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(Describer) In computer animation, clips of teens reporting the news orbit the planet Earth. Title: Teen Kids News. Created by Albert T. Primo. In a tv studio, a dark haired girl in a sport coat sits at a news desk. Title: Lylah.

Hi, you are watching "Teen Kids News." I'm Lylah, let's begin with our top story.

(Describer) A rotating graphic reads 'Teen Kids News: Top Story.'

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Cancer is a terrible disease and while it's most likely to strike adults, especially older adults, kids do get cancer. Katarina introduces us to a program that helps kids fight back.

(Describer) A blonde girl in a karate gi spars with a man.

Do it again, ready and go.

(Katarina) Thirteen-year-old Leah is a fighter. She's learned to punch, block, and kick, but her fiercest opponent is something you can't even see. Leah has been fighting cancer most of her life. -Hi, Leah. -Hi. When did your battle with cancer begin? My battle with cancer began when I was four and it continued to when I was five. And you've had a lot of surgery, haven't you? Yes, when I was four, I had a 13-hour surgery, and when I was five, I had a four-hour surgery. I can't imagine how difficult that must have been. But you didn't stop fighting. In fact, you decided to learn karate. Why? I decided to learn karate because it had been a tough couple of years and I wanted to get back out in the world. So I asked my mom if I could do karate and she researched karate and so she found Kids Kicking Cancer and it was just such an amazing experience for me.

(Katarina) Kids Kicking Cancer was started by Rabbi Goldberg, who I understand likes to be called Rabbi G. And Rabbi G is here with us now. Welcome. Thank you so much, thank you for having me. Rabbi G, what's a typical class like?

(Rabbi G) We will teach the children how to punch, how to do blocks. There's no direct contact because that could be challenging for children going through cancer and other difficult diseases, but we allow them to learn the power of their breath. And the martial arts is very focused on imagery before we break a board or a brick, which we don't do in our program, but in the general martial arts world, we actually have to see it break. So we teach the children to image this healing powerful light come through them and we breathe in. Leah, tell everyone what do we breathe in? The light. And what do we blow out? The darkness. And that's the power that children have 'cause they can feel it, they can experience it. Leah, how has learning karate helped you? Learning karate has helped me in many different ways. It's helped me to calm myself down and relax and take control of myself. What do you like most about the karate classes? What I like the most is when I go, I get to hang out with my friends and I get to do martial arts with them, but I also get to see my senseis. And for those of us who never studied a martial art, the word sensei is Japanese for teacher, right? Yes. Rabbi G, how big has the Kids Kicking cancer program become? So we started with ten children at the General Hospital of Michigan, and now we see children in 126 facilities in nine countries with a goal to empower 1 million children around the world to breathe in the light and blow out the darkness. As part of the training, they're even taught to repeat what's called a mantra, a special phrase. Stand in attention and bow.

(all) Power, peace, purpose. Power, peace, purpose. Power, peace, purpose. Power, peace, purpose.

(Students) Power, peace, purpose. You can almost feel the power of that mantra. Leah, there may be some kids watching us right now that have cancer. What advice would you give them? I would give them the advice that it's gonna be hard and I've fought through the battle, but don't lose hope because there is hope and we're all here for you. Well said. Thank you both for talking with us. Thank you. Thank you. And Leah, we hope you continue to kick your cancer. Thank you. Rabbi G told us that Kids Kicking Cancer has expanded and now runs a program called Heroes Circle. These karate classes are open to all kids in teens dealing with the pain and stress of illness, not just those with cancer. To find out more, check out heroescircle.org. For "Teen Kids News," I'm Katarina. We still have a lot more to tell you about. "Teen Kids News" will be right back.

(Describer) Title: Teen Kids News. Lylah.

As we've often said here on "Teen Kids News," college isn't for everyone. There are many great and well-paying careers that don't require a college degree. But if you're one of the nearly three million students planning to apply to college this year, you should find Emily's report interesting.

(Describer) Emily.

