The government in China plans to end its one-child policy and let families have two children instead.

    The plan was announced on Thursday after high –level political meetings in Beijing. A Chinese Communist Party statement gave a number of reasons for the change in policy. The statement said the change is meant to balance population development, stop a falling birth rate(出生率) and strengthen the country's labor force(劳动力).

    China, with the largest population in the world, started the one –child policy in 1980. But the government allowed only a small number of couples to have two children. For example, some families in the countryside could have two children, if the first-born child is a girl.

    In 2013, the Chinese government gave other couples a chance to have two children if one of them was an only child.

    Jiang Quanbao, a teacher and population expert, explained how Chinese families react to the newest policy. “Too many young people in the cities are no longer interested in having a second child,” he said. “People in the countryside are more interested. But some of them are already allowed to have two children. ”

    At the end of 2014, China had a population of 1.37 billion people. A total of 800 million of them have jobs. But the labor market population will drop in 35 years. That is to say, the country will be in great need of labor by the year 2050. With the two-child policy, an increase in births can solve this problem.

    Boys and girls, what do you think of the two-child policy? Do you want to have a new-born brother or a sister?

    Tokyo is Japan's capital and largest city. It's also one of the largest cities in the world. To has a history of hundreds of years, and now it is the main part of a big city area. The big city area is called Greater Tokyo. It includes (包括) Tokyo and some other cities near it. There are over 30,000,000 people living in this area.

    Many streets of Tokyo are very crowded, and most of the buildings are very tall and modem. But how could such an old city look so modern? During World War II, over a third of buildings in Tokyo were destroyed (被摧毁). After World War II, people began to build the city again. That way, the city looked different from before.

    Today Tokyo is a very welcoming city. Many people come to visit Tokyo every day. The best way to go to the city from other parts of Japan is by train. And the Shinkansen the fast trains are famous all over the world. Visitors from other countries can enjoy themselves a lot in Tokyo. They can learn Japanese culture and try Japanese food. There are lots of nice restaurants in Tokyo. The city never goes dark at night. So walking in Tokyo at night is always an option for most visitors.

    If you come to visit Japan, make sure you stop in Tokyo for at least (至少) a few days.

Have you heard the saying "Fall down seven times, stand up eight"? It means that however difficult things get and however many mistakes you make, have the passion and energy to keep going. This is called perseverance and it can help you achieve lots of things.

Perseverance means keeping doing something over a long time, even when the going gets difficult. It's believed that you can achieve a goal if you prepare to work for it. Practicing a trick (技巧) on your bike over and over again or finishing a picture without throwing it away and starting afresh shows perseverance. Florence, 11, says, "It means never giving up, being determined and trying hard to push yourself. I go running with my mom three times a week, even when I don't feel like it, because I want to be the fastest in my class."

Studies show that feeling hopeful and working towards a goal that you really want to reach can reduce stress and make you feel happier. Achieving something you've worked hard for, and overcoming challenges along the way, can also develop your confidence and make you feel braver to try new things. Angela Duckworth is an expert in thoughts and feelings. She studies perseverance, which she calls "grit (勇气)". Duckworth believes that it doesn't matter how talented, clever or rich you are, having grit is what really helps you succeed. She explains, no matter how gifted you are, and no matter how easily you do well in your lessons, you should have perseverance.

Duckworth believes perseverance is something anyone can learn, and the best way to do this is to have a growth mind. This means believing that your brain can grow, and that you can achieve anything if you put your mind to it. So instead of thinking, "I can't do this", try thinking, "I can't do this... yet". As the book The Big Life Journal says, "People with a growth idea know they can get better by working hard. They keep trying even when things are difficult."

Should children do housework? Different people have different ideas. Some parents will say that their children are too busy for housework. Other parents will ask their children to do housework，but the housework doesn't get done. That's a problem. 

Doing housework is good for children. Doing housework helps them develop an awareness of the needs of others. One small study，done over a period of 25 years，found that young adults will succeed in their mid﹣20s depend on whether they took part in housework tasks at the age of 3 or 4. Those who early shouldered responsibilities developed a sense of responsibility in other areas of their lives. 

But few kids are doing much around the house at all. In a survey of 1，000 American parents，75 percent said they believed doing housework made kids" more responsible". Yet only 36 percent of those said they required their children to do housework. 

Sports and homework are not the housework﹣free reasons. The goal，after all，is to raise a kind of adults who can balance a caring role in their families and communities. Housework teaches that balance. 

What should you do when getting children to do housework? Never accept their excuses. Don't worry if you must repeat yourself again and again. If you're spending more time getting the child to do housework than it would take to do it yourself，then you're doing it right. Can a payment help?I don't think so. If you're trying to teach kids to shoulder the responsibility of a home，paying them for housework is not the right choice. 

Alice Hou, started Girls in STEM club(俱乐部) in America, tries to help more girls interested in science, technology, engineering and math. 

Do you know Girls in STEM? It's a club for girls. They can learn science here. Alice Hou, a 16-year-old girl from the US, set up(创立) the club. 

Alice loves science, and now she learns computer science at the University of North Texas. She is also good at Chinese dance, and she won the title of Miss Arlington's Outstanding Teen(阿灵顿杰出少年). "When I'm dancing on the stage, I just feel relaxed," Alice said. "But I feel worried(担心的) when I have my science lesson. There are 100 students in my class, but only 11 are girls. " To help more girls to be interested in science. Alice set up STEM. Now,a lot of girls are in the club. They often come to the club after school. In the club, they can learn science by playing interesting games. They can also talk about the school subjects with their friends. 

People in the US like this club. Now many schools have the same clubs. They want more girls to love science.