Cooties Articles

These are some of the actual news articles I used for my Cooties Speech.

1.) WINNSBURGH-OH- In a move that surprised and shocked local officials, a splinter group of local 8-year-old boys has declared an outright war on their enemies, the Girls. "Girls are icky", said Jacob Anderson, leader of the boys, in a press conference at the local tree house Friday. "They have cooties", he continued, sticking out his tongue and blaming the girls for the cooties epidemic that swept the boy community 7 months ago. Jacob's parents have mixed feelings about the decision. "I don't know why he's doing this" said his mother, Ellen Anderson. "Oh, don't worry. He'll feel a lot different about girls when he's older." relied Jacob's father, Steve Anderson. He then winked. The conflict has resulted in several water-balloon fights in the area. A girl survivor, Meghan Howard, has decried the attacks as "Stupid" and "Dumb". Several of the boys involved in the attack have been grounded and forced to give up Power Rangers for a week.
2.) Ages 5 through 15 Cooties are known in Denmark as "pigelus" (literally "girl lice") and "drengelus" ("boy lice"), and in Norway "jentelus" ("girl lice) and "guttelus" ("boy lice"). In Sweden and Finland they are more prevalent in girls, where they are known as tjejbaciller"[4] (literally "girl bacillus") and "tyttöbakteeri" ("girl bacteria") respectively. In Great Britain "girl germs" and "boy germs" are also commonly used, as is mange. In south Wales the form is "scabs", and in Scotland "feechs".

3.) TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (CAP) - The government reissued its warning yesterday as four more children in Indiana were diagnosed with Cooties, bringing the total to 103 sick across eight states. Health experts say it's the worst outbreak in 27 years. "We cannot emphasize enough the importance of dressing children in long sleeves and avoiding contact with the other sex," said Dr. Drew Coleer at the Centers for Cooties Control in Atlanta. "It is parental apathy that is causing this outbreak to remain unchecked." The first reports of Cooties infections came to the CCC from Arlington Heights, Ill. last month and quickly spread to nearby states. Although health officials had no problem pinpointing the origin of the outbreak, Coleer said that knowledge did nothing to curb the disease. "We know that 8-year-old Amanda Lee didn't self-immunize with a verbal Cooties shot before coming in contact with classmate Tommy Bailey," said Coleer. "And she might have been fine had her friends not told her she had Cooties. Bailey then went on to infect 11 other girls that day." Previous outbreaks of Cooties have typically remained confined to a classroom, or at worst a school. According to Secretary of Health and Human Services Mike Leavitt, no outbreak has ever been as widespread geographically as this one. "We are investigating the possibility that Cooties can be contracted over the Internet," said Leavitt. "Sites like MySpace, StumbleUpon and LiveJournal add a new dimension to this battle that we've not seen before. This could be of epidemic proportions in the blink of an eye." Leavitt is asking parents to be vigilant of their children's use of those and other community-oriented websites and to report any suspicious activity directly to his office.



4.) MILFORD, Conn. (CBS) ― A Connecticut middle school principal has laid down the law: You put your hands on someone -- anyone -- in any way, you're going to pay. A violent incident that put one student in the hospital has officials at the Milford school implementing a "no touching" policy, according to a letter written by the school's principal. East Shore Middle School parents said the change came after a student was sent to the hospital after being struck in the groin. Principal Catherine Williams sent out a letter earlier in the week telling parents’ recent behavior has seriously impacted the safety and learning at the school. "Observed behaviors of concern recently exhibited include kicking others in the groin area, grabbing and touching of others in personal areas, hugging and horseplay. Physical contact is prohibited to keep all students safe in the learning environment," Williams wrote.

One Day Without Shoes

The Facts

* Fact #1: In some developing nations, children must walk for miles to food, clean water and to seek medical help.
* Fact #2: Cuts and sores on feet can lead to serious infection.
* Fact #3: Often, children cannot attend school barefoot.
* Fact #4: In Ethiopia, approximately one million people are suffering from Podoconiosis, a debilitating and disfiguring disease caused by walking barefoot in volcanic soil.
* Fact #5: Podoconiosis is 100% preventable by wearing shoes.