When thinking about which college to apply to, some of the things you'll want to consider are location, size, majors, cost, academic standing, but here's a category you might not have considered. Just how friendly are the students. To talk about that is our very friendly and very knowledgeable expert on all things college, Rob Franek. He's editor-in-chief of the Princeton Review. Rob, you do surveys all the time, but asking about how friendly the students are is a new category, isn't it? It's a brand-new category for us this year, but we've been thinking about putting out this list for a long time and then you're very right. We've been going directly to whom we consider college experts of their own experiences and those are current college students. So it just seemed natural to ask about how friend they're on campus. Compared to other categories, on a scale of importance, where does friendliness fit in? You know, it's a good question, and when we think about different factors, you know, cost and size and academic competitiveness of a school, those are all gonna be primary drivers. But thinking about students that are going to be your friends, not only in the classroom but outside the classroom as well, it is incredibly important. How exactly did you determine how friendly a school is? We go directly to students and we ask them to rate the level of friendliness from other students on their campus. That's on a five-point scale from very friendly to not at all friendly. Let's count down the top five. Who's in fifth place? Oh, it's Wheaton College, and it's the Wheaton College is a small college. It's in Illinois, it's a pretty conservative school earning the number five spot. Now, when you say it's a conservative school, what do you mean by that? Oh, it's a good question. Yeah, conservative simply means that many of those students at Wheaton and other conservative schools are religious on campus, and that could be academically and outside the classroom as well. Moving up to fourth place is? Yeah, Claremont McKenna, and well-deserved in this number four spot. The Claremont McKenna is part of all the Claremont Colleges. That's five colleges on one 200-plus acre campus. It's in California, about 25 miles outside of Los Angeles. The other four schools are Pitzer College, Pomona College, Harvey Mudd, and of course Scripps, which is their all-female school, but Claremont McKenna, students, not only are they competitive in the classroom, but they wanna have a good time and they are super friendly. Who came in third? Number three on the list is Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering. Most students simply refer to as Olin College. It's a pretty new school started in 1997. It's a small school, 400 students on campus, but it is incredibly competitive academically, but also those students talk about their friendship with each other and other administrators on campus as top of mind. And where's that school? It's in Massachusetts, right outside of Boston. And in second place? And second place is Hillsdale College. Now Hillsdale is in Michigan. Again, a small school conservative, so many students are religious on campus. It has been a favorite on many of our ranking lists for a number of years. Not surprising that they're number two on our new list for friendliest students. That brings us to the school that ranks highest with the students who are the friendliest. Oh yeah, it's Kansas State University. The school's over 25,000 students, academically superlative students, but then those students are talking about their experiences with other students on their campus. Rose up to the number-one spot for friendliness on campus. As always, thanks, Rob, for all the friendly advice for our viewers. Most welcome, always. By the way, Kansas is nicknamed the Sunflower State, and the sunflower traditionally represents happiness and good cheer. Two characteristics of friendliness. So no surprise Kansas State took top honors. But I'm sure you'll find plenty of friends at whatever school you decide to go to. For "Teen Kids News," I'm Emily. We've got to take a short break and then we'll be back with more "Teen Kids News."

(Describer) Title: Lylah.

Every state has one and each is unique. Here's Flag Facts.

(Describer) State flags appear in rapid succession. Title: Flag Facts. The letters in the word "flag" contain various state flags. The title appears on a white, waving flag. Eric.

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The design of this state flag is based on the beliefs of an early Native American tribe called the Zia.

(Describer) Randy Howe.

It's as simple as can be, two colors. You have the red and the gold. That is a reference to Queen Isabella of Spain who sponsored much of the exploration of the New World. The symbol in the middle is a Zia sun symbol and it was found in an archeological dig on a water jar. What was important to the Zia was the number four, and you'll see four lines facing in the four different directions. Now, four was not just important to them for the four directions. They believed in the power of the four seasons. They felt that there were four aspects of life that every person should pursue, like purity and being of sound mind, and all those sorts of positive attributes. The flag's bold simplicity, helped it win first place in a competition of America's 50 state flags. With Flag Facts, I'm Eric. Driving-- it's not just a privilege, it's a responsibility. And to help you drive responsibly, the National Road Safety Foundation produced this video.

(Mom) Hurry up, we're going to be late. Be right down, Mom.

(Describer) A girl gets in a car and buckles her seatbelt. Her mom starts the engine.

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You know I hate being late. No, I'm sorry. I'll text them and let them know we're on our way. Mom, let me help, I can do it. I don't need any help. I've been doing this for years. No, Mom, it's not safe. Please keep your eyes on the road. You are right, sweetie. You do it.

(Describer) Title: Don't be a passive passenger. Speak up!

The NRSF produces lots of terrific safety videos each year. To get more info, like, follow and subscribe to the National Road Safety Foundation. "Teen Kids News" will be right back.

(Describer) Title: Lylah.

A famous artist once said, "A visit to a museum is a search for beauty, truth, and meaning." Ava tells us about a museum that'll really give you a taste of beauty, truth and meaning.

(Describer) Images of cathedrals, cakes, and castles appear over a map of Germany. Title: Teen Kids News. Gems of Germany. Ava.

