Tammy Higgins, age 8, of Wichita, Kansas, for her question:

Where is the middle of north south, east west?

Chances are you are standing on the exact spot. North and south, east and west are directions. And directions go from here to there. On a map, north usually goes up to the top of the page and the south goes down to the bottom. The east direction travels to the right side of the map and the west goes to the left. On a map of Kansas, Wichita is southwest of Topeka and Topeka is northeast of Wichita.

But to find your own directions, you must place yourself slam bang in the middle of the picture. You can stand anywhere you like. Start by finding the north direction. If you have a small compass, its little needle will point the way. If it is night and you can find the North Star, it also will show you the way. When you face the north direction, the south starts right behind you in the opposite direction. When you face north, your right hand shows you just where the east direction begins    your left hand is where the west begins. And there you are, right in the middle of north south, east west.