Thursday, 28 January, 2021
Australia goes 10 days COVID-free; the smartest dogs in the world; AFLW kicks off; and flesh-eating baby dinosaurs.
Squiz Kids is a free daily news podcast just for kids. A short weekday podcast, created here in Australia, that gives kids (and their adults) the rundown on the big news stories, delivered without opinion, and with positivity and humour.
‘Kid-friendly news that keeps them up to date without all the nasties’ (A Squiz Parent)
This Australian podcast for kids easily fits into the daily routine – helping curious kids stay informed about the world around them.
Check out our parent podcast and daily news email for adults: The Squiz: www.thesquiz.com.au
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EPISODE TRANSCRIPT
THE LOWDOWN
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That sound you hear? It’s the sigh of relief from our friends in Sydney – and the cheer of congratulations from the rest of the country as NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian yesterday announced a set of COVID-19 restrictions in the country’s biggest city will be relaxed tomorrow.
It’s a great step forward in our continued tussle with the coronavirus – which – if you can believe it – has been a part of our lives here in Australia for just over a year.
Australia has now gone for 10 days in a row without a locally transmitted case of COVID .. which is to say, NSW is getting closer to being able to say it has stamped out the virus after a couple of outbreaks over summer.
In Sydney and surrounding areas, masks will still be worn in some situations, and people can gather outdoors in groups of 50. Who knows that many people?
It all comes in the same week that a group of Australian medical experts ruled that one of the coronavirus vaccines is safe to be given to all Aussies – a process that – all going well – should start to happen at the end of February.
SPIN THE GLOBE
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Each day we give the world globe a spin and find a news story from wherever it stops … and today, we’ve landed in Budapest – in Hungary – where researchers have discovered some dogs are smarter than others – and can learn words after only hearing them four times.
Most pups require months and months of intensive training before they are able to recognise words uttered by their owners. But researchers at a Budapest University have found that some breeds are especially gifted – with a border collie and a Yorkshire terrier they have been working with displaying an ability to pick up words after hearing them as few as four times.
It’s been compared with the way humans learn words when they are 2-3 years of age. But it was found that the dogs tended to forget the words within an hour of learning them. So, you know: just like 2 and 3 year olds when it comes to the words ‘please’, ‘thank you’ and ‘no, you can’t have that.’
SPORTS TIME
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Dust off your supporters scarves, find a comfy spot on the sofa and settle in .. the AFLW is back and coming to a footy ground or TV screen near you from tonight.
It may only be the fifth season ever for the women’s AFL comp – but organisers say they are looking forward to making the most of the growing popularity of the code while also making up for the fact last year’s season was cancelled mid-comp because of the coronavirus.
This year, all the teams will play on the same ladder – as opposed to two different conferences they were playing in last year – and with a short, nine-round comp – it’s hoped the season will run through to a grand final without being interrupted by COVID restrictions.
Tune in tonight for the kick-off clash between Carlton and Collingwood – and watch for the epic face-off expected between star forward Tayla Harris and Collingwood defensive weapon, Stacey Livingstone.
Game on!
ANIMAL KINGDOM
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You know the Tyrannosaurus Rex, right? That vicious dinosaur that’s always depicted in movies and cartoons as running around with its massive teeth and funny little arms, eating every other dinosaur it comes across?
Well, new evidence uncovered by archaeologists – who are people that study fossils for a living – has revealed that baby tyrannosaurus’s were born bigger than any other comparable dinosaur – and had a full set of teeth, ready to kill from pretty much the moment they hatched. Terrifying!
Popping out of their massive eggs and measuring about 1 metre long at birth, the baby t-rex’s are believed to have been born about the same size as a medium dog, but nowhere near as cute.
THE S’QUIZ
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This is the part of the podcast where you get to test how well you’ve been listening …
- Name one of the two breeds of dog found to be exceptionally smart by researchers in Budapest?
- Which popular sports competition kicks off around Australia tonight?
- What were baby t-rex’s born with in their mouths that meant they could hunt from the moment they hatched?
SHOUT OUTS
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It’s January 28 …. International Lego Day … on this day 63 years ago, a Danish carpenter called Godtfred Kirk Christiansen introduced the world to his invention – a little wooden brick capable of connecting to other little wooden bricks. The name Lego roughly translates from the Danish to mean ‘play well’. So there you go.
It’s also a special day for these Squiz Kids… Aarnav from Canterbury and Sophie from Cherrybrook.
Happy belated birthday to … Alfie from Flagstaff Hill, Nina from Killarney Heights and Kalan from Jindalee.
The S’Quiz Answers:
- Border collie or Yorkshire Terrier
- AFLW
- Teeth