1 . Months earlier, my wife Lisa had woken up at 4:45 am, preparing to do exercise. She heard voices coming from the upstairs game room and decided to investigate. She discovered that our older son, Hunter, had been playing the video game Fortnite since he got home from school the previous day. What she found angered both of us.
We were sick and tired of the amount of time Hunter spent playing video games. He was so addicted to video games. Back in the 1980s, instead of playing video games, we kids were crazy about playing baseball and street football, driving hoops outside the house, etc. But times are different now. It became apparent that kids of the new generation are entirely different from kids of my generation. My kids and his peers are crazy about electronic products. I work in a summer camp and responsible for the field sports programme. I often notice many of the campers playing video games on little portable devices.
I began to refer to kids who spent more time playing video games than playing sports as the Nintendo Generation. In an attempt to ensure that our kid did not become a member of the Nintendo Generation, I came up with a programme to help Hunter cope with his bad habit. It was that video-game time would have to be earned in our house, just like money. I set the exchange rate: Each mile run equals 30 minutes of video-game play.
The first couple days didn’t go well. Instead of choosing to run to win the time of playing games, he decided to boycott my programme and spend time sleeping. But eventually, Hunter came around, and decided he would give running a shot. Now, Hunter is in good health and can run 18 miles. But nine months earlier, he was not in any condition to run five miles.
I hope that running teaches my son to invest his time in worthwhile efforts, to do something hard, but quite meaningful and beneficial, and then to enjoy a reward. I never want him to stop challenging him.
1. What made the author and his wife Lisa angry? (no more than 10 words)2. What did kids in the 1980s like doing according to the author? (no more than 5 words)
3. How did the author help Hunter deal with his bad habits? (no more than 10 words)
4. What does the underlined word in paragraph 4 mean? (1 word)
5. What lesson do you learn from Hunter’s change? Please explain. (no more than 20 words)
 | Social Media Detox Today marks the last day of the Social Media Detox, Brenton High’s fundraising campaign for new sports equipment. At the start of the detox, over one hundred students had been persuaded to stop using social media, in ANY form, for seven days. This meant no messaging friends, no posting photos, no blogging — nothing. They had been promised money by family and friends for each day spent without using social media. They were excited. They were nervous. But could they do it? With the detox now finished, they’ve switched on their devices and they’re back online. I bet you’re as eager as I am to find out just how many have been motivated enough to last the full seven days! And what, if anything, has been learnt from the experience? | ||
 | I lasted two days. The detox was more difficult to tolerate than I had expected. I felt like I had lost an arm! Not eating for two days would have been easier! But on reflection, I can see how much of my time had been occupied with checking my phone. I’m now trying to spend less time online and more time picking up my hobbies. | ||
 | I lasted four days. On Monday, my classmate and I spoke about what we did at the weekend - it felt really strange not to already know what he had done. We would usually have posted pictures and updated our profiles. Doing the detox meant we had to talk and explain what we were doing and thinking! It made me realise the value of real contact that I had forgotten. | ||
 | I managed the whole week! At first, I really felt I was missing out. Then, instead of messaging my friend. I went round t her house. Without our phones, we had a proper conversation for over two hours, without being distracted by messages from other people. It felt so good! Then I decided to visit a different friend every day. By the fifth day, I wondered - was I really missing out by not constantly checking my phone to see what everyone else was up to? | ||
 | I did all seven days, too! To be honest, I didn’t find the detox too difficult, but I did give my phone to my dad to avoid giving in! My brother thought I should make full use of the time without my phone; so he took me to check out our local sports centre. An hour’s sport each day left me tired out and wanting to go to bed early. The detox made me healthier! | ||
 | I’m embarrassed to say that I threw in the towel on the first day! I knew there was a party happening that evening, but without access to social media I couldn’t remember where it was! In the end, I turned on my phone to check, but couldn’t resist having a quick look at my social media accounts. What’s worse, I then spent so much time catching up on news, I almost missed the party! | ||
 | The detox raised a total of $1,632.82 for new school sports equipment! Well done, everyone who took part! After reading the posts on this forum, it seems that something other than money has also been raised through the detox. Awareness of just how much we rely on social media can help us step away from it and communicate with each other better. | ||
| Reaction | Results | ||
| Anna 2 days | It was more difficult than she had expected. She felt like she had | She can now see how much time had been taken up with checking her phone. She is now trying to spend more time | |
| Devon 4 days | When he saw a classmate on Monday, he felt really strange | They had to talk and explain what they were doing and thinking! Devon eventually realised that | |
| Cindy | At first, she really felt she was missing out. | Without their phones, she and her friend bad a proper conversation for over two hours. By the fifth day, she realised that she hadn’t been | |
| George 7 days | He didn’t find the detox too difficult, but he did give his phone to his dad to prevent himself from | An hour’s sport each day left him tired out and ready for bed early. The detox made him | |
| Max 1 day | He stopped | He spent so much time using his phone to catch up on news on | |
As we know, we can make mistakes at any age, Some mistakes people make are about money or people.
Please admit（承认）it. Don’t think that our mistakes are caused by others. Be brave and face the fact that we have made the mistakes. Don’t blame（责备）other people.
Please solve it at once. In order to stop the problem from getting worse, we should solve it as quickly as possible.
