Children Facts

In the 1990s, about 9 out of 10 American children visited a McDonald's restaurant at least once per month.

Osama bin Laden had four wives and fathered between 20 and 26 children, creating a sprawling family that has largely distanced itself from his legacy since his death in 2011.

Some British police cars carry a teddy bear to console children after an accident.

In 2005, a 12-year-old Ethiopian girl was kidnapped by seven men trying to force her into marriage. When police found her a week later, three lions were standing guard around her. The kidnappers were gone. The lions turned and walked back into the forest as the humans approached.

There's a children's book titled "Where Willy Went" detailing the adventures of a sperm.

When the 2013 government shutdown threatened the closing down of a national program giving medical attention and meals to children, John D. Arnold donated $10 million of his own money to keep it afloat.

In Japan, there are more pets than there are children.

During an Easter egg hunt in Surrey in 2016, about 30 kids spotted two men sprinting across a field with a police helicopter circling overhead. Without being told, the children lay down in the dirt and formed a giant human arrow pointing the helicopter straight at the fleeing suspects. Both men were caught. The crew landed to thank the kids — and the children shared their own Easter chocolate with them.

In 1996, a 3-year-old boy fell 24 feet into the gorilla enclosure at Brookfield Zoo and was knocked unconscious. A gorilla named Binti Jua picked him up, cradled him, and carried him to the door where keepers could reach him - with her own baby clinging to her back.

Five train cars passed over Wesley Autrey while he shielded a stranger on the subway tracks. His two daughters, ages 4 and 6, watched from the platform. From under the train he shouted: "Let my daughters know their father's okay."

A 5-year-old boy in Michigan spent over a year in foster care. When his adoption day came, he invited his entire kindergarten class to the courthouse. Every one showed up holding handmade heart signs. Each classmate told the judge why they loved Michael. When the judge asked how he felt, he turned to his new father and said: "I love my daddy." Then they slammed the gavel together.

Austin Appelbee was 13 when his family's kayak flipped off Western Australia. His mother told him to swim for shore. He swam two hours with a life jacket. When it slowed him, he took it off. He swam two more hours without one. He reached shore and sprinted another mile to find a phone. His family was found 14 km out after 10 hours. Everyone survived.