Do your kids enjoy keeping up with the news?  If so, challenge them to an online Jeopardy style game from NewzBrain Weekly. The quiz is a demonstration of the weekly quizzes that schools can subscribe to for the full school year.  At $289 for the year, it's pretty costly for some family fun, but you can play the demo for free!

Just like in the real Jeopardy game, you can choose a question for 10, 20, 40, or 80 (points) as well as a bonus question in each category.  The categories include National & World News, People & Places, Family & Society, Pop Culture, science and Tech, Sports, and News You Can't Use.

Looking for something for the kids? Here are some things to do -- aside from the parades and fireworks!
Activities for Toddlers
Make S'morepedoes
4th of July Crafts

Enjoy the day!

I ran across an article that really threw me for a loop. It's about a Harvard study that claims Fourth of July celebrations create Republicans.  Huh?  I thought the Fourth of July was for all Americans regardless of their political leanings.

One comment from the article really confused me: "The political right has been more successful in appropriating American patriotism and its symbols during the 20th century."  Why would one part or the other "appropriate" patriotism?  Wayne Parker, Guide to Fatherhood, wrote a wonderful article about teaching children about patriotism, I didn't see anything in there about one political party or the other. And that is as it should be.

Independence Day is a day that all Americans should celebrate. Whatever your political stripes, take your kids to Fourth of July parades and celebrations and teach them the meaning behind the celebrating.

June 30 is Meteor Day.  It's a great day for the kids who love all things about space to learn about meteors.  One way is to read up about them. Knowledgehouse has a pretty simple explanation about meteors on its page "Catch a Falling Star." The page also provides a short list of books for kids about meteors. The kids can also learn about meteors by watching a video about the Perseid Meteor Shower created by the Challenger Center.