News
Great Barrier relief as coral returns
environmentCoral coverage on the northern and central parts of the Great Barrier Reef is at its highest level since monitoring began 36 years ago, a new report shows
Cartwheel Galaxy snaps have space fans in a spin
spaceThe latest cosmic snaps from the James Webb Space Telescope show the Cartwheel Galaxy in unprecedented clarity
Aussies ‘crush it’ in Comm Games pool
sportAustralia has cruised to the top of the Commonwealth Games medal table as the Dolphins felt some serious heat from an energised England but finished on a high as the dominant squad
Latest
‘Fierce’ dino fossil fetches fortune
The 77-million-year-old Gorgosaurus skeleton sold at Sotheby’s in New York fetched a whopping $US6.1 million, but dinosaur experts say selling the mighty biter is a gigantic loss for science
Farewell to voice of stolen generation
Cartoonist Mark Knight has paid tribute to Indigenous singer and songwriter Archie Roach who died as a First Nations Voice to Parliament moved a step closer
Earth spinning faster than ever before
A second a day may be shaved off the world’s most accurate timekeepers if the Earth’s daily rotation keeps gaining speed, as a series of faster spins that started in 2020 continues gathering pace
Language gap gendered to the letter
Boys and girls write about different things and have distinct vocabularies, as an analysis of 150,000 writing samples builds a picture of why girls are better spellers than boys at all year levels
SpaceX junk crashes into Aussie farm at speed
An extraterrestrial torpedo travelling at around 25,000km/h, the trunk of the SpaceX Crew-1 craft, has surprised Snowy Mountains farmers by crashing back to Earth with a mighty bang
Teens make ‘Monster’ mistake with energy drinks
High-caffeine, high-sugar energy drinks sold as performance enhancers are causing confusion among teen consumers who mistakenly believe such products help rather than harm health
PM paves way for Voice to Parliament vote
Australians voters could soon decide in a referendum whether to change the Australian Constitution to include a First Nations Voice to Parliament
Sydney girl scouted by Manchester United
After showcasing her soccer skills for visiting Manchester United scouts, 10-year-old Sydney girl Michaela Togias has bagged a sporting scholarship and the chance of a big break in the UK
Emma McKeon makes Comm Games history
Swimming star Emma McKeon has become Australia’s most successful Commonwealth Games athlete after winning her 11th gold medal
Kids join hunt for sore throat vaccine
Siblings Emily and Thomas are part of a trial to find a vaccine for Strep A, an infection that causes sore throats and leads to hundreds of thousands of deaths worldwide each year
Grazing goats called in to save little lizard
An ingenious trial is underway using grazing goats to munch on grasses threatening the habitat of long-term resident skinks
Party kicks off Comm Games in Birmingham
The Commonwealth Games are off and running after a party style opening ceremony bursting with light, colour, music and dancing
School’s back at Canberra High
Our federal politicians returned to the nation’s capital this week, a bit like kids on the first day back at school, according to cartoonist Mark Knight
Buzz Aldrin’s jacket sold for sky-high price
The jacket worn by US astronaut Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin on the historic Apollo 11 mission to the moon has sold at auction for almost $4 million
TikTok feeding kids junk diet challenges
Hashtag challenges have junior TikTok users becoming unwitting junk ambassadors, as experts say the world’s biggest fast-food names use the platform to bait kids into building their brands
No mistaking author’s support for Spelling Bee
Andy Griffiths is a pretty good speller, which is kind of important for an author but also just about any path you take in life. And he says making mistakes is all part of the journey
Vic zoos cancel close encounters
Indonesia’s outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease prompts Victorian zoos to cancel visitor encounters with animals at risk of catching the virus, as politicians debate border and airport security
Organ transplants save Aussie kids’ lives
Transplants have saved the lives of children across Australia. Read their stories and find out how you and your families can help others
Aussies’ secret weapon at Comm Games
Team Australia’s modest looking Biofire machine could be the difference between our athletes standing on the Commonwealth Games podium or being wiped out by a wave of Covid positives
Great white sharks in growth spurt
Bans on shark fishing and the creation of marine reserves have seen the size of great white and tiger species soar, as more food and greater safety mean these underwater beasts could get bigger
PM spells out importance of the Bee
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese wants more buzz around spelling – so he’s urging kids to take on this year’s Spelling Bee
Molly’s message is changing the world
Queensland schoolgirl Molly Wright became the youngest person to give a TED Talk a year ago. Today her message has had more than 8 million views, trailing only Elon Musk and Bill Gates
Covid jab approved for little kids
Moderna’s Spikevax vaccine has been given “first step” approval for use in Australian children aged six months to six years
Aussie claims historic high jump gold
Eleanor Patterson has shocked the world by becoming the first ever Aussie to take home the gold medal in women’s high jump
Back to the future for masked up school kids
Cartoonist Mark Knight has borrowed a time travelling DeLorean car to illustrate Victoria’s return to face masks in schools
New dino had tiny arms and giant head like T-rex
Palaeontologists have discovered a new giant meat eating dinosaur that had a massive head and tiny arms, just like Tyrannosaurus rex
Do stem cells grow better in space?
