AOL Helps Kids Learn the Secret to Living a Long Life
Any adult would love to learn the secrets of living a longer life. It's a mystery that kids are getting the chance to uncover through a fun interactive exploration project on KOL, AOL's kids service (www.kol.com).

KOL and AOL@SCHOOL have partnered with Quest Network's Blue Zones to offer kids the opportunity to direct an exploration in Costa Rica of the longest living people through an award-winning interactive learning experience on KOL Expeditions.

This marks the second collaborative expedition between KOL and Quest Networks's Blue Zones. The first expedition explored the healthy lifestyles of people living in Okinawa, Japan.

The KOL Blue Zones Expedition is an educational project that gives students - and their parents and teachers - the opportunity to direct a team of scientists, explorers, and journalists as they travel to Blue Zones(TM) places where people live the longest, healthiest lives. Backed by the National Geographic Society and the National Institutes on Aging, the goal of the Expeditions is to figure out how those elders live such long, healthy lives.

The KOL Blue Zone Expedition in Costa Rica, which will run January 29 through February 5, isn't like most scientific Expeditions. Students won't just read reports and watch videos- they actually get to participate.

Using exclusive live-to-tape daily video segments from Costa Rica Blue Zone, each day kids will determine what should be explored the next day through online voting. Through the interactive engagement, the kids will direct the scientists on where to look for answers and clues.

"We believe that students learn and retain the most knowledge when they are challenged and put in control of their learning environment," said Dan Buettner, founder of Quest Network, Inc./Bluezones.com. "I've had the chance to unlock some of the greatest mysteries of the world through my explorations, and I get just as big of a thrill by empowering kids to learn and engage in one of life's most important lessons - living a long, healthy life."

"Teaching kids about a healthier lifestyle is increasingly becoming a national priority and we believe programs that engage kids in this subject are just as important as ones that teach kids their ABC's, mathematics and history lessons," said Mark Stevens, KOL Education Director & GM, AOL@SCHOOL. "By teaming with Quest Network's Blue Zones, we continue on our mission of making learning fun, and engaging kids in science even when they're outside of school."

KOL will also feature an extensive photo gallery, along with access to a Blue Zones Challenge, which will let kids track their own daily progress with other students their own age. This program will mirror the first Blue Zones, with daily dispatches from the expedition team outlining discoveries, news and information they have uncovered from their investigations into the people of this area of Costa Rica.