Every four years since 1940, Scholastic Magazine has asked young readers to pick the next president. In all but two of those 'elections', the kids have chosen the candidate who went on to win the presidency (they failed to predict Harry Truman in 1948 and John F. Kennedy in 1960).

Because of that impressive record, some people put a lot of stock in the results of Scholastic's election results. So, who did about 250,000 pre-K through 12th grade students choose for our next president this time? Democrat Barack Obama. And not just by a little bit, either. Obama got 57% of the vote compared to Republican John McCain's 39%.

Now, you might be wondering just what do these kids know that would allow them to correctly predict our next president 88% of the time. Rebecca Bondor, editor in chief of Scholastic's classroom magazine, credits family influence. "Kids do listen to their parents, and they discuss politics in their families," she says . But she also says that with today's easy access to information, many kids are forming their own opinions.

As for the remaining 4% of the vote, those went to write-in candidates. Hilary Clinton got most of those, but Ralph Nader, Ron Paul, Stephen Colbert and "my dad" also garnered some votes.

So, there you have it. Like it or not, the kids have spoken. Do you think they've got it right?

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Across the country, kids are gearing up for the one holiday when it is socially acceptable to ask perfect strangers for candy, and some people are scouting out locations that might offer a better selection for their little ghosts and goblins.

Residents in some cities and neighborhoods across the country complain that on Halloween eve, minivans full of kids from other locations will show up on their street and expel gaggles of ghouls looking for high-quality treats. Some websites even go so far as to publish the best locations in town.

Just what makes a neighborhood prime trick-or-treating real estate? Thickly settled, well-lit streets with plenty of porch lights glowing, and low automobile traffic, well as a high ratio of homes decked out in Halloween finery. Perception doesn't hurt, either -- neighborhoods with a reputation for wealth are more likely to draw visitors from other areas.

Just how acceptable is it to engage in drive-by trick-or-treating? It depends on which side of the street you're on. Those in popular locations grumble that parents are looking for a way get "better pickings" for their kids, without having to reciprocate, while others claim it is a matter of safety. Imagine what it's like for parents of kids who live in Chicago's notorious public housing, for example.

What do you think? Would you drop your child off in a "better" neighborhood on Halloween, or do you find the practice obnoxious and greedy?

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Thanks to Google's Street View, anyone with an Internet connection can virtually tour the streets of cities across the United States. The tool allows you to see 360° images of neighborhoods just as if you were driving down that very street. It's a unique way to get an up-close and personal look at places like Times Square in New York and the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. But Street View also lets users get up-close and personal looks at homes, schools and playgrounds. And those views, says a children's advocacy group, put kids at risk.

Stop Internet Predators has asked Google to remove the city of Pittsburgh from Street View because they say that images showing kids, toys and family cars make it easier for pedophiles to find potential victims. A spokesperson for Google says they have a process in which users may request certain images be blurred or removed from Street View, but Stop Internet Predators executive Director Stacie Rumenap says that isn't good enough.

"We want parents to have the opportunity to safeguard their children and for them to have the level of privacy and security they deserve," she said. "Our children's safety should always be the No. 1 concern when allowing a new technology to come into our neighborhoods, and putting the burden on parents to opt out of the system seems unacceptable."

Although Rumenap acknowledges that there have been no crimes against children attributed to Street View, she still thinks it should go offline until all images that might identify where children live, study or play are removed. I am not sure how this could realistically be accomplished, but Rumenap's group is actively pursuing that goal in several other cities as well. I've never used Street View for anything other than wasting time online and wouldn't care one way or the other if it went away. But does showing actual images of schools, playgrounds and homes really put children at higher risk of being victimized? Or is this just pedophile paranoia?

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As a teacher, here in the U.S., my wife is required to report suspected cases of child abuse or endangerment. If she sees or hears something that indicates there could be a problem, she is obligated to contact child protective services. I'm okay with that -- sometimes, kids need protection even from their own family. In England, however, it seems the government wants to take that a step further -- by having teachers report potential terrorists to the police.