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Europe is filled with all kinds of museums, art museums like the Louvre in Paris, natural history museums like the British Museum in London. Biographical museums like the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam. Science and engineering museums like the Atomium in Brussels, and believe it or not, there are even museums dedicated to chocolate. Cologne, Germany, has one of them. The Imhoff Chocolate Museum. It takes you on a fascinating journey through the 5,000-year history of chocolate.

(Describer) Glass, bubble shaped pods in the museum showcase different chocolate products. Another exhibit shows chocolate ingredients in their packaging. In a room full of screens, two kids use an interactive display.

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In addition to lots of interactive exhibits, the museum has a tropical greenhouse, crowded with all kinds of living plants.

(Describer) Plants featuring green and orange leaves are shown. People pass plants with long green leaves.

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Chocolate comes from the giant pods that grow on the trunk of the tree, theobroma, cacao. In ancient Greek, theobroma means food of the gods. Inside the cacao pods are seeds, though they're usually called beans. These are what are used to make chocolate. Let's stop for a second because I want to explain something that confuses a lot of people. Although often used interchangeably, cacao and cocoa don't exactly mean the same thing. Typically, raw beans are called cacao. Once the beans are processed, starting with roasting, they are usually then called cocoa beans or just cocoa. Of course, when most of us hear the word cocoa, we think of hot chocolate. But cocoa is also used to describe the essential ingredient all chocolates are made from. That's just one of the interesting facts you'll learn as you wander through the museum's many exhibits. The ancient Mayans and Aztecs used chocolate in their religious rituals, and even as money. Chocolate is naturally bitter. So they would add spices to improve the taste. Returning from his last voyage to the new world, Columbus brought an early form of chocolate to Spain. But the bitter taste didn't become popular. Not until someone thought to add sugar.

(Describer) A person adds sugar to their coffee.

Almost overnight, chocolate usually as a drink, became all the rage in Europe. The aristocracy would pour their dark and delightful liquid from shiny silver containers. Originally, cacao trees only grew in Mesoamerica, the area encompassing Mexico down to the top of South America. Today most cacao comes from Africa. Huge ships filled with chocolate beans sail to ports around the world. Cranes scoop up the beans and load them into the trucks that deliver them to factories. Turning the bitter beans into a sweet treat is a pretty interesting process, and it's a process you can experience firsthand in the museum's miniature Lindt chocolate factory. Windows and videos let you see what goes on inside the machines, as they roast, crush, and grind.

(Describer) Light brown liquid is stirred in a machine. A boy wearing a green backpack watches chocolate being made.

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The beans are then melted into a liquid, which is squirted into rectangular molds. As the molds move down the conveyor belt, they're shaken to evenly spread out the chocolate.

(Describer) An intricate metal machine works.

This machine wraps and packages the bars. Best of all, you can get a real taste of how chocolate is created. That's why visitors are lined up. Hit the red button and out comes a newly made piece.

(Describer) A piece of chocolate lands in a metal tray.

There's also a big fountain of milk chocolate that workers dip wafers into and hand out to visitors. You can watch the master chocolatiers create all kinds of confections. These almost look too good to eat.

(Attendee) Cool, that's really cool.

(Describer) A tray is covered with black and white chocolate unicorns with stars on their backsides.

By the way, white chocolate isn't really chocolate. While it does contain cocoa butter, purists don't consider it real chocolate because it doesn't contain cocoa solids. Guess it's a matter of taste! For "Teen Kids News," I'm Ava. There's something else that the city of Cologne is famous for. It's not something that you eat, rather it's something that you smell. It started with this guy. In 1709, he concocted a fragrance that reminded him of mountain daffodils and orange blossoms, after the rain. Though born in Italy, he had moved to Cologne and become a citizen. He was so proud of that, that he wanted to honor his new hometown. So he named his fragrance Eau de Cologne. That's French for "Water of Cologne." Though originally sold to women as a perfume, today we call any fragrance for men cologne. We will have more "Teen Kids News" right after this.

(Describer) Teen Kids News. Lylah.

For all of you who hate getting shots, listen up. It's better not to look. Researchers say that watching as the needle is prepared makes you more nervous, and that can increase the feeling of pain. So the next time you have to get a shot, try looking away. And take a tip from Peter Pan. Think pleasant thoughts. Well, that wraps up our show for this week, but we'll be back with more "Teen Kids News" next week. See you then.

(Describer) Producer: Marilou Yacoub. Director/Writer, Alan J. Weiss. Executive producer Alan J. Weiss. Copyright Alan Weiss Productions, Inc, 2023, all rights reserved. Contact: info@teenkidsnews.com. 212-974-0606. Accessibility provided by the US Department of Education.

Accessibility provided by the U.S. Department of Education.