1 . Do boys and girls really deal with people in different ways? With Leaper’s help, we carried out some tests that showed us yes.

We offered the kids brightly wrapped (包装) gifts which may be disappointing: socks and a pencil. The girls responded very politely. Courtney said happily, “Just what I need. Socks and a pencil!” Her words made me feel good, while the boys weren’t about to make me feel good. “What?” Raja said, “Socks and a pencil? Rip-off!” Jacob had a similar reaction.

Are boys and girls simply born different?

Susan Witt, at the University of Akron, says boys and girls respond differently in situations like these because we parent them differently.

Witt means parents and society treat kids differently. A famous study called “Baby X” designed by Phyllis Katz tested adults on how they treated babies based on what they thought the gender (性别) was. When adults thought they were holding a girl, they held her gently and gave her dolls. When they thought the baby was a boy, they offered him a football. In the 1970s, some people took this to argue boys and girls were born entirely the same, and they behaved differently only because parents and society taught them to. Now, however, it’s accepted that society and biology both create the difference.

Witt also offered a few tips for the parents of girls: Don’t help them so much. Research shows parents tend to help girls more than boys. This can make girls feel helpless and less confident.

In the case of the boys who were honest in our test, we saw that their parents gave them a lot of freedom to act out. “Maybe too much,” says Witt. Witt said Moms should discourage kids who scream out demands.

Finally, a caution (警告) about generalizing about gender. The differences between individuals are frequently bigger than differences between sexes. In our experiments, some girls did speak their mind, and some boys were very polite.

2 . Is it important for teenagers to own the latest cell-phone models? There are different ways of looking at this question.

First, why do teenagers need to have the latest models? Often it’s just to show off. The paradox is that there are many teenagers who own the latest cell-phone models but don’t even know how to use them properly. This is true. They just want one because their friends have similar ones, or because they take very good videos and photos.

On the other hand, if they do know how to use them, the latest cell phones are really good. They not only help teens to stay in touch with friends and family, but also help them to access the Internet and download pictures, videos or music they need when studying. These new phones are so powerful that having one is almost like having a whole library in your pocket. It’s an instant (即刻的) source of information that helps young people get the latest news. But many parents, thinking only of such positive sides, do not take into consideration the potential dangers. For example, children may constantly be distracted (分心) during class by sending and receiving text messages.

Each young generation loves the new technologies available — just think back to when you were a kid. But your job as a parent is to make sure your child gets the most out of this technology with the least possible harm.

Reading aloud is a good habit for children. Some parents may ask their children to read aloud at     1     early age, but reading aloud to kids may help them focus better, according to a new study     2     (publish) in the journal Pediatrics. These children are not only better able     3     (sit) still but also better able to get along     4    (good) with their friends and teachers.

The research     5    (do) by a team led by Dr. Alan Mendelsohn of NYU Langone Medical Center. The researchers studied how children's     6     (program) that promote positive parenting activities, such as reading out loud and playing pretence affect children's development.

Researchers performed a test after some children took part     7     their Video Interaction Project from birth to age 3. At every visit, the families in the program were filmed reading or     8     (play) with their children. The film was then reviewed by a coach     9     helped parents learn more about their own powerful role in their children's growth. Results showed that these children could do things more carefully and had     10     (few) attention problems by the time they started school.