【推荐3】After the final test, I want to go abroad and have some fun. So I searched information online about where I wanted to go. Here is what I found.

Many parents want their children to play a musical instrument. But forced（被迫的）practice can cause a lot of stress for children. For young children, it is difficult for them to pay attention.     1     Or their parents may be too strict. These often make parents not get on well with their children, even have an argument.

Is it necessary to force a child to learn a musical instrument, especially against their interests? In my opinion, music is undoubtedly one of the best education methods, but it should be children’s own choice.     2     Parents themselves should think twice. Is the reason that children can win higher marks when choosing a school? Or that’s because children really love it from the bottom of their hearts.

I remember myself showing an interest in the electronic organ（电子琴）when I was in primary school. However, my parents didn’t have time to send me for classes.     3     How I wish I could better understand the performances of musicians when I attend a concert.

Children usually learn things faster than adults. That’s why many parents want their children to start early, even if they are not able to realize the advantages of learning an instrument yet.     4     For example, my neighbor’s seven-year-old daughter used to hate playing the piano, complaining about the difficulty in daily practice. But after her parents found a new teacher who had rich experience, with the teacher’s guidance, the girl showed interest and started practicing on her own.

    5     In order to make up for my regret, I began to learn electronic organ when I was thirty years old. Now music adds more fun to my life.

【推荐2】Maybe you’ll meet a word that you don’t know in an exam. Most students may be nervous if a dictionary is not around them. But don’t worry! There are some ways to help you guess the meaning of a word without a dictionary.

Read the whole sentence (句子). Your first step is to go back and reread the whole sentence. You may forget what you are reading when you meet a new word. Then try to think about the content (内容) of the sentence.

Try guessing the meaning by the background. This will make it different from other parts and you’ll pick it from the rest of the sentence easily. You can often use other words in the sentence to help you find out the meaning of the unknown word.

Think about what else is happening in the sentence. For example, maybe you are looking at a sentence that says, “It was a very sultry day in the middle of the summer.” You may understand each word but “sultry”. Think about what you know about sum-mer. It is likely that “sultry” has something to do with the weather. It can help you understand the word easily.

In a word, don’t be afraid of new words. Try your best to understand them by using these ways. Then you can also understand the sentence or passage better.

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【推荐3】

Do your children enjoy reading? If not, reading to pets can help them.

There is an animal shelter(收容所) in Middlebury, America. Children can bring a book and read to the animals there. After they visit the shelter many times, they can get small toys. A lot of children visit the shelter on weekends.

This activity helps animals find their new homes. Also, children have a good time reading.

Look! The girl with long brown hair is Carol. She is ten years old. In the past(过去), she played with her friends after school and never read. But things change after she visits the shelter. When Carol came to the shelter for the first time, she didn’t know what to do. She just sat in front of the cats and started to read to them. The cats liked her speaking to them. It made Carol feel happy.

Now, there are all kinds of books in Carol’s room, Carol spends a lot of time reading books every day. It brings her great fun and she learns a lot about the wonderful world.