Here are some English learning tips to help you improve your English.

    Ask yourself weekly: What do I want to learn this week?

    Asking yourself this question every week will help you think about what is most important to you. If you make a plan for each week, you will be surprised to notice how much you have improved your English by the end of the week! This feeling of success will encourage you to learn even more English.

Quickly review before going to bed

    Research has shown that our brains process(加工) information that is fresh in our brains while we sleep. By going over important knowledge before you go to sleep, your brain will work on this information while you sleep!

Speak English aloud.

    Understanding grammar rules does not mean you can speak English well. You need to practice speaking aloud. Speaking by yourself at home and reading the exercises that you are doing will help connect the muscles（肌肉）of your face to the information in your head and improve your pronunciation.

Do five to ten minutes of listening at least four times a week.

    If you decide that you are going to work hard and listen for two hours, maybe you will not do extra listening exercises soon. But if you listen five to ten minutes at least four times a week, you will find it's not so hard to develop the habit of listening to English.

Look for situations to practice your English.

    Learning English in a classroom is important, but using English in real situations will improve your English skills greatly. You can create new situations by using the Internet to listen to news, exchange emails in English with email friends, etc.

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    Would you like to eat a root? You probably already have. People and animals eat many kinds of roots. ①Most roots that people eat are usually called root vegetables. A root vegetable is what we call veggies that grow underground.

    A carrot   is one type of root vegetable. It is the orange, edible root of the carrot plant. ②to, many, in, like, people, salad, put, it(.) A turnip , is another root vegetable. It is a member of the cabbage family. Turnips are usually eaten boiled, steamed, roasted, fried, pickled, or even raw.

    ③Although some people do not consider potatoes to be a veggie, but they are a root vegetable.

    People like to eat them mashed, boiled, and fried. Sweet potatoes, yams, beets, and leeks are some other root vegetables that people like to eat.

    The first people who drank tea were the Chinese. The bush grew wild all over the south of China. Chinese people liked the taste, and found that the drink could refresh (使恢复精力)them. The new drink reached England in 1657. It was sold at one of the coffee houses. Only the very rich people could afford (买得起) to drink.

    Now, people drink tea all around the world. But tea does not mean the same thing to everyone. In different countries people have very different ideas about drinking tea. In China people always have tea together with their friends. They may drink tea at any time of the day. They only put tea leaves in their cups. They prefer the tea with nothing else in it. In the USA people drink tea at breakfast or after meals. They usually use tea bags to make their tea. Making tea with bags is faster and easier than making it with tea leaves in teapots.

    Today, when we think of Western tea culture, we often think of the English, afternoon tea and beautiful china tea cups. It's believed that an English lady, Anna, first introduced the idea of afternoon tea. She invited some friends to join her for an afternoon meal between four and five o'clock. This meal included cakes, sandwiches and tea. In order to make this afternoon meal important, fine china cups and plates, and silver teapots, knives, forks and spoons were used. Soon, afternoon tea parties became popular social occasions (社交活动). Today, afternoon tea parties continue to play an important part in the social life in modern Britain.

    Mom and Dad are two of the most important persons in your life. Over your lifetime, they may influence you more than anyone else you will meet. So if your mom loves to read, you just might grow up carrying a book wherever you go, just as she does. But parents do a lot more than just pass on their hobbies. Moms and Dads need to care for their kids the minute their kids are born. Most parents will do this as long as they live.

    Here are some ways you can stay close, get along well, and build a strong relationship with your parents.

    Spend time together. Instead of playing computer games or watching TV, ask your mom and dad to play with you. Go outside together, or do some reading.

    Be kind. Little things might mean a lot to your mom or dad. You can brighten a parent's day with a hug, a card, or a joke. It's also lovely when a kid cleans up his or her room without being asked. And if you try not to fight with your brothers or sisters, your parents will be so happy!

    Do your best at whatever you do. You don't have to be perfect, but when you do your best, you make your parents proud. It makes them happy to see how you're turning into a good kid. Why？Because it lets them know they're doing a good job.

Maker Moment

    Last year, Izzy Goldstein, 12, learned in science class that we can reduce air pollution by using natural energy sources, such as wind and solar power, instead of gasoline. This made her wonder what she and her schoolmates could do to help the environment. "Maybe if my school got  a bike rack（架子）, more kids would bike to school instead of depending on cars," Izzy told TIME for Kids. Rather than ask their school to buy a rack, Izzy and her friends decided to make a bike rack by themselves.

    They came up with a design. They calculated how much wood they might need. They measured how long the boards should be. They used power tools to cut them and put them together safely. And they did all this in their school's makerspace.

    Makerspaces are workspaces where kids can learn to create objects using technology, engineering, art and design. These spaces often feature a mix of high-tech machines, such as 3D printers and robotic Kits(工具箱), and simple materials like clay and cardboard.

    Izzy goes to the Harley School in New York. It is one of a growing number of schools across the United States with makerspaces. Makerspaces are largely inspired by Maker Faires(创客盛会), which are events that give people a chance to share their creative projects. Each year, about 250,000 people attend the Maker Faires in San Mateo, California, and Queens, New York. Maker Faires have also spread to countries around the world, including Egypt, France and Thailand.

    Schools are introducing makerspaces to the curriculum(课程)because makerspaces give kids a way to have ideas and build something from those ideas. Kima Enerson is a makerspace teacher at the Harley School. But she says kids can become extraordinary makers in an ordinary classroom, too.

    In Harley's Lower School (pre-kindergarten to Grade 4), students learn about the basics of computer software. By third grade, they study coding and how electricity works. In sixth grade, they learn to safely use tools such as drills and saws. When students get to high school, Enerson shows them how to apply their skills to solve global problems. "Throughout the process of designing, students are learning to create something to better the world," she says