Away houses, cars, and even entire towns. Millions of tons of debris were swept out to sea. A lot of it sank, but the rest started floating across the pacific, carried by currents and wind. These types of debris items, these large debris items that float, are starting to show up on our coastline on the west coast. Asma is with noaa, the National Oceanic and atmospheric administration. Its a Scientific Agency that works on everything from weather to coastal and Resource Management to fisheries, really taking a look at how we have an impact on the oceans and what we can do to restore them. Noaa has been tracking debris from japan thats been reaching our shores. Some debris is hard to miss, like a giant dock that washed up in oregon. This motorcycle made it all the way to canada. It was inside a container that floated. Were encouraging people that see tsunami debris to report it to noaa at disaster debris at noaa. Gov. So if this is an unusual type of debris that may have characteristics, like possible japanese writing on it, or specific identifiers, like a license plate, those are clues as to, you know, this might be an item that is actually from the japan tsunami. But the debris coming from japan is only part of the problem. Our oceans are being choked with all kinds of Marine Debris. Marine debris is any manmade material that is lost or thrown away into the ocean. So, for example, this fishing gear that we have here, if its accidentally lost into the ocean, it can become Marine Debris. Even everyday items thrown away on land can wind up in the ocean. The cigarette butts in this jar came from the streets of washington, d. C. What happens when it rains is cigarette butts go down the storm drain, and through the storm drain, they go out into the ocean. And cigarette butts are actually made of plastic, so this does not degrade in the environment. So just like this plastic bottle, once this enters the ocean environment, its there. Marine debris comes in all shapes and sizes. Some other examples of Marine Debris are. A toothbrush. A glow stick. A cigarette lighter. Fishing line. Plastic bottle cap. A fishing lure. Styrofoam. And even a golf ball. All of it is dangerous for Sea Creatures and birds. They swallow the junk or get tangled in it and die. Its a big problem. But no matter where we live, we all can help. You can be in the innercity, you can be in the middle of nebraska, but anyone can have an impact on Marine Debris. So heres something everyone can do. Instead of using singleuse plastics, you can use reusable water bottles. The point is, the less waste we create, the less waste will end up in our waterways and oceans. So teens can participate in beach cleanups. They can start their own cleanup. Anyone can participate or organize a cleanup to help stop Marine Debris, if its at a beach, a park, your local neighborhood, or even at your school. Marine debris is caused by humans, so its a problem that can be solved by humans. And we teens can help make that happen. American students take their language studies from the classroom to the great wall. Ill have the story. You can learn a Foreign Language in school, and you can also learn about the countrys history and culture, but as ellie reports, nothing beats the firsthand experience you get from actually visiting the country. [ speaking mandarin ] [ speaking mandarin ] these students at Mamaroneck High School are learning mandarin, the official language of china. [ speaking mandarin ] ive been studying mandarin for about six years. We started studying mandarin every day starting in seventh grade. [ speaking mandarin ] were very proud of our mandarin program. It started back in the late 80s with about 30 kids, and at its high point, recently, we had over 300 kids involved in the mandarin program. Being able to speak a Foreign Language in class is one thing. The true test is seeing if you can communicate with native speakers in their own country. And thats exactly what some of these students did. As part of their foreignexchange program, they got to try out their Language Skills in china. Youre forced to think in chinese when youre in china. I can understand most people well, but at times, i had to definitely ask people to slow down or repeat what they said. Like, go to stores and have shopkeepers, like, understand my chinese i think that was, like, really one of the funnest parts. Today was a lot of fun messing with the chinese people. So what do you want students to learn from a trip to china . Its kind of really important for them to be immersed in the language. They should have a feel of the culture behind it and, you know, the people. [ singing in mandarin ] were visiting students at dong twin Primary School in rural xian. [ singing continues ] the students stayed with host families, learning firsthand what their daily routine is like. Were you concerned that it would be difficult to communicate . Absolutely. I was really terrified. There