【推荐3】Idioms are one of the hardest parts of learning a language. For those of you who don’t know, an idiom is a phrase which has a meaning,     1     If you translate an idiom word for word, it sometimes makes no sense at all. They are like puzzles and even native speakers can get confused when someone uses a phrase that they’ve never heard of.

With that in mind, here are five common English idioms that you can use in a variety of situations.

1. Get your act together (Meaning: you need to improve your behaviour/work)

This might be something your teacher says to you if you score badly in an exam or if you misbehave in class.     2     . For example, if your friend is being mean or nasty for no reason, then you can tell them that they need to get their act together.

2. Pull yourself together (Meaning: calm down)

    3     , because you need to tell someone they are overreacting and that they need to relax. Only use this if you think the person you are speaking to is getting upset over something insignificant. If your friend tells you that their close relative has died, it is NOT the time to tell them to pull themselves together.

3. I’m feeling under the weather (Meaning: I’m sick)

Yes, it’s longer and more difficult to say than ‘I’m sick’, but if your English teacher asks you why you haven’t done your homework,     4     You may not have done your English homework, but your teacher might be impressed that you know how to make eloquent excuses in a foreign language.

4. It’s a piece of cake (Meaning: it’s easy)

I don’t know why this means what it does, but sometimes you just have to accept that English people use weird phrases.

5. Break a leg (Meaning: good luck!)

    5    . If someone says this to you, do not take offence or think they are threatening you; instead, they are just wishing you luck. It is most often used for people wishing success to actors and actresses before they perform on the stage, but it can be said in other situations, too.

All in all, learning a new language can be challenging. It’s definitely not a piece of cake, especially when there are so many confusing idioms. However, with enough hard work and interest, you will succeed in no time. Break a leg!

【推荐1】When I was a boy, my parents and I traveled from New York City to the Pennsylvania countryside for a week-long taste of rural life. We stayed in a guesthouse on a farm, joining in the daily routines and eating meals with the farmer and his family. We got up early to see the cows as they were milked. I even tried my hand at milking one, then joined the farmer as he released the cows into the field afterward.

Decades later I still have vivid memories of that trip, which made me realize the value of a vacation, of seeing new things, meeting new people and sharing memorable experiences with family members. To this day, I still consider that family trip when I plan my approach to planning and taking time off with my wife and kids. Vacations are a time for resting and connecting. As a bank manager, I spend much of my workday encouraging my customers to save their money. One of the reasons I give is that we should all have enough money for a family vacation every year. In our busy lives, family is what we should be saving our money and time for.

For my family, our vacation starts when we begin planning the trip. We talk about destinations and our budgets ahead of time. Involving the kids in planning the vacation makes sure that they have a great vacation too. While I prefer to visit historical sites and museums, they love to fish and swim. So I build in some relaxation time for us all so that the vacation works for everyone.

Each year, setting aside vacation time to spend together is especially important to us. A relaxing environment opens the doors to all kinds of conversations - deep, silly or meaningful. There’s no pressure from the usual everyday tasks.

What matters is that everyone is having a great time.

【推荐2】Below is a housing guide for students going to London.

【推荐3】LONDON- Every eight minutes, a child in Britain becomes homeless, the worst rate for 12 years, according to figures published in a new report by homelessness charity Shelter. The charity, which campaigns to end homelessness and bad housing, revealed that each day 183 children lose their home and 135, 000 children will spend this Christmas in temporary accommodation. The charity 's Generation Homeless report also highlights 5, 683 homeless families with children who are currently living in emergency bed and breakfasts and hostels.

Will, aged 10，lives with his parents and younger brother in a single room in emergency bed and breakfast accommodation in Ilford, East London.”Life in the B&B is horrible,” Will said.”There's no room to do anything, even if I'm reading my book, as I'm still going to get annoyed by someone. I've been told off by someone for running in the small corridor. You can't do much. You can't play much. I don't get to play that often.”The family is still living . in temporary accommodation, despite being told it would only be there for six weeks.

Families are often packed into one room with little space to cook, play or eat their meals and Shelter said people are also forced to share bathrooms with strangers as well as living in . accommodation that is often located kilometers away from schools and jobs.

“Sometimes, my little brother Harry and I fight for the one chair, because we both want to sit at the table, and sometimes he wins and sometimes I win. I find it really hard to do my homework as I get distracted by my little brother and I don't have another room to work in peace,” Will said.

The charity said an additional 4,026 children will be made homeless by Christmas Day if action is not taken to deal with the lack of social homes, expensive private rents and welfare cuts that are driving the country 's housing emergency.

Polly Neate，chief executive of Shelter, said: “ The fact that 183 children become homeless every day is an unacceptable figure and a sharp reminder that political promises about dealing with homelessness must be turned into real action.

