TIME, TIME for Kids and Nickelodeon have finally announced the winner of the 2020 Kid of the Year and 15-year-old scientist and innovator Gitanjali Rao from Colorado has taken home the prize. The multi-platform initiative has set out to recognize young leaders who are making a positive impact in their communities, and Rao is no exception.
She and other top finalists will be honored during the Kid of the Year TV special hosted by Trevor Noah on Fri. Dec. 4 at 7:30 p.m. The special will be aired on Nickelodeon, TeenNick and Nicktoons and will feature guests stars such as Kristen Bell, Simone Biles, Billie Eilish, Rob Gronkowski, Neil Patrick Harris, Chris Hemsworth, Ken Jeong, Angelina Jolie and Malala Yousafzai.
photo: TIME
Rao sat down with Angelina Jolie in an interview to discuss her work with technology. “I don’t look like your typical scientist. Everything I see on TV is that it’s an older, usually white man as a scientist…. My goal has really shifted not only from creating my own devices to solve the world’s problems, but inspiring others to do the same as well. Because, from personal experience, it’s not easy when you don’t see anyone else like you. So I really want to put out that message that anybody can do it. If I can do it, you can do it, and anyone can do it.”
The top five Kid of the Year honorees will receive a cash prize and will serve as a Kid Reporter for TIME for Kids at a Nickelodeon event. You can find more information about the program atKidoftheYear2020.com, and don’t forget to pick up a copy of the Dec. 14 issue of TIME featuring Gitanjali Rao on newsstands this Fri., Dec. 4.
Nickelodeon, TIME and TIME for Kids announced the top 20 finalists for the first-ever Kid of the Year honor. This new initiative will recognize extraordinary young leaders who are making a positive impact in their communities. The top five honorees from the list will be featured in a television special hosted by Trevor Noah.
The Kid of the Year TV special will introduce the top five honorees ahead of the ultimate Kid of the Year being named, and feature guest stars from entertainment, sports and pop culture to help surprise them and celebrate their work. Celebrity guests scheduled to make appearances throughout the special include Kristen Bell, Simone Biles, Brie Larson, Zachary Levi and Russell Westbrook, among others.
The special will simulcast across Nickelodeon, CBS Television Network, TeenNick and Nicktoons on Sat., Dec. 5, at 8 p.m. (ET/PT). One kid will be chosen as Kid of the Year and will be featured on a cover of TIME with a companion story in TIME for Kids.
Each of the five Kid of the Year honorees will receive a cash prize and have the opportunity to serve as a Kid Reporter for TIME for Kids with exclusive access to a Nickelodeon event. For additional information about the initiative, visit KidoftheYear2020.com.
Is it us or do you feel a Denver baby boom coming on? Whether you’re expecting or you just want to see how your kiddo’s name stacks up, we’ve got a list of baby names that honor Denver’s popular places, people and history. Scroll down for some mile-high baby name inspiration!
What could better convey a love for the great outdoors than naming your baby after a tree?
Brec
Ski destination Breckenridge is the source of this shortened name that could be good for either a boy or a girl.
Bronc
It's no surprise that this name is on the list of local favorites, after the Denver Broncos, of course.
Buffy
This name has a cool, retro feel and pay homage to the University of Colorado mascot, the buffalo.
Clara
Clara Brown was often called the "Angel of the Rockies" and is reportedly the first Black woman to cross the plains during the Gold Rush. She came to Colorado by working as a cook on a wagon train in exchange for her transport. In Denver, she opened the first laundry and used her profits to help formerly enslaved people relocate to Colorado.
Denver
It's never wrong to go right to the source and name your baby after the Mile High City. Plus, Denny is just too cute for a nickname.
Elizabeth
Elizabeth Piper Ensley (three awesome ideas for Denver baby names!) was a Denver reporter for Woman’s Era, a newsletter of the National Association of Colored Women. Her tireless work campaigning for the Colorado Equal Suffrage Association is credited for helping the state to give women the right to vote in 1893.
This classic name is an homage to Dr. Florence Rena Sabin, the first female medical professor at Johns Hopkins. She retired to Colorado although her retirement was short lived as she was asked to help combat infant mortality, scarlet fever and diphtheria in the area.
Hattie
Isn't this just the cutest name? Actress Hattie McDaniel was the first Black person to win an Academy Award. The award was given for her role as "Mammy" in the movie Gone with the Wind.
Lark
The Lark Bunting is the state bird of Colorado and we think it makes a lovely girl name.
Miles
How better to pay homage to the Mile High City than with this classic name?
Mills
Enos Mills moved to Colorado early in his life and his love of nature permeated his entire life. He was the main figure behind the creation of Rocky Mountain National Park.
iStock
Peyton
This gender-neutral name is a great option for Broncos fans, after Peyton Manning.