The plan extends the "in loco parentis" responsibilities of teachers to include keeping an eye out for pupils who consider violent extremism an option. Francis Gilbert, a teacher who would have to watch out for these disgruntled teenagers (are there really any other kind?), has written a critique of the idea noting that students, aware that their teachers might turn them in, would be afraid to say anything that might be considered anti-establishment.

The teenage years, especially, are a time when kids rebel against the status quo, looking for ways to solve the problems they see and improve society. From the Beatles to Romeo and Juliet, this is part of growing up, part of becoming the next generation. Setting teacher out to crush that is a very bad idea.

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This original version of Trivial Pursuit may not be intended for little kids, but mine loves it anyway.

Chef-prepared vegan meals? Organic salad bar? Free-range meats?

This ain't your mama's lunch lady, folks -- kids at one Kansas City private school say their lunch fare rivals that of their favorite restaurants, thanks to a for-profit business promoting organic school lunches.

The Kansas City Academy offers kids in grades 6-12 foods like pizza with whole wheat crust, hormone-free cheese and organic toppings. What salad with that? Help yourself to greens and veggies grown in a nearby organic, pesticide-free garden.

The school is one of three in the Kansas City area participating in Bistro Kids' Farm 2 School program, which replaces your basic, high-fat cafeteria fare like cheeseburgers and chicken nuggets with natural, locally grown food, such as free-range meats.

Whats that? You're vegetarian, you say? Vegan, even? No worries, just ask the chef to prepare you a special, fresh meal that meets your dietary requirements.

Bistro Kids' owner, Kiersten Firquain, believes kids' dietary habits contribute to poor physical and mental health, and she isn't alone in that belief. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the number of overweight kids has increased drastically in the past 20 years, which in turn has increased the number of kids with diabetes.

Schools have responded by trying to offer fresh-food alternatives, but are often stymied by cost. Those with high poverty rates suffer the most -- the federal government reimburses schools about $2.57 per free meal served, but most districts say an average meal costs $2.88.

Students who participate in free-lunch programs are often the ones most in need of a nutritional boost. I, for one, would be more than willing to put a few more bucks in my school-tax bill to help children in my neighborhood eat a healthier diet. How about you?

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A six-year-old girl in Bristow, Virginia is being hailed as 'amazing' for fighting off an intruder who jumped into the backseat of her mother's car while it was parked in the family's garage. The girl was strapped into the car alone while her mother dropped a note in a mailbox a few doors down. In the blink of an eye, a man ran into the garage, lowered the door and got into the back seat of the car with the little girl.

According to Sgt. Kim Chinn, the girl gets an A+ for remembering her stranger danger lesson. "The 6-year-old fought him," Sgt. Chinn said. "She screamed, she kicked, and she pinched him. And I just think that was amazing for a 6-year-old to think to do that. Screaming was fantastic; the other stuff, even better."



The girl's screams alerted her mother, who ran back into the garage in time to see the intruder flee the scene. News reports are referring to this guy as a would-be burglar, but I question why he got in the backseat with the girl if all he intended to do was steal. What was he after? Her lunch box?

Talking to your kids about what to do should a stranger approach can be a scary thing. Scary for you because the idea that someone would want to harm your child is at the top of the list of Very Bad Things that could happen in life. Scary for your child because it makes the world seem like a big, unfriendly place where horrible strangers are out to get them. Unfortunately, sometimes the world is a big, unfriendly place. But this story proves that those stranger danger lessons are important and that being small doesn't have to mean being powerless.

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Is it time to carve the pumpkin yet? Depends on where you live. Having spent most of my life in a warm climate, I've learned that no matter how anxious the kids are to slice into that pumpkin, sometimes it is best to wait. If you cut too early, there is a good chance that the pumpkin you carve today will be a moldy pile of mush next week.

