“What r u doing? I'm waiting 4 u．” It is a   (1)   thing to see teenagers tapping away on their mobile phones. But parents and teachers are   (2)   that a “lost generation” may grow up with great technology skills, but be unable to    (3)  .

The Qilu Evening News, in Shandong Province, has reported that parents of primary school students are facing a huge     (4)    in getting their children to improve their handwriting. Schools have set    (5)     special handwriting classes for pupils.  In a(n)   (6)    of text messages,   (7)  ，computer games and Microsoft World, is it any    (8)     that teens view handwriting as old­-fashioned as tying your feet with a long strip of cloth?

I learnt to write  (9)  I was five years old. Armed with a big pencil, I   (10)    to make sense of the alphabet.  Being able to   (11)    through writing proves that we have the ability for thinking intelligently,   (12)   us from animals.

OK, so most teenagers will not be able to write in a few years.  What's the big     (13)  ? Well, using a keyboard all the time may be affecting the shape of your hands. A new study   (14)  recently in Shandong    (15)   the fingers of people under 25 years old has shown that thumbs are taking over from  other fingers as the hand's most flexible and strong fingers.

The Chinese     (16)     view handwriting as an indication of a person's   (17)  . Calligraphy(书法) has   (18)     been an important part of Chinese culture, but today its future is   (19)  .  Before we lose our skills altogether,  (20)  that a letter written by hand is worth a thousand times more than a quick e-mail.

When you eat out in a restaurant, it is not unusual to hear people yelling, “Let me get this one!” Sometimes you can see them  (1)      or arm wrestling to fight for the   (2)   for paying the bill. These fights are often very loud and active. Each person   (3)   shows an honest desire to pick up the bill, and in the end, all the people at the table give the winner praise and   (4)  .

 In fact, figuring out who will get the bill is always a   (5)   for Chinese people at formal meals. Although the people who   (6)   the meal are ve ry likely to pay the check, it is a   (7)   practice to make an effort to pay the bill. But you will   (8)   them if you do end up actually collecting money.

 In recent years, going Dutch has been embraced by many young people.  (9)  , older generations who fear “losing   (10)  ” still find it embarrassing and mean to calculate each person’s   (11)   of the bill.

 But these days,  (12)   digital payment apps, splitting (分摊) the bill   (13)   is becoming widely-accepted idea. Even people from   (14)   generations may want to do so. By scanning a code   (15)   paying their share viaWeChat or Alipay on their phones in one easy click, Chinese are  (16)  it easy to relieve the embarrassment of figuring out each person’s payment when they order a meal. This function has made going Dutch less   (17)  . and more fun in China. “Many of us are never without our phones  (18)   they are convenient. And person-to-person mobile payment services are incredibly  (19)   to use and at the same time save the trouble of   (20)   change,” said 18-year-old Han Chen, a student from Senior High School. 

Having returned from her round trip, the angry woman stood outside the ticket office of the station. “The railway owes (欠债) me $12,” she said to Harry Jenks, the young man working at the   (1)  . “You sold me a ticket   (2)   May 22nd, but there was no ship from Jersey that night. So my daughter and I had to stay in a hotel. It   (3)   me $12.”

Harry was   (4)  . He remembered selling the woman a return ticket. “Come into the office, Madam,” he said politely. “I’ll just   (5)   the Jersey timetable for May 22nd. The woman and her little girl followed him   (6)  . She was   (7)   right, as Harry soon discovered, there was no   (8)   on May 22nd. How could he have   (9)   such a careless mistake? He shouldn’t have sold her a ticket for that day. Wondering   (10)   to do, he smiled at the child. “You look sunburned,” he said to her. “Did you have a nice holiday in Jersey?”

“Yes,” she answered, shyly. “The beach was   (11)  . And I can swim too!” “That’s fine,” said Harry. “My little girl can’t   (12)   a bit yet. Of course, she’s only three…”

“I’m four,” the child said proudly. “I’ll be four and a half.”

Harry   (13)   the mother. “I remember your   (14)  , Madam.” he said. “But you didn’t get   (15)   for your daughter, did you?” “Er, well,” the woman looked at the child. “I mean, she hasn’t started school yet. She’s only four.”

