When you are learning English, listening, speaking and writing are important, but reading can also be very helpful. When you read, you can not only learn some new words, but also you can learn how to use these English words. When you read, it gives you a good example for writing.

    Good reading tips:

    Try to read at the right level(水平). Read something that you can (more or less) understand. If you need to stop every three words to use a dictionary, it is not interesting.

    Try to increase the number of your new words. If there are four or five new words on a page, write them in your notebook. But you don't have to write them while you read. Instead, try to guess their meaning as you read: mark them with a pen. Then come back when you have finished reading to look them up in a dictionary and write them in your own vocabulary book. Then try to remember them.

    Try to read regularly. For example, read for a short time once a day. Fifteen minutes every day is better than two hours every Sunday. Fix(固定) a time to read and keep to it. You could read for fifteen minutes when you go to bed, or when you get up or at lunchtime.

    Read what interests you. Choose a book or a magazine about a subject that you like, because you are going to spend time and money reading it. So, choose an interesting book. You can also read newspapers. There are many English newspapers in China. For example, 21st Century Teens. It is easy enough for you to understand it. There is something interesting in it.

C

    The most famous food in Korca is kimchi（泡 菜）. It is the food they eat every day. Also, there are about 190 kinds of kimchi. There are different kinds is of kimchi for different seasons of the year. For example, in spring, watery kimchi, which is called mool kimchi, and Chinese cabbage are popular. In summer, young radish(萝卜) kimchi which is called chong kaik kimchi and cucumber(黄瓜)kimchi are common.

    Korea is a small country. There are not enough fields to grow vegetables. In winter, it often snows and it is very cold.  In the old days, people there found pepper was very good for them. They also found salty water could help them keep cabbage longer, so they mixed pepper, salt and cabbage together. They named it kimchi.

    Today, lots of things are added to kimchi, such as fish, letuce, pears, apples and other ingredients. Some scientists say kimchi is very good for health, but others don't agree. What do you think of it?

    An important question about eating out is who pays for the meal. If a friend of yours asks you to have lunch with him, you may say something like this, "I'm afraid it'll have to be someplace cheap, as I have very little money." The other person may say, "OK, I'll meet you at McDonald's."

    This means that the two agree to go Dutch, that is, each person pays for himself. He may also say, "Oh, no. I want to take you to lunch at Smith's," or "I want you to try the Chinese dumplings there.

    They're great." This means the person wants to pay for both of you. If you feel friendly towards this person, you can go with him and you needn't pay for the meal. You may just say, "Thank you. That would be very nice."

    American customs about who pays for dates are much the same as in other parts of the world.

    In the old days, American women wanted men to pay for all the meals. But, today, a university girl or a woman in business world will usually pay her bill during the date. If a man asks her for a dance outside the working hours, it means "Come, as my guest." So as you can see, it is a polite thing to make the question clear at the very beginning.