Although many Chinese students say their knowledge of English grammar is good, most would admit that their spoken English is poor. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} However, their spoken English does not have to remain poor. I would suggest that there may be some reasons for their problems with spoken English.

    First, {#blank#}2{#/blank#} Obviously the better answer is to expand their vocabulary. However, you can speak, with a limited vocabulary if your attitude is positive. Others will follow you as long as you use the words that you know.

    Second, {#blank#}3{#/blank#}. Sometimes they make mistakes when they are speaking because they are shy and nervous. Yet students should remember that their goal should be FLUENCY NOT ACCURACY. You want to get your message across, to talk to someone in English, as quickly and as well as you can, even though sometimes you may use a wrong word or tense, but it doesn't matter because the person you are speaking to will understand you and make allowance for any mistakes he hears.

    Third, {#blank#}4{#/blank#}.You have one mouth but two ears! All that hearing is necessary for you to start speaking.

    Fourth, {#blank#}5{#/blank#}. Instead of actively seeking out opportunities to improve their spoken English, they passively wait for speaking opportunities to come to them and wonder why their spoken English always remains poor. If you have this proactive outlook，then you will see English opportunities wherever you go.

A. not enough attention is paid to listening.

B. they fail to find suitable words to express themselves because of limited vocabulary.

C. most Chinese students are not active language learners.

D. They are so stupid that they cannot finish their necessary homework in time.

E. Whenever I speak to Chinese students they always say, “My spoken English is poor.”

F. it is no use crying over spilt milk.

G. they are afraid of making mistake.

    Riding School:

    You can start horse—riding at any age. Choose private or group lessons any weekday between 9:00 a.m. and 8:30 p.m.(3:30 p.m. on Saturdays). There are 10 kilometers of tracks and paths for leisurely rides across farmland and open country. You will need a riding hat.

    Opening Hours: Monday through Friday: 9:00 a.m.—8:30 p.m.

    Phone: (412)396—6754  Fax:（412）396—6752

    Sailing Club:

    Our Young Sailor's Course leads to the Stage 1 Sailing qualification. You'll learn how to sail safely and the course also covers sailing theory and first aid. Have fun with other course member, afterwards in the clubroom. There are 10 weekly two-hour lessons(Tuesdays 6:00 p.m.—8:00 p.m.).

    Opening Hours: Tuesdays: 6:00 p. m.—8:00 p.m.

    Phone: (412)396—6644 Fax: (412)396—6644

    Diving Centre:

    Our experienced instructors offer one-month courses in deep-sea diving for beginners. There are two evening lessons a week, in which you learn to breathe underwater and use the equipment safely. You only need swimming suits and a towel. Reduced rates for couples.

    Opening Hours: Monday and Friday: 6:30 p.m.—8:30 p m.

    Last year, around Labor Day, I read a “Happy Ad” in our local newspaper. There was a lady in a local nursing home for the aged, who was celebrating her 90th birthday and her family wanted everyone to know about it. It said that if you wanted to drop her a line, here was her address. So I did. I found a birthday card and dropped her a short note, wishing her a happy birthday.

    A week or so later, someone knocked at my front door. I opened the door and found a middle-aged man standing on my doorstep. He introduced himself as the son of this woman to whom I had sent the card. He explained that he just wanted to drop by in person and thank me for sending such a nice card to his mom. Apparently, like many older folks, she did not receive much mail and was quite excited to receive mine. I just didn't know what to say. I told him it was my pleasure and that I hoped his mom had enjoyed her birthday.

    That year, I did not send out any Christmas cards, except to this lovely old lady in the nursing home. I just told her that I was thinking about her and hoped that she had a nice holiday. I sent her a holiday card and also a couple of notes in between. I just thought she might like to have someone write to her, to get some mails.

    She passed away a couple of months ago. I never met this lady, but I did keep her and her family in my thoughts. I dropped them a line of sympathy. I hope that my few little notes were enough to brighten a couple of her days here on earth.

    Have you ever noticed how Americans fill up their entire glass with ice and then pour their beverage (饮品) in, but Europeans take their drinks at room temperature? In the U. S. , we've created fridges that give you cold ice at the press of a button, but in Britain they typically serve their tap water warm.

    This tradition—if that's what you want to call it—dates back to the 19th century. During that time, it was already commonplace for most American homes to have an ice box. Ice would be harvested in northern America or Canada and shipped across the Atlantic and sold at a high price in British department stores. Can you imagine heading to Macy's to treat yourself to a block of ice?

    Putting ice in your drink started to become somewhat of a fashion(时尚)trend for the wealthy in Britain. Some would put a few cubes in their champagne and sip on their chilled drinks at high-class parties. But, like with any fashion trend, it eventually faded, mainly because the ice was just too expensive. And even once ice boxes began appearing in homes in Britain as well, Brits never took a liking to ice in their drinks.

    So, next time you travel overseas, don't feel offended (被冒犯) when your server gives you an eye roll when you ask for ice water.

    Feeding a crowd of hundreds doesn't make Kenny Seals-Nutt nervous.

    In fact, he loves being in the kitchen.

    By the time Kenny, 16, reached his third year of high school in Charlotte, US, he had become vice president of his school's cooking club.

    Kenny said he developed his love of cooking by watching his grandmother, who owned a business.

    And at the age of 5, he cooked his first dish. Taking it to school for lunch, he warmed it up in the school's microwave, while the other kids ate their sandwiches.

    "I love to eat, and it started to become more fun to cook than to have food prepared for me," he said.

    Cooking came easy to Kenny, and he enjoyed adding new ingredients (原料) into common dishes. "It started with a passion (热情) and I wanted to know more," he said.

    Last summer, Kenny put his skills to the test by working with his grandmother to cater his uncle's wedding. Kenny added new changes to the traditional (传统的) dishes that his grandma had prepared.

    Chef Frederick Mookie Hicks, owner of a catering business, said Kenny's success comes from his ability (能力) to multitask (多任务) in the kitchen.

    "He's so enthusiastic (热情的) about cooking that he doesn't let anything stop him," Hicks said.

    Dearborn Heights, Michigan—2.7 million children under 18 have a parent in prison, and women put in local prisons are the fastest growing population. Shawna Reynolds has seen some of those women up close while working in the corrections system(劳教所) for 17 years, and she was encouraged to try something different.

    After seven years of education and collecting as much money as she could, Shawna created About Face Course Correction—a one-year rehabilitation program(康复项目) that offers a more personal way to help non-violent women prisoners. The program includes classes for women to finish their education, find a job and So on. "You can't expect people who have been in prison to stay in prison," Shawna says. "YOU want them to be helpful people but if you are not going to help them, it's not going to happen."

    The women live free for a year in a house in Dearborn Heights, Michigan. Women like 20-year-old Jennifer Douglas, who dropped out of school, took drugs(吸毒), and has spent years in and out of prison. She says, "I was doing things I would never have thought I would do in my whole life. Because of About Face, Jennifer's life is changing. " "Everyone is starting to trust me again and proud of me and what I'm doing," she says. "It's helped me a lot. It has kept me on the right track."

    There are many other women like Jennifer. Every woman's story is different, but each woman is important. And Shawna is determined to break the cycle and help them turn their lives around. She is using her own money and donations to pay for the house and this program. If you would like to donate, please visit their Go Fund Me account here.