TIME FOR KIDS was born at an elementary school in Staten Island, New York, called Public School 22. In 1994, a TIME magazine executive named Lisa Quiroz, who had attended P.S. 22 as a girl, went back to visit as part of a program called Principal for a Day. When she saw the outdated materials that students were using to learn current events, she had a bright idea. TIME magazine's global network of journalists could create a real news weekly just for kids. The plan for TFK began to take shape. The magazine launched in September 1995.
To mark our 10th birthday, we decided to thank P.S. 22. The idea we all liked best: TIME For Kids could help the school create its own news magazine. For five months, TFK staffers visited the school to teach kids how we do our jobs. Last week, the P.S. 22 journalists came to our offices to go over the final details of their magazine and to check out office life. (Juan Guzman's conclusion: "It's a lot of sitting down.") Everyone has worked hard. The first issue of What's New at 22? will be ready by the end of this month.
So no cake, no balloons, no happy birthday song. Our celebration was much more important to us than any of that. We got to hear the P.S. 22 chorus sing "Respect." We got to see Stephanie Santos's cool illustration of the school's tiger mascot. We learned which kids plan to be journalists when they grow up, and which ones hope to win American Idol instead. At TIME For Kids, what we love best are the discoveries and excitement that happen at a great school. When we were welcomed into the sunny hallways of P.S. 22, it felt like coming home.
All of you have welcomed us into your school each week, and we thank you too. Whether the big news is about a revolution, a natural disaster or a giant sports event, we are proud that our stories are helping more than 4 million kids understand the world a bit better. And to think that it all started in a classroom kind of like yours.