Slimy secrets revealed
Secret formulas scream out "fun," especially when they result in mutant slime. "The Incredible Secret Formula Book," by Shar Levine and Leslie Johnstone and illustrated by John Manders, contains recipes...
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A few minutes of study net elementary gains
Prima Publishing's "5 Minutes a Day" series can help elementary school children improve four learning skills in just 20 minutes a day. Those who just said "Huh?" may want to...
Catch this baseball book
It's August, historically the month when Chicago baseball fans start muttering about the various fantastic scenarios necessary for their teams to get into the World Series. Alas, the fans' flights...
Getting ears lowered raises spirits
From Wednesday through Aug. 15, Hair Cuttery's 98 Chicago-area salons are taking part in the second Share-A-Haircut campaign. The campaign seeks to increase the self-esteem of underprivileged children as the...
Don’t be bugged with barbecuing
Since humans first tamed fire and started cooking outdoors, insects have been trying to steal bits of our food. One solution has been a sacrificial "bee plate" set aside to...
Plan to keep pets safe in emergency making tapes but haven’t had chance to do so yet.
Hazardous-material spills, earthquakes, floods, tornadoes--any number of things can force people and their pets rrom their homes on short notice. The Humane Society of the United States offers the following...
Trucks, cars, animals and even books can be noisy
Chronicle books and Caterpillar have joined forces to create three books for kids. "Big Trucks and Diggers in 3-D" is-surprise!-a 56-page assembly of Caterpillar's big vehicles complete with a 3-D...
Candle-fire deaths on the rise
Deaths in residential fires dropped to 2,660 in 1998 from 4,500 in 1980, and house fires dropped to 332,300 from 655,000 in the same period, according to a report from...
Time travel has its own dinosaur perils
Tyrannosaurs, velociraptors, children-common ingredients for summer fun-flesh out "Rex" and "Rex 2," written by Robert Gould and Kathleen Duey, the first books in the "Time Soldiers" series. The books are...
Chalk up some fun on the Web
Children and parents looking for fun (and potentially educational) Web sites might want to subscribe to bigchalk.com's free electronic newsletters. There are three to choose from. Top 8 arrives on...