Many kids help out around the house with chores(家庭杂务) such as emptying the dishwasher, putting laundry away, and taking out the trash. In exchange, some kids get allowances(补贴) or other rewards such as extra computer time.

    But some people do not think that kids should get rewards for doing chores. Susie Walton, a parenting educator and family coach, believes that by rewarding kids, parents are sending a message that work isn't worth doing unless you get something in return. "Running any kind of household is a team effort," Susie said. "A home is a living space for everyone in the family. It's important for kids to see that we all have responsibilities in the house, and that families decide together how they want their home to look, and how they are going to keep it looking like everyone wants it to look."

    Other people believe that getting a cash allowance or other rewards motivates kids to do chores, and it also teaches them real world lessons about how we need to work to earn money. There are also new applications that give kids points and digital gifts that can be redeemed(兑取) either online or in the real world. With the ChoreMonster app, kids earn digital points by completing chores that they can turn in for real-life rewards such as extra Xbox time or a trip to the mall. "Our goal is to encourage kids to earn rewards," says Chris Bergman, founder of ChoreMonster. "Kids need positive reinforcement(强化) to help motivate them."

    What do you think? Should kids be rewarded for doing chores? Or should kids help out around their homes without getting anything in return?

    Write a 200-word response. Send it to tfkasks4youtimeforkids.com. Your response may be published in a future issue of Time For Kids. Please include your grade and contact information of your parent or teacher if you want your response to be published. The deadline for responding is February 18.

“Hi, Mrs. Grady,” said Mark when their neighbor opened her door. “Would you like us to shovel（铲） your sidewalk and driveway?” Shoveling was Jamie's idea, a way to earn enough money for the new Ocean Kingdom video game that came out the next day.

    Mrs. Grady was happy, “That would be wonderful, boys. I think the job is getting to be too much for me.”

“It will cost 10 dollars,” Jamie said. “If that's OK,” Mark added.

“Oh dear,” Mrs. Grady said disappointedly, “I haven't been able to get to the bank. I can offer homemade cookies, but I realize that's not what you had in mind.”

Mark was going to say that Mrs. Grady could pay them another time, but Jamie cut him off. “We'll come back later.”

Mrs. Grady doesn't look like the person who'd come to Mark's rescue last summer when Mr. Dunn's dog Goldie had just wanted to play, but Mark didn't feel comfortable around big dogs. He wanted to call for help, but his tongue seemed locked behind his teeth. Then Mrs. Grady's front door had flown open. She must have seen him from across the street. “Hold on, Mark. I'm coming!” “Goldie” she'd called. As soon as Goldie had turned her head, Mrs. Grady had slipped between Mark and the dog. She wasn't much taller than Mark, but she'd stood firm as a rock in front of him. “Goldie, go home!” Then she'd swept her broom to hurry the dog along. “Get!” Goldie had obeyed.

When Mark showed thanks to Mrs. Grady, Mrs. Grady laughed. “It was nothing. Good neighbors watch out for each other, don't they?”

And now Mrs. Grady needed Mark as much as he'd needed her last summer. He smiled and waved at Mrs. Grady, then his shovel deep into the snow.

“Hey!” Jamie shouted. “What are you doing?” Mark couldn't explain about Goldie and watching out for neighbors. “I like Mrs. Grady's cookies,” he said.

    What should you think about in trying to find your career(职业)? You are probably better at some school subjects than others. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} A boy who is good at mathematics can use that in an engineering career. A girl who spells well and likes English may be good at office work. So it is important to do well at school. On the other hand, you may not have any specially strong or weak subjects but your records show a general good result. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} Knowledge of history is not required for most jobs but if history is one of your good subjects you will have learned to remember facts and details. This is an ability that can be useful in many jobs.

    Your school may have taught you skills, such as typing or technical drawing, which you can use in your work. You may be good at metal work or cooking and look for a job where you can improve these skills.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} You may have learned how to get to work on time and get on with older workers. You may have learned to give correct change in a shop, for example. Just as important, you may become interested in a certain industry or career you see from the inside in a part-time job.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#} You may be all thumbs when you deal with tools; perhaps you are a poor speller or cannot add up a column of figures. It is better to face any weaknesses than to pretend they do not exist. Your school record, for instance, may not be too good, yet it is an important part of your background. You should not feel sorry for it.{#blank#}5{#/blank#}

A. This does not have direct value for future job hunting.

B. These may show strengths that you can use in your work.

C. Facing your weak points is also part of knowing yourself.

D. Having a part-time job is a good way to find out your weak points.

E. Instead, you should recognize that you will have a chance of a fresh start at work.

F. Although not all subjects can be used directly(直接地) in a job, they may have indirect value.

G. If you have had a part-time job on Saturdays or in the summer, think what you gained from it.

    In its early history, Chicago had floods frequently, especially in the spring, making the streets so muddy that people, horses, and carts got stuck. An old joke that was popular at the time went something like this：A man is stuck up to his waist in a muddy Chicago street. Asked if he needs help, he replies, "No, thanks. I've got a good horse under me."

