What's your homework today? Now homework is not simply about exercises. It can be researches. experiments and even work experiences. Take a look at some students' special homework.
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Mario's teacher asked them to research different snacks. He bought 10 kinds of them and checked the amount of sugar, fat and so on, in each. "We are told many snacks have high calories (卡路里)，but pay no attention to it," he said. But now he realized it was true. He said the homework was interesting and helpful. |
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With some plasticine (橡皮泥) and a ping-pong ball, could you make a tumbler (不倒翁)? This is Nancy's homework. She cut the ping-pong ball in half and made it the bottom of the tumbler with plasticine. "This homework made me more interested in physics," she said. |
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Sandy worked as a guide in the museum. In order to do the work better, she did research and added more information to her introduction. It was hard work, but she felt it was a fun and meaningful experience. "I learned how to do research, and my communication skills are also improved," she said. |
My brother and I were driving home together and started talking. Because of this distraction (分心), my brother took a wrong turn.
Unfortunately, the wrong turn took us toward a bridge, and we had no way of turning back. My brother had to pay to cross the bridge. He was clearly upset by the mistake.
As we drove forward, my brother noticed a car pulled over to the side of the road. A young guy was standing nearby trying to phone someone. I was busy trying to find out which way we went next but my brother pulled over and asked the guy if he needed any help. And he did. He had a flat tire (轮胎).
My brother helped him change the flat. He said that this had been a bad week for him. Earlier he had gotten into a car accident, and now this flat on his way home from work. But he called us "a breath of fresh air" and kept thanking us. After we had finished the job, he thanked us again and pulled out $20 and tried to give it to us. "No," my brother said. "We were never supposed to even get on that bridge. We took a wrong turn. But now we know why we did. It was to help you. Thank you for turning our mistake into an opportunity to serve. "
What I loved most was watching my brother throughout this process. He was able to turn his bad mood (心情) over the mistake into positive (积极的) energy. He was able to see a chance to help (which I totally missed!) even in a bad situation. That was the bridge we were meant to cross.
①The man tried to give us $20 to thank us.
②My brother helped the guy change the flat.
③My brother drove in the wrong direction.
④We saw a car pulled over on the road.
How do you deal with plastic bags from the supermarket? Throw them away or recycle them? How about eating them?
Some of the bags are not harmful to the environment. Humans and animals can safely eat them. Indian company EnviGreen has made a bag with natural materials. It looks and feels just like plastic, but can break down (降解) easily.
Ashwath Hedge who set up the EnviGreen company spent four years doing experiments with 12 natural materials. They include potatoes, corn, vegetable oil and bananas. He made the materials into liquid (液体) and used the liquid to make the bag.
Although the EnviGreen bag is more expensive than a common plastic bag, it has many advantages. According to the Wall Street Journal it takes 1,00 years for common plastic bags to break down. But an EnviGreen bag can naturally break down in less than 180 days. It also breaks down in less than a day in water, and in less than a minute in boiling water. Hedge was happy to show it in his interview with The Better India. In the interview, he put an EnviGreen bag in water and ate it with a smile.
There are more than 15,000 tons of plastic waste every day. But only 9,000 tons are processed. In China, 3 billion plastic bags are used every day. Maybe the EnviGreen bag could be a solution to the world problem of plastic pollution.
From "pull someone's leg" to "be caught red-handed", English has many "body-part" idioms (习语). How many of them have you learned? Do you know how they came into being?
Back in the 18th century, it was popular to have your portrait (肖像) painted. The cost depended on how many arms and legs were to be painted. The cheapest choice was to have only your head and shoulders painted. The price increased as the picture became larger to include your arms and legs. Now, can you guess the meaning of "cost an arm and a leg"?
The idiom "pull someone's leg" came from the approach used by street thieves in London. Usually, the thieves worked in pairs. One of them used a rope to "pull" a person. The other thief then robbed (抢劫) the person as he or she lay on the ground. Today, nobody is likely to pull your leg with a rope. But you should still watch out. Someone might be thinking about pulling your leg by playing a trick on you!
