Top Ten Questions Asked By Kids
There are a handful of kids' questions that are timeless we asked them, you asked them, and now your kids are asking them, too! Here are answers to some of the classic questions of childhood, in kid-ready terms that are perfect for reading aloud to young children!
Why is the sky blue?? Why isn't it purple, instead? Or orange? What about a multi-colored sky? That would be a lot of fun! Is there any good reason why it's blue instead of plaid??!
Believe it or not, the blue color of the sky has to do with the light from the sun!
Did you know that color comes from light? Beams of light contain different energies that our eyes interpret as colors!
When the sun shines onto Earth and lights up the sky, it shines waves of energies containing lots of colors. Of all these waves, the ones we see as blue are the shortest, which causes them to scatter around the sky more than any of the others! This "covers" the whole sky in the beautiful color we love: Blue!
You've probably seen a pregnant lady at least once. Sometimes it can look like a baby is in a woman's stomach, but it's actually in a special part of her body near the stomach known as the "uterus," which is an organ inside the woman's body. It's part of her reproductive system, the group of organs that make it possible for humans to have babies, or "reproduce."
The reproductive system of one man and one woman are needed to start a baby, and each contributes traits (like hair color and eye color) that the baby will receive.
Only the mother has a place in her belly for the baby to grow until it's time to be born. It takes nine months for a baby to grow before it's usually ready to be born. And it still has a lot of growing to do after that!
People all over the world believe in lots of different things for different reasons. Lots of people -- especially kids -- believe in a magical friend called the Tooth Fairy, who visits kids at night after one of their baby teeth fall out. The Tooth Fairy is known to leave some coins or dollars under your pillow in exchange for the tooth that's been lost!
Sometimes, other kids might say that the Tooth Fairy isn't real. But just because the tooth fairy might not be real for them doesn't mean the Tooth Fairy isn't real for you! The Tooth Fairy is real for any kids (or grown-ups!) who believe that she exists -- everyone is entitled to decide for themselves!
4. What's the difference between boys and girls?
The body parts that make men and women physically different from one another are known as "reproductive systems," or sometimes "sexual organs." They are the sets of organs humans need to make a baby or "reproduce" (that's where we get the name!).
A man's reproductive system includes the penis, testicles, vas deferens and prostate. Most of a man's reproductive system""including penis and testicles""is outside his body.
A woman's reproductive system is made up of a vulva, vagina, cervix, uterus, fallopian tubes, ovaries and breasts. Unlike men, most of a woman's reproductive system is located inside her body through an opening between her legs. This opening connects several of her reproductive parts to her uterus, which is where a baby grows during pregnancy. The uterus is pretty close to the stomach, which is why it sometimes looks like a pregnant woman has a baby in her tummy.
One male and one female system are needed to reproduce, and that's why boys and girls have certain body parts that are different!
5. Why do ladybugs have spots?
Have you ever thought that a beautiful red ladybug with its big black spots looked like it was covered in confetti??
Like lots of other animals (who rely on special features like strong legs to run away quickly or stingers to defend themselves), ladybugs need a way to protect themselves. Most entomologists (bug scientists) think the spots are their special form of protection! That's because in nature, lots of things with bright colors signal "yucky" or even "poison" to a hungry predator. The colorful and recognizable spotted look of a ladybug is probably a sign to other animals that the ladybug won't taste good and might even be poisonous. Although you and I might think the spots make ladybugs look pretty, it makes other creatures think they should look somewhere else for their snack!
6. What is death?
"Dead" refers to what happens when a body stops working. People, pets, and other living things die for many different reasons, like old age, disease, and accidents. Many people die when they are very old because getting older can make it harder for the body to get better. Not everyone is the same when healthy people get sick, medicine helps us get better because our bodies are strong. But when a person's body is not strong and it can't be fixed anymore, it stops working and they die.
When a body is dead, it does not do any of the things it used to do like talking, moving, smelling, laughing or crying. The dead body cannot feel anything so they are not sad, or scared.
Every living thing dies; there is a cycle of life. When someone's body stops working and they die, people are sad and usually cry a lot because they will miss the person. It is OK to be sad and cry when someone you love dies, it can help you feel better. There are many other things you can do to feel better too, like talking to others, writing, drawing, and remembering happy and fun times with that person.
7. Why is it bad to pee in the pool?
The reason why you go to the bathroom is because there are certain things you eat that your body doesn't hang on to, which you get rid of by peeing and pooping.
Your pee is made up of mostly water, but part of it is other stuff your body is trying to get rid of, such as salt or germs. For this reason, pee is something you don't want to put back into your body.
It's not a good idea to pee in a swimming pool because the pee your body is trying to get rid of would still be all around you while you swim! (Yuck!) It would also be around all of the other people who are swimming in the same pool, and if you or another swimmer swallows some pool water, some of those germs can be particularly unhealthy.
When you're swimming, the best idea is to take regular bathroom breaks or to go as soon as you feel the need. Then, you can have fun and not worry about any accidents!
8. Why did dinosaurs go extinct?
Nobody knows exactly why dinosaurs went extinct but scientists are considering and studying a few main ideas!
One idea is that dinosaurs were no longer able to evolve. Throughout time, all living creatures have had to adapt to circumstances such as weather, availability of foods, and predators! If dinosaurs were no longer able to adapt to changes, it might have caused them not to survive!
Other ideas have to do with events that might have changed the dinosaurs' living conditions. Some evidence suggests that a very big meteor (like a rock from outer-space) crashed into Earth and caused a lot of dust. The dust might have made the air difficult to breathe, or may have blocked out sunlight, causing the plants to die and leaving the dinos with nothing to eat! Other evidence shows the possibility that one or more volcanoes erupted and caused changes (like in the weather) that the dinosaurs couldn't live with!
9. Why do I need to eat vegetables?
Vegetables are important to eat for lots of really good reasons. Veggies are naturally filled with tons of nutrients, like vitamins, that are essential for your body to have! Your body can only get the vitamins it needs if you give them to it, because there isn't a part of the body responsible for making them otherwise. Many vitamins need to be replenished regularly, which is why you should eat vegetables every day! In addition to being vitamin-packed, vegetables are also really low in calories and full of good-for-you fiber!
Studies have shown that people who eat lots of vegetables (and fruits) are less likely to have certain illnesses and health problems. Eating vegetables across a big rainbow of colors is also a good idea it'll help ensure that you're getting a big variety of nutrients!
The best news of all is that vegetables can be DELICIOUS!
10. Where does the rainbow end?
Rainbows form when droplets of water are hit by the light of the sun at just the right angle. Although it looks like an actual object, a rainbow is really just a beam of special, colorful light in the sky!
If you were to see a rainbow from up in the sky (like a bird or as a passenger in a plane), you'd be able to see that a whole rainbow is actually a full circle! The reason you see only a half-circle on the ground is that the horizon (the place where it looks like the land meets up with the sky) cuts off your view, making it look like the rainbow is something that starts and ends at some point off in the distance, when in fact, it's something floating up in the sky! And in fact, since the sky wraps all around the Earth, you can think of a rainbow like a big ribbon on top of the Earth, wrapping it up like a present! The above answers were written by Mya Kagan, Brian Griffin, Sammy Mack, and Sallie Sanborn. For more on these topics and endless others, just browse or search!
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