Making and Keeping Friends Is More than Child's Play

    When 6-year­-old Rachel returned to school on a recent Monday morning, her eyes immediately scanned the playground for her friend Abbie. “Though they were only separated by a weekend, the girls ran right into each other's arms and hugged,” recalls Rachel's mother Kathryn Willis of Gilbert. “It was like a scene from a movie.”

    Most parents instinctively (本能地) know that having friends is good for their child. Experts agree that friendship isnot simply child's play, but a powerful predictor of social adjustment throughout life.

A Skill for Life

  “Childhood friendships serve as a very important training ground for adulthood,” says Dr. Robbie Adler­Tapia, psychologist with the Center for Children's Health & Life Development at the East Valley Family Resource Center.

    Researcher William Hartup states,“Peerrelations contribute significantly to both social and cognitive (认知的) development.” Hartup concludes that the single best childhood predictor of adult social adaptation is not school grades or classroom behavior, butrather, how well a child gets along with other children.

    The work of Arizona State University professor of Developmental Psychology Gary Ladd proves that just as being ableto make and keep friends is beneficial to kids while the lack of friends is detrimental.

Good Friendships Don't Just Happen

    Experts agree that it is essential forchildren to establish high­quality friendships. But, researchers warn, these friendships don't necessarily just happen. Often, a good friendship begins with involvedparents.

    Psychologist Dr. Lynne Kenney Markan believes kids should be taught social skills in much the same way they are taught math and reading.

Bad Company

Many parents worry about the quality aswell as the quantity of their child's friendships. “When she was in 1st grade, her supposed ‘best friend' began calling her names and threatening to hurt her,”says Mindy Miller. “My daughter wasn't allowed to talk to or even look at other girls in her class. It really crushed her spirit. I told my daughter she didn't need a ‘friend' like that.”

    “I'll bend over backwards(拼命) to help my son get together with a friend I think is good for him,” Adler­ Tapiasays. “I don't look at it as manipulation (操纵)，just positive parental involvement.”

    HOLIDAY FUN AT THE POWERHOUSE

    500 HARRIS STREET ULTIMO·TELEPHONE (02) 9217 0111

    JoinintheholidayfunatthePowerhousethismonthlinkedtoournewexhibition ， Evolution & Revolution：Chinesedress 1700stonow.DON'TFORGETourotherspecialevent ， theClubMedCircusSchoolwhichispartoftheCircus(马戏团)！150 yearsofcircusinAustraliaexhibitionexperience!

    ◆Chinese Folk Dancing：Colorful Chinese dance and musical performances by The Chinese Folk Dancing School of Sydney.Dances include：the Golden stick dance and the Chinese drum dance.A feature will be the Qin dynasty Emperor's court dance.Also included is a show of face painting for Beijing opera performances.

    Sunday 29 June and Wednesday 2 July in the Turbine Hall，at 11：30 am & 1：30 pm.

    ◆Australian Chinese Children's Arts Theatre：Wellknown children's play experts from Shanghai lead this dynamic youth group.Performances include Chinese fairy tales and plays.

Thursday 3 to Sunday 6 July in the Turbine Hall，at 11：30 am & 1：30 pm.

    ◆Chinese Youth League：A traditional performing arts group featuring performance highlights such as the Red scarf and Spring flower dances，and a musician playing Er Hu.

Sunday 6 to Tuesday 8 July in the Turbine Hall，11：30 am to 1：30 pm.

    ◆Kids Activity：Make a Paper Horse：Young children make a paper horse cut­out.(The horse is a frequent theme in Chinese painting，indicating a kind of advancement.)Suitable for ages 8～12 years.

    Saturday 28 June to Tuesday 8 July in the Turbine Hall,12：00 pm to 1：00 pm.

    ◆Club Med Circus School：Learn circus skills，including the trapeze，trampolining and magic.Not only for children over 5.There are 40 places available in each 1 hour session and these must be booked at  the front desk，level 4，on the day.

    Tuesday 1 to Saturday 5 July at 11：30 am & 1：00 pm.

    Enjoy unlimited free visits and many other benefits by becoming a Family member of the Powerhouse.Our family memberships cover two adults and all children under the age of 16 years at the one address.

    Members receive Powerline ， our monthly magazine，discounts in the shops and the restaurants，as well as free admission to the Museum.All this for as little as 50.00 a year！Call (02) 9217 0600 for more details.

