【推荐1】If you were born (出生) in the 2000s, you are the oh-ohs. The 21st century would make you young, creative, connected, world-wide and smart. Maybe good-looking, too. Right? But what do other people think about your generation?

Some adults (成年人) worry that you are more interested in the screen in front of you than the world around you. They think of you as “the face down generation” because you use your phone so much. They want to know how you will deal with (处理) schoolwork, friends and family.

Other adults worry that today’s youth are spoilt (溺爱) and don’t want to face the challenges of adult life. “Helicopter parents” fed children born in the 2000s. They were always there to guide and help their children with a busy program filled with homework and after-school activities such as dancing, drawing or sports. With parents who do everything for them, today’s youth seem to like to live like teenagers even when they are getting old.

Does “the face down generation” need a heads-up? Well, probably not. The fact is that many of today’s teenagers are better-educated and more creative than past generations. They seem to be willing to be leaders (领袖). More young people than ever volunteer to help their communities (社区). There are also brave young people such as Malala Yousafzai, the teenager who won the Nobel Peace Prize for girls’ rights to go to school.

So if you are one of the oh-ohs, there are reasons to be hopeful about the future. Things are looking up for “the face down generation”. Chances (机会) are that you do great and laugh out loud.

【推荐3】When the food we order at a restaurant arrives, the first thing most of us want to do is enjoy it right away. But for every person who just wants to eat their meal, there’s another who must take at least five photos of their food to share on social media.

While this may seem like a recent situation, “foodtography(美食摄影)” has been around for longer than one would expect.

Take US photographer Irving Penn for example. In 1947, Vogue magazine published a series of food photos taken by Penn. When people look at the carefully placed salad ingredients or the series of cakes on road shops, it would be easy to think Penn’s 70-year-old photos were taken just last week.

Besides Penn’s efforts(努力), it seems that social media is behind the recent rise of foodtography. Today, if a social media star with thousands of followers posts( 发 布 ) just one delicious-looking food picture and mentions where it was taken, it can lead to hundreds of new customers for the restaurant or café.

One such star is “Clerkenwell Boy” with over 100,000 followers in Instagram. He tries to use his influence for good by encouraging people not to waste food.

Research found that 55 percent of the 18- to 34-year-olds it surveyed were more likely to try to create Instagram-friendly dishes that can be popular in Instagram. Leading to increased food waste. So while it’s fun to share snaps of delicious dishes with your friends, just remember the most important thing: Don’t forget to eat your meal afterwards.

【推荐1】Most people in the United States like fast food. But if you think that American people don’t like cooking, you are wrong. It’s true that most Americans eat fast food for their breakfast and lunch, but they also think cooking is interesting. Americans have their own way of cooking. For example, baking(烘焙) is the most popular way of cooking in America. Most American families have ovens. And American cooks pay much attention to the balance of food.

Then what about China? Many students in China like eating one kind of food—mashed(捣碎的) potatoes because it is cheap and delicious. However, do you know how to make it? Here are the ingredients(原料) and steps.

● Ingredients

1kg of potatoes 25g of oil

Salt and pepper

● Steps

First, peel the potatoes. Try to cut the potatoes into small pieces. Second, cook the potatoes in a pot filled with water for half an hour.

Next, when the potatoes are soft, put them in a bowl, and mash them with a fork. After that, add the oil, salt and pepper. If you like, add some meat!

Finally, fry it for a few minutes. Now it’s ready.

Have you ever heard of a famous charity called Operation Smile? We hope we can help you understand how we are trying to help children all over the world.

Operation Smile was started by a doctor and his wife in 1982. Together with some volunteers they went to Philippines (菲律宾) to help children who had holes in their lips (嘴唇) or inside their mouths. It was very difficult for them to eat and drink. These volunteers worked very hard. But they worried that they could not carry on with the work because they didn’t have enough money. Then they decided to start a charity so that they could help these children in need. They called it Operation Smile.

Operation Smile works in more than twenty developing countries (发展中国家) and has cured over 10,000 children who have problems with their mouths. Operation Smile has won many prizes for its work and in 1999 they even started a special event called The World Journey of Hope. 5,000 children in 18 countries were cured during the event.

So show your kindness to the children in need now. You can send your money to Operation Smile at local banks. Many thanks from the children who can smile now will come to you.

【推荐2】As young students, you have many dreams. These dreams can be very big, such as winning the Nobel Prize; they can also be small, such as becoming one of the best students in your class. Once（一旦）you find a dream, what do you do with it? Do you ever try to make your dream real?

Andrew Matthews, an Australian writer, tells us that making your dreams real is life’s biggest challenge（挑战）.You may think you’re not very good at some school subjects, or that it’s impossible for you to become a writer. Those kinds of ideas stop you from realizing your dream.

In fact, everyone can realize his dream. The first thing you must do is to remember what your dream is. Don't let it leave your heart. Keep telling yourself what you want every day and then your dream will come true faster. You should know that a big dream is, in fact, made up of many small dreams.

You must also never give up your dream. There will be difficulties on the road to your dreams. But the biggest difficulty comes from yourself. You need to decide what is the most important. Studying instead of watching TV will help you to get better exam results, while saving five yuan instead of buying an ice cream means you can buy a new book.

As you get closer to your dream, it may change a little. This is good as you have the chance to learn something more useful and find new hobbies.

When Pearl Fryar began his gardening on his farmland in South California in 2009, he wanted to achieve something amazing in his 30s--to be the first African American to win the local garden club's "Yard of the Month"award, which was his dream when he was 15.

When his garden was completed in 2016, people from many countries, including Canada, Brazil and even South Africa, flooded to see his creations.

Fryar started by using bushes that were thrown away-plants that looked dead to most people. As an excellent engineer, he worked days in a factory. So, Fryar managed his garden at night. Neighbors got used to seeing one little headlight moving about when Fryar cut and pruned his growing bushes. Fryar created fantastic skills to make plants grow into fantastic shapes: spirals and platforms and arches, reaching up to the sky. "He has a way of ordering plants to do what he wants them to do, using plastic ropes, coat hangers even his wife's old stockings," says a neighbor.

Many professional gardeners were amazed by what Fryar achieved. "The garden itself was created from lack of knowledge," said Fryar in the opening ceremony of his garden on May 1, 2016,"because I didn't know what I should or should not do with plants. For one time in my life, I got paid for my 'ignorance'. "

Fryar's garden now includes about 400 species of plants and 150 different plant sculptures. On his front lawn, four-foot-tall litters filled with bright red plants spell "Diligence, 'Ignorance' and Patience". These are the principles Fryar lives by.

Fryar also welcomes people who can't afford to pay. "You can be somebody,"he tells students who visit the garden. "Show me anyone who works with a passion and patience, and they're going to be successful. "