Much cheaper than buying seats on a commercial space flight, but crazier sounding than far-fetched science fiction, researchers have just shot their own stem cells into orbit to see how well they grow
Australia’s environment report reveals ‘crisis’
Extreme weather events are having a compounding effect on Australia’s native plant and animal species, as latest five-yearly report reveals the nation’s natural environment is struggling
Fears for Migaloo after dead white whale find
The discovery of a dead whale washed up on a Victorian beach sparked fears it was the famous white humpback Migaloo
Aussie golfer wins British Open
The hallowed ancient golf course St Andrews in Scotland has a new kid in town, after 28-year-old Brisbane golfer Cameron Smith claimed the 150th British Open sporting his signature mullet
World population to hit eight billion this year
India is set to overtake China as the world’s biggest country after the global population hits eight billion people on November 15 this year
Dino set to fetch millions of dollars at auction
The skeleton of a Gorgosaurus dinosaur is up for sale. But you’ll need more than your weekly pocket money to afford this fantastic fossil
Girls surfing new wave of sports
Females are riding a wave of sporting opportunity, as the latest activity snapshot shows surfing and skateboarding participation ramped up during the pandemic and girls got right among it
Turtle and croc strike up unlikely friendship
A fearless turtle appears to have struck up an unlikely friendship with a crocodile in northeast Queensland, with locals snapping a picture of it riding on the croc’s back
NASA shows off amazing new cosmic views
Five spectacular images captured by the James Webb Space Telescope show the universe as we’ve never seen it before
Baby woolly mammoth intact in ice
A near-complete infant woolly mammoth has been found mummified in Canada’s far north Yukon territory, complete with hair and skin preserved in permafrost for over 30,000 years
Bush and beach beat traditional kinder classes
Preschool students who can dump gendered toys and play outside in the bush or at the beach are more likely to perform better in maths, science and technology subjects once they start big school
Djokovic downs Kyrgios in Wimbledon final
There was some amazing tennis – and some fireworks – from Nick Kyrgios as the Australian’s Wimbledon dream was ended by Novak Djokovic
Skull’s age out by a million years
Rethinking the age of an ancient South African skull known as ‘Mrs Ples’ gives her species about a million extra years to have been part of the evolution of the earliest humans
Ash Barty talks to Kids News about her new books
Retired tennis star Ash Barty has swapped her racquet for a pen to write her Little Ash children’s book series. She speaks exclusively to Kids News. WATCH THE VIDEO
How to be an at-home artist like Picasso
You don’t need an art studio to be a great artist. Find out how to turn everyday materials into works of art from your kitchen table. You can also download some special collage patterns to get started
Space junk crash leaves double crater in moon
The moon has a new and unusual double crater after a mysterious piece of rocket space junk slammed into the lunar surface
Bees in ‘lockdown’ to stop parasite spread
The NSW government has ordered a lockdown of bee hives after the discovery of a deadly foreign parasite that has decimated bee populations overseas
Big bacteria the ‘Mt Everest’ of microbiology
The discovery of a giant bacteria is giving microbiology a ‘shake up’, as the whopper found in mangrove water up-ends what was previously known about the size and structure of a single cell
Census reveals changing shape of Australia
The 2021 Census data reveals a nation of 25.5 million people of diverse backgrounds, speaking a number of languages, practising different religious faiths and living in a mix of dwellings
Meet the ugliest mutt on Earth
An ageing Mr Happy Face has won the World’s Ugliest Dog crown – now he’s winning fans around the globe with his story of survival and a second chance at love after being rescued last year
Aussie teen drafted to the NBA
Bendigo teenager Dyson Daniels has hit the big time in style, picked by the News Orleans Pelicans at the annual NBA draft and rocking a snappy silver suit fit for a young instant millionaire
NASA rocket launches from NT
A NASA rocket lit up the skies above the Arnhem Space Centre at Sunday night’s launch, the first rocket to leave Australian soil in 26 years and the space agency’s first outside the USA
Aussie cities fall in world liveability ranks
The world’s best cities to live in have been revealed and there are some surprising results as we learn to live with Covid-19. Guess which Australian city finished the highest
Classroom ‘doggie dates’ reduce stress
Stress is bad for learning, behaviour, health and wellbeing – and there are many ways schools are trying to tackle it. But new research suggests the best way is having a canine classmate
La Nina’s over but don’t put your umbrella away yet
Just when we thought we had seen the end of the La Nina climate driver responsible for dumping all that rain, the weather bureau is warning it could be back for a third year in a row
World’s largest fish caught in Cambodia
A giant stingray weighing a whopping 300kg and measuring 4m long has been caught by Cambodian fishermen – and released back into the Mekong River
What do I have to do to pester Putin?