    The Healthy Habits Survey shows that only about one third of American seniors have correct habits. Here are some findings and expert advice.

    ⑴How many times did you brush your teeth yesterday?

    Finding: A full 33% of seniors brush their teeth only once a day.

    Step: Remove the 300 types of bacteria in your mouth each morning with a battery-operated toothbrush. Brush gently for 2 minutes, at least twice a day.

    ⑵How many times did you wash your hands or bathe yesterday?

Finding: Seniors, on average, bathe fewer than 3 days a week. And nearly 30% wash their hands only 4 times a day—half of the number which doctors recommend.

    Step: We touch our faces around 3,000 times a day-often inviting germs（病菌）to enter our mouth, nose, and eyes. Use toilet paper to avoid touching the door handle. And, most important, wash your hands often with hot running water and soap for 20 seconds.

    ⑶How often do you think about fighting germs?

    Finding: Seniors are not fighting germs as well as they should.

    Step: Do you know it is not your toilet but your kitchen sponge（海绵）that can carry more germs than anything else? To kill these germs, keep your sponge in the microwave for 10 seconds.

    It is a cold and dry winter morning. When you wake up, you feel that your throat hurts. You begin to sneeze and later you may cough. You must have a cold! Wait a moment. Could it just be a common cold or the flu that's been going around?

    A cold gives you a runny nose and cough. But it's usually easy to deal with. Some take medicine while others drink herbal tea or chicken soup. Usually you feel better after a week.

    On the other hand, the flu can be much more dangerous. It usually gives you fever.

    Sometimes it can cause death. According to an American magazine, the worst flu killed about 50 million people from 1918 to 1919.

    Don't worry. If you get a flu vaccine（疫苗）, it can stop you from getting the virus. Flu vaccines work by giving the body a small amount of flu viruses. This causes your body to develop antibodies. So next time you get the flu, the antibodies should help you.

    The flu virus changes every few years. Therefore, there are so many types of flu, such as H1N1 and H5N1. The antibodies for one type of flu can't help us against all types of flu. That's why we need to get vaccine every year.

    However, good health habits may also help stop you developing a cold or flu. Washing your hands often helps stop you from getting viruses. It is also important to get regular exercise and eat healthy food. All these can help you strengthen your immune system.

    Last week the British university system offered a record number of places. That sounds like good news—but do we really need more people to go to university? For that matter, does the world need more universities?

    The answer feels like it should be yes.

    Education is good, is it not? But everything has a cost.

    Education takes time. We could insist that everyone study full-time until the age of 45 but that would surely be too much. And perhaps half the population studying until they're 21 is also too much. As for universities, they consume financial and intellectual resources—perhaps those resources might be better spent elsewhere.

    My own personal opinion is strongly in favor both of going to university, and of simply having universities around.

    The main skill I learnt at university was to write about economics, and I use that skill every day of my professional life, even an abstract education seems practical to me. And I now live in Oxford, one of the world's most celebrated (著名的) university cities. Oxford's experience certainly suggests that universities have much to offer.

    The city's architecture and green spaces have been shaped—greatly for the better, on balance —by the 900-year-old institution at its heart. The beauty attracts tourists and locals too.

    But these are samples of one. Many people do not find themselves using the skills and knowledge they accumulated at university. And Oxford's dreaming spires (尖顶) aren't terribly representative of global universities as a whole.

    Many students ask for advice about improving their English. There are three basic questions.

    The first question is about real English. Li Hao from Hubei wrote, "I enjoy watching English films and listening to real English songs. But it takes a long time. What do you think?"

    This is a great way to learn English! Talk about the film or song with your friends, and guess the meaning of the new words. Just enjoy yourself!

    The second question is about speaking. Sam, form Suzhou wrote, "Our school has a foreign teacher. But I'm shy and can't speak to her. What should I do?"

    When I visit China, lots of people in the street say, "Hello! How are you? Where are you from? Do you like China?" These are good questions to start a conversation. Many people are shy when they speak English, so before you begin, takes deep breath and smile! Smiling always helps.

    The third question is about vocabulary. Oliver, from Anhui wrote, "I want to remember all the new words. I write them down, but I forget them quickly. What should I do? Try to remember eight or ten words a day. Write them on pieces of paper and place them in your bedroom. Say the words when you see them, and change them every day. And when you're shopping, how about counting the English words, or saying the English names for everything you see?