“A four-year-old child   (16)   have a ticket, Madam. A child’s return ticket to Jersey costs…, let me see… $13. So   (17)   the railway pays your hotel, you will   (18)   $1. The law is the law, but since the   (19)   was mine…”

The woman stood up,   (20)   the child’s hand and left the office.

Yesterday I called my cousin Alice, I asked her if she____31____to go out for a picnic with me. She immediately said,“No. I’m too____32____to go with you.” I was not____33____when I got that answer. Alice is always doing something. She is running here and there to get a____34____done. And at the end of the day, she always seems tired. I don’t think Alice is____35____. There are many people like her. They seem to be busy but don’t do many things. Their____36____is that they don’t set priorities (优先权). In their opinion, every task is of the same____37____. But that is incorrect.

Recently, I____38____a video online, which shows the importance of setting priorities. And I can’t____39____more. There are reasons to set priorities on a____40____basis. If you work on tasks from one to another without getting anything____41____on the major-to-do list, you will see yourself flitting like a humming bird from flower to flower.

____42____you haven’t set your daily priorities for quite some time, maybe a suggestion or two would be welcome. The easiest and simplest way, and____43____one of the most effective ways is to start to____44____your major priorities for the day on your calendar (日历). No, I do not____45____doing that on your iPad, iPone, or any other electronic device. You should____46____major priorities on a physical calendar with a pen. This process lets your brain____47____the connection you are making, and it is this conscious connection that makes your note more effective.

The real____48____comes next and that is to remove or____49____all other events, issues or demands for your time or attention that could knock you off your track. This is not easy. However, with practice, you will____50____make it.

I was walking one night across a square of Copenhagen，Denmark，when I was suddenly 41____ by a small crowd by the town hall．Two police officers，a man and a woman，were walking softly and with 42____to a boy of about seventeen．Obviously drunk，he had

43____his head；blood ran above his hairline to his cheek．

This was probably the 44____thing the two police officers would have to 45____all evening．The Danes are a law-abiding(守法的)people．The most 46____crime in this country is bicycle theft besides murders．There were six murders in Copenhagen the year before，

47____ 1，688 in New York．The city is so 48____that Queen Magarethe used to visit flower shops Just like an ordinary

49____．I once talked to a Dane who had guarded her in such50____When asked whether he 51____her safety，he looked at me surprised and replied，“Why，we all love her，”52____was quite sweet．

As the police officers led the boy to their ear with great care，I found myself 53____them involuntarily．I don't know why I was so interested，except that I had never seen such 54____police．I said to the woman officer，“Excuse me，what will you do with the boy？”

“We'll take him home，”she said 55____．I was 56____．I couldn't help thinking of the time I was stopped by police in New York．and 57____to stand against a wall and frisked(搜身)because of all unpaid ticket．I was about seventeen at the time．

“Will he be in 58____ for this？”I asked

“With his father，most probably．But not with us．We are all a little 59____ sometimes，you know．Goodnight．Enjoy your stay here.”

“Goodnight，”I said and with the deepest 60____ watched them go．

The world would be a better place if we all had children’s eyes. This is not because children’s eyes are too sharp to allow any blot（污点、瑕疵）to pass without being   (1)  , but because adults have too many conflicting concerns to keep their eyes open to all wrongdoing.

Not long before, an examination, intended to   (2)   some police officers to higher positions, was held in Gansu province. Someone   (3)   with a good idea that 18 primary pupils could be invited to act as invigilators (监考人). At that age, students would do as they are told and act fearlessly.    (4)  , they caught 25 officers cheating on the spot, which has caused a stir (轰动,搅动) and   (5)   the question of whether adult invigilators would   (6)   their duties as well.

The implication of this event goes   (7)  its impact on the work style of local police officers and the examinations. Most people said what these children have done points to the sad fact of   (8)    being less trustworthy. If adults acted as invigilators, they would quite   (9)   turn a blind eye to cheating.

We Chinese have been holding the   (10)   that human nature was good at birth: as   (11)   of blot as a sheet of blank paper, which can be   (12)   with content (good or bad) in the process of growing up. Everything should be done on the basis of certain principles .  (13)  , nowadays the repeated reports of cheating in examinations, selling ranks and   (14)   and embezzling (挪用) public funds paint a   (15)   picture of common social morals. Adults have become too concerned with their own personal gains to   (16)   basic sense of principles. When no one   (17)   any principle and the only concern is personal interest, everyone will   (18)   , not only those who first break the rules.