Cartoonist Mark Knight feels a bit left out not making Russian President Vladimir Putin’s list of banned Aussies
Extra-curricular kids happier and healthier
Children who play sport, learn an instrument or even just muck around with friends after school are more likely to feel happier and healthier than kids who are parked in front of a screen
Deadliest snakes could save lives
Among the world’s deadliest snakes, Australia’s eastern brown and scaled viper could soon enjoy a popularity surge as a protein in their venom significantly slows patient blood loss after injury
Last days to enter Short Story Competition
There’s still two days to enter the Kids News 2022 Short Story Competition – prime time to forage through your family’s stories and give your favourite a fictional makeover before entries close
Aussie soccer kid to star in Spain
He’s just 10-years-old, but Sydney soccer player Cruz Cummins is flying high, bound for the IBER Cup International Youth Football Tournament before meeting talent scouts from Manchester United
Try Harold’s delicious and nutritious smoothie
Healthy Harold knows milk is a great way to get the calcium he needs. You can get yours too with Harold’s delicious rainbow smoothie recipe. WATCH THE VIDEO
Find the Short Story Comp entry form here
Don’t miss out on the Kids News Short Story Competition. Entries close on Friday, June 24. Find the online entry form and more info here
Ancient giraffe ancestor was a headbanger
An ancient relative of today’s docile giraffe was a hardened, head-bashing battler, as males slugged it out in a bid to win a female mate around 17 million years ago in the grasslands of China
‘Little Picasso’ takes art world by storm
Parents cherish every artwork that makes it home, but if the exploding international interest in 10-year-old Californian Andres Valencia is any measure, not all classroom art is created equal
Black hole eats an Earth every second
A giant black hole 500 times bigger than the one in our galaxy has been spotted by an international team of astronomers led by the Australian National University – and this is one very hungry hole
Kids inspire sustainable switch
Some hard questions at a primary school careers day prompted MOO yoghurt boss Mick Sanders to find a sustainable packaging solution using 100 per cent recycled plastic washed up on beaches
Pet rock hitches ride on Mars rover
NASA’s Perseverance rover has picked itself up a pet rock as it explores Mars, carrying the rocky hitchhiker for about 8.5km and counting
Beetroot boosts sporting performance
If you’ve got a big sporting comp coming up, you might want to put beetroot on your menu after Australian researchers found the vegetable can give athletes a competitive edge
Cartoon celebrates wiggly World Cup win
What chance did Peru have against goalie Andrew Redmayne and his wiggly mates in Australia’s World Cup qualifier, asks cartoonist Mark Knight
How social media can help your storytelling
Still looking for inspiration for the Kids News Short Story Competition? If you post or create drafts of anything in social media, chances are you are sitting on a treasure trove of top ideas
Elephant ‘Happy’ … but not a person
The US Court of Appeals has closed the gate on the question of whether Happy the elephant has the same rights under the law as a human being, ruling the ‘magnificent creature’ is not a person
Wiggly jig helps Aussies to World Cup
The Socceroos have qualified for the World Cup in a sudden-death shootout, won after goalie Andrew Redmayne’s rousing routine of what looked a lot like the Wiggles’ Hot Potato
Chores could boost kids’ brains
It might sound like a tall tale cooked up by parents keen to escape the kitchen, but a new study suggests kids could get a brain boost by making family meals and helping out more with housework
Biloela family home at last
The Nadesalingam family is back home in the Queensland town of Biloela after four years in immigration detention – just in time for a very special birthday party
Shark cam captures life and death struggles
Cameras fitted to tiger sharks in Western Australia are giving scientists an unprecedented view of the life and death struggles of the predators and their prey
E-skin to give robots the human touch
Scientists are developing an electronic skin that is almost as sensitive as human skin when touched
Crackling campfire or healthy coral reef?
