a kid? Hopped from square to square on one leg? Haven’t heard of it? Impossible! Hopscotch’s great fun. It’s a traditional game played by kids all over the world with many variations. I used to play it with other kids near my home. Okay, I’ll let you in on this game if you will tell me about some you played as kids. All hopscotch requires is a rectangular area, a piece of chalk and a flat stone chip....
The Gift of Wonder
Eleven years ago, under the sequinned sky on a warm summer day, on the roof of his palatial home in the town of Vrindaban, my grandfather introduced me to wonder. As I lay on a mattress surrounded members of the family, my grandfather or “Nana” as I used to call him, asked me to look at the sky and try to spot the patterns and the constellations. “What does that look like?” he would ask, pointing to the Little Bear....
Prabhu and the Prawns
The still, muddy water glistened with oil. There were no signs of any life as Prabhu stood by the side of the narrow canal and squinted hard, anxiously searching the depths of the murky pool. But the slick surface made it hard for him to see anything beneath the surface. Fear crossed the eight-year-old’s face. If he couldn’t find what he was looking for, there would be no meal tonight. Prabhu and the Prawns [Illustration by Anup Singh] Prabhu is a shrimp seed collector....
The Girl who Won the Boys Chess Title
Koneru Humpy will win many chess titles in her career. After each title she will also get many phone calls congratulating her. But there is one phone call she will never forget. It is the call she got from Viswanathan Anand, after she won the World Chess Championship title in the under-12 category, last year. The championship was held in Spain. In the year 2000, the smiling young curly-haired girl from Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, created another record....
A School for Dreamers
A school for dreamers? Teachers who help you build castles in the air? But such a school does exist. Here children have their heads in the clouds, but their feet planted firmly on the ground. Well, not quite planted. The mighty leaps into the air and well-aimed kicks during the ‘kalaripayittu’ class are the envy of any acrobat. (Kalaripayittu, an ancient martial art of Kerala, is the mother of all martial arts in the world)....
The Emperor who Won a Toy in a Fight
Akbar was three years old in 1545. He was then staying with his uncle Kamran. On a special day, there was a feast. And Kamran had bought a kettle drum for his son, Ibrahim Mirza. Akbar took a fancy to it and decided he must have it. Ibrahim Mirza, who was older than Akbar, was not in a mood to part with his toy. So he set a condition. He suggested a wrestling match. Whoever won would take the toy....
Bungee
Standing on the edge of a platform looking 150 feet straight down at the river below I thought to myself, how did I get roped into this mess? Do I really want to go ahead with this foolishness? Shouldn’t I be back with my feet firmly planted on the ground? I was standing on the platform of a 100-ft high bridge. My fingers tightly holding the rails in a death grip. I was about to do a bungee jump because I had boasted to Himakar, my cousin, I could do anything he could....
Rats! Rats! Rats!
Rats here, rats there, rats everywhere! In the kitchen, in the storage cupboards, in shops, in restaurants, all over the place. People in Paris have no respite. The rat population has suddenly grown in such large numbers that Paris may soon need a Pied Piper to weed them out of the city. Rats! Rats! Rats! [] The rat boom happened because of a new underground railway system. When work began on the railway system, workmen began digging the ground to make tunnels for the trains....
Many Ramayanas
Once, Aristotle, the famous ancient Greek philosopher, asked an old carpenter how long he had used his knife. Thirty years, the carpenter replied. He had changed a blade a few times and the handle a few times, but the knife was the same, added the carpenter. Something similar has happened to the Indian epic, Ramayana. Writers in different places and in different languages, have composed the Ramayana down the ages. They carry with them the flavours of local cultures, and each one proudly takes its place in the gallery of Ramayanas....
Bidriware
_Pallo latke gori ko pallo latke…_The music of this famous Rajasthani folk song filled the air at the Crafts Museum in New Delhi where I went one Monday afternoon. Sitting in the verandah were rows of people who had displayed their work. What work it was too! My heart soared looking at all the things that they had crafted. It was all so beautiful that I could not help but talk to the artisans who had created them....