Wednesday, 14 December, 2022
Netball changes uniform rules; Tanzania’s clumsy lion; fighting fake news in Fiji; and how to take a meteoroid shower tonight.
LINKS
Comedy Wildlife Photo Awards
Just Cuts
Newshounds
Get started on our free media literacy resource for classrooms: www.squizkids.com.au/newshounds
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Got a birthday coming up and you want a shout-out? Complete the form on our Squiz Kids website. Link: SHOUT OUTS or / send us an email at [email protected]
EPISODE TRANSCRIPT
THE LOWDOWN
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Ever thought to yourself: gosh i’d love to play netball, but those short skirts just don’t do it for me? I know I have. Well – soon you’ll be able to wear whatever makes you most comfortable on a netball court after Netball Australia yesterday changed the rules around uniforms
From next year, netballers will be permitted to wear shorts, long pants and long-sleeved tops if they wish.
It’s a big shake-up for one of the most popular kids’ sports in Australia. And the changes have been made to make netball more appealing to a wider range of people.
Skirts, leggings, dresses, singlets, long-sleeve shirts and bodysuits will all be allowed under the new rules.
The other reason for changing the dress code, according to Netball Australia, is to take account of weather conditions – with many games in winter being played in freezing conditions, or games in some of the more northerly states being played in blazing sunshine.
It also reflects the fact that netballers come from all different cultures: and some of those cultures have their own preferences when it comes to what they like to wear when playing sport.
And yes: blokes are accounted for too. With the rising popularity of boys playing netball, the new rules include netball uniforms for boys.
Game on.
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 Tanzania – a country in east Africa – where a tiger cub falling head-first down a tree has won the 2022 Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards.
The awards attracted 5000 entries this year – and the finalists are all pretty much laugh out loud funny.
All the money raised from the competition and the awards goes to animal conservation. So the animals are being funny for a good cause.
My favourites are the superhero squirrel, the headless penguin, the flying bull and the bear with what appears to be a salmon disappearing into its ear. To see what I’m talking about – and to pick your own favourite, check out the link in today’s episode notes.
SPACED OUT
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Ever get tired of your parents telling you to take a shower? Trust me: we get tired of having to nag you about it. Well tonight: you can tell them you plan on taking a meteoroid shower – because the night’s sky all over Australia will be full of shooting stars.
I’m talking about the annual meteor shower called the Geminids. In an astronomical nutshell, the shower occurs as our Earth moves in space through the debris of an asteroid called 3200 Phae ..
As we pass through the debris cloud, the little pieces of space rock that come into contact with our atmosphere burn up and create shooting stars.
It’s basically a free, celestial light show. What’s not to love?
The only catch? You’re going to have to stay up late … the action won’t really kick in until about 11pm in Queensland, midnight in NSW, and around 1am in Melbourne and Adelaide. But school’s out – or almost out – you can probably negotiate a sleep-in on Thursday, right?
NEWSHOUNDS
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Every Wednesday, Squiz-E the Newshound sticks his snout into Squiz Kids HQ to report back on any fake news or misinformation he’s found out there in the big wide world .. and today, he’s fresh off the plane from Fiji – where an election is underway to choose the next government of the country. Reports out of the island paradise suggest social media in Fiji is awash with misinformation and fake news as some people try to influence the outcome of the election.
Lies are being spread about candidates, claims that have no basis in truth are being made about the fairness of the elections, and videos are being edited to make candidates look bad. And they’re all appearing on social media sites like Facebook – where, as you know, anyone can set up an account and say pretty much anything they like without it having to be true.
Another reason why it’s super important whenever you come across any information on the internet to do as Squiz E says and STOP, THINK and CHECK before believing it. We’ve always got to think about who is telling us a piece of information – and whether they can be trusted to tell the truth – or if, instead, its in their interest to tell a lie.
