Fun fact
Whales can live for more than 200 years. This means
there are whales alive who can still remember when
your headteacher was born!
The entries have been pouring
in for the g2/Guardian children’s
books site short story competi-
tion, but there’s still time to
enter with your own work of
genius! All-time brilliant Horrid
Henry author Francesca Simon
(below) started a short story
called The Tick-Tock Box – but
she can’t think of a middle or
end. We want you to finish the
story. Let your imagination run
wild! The best story will win a
£50 book token and be published
on the Guardian children’s books
site with an extract in g2.
Do you love books? Then the Guardian children’s books site is the place for you! Find reviews by kids,
­interviews with your favourite authors, quizzes, discussions and competitions, and join the club to get
more involved. www.guardian.co.uk/childrensbooks
How to...
Read a
map
Explorers at the ready! If you’re
off somewhere new this hols,
make sure you take a map with
you. That way you won’t get lost
– and you might even stumble on
something amazing. Not sure how
to use one? Check out this guide:
What kind of map?
There are two main types of ­
paper map that you can buy in
the shops: Ordnance Survey (OS)
Explorer Maps (these are the
ones with orange covers) and
OS ­Landranger Maps (these are
the ones with pink covers).
What are the
­ ymbols to
s am I?
look for?
When you draw a map you have
to label lots of different things –
for example, churches, museums
and parks. If OS wrote all the
names of these places on the map
Short story
competition
THE TICK-TOCK BOX
By Francesca Simon
“Hey! Get off my foot!” squeaked
an angry voice.
Jesse and Ava froze. They couldn’t see
anyone in the darkness.
“What are you doing here?”
Jesse grabbed Ava’s arm.
“You tell him.”
(...to be continued)
there would be too much writ-
ing and it would be confusing.
So ­instead of words, symbols are
used. Have a look at a map of your
area and see if you can work out
what the symbols mean. On every
map there is a key to help you.
What is a scale?
The scale of the map shows you
how many times you would
need to enlarge the map for it to
be the same size as the real
world. For example, the OS
Explorer Map is at 1:25,000
scale, so would need to be
enlarged 25,000 times for
it to match the real world.
When you know the
scale of the map, you
can work out how
far one place is
from another.
Where
If you
want to
let someone
know where
you are, you
can give them
Now over to you
We want you to
finish the story
in no fewer than
200 words and not
more than 500.
The competition
is open to children YOUR JOKE
aged 6-12 and you
What kind of cat purrs the most?
need to email
A Purr-sian.
your entries to
Emma Hunter, aged 9
childrens.books@
guardian.co.uk
with “The Tick- YOU AND YOUR PET
Tock Box” in the
Owner Edward Ledgard
subject line ­before
Age 7 
midnight on
Best hobby Finger
26 April 2011. Go
knitting and cricket 
to guardian.co.uk/
Best food Pasta 
childrensbooks
Worst habit
for full terms
­Throwing clothes on
and ­conditions.
my ­bedroom floor 
Good luck!
Pet My dog, Tilly (springer spaniel) 
Age  One and a quarter (9 in dog years) 
Best toy A stuffed zebra 
Best hobby Sleeping 
Best food Tuna 
Worst habit Getting under my duvet  
YOUR REVIEW
Percy Jackson and
the Lightning Thief
a grid reference. If you look at an
OS map you will see that there
by Rick Riordan
It is about a boy called
are numbers that go across the
bottom of the map (from left to
Percy Jackson who finds
out he is son of the Greek
right – these are called “eastings”)
and up the side (from bottom
god ­Poseidon. The ruler
of all the gods, Zeus,
to top – these are called “north- ­accuses him of stealing his
ings”). These numbers have thin lightning bolt and Percy has no idea
blue lines running from them what he’s talking about. So Percy goes
forming squares all across the off on a quest with Annabeth (daughter
map – these are grid squares. To of Athena) and Grover (a satyr) to find
tell your friend which grid the lightning bolt and get his mother
square you are in, give back, who was taken away by the
them the number of the ­minotaur [a huge horned creature], for
easting – the line that Hades. It is a great book and the first in
runs along the left-hand the series of five. I really recommend
side of the grid square it to people who like Greek mythology
you are in. You then want and battles.
to tell them the “north- From Nina Hayward, aged 10
ing” – the number of
the line that runs along Every day this week we’re giving away
an amazing Moshi Monsters goodie bag,
the bottom of the grid including a copy of the latest magazine
square you are in. Put (out now), to the lucky reader whose
these two numbers review is published on these pages
Rachel, yours is winging its way to you!
­together and you have a
four-figure grid reference
s s
s pie id
to give your friend. Yesterday’s answers
ge co 2k
What am I?
pa e /g
The Ordnance Survey and
e or uk
Melon, kiwi,
es m o.
Cotswold Outdoor are holding pineapple,
th ut n.c
navigation workshops across lemon
of t o dia
the country – for more
in r
pr ua
information go to
to to g
cotswoldoutdoor.com
o
G
The Guardian 15