Pike
Winter sports fanatics, this one's for you.
Rocky
This name harkens back to times past and a love of the Rocky Mountains.
This vintage name is a great option that also shows a love for Colorado's Ruby Mountain Range.
Spruce
The Blue Spruce is the Colorado state tree and it makes for a lovely middle name.
Vail
This gorgeous name honors the gorgeous ski area of the same name.
Make sure to capture all the joyful moments with your Colorado kid—and share them with your family and friends near and far—with the Tinybeans app. The secure platform puts parents in total control of who sees and interacts with photos and videos of their kids.
Sesame Workshop has created a few initiatives over the past few months in order to teach and support families during the coronavirus pandemic. Sesame Workshop and the LEGO Foundation are partnering to bring you a special Sesame Street episode, Elmo’s World News. Elmo is hosting a pretend news program from his bedroom and he is calling on Muppet correspondents and children from around the world to share the ways they are continuing to play and learn while staying safe.
The 25 minute special episode will air in over 13 languages across the Middle East, Latin America, sub-Saharan Africa, Asia and more as part of Sesame Workshop’s Caring for Each Other initiative.
Weather Reporter Grover shows how he uses his imagination to “bring the outside inside” by adapting his favorite outdoor activities to create indoor fun. Special Correspondent Cookie Monster tells viewers about his “Things That Make Me Happy” box, a simple activity families can do together to practice mindfulness and gratitude with everyday objects. Reporter Raya shares a playful and interactive update on ways children around the world maintain daily routines, while the reporting team of Basma and Jad pop in with breaking news on how children are managing and expressing their “big feelings” through movement and dance.
“With so many children around the world navigating new routines, it’s more important than ever to give families the tools they need to cope with challenges and foster playful learning at home,” said Sherrie Westin, President of Social Impact and Philanthropy. “Play is critical to a child’s healthy development, and that’s especially true during times of uncertainty. Together with the LEGO Foundation, we can harness the power of play to meet the evolving needs of families everywhere and help them build the resilience that will carry them through these tough times and beyond.”
The Elmo’s World News special joins active Play to Learn programs in Bangladesh and the Middle East supporting children affected by the Rohingya and Syrian refugee crises as well as in South Africa. This initiative provides tools, resources and content for teachers, caregivers and parents to access play-based learning activities that build children’s physical, cognitive, social, creative and emotional skills.
“Play-based education is vital for children’s psychological, emotional, and cognitive health and development, and hones the resilience they need to overcome challenges like our current reality,” said John Goodwin, CEO of the LEGO Foundation. “With more than 1.5 billion children displaced from traditional learning environments, the LEGO Foundation is committed to finding creative solutions to accelerate learning through play amid the pandemic. We are proud to collaborate with our partner, Sesame Workshop, to ensure that children have access to education and develop the critical skills needed to thrive in today’s constantly changing world, and in the future beyond the pandemic.”
Sesame Workshop’s Caring for Each Other initiative was created in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. SesameStreet.org/caring is regularly updated to meet the needs of families as the situation evolves, with resources designed to help parents provide comfort and manage anxiety, as well as help with creating routines, fostering playful learning at home and staying physically and mentally healthy.
Disney is giving the live-action treatment to one of it’s most iconic films. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Bambi is getting a remake.
The last few years have seen several Disney remakes based on some the biggest films from the studio during its golden era in the ’90s, including Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King, Aladdin and the upcoming Mulan. This time Disney is taking it way back to one of its originals with a remake of the 1942 film Bambi.
While there has been no official announcement by Disney, The Hollywood Reporter is reporting that Geneva Robertson-Dworet (Captain Marvel, Tomb Raider) and Lindsey Beer (Sierra Burgess Is a Loser, Chaos Walking) have been hired to write the new “live-action” version.
According to the publication, the studio will be utilizing the same methods used to produce previous remakes staring animals, like The Lion King and The Jungle Book. While the film will appear to be live-action it will only be made to look that way using advanced CG technology.
Fans of A.C. Slater and Zack Morris are getting ready for a return of their fave characters in NBCUniversal’s upcoming Saved By the Bell reboot—but there’s more! The Hollywood Reporter recently revealed the show has cast transgender actress Josie Totah in the starring role.
Reportedly, Totah will star as popular cheerleader Lexi. The character is a beautiful teen who is admired, yet feared, and will rule Bayside High School in this remake of the late ’80s/early ’90s NBC tween hit.
Totah, who also starred in NBC and Universal’s comedy Champions (produced by Mindy Kaling) came out as transgender in a 2018 essay she wrote for Time. The actress wrote, “When I was really young, growing up in a small town in Northern California, people would just assume I was gay. On the playground, I was the type of kid who wanted to sing with the girls, not play soccer with the boys.” She continued, “Then I found myself playing that role once I got into the entertainment industry, and people kept assuming my identity.”