Where there were bad guys, there should be laws. But the law that gave birth to the idiom "be caught red-handed" wasn't created in London. A few hundred kilometers away, in Scotland, anyone who killed a stolen animal would be punished. However, that person had to be caught "red-handed"-with the animal's blood still on his or her hands.
The idiom "give someone the cold shoulder" has something to do with an English custom. At the end of a party, the host would serve a cold cut of beef. This was not a direct way of telling the guests that they should leave. So if someone gives you the cold "shoulder", you will have to walk away.
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Many young people have trouble communicating with their parents. However, there are some useful tips to help solve this problem.
Tip 1:
With each of the disagreements, try to find an answer acceptable to both you and your parents. It is no good for you to require everything to go your way. You have to be ready to change a little if you want them to change.
Tip 2:
Remember that your parents may have to work long hours. And this can make them tired, so please be patient with them. Find another right time.
Tip 3:
How can you hope them to listen to you if you are not ready to listen to them? Also, your parents were once young like you, so they understand your situation better than you expect.
Tip 4:
Talk with your parents and find out their reasons. It is believed that part of growing up is learning to live with different opinions, and learning to accept some unpleasant results.
Hope you can learn to communicate better with your parents.
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A. Listen to what your parents have to say. B. Don't be angry with unpleasant results! C. Talk with your parents when they are tired. D. How to communicate with your parents? E. Be ready to change yourself if possible. F. Talk with your parents at a proper time. |
It was a cold winter morning. I hadn't slept very well the night before so I was trying to1a little longer before I got up. The rising sun had other 2, however.
The bright sunshine came in 3the window. I had to open my eyes with great 4. I sat up on the side of the bed lazily and 5 stretched my sore back. It 6 I had just completed a full day's work rather than I was just about to begin one. I wasn't looking forward to another day of doing mountains of chores.
I sighed(叹气) and 7 on my trousers, shirt and heavy coat. Opening the bedroom door, I saw my dog waiting for me. He looked at me with a 8 face and an energetic body.
I wondered 9 he got that way every morning without even a cup of coffee. I opened the front door10 he could happily take his morning walk. He11 me to a park with his nose smelling all the way.
The air smelt fresh and clean so I breathed in deep. I looked up to the 12 and saw the beautiful sunrise. Its pinks, purples, and yellows were a masterpiece (杰作) painted by Nature's hand.
I smiled and thought maybe another day wouldn't be so 13 after all. I looked forward to another day of hugging my kids, petting my dog and talking with my friends.
I looked forward to another day living in 14 and sharing my own love as well. What a good gift from Nature is another day here in this wonderful world. Hope you make 15a day of love, a day of laughter, a day of kindness, and a day of joy.
When you have fun with your friends, you take selfies (自拍). sometimes you don't look so pretty in the photos. And, of course, if you're going to post (they), you want to look your best. What can you do?
Instead of posting a photo you don't like, you can turn to photo retouching (修图) (improve) your appearance. Many apps offer you the ability to do that. Their easy-to-use tools help you smooth your skin, make your (tooth) whiter, and more. With the apps, you can make your eyes (round) and brighter and also change the shape of your face. All in all, you can make yourself look the best (easy).
After sharing the retouched photos on moments, you get lots of likes. Is that great? Maybe not. It's almost a competition. Who looks the best, takes perfect selfies and (live) up to the standard of beauty? You need to be part of that crowd so that you don't feel left out. Worse yet, if you're not part of that crowd, you may (laugh) at because of your looks. People generally retouch themselves to have larger eyes and brighter skin. Does everyone now look same?
Perhaps it's time to post the real you and only lightly retouched if necessary.
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Hi Li Ping. How's it going? It's Saturday today. I'm going to play soccer with my friends in the afternoon. It's my favorite. Do you like sports? I hear you don't have many after-school classes now and you have more free time. What do you often do on weekends? What activities do you like best? Why? All the best! Yours, James |
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Dear James, …… Yours truly, |
