Release Date: April 22-28

17-1 (89)

Especially

kids

for

and

their

families

J I

By BETTY DEBNAM
from The Mini Page by Betty Debnam

1989 Universal Press Syndicate

April Showers Bring May Flowers

All About Plants and Seeds

The parts of a plant
The flower produces
the seeds that can grow
into new plants.
Leaves are the plant's
food factory.
The stem holds the
leaves and the flower. It is
the plant's
transportation
system.
Roots anchor the
plant into the ground.
They absorb nutrients
from the soil.

The parts of a flower

Petals

Most flowers have:

Petals that help attract
Pistil--~~r\-l-T-:\T1
insects to carry pollen from one
plant to another.
Stamens
A calyx (ka-liks), or covering,
at the bottom of the petals. It
Calyx --~.,q...,4-.I-/...IJ"
protects the flower's inner parts.
Stamens, or the male part
of the flower. They make the
pollen.
A pistil, or the female part of the flower. It makes the
seeds.
In order for a flower to make seeds, pollen from the male
part (the 'stamens) must reach the female part (pistil).

The parts of a seed

Seeds can live a

very long time.
Seeds found in
Egyptian tombs,
thousands of
years old, were
planted and grew
into plants.

:ro

Seeds are nature's best packages.

Most seeds have:
A seed coat.
food
(
A tiny plant called an
\
embryo (em-bree-o).
coat
Food for the plant.

plant

The
biggest
seed is
from a
coconut
tree. It
can weigh as much
as 20 pounds.

The Mini
Page
thanks the
U.S.
Botanic
Garden of
Washington, D.C.,
for help
with this
story.

How seeds travel

Some plants
scatter their own
seeds. Out they
pop when the
plant's fruit
splits open.

Some seeds are

hitchhikers.
They cling to a
person's clothes,
an animal's fur or
The wind
an insect's body.
scatters seeds.

Some seeds are

carried by water.

Man carries
seeds.

Animals carry
seeds. The seeds
some animals eat
pass through
their bodies.

17-2 (89)

Release Date: April 22-28

from The Mini Page by Betty Debnam " 1989 Universal Press Syndic.te

~Rookie

Cookie's Recipe

NEWSPAPERS CAN
HELP 'fOU
LEARN TO READ!

Beef and Rice

You'll need:
liz pound ground beef
1/3 cup onion, chopped
liz cup celery, chopped
liz teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon lemon juice

1 cup cooked rice

1 tomato, chopped

1/3

cup mayonnaise

from The Mini Page by Betty Debnam .. 1989 Universal Press Syndicate

~~4;-J;;;i~ltts

The letter I is a vowel. Vowels have

two sounds, a short sound and a long
sound. All of these words have the
short I sound. What sound do you hear?

)/
win

. Harry S. Truman (1884-1972)

Served: 1945-1953
Party: Democratic

Harry Truman became president when

Franklin Roosevelt died. Truman was not
a college graduate. Before being elected,
he had run a clothing store and served as
a county judge and a u.S. senator.
As president, Truman made many important
decisions. Shortly after he took office, he made the
decision to drop the atomic bomb over Japan. This
forced the Japanese to surrender and ended World War
II.
He also started a program giving aid to countries who
were against communism. Another of his programs
gave aid to countries damaged by World War II.

lift

pin

~~
sick

Mini Spy and her friends are gardening. See if you can
find the following:
letter H
sock
lion's face
elephant
head
heart
dog's head
arrow
dragon's
head
squirrel
word MINI
sad face
strainer
fan
mug
number 3

State born: Missouri

Occupation: politician

by B. Literate
For parents and kids to enjoy together
Literate people are good readers who
use what they learn by reading to lead
a happier, more successful life.

What to do:
1. Cook beef, onion and celery in a large skillet
over medium heat until meat is brown. Drain.
2. Stir in salt, lemon juice, rice and tomato. Heat
until warm.
3. Remove from heat and stir in mayonnaise.

Mini Spy

Fun with reading

fish

rip

six

chip

sip

grin

Here's how to make the big and little I. Practice here.

--~il-~- -----------------------------------.
Aa Bb Cc Dd Ee Ff Gg Hh ili) Jj Kk LI Mm
Nn 00 Pp Qq Rr Ss Tt Uu \rv Ww Xx Yy Zz
Buzz through your newspaper and The Mini
Page for pictures and words with the short I
sound .

from The Mini Page by Betty Debnam " 1989 Universal Press Syndicate

from The Mini Page by Betty Debnam " 1989 Universal Press Syndicate

Words that remind us of planting and gardening are hidden

in the block below. See if you can find: GARDEN, GLOVES,
HOE, VEGETABLES, FLOWERS, SEEDS, RAKE, SOIL,
BLOOM, GROW, RAIN, SUN, PLANT, ROOT, STEM,
NUTRIENTS, SPROUT, BULB, WATER, FERTILIZER,
PLOW, WEEDS, DIG, HARVEST, BUD, DIRT.
G L 0 V ESP R 0 U T V BUD
ARB S FER T I L I Z E R B
R A K EWE E 0 S F X 0 H H U
o I V E GET A B L E S A S L
END 0 ROO T LOA L R P B
N Y ISO I L lOW D P V L S
Y K G Z W 0 H S 0 E l L EAT
W ATE R P 0 U M R R 0 S N E
J NUT R lEN T S T W T T M

----

-~~----~----

--

-----

- -

Release Date: April 22-28

17-3 (89)

The Presidents of the United States Poster is an attractive, fun and educational
reference. This 22-by-28-inch poster is illustrated with reproductions of the
official engraved portraits of each of the 40 presidents. To order, send check or
money order only for $2.00, plus 75 cents (postage and handling) to: Presidents
Poster, c/o This newspaper, P.O. Box 419150, Kansas City, Mo. 64141. Make
checks payable to Andrews and McMeel.

