Dear Friend ,

    The recent success of children's books has made the general public aware that there's a huge market out there .And there's a growing need for new writers trained to create the $3 billion worth of children's books bought each year … plus stories and articles needed by over 650 publishers of magazines for children and teenagers .Who are these needed writers ? They're ordinary folks like you and me .But am I good enough ?

    I was once where you might be now . My thoughts of writing had been pushed down by self-doubt , and I didn't know where to turn for help .

    Then , I accepted a free offer from the Institute to test my writing ability , and it turned out to be the inspiration I needed .

    The promise that paid off

    The Institute made the same promise to me that they will make to you , if you show basic writing ability :

    You will complete at least one manuscript（手稿）suitable to hand in to a publisher by the time you finish our course .

    I really didn't expect any publication before I finished the course , but that happened . I sold three stories . And I soon discovered that was not unusual at the Institute .

    Since graduation , I have authored 34 nationally published children's books and over 300 stories and articles .

    Free test and brochure

    We offer a free ability test and will send you a copy of our brochure（小册子）describing our recognized home-study courses on the basis of one-on-one training .Realize your writing dream today . There's nothing sadder than a dream delayed until it fades forever .

Sincerely ,

Kristi Hill , Instructor

Institute of Children's Literature

    When we think of a generation gap we usually think of conflicting tastes in music, or pastimes. But now the generation gap is handwriting. After one teacher in Tennessee discovered that she had students who couldn't read the assignments she was writing on the board, she posted it on the Internet saying handwriting should be taught in schools.

    Opponents claim that handwriting has become out of time in our modern world. Typed words have become a primary form of communication. Once a practical skill, handwriting is no longer used by the vast majority of Americans. It is no longer taught in schools, and some claim that the time that it would take to teach it could be put to better use, for instance, by teaching the technical skills.

    But even in today's world there are still plenty of reasons to pick up a pen and apply it to paper. Many American institutions still require original signatures, for instance, signing for a registered letter and buying a house. And original signatures are much more difficult to forge（伪造）than their digital counterparts. There is also strong evidence that writing by hand is good for the mind. It activates a different part of the brain, and improves fine moving skills in young children. People also tend to remember what they write by hand more than what they type, and the process of writing by hand has been shown to stimulate ideas. Not only that, studies have shown that kids who write by hand learn to read and spell earlier than those who don't. Not to mention, handwriting is pleasing, as is evidenced by the fact that no one has ever typed a love letter. And handwriting remains popular as an art form.

    Yes we live in a modern world, but we live in a modern world that is based on fundamental values.

    "You know, the soft subjects," says the boy in maths. "The easy ones: the stupid girls at the bottom take them. Like dance. It shouldn't even be a subject." We're choosing subjects for our A-level taster day at school. I see the raised eyebrows (眉毛) when I explain two of my GCSE (General Certificate of Secondary Education) choices are dance and drama(戏剧).

    I was told by advisers that dance and drama wouldn't help me to get a suitable career. My friends told me I'd get bored of dance and switch to science within the first month.

    But taking GCSE dance was the best decision I ever made. Dance gives me something to pour my head and heart into. It gives me a feeling of belonging, creativity, security and freedom.

    The education secretary Nicky Morgan has put emphasis on (强调) science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM), saying that students who focus on the arts risk their careers. Stopping young people from expressing themselves at such a young age is not doing them any favours. Perhaps Nicky Morgan has forgotten to open the door of having a drive to study that subject day in, day out. It shouldn't matter what that subject is.

    I don't doubt the influence that STEM subjects can have on the people that love them. But to force children into one field is cruel. As much as I try, I'm not good at and don't love physics, biology or maths. I don't want a career in these areas.

    There has been a decrease in the number of state schools offering arts subjects taught by specialist teachers. I can't even imagine how it feels to be told that you don't teach a "real subject" by an 8-year-old boy.

    To the teachers, the parents, the government I say: Let children make their own decisions. Let them live in the present. Let them have a real, unlimited education.

    Over the centuries the French have lost a number of famous battles with the British. However, they've always felt superior in the kitchen. France has for centuries had a reputation for cooking excellence, and Britain for some of the worst cooking in the world. But according to a recent survey, that reputation may no longer reflect reality.

