Channel One News
You can find everything you want right here, with up-to-date current events for kids. There are main International news features, headlines, quizzes and polls, plus archived stories.

Children’s Express
Top news stories for kids are presented here, written by kids.

Earthweek
This site gives a weekly journal of the most important world events of the week, related to geography. You can see the journal in PDF format, or get a list of newspapers that publish it.

1stheadlines
Take a comprehensive look at newspaper headlines, searching by State or Country. Other categories include US politics and general. The search feature allows up-to-the-minute results from newspaper sources around the world.

NewsDay
Top stories from the Associated Press, arranged in chronological order. Categories include Top News, International, National and Sports.

News4Kids
Archived news stories, written for kids. This site doesn’t offer up-to-the-minute news, but has the main news stories archived by month.

TIME for Kids
TIME for Kids (grades 5-12) features people and events in the news, historic profiles, a cartoon of the week, interactive talk back and online quizzes.

Explore government and civics for kids. Learn about governments and how they work, both at local and national level.

Ben’s Guide to US Government for Kids
This site covers civics, broken down into age appropriate categories K-12. There is even a section for parents and teachers. Check out the links to US government web sites for kids.

About Canadian Government
The Canadian Government presents information for kids here, including how the government works.

Government Mexico for Kids
This bright, clear look at the government of Mexico includes such topics as municipalities and rights.

Junior Parliament
How does the British Parliament work? Who was Guy Fawkes, and why is he famous? This site is specially designed for under 12 year olds. Take a tour, and then try the quiz.

Kids Democracy Project
Find out how the government affects you. Afterwards, try your hand at being President for the day. This site is clear, simple and fun.

Kids Next Door
Learn about community helpers and local government. This site is ideally suited for the younger age range (K-2).

US State Department – Geographic Learning Site
Discover how the State Department works with age appropriate areas of discovery. Find out where US diplomats work and travel with the Secretary of State.

White House for Kids
Find out all about the White House. Where it is, its history, what children have lived in it, and even what pets have lived there.

Ancient Civilizations Virtual Museum
This is a virtual museum created by Grade 6 at William Penn Charter School. The links will take you to China, Canaan, India, Mesopotamia, Mayan and African civilizations.

The Ancient Aztecs
This site is packed with interesting facts about the Aztecs. You can learn about their daily life, dress, religion, rulers, school and much more.

Aztecs
A very clear and simple to understand site, covering many aspects of the Aztec civilization. The site is in English and Spanish. For the English version you need to click on the picture. The Spanish version is self-explanatory.

The Etruscans – Ancient Civilization in Italy
Join Larth the Etruscan, navigator, merchant and warrior on a journey through time to this ancient Italian civilization. Visit three major cities and see the sights!

Mayan Culture, Oddities, and Games
This site gives some interesting facts about ancient Mayan culture. It includes beautification and food the Mayan way. Definitely not for the squeamish!

Daily Life in Ancient Rome
Starting with breakfast and going right through a typical day’s activities, this site gives a clear description of daily life in Ancient Rome.

Pharaoh Exhibition
Learn more about Ancient Egypt from this site at the Cleveland Museum of Art. Be sure to check out Rosetta Stone, and see what she can tell you about the times of the Pharaoh’s. Don’t forget to try the quiz and make a cut out Pharaoh.

The Real Story of the Olympic Games
A look at the original Olympics Games. When and where they were held, the athletes and who was allowed to compete. How were they different to the Games now? Read all about them then decided which Games you think are better.

The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World
Find out what they were and why the Greeks chose them for the list. Hop in your time machine and travel back to see them. Make sure you have your bags packed!

Valentina Tereshkova, born in 1937, was the first woman in space. In 1963, she spent 3 days in space and orbited the earth 48 times.

Valentina was the youngest of three children. Her father was a tractor driver. He fought with the Soviet Army in World War II and was killed before she was three years old. Her mother struggled to raise three children alone. As a child she had to help her mother with farm chores and she didn’t attend school until she was ten years old. Eventually they left the farm and went to live in the city, where her mother worked in a cotton mill. At 17 she started working in factories. First she worked in a tire factory, and then she joined her mother and sister in the cotton mill. She finished her schooling by correspondence course, and graduated from the Light Industry Technical School. This was by no means the end of her education, though.

Valentina was a great believer in the communist system and joined the young communists leagues at the factory. She later became a full member of the communist party. She also joined an amateur parachuting club and became an expert parachutist.

Valentina was at work with her mother and sister when Yuri Gagarin, the first ever astronaut, went into space. Her mother commented that next time it should be a woman that went. Valentina was inspired.

Every person in the Soviet Union was entitled to apply to the space program. Valentina applied and was accepted. Her parachuting experience was one of the reasons she got in, along with three other women. The Soviets wanted to send a woman to space, just once, to see if they could endure the hardships as well as men. In order to become a cosmonaut (a Soviet astronaut) she had to join the Air Force as an Officer.

She began her training in 1961 and it took 18 months. It wasn’t easy. She had to spend hours studying technical manuals, rocket science and spaceship design. She also underwent strenuous physical training.

On June 16, 1963, as a Junior Lieutenant and chief pilot of the Vostok VI, she became the first ever woman to go into space. She orbited Earth 48 times, and parachuted out of the spacecraft following its reentry into Earth’s atmosphere. She had proven that women could withstand the physical and emotional stresses of space flight as well as any man.

She was awarded a medal at the Kremlin three days later and proclaimed as a Hero of the Soviet Union. She never returned to space, but worked in the Space Program and married another Cosmonaut in 1963. One year later their daughter, Elena, was born. She was the first child to be born to parents who had both been to space. Doctors were a little worried that she would not be normal, but Elena, now a doctor, proved them wrong.

She worked for the Communist party and headed the Soviet Union’s International Cultural and Friendship Union from 1987 to 1991.

She also worked tirelessly for the Soviet feminist movement. She wanted Soviet women to be treated the same as men. Even so, she is famous for the fact that she said and believed that a woman’s most important job is to be caring and a mother. Here was a woman who had done perhaps the most difficult job on Earth, and off it, and still thought being a mother was more important!