Table of contents for December 2022 in OWL

Puss in Boots: The Last Wish After burning through eight of his lives, Puss in Boots discovers that his passion for adventure has taken its toll. Will he be able to restore all of his nine lives? Find out in theatres December 21! Sea of Stars Join two solstice warriors and destroy the evil alchemist known as the Fleshmancer by combining the powers of the Sun and Moon. Available now on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation 5. Top Picks Make and learn with these apps. Scratch Use code to create interactive stories, games, and animations, and share them with friends! Quento Challenge yourself with new math puzzles every day, and play with friends and family to see who rules! Unstoppable: Women with Disabilities By Helen Wolfe, illustrated by Karen…

SMALLER BODIES: With fewer plants to eat, polar herbivores were relatively small. Fossils of giant long-necked sauropods have not been found in polar areas. BIG EYES: Some polar dinosaurs, like Leaellynasaura, had large eyes. This would’ve helped them take in as much light as possible to see during dark winter months. FEATHERS: Based on fossils, paleontologists theorize that many polar dinosaurs had some feathers for extra insulation. STOP… GROW: Experts believe polar dinos had a stop-start growing cycle. Their bodies would grow during summer—when plants were plentiful—and stop growing in winter.  DIG IT!: Researchers believe that some smaller polar dinosaurs dug burrows as shelter during winter. MIGRATE OR STAY HOME?: When paleontologists started finding polar dino fossils, they thought the reptiles must have migrated to warmer areas during the winter.…

“Hawaii, here I come!”CORAH “Sorry, I need to fly!”NASEEM “Nut again!”MICHEAL “How do I look?”AARON “I need to spread my wings!”TAYLER “High-five?”JAMES “Watch out below!”ISABEL “Call me spider squirrel!”JEFF YOUR TURN Be a hero—send in your captions! LAST LAUGH Why is Batman so serious? Because he’s not the Joker! Send us your “Say What?” captions. We’ll print our favourites in an upcoming issue. Fill in the speech balloons, cut out or photocopy this page, and send it to OWL c/o THE BUZZ, 1 Eglinton Ave. East, Suite 800, Toronto, ON, Canada M4P 3A1, or submit your entry online at owlkids.com/buzz.…

Q: Why is snow white? PATRICIA, 9 A: Single snowflakes appear clear, or translucent. A pile of snow appears white because of the way light reflects off its surface. A beam of light is made up of many colours, including red, violet, blue, green, and yellow. You might know this as a rainbow! Rainbows are visible to us because sunlight is refracted, or broken up into these separate colours, as it passes through millions of water droplets in the atmosphere. Snowflakes are made of microscopic ice crystals, which are perfect for reflecting light. When snowflakes are in a pile, it creates an uneven surface, which means that the light is reflected back at different angles. Light is scattered into the colours of the rainbow. But as they are scattered, they…

LOST AND FOUND The world’s oldest snowshoe artifact is 5,800 years old and was found in Italy’s Dolomite Mountains. It is made of birch and twine. Wooden, You Know? Some of the earliest snowshoes were made in Central Asia thousands of years ago. They were wooden circles with no webbing—a bit like the lid of a barrel! MODERN METAL Many modern snowshoes are made of light aluminum frames. Instead of having rawhide lattices in the middle like traditional snowshoes, they have “decks” made of fabric or rubbery neoprene. Long Walk in the Snow In December 2010, Thomas Müller and Heiko Becher of Germany set the record for greatest distance walked in snowshoes in 24 hours: 94.41km (58.66 mi.)! Spiky Shoes Some snowshoes have tiny spikes on the bottom called crampons,…

TALK ABOUT IT OWL readers share their advice. “I found out a few of my friends are having a cookie swap, but they didn’t invite me. I feel left out, but I’m too embarrassed to say anything. What should I do?”—NIXON, “Your friends might not know that you feel left out. If you are still embarrassed, talk to your paren” 11 VIENNA “Maybe they thought you wouldn’t enjoy it. Talk to them and ask if you can join in next time.”AURORA “Tell your friends that you feel left out.”CALEB “Ask a friend if you can join. The more cookies the better!”RAYNA “I think you should do stuff with other friends or maybe talk to them and see what they say.”CYRA Got a question? Send it to owl@owlkids.com. Advice from an expert Hi…

T-REX MAKES A COMEBACK WINTRY WONDER There’s no carrot nose on this snow sculpture! Last winter, a Minnesota man built a huge T. rex out of snow in his yard. The fierce dinosaur took about three weeks to create and stood 3.7 m (12 ft.) tall—about the same height as the real dino, which went extinct millions of years ago. To make the creature, Paul Larcom formed a T. rex skeleton with branches and sticks. Then to really wow people who passed by, he packed snow onto the skeleton and spray-painted it! Not only did locals stop to check out the snowy beast, but photos of the T. rex went viral. It’s snow wonder! Quiz Whiz CAN YOU GUESS WHAT THIS OBJECT IS? THIS GADGET IS A: A VIDEO GAME B GPS…

The world of the dinosaurs was mostly hot, humid, and full of green plants. But near the poles, winters were dark and cold. And thanks to research in Alaska and Australia, we now know that unique dinosaurs lived in these places, proving they were capable of surviving in all sorts of conditions! MEET POLAR PREHISTORIC EARTH During the Mesozoic Era (aka dinosaur days!), the world was much warmer than it is today. The continents were also in different positions. For example, what we now call Australia was much closer to the South Pole! Though these prehistoric poles didn’t have ice caps and were not as cold as they are today, their winters were full of snow, ice, and months-long periods of total darkness. PACHYRHINOSAURUS Sporting a distinct heavy block of bone…

TURN THE PAGE for the easy step-by-step instructions on how to make these cool crafts! HOW TO Make That Gift Super Snowflake YOU’LL NEED: • rectangular paper• stapler (optional)• tape• string 1. Start at one short end and fold the paper accordian-style. 2. Staple or tie a string around the midde of the folded strip. 3. Fan out the paper until the two edges meet. Repeat on the other side. Tape the edges together on each side to make a circle. 4. Tape on a string for hanging. BONUS: Make a few snowflakes and tie them to a clothes hanger or two to create a mobile! Fun Frame YOU’LL NEED: • picture frame• toy cars• special photo or drawing• strong glue 1. Glue toy cars around the outside of the frame.…