Go dot to dot
and color.

..S~

~~

/~.
37

3('

"
.3'J "\
2.1

from The Mini Page by Betty Debnam

1989 Universal Press Syndicate

11

from The Mini Page by Belly Debnam C 1989 Universal Press Syndicate

Meet Katherine Heltnond

"5

. ,*

3~

,/

from The Mini Page by BeUy Debnam C 1989 Universal Press Syndicate

Katherine Helmond plays

Mona Robinson, the
grandmother on the TV show
uWho's the Boss?"
Katherine grew up in
Galveston, Texas. She started
acting in community theaters
while in high school.
She has acted in theaters all across the country .
She owned and operated a theater in the Catskill
Moun tains atone time.
Katherine has also taught acting at several
schools.
She is married to David Christian, an artist. Her
hobbies include cooking, tap dancing and reading.

Attention, Students, Teachers and Parents!

Take a state-by-state tour with The Mini Page gang and learn
all the facts!

HOW DOES A GHOST

OPEN A HEAV"I DOOR?

The Mini Page Book of States is packed with helpful information on every state: capitals, birds, flowers, trees, industry
and crops, geographical and historical facts, and more.
Perfect for use at home and in the classroom, The Mini Page
Book of States makes learning fun.
To order, send $4 .95 plus $1 each for postage and
handling. Send only checks or money orders
payable to Andrews and McMeel, P.O. Box
419150, Kansas City, Mo. 64141.
Please send me __ copies of The Mini
Page Book of States.
Name _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ___
Address _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __
City _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __
State _ _ _ _ _ _ Zip _ _ _ _ __

Q: Who does a goblin take out on a

date?

Mighty Funny: His ghoulfriend!

(Both sent in by K.C. Lomax)

Knock, knock. Who's there? Harry.

Harry who? Harry up. Open the door.
(Sent in by Anna Marie Vargas)
from The Mini Page by Belly Debnam

1989 Universal Press Syndicate

Release Date: April 22-28

17-4 (89)

How does your garden grow?

Can you name

these flowers?

Annuals come
from seeds.
They live only
a year or less.
/

Perennials
come back year
after year. The
plants come
from seeds, or
from dividing
bigger plants.

These
perennials
come from
bulbs.
snJo.!=>

sPI

Wildflowers
grow almost
everywhere.

from The Mini Page by Betty Debnam

A museum. for flowers

Flower facts
Of the 350,000
plants in the world,
about 250,000 have
flowers.

I:>

1989 Universal Press Syndicate

Plants
grow frolD:
1~~~rifJ~1
Seeds

(i;

ill

Many people visit the U.S. Botanic Garden. It is in

Washington, D.C. A botanic garden is a museum for plants.
There are botanic (bo-tan-ic) gardens in every state. In some
places, they are called botanical gardens. Most have tours and
other educational programs to let the public know about plants
and flowers.

The largest
flower in the
world is the
rafflesia (raf-lissee-uh). It grows in
Indonesia. Some
measure about 3
feet across.
Vegetables have
flowers, too. Have
you ever seen a
carrot flower?

Cuttings from
other plants

L.....-_ _---J

Bulbs

Dividing
plants

Release Date: April 22-28

17 (89)

Teacher's
Guide
For use by teachers and parents at home and at
school.
For use with issue: All About Plants and Seeds
Main idea: This issue is about flowers . The following is a list of activities to be
used with this issue. They are listed in order of difficulty, with the easier prereader assignments listed first . Ask the children to do the following :
1. Find the following pictures: an Egyptian, a seed, a bird, a hoe, a farmer on a
tractor, roots.
2. What is your favorite flower? Where do you see flowers growing? Does
your garden at home have any flowers growing in it? What can you do with
flowers?
3 . Flowers are a sign of spring. What are some other signs ?
4. Find some pretty flowers . Place them between two pieces of waxed paper.
Place the waxed paper beneath a heavy book. After several days, remove the
pressed flowers. You can then glue them to paper or put them under a piece of
glass for a decoration .
5 . Find a flower and identify the different parts. What does each part look
like? What does it do?
6. Draw a picture of a flower you think is especially pretty.
7. Take the list of the annuals, perennials and wildflowers. Classify different
flowers you see today. What is the difference between the three classifications?
8 . Bring in as many different seeds as possible. Compare their size and shape.
They can be fruit or plant seeds.
9 . Look through your paper for ads for gardening equipment.

(Note to Editor: Above is the Teacher's Guide for Issue 17.)

~G\lS Goodsport's

Beport

Supersport: Greg Louganis

Height: 5-9
Weight: 160

Birthdate: 1-29-60
College: University of
California at Irvine

Greg Louganis is the best diver in the

world. He won two gold medals at the 1988
Summer Olympics. He also won two golds
at the 1984 Olympics.
Greg's first Olympics was in 1976, where
he won a silver medal.
Since 1975, he has won 47 U.s. titles,
more than any diver. He has won five
world championships. He also has won medals at the PanAmerican Games and the U.S. Olympic Festival.
Greg won the 1984 Sullivan Award for the top amateur
athlete.
He has worked as a model, actor and dancer. He lives in
Malibu, Calif.
from The Mini P.ge by Betty Debnom .. 1989 Universol Press Syndicote

(Note to Editor: Above is copy block for Page 3, Issue 17, to

be used in place of ad if desired.)