A snake park in the Sultanate of Oman has a serious problem: all but one of their snakes have died. The owner of the park has hired a 'snake detective' to uncover the mystery of the dying snakes. Wh
Welcome the sights and sounds of the world with the Footprint Reading Library. This content-based reading series presents fascinating real-world stories in three formats: print, audio, and video from
Every year, the city of Shirone, Japan goes 'kite crazy' during a five-day local festival. In this highly competitive contest, teams fly kites and fight to force each other's kites from the sky. This
Humboldt squids, or 'Red Devils,' are the world's largest animal without a backbone. These sometimes dangerous creatures live in the deep waters of the Gulf of California. A researcher and professiona
The Arctic region of Canada is home to a huge depression in the earth called the Haughton Crater. A group of explorers has come to the area to explore the challenges expected when traveling to Mars. W
Peter May has the unique job of reconstructing dinosaurs for museum displays. He works with a team using real dinosaur bones as well as artificial bones to create these giant creatures. How did Peter
The first trip outside of a spacecraft, or 'spacewalk', was completed in 1965. Since then many astronauts have participated in spacewalks, but spacewalking does not come without its risks and challeng
People from all over the world love to visit a street in Barcelona, Spain called 'the Ramblas'. This walking-only street is centrally located and full of interesting artists, performers, and other ent
Most people enjoy the sport of sky diving because they get to fall at extremely high speeds, but some people want to go even faster. One man is even experimenting with various methods of increasing h
Every year, the city of Shirone, Japan goes 'kite crazy' during a five-day local festival. In this highly competitive contest, teams fly kites and fight to force each other's kites from the sky. This
Most crocodiles live above ground but an unusual group of crocodiles in Africa lives underground, in caves. A team of scientists will go to Madagascar to learn more about these crocodiles. Will they
Every year, over 500 cowboys and cowgirls gather in western Canada. They want to test their rodeo skills at the famous Calgary Stampede. This year, two cowboys intend to win one of the most exciting
Beagles are dogs with an extremely powerful sense of smell. They often work at airports to find illegal or unsafe items. Before they can do the job,, they must go through training. What does it take t
The Orinoco River is one of the longest rivers in the world. Many lives depend on this river. Many people, animals and plants live in or near the water. However, things are changing on the Orinoco. Wh
In Africa, there is a group of people called 'Bushmen.' These people know a lot about wild animals. However, sometimes they can't tell others about the animals, because they don't speak the same langu
Snow is very important for Dan Raedeke. The success of his business depends on it. But this year, it's too warm for natural snow, and Dan needs help. He needs a little 'snow magic'! What is Dan's busi
Puffins are a kind of bird that lives in Iceland. Each year baby puffins, or pufflings, leave their homes to find the sea. Sometimes the pufflings get lost and cannot find their way. Groups of people
Trinidad and Tobago is famous for its beautiful birds. One man has made it his life's work to study them. He's trying to photograph all of the 460 types of birds on the island. But there's one specia
Essouira is a beautiful old town by the sea. Most local people are fishermen. However, the number of fish has gone down. Now, there are not as many jobs for the people. How will the fisherman make mon
Many people visit Alaska to see the beautiful national parks. One group of visitors wants to fly into a national park and go skiing. However, the weather turns bad. Will the visitors be able to get to
Horseback riding is a very important tradition in Mongolia. Each year the people there have a race to celebrate this tradition. However, the race is a little unusual. What kind of race is it? Why is i