was a whole day that we had to spend alone with our host family with no one from our school, but it was absolutely fine, and there were not many problems with communication. The trip wasnt all work. There was plenty of time to take in the sights of modern and ancient china. The forbidden city closed to outsiders for centuries. Today, its massive doors are open to visitors. At xian, they visited the dig where lifesize sculptures were uncovered. These clay figures were made from terracotta. Thats actually italian for baked earth. When the first emperor of china died 2,000 years ago, a whole army of terracotta warriors, along with horses and wagons, were buried with him. They climbed the stairs of the great wall. Built to protect china from invaders, its incredibly long. In fact, it would stretch back and forth across the u. S. More than four times. We are in the pearl tea house, and right now, we are taking part in a traditional tea ceremony. They also sampled all kinds of foods, from the famous peking duck. To fried scorpions on a stick. Yum. And they wandered through the marketplaces. I got lost in a chinese mall. [ chuckles ] and i only knew my host sisters english name, so i kept going around, going, chloe zai nar . , which is like, where is chloe . And everyone was like, i dont know who youre talking about. There was a lot that was wonderfully strange and a lot that was strangely familiar. And when i got to stay with a chinese family and see, like, what their daily routine is like and going to school and seeing that theres a lot more similarities than i thought between our two cultures. China was a lot more open than i expected. I expected it to be a lot you know, a lot more police and, like, a government presence kind of thing, but it seemed a lot more similar to the u. S. Than i was expecting. And they did beautifully. Whether it was from the schools that we partnered with to the vendors at the pearl market, the kids were really actively using their language and being understood. You can expect to see more u. S. Students visiting china and not just visiting, but attending school there. Thats because our government has set a goal to send 100,000 students to study in china by the end of 2014. For teen kids news, im ellie. Coming up, well meet kids who help turn something you throw out every day into a real masterpiece. Its been said that one persons trash is another persons art. Some Elementary Students are proving thats certainly true, but with a twist. Harry has the story. From a distance, it sure looks like this museum in newark, new jersey, has one of the worlds greatest paintings on display starry night by Vincent Van Gogh. When Vincent Van Gogh died, he became famous for his paintings. But when he was alive, nobody liked his paintings. He, like, uses bright colors in all his paintings, except for one of them when he was really mad. He used dark colors. Yes, all true. But whats not true is that van gogh painted this picture. Its actually a copy of his starry night, made up of recycled bottle caps. Some of these are from coffee, orange juice, and lots of things. We had trouble getting the yellow ones the most. And the blue ones are, like, from water like when you we had, like, trouble with these ones, too. Firstgrade teacher Andrea Arguello wanted the students to learn about two subjects that dont usually go together art and recycling. And then these color ones are, like some of these are from the cafeteria bottles and these, like. And then the green ones are mainly from, like, the sodas sprite. The book bottlecap little bottlecap gave the teacher the idea to create the mural. The brown ones are, like, from chocolate milk. These big ones are, like the big, yellow ones are from coffee. The white ones are from, like, water. You can see the transparent ones. The orange ones are, like, from orange juice. And. Thats pretty much it. So it took about 300 students. It was october through march, we collected. The bottle caps for the starry night mural. And it took one month to make the mural. The picture needed about 7,000 bottle caps, so the kids began collecting. Teachers, students, some people from marias deli a lot of people helped. We put a little sign that said, please help us to collect bottle caps for the starry night mural. This is incredible. I never imagined such a tremendous impact. It sure was tremendous. With the help of the community, they collected not 7,000, but more than 50,000 caps. Miss arguello first painted it, and then she screwed in the bottle caps on three large pieces of wood. Sounds easy, but even with volunteers helping out, it was a lot of work. When the mural was finally finished, it was too big to display in their school. Well, i wrote an email to the museum and called them, and they called back, and within a day or two, they said that we would love to display it, and we were so happy that they gave us that chance. Newark museums ted lind said the