Letter A

    Young people are always told that they should make the most of their time, that they will never be as free again. So, my question is — why fill up all this free time with housework？Parents expect their children to get good grades, be good at sports, and be popular with other kids.

    However，there is not enough time in the day to do these things and then do housework as well. It's not fair to expect teenagers to give up their precious time to do boring housework. Parents and children both have jobs. Parents' jobs are in the work-place. Their children's jobs are at school.

    The only difference is that parents get paid and children don't. Parents say that they make their kids do housework to teach them responsibility. But this is just a trick. Parents trick their kids into doing housework because they are lazy.

Yours,

Overloaded

Letter B

    Both parents and children have jobs. The parents' job is to go to work to earn money. The children's job is to go to school. But we all get hungry. Someone has to cook the meals and clean up afterward. We all wear clothes that get dirty. Someone has to wash them, iron them, and put them away. Children work from 9 until 4. Parents work from 8 until 6. Sure, after 4 o'clock, children have homework. But after 6, parents have homework too. They have to do the shopping, go to the bank, pay the bills, and help their kids with their own homework!

    I think it's only fair that teenagers help out a bit at home. They might not like it, but it's good for them．It teaches them how to look after themselves．This is really useful when they leave home to go to college or to live on their own.

    “Give it back to me!” Zhu Han shouted at his mum angrily. She had just grabbed(抓取) his cell phone, saying that he should stop playing and go to sleep.

    “I told her it was 9 o'clock and I'd finished my homework, but she didn't listen,” said the 15-year-old boy. “I really couldn't understand her!”

     Do you sometimes feel the same way? A China Youth Daily report said that, according to a survey on 1,500 students, 61% of the students said they felt they weren't able to communicate(交流) with their parents. Besides, 37% of them said they never shared their worries with their parents.

    One of the most important reasons is that students and parents don't have much common ground(共同点). The different ages always lead to different interests.

    Peng Yu, a psychological professor(心理学教授) pointed out another reason. He said when entering puberty(青春期), teenagers begin to have their own thoughts(思想) and want their parents to treat them like adults(成人). But parents don't follow the change.

    He suggested that children should first understand that their parents do everything out of love. “With this in mind, students should try to talk with their parents calmly and often enough,” he said.

    Huang Xinlin, 14, agreed with the advice. She talks with her mum during supper every day and she also helps do the housework. “We talk about everything and even make jokes while sharing housework,” Huang said happily. “We are like friends.”

    Around the world, people live in homes of many shapes and sizes. In some countryside, people live together with their family in a huge house with gardens or backyards. On the other hand, the buildings in cities are usually very close together.

    A home can be any kind of building—large or small. Some people even have homes on boats, in tents or in caravans that can be moved around. Caravans are mobile homes. They are towed(拖，拉) by either a car or a huge truck. Some of them are holiday homes. We can see many families staying together in these caravans.

    In the past, rich and important people built strong castles to keep their families safe. The castles(城堡) were built on hill tops with high walls and some even had moats. Moats were deep and wide ditches(壕沟) filled with water. They made it difficult for enemies to attack.

    Today, we have different ways of protecting our homes. Some homes are installed(安装) with video cameras and an alarm system. These will help to alert(向……报警) home owners if someone tries to break in.

    Homes are important to all the people. Everyone needs a home where they feel sheltered and safe. 

    You don't have to be bored on a rainy day. Here are some new ideas：

    Tell stories. You might tell stories you heard before, or you might make up some really wonderful stories.

   ①   

    You can learn to cook a pizza or maybe some cookies. Give your friends a chance to help in the kitchen and make something tasty.

   ②   

    You might write stories on your own and then read them aloud to others, or you might write a story together.

   ③   

    Think of some scenes and then play a game. Act as teachers, doctors, nurses or policemen. You can dress up in whatever you may have.

   ④   

    Pick out some music and dance around in the room. You can also sing while others are dancing.

    Soon the next rainy day, try some of these ideas for a day full of fun!

    For thousands of years, kites have been made and flown by people of all ages living in most parts of the world. ⑶Kites have been especially popular in Asian countries. In Korea, people fly kites on the first few days of the new year as a kind of celebration. In Japan, kite flying is an important part of the boy's festival that is held each May. In China, one day out of every year is celebrated as Kite Day. At these special" kite celebrations", thousands of kites are flown. ⑷They are made in all shapes, colors, and sizes. Some are shaped like fish, butterflies, or birds. All of them are very bright and colorful. Most kite fans fly their kites just for fun, but serious kite fliers take part in contests. Kites are used for practical(实用的) purposes, too. The U.S. Weather Bureau uses kites to collect information about winds and weather. Some of the kites used in this kind of work carry scientific instruments and fly higher than 20,000 feet. To fly a kite, it's usually necessary to run into the wind for a few feet. As the kite begins to rise, let out more line and pull it. Do not fly a kite near trees or electric lines, or in an area where there are low-flying planes.