    The city planner decided to build an underground drainage （排水） system, but there simply wasn't enough difference between the height of the ground level and the water level. The only two options were to lower the Chicago River or raise the city.

    An engineer named Ellis Chesbrough convinced the city that it had no choice but to build the pipes above ground and then cover them with dirt. This raised the level of the city's streets by as much as 12 feet.

    This of course created a new problem: dirt practically buried the first floors of every building in Chicago. Building owners were faced with a choice: either change the first floors of their buildings into basements, and the second stories into main floors, or hoist the entire buildings to meet the new street level. Small wood-frame buildings could be lifted fairly easily. But what about large, heavy structures like Tremont Hotel, which was a six-story brick building?

    That's where George Pullman came in. He had developed some house-moving skills successfully. To lift a big structure like the Tremont Hotel, Pullman would place thousands of jackscrews （螺旋千斤顶） beneath the building's foundation. One man was assigned to operate each section of roughly 10jackscrews.At Pullman's signal each man tured his jackscrew the same amount at the same time, thereby raising the building slowly and evenly. Astonishingly, the Tremont Hotel stay open during the entire operation, and many of its guests didn't even notice anything was happening.

    Some people like to say that every problem has a solution. But in Chicago's early history, every engineering solution seemed to create a new problem. Now that Chicago's waste water was draining efficiently into the Chicago River, the city's next step was to clean the polluted river.

    Some people will do just about anything to save money. And I am one of them .Take my family's last vacation .It was my six-year-old son's winter break from school, and we were heading home from Fort Lauderdale after a weeklong trip. The flight was overbooked, and Delta, the airline ,offered us $400 per person in credits to give up our seats and leave the next day .I had meeting in New York, So I had to get back . But that didn't mean my husband and my son couldn't stay. I took my nine-month-old and took off for home.

    The next day my husband and son were offered more credits to take an even later flight. Yes, I encouraged一okay, ordered-them to wait it out at the airport, to "earn" more Delta Dollars. Our total take: $1,600. Not bad, huh?

    Now some people may think I'm a bad mother and not such a great wife either. But as a big-time bargain hunter, I know the value of a dollar. And these days, a good deal is some-time thing few of us can afford to pass up.

    I've made living looking for the best deals and exposing (揭露) the worst tricks .I have been the consumer reporter of NBC's Today show for over a decade. I have written a couple of books including one titled Tricks of the Trade: A Consumer Survival Guide. And I really do what I believe in. I tell you this because there is no shame in getting your money's worth. I'm also tightfisted when it comes to shoes, clothes for my children, and expensive restaurants. But I wouldn't hesitate to spend on a good haircut. It keeps its longer, and it's the first thing people notice. And I will also spend on a classic piece of furniture. Quality lasts.

    There have been many problems with our schools today, the biggest of which is closely related to our culture. In general, our culture, as represented in the media, gets excited by famous stars, and constantly stresses that it's what you have, not what you are, that counts. Parents are encouraged to be away from even very small children for most of the day. Too many voters go for politicians who would rather cut school funding than to get rid of tax cuts for the wealthy. All contribute greatly to the problems of educating our children.

    Today's teachers have to deal with a culture that is vastly different than in the past. They report that there is, among more children than ever, a lack of motivation, no drive to succeed or even try. The role models that boys view in the media mostly consist of men in comedies and other shows who are rude and often extremely immature; self-centered overpaid athletes; men in movies, television dramas, video games, etc. who are preoccupied with violence and power. As Leonard Sax wrote in "Boys Adrift", "Teenage boys are looking for models of mature adulthood, but we no longer make any collective effort to provide such models." Girls are attacked not only with such annoying images of males, but also with women who are preoccupied with appearance and are extremely materialistic.

    In such a cultural environment, it is more important than ever to have responsible, loving and caring parents who have enough time and motivation to devote to their children and see to it as their duty to model for them and raise them with high standards of honesty and responsibility along with tending to their physical needs. They need to care enough to see that their children are not attacked with the garbage that comes from movie, television and computer screens. In today's culture, they are basically alone in this effort since, unfortunately, so much is working against them.

    Until we, as a culture, face the truth about ourselves — that we are not providing adequately for a great many of our children — the storm will continue to rage over our education system.