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The World Almanac for Kids is an ideal tool for developing your students' study skills. And a scavenger hunt for information is a fun way to use this useful tool!

On this week's Books in Education page, we introduced you to The World Almanac for Kids 1998. I can't think of a more useful tool for developing your students' study skills!

So, why not send your kids on a hunt -- a scavenger hunt of sorts? They can hunt without leaving their classroom or their desks! Students can work individually or in teams as they pore over the pages of The World Almanac for Kids in search of high-interest facts.

Following are some questions prepared by the editors of The World Almanac for Kids. See how many of the questions your students answer correctly using the almanac as their source. (The Answer Key is at the bottom of the page.)

1. What is the world's largest animal?
   (a) elephant (b) blue whale (c) giraffe

2. What is the largest insect?
   (a) atlas moth (b) butterfly (c) dragon fly

3. What is the fastest insect in the world?
   (a) dragon fly (b) atlas moth (c) butterfly

4. Which zoo in the United States has the most species?
   (a) Bronx Zoo (b) San Diego Zoo (c) Denver Zoo

5. Which is the longest tunnel in the world?
   (a) Seikan (b) Bart-Trans Bay Tubes (c) St. Gotthard

6. How many countries are there in the world?
   (a) 127 (b) 206 (c) 192

7. Who painted the Mona Lisa?
   (a) Rembrandt (b) Leonardo da Vinci (c) Pablo Picasso

8. What is the average amount of water each American uses per day?
   (a) 22 gallons (b) 74 gallons (c) 123 gallons

9. How many kinds of beetles are there?
   (a) one (b) 290,000 (c) 19,300

10. What is the scale called that measures earthquakes?
    (a) Metric scale (b) Earth scale (c) Richter scale

11. Do newborn babies have more bones than adults have?
    (a) no, they have fewer bones than adults have
    (b) yes
    (c) they have the same number of bones as adults have

12. How many times a day does the human heart beat?
    (a) 100,000 (b) 10,000 (c) 1,000

13. How many muscles do you have in your body?
    (a) more than 650 (b) 650 (c) less than 650

14. Do you use more muscles to smile or to frown?
    (a) same number (b) more to smile (c) more to frown

15. When was the bicycle invented?
    (a) 1815 (b) 1845 (c) 1885

WHERE CAN I GET THE WORLD ALMANAC FOR KIDS 1998?

The World Almanac for Kids 1988, published by World Almanac Books/K-III Reference Corporation, is available now in paperback and hardcover editions priced at $8.95 and $16.95 respectively. See your local bookseller.

ANSWER KEY
1. b, 2. a, 3. a, 4. b, 5. c, 6. c, 7. b, 8. c, 9. b, 10. c, 11. b, 12. a, 13. a, 14. c, 15. c.

Article by Gary Hopkins
Education World® Editor-in-Chief
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