1 . Take a look inside a high school classroom. You will most likely find a teacher at the front of the class and students sitting at their desks. Yet, look closer, and you might notice a familiar scene: many of these students are not paying attention. Instead, they are dozing off (打盹) or even completely asleep.

Today, the majority of high school students are not getting enough sleep. This is a serious problem, especially as students are doing more than ever with their time. They come to school early, spend hours listening to teachers and taking tests, then run off to practices and meetings, and come home to be faced with even more work. And the homework load these days is not light; teachers give hours’ worth of homework each night.

Most kids need at least nine hours of sleep per night in order to function properly. Yet the period of this nine hours shifts as a child gets older. After puberty (青春期), the body’s internal clock changes so that it is difficult for teens to fall asleep before 11 p.m. So even if a student falls asleep at eleven, they would need to sleep until at least 8 am, to get a full night’s sleep. Considering the time at which most high schools in this country begin, those nine hours are clearly being shortened. Few high schools start after 8 a.m.

However, there are schools that have paid attention to this research and pushed backward the start of their school day. In schools where the start time is after 8:30 in the morning, the teachers believe that there has been a real change in their students. They note that the students miss class less, pay more attention in class, perform better in class, and report lower levels of depression. The researchers of these studies say that the results are quite important and that more schools should consider pushing backward their start time of their school day.

2 . Do you often go out for shopping? How to avoid germs (病菌) when shopping in the grocery store?     1    .

Firstly, go to the grocery store bright and early when they’re just opening. This might be your best option. By avoiding large groups of people,     2    , as the virus is mainly spread through close contact with other people.

One of the easiest ways to spread the virus is by touching a contaminated (被污染的) surface and then touching your face, eyes, nose, or mouth.     3    . This is a lot harder than it sounds, because people touch their faces more than 20 times in a single hour. While a mask can help prevent you from touching your mouth and nose, it is strongly recommended to wear one.

    4    . This may be as simple as avoiding a crowded aisle (过道) and circling back a few minutes later. Since other shoppers might not be as mindful as you are about maintaining social distance, be polite in your request that they keep their distance with a polite “excuse me.”

Just as you’re being thoughtful about your own health, be thoughtful about the health of others, suggests Dr. Larkin. “    5    , see if you can shop for them or teach them to use an online and delivery option,” she says. “Be patient and kind with one another, especially the workers keeping the stores open and functioning — and of course, if you are ill, please stay home and don’t expose others.”

Today I am glad to participate in an activity, which theme is Chinese weaving art, making me to have a taste of traditional Chinese culture deeply.

This activity held in my school library where I appreciated numerous art works, ranging from chairs to decoration. In addition, I was lucky enough to get a opportunity to learn what to weave Chinese knotting on the spot. During that time I was very enjoyable that I fell in love with the magical work immediate.

As far as I am concerned, not only do such an activity make me further feel the beauty of the weaving art, but also it is beneficial to arise people's aware of carrying forward traditional Chinese culture.

4 . In our youth-obsessed culture, one would assume that your self-esteem peaks in your 20s—but that’s not the case. Researchers from the University of Bern set out to determine when the average person’s self-esteem is the highest, and the good news is that your peak comes decades later.

Researchers found that self-esteem increases throughout one’s lifetime, with a slight plateau during those awkward teen years. Our self-esteem levels then start rising again and don’t peak until well into midlife. The highest point for self-esteem level happen at age 60 when they can retire and stay there until a slight decline in one’s 70s and 80s.

This news that our self-esteem will continue to rise or stay steady during the majority of our lives is exciting. We often hear of increased stress in the decades of midlife, but there are upsides too. “Midlife is, for many adults, a time of high stability in relationships and work. Moreover, most people further invest in their roles, which might promote their self-esteem,” researcher Dr. Orth told the journalist. “For example, people take on managerial roles at work, maintain a satisfying relationship with their spouse or partner, and help their children become responsible and independent.”

As we age and our roles tend to change, it’s natural for self-esteem to take a small hit. “Old age frequently involves loss of social roles as a result of retirement, the empty nest, and, possibly, widowhood. In addition, aging often leads to negative changes in other possible sources of self-esteem, such as socioeconomic status and health.” Dr. Orth said. However, it’s important to remember that it’s only a slight decrease. Dr. Orth believes that most people maintain a high self-esteem level even into their 90s and beyond.

5 . What were you doing when you were nine years old? Making crafts from a Klutz book? Kicking around a soccer ball? Designing a business plan to deal with plastic pollution and relieve childhood poverty? Zymal Umar showed us the latter. The Pakistan’s youngest businesswoman has started a project entitled Zee Bags, which aims to reduce plastic pollution by providing an environmentally-friendly alternative to plastic grocery bags.

When Zymal was on a shopping trip with her parents three years ago, she was shocked by the number of plastic bags on the streets. Depressed by the plastic pollution, she was reminded of the severe consequences our habits have on the environment. Then, she noticed a shopkeeper handing out newspaper bags. And at that moment, Zymal knew she had to act. Since then she has created beautiful, unique reusable newspaper bags for hundreds of customers.