Scientists have discovered that a healthy coral reef sounds a bit like a crackling campfire. Now they hope to monitor coral health around the globe after training AI to listen to the surprise “song of the reef”
NASA to launch rockets from the NT
NASA rockets haven’t launched from Australian shores since the tail-end of last century – now three will lift off from the Northern Territory’s new space centre by the middle of next month
Louis’ antics steal the show at Jubilee party
Young Prince Louis calls an end to the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations as only a child can in Mark Knight’s latest cartoon for Kids News
Look out for rare planetary show
Five planets will align in their natural order from the Sun in the early morning sky this month, the first time this planetary show has happened in almost 18 years
New Kosciuszko koalas adapted to survive
A previously unknown koala population in Kosciuszko National Park adds ‘insurance’ against species extinction as rare sightings over the past 80 years make the discovery an even bigger surprise
The Aussie sport star you should know more about
Australian golfer Minjee Lee has scored the biggest win of her career, taking home the US Open trophy and $2.5 million in prize money
Teen puts pilot’s wings before wheels
The sky’s the limit for 16-year-old high school student Chloe Familton – a qualified solo pilot with more hours in the cockpit than behind the wheel of a car
Traffic noise spells trouble for school learning
Noise pollution policymakers may need to listen up, as a European study shows students need a little bit of shush around their school in order to develop working memory and improved attentiveness
Party time to mark Queen’s historic reign
Queen Elizabeth II has been on the throne for 70 years, longer than any other British monarch before her. You’ll never guess how Australia celebrated the milestone
Monster prehistoric Aussie plant discovered
Australian scientists have found the largest known plant on Earth in the UNESCO World Heritage Shark Bay of WA – and it’s 4500 years old
Golden chance for jobs in sport
Australia is on the verge of a “golden decade” of sport, with a host of international events headed our way, but still many teens and their parents don’t recognise career opportunities in sport
Lion with mullet causes uproar at Chinese zoo
Even lions can have a bad hair day. Just ask Hang Hang. The big cat’s once glorious mane looks more like a mullet, with keepers blaming hot and humid weather
‘Voldemort’ sledge backfires
New government minister Tanya Plibersek has learnt the hard way that name calling is not on in federal politics any more, according to cartoonist Mark Knight
Megalodon loses food fight with great white shark
An epic clash between aquatic apex predators may have helped drive the megalodon to extinction once they were forced to compete for food with the fearsome and fast great white shark
Aussie rides into cycling history
Australian cyclist Jai Hindley has won the Giro d’Italia, becoming only the second Aussie to take a Grand Tour title as he reunites with his parents at the finish line after more than two years apart
Fiery planet burns around sun-like star
NASA’s powerful James Webb Space Telescope will soon reveal hotly anticipated images of burning lava planet 55 Cancri e, racing around its sun-like star like a ‘super-hot super-Earth’
Dig deeper on International Dinosaur Day
A Melbourne palaeontologist has shared some of his favourite dinosaur facts as the creatures take centre stage on their international day. WATCH THE VIDEO
Google AI to help rescue Great Barrier Reef
Global tech giant Google has teamed up with CSIRO scientists to tackle the crown-of-thorns starfish that preys on coral and is one of the top three threats to the Great Barrier Reef’s future
Ukrainian teens find friends in smiley Sydney
Smiling at strangers in the street is just one way that life is very different for more than 20 teen refugees seeking safety and friendship in Sydney after leaving the war in Ukraine far behind
Have you read these Aussie kids’ favourites?
Australian kids love funny, naughty and cheeky books. Is your favourite on the list of top 50 most popular children’s books of the past decade?
Funny photos focus on serious pothole problem
Alex Dyson looks like he’s having a laugh but his funny photographs aim to highlight a serious problem on rural roads
Demons adopt Indigenous name
Melbourne Football Club has adopted its traditional Indigenous name for two rounds of the AFL season in a move the club hopes will promote education and important conversations
Young Aussies quite keen on Queen
An unusual poll that floats the idea of Australia inventing its own royal family finds a surprising number of young adult Australians are in favour of being ruled by the British one
Cartoon captures election outcome
Cartoonist Mark Knight has summed up the federal election result in his latest drawing for Kids News