Besides, cheats are unfair to honest examinees, and when the success of cheats   (19)   more people to cheat, the consequences will be disastrous.

In a word, we adults need to have our eyes as   (20)   as children’s on matters of principle.

   A PRANK (恶作剧) is naughty behavior that is at most scolded if it gets too much. This is   (1)  three Chinese students studying in California in the US described what they had done.
   Zhai Yunyao, Yang Yuhan and Zhang Xinlei, all 19, called it a “prank” when they took their classmate Liu Yiran to a park where “Liu was … beaten, spat (吐痰) on,   (2)  with cigarettes and forced to eat her own hair during a five-hour attack”,   (3)  the Associated Press.
   However, their “prank” in March 2015 was   (4)   a crime in the US. The punishment was years in prison for kidnapping and assault (攻击). Zhai was   (5)   to 13 years in prison, Yang to 10 years and Zhang to six years on Feb 17. They will be sent back to China   (6)   serving their sentences, reported The Los Angeles Times.
   The bullying (欺凌) case has caused quite a discussion in China where school bullying is not   (7)  but is seldom considered a crime. According to a survey done by China Youth Daily in July last year, 73.3 percent of the 1,002   (8)   said they had experienced or seen bullying cases at school.
   However,   (9)   offenders (冒犯者) receive proper punishment. In most of the cases, offenders only get criticism from schools. Offenders under 14 have no criminal   (10)  . Those aged between 14 and 16 usually get a light punishment only when they  (11)  serious crimes like murder and rape, according to China’s laws.
   “The articles about protecting minors (未成年人) have started to get  (12)  punishing school bullies,” commented an article in Bandao Metropolis Daily. “Some bullies even use the laws as a shield (挡箭牌) for their violent   (13)   .”
   In   (14)   , the US is quite tough on bullying.
  A(n)   (15)  of 46 of the 50 US states now have their own anti-bullying laws, according to the US Department of Education. Bullying, according to those anti-bullying laws,  (16)   not only direct physical contact like hitting, but also verbal assaults like name-calling.
   Also, judges in the US have the right to   (17)   minor offenders as adults if the cases are serious or if they have criminal records.
   China could learn from the US,   (18)   its legal system to stop bullying, some people have suggested. Huang Zhiyuan, a procurator (检察官) at the Henan People’s Procuratorate, advocated lowering the criminal age in Procuratorate Daily. Li Fangchao of China Daily advised China to make a   (19)   anti-bullying law.
   A more profound (深刻的) message the case showed to us is that “the common tolerant  (20)   toward bullying should be changed”, commented Jiaxing Daily. “When teenagers do something wrong, we should tolerate and help them when necessary. But all of these have a limit.”

B

   My children are perfect. All four of them. Perfect and beautiful and clever. I bet yours are, too. Except, of course, they are not. In reality, my children and yours are likely to be reasonably average in terms of looks, behavior, intelligence and charm. That’s why it is called average. Your belief in your child being special is more probably a biological thing than a fact.

   A loved one, particularly a loved child, is edited as we observe them. Other people’s children are spoiled; ours are spirited. Theirs are naughty; ours are confident.

   This is all natural and even touching when not taken too far. However, it is one thing feeding this idea to ourselves but feeding it to our children may be a little less desirable. We have the idea that-Unlike my parents’ generation-We should build our children’s self-respect as high as we can. Therefore, their random scribble (胡写乱画) is up there with Picasso, their C-minus is an unfortunate oversight on the part of the teacher, and the fact that no one wants to be friends with them is because they are particularly clever or sensitive.

   Children see through this kind of thing very quickly and ignore their parents’ praises as a matter of course. As they grow up, they sense that the wider world judges them differently. This leads to a – hopefully gentle – cynicism (猜忌) about anything their parents tell them about their achievements. Perhaps that is OK — but I’m not sure if it is good for them to have the parental praise so overlooked.

   If parents were a little harsher sometimes, this could have two positive effects. First, when praise came, it would be more likely to be believed and, second, it would fit in rather more accurately with the picture of reality that the child is forming in their heads.

