I live in a small town near Qinling Mountain. You can’t see it on the map of China, because it is too small. The air here is fresh. There are not many tall buildings in our town. The best building is in our school. There are four hundred students and twenty-five teachers in our school.

In front of the school, there is a playground. I often play basketball with my classmates on it. There is a little garden behind our school. And we can grow beautiful flowers and plant trees in the garden.

Next to the garden, there is an orange orchard (果园). You can hear birds singing everywhere. There is a river not far from our school. In summer, we usually go swimming with our teachers in it.

We study Chinese, English, math and other subjects at school. The teachers are very nice. We love our school.

In classes, your teachers will talk about the topics that you are studying. The information they provide will be important for you to know when you take tests. So you must be able to take good written notes from what your teachers say.

Here are three stages (阶段）of taking notes and what you should do during each stage.

Before class

Review your notes you have taken before you come to class. This will be good for remembering what was covered. Get you ready to understand new information your teacher will provide.

During class

Keep your attention on what your teacher is saying and “the signal words” that tell you what your teacher is going to say and it is important to write in your notes. Examples of signal words are “The most important point.”and “Remember that...” Be sure to include in your notes information that your teacher repeats or writes on the blackboard. Write quickly so that you can include all the important information in your notes. Do this by writing abbreviations such as med for medicine, using symbols such as % for percent, and writing short sentences.

After class

Rewrite your notes to make them more complete and accurate（准确的）by changing abbreviations into whole words, symbols into words, and shortened sentences into longer sentences. Use them to answer your questions. If necessary, ask your teacher for help.

【推荐3】This summer holiday, some of you might have spent a lot of time playing video games online. However, you won’t be able to do this anymore. On August 30th, 2021, the government cut online gaming time for minors（未成年人）to avoid gaming addiction（沉迷）.

A new notice says that game companies can only offer one hour of service to minors from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and holidays. The companies must also make sure that users register（注册）and log in（登录）with their real names. Under earlier rules, minors could play online games for 1.5 hours on any day and three hours a day on holidays. But many parents have called for even stricter rules.

When the rules come out, some people support them, while others are surprised at how strict the rules are. Some people think that teenagers can hardly control themselves, so there should be some rules to guide them. Others also show their worries that if kids use their parents’ logins, what should we do?

Teenagers are the future of a country. Protecting their physical and mental health is important. Parents and schools need to let them know more about the related（相关的）laws and rules.

Many schools began to provide at least two hours of after-school services for students on weekdays in September, 2021. Instead of going to different subject-training classes outside school, students can stay at school to get after-school services including homework tutoring (辅导), sports and interesting activities. Students can choose one or two activities they like. After-school services not only make students learn better and live more healthily, but also make it easier for parents to pick up their children. More parents can pick up their children themselves instead of grandparents. In the past, when schools closed at 4 pm, many parents were still at work and couldn’t pick up their children. However, some parents expressed their worries. They really want to learn how they can help manage their children’s study and life reasonably. Here are some tips (建议).

◆Form good habits. Because of having more time, children are supposed to get into more good habits. Good habits can make all things easy.

◆Make plans. Making plans can help children manage their time better. Put aside their pleasures until their plans are finished.

◆Make full use of the time at school. Children should finish all their homework at school and solve all the problems in time. Don’t leave today’s work for tomorrow.

◆Help around the house or in the community. Proper housework at home and more volunteer jobs in the community can help children improve their sense of duty as well as their confidence.

◆Set a goal. Without a goal, there is no clear direction; without direction, there is no life.

Most of us compare ourselves with others. Comparisons can help to make decisions and make us active. According to a study, 12% of our daily thoughts have something to do with making comparisons.

Why is it so easy to compare yourself with others?

Whether it’s the number of goals you’ve scored at football or how many books you’ve read, it’s easy to compare yourself with someone else. Scientists say it’s a natural behavior. Humans live in a circle and do something in common, but they act differently and get the results more or less. Although comparing can be good for you, it’s not always helpful and you can find yourself stuck in a comparison trap (陷阱). This is when you always compare yourself with others and base (建立) your feelings on how well they seem to be doing.

Can comparisons be good for you?

Comparisons can make us feel good and bad about ourselves. “Comparing up” means seeing someone do better than you and using that to inspire (激励) yourself to make higher goals and try harder. “Comparing down” is when you see someone who doesn’t seem to be doing as well as you. It can stop you from wanting to improve.

Get out of the comparison trap.

Notice how people make you feel and spend time with friends who celebrate your strengths rather than compare themselves with you. If you follow social media accounts (账号) that make you feel you are failing in any way, stop following them. The best person you can compete with is yourself. Here are some tips for making healthy comparisons.

(Chart II)

Cyclists need to be more careful than other road users, as it’s much easier for you to get hurt. Remember that when you are on a cycle, you have no protection from dangers around you. Here are some suggestions on how to keep safe.

Don’t use your mobile phone while cycling. This is because you need to look out for the road and other traffic.

You should always wear a helmet as this can cut down the risk of getting hurt on the head in an accident.

Do not change your direction suddenly. Show drivers what you plan to do in plenty of time. Always look carefully before you start, stop or turn. Let drivers know you have seen them.

Is your bike checked from time to time? If not, why not? Brakes must work well in all conditions: dry and wet. Are the tyres in good condition to make sure of the safety of your trip?

Traffic laws apply (适用) to you as a cyclist, as well as other road users. Cyclists must obey traffic laws. It is against the law for them to take the following actions.

·Jump red lights, including lights at pedestrian (行人) crossings, unless there’s a sign showing that cyclists are allowed to do this.

·Ride across pedestrian crossings, unless you are allowed to.

·Cycle the wrong way up a one-way street, unless there’s a sign showing that cyclists can do so.