Are winter snacks killing birds?

Adapted from The Vancouver Sun Level 3 Bird feeders are not a good idea. Other animals eat the food, also. Squirrels can climb into them. Rats and coyotes can eat the food that falls out. Bears like bird seed, too. Visit the links: Greening the desert (permaculture) Youtube Solving all the world’s problems – in…

Nunavut’s first guide dog

Adapted from CBC Radio and information courtesy of B.C. Guide Dog Services and Canadian Guide Dogs for the Blind Level 1 Noah Papatsie is a very happy man. He lives in Nunavut in northern Canada. Noah has a beautiful new dog. The dog’s name is Xeno. Xeno is a guide dog. Guide dogs help people…

Pikas are tiny farmers

Written by Alice Weber – Glacier National Park Level 1 What is a pika? Pikas are part of the rabbit family. They are the size of a very large mouse. Their ears are big and round. Their legs are short and their tails are very small. Pikas like rocks Pikas live in rock piles in…

Hungry snowy owls return to Tsawwassen

Adapted from The Province by Nancy Carson Level 2 Bird lovers are excited. About two dozen snowy owls have come back to B.C.’s Lower Mainland for the winter. The owls are in Boundary Bay in the Tsawwassen area. People have seen them on Vancouver Island, too. Visit the links: Video story about the owls that have…

Good job for a good dog

Adapted from The Vancouver Sun Level 1 Millions of dogs go to work every day. These dogs go with their owners. Every day in the U.S., about 1.4 million owners take 2.3 million dogs to work. Visit the link: Taking dogs to work

4-H* helps youth learn many skills

Adapted from The Vancouver Sun Level 3 The 4-H Club started 98 years ago, in 1914. The goal of 4-H was to help youth learn skills in agriculture. But now you do not need to live on a farm to join a 4-H program. You do not even have to own an animal. There are…

Toola, first foster mother

Adapted from Monterey Bay Aquarium website by Nancy Carson Level 2 Toola is lying alone on a sandy beach. She is very sick.  And she is pregnant. Volunteers find her on the sand. They take Toola to the Monterey Bay Aquarium, in California. The staff at the aquarium think Toola is about six or seven…