A dog, it is said, is a man's best friend. Put a dog, a kid and a book together, and you have a struggling reader's best friend.

    The therapy dogs of R.E.A.D. – Reading Education Assistance Dogs – have been helping children improve their reading skills since 1999, when Intermountain Therapy Animals (ITA) began the program in Salt Lake City, Utah.

    Today, tens of thousands of R.E.A.D. teams – dogs and their owners – volunteer to spend time with youngsters in schools and libraries across the United States and around the world. The idea is that sharing a book with a nonjudgmental (不带评论的) partner encourages students' confidence and helps develop a love of reading.

    Izzy, a Havanese therapy dog, is a regular visitor to Public School 57 in East Harlem, New York. Students meet him in the library, pick out a book and sit down on the carpet. Izzy snuggles (依偎) up to them and gets ready to hear a story.

    “I love reading to Izzy because he listens to me, and he doesn't make fun of me when I make a mistake,” says third-grader Aelane Vasquez. The 9-year-old, whose parents are from Mexico, is one of 15 Latin-American students at the school who were selected for the program.

    “All the students that we work with in the R.E.A.D. program were behind reading levels at the beginning of the year,” Bridget McElroy, who teaches English as a Second Language, explained. “Now most of them have reached the average level, if not above it.” That's important, because achieving proficiency (熟练) in reading is vital for kids to succeed. Studies have shown that students who can't read at grade level by the end of third grade are four times less likely to graduate high school by the age of 19.

    The R.E.A.D. teams from New York Therapy Animals work with 175 kids at Public School 57 and nine other schools.

    McElroy said she sees a marked difference in Aelane and her classmates, and not just in study. “Not only do the kids have time to practice reading, what we are really seeing is that they are excited to read and practice even when Izzy is not here,” she said.

    Tennis Court

    Located in our neighboring island, enjoy a short boat ride to reach the tennis court. An all-weather exterior(外面的) court provided an exceptional playing surface for a great game of singles or doubles. Free tennis equipment is available.

    Time: Open daily 8:00 am to 8:00 pm

    Hitting partner is available at US$ 65 per hour per person.

    Reservation in advance is required. Please contact Recreation.

    Price should include an extra 20% service charge.

    Fitness Centre

    Located near the main pool, our fitness centre Kuda Hurra provides physical challenges and mental relaxation.

    Guests must be at least 13 years of age to use the facility. Free athletic wear is available while a Fitness Centre Attendant provides assistance only from 7:00 am to 9:00 pm. For the safety of everyone using the facility we request that no children under the age of 18 are permitted to use the facility when unattended by our staff.

    Open 24 hours.

    Kids for all seasons

    Children from four to twelve years are welcome to join our Kids for All Seasons Programme. The Kids Club is located near the main pool next to the Gym building and is open daily from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm.

    The Kuda Mas Club includes recreational and educational activities such as arts and crafts, painting, leaf folding, island discovery tours, fish feeding and much more.

    Please contact the Kuda Mas Club for more information.

    Part-time jobs for 15 and 16 years olds

    Waiter / Waitress

    A job as a waiter or waitress is a good choice for 16-year-olds. Not only can one earn $9-$12 an hour, but they can also get the tips (小费). Most people that visit a restaurant don't just have good food. They come here to relax and have a good time. Besides serving food quickly, a young waiter who talks to them politely with a smile on his face will make the diners enjoy their time at the restaurant.

    Work in a library

    If one is fond of books, working in a library is another suitable choice. Besides the pay is good, it offers a lot of free time when students can actually sit down and finish their homework. So on returning home, they would have time to hang around with friends or just relax. So working in a library is an excellent part-time job for teens, especially for school students.

    Internet jobs

    There are many ways of making money through online jobs like clicking on advertisements, visiting sites and signing up with them. However, such online jobs don't pay well. A better Internet job for teens is to complete online surveys. These are quite simple surveys that usually ask one about his/ her opinions and ideas. Many companies use these ideas to make products designed for teenagers.

    "When your mother scolds you, you can look elsewhere and think about other things. Just ignore her words. But remember: such a tough attitude cannot be used often." These words are from a series of cartoons which outline skills for children to fight against their mothers. The images have created heated debate among Chinese netizens（网民）.

    Regarded as "a book for children aged 6 to 12 who are always scolded by their parents"， the cartoons, drawn by two 10-year-old Beijing girls, list over 20 skills which children can use to deal with their mothers' anger such as crying, pretending to be ashamed, fleeing into the toilet and pleasing her afterwards. Each skill is described with vivid pictures and humorous notes. The creativity of the young girls has amazed netizens, the Yangtse Evening Post reported on Thursday.

    According to one of the girls' mothers, her daughter once received a poor mark in an exam, and the mother blamed her and compared her performance with another classmate. The daughter's feelings led to her creating the cartoons. The girl's father, who first posted the pictures on his Sohu Microblog on Monday, said he hopes parents pay close attention to the pictures, allow children to feel free to develop their own characteristics and try not to criticize them so often.

    "The cartoons, although an individual case, reflect a modern phenomenon and some of the problems within Chinese family education," said Yu Qinfang, an expert on family education. According to a survey of 104 children and their parents, Yu discovered that as many as 51.9 percent of primary school students hate being urged to do things by their mothers. "Not giving children enough time and hurrying them to do things seems to be a very tiny detail within family life, but it is potentially a huge problem which can easily be ignored by parents. A mother's blame may lead to negative feelings within her child's heart," Yu said. "Parents should learn to blame less and be more patient."

    At times my mom has been uncomfortable seeing some quality in me. For example, when I was 12, I went to Puerto Rico all by myself to stay with my grandmother for the summer. My mom was extremely nervous about it. She kept telling me how things were different in Puerto Rico, to always put on sunscreen, not to wander away from my grandmother, and other warnings. She helped me pack and did not leave the airport until she saw my plane take off.

    But despite her worries, she let me go on my own. As I moved into my teens, she continued to give me space to grow and learn, even when it might have been difficult for her. When I reached my senior year, I decided to move away for college. Once again I found that I differed from my peers: while many of them wanted to stay close to home, I couldn't wait to be out in the world on my own. While my mom may not have been happy at the thought of my going away, she was supportive and excited for me.

    One big thing I realized during my senior year, as my mom granted me more freedom, was that she actually believes in me and trusts me. That means a lot. Most of my life, and especially when I was little, the main person I tried to impress in my schoolwork or other things was my mother. I knew she expected nothing but the best from me. Sometimes it was hard to live up to her standards: getting a single B on my report card would make me feel bad because I knew she wanted me to have all A's.

    I know that her high standards have helped me stay focused on what's important, like education, and made me who I am. I am thankful for her support and involvement in my life. Most of all I respect her. She is the strongest woman I know and that's why I have turned out so strong and independent.