And don’t forget teachers: our eight-part media literacy podcast Newshounds – with its accompanying classroom booklet, video component and teacher manual – is available for free – and would make for the perfect addition to your lesson planning next year. Visit squizkids.com.au to sign-up and have a sniff around …
HAIRCUT CHALLENGE
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Back when I was your age, my mum used to hack at my hair with an old fashioned razor blade contraption .. and if my hair came out of the experience looking half-decent, it was a win.
Today, however, you can go to a salon and have pretty much any hair style you want. Side ponytail, pixie cut, long tapered or buzz cut – fauxhawk, mohawk, mullet or fade .. the hair style options are endless.
Which is why this week we’ve partnered with Just Cuts to discover the ultimate Aussie kids’ hair style. Are you are Hermione Grainger, a Billie Eilish, or a Lizzo? A Ryan Papenhuyzen, a Harry Styles or a Bailey Smith?
All you have to do is write to us a [email protected] and tell us your ultimate hair style and you’ll go into the draw to win … get this … a year’s worth of style cuts for the whole family – plus a family pack of Just Cuts new range of kids hair-care products … the JUSTICE Professional Kids range – including Tutti-Frutti tear-free shampoo, tangle-free conditioner and a texturising wax .. for those days when you’re feeling super stylish. Exclusive to Just Cuts salons or available at justcuts.com. I’ve stuck a link in today’s episode notes …
So don’t just sit there … get busy imagining your ideal haircut and drop us a line!
THE SQUIZ
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This is the part of the podcast where you get to test how well you’ve been listening …
- In which country did a clumsy lion cub fall down a tree?
- What’s the name of the meteor shower lighting up our skies tonight?
- Which sport has relaxed its uniform rules to make it easier for everyone to play?
SHOUT OUTS
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It’s December 14 … only 11 sleeps ‘til Xmas … Rudolph is polishing up his red nose in preparation …
It’s also a special day for these Squiz Kids celebrating a birthday today … Bentley from Bradbury, Lucinda from Dee Why, Adele from Seaford, Aimee from Minto, Ruby from Alice Springs, Roy from Alstonvale, Finn, Tom, Lachie, Riley, Lawson and Lucas all from Sydney
And belated birthday shout outs go to William, Jed and Eddie from Adelaide and Otto from Kew.
And because a bunch of you will be celebrating birthdays in the second half of December, when we’re off-the-air, and we don’t want you to miss out – we’re going to be punching out ADVANCE birthday shout-outs … we’ll call them the Extra Special Xmas Baby Shout Outs …
Happy ‘early’ birthday to… twins Neel and Laya from Winmalee, Ammaar from Newington, Rose from Orange, William from Buderim, Charlie M from Craigburn, Laura holidaying in Dodges Ferry, Zoe from Killarney Heights, Kayleigh from Ashmont, Lex from Dangar Island, Jai from Ivanhoe, Bosco from Woongarrah, Ruby from Abbotsford, Ivana from Lewisham, Isabelle from St Ives and Xavi listening in Taiwan.
Classroom shout outs go to… class 3/4 and Miss Bailey at Dunoon Public School, classes 5L, 6D and 6K at Bella Vista Primary School, class 3/4M and Mrs Mungoven at Singleton Heights Public School, class 4P and Mrs Phillip at Floraville Public School, year 1 and class 3/4 at Highvale Primary School, happy birthday to Miss Edgecombe at Bundanoon Public School, class 3/4Q and Miss Kew at Marayong Primary School and have fun at your class party today and lastly class 4B at Park Orchards Primary School – would like to say thank you and congratulations to their amazing School Principal of 17 years – Mrs Daniels who is retiring.
And a quick note on Classroom Shoutouts … we’ve got only two more podcasts left in the year and over 80 Classroom Shoutouts in the Squiz Kids mailbox queue – we’ll get through as many as we can before the week is out – but if we don’t, please accept our apologies and please get in touch when the school term resumes next year …
The S’Quiz Answers:
1.Tanzania
2. Geminids
3. Netball