    In the survey, 71% of the Britons said they cook at home every day, while only 59% of the French said they cook daily. British home cooks spend more time cooking each week and also produce a greater variety of dishes than French home cooks.

    The reaction in London was predictably enthusiastic. British food has greatly improved since the 1990s. Once upon a time, the menu for many family meals would have been roast beef, potatoes and over-cooked vegetables, but not now. Home cooks are experimenting with the huge range of ingredients now available in British supermarkets and are preparing all kinds of new dishes, using the cookbooks that sell millions of copies every year. As a result, there's much more diversity in British food now, compared to French food, which tends to be very traditional.

    Some French people say that the survey did not show the whole picture. They agree that during the week French women don't cook as much as they used to because most of them work and don't have much time. They tend to buy ready-made or frozen dishes, but many of them make up for it on the weekend. There's also a difference between Paris and the countryside. It's true that people in Paris don't cook much, but elsewhere, cooking is still at the heart of daily life.

    For many French people, opinions about British food have not changed. When Bernard Blier, the food editor at a magazine, was asked about British food, he replied: "I don't go out of my way to try it. It is not very refined. You can say that I'm not a fan at all."

They talk about the straw that broke the camel's back, but really it should be the password that wiped out my memory bank. 

I was going along fine -with instant recall of my bank PIN (密码)，my mobile phone number and the date of my cousin's birthday before I downloaded a gas station payment app for its new customer discount. It asked me to create a password. When I typed in "gas 1", it was rejected for not being complex enough. I tried again: "IHateHearlessOilCompanies@". But that was too long and didn't include "at least one number". But here is the thing: as soon as 1 added the fresh password into my memory, I instantly forgot all the others. My brain had hit its limit for passwords. I now know nothing. 

I had entered some passwords in a notebook. Of course, I didn't write down the actual passwords, in case it fell into the wrong hands. Instead, I masked them in a way that only a family member could figure them out. For example, I combined my bank PIN with our postal code, then added it to a list of phone numbers. It would fool even Albert Einstein.

Maybe we need a system like the one we use to remember people's names. You know, you form an association between a person's characteristics and their name by whispering "Skinny George, Skinny George" in heart after meeting them. The risk is that, upon seeing him, you'll burst out the phrase. "Skinny George" might not mind, but it's possible "Boring Betty" will. As for remembering passwords as you change them, you could simply use the first and last letters of your favorite singer's greatest hits, together with the year of their release.

Maybe I'll try that one out- -but only after describing the system in the notebook. Then I'll hide it in a place so secret that I'll never remember where it is. 

The Best Maldives Island for Your Travel Style

Every resort（度假地） in Maldives is its own private island but choosing the right one for you can be difficult. Want to kick off your Indian Ocean holiday in style? Our guide will help you know what to look for in the hunt for your ideal island.

Waldorf Astoria Maldives Ithaafushi

You'll never go hungry at the Waldorf Astoria Maldives Ithaafushi, which has 1 1 restaurants, including ones specializing in garden-to-table cuisine. There are regular food-themed events, too—our favorites include Arabian Night and the Twilight Seafood Barbecue.

Four Seasons Resort Maldives

Considered one of the best spots in the Maldives for honeymoons, the Four Seasons Resort Maldives has a huge range of room categories and offers a brilliant selection of packages, including Island Romance packages that feature fantastic extras designed with couples in mind.

Fairmon t Maldives

There are numerous reasons to visit the Fairmont Maldives, including the fact that it's a great place to learn about sustainability, whether it's at the Sustainability Lab, where guests can turn discarded plastic bottles into jewelry or during excursions with marine biologists from a charity created to protect sea turtles.

Heritance Aarah

Heritance Aarah recently opened its Live Maldivian Village Museum, which focuses on 4,000 years of Maldivian history. Guests can learn about the art of coral stone carving and find out why locals are known as some of the world's best boat builders.

To ensure you experience the Maldives' best bits, schedule a holiday every month without fail. We're joking, but you get the point: think what you want to see and do, and brush up on the different areas' seasonal selling points.