How to Study Better

    If you want to study better, you should pay attention to learning methods, study skills and study habits. Developing them can help you learn better.

    Keep your study area tidy and organized. Papers, books, magazines, or pictures all over your work area may distract you from the work you have to do. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} If there are too many icons on your desktop, it is difficult for you to find what you need immediately.

    Maintain a quiet work area for yourself. Make sure your work area is free of distractions. There are too many distractions at home, such as a phone, music, TV, friends, or family members. Proper study space can usually be found in the public library, school library, or your bedroom. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} While learning, you need write, calculate and look up something. So it is very important and necessary to have all the necessary materials and tools that you need with you. In this way, you needn't be busy borrowing them.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#} In addition to reading your textbook, it is helpful to read or view materials from other sources, such as newspapers, magazines, the Internet, and television programs. You can understand what you will learn in class better.

    Never forget to take notes carefully in class. Taking notes carefully can help to grasp the key parts. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} We can say that it is really a successful way to study.

    Steel is a hard metal that people use to make many different products. Car bodies, bridges, building frames, and containers are just a few of the things made from steel. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} But steel is better than iron in many ways. Steel is stronger but lighter than iron. Steel also lasts longer than iron.

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#}Then they add carbon to the liquid iron. They may also add other materials to make different types of steel. For example, steel with added chromium（铬）is called stainless steel. It will not rust（生锈）or stain. Finally, workers use machines to cool the liquid steel into bars or long sheets.{#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    People made the first steel as early as 1400 BC. Ancient people heated iron inside a pile of burning charcoal（木炭）. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}. The result was not the same as modern steel, but it was stronger than regular iron.

    In the 1800s people began to use huge ovens to make large amounts of steel. In the late 1800s builders used steel to make some of the first skyscrapers. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}. In the 1900s new processes made steel-making easier. Today steel remains one of the most popular building materials in the world.

A. This added carbon to the iron.

B. Steel is quite different from iron.

C. The hardened steel may then be made into products.

D. Steel is basically iron mixed with a little carbon.

E. Then they will be cooled and put on the market.

F. To make steel, workers hear iron until it melts.

G. They also used steel to make large, modern bridges.

How to Have a Successful Teenage Life

    Everyone dreams of success in their life, don't they? Even as a teenager, you can achieve success in your life; it really isn't that hard. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    Do well in school.

    No matter how boring it is now, education will help you be a productive member in society. Try your best for excellence in school; listen to the teachers, do your homework, study, and get good grades. Doing so will help you get into a better university, which will enable you to have a bright future. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}

    Do good in your community(社区).

    Volunteering can not only improve your community's status, but it could make you happier. Studies show that people who volunteer are less likely to develop depression (抑郁)than people who don't. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} For example, if you love animals, volunteer at an animal shelter. If you love helping the environment, plant trees or pick up litter. When you help others, it will make you feel better about yourself.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    Remember, they're there to help you be the best that you can be. Respect them and value their opinions, even if they annoy you sometimes. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} You don't get to choose your teachers or your family, but you still have to put up with them. Learn how to deal with people now, because when you're an adult, you don't get to choose your boss or your co-workers, so learn how to respect them now.

    These points can help you enjoy success in your teenage life.

A. Live life to the fullest.

B. School sets you up on the right track!

C. Be nice to your parents and teachers.

D. Find chances to do volunteer work that interests you.

E. It will help you pass time and develop your personality.

F. Here are some important points that you may find helpful.

G. Keep it in mind that they do the things they do because they care about you.

    Kids and Food: Advice for Parents

    It is important for parents to know how to help their kids eat healthy. Here are a few easy ways:

    Parents control the supply lines. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Though kids may keep asking for less nutritious foods, parents should decide which foods are regularly provided in the house. Kids won't go hungry. They'll eat what's available in the fridge at home.

    Say goodbye to “clean-plate club”. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} Lots of parents grew up under the clean-plate rule, but that way doesn't help kids listen to their own bodies when they are full. When kids feel full, they're likely to overeat.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} Food preferences(喜好) are developed early in life, so try to offer different kinds of food. Likes and dislikes begin forming even when kids are babies. Parents may need to serve a new food on several different occasions(时机) for a child to accept it.

    Food is not love. Find better ways to say “I love you.” When foods are used to reward kids and show love, they may start to turn to food when feeling worried or unhappy. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    Kids do as you do. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} When trying to teach good eating habits, try to set the best example.

    Choose nutritious food, eat at the table, and don't forget breakfast.

A. Start them young.

B. Rewrite the kids' menu.

C. Be a role model and eat healthy yourself.

D. Offer praise and attention instead of food treats.

E. Let kids stop eating when they feel they've had enough.

F. You decide which foods to buy and when to serve them.

G. Let kids choose what to eat and how much of it they want.

    Everyone is aware that taking good care of our bodies can prevent many medical problems from occurring later. However, we often have less awareness of preventative actions we should take to help with mental health problems. While our mental health may be fine right now, many of us will struggle at some point. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} It's impossible to get through life without challenges, but our mental health prevention habits can help us get through difficult times. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}

    Keep active. The more active you physically, mentally and socially are, the higher the level of your mental wellness is likely to be. So go for walks and learn something new. There are many other ways to be active. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    Be connected. Regular involvement in social activities with supportive friends and family improves your ability to handle disappointments, and everything else life throws at you. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} But you can be involved in any manner; even volunteering for an organization can help you be more social.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#} The nature of these activities varies widely from person to person. The key is to identify what gives your life meaning. Volunteering, coaching, teaching, etc. all can contribute to increasing your sense of confidence and satisfaction with life. Many activities can address more than one. The key is to make a plan and stick with it. If you are already struggling, begin to practice these ways to help your recovery.

A. Here are three practical steps.

B. However, good mental health is important.

C. Stresses, disappointments and disasters happen.

D. Overcome life's challenges before they happen.

E. Be committed to activities that give life meaning.

F. The key is to find what keeps you motivated and interested.

G. This can be difficult when you move to a new town or as you get older.

    Why is setting goals important? {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Instead of just letting life happen to you, goals allow you to make your life happen.

    Successful people imagine how their life should be and set lots of goals. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} It's like having a map to show you where you want to go. Think of it this way. There are two drivers. One has a destination in mind which can be found on a map. She can drive straight there surely without any wasted time of wrong turns. The other driver has no goal, or destination or map. She starts off at the same time from the same place as the first driver, but she drives aimlessly around, never getting anywhere, just using up gas. Which driver do you want to be?

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} They decide what they want in life and then get there by making plans and setting goals. Unsuccessful people usually just let life happen by accident. Goals aren't difficult to set and they aren't difficult to reach. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} You are the one who must decide what to achieve and in what direction to aim your life.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#}Written goals can be reviewed regularly, and have more power. Like a contract with yourself, they are harder to neglect or forget. Also when you write your goals in a particular way, you are able to make yourself continuously aware of situations that will bring you nearer to your goal.

A. Winners in life set goals and follow them through.  

B. Research tells us that when we write a goal down we are more likely to achieve it.

C. It's up to you to find out what your goals really are.

D. It's difficult for a driver to reach his destination without a map.

E. By setting goals you are taking control of your life.

F. Because goals can help you do, be, and experience everything you want in life.

G. Because everybody should have a goal in his mind.