“Day in，day out we see the devastating impact the housing emergency is having on children across the country. They are being uprooted from friends; living in cold, cramped B&Bs and going to bed at night scared by the sound of strangers outside.”

A spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing，Communities and Local Government said: “Every child should have somewhere safe to live, and councils have a duty to provide temporary accommodation to those who need it.'

【推荐1】Best Soda Alternatives

You know soft drinks aren’t a smart way to get rid of your thirst. Making them a habit increases your risk of being overweight. But water isn’t the only smart alternative. Choose pure juice which has fewer calories and more nutrients will contribute to your good health. Studies show surprising benefits from:

Orange Juice

Drinking a couple of glasses of OJ prevents the inflammation that can be caused by a fast food breakfast, making damage to blood vessels less likely, a new study shows. The protective effect may come from the juice’s contents with anti-inflammatory properties.

Grape Juice

It’s a good source of antioxidants that seem to strengthen brain function. In one study, older adults who drink grape juice daily for 12 weeks shows significant improvement on memory tests.

Lemonade Juice

Several studies suggest lemonade can help stay away from kidney stones, a painful problem that’s on the increase and cut your risk of a recurrence by as much as 90 percent with a large daily dose: Mix four ounces of lemon juice with two liters of water and drink straight up or sweetened, says Roger L. Sur, MD, director of the University of California, San Diego, Comprehensive Kidney Stone Center.

Apple Juice

Apples may reduce the risk of colon cancer, prostate cancer and lung cancer. Compared to many other fruits and vegetables, apples contain relatively low amounts of vitamin C, but a rich source of antioxidant compounds. The fiber content, while less than in most other fruits, helps regulate bowel movements and may thus reduce the risk of colon cancer. They may also help with heart disease and weight loss.

【推荐2】Years of unbalanced investment in public parks has left 100 million Americans without access to decent nearby green spaces during the coronavirus lockdown, a new report reveals.

Local parks have been a godsend to many people during the disease as schools, gyms and walking trails have closed to minimize physical contact and check the spread of the virus. But the annual parks score index by the Trust for Public Land (TPL) has revealed wide gap in access. For instance, 98% of residents in Washington and Minnesota are within a ten-minute walk of a park, compared to less than 50% of those in cities like Arizona and Oklahoma City.

Even within cities, access to green spaces – like access to healthy food, healthcare and good schools – is also unfair, with low-income households and people of colour least likely to live close to parks with basic facilities like toilets, playgrounds and basketball courts.

As summer edges closer, it’s clear that public parks will play a crucial role in providing safe, affordable leisure spaces for millions of people unable to work or travel. Yet, evidence detailed in the report suggests park services could face dramatic cutbacks as local governments face unprecedented economic challenges as a result of the shutdowns.

A survey of 300 park officials in mid-April by the National Recreation and Park Association found that about half had already been instructed to cut budgets by 10% to 20% for the current financial year. Nationwide, the parks system took years to recover from budget cuts after the Great Recession that upset planned improvements and expansions. The economic consequences of the coronavirus disease are expected to be both deeper and longer.

For environmental justice activists, there is some hope. The unprecedented crisis could enhance appreciation for parks – and encourage a wave of local activism to fight for fair access. Rue Mapp, the founder and CEO of Outdoor Afro, said, “This is an opportunity for us to rethink public lands and to get people out of the mindset that nature is somewhere that you have to drive to.”

【推荐3】The day Madelyn McClarey’s twin sons, Aaron and Aubrey Hough, each received scholarships(奖学金)to Florida A&M University, she figured that after they moved seven hours north from Hollywood to Tallahassee, she’d be lucky to see them on weekends.

But her sons had something else in mind. The twins told her they’d move to Tallahassee on one condition. She had to go with them—and work toward the college degree she’d always wanted. And that is how McClarey ended up in a green cap and gown this month at FAMU. Cheering her on were her twins. “Our mom is so determined and dedicated, we’re lucky to have her as our mother,” said Aaron. “It was a lot of hard work, but she never gave up.”

McClarey’s sons jumped as she was awarded a bachelor’s degree (学士学位)in English with a minor in education, excited that their mom finally had the degree she’d dreamed about for more than twenty years. Her professional goals were put on hold when she became a single mom looking after two kids. Before motherhood, before divorce, McClarey had gone to business school.

McClarey, who described herself as “40ish,” said that when her sons insisted she go with them to college four years ago, her jaw dropped, having known most teens are eager to start lives away from their parents once they graduate from high school. She said, “But I was also delighted when I realized they weren’t joking and weren’t going to leave home unless I moved with them, so I said, ‘Well, all right—let’s go, then.’”

Now that McClarey has graduated, she doesn’t plan to leave Tallahassee anytime soon. She wants to stick around to encourage and support her sons, but there is also another matter to deal with. “My goal is to become an author someday,” she said. “So this summer, I’ll be working on getting my master’s degree.”