But even if you've already got some frost on your pumpkin, a knife-free jack-o-lantern might be the way to go. There are lots of kid-safe ways to dress up that orange gourd of October that are guaranteed not to involve a trip to the emergency room for stitches.

The easiest and fastest way to turn a pumpkin into an objet d'art is to paint it. For the best results, lightly sand the pumpkin first so the paint will adhere without flaking. Then set your kids loose with a brush and some acrylic paints to create a scary face, black bats or even pretty flowers. When complete, a top coat of clear sealer will ensure that the masterpiece lasts until Halloween and beyond.

Get out the glue for another knife-free alternative to prettying up a pumpkin. Buttons, leaves, felt cut-outs and even glitter can turn an ordinary pumpkin into an extraordinary pumpkin.

For kids who are a little bit older, try sequins and straight pins. Sketch out a design first and then bring it to life with sparkly sequins held in place with the pins. This takes patience, but in the end you will have the most glamorous pumpkin on the block.

Those are just a few ideas for safely turning a pumpkin into a unique work of art. How do you dress up a pumpkin without a knife?

This week there was frost on the ground and the sky was strewn with wind-tattered clouds, V's of honking geese, and the last wayward monarchs heading toward . At recess the kids would pause for a second, mid soccer game, to look up at the sky and yell LOOK! LOOK! Their faces full of wonder and glee.

It was the kind of weather that called us outdoors every day for an extra mid-morning recess.

Even though I'm theoretically sacrificing academic time by heading outdoors for a handful of minutes with my class, I find I mostly gain time because the children are less restless and more willing to settle down with a good chapter book or a math activity when their bodies have had some time to run outdoors. But I also like going outdoors with them because it gives me a chance to watch them interacting together in an unstructured way.

I keep noticing how uncertain they are in their play together without an adult intervening for them whenever something doesn't go their way.

I know. I've probably exhausted you with my posts about play and children, but it's my obsession. I can't let it go.

Those classic cartoons we loved as children may have been violent, but they could have been much worse. When Bugs Bunny gets shoved off a cliff, he doesn't splatter into bloody pieces. He just gets up and walks away from the bunny-shaped indentation he left on the ground. When Tweety ends up in Sylvester's mouth, he doesn't crunch up into bird bits. He gets spat out whole.

Looney Tunes cartoons are violent, but they never show the reality of the consequences of the violence. At least they don't on television. Those consequences are displayed in all their bloody glory in a new art exhibit by James Cauty called "Splatter". On display at London's Aquarium Gallery, the show features the famous Looney Tunes characters like you've never seen them before. There is a blood-soaked Daffy Duck minus his head, which has been blown off by a gun-toting Bugs Bunny. There's Jerry, having finally been caught by Tom, hacked into small, bloody pieces. And Tweety is nowhere to be seen, but Sylvester's blood-covered mouth gives you a good idea where he went.

The exhibit is described as 'unrelenting acts of blood and discomfort never previously witnessed on the Cartoon Network' and is intended to shock. "Its very difficult to shock kids these days - you have cartoon characters being shot in the head and walking off cliffs, so we have decided to replace them with something more realistic," says the 51-year-old artist.

Despite the 'Parental Advisory Content' warning on the exhibit, kids are enjoying the show. "It's amazing work, and from the reactions we've had to it so far, children have loved it," says gallery owner Steve Lowe. "It should be a very successful show, and will raise lots of questions about violence in the media and in our culture."

Do the kids like it just because they recognize the characters? Or have children really become so desensitized to violence that it no longer shocks them?

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Encourage kids' problem solving skills with a 3-D puzzle game

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Is there any greater childhood pleasure than sorting through an enormous bucket of candy on a cool October evening? Rummaging past the Bit-O-Honey, pennies and black licorice bits, you come across the Holy Grail of all Halloween treats -- a full-sized Reese's Peanut Butter Cup.