   A lot of pressure is put on children who are told they are beautiful, special and perfect. Because then, where is there to go? Only downwards. They become too much aware of their status in your eyes, and a danger must be that they fear failing you. To be over-praised by your parents is the counter side of being criticized all the time. Both can have negative consequences.

   It is important to give your children the freedom to be flawed (缺点) — to know that it’s OK to be imperfect, and that, in fact, we often love people for their flaws — perfect people (whom we can only imagine, as they do not exist) are easy to respect, but hard to love.

Now I am nearly 60, my main insight is that I am much less special than I once believed. This knowledge has actually been helpful in leading a more well-balanced life.

   I certainly wouldn’t like to go back to attitudes that my parents, particularly my father, held, that to praise the child was to “spoil them” or make them bigheaded. However, the history of families is like the history of everything else-the story of overreactions. We praise our children to the skies, partly because we think it makes them feel good, but also because it makes us feel good. And perhaps it is more the latter than the former.

   Too much love can be as big a burden as a shortage of it. My advice is to limit your praise. Then every piece of praise will count, rather than being just ignored.

Just when parents are paying off bills for new school clothes and supplies, teenagers may need more money for other necessities. All these expenses can stress the family’s budget, said a New Mexico State University consumer education specialist.
Many social activities like drama clubs that continue throughout the school year require money, said Susan Wright with NMSU’s Cooperative Extension Service. It’s sometimes difficult for teenagers to understand why parents don’t have unlimited resources.
“Parents can help avoid problems by including children in family financial discussions and giving them opportunities to assume responsibility for some of their own expenses,” she said. “This will help them move towards financial independence.”
Wright offered parents these tips to help teenagers become good financial managers:
● Consider giving teens an allowance(零花钱). Decide what expenses the allowance should cover and let teens budget to meet those needs. Giving an allowance should not mean the family spends more. It simply shifts the responsibility to teens to manage money.
● Teach teens how to shop. Talk about comparative shopping, reading labels and interpreting advertisements. Explain the importance of planning ahead to cover necessary purchases.
● Explain the family’s financial situation---income and outgo. If teens are old enough to spend your money, they should understand where it comes from and how it needs to be used. Be sure they understand the importance of setting financial goals and planning for the family’s future needs.
● Teach teens how to use and manage a checking and savings account. Go over monthly bank statements together to show them how to justify checking accounts. Help teens understand the importance of keeping good records and knowing where money goes.
“It’s important that parents help their teenagers develop sound financial management practices,” Wright said. “The best way to do that is to set a good example.  Be open and supportive and resist the temptation to make financial decisions for them. After all, it won’t be long until they will be out in the real world making decisions on their own.”

As the 2016 Presidential election is approaching, US high school students have become more interested in the election. They hope to have a voice in the process and, at last, have a say in deciding the next US president.

Cypress Bay High junior Jacob Wilentz is one such student and he said the country needs change. Although Wilentz will only be 17 this November, he said his opinion still counts.

“Even though I will not be old enough to vote in the next presidential election, my voice matters, as do the voices of every other individual in this country,” Wilentz said. “Discussions I may have with my peers, debates with teachers and communication with my parents allow me to be heard and give my opinions meaning and insight (洞察力).”

Alain Jean, who was the 2008 African American/Caribbean American vote director for Barack Obama in the state of Florida, said teenagers should be paying attention to the presidential election because many high school students will be of voting age by election time. She said candidates have views and positions on certain topics that may affect teens’ lives.

Cypress Bay High junior Olivia Ohayon is concerned about issues that younger Americans face, such as the cost of college education.

Ohayon said, “I believe it is my responsibility to discuss, and try to persuade my parents and other adults to concern themselves with the issues important to the younger generation when casting their vote for president.”

Not only do teenagers think their voices are important, but some also think parents have to consider the views of their children when casting their vote. According to Lucy Rimalower, a licensed marriage and family therapist (治疗专家), parents must consider whether their vote represents their household and the teens living in it.

Jean says teenagers can also influence the election in other ways by getting involved in campaigns. She suggests that teenagers who actually believe in one of the candidates find the local headquarters for a campaign and volunteer. Campaign volunteers stuff envelopes, wave signs and go into neighborhoods to drop off literature (宣传材料) and try to get the word out.