4 . Recess for Kids

Ask a group of kids about their favorite part of the school day and many will talk about something that happened at recess. Maybe they finally made it across the monkey bars (单杠). Maybe somebody kicked the ball over the fence. Maybe a fruit tree in a neighboring yard started to drop apples on the playground.     1    

It’s true not just according to kids, but also to adults who study recess for kids. Whether they’re inventing a new game or sitting under a tree, kids need a break — or several of them — during the school day.

Why Kids Need Recess.

There's no debate that recess, or mainly referred to as physical activity, is good for kids.

You can’t have your brains go hours at a time and retain and store information in working memory.     2     Besides, activity that involves arms and legs — running, climbing, crawling — builds new neural connections, which helps kids regulate their emotions. Studies show that after recess children are more attentive in class, perform better and have fewer emotional problems.

How Much Recess Should Kids Get.

“Ideally, children should get four 15-minute recesses every day”, says Debbie Rhea, a professor from Texas Christian University, who advocates for outdoor play in schools.     3     It is noted that Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have recently expanded the idea to encourage recess for all students, including those in middle and high school.

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In addition to simply providing enough time for recess, schools should teach skills that will make recess more successful. For instance, letting kids run fast will help them develop coordination.     5    . And even falling, is something kids need to practice to avoid getting badly hurt. To allow children to take reasonable risks with their bodies is also a wise move.

China’s women’s basketball team won respect and encouragement from Chinese netizens for their sportsmanship     1     (display) in the gold-medal game against Team US in the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup on Saturday, after finishing in second place.

In Friday’s semi-final, China defeated host Australia 61-59 and entered the World Cup final for the second time in almost three decades. This is a significant     2     (achieve) for a team with an average age of less than 26 years old. The Chinese team won six times in this year’s World Cup before Saturday’s final. The only defeat was that it     3     (lose) 63-77 to the US during the group stages.

When     4     (face) the world’s top-ranked Team USA, the reigning champions, the Chinese players showed a strong desire     5     (fight) until the end.     6    the Chinese players failed to conjure a miracle in the final, their progress is     7     (definite) worth being proud of. Cheryl Reeve, coach of Team USA,     8    claimed their fourth FIBA World Cup title in     9     row, said she saw the growth of their Chinese rivals. “This is a great time for the Chinese women’s national team. It’s a very, very good team,” she told the press conference.

After the game, the Chinese Basketball Association on Sina Weibo congratulated China’s women’s national basketball team     10    finishing runners up again after 28 years. It also expressed gratitude to every athlete, coach, and staff member in the team for their dedication.

Bringing with him lots of books, clothes, and two pairs of trainers, Zhang Tian travelled to the village with an eager heart. He imagined     1     exciting things about living independently and teaching in a village.

Our coach was not so sure. Paul had to     2     many times just for making the team. He was still usually on the bench, being just a replacement, which was really     3    .

Like any exercise, running increases the flow of blood and oxygen to your brain. It makes your heart stronger and allows more blood to flow around your body. It also     4     and reduces the risk of serious health problems, as well as     5     like colds.

10 . Competitive video gaming, known as e-sports, should be included in the Olympic Games, the creator of World of Warcraft has told the BBC.

Rob Pardo, who until July, 2014 was chief creative officer at Blizzard Entertainment, a famous game company, said that “sport” now had a broad definition. “Video games are well positioned to be a spectator sport (观赏性体育运动).“ he told Afternoon Edition on BBC S Live.

Professional e-sports events currently attract audiences of millions. A recent major final held in Seoul, South Korea, filled a stadium of 40,000 people, with many more watching online around the world.

”There’s a very good argument for e-sports being in the Olympics,“ said Mr. Pardo, who was also lead designer on Starcraft: Brood War, a game often credited with promoting the e-sports phenomenon.

”I think the way that you look at e-sports is that it is a very competitive skill and you look at these professional gamers and the reflexes are lightning quick and they’re having to make very quick decisions on the fly.

“When you look at their ‘actions per minute’, they’re clearing over 300.”

However, he admitted that video gaming faced a cultural battle to win over those who followed more physical sports.

“That starts getting into how you define sport,” he said. “If you want to define sport as something that takes a lot of physical exertion (用力气), then it’s hard to argue that video games should be a sport, but at the same time, when I’m looking at things that are already in the Olympics, I start questioning the definition.”

Having new sports admitted into the Olympic is a long-winded process and, since the International Olympic Committee (IOC) limited the number of sports allowed in the Games, has become increasingly difficult.

Even if e-sports were to be recognized as an Olympic sport, that doesn’t mean they would be included in the Games — it merely means a case can be presented to the IOC.