All candies are not, after all, created equal. As with all things in life, there is a hierarchy of Halloween sweets. Perpetual favorites are full-sized chocolate bars of all kinds, but Almond Joy and peanut butter cups come out on top. Snickers bars are a crowd-pleaser, as are Dum Dum Pops and Charms Blow Pops.

The Kit Kat wafer bar has its place, as do sour candies of the Nerds variety. Gummy candies of any kind always find their way into small tummies, and you won't find any Nestle Crunch or Mr. Goodbar hanging out in the candy bowl. You also won't go wrong handing out Milky Way bars or Baby Ruth.

Chocolate is, of course, king, but no one will turn their nose up at the right hard candy. Jolly Ranchers continue to be popular with the ghouls and goblins, as are Life Savers.

The all-time favorite Halloween candy? Why, candy corn, of course. Who can resist that chewy, sweet, high-fructose corn syrup treat?

My first stop on the Halloween trail was the dentist's house -- he always gave out full-size Hershey's chocolate bars. What did you eat first, and what went stale in a bowl on top of the refrigerator?

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Sure, we have a problem with childhood obesity in this country but, come on, what country doesn't? What's it going to hurt to let kids pig out one night a year? I mean, Halloween only comes once a year, just like Christmas, Valentine's Day, Easter, the Fourth of July, birthdays (of siblings and friends), anniversaries... Okay, so maybe they do end up eating a lot of junk a lot of the time.

Some parents are trying to make a difference -- by skipping the Halloween candy and handing out less fattening treats. Toys, pencils, stickers, Play-doh, and glow sticks are some of the alternatives people are handing out. "I thought, here I am trying to take care of my health," says Lisa Bruno, of Des Plaines, Illinois, who ditched the candy five years ago. "I felt a responsibility to my community to take care of the kids around me."

Experts suggest that Halloween can be used as a vehicle for teaching kids about portion size and limits to help them deal with food issues all year long. "It's important that we as parents help them find the balance between that very traditional fun activity and a healthy lifestyle," says Connie Diekman, past president of the American Dietetic Association.

I like the idea of giving out pencils or Play-doh -- things that will last longer than the length of a single swallow. I'm not so sure, however, how kids feel about it. Are you giving out candy or a less sugary alternative this year?

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It's important for kids to read in order to become well-rounded, knowledgeable adults and positive members of society. It turns out there's another benefit to reading -- it can lead to weight loss. Scientists at Duke Children's Hospital in North Carolina have found that overweight girls who were given a book that featured an overweight girl reduced their body mass index by one percent in just six months.

The book the girls read, Lake Rescue, promotes a healthy lifestyle, including exercise. A control group that was not given the book actually increased their BMI by half a percent. Even though the loss was small, it represents a significant impact because the expected outcome, sans book, would be for the girls to increase their BMI, as, in fact, the girls in the control group did.

"The idea that a book can positively influence weight loss and decrease BMI is encouraging because it's fairly easy to implement," says Dr. Sarah Armstrong, who specializes in Nutritional Disorders and Obesity at Duke. "And it's a welcome addition to a world where there aren't a lot of alternatives." Whether a healthier lifestyle is a good reason to read or reading is a good way to live a healthier life, I say it's a win-win situation.

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The United States isn't the only country with a problem of childhood obesity, it seems. Apparently, South Korea is battling the problem as well. In fact, the situation is bad enough that the government there is planning to do something about it -- they're going to pay for gym memberships and other weight loss activities.

A changing diet and more sedentary lifestyle has led to a tripling of obesity, according to health ministry official Chun Myung-sook. Kids will get as much as thirty dollars a month to help reduce their weight. "Kids won't be able to waste the money on eating sweets. We will give them electronic vouchers that can only be used in designated places," Chun said.

In 2006, the government spent two trillion dollars on childhood obesity-related costs; spending a bit to reduce that and help kids live healthier lives makes sense.

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