decision to display the mural was an easy one. Its an incredible work of art. Weve already had some people come up and want to buy the mural. And i think that says a lot about the quality of it the craftsmanship, the hours of labor that were put into that. In fact, the museum is encouraging the school to take on a new project to create a bottlecap mural to complement the work done by another important artist. His name is joseph stella, and we have a major piece that he created in the 1920s here called voice of the city interpreted, and its just a wonderful representation of new york city at the time when, you know, in the roaring 20s when everything was very exciting and dynamic. Its very colorful. So were hoping to connect that artwork with the children at the school, and theyll create, you know, another major piece. The other goal of the art project was to get the community to become more aware of the importance of recycling. The messages that people could get is not only trash is trash. You can use trash to recycle and you can make brandnew things out of it. I will say that the thing that i really enjoyed the most was that children were teaching their parents about recycling. Many parents were not recycling at home, and because of this, children told them and they are recycling now. Theres a famous saying that imitation is the highest form of flattery. In that case, Vincent Van Gogh would no doubt be pleased to know that a painting he did more than 100 years ago still has the tcapacityytorcapturetso much the attention today. For teen kids news, im harry. Barry, time is running out. According to my calculations, 1 in 5 kids in america struggles with hunger. How can so many children face hunger, when there is more than enough food to feed them all . Doo ba baba doo youre right, barry baba doo we can help solve hunger by teaming up with feeding america to get food to hungry kids in communities across the country. Announcer help flint and the feeding America Network of food banks get food to the people who need it in your community. Find your local feeding America Food Bank at feedingamerica. Org hunger together, were feeding america of the United States of america. And to the republic for which it stands. One nation, under god. Indivisible, with liberty. And justice for all. Our disabled veterans pledged to sacrifice life and limb to ensure our way of life. Now, they deserve our support. Find out how you can help disabled veterans in your community. Visit dav. Org. Tell you about a new medical website designed especially for older folks. Website you say i cant work on computers, theyre not seniorfriendly. Blah, blah, blah. But the National Institutes of health fixed all that. Now you can make the type bigger, increase contrast, even make it talk to you. Just go to nihseniorhealth. Gov and get the best medical Information Available anywhere. Nih seniorhealth. Gov. Built with you in mind. This report is brought to you by Prudential Financial. Middle and Highschool Students from across the country and around the world are being honored. This is the 2013 prudential spirit of Community Awards ceremony in washington, d. C. These students all have one thing in common their outstanding volunteer service. On hand to make this celebration extra special twotime Academy Awardwinner kevin spacey. And you should all be very, very proud. Track star and olympic Gold MedalistAllyson Felix added her heartfelt praise. I am just truly in awe of all the things that youre doing right now, everything that youve accomplished. Two students from each state, as well as the district of columbia, earned silver medallions and 1,000 students like krysta pritchett of delaware. Krysta formed a Youth Service group called teens roc. Krysta and her group have gathered supplies for a homeless shelter. Every year, Prudential Financial joins with the National Association of secondary School Principals to recognize young volunteers kids who help others in all kinds of ways, from food drives to supporting the troops. Your genuine concern for others, your commitment to making this world a better place, the impact youve had on the communities near and far all of these things set you apart from others your age and make you inspiring role models, not just for your peers, but. Frankly, for all of us. The 10 top u. S. Honorees each receive awards, including 5,000 and a 5,000 grant for charities of their choice. 