With so much history to explore, Rome is best visited by bike. Bikers will be in heaven with tours both within the city’s walls and a quick train ride into the nearby region. Here are some of our favorite local biking paths.

Starting from Ponte Garibaldi, you will find a 16-kilometer path that extends along the Tiber River through the north of the city. This path is excellent as it is specially for runners and bikers, meaning that you will not have to worry about cars and the majority of the path is newly paved. Along your path, you’ll pass Rome’s Olympic Stadium.

While the cobblestones certainly provide a bumpy ride, this path is unlike any other. Appia Antica has seen two thousand years of history, and served as the Roman Empire’s road from Rome to southern Italy. You will bike along streets where the Roman army originally marched and you will pass ruins simply out in the open.

To take advantage of this path, you will want to take a train out to the city of Bracciano. Italy’s main train company, Trenitalia, allows you to bring your bike for an additional fee, and from Bracciano you can explore its three surrounding towns. The area hosts an incredibly well-preserved castle and lovely views of the lake and mountains.

Castelli Romani are towns surrounding Rome, and each offers its own unique feature. You can either ride out to the Castelli from Rome or take the train to Marino, Frascati, Lanuvio, Castel Gandolfo or Velletri, and plan a tour that allows you to check out a couple of them and get a feel for life in the Roman countryside.

It was the scene from every parent’s worst nightmare when 8-year-old Rihaan was left lying in the middle of the road, with his bike bent beside him as the car that hit him stopped suddenly.

On hearing the loud bang, my husband, Ashish, ran down the driveway, picked his limp son up into his arms and carried him inside. Seeing Rihaan was bleeding badly from his head, legs and arms, my husband and I were both terrified he’d been so seriously injured.

I called triple zero. But I was overcome with shock and struggling to speak. It was young Aarush, Rihaan’s brother, who took over the call, communicating key information to emergency services. Then, he quickly took clean towels to press on Rihaan’s wounds and stop the blood. When he noticed his brother’s eyes wide with fear and tears falling down his cheeks, he also tried to comfort him.

After a short time, an ambulance and the police arrived, and the professionals could take over from Aarush. Rihaan was rushed to hospital where scans showed he was concussed (脑震荡) but luckily had broken no bones.

“He’d been thrown 7 metres in the air.” Ashish recalled. “And wearing no helmet (头盔), he was very lucky the driver was not speeding. We don’t blame the driver, for it could have been anyone,” Ashish said.

With Rihaan recovering well, it meant the focus turned quickly to his brave brother. After the accident the operator who took Ashish’s call, Nick Smith, nominated (提名) him for a Junior Triple Zero Hero award. As for Rihaan — who is back on the bike and always wears a helmet now — he agrees his brother was a hero. “But I’d quite like a medal too,” Rihaan, said cheerfully, “I suffered all the pain and then he got the award!”

Holly King-Mand has given thousands of pupils online lessons. You can find out more about Holly’s live online classes at hollysclassroom.com. Her online lesson this week is about how to end a story, which can be a lot harder than starting one. She says great writing isn’t just about well-written sentences, it is also how a story is put together. Holly provides us some ideas for how to make your stories finish with a bang.

Foreshadowing is a way of preparing your readers for a great ending. It means giving them clues throughout the story to keep them interested in what will happen later. For example, stormy weather could be a sign that forebodes something bad or dramatic is going to happen.

Also, a happy ending is most people’s favorite way to end a story. With a happy ending, questions are answered and characters get all the good things they want. They might make up with their friends, find the missing treasure or overcome a difficult time.

A cliffhanger ending is very popular as well. Often the storyline ends suddenly and the reader is left thinking, “Goodness me, what will happen next?” Though this type of ending may leave your readers feeling upset that so much was left unexplained, it’s a good way to set up a follow-on story.

Then, a surprise usually gives a big turn in the story, particularly at the end, which can make your writing shine. An unexpected surprise can give the reader a big “wow!” moment. Maybe a secret is uncovered, a character turns out to be an entirely different person or the story goes in a different direction. However you do it, the aim is to thrill your readers and make them say, “I was not expecting that ending!”

The car won’t start. The kids are late for practice. The e-mails are never-ending. We all have those moments when life feels discouraging. On those days, it’s important to have strategies in place to reduce stress.     16    

● Take time for yourself

As hard as it is to do, trying to find time, even five minutes for yourself and doing something you like, can make a difference.     17     Some people find things like exercise helpful for stress reduction.

● Give yourself some personal space

Sometimes, you need to set limits and just say no.     18     It just means you are putting yourself and your well-being in the first place.

● Recognize the signs of stress

If you can recognize the signs, you might be able to make some changes earlier.     19     Talking to them about what you are experiencing can often be helpful. Sometimes, you can even talk to a therapist (治疗专家) for advice, which might be of great help.

    20     If we’ve already had health problem, our ability to deal with stress is reduce. So it’s necessary to make sure that you get enough sleep, have a proper diet and do some daily exercise no matter how busy you are.

I once heard a story about a little boy whose father gave him a baby cow. The boy was ________ to feed and clean the cow, and then to ________ it over his head once every day. As the child grew, so did the cow who became ________ each day. By the time he was 15, the young man could ________ lift a full-grown cow.

There has been a ________ story in my own life. Ever since my son Ivan was five, he had been my only tennis ________. One day when we were playing, a local tennis coach ________ and said, “Your son really hits well.”

Though I told Ivan about the coach’s ________ for him, I had no idea what exactly the coach had ________ in Ivan’s game. Ivan had been telling me about his rapid ________ in school tennis and how he’d ________ some kid who was a country-club champion. But to tell the truth, I really hadn’t seen much ________.

Then a strange thing happened. Last week, I had a tennis game with an old friend who used to beat me but I________ easily this time. On the way home, I figured it out. It was Ivan! As his ________ had improved, so had my own, just like the boy who lifted the cow. All the time, it was Ivan who ________ me to go further.