【推荐1】It’s hard to ignore the importance of sleep for our well-being. This is especially true for our children, says Rafael Pelayo, a sleep expert at the Stanford Sleep Medicine Center. Children who get insufficient sleep can become forgetful, have problems concentrating in school and studying, and have poorer immune function. They may even experience delayed growth. “Bone growth occurs when you’re sleeping,” says Pelayo. “From birth, sleep affects children’s bodies and brains.”

It’s probably not surprising, then, that sleep also affects mental health. “There is no mental health problem that doesn’t have a sleep element,” says Pelayo. For example, it’s well known that one of the signs of depression involves changes in sleep. Luckily, returning to a normal sleep pattern can help relieve depressive symptoms (症状), he says, stressing why treating sleep seriously could improve mental health. “Mental health and sleep impact each other,” says Pelayo.

While there are many benefits of having healthy sleep patterns, most kids don’t get enough sleep. As an example, Pelayo points to a time when his own child was in kindergarten, and the teacher assigned regular homework for her, which his daughter felt she needed to stay up late to finish. The same is true for older children — like teenagers — who are often assigned several hours of homework that keeps them up late studying. They may be unaware of how much sleep loss they are experiencing or how negatively it’s affecting them. But no one can sustain a loss of sleep over time, he adds.

What can we do to protect children’s sleep? Pelayo says that while sleep is a biological necessity, sleep habits are learned. That’s where parents can play an important role. First, they need to understand the necessity of sleep and pay attention when their kids seem sleepy or have trouble getting up in the morning. Also, parents should try to role-model good sleep habits themselves, he says. Role modeling is much more effective than punishment, he suggests. “You can’t be smoking a cigarette and telling your kids not to smoke, right? Parents have to model healthy behavior themselves,” he says.

【推荐2】You’re standing at a city bus stop, waiting for a bus to arrive. You wait and wait.     1     But you haven’t seen one for at least 20 minutes. Finally, a bus full of people arrives. Just as you try to squeeze yourself in, you see another bus coming down the street, and another one behind it!

What’s going on? Why do buses always seem to come in bunches (成群) instead of at regular intervals (间隔) ?

    2     They say that passengers tend to remember the few times when more than one bus arrives at a stop and to forget the many more times when a bus arrives alone.

However, experts who study traffic say that bunching really can happen quite easily.     3     If each stop had the same number of passengers waiting, the buses would keep to their schedule. But usually there are many people at a few stops and no one at others.

Suppose many people happen to gather at a particular stop.     4     So it gets delayed and the bus behind it catches up a bit. When the second bus arrives at the same stop, there has been less time for passengers to assemble (聚集), so the bus goes on its way quickly. Meanwhile, the first bus arrives at its next stop a little later than usual, so there’s been more time for passengers to join the crowd.     5     Once one bus catches up with the other bus, the two buses end up travelling together. If the route is a long one, a third bus could eventually catch up with the first two.

Check it out the next time you hop (跳上) a bus!

【推荐3】Last Thursday, New Zealand announced a plan. Under the plan, the country would make it illegal for people born after 2008 to buy cigarettes(香烟). The plan is made to keep young people from ever starting to smoke. And it won’t make a difference to people who are currently smokers.

Starting in 2023, people under the age of 15 would be banned from buying cigarettes. After that, the age limit for buying tobacco products would be raised every year. By 2050, someone would have to be at least 42 years old to buy cigarettes. In short, the move will stop people born after 2008 from ever buying tobacco products.

Tobacco products contain a drug called nicotine(尼古丁). Though nicotine is a poison, when people have a little bit of it, it can give them an excited feeling. Over time, nicotine changes the body so people feel like they need more of it. They may feel sick if they don’t get more. Then people are unable to stop taking it. That’s why it’s so difficult for people to stop smoking.

________. It’s one of the leading causes of deaths around the world. In New Zealand, about 5,000 people die every year from illnesses connected with smoking.

No country has ever tried an age limit-raising plan like New Zealand’s before. The government says studies show that cigarettes sales to young people drop when the age limit is raised. The new plan, which is expected to become a law next year, is the first of its kind in the world.

【推荐1】While the temperature in Chicago on March 4, 2018 was 5 degrees, the water was even colder—2 degrees. That didn’t stop over 4, 800 people on North Avenue Beach jumping into Lake Michigan.

The Chicago Polar Plunge is a yearly event to raise money for Special Olympics Chicago. Each of the participants (参与者) collect at least $200 from friends and family members to get the chance to jump into the lake’s icy water. More than $1.5 million was raised for a great cause: Special Olympics Chicago and the over 7, 500 athletes it serves.

Special Olympics, a nonprofit organization, was founded in 1968. The group’s purpose is to provide athletic training and competition in 22 sports for children and adults with intellectual disabilities (缺陷).

After some initial speeches, the first group of participants ran into the lake. Many of the participants were members of teams that dressed up in costumes (服装), including Minions and Waldo from the Where’s Waldo book series.

Chloe Krecun, 12, from Chicago, was shaking when she got out of the water. “I can’t feel my feet or fingers and my shoes are filled with water,” she said afterwards. But she would do it again to support the Special Olympic athletes.

As other participants headed towards the water to “take a plunge”, one of them shared why he participated in the event. “My cousin has benefited from the Special Olympics, so my family and I are here to support him by plunging,” said Brandon Marty.

Brunida Cotton, a special education teacher, was also paying attention to the Special Olympics as she prepared to plunge. “It gives the athletes confidence; they belong to a team and they enjoy being able to do things other kids do, ” Cotton said.

【推荐1】 Here are four activities in October. Go and get yourself out of your house.

1. Hope with Every Step 5K Race

It will be held on Saturday, October 3 at Taglienti Field on the Spruce Mountain High School campus. This event is held in honor of Josh Brochu, 13 and his sister Brook Brochu, 10, both of whom have a rare disease that affects children. All the money collected from the event will go to the A-T Childrens’ Project, a non-profit (非盈利的) organization which raises money for medical research and health centers. Visit www.atcp.org for more information.

2. A Free Movie Supported by Farmington Baptist Church

It will be shown at 7: 00 pm on October on 194 Whittier Road in Farmington. The movie When the Game Stands Tall tells the true story of the De La Salle Spartans High School football team, which set 151-game winning streak (连胜) record. Football coach Bob Ladouceur’s belief was always. “We don’t expect you to play perfectly. but to give a perfect effort.”

3. Wilton Free Public Library’s Birthday Party

The library is turning 100 years old! All are welcome to attend the party celebrating 100 years of the beautiful library building. From 10:00 am to 1: 00 pm on October 3, families are welcome to come to the library for some food and fun! There will be historical displays, fun book-themed food, face painting, and games and presents for kids. Please come and celebrate!

4. The Fourth Annual Pumpkin Festival

It will take place on Saturday, October 10. There will be various family activities, including movies, dog shows and children’s gifts. All events will take place in the Front Street Neighborhood. For more information, please visit the website: farmingtonpumpkinfestival.net.