The soon-to-be Saved By the Bell actress went on to add, in her Time essay, “My pronouns are she, her and hers. I identify as female, specifically as a transgender female. And my name is Josie Totah.”
Along with Totah, former Saved By the Bell stars Mario Lopez and Elizabeth Berkley will go back to Bayside to reprise their original roles. The show will debut in April 2020 on NBC’s new streaming service, Peacock.
Actor Josh Gad, a.k.a. Olaf (or at least the voice behind him), recently shared a tear-jerkingly sweet video of his nine-year-old daughter on Instagram.
The clip, which was taken four years ago, shows the little girl crying as she muses, “But why will I never not be a kid anymore?” At the tender age of five, Gad’s daughter had just come to the realization she would grow up, and like her nanny Sara says in the video, “We’re not Peter Pan. Only Peter Pan is a kid forever.”
Along with the clip, Gad captioned the video, “Four years ago, during dinner one night our beautiful little girl had a huge epiphany that shook her to her core…we all have to grow up.” The Frozen 2 star continued, “This heartbreaking moment is something I never shared publicly before because it was so personal. Our Nanny at the time, Sara, did such a remarkable job helping guide her through this difficult “coming of age” moment and I constantly look back at it as a reminder of the fragility of youth and our struggle to make sense of our place in this rapid world.”
Gad went on to explain the impact his daughter’s realization had on his Frozen 2 character, “It just so happens that I shared this video with our brilliant Frozen 2 team at the time and said, I believe this should be Olaf’s journey in Frozen 2.” The actor opened up about how this moment (and the video clip) shaped Olaf’s journey, telling the Hollywood Reporter, “I showed it to [Frozen 2 directors] Chris and Jennifer, who both had smiles on their faces. I think that they both had the same instincts—that it was time for Olaf to grow up.”
Just in time for your elf’s reappearance for the holiday season, there’s a new Elf on the Shelf movie the whole family will love.
From the creators of The Elf on the Shelf,the Elf Pets’ new Christmas film,A Fox Cub’s Christmas Tale is now streaming through Dec. 31 on YouTube. Based on the book,Elf Pets: An Arctic Fox Tradition, which launches this holiday season, the short animated film gives fans of all ages a peek into life at the North Pole.
If your inquisitive young minds at home can’t stop asking how Santa can manage to deliver all those presents in just one night, this movie has all the answers. The film follows the story of “Newsey Noel,” the North Pole’s ace Scout Elf reporter, who is invited to ride along with Santa on Christmas Eve to learn first-hand how time pauses so Santa can deliver presents undetected and unheard.
Elf Pets:A Fox Cub’s Christmas Tale is available now on YouTube, as well as on DVD.
Whether you’re looking for a bedtime story or a weekend read, these books that are hot off the presses in November are our top choices for the best in children’s book publishing this month.
All Ages
Cakes for Kids: 40 Easy Recipes That Will Wow!
Gibbs Smith
Paris-based baker, food artist and cookbook author Juliette Lalbaltry's latest book starts with teaching kids (and their grown-ups) four basic cake recipes (lemon, yogurt, chocolate and rolled sponge). From these four bases she offers dozens of ideas for clever, totally doable decorations that will guarantee you'll never need to order another party cake.
You can count on New York Times bestselling author Danica McKellar to make bathtime a sneaky mathtime, but even if your toddler's hip to the shape and number storyline, the simple rhymes and familiar setting make learning shapes a breeze.
Part of the Changing Faces series, this new book by Carles Ballesteros helps toddlers learn cause and effect. As they turn each page, each animal's face changes thanks to the magical Venetian blind element built into the book. Not only will the interactive experience tickle your tot, but we love the special message at the end.
This new series from Mr. Boddington's Studio—a vibrant stationary store in Brooklyn—now includes San Francisco (the first one was NYC ABCs, released in May of this year). We love this clever way to teach kids the alphabet and explore a city in an off-the-beaten path way.
This charming ABC book follows a bear who wakes up in the middle of winter. Meeting friends, getting into jams, trying to figure out exactly what a bear should be doing if not hibernating, this alphabet book will not only help young readers learn their letters but also illustrates a lovely story of friendship between the bear and a young girl.
The classic fairy tale Cinderella with a cast of dino characters, including the Fairy Triceratops and a not-so-nice stompmother. Written by Christy Webster with bright, cheerful illustrations by Holly Hatam.
In this debut picture book by author Grant Snider, readers explore the shapes and colors of nighttime from an entirely new—and delightful—perspective. A comforting bedtime story, the narrator takes children on a friendly exploration of the colors of the night, from a glowing moon to the bright lights of a big city.
