Xpress, the Coolest Section of the St. Petersburg Times, is the home for features, news and views of interest to young readers. Most of the work in Xpress, which appears on Mondays in Floridian, is produced by the Times' X-Team. The team of journalists ages 9-17 from around the Tampa Bay area is selected every year at the end of the school year to serve during the following school term. The current team of 12 was chosen out of 150 applicants. Watch for X-Team application forms in Xpress during the month of May.
Read the reviews by Xpress Film Critic Billy Norris
Turn off SpongeBob and tone up
By Staff writer
Published September 27, 2004
Nickelodeon usually would want you to sit and watch its Saturday afternoon lineup of SpongeBob SquarePants, ChalkZone, Hey Arnold, As Told By Ginger and CatDog. But Saturday the network will go off the air from noon to 3 p.m. to get kids off the couch and outside playing during its Worldwide Day of Play. And as an added incentive for local kids, the network has planned a game day and family festival from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Curtis Hixon Park in Tampa.
Registration begins at 10, with the activities beginning at 11. Kids and parents who want to participate can preregister online at the Boys and Girls Clubs Web site: www.bgctampa.org Activities include cork ball, stationary bike races, a soccer-goal kick and a live show with the Nickelodeon trademark "sliming." Once the network resumes broadcasting at 3, events in Tampa and four other cities will be featured in video updates.
After all that activity, you should be rewarded. So at 6, Nickelodeon will air live segments from Worldwide Day of Play events at Nickelodeon's Nick on Sunset Studios hosted by Hilary Duff and Romeo. With events planned throughout the country and around the world, it will be the biggest play date ever.
