Encarta For Kids

About Beetles   This beetle is a weevil. Weevils use their long, slender snouts to feed on plants. Weevils are destructive pests that attack many farm crops, such as cotton, wheat, and rice. Beetles have two sets of wings, front wings and hind wings. Beetles use only their hind wings to fly. The front wings, […]

Read the full story

Beetles Some beetles can walk on land or fly in the air. Others spend most of their time swimming in water. Some beetles are a big help to farmers. Others are pests that destroy farm crops. Beetles live everywhere on Earth except in the oceans and near the North and South poles. Beetles are among the most common insects in the […]

Read the full story

Woodrow Wilson As a candidate for United States president in 1912, Woodrow Wilson declared “America First.” He meant that he planned to keep America out of conflicts in Europe. But while Wilson was president, the United States entered World War I (1914-1918), a European war. On April 2, 1917, President Woodrow Wilson asked Congress to […]

Read the full story

Woodrow Wilson Woodrow Wilson was the 28th president of the United States. He believed in world peace. But World War I (1914-1918) and the peace settlement after the war shattered his dreams. WHO WAS WOODROW WILSON? Wilson was born in 1856 in Virginia. He grew up in Southern states during the Civil War (1861-1865) and the period of hardship that followed the […]

Read the full story

William Penn William Penn founded the American colony of Pennsylvania. He had a special reason. He wanted a safe place for Quakers to live. Penn was born in London, England, on October 14, 1644. While studying at Oxford University, Penn converted to Quakerism. WHO WERE THE QUAKERS? Quakers, who also are known as the Society of Friends, believe every person carries an ability to communicate […]

Read the full story

Ulysses S. Grant   Ulysses S. Grant

Read the full story

Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant commanded the Union forces in the last year of the American Civil War. An outstanding general, Grant succeeded in bringing a bloody and difficult war to an end. He became a national hero and was elected president of the United States. But his talents as a military leader failed to make Grant […]

Read the full story

Thomas Paine Thomas Paine, born in England in 1737, was a poor man with rich ideas about freedom. He believed the American colonies could become a new nation free from Great Britain. One of the great writers of his time, Paine’s writings inspired Americans to revolt against Britain. “The birthday of a new world is at hand,” Paine […]

Read the full story

Thomas Jefferson Monticello was home to Thomas Jefferson, the third president of the United States. The mansion was designed by Jefferson and built from 1770 to 1809. Thomas Jefferson was the primary author of the Declaration of Independence, shown here. The document declared America’s independence from Britain. It was adopted on July 4, 1776. In […]

Read the full story

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson is remembered as one of America’s greatest political thinkers. He wrote the Declaration of Independence, and later was elected the nation’s third president. As president, Jefferson nearly doubled the size of the United States with the purchase of the vast Louisiana Territory. Jefferson’s talents stretched far beyond politics. He was an inventor, architect, scientist, musician, and […]

Read the full story