It’s amazing to see this youngster using her brains and business skills for good. And she should certainly feel proud of the work she is doing. After all, plastic grocery bags are killing thousands of marine animals every year through their contribution to plastic waste. According to The Earth Institute, over one trillion plastic bags are used worldwide annually—that’s about two million bags used per minute around the world.

And those bags certainly don’t disappear into thin air. Instead, they end up in our oceans, putting approximately 700 marine species in danger of extinction due to the threat from pollution. And plastic bags are just one of the many forms of plastic trash that ends up in the oceans—in fact, an astonishing 8. 8 million tons of this material make their way from land to the oceans every single year.

But with Zee Bags, we’re all empowered to make more thoughtful choices about our trash production. And Zymal’s amazingness doesn’t stop there—the profits from her sales go towards helping poor children.

6 . Endangered Species (濒危物种) Books for Kids

Will We Miss Them? Endangered Species

Written from the unique view of a 13-year-old author, this book interests children in the lives and challenges of endangered species, helping other young people learn about these animals as the first step toward saving them.

♦Author: Alexandra Wright

♦Publication Date: September, 2011

Almost Gone: The Worlds Rarest Animals

Have you ever seen a wombat or an Eastern barred bandicoot? Probably not. These animals are almost gone from the earth, and they’re not alone. Simple, informative text and cul-paper paintings introduce basic endangered species knowledge to young children.

♦Author: Steve Jenkins

♦Publication Date: January, 2016

A Poetic Journey into the Wild

Take a journey across land and sea to meet 21 endangered and threatened animals. Lovely paintings and poems introduce amazing animals from around the globe and show the dangers they face. The book also lists activities and organizations that provide more detailed information about endangered species protection.

♦Author: Rachel Allen Dillon

♦Publication Date: February, 2019

Eyewitness: Endangered Animals

This DK Eyewitness book is an exploration of endangered animals around the world, including factors that are driving them toward extinction (灭绝) and ways that we can help them survive. Blocks of text and diverse photographs keep readers turning the pages.

♦Author: Ben Hoare

♦Publication Date: August, 2015

The other day, I was invited my friend Sam’s home for dinner. I felt a bit surprising when I saw Bill there. It was two months before we two had quarreled, so I was embarrassed and didn’t know how to do. I sat down on the sofa and began to watch TV. Later, Sam came to ask me to make up with Bill. Until then I realized that Sam has arranged the dinner for purpose. He went up to Bill and greeted him warmly, smile at him. He looked very happily and talked with me excitedly. That night, we had a great fun together.

Chinese telecom giant Huawei on Wednesday     1     (official) launched its operating system Harmony OS 2 for smartphones,     2     (provide) customers worldwide with a competitive alternative that works on a diverse range     3     devices. Harmony OS, or Hongmeng in Chinese, is     4     open-source operating system     5     (design) for various devices and scenarios. It was first lunched on Internet-of-Things (IoT) devices, including     6     (wearable) and tablets, in August 2019.

“We     7     (surround) by more and more smart devices these days, and are now in a world     8     all things are connected,” said Richard Yu, CEO of Huawei’s Consumer Business Group. “Every single one of us     9     (be) a part of this fully connected world, as is every device.” “We look forward to working with more partners and developers     10     (build) a thriving HarmonyOS ecosystem,” he said.

10 . When you think of a typical American, who do you picture? A pretty blond white American like Taylor Swift? Or a handsome black American like basketball star Kobe Bryant? In fact, there was a time when the average American looked like neither of these people.

Back in the year 1500, the average American was a brown-skinned hunter-gatherer who probably rode a horse and wore clothing made from animal skins. Today, the ancestors of these people—who usually identify themselves based on their individual tribes such as Iriquois. Apache and Navajo—are broadly referred to as “Native Americans”, “American Indians” or simply “Indians”.

There’s a chance that you’ve never even heard of American Indians. That’s because there aren’t very many left. When the European settlement of North America began, there was intense (激烈的) conflict between settlers from overseas and these native people. After the British government and military were expelled in the Revolutionary War, conflicts with natives continued as the states were created that would later make up the US.                           In these conflicts, millions of natives were killed.

In 1830, former US president Andrew Jackson signed the Indian Removal Act. This act required all Indians to migrate to west of the Mississippi River to allow for the expansion of the US. American Indians were treated as a military “enemy” until 1924, when the few Indians still alive at that point we granted US citizenship. That was the first time that the US government formally recognized the rights of Indians.

While the story of the American Indians has been a sad one, their legacy is still felt every day in the US. Many US geographical names come from Indian languages, such as Ohio, Topeka, Kansas and the Potomac River. At the same time, there are many successful academics and other important US leaders who are descended from Indians. And nowadays, more and more history classes in US public schools are educating students about how Indian suffered during the settlement of the US.

Although what happened can not be undone, we can learn at least one thing from the sad history of the Indians: If we want a better future, we must look carefully and honestly at the past.