The world-traveling Lily Huckleberry is back and this time she's heading to Japan for the Cherry Blossom season. These exquisitely crafted, beautifully illustrated books make an excellent gift for the adventurer in your life. Hardcover and comes with Japan patch. By Audrey Smit and Jackie Knapp, combines beautiful illustrations with the magic of travel.
How far will one mother shrew go just to help her sick son? She'll go to the moon, and back. This beautifully illustrated book by amazingly self-taught author/illustrator Kenneth Kraegel is as touching and moving as it is visually pleasing.
Meet August. He's wild, just like his mother says he is. So when he turns into an actual tiger one day, he gets to do everything he pleases, with no one trying to tame him. Things come up roses, until he realizes that wild tigers might not make the best friends with the playground set. A sweet book that explores the wildness in all children, your own little tiger will love it for the thrill of imagining "what if?"
If your favorite brick enthusiast loves all things astronomy related, this book by Sarah Dees is a must have. You don't need to buy more Legos to use this book; these creative configurations make use of bricks you already own. Simply follow the concise, step-by-step instructions to create a galactic new world.
Written in allegory form by Zoë Tucker with gorgeous illustrations by Zoe Persico, this picture book retells the story of Nobel Peace Prize nominee Greta Thunberg and her global movement to raise awareness about the climate crisis. Greta lives in a beautiful forest, threatened by Giants who chop down trees to make their homes. Then they chop down more trees, to make bigger houses, leaving little forest left. But Greta has an idea...
Includes a back section that helps kids learn how they can help Greta in her fight. Printed sustainably on 100% recycled paper.
Kids will learn the history of one of America's most celebrated band from A to Z in this gorgeously illustrated book. Young fans and adults will enjoy this fantastic journey of Metallica and with each purcase a portion of the proceeds will benefit Metallica’s All Within My Hands Foundation, "which is dedicated to creating sustainable communities by supporting workforce education, the fight against hunger, and other critical local services."
Sisters Jenna Bush Hager and Barbara Pierce Bush release this celebrated book on the power of sisters. Beautifully illustrated, readers will follow the story of two girls who learn that through sisterhood, they are braver and more kind than they are alone.
Written by award-winning author SJ Murray and illustrated with original watercolors by artist Emma Schmidt, Ralph's Christmas Quest is a sweet holiday tale. Follow Ralph as he goes on a search for his long-lost favorite button and how he finds that friends are much more meaningful than material possessions.
Becoming RBG: Ruth Bader Ginsburg's Journey to Justice
Simon & Schuster
This graphic novel will enlighten tween, teen and grown-up alike with the story of how RBG grew from a shy little girl to the Supreme Court. Written by NY Times bestselling author Debbie Levy, and illustrated by Whitney Gardner (Fake Blood).
Greta's Story: The Schoolgirl Who Went on Strike to Save the Planet
Simon & Schuster
This chapter-book chronicles the incredibly timely and motivating true story of young Greta Thunberg and the global movement she has inspired. This young-readers' (unofficial) biography educates adults too on the eco-activist and what we can all do to help save the planet. Written by Italian writer Valentina Camerini and translated and illustrated by Morena Givannoni.
The adventures never end with 12-year-old Kassy O'Roarke, a wonderful character who is smart, thoughtful, clever and has real feelings that kids can relate to. Kassy is the class reporter and an investigator, and in this story she's trying to solve the case of a missing cougar cub. Written by bestselling author Kelly Oliver.
Move over Jurassic Park—Barney is poised to make a major move to the big screen!
Even though the big purple dinosaur won’t exactly star in a high-action, sort-of-scary story on the level of the Jurassic Park franchise, the beloved TV character will make his way to theaters sooner than you think.
Mattel Films is teaming up with Daniel Kaluuya’s 59% banner and Valparaiso Pictures for a full-length theatrical feature based on the popular purple dancing, singing dino friend.
According to the Hollywood Reporter, Kaluuya said, “Barney was a ubiquitous figure in many of our childhoods, then he disappeared into the shadows, left misunderstood.” Kaluuya also added, “We’re excited to explore this compelling modern-day hero and see if his message of ‘I love you, you love me’ can stand the test of time.”
Mattel Film’s Robbie Brenner said, “Working with Daniel Kaluuya will enable us to take a completely new approach to ‘Barney’ that will surprise audiences and subvert expectations.” Brenner went on to explain, “The project will speak to the nostalgia of the brand in a way that will resonate with adults, while entertaining today’s kids.”
As of now, the film is only in the development stage. That means we’ll have to wait for word on celeb stars, release date or if the pre-Baby Shark earworm “The Clean Up Song” will make its way to the film’s soundtrack.
