According to a new American study, having dinner with children may help to reduce (减少) the number of problems that develop in parent—child communication. The1was done among about 5, 000 middle school students in Chicago public schools.

    The students were studied at the beginning and the end of the sixth grade and again at the end of the seventh and the eighth grade. They were asked2they ate dinner with their parents. They were 3 asked how often their parents had a conversation(谈话)with them that lasted more than 104, praised(表扬) them when they did well, asked them where they were going and asked how they were doing in school. The study5the more parent—child communication, the6problems between them.

    Family meals are a good opportunity to7in touch with children, said Jayne Fulkerson, a member of the study team. "You can get to know8going on in their life better."

    However, Fulkerson also suggested that parents9suitable(合适的) topics(话题). Topics10grades and homework are not good choice.

There are some snack shops inside schools in China. These shops sell snacks1a lot of salt and sugar. Many young students like 2 snacks. Because they think snacks taste good. They often go there3 some after class. But eating 4 snacks is not good for 5 health. 6 the Chinese government( 政 府 ) said there would be 7 snack shops in the schools from April 1st.

There is also a new 8 on students' food safety. The government is asking schools to keep an eye on students' 9. It asks teachers to 10 with students at school together at the lunch time.

    Thirteen-year-old Cindy had been bullied (欺凌) at school for about two years. Her bag, keys and mobile phone had been stolen. She had also been knocked off her bicycle, kicked and punched (以拳重击).

    Cindy tried to fight back, but it always seemed to be her, not the bullies, who got into trouble. She became so afraid of going to school that she started to be absent from her classes.

    Finally, her headmaster set up a special plan, asking students to look after one another. He gave Cindy the courage to play the guitar in a school concert, which gave Cindy new confidence and helped her receive respect from the other students. Gradually, the bullying began to stop.

    Cindy's story is not uncommon, but help is out there. All schools in the UK now have to follow strict bullying policies (政策). There are many charities and organizations giving support to young people, such as Bullying UK and Childline. So remember one very important piece of advice: If you are being bullied, don't put up with it—tell someone.

Every person has his birthday. People in different countries spend their birthdays in different ways. Here are four people from different countries. They are talking about how they usually spend their birthdays in their countries.

Jack comes from Spain. "My twenty-first birthday is on a Saturday , " he says. " I'm going out with my friends. To wish me a happy birthday, they will pull on my ear twenty-one times, once for each year. It's an old habit. Some people pull on the ear just once, but my friends are very strict! "

Mr. Sato is from Japan. He's going to be sixty tomorrow." In my country, people call the sixtieth birthday Kanreki, " he says. " It's the start of a new life. The color red is for a new life, so they always have something red for the sixtieth birthday. "

Phillip, from France, smiles and says, "I'm going to be thirty next week, so I want to ask three very good friends out to have dinner. In France, when you have birthday, you often ask people out with you. In some countries, I know it's opposite- people usually take you out. "

Li Xiao is a Chinese girl from Beijing. She is happy and tells us, " Tomorrow is my sixteenth birthday. It's a special day. So we're going to have a family party. l can get some money in lucky envelopes(信封)from my family. My mother will cook noodles that are for a long life. "

Do you like taking a trip? Now many students like riding bikes to take a trip. But it may be dangerous. For your own safety (安全), do the following things. 

Wear a bike helmet because it can protect (保护) your head. Look for a helmet that is right for you. The best helmet can't protect you if it isn't right for you. 

Wear the right clothes. They can make you feel better. They can also protect you. Bright-colored clothes like white help people see you clearly--even in the nighttime. Don't wear dark-colored clothes like black or brown when you are riding a bike. 

Follow the rules on the road. Always ride on the right side of the road. Please first look behind you before you turn left or turn right. And don't ride too closely (接近) to the cars--the cars may stop and the door may open suddenly! Also, don't just listen to music when you are riding a bike. If you listen to music, you may not know there is a car behind you. 

If you follow these tips, you'll be safe riding on the road. 

The Internet has changed the world, people are able to get and share information in seconds. Nowadays, people begin to wonder: Is the Internet good or bad? "It's impossible to answer that question because the Internet means so many things," says psychologist （心理学家） Patricia Greenfield.

Some are truly wonderful. In many ways it makes life easier and simpler. It helps us get things done more quickly. It opens up the world to us. And if a friend lives far away, the Internet makes it easy to stay in touch.

However, the issue （话题）    isn't black and white. Some can become real problems if we don't take care. Spending too much time online is bad to people's health. It may even cause them to be less social with family and friends. Aside from that, some people attack the web or use the Internet to steal others' personal information, even banking information. Most of the young students think the Internet is simply an icon （图标） on the screen（屏幕）. Kids won't realize that the Internet is a network of millions of computers until about 10 years old.

The Internet can be a useful tool, but don't let it take up all of your time. Use the Internet properly and carefully and it can make your life more colourful.