13yearold Teagan Stedman of los angeles organizes concerts to help fight childrens cancer. Teagans charity, shred kids cancer, has raised tens of thousands of dollars for the cause. Also receiving awards, 10 students from other countries. You have shown us that you see things the way they ought to be, and will not settle for the way they are. This years honorees were chosen from 28,000 entries. All of you are actually living examples, you are giving by example, and what youve done should be applauded and done in as many cities across this country as possible. [ applause ] if you want to apply for or to find out more about the prudential spirit of Community Awards, check out. For teen kids news, im brandon. [ applause continues ] coming up next, ill learn how to review a restaurant. Music i want some more. Whats he doing . Please sir, i want some more. More . He has asked for. Thank you. Well he did say please. Yes he did. And thank you. Please and thank you. Pass it on. crowd of children thank you. crowd of children thank you. Um]um] [tum] [tum] [tum] [tum] [tum] [tum] [phone ring,] car brakes hard [phone ring] [car crash] glass shatters [sirens] this video was submitted by a student through the safety scholars program. For more information on teen safety visit driversedge. Org. If you like to eat, listen up. Hannah reports on a teen whos making a career and a name for himself in the food world, one bite at a time. While most teens would be happy eating pizza every day, David Fishman is different. He goes out to dinner, tries the most unique thing on the menu, and then writes about it. Hes a food critic. To find out what it takes to review a restaurant, teen kids news invited david to a meal at good enough to eat in new york city. Well, the breakfast looks really good. Yeah. Yeah, thats what theyre known for. And david is known for reviewing restaurants. Hes dined at worldclass restaurants and sampled the rarest of delicacies. And hes only 13 ive always been very passionate about food. Ever since i was really young, my love for food has grown above almost everything else. And i also liked writing a lot, more recently, and they kind of came together, and it became sort of a really passion hobby for me. If eating food can be a hobby, then count me in lets get this review started. Bring on the food enjoy. Thanks. I review a restaurant by looking at the three different categories that i kind of customize to my own standards. So i have food, i have decor, and then i have service. What do you think of the presentation . [ sighs ] its really interesting. I really like how theyre actually combining, like, a lot of different elements here. Well, lets dig in. Next on the menu is skate tacos. Skate is a fish a ray, to be exact. So you like fish a lot . I do. Huge fish fan. Im actually just gonna use my hands. So how do you grade the food . When i first get a dish, i first kind of look at the presentation and see kind of what feeling it gives me, how im meant to eat it, how big it is in comparison to the price, and then ill take a bite of it. Ill write down some initial thoughts. Then ill take some more bites, and ill finish the dish, and at the end, ill give a more kind of indepth review of it. To be a food critic, eating is only half the job. The other part is writing about it. David takes notes during his meal to remember the special details. So, hannah, what do you taste in the dish . I really like it. I like the sauce, and i like the fish a lot. What about you . One thing i like i mean, i love the fish in the dish. A really key thing about this dish is how the flavors kind of interact with each other. It sort of, to me, tastes the best when you eat it, like, all, like, with the combine it with the guacamole, combine it with the special sauce, which tastes like salsa, combine it with the lime. And i feel like all the flavors kind of match are a good match for each other. Wow he got all that from just a few bites so here are tropical koolaid cupcakes for dessert. Served to us by the owner of good enough to eat, carrie levin. It is an interesting and creative idea to put koolaid in a cupcake, but, i mean, drinking koolaid in my past and. I just hope it works out in a cupcake. Well, lets try it. Yeah. I wonder what the frosting is made out of. Im actually gonna try the frosting first. The cupcake the ingredients in the cupcake actually work very well together. Now, with our bellies full, it was time to hear what david had to say. Okay, guys, how was it . Really good. It waal it was quite a unique meal, truthfully a deliciously unique meal. After the foodtasting and notetaking, david is ready to write the review. So my blog is called fishmanfoodie. Com. It basically has reviews from all over the city, all over the world, all over the country. Well, i think david gets a perfect score for being a great dining partner. For teen kids news, im hannah. Well, that wraps it up for this weeks teen kids news, but well be back next week, so see you then. The following is a paid advertisement for the medical Doctors Research group. Do you miss feeling young, vibrant, and on the ball . What about your libido . Have you seen it lately . Why do some people stay active as they get older while others just seem to fade away . Are you ready for a little secret . Order mdrs vital factors now. Two tablets in the morning in a glass of water will give you a whole new lease on life. 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