1 . LIFE is AWKWARD．What should you do when your parents are embarrassing(使尴尬)you in front of your friends？Or what if you see what looks like a classmate stealing someone else's headphones？ In our social Q's column(专栏)，the teenager Harper Ediger and the adult Philip Galances give their best advice to kids looking for help navigating real﹣life situations，Now it's your turn：Do you have a question about an uncomfortable social situation at school，at home, on social media or among friends？Email it to us at Kidsqs@njpost.com and Harper and Philip may answer it in a future issue. Please include your age and hometown. Come on, we know you have one．

To give you some idea about how to ask questions , here are reader﹣submitted questions we've published in previous issues：

My mom signs me up for camps and activities without asking what I want to do. I only learn what I'm doing at the last minute. I don't like being told what to do, and I feel that I should be able to help plan my time. How can I have more of a say？

At my school, fourth graders need to learn different dances, then dress up for a fancy party where we ask partners to dance with us. This makes me nervous, and I'm not looking forward to it.How should I handle this situation？

My sister is home for college break, and lucky me, she's my roommate.As I'm 12 and she's almost 19, we both want our own space. I know she doesn't mean it personally,but she always complains that she doesn't have a home, which makes me feel as if I'm intruding in my own room．Do I tell her how l feel or let it go？

1. What should be included in your email to the social Q's column？

A．Name, age and social media	B．Age, school and hometown．
C．Age, hometown and questions．	D．Name, school and questions．

2. The underlined word "say" in the passage means________．

A．the ability to plan time	B．the chance to set up camps
C．the right to make decisions	D．the plan to enjoy activities

3. The writer uses some published reader﹣submitted questions in order to________．

A．show kids ways of solving problems

B．give kids examples of what to write about

C．share Harper and Philip's advice with kids

D．offer kids a chance to complain about their lives

4. The social Q's column is designed to________．

A．help kids deal with their troubles

B．train kids to write

C．have kids introduce themselves

D．advise kids to behave well

2 . Conformity involves changing your behaviour to “fit in” or “go along” with the people around you. In some cases, this social influence might involve agreeing with or acting like the majority of people in a specific group, or involve behaving in a particular way to be viewed as “normal” by the group. Actually, conformity is something that happens regularly in our social world. Sometimes we’re aware of our behaviour, but in many cases it happens without much thought or awareness on our parts. And even in some cases we go along with things we disagree with or behave in ways we know we shouldn’t.

There are countless examples of conformity in life. For instance, a teenager dresses in a certain style because he wants to fit in with the rest of the teenagers in his social group. A woman reads a book for her book club and really enjoys it. When she attends her book club meeting, the other members all dislike the book. Rather than go against the group opinion, she simply agrees with the others that the book is terrible.

Why do we conform? In many cases, looking to the rest of the group for clues for how we should behave can actually be helpful. Others might have greater knowledge or experience than we do, so following their lead can actually be instructive. And in some cases, we conform to the expectations of the group to avoid looking foolish. This tendency can become especially strong in situations where we aren’t quite sure how to act. Additionally, there are some situations where we conform just in order to avoid punishments or gain rewards.

There are many factors that influence conformity. For example, not knowing how to perform a difficult task makes people more likely to conform. Personal characteristics such as motivation to achieve and strong leadership abilities are linked with a decreased tendency to conform. And people are more likely to conform in situations that involve between three and five other people.

1. What can we learn about conformity from the first paragraph?

A．Actually it is rare for us to conform.

B．Blind conformity should be criticized.

C．Sometimes people tend to conform unconsciously.

D．Conformity means changing your behaviour reluctantly.

2. Which of the following is a case of conformity?

A．Joining a certain organization.

B．Following the ongoing fashion.

C．Sharing something personal with others.

D．Giving up your creative ideas cautiously.

3. When are we most likely to conform according to the text?

A．When we are at a loss.

B．When we are rejected.

C．When we feel threatened.

D．When we feel uncomfortable.

4. What can be inferred from the last paragraph?

A．Conformity cannot be avoided by anyone.

B．Conformity is linked to the size of the group.

C．Conformity is a natural response to challenges.

D．Conformity isn’t related to individual differences.