How to enroll if you are in Midhaven…

    We invite you to visit us and see the school. After an assessment you will be able to reserve a place on the next available course. We have two centres in Midhaven.

    It was a winter morning, just a couple of weeks before Christmas 2005. While most people were warming up their cars, Trevor, my husband, had to get up early to ride his bike four kilometers away from home to work. On arrival, he parked his bike outside the back door as he usually does. After putting in 10 hours of labor, he returned to find his bike gone.

    The bike, a black Kona 18 speed, was our only transport. Trevor used it to get to work, putting in 60-hour weeks to support his young family. And the bike was also used to get groceries（食品杂货）, saving us from having to walk long distances from where we live.

    I was so sad that someone would steal our bike that I wrote to the newspaper and told them our story. Shortly after that, several people in our area offered to help. One wonderful stranger even bought a bike, then called my husband to pick it up. Once again my husband had a way to get to and from his job. It really is an honor that a complete stranger would go out of their way for someone they have never met before.

    People say that a smile can be passed from one person to another, but acts of kindness from strangers are even more so. This experience has had a spreading effect in our lives because it strengthened our faith in humanity（人性）as a whole. And it has influenced（影响）us to be more mindful of ways we, too, can share with others. No matter how big or how small, an act of kindness shows that someone cares. And the results can be everlasting.

    We started in 1993 with a simple idea: that people could help each other by sharing stories about their lives. For years people had told our founders, motivational speakers Jack and Mark, inspiring stories about themselves. Jack and Mark included these stories in their talks, and their audiences repeatedly asked if they had ever been published.” That story about the boy and the puppy—is that in a book anywhere?” a parent asked Jack. “That story about the boy with the amputated(截肢)leg who became a tennis star, I need to read that to my staff,” a manager told him. Jack was asked repeatedly, “ Is that story in a book anywhere?”

    Eventually Jack and Mark decided their audiences must be on to something, so they collected the best 101 stories they'd been told in a book. They called it Chicken Soup for the Soul because they wanted it to provide comfort just like their grandmother's cooking.

    They took the book to New York, hoping to sell it to one of the big publishers but every single one turned them down. The project appeared to have stalled until they met Peter Vegso, the owner of a small health and wellness polisher in Florida named HCI. Peter read some of the stories and loved them, so he decided to give the book a chance, becoming Chicken Soup for the Soul's founding publisher.

    Never, in Jack and Mark's wildest dreams had they imagined what the book would become. Chicken Soup for the Soul turned into one of the most popular and loved books ever published, selling 11 million copies around the world. Readers asked for more stories so we published a “second helping” of Chicken Soup for the Soul and a third after that, Today, we've published more than 250 books, which have become the best-selling trade paperback book series of all time.

    Two strangers came to a village in the evening. They came to the leader of that village and asked for a place to live for the night. The leader said they could stay in the house for strangers. But they were also told about the old custom in the village- people kill the man who snores.(打鼾)

    The two strangers went to the house. They had a good supper there and then they went to sleep. They slept well. One hour passed. Two hours passed. Then one of them began to snore, “Vo, vo, vo…” The other stranger heard the snoring. He thought, “The people will hear the snoring and kill him.” The stranger wanted to save the man. He thought for a while and then began to sing. He sang very well. The people didn't hear the snoring. They listened to the song. Then they began to dance. Some of them sang the song together with the stranger and danced to the music. Men, women and even the leader sang and danced. That entire night one stranger snored, one stranger sang, and all the other people sang and danced.

    In the morning the strangers came to the leader to say goodbye and express their thanks for all he had done. The leader gave them a small bag of money and said, “I give this money to both of you. We had a good time with you. Thank you very much.”

    The strangers left the village. But along the way they began to quarrel. The one who snored wanted more money. He said, “I must have the bigger part. Why did you sing that song last night? Because I snored.” The man who sang had his reason, too. He said that without him the man who snored might have got killed.

    They quarreled and quarreled and couldn't decide on anything. Can you?

    Nearly 19 percent of teachers of color(有色人种教师) left their jobs after the 2014-2015 school year. Some left for personal reasons like taking care of their families. But 50 percent said they left because they were dissatisfied with their employment situation, such as poor working conditions, student discipline problems and large class sizes. Thus, taking immediate measures to improve it is our top priority.

    For years, researchers have proved the benefits of increasing the share of minority teachers in schools, especially as our public school system has turned to one that is made up mostly of minority students. Teachers of color, who are more likely than their white counterparts to choose to work in racially diverse( 多 种 多 样 的 ) schools, offer particular benefits to their students. Graduation rates increase among minority students when they are taught by racially similar educators, research shows. They can also serve as positive role models, and their presence reduces the chance of racial discrimination at school.

    The Shanker Institute report suggests that the rate of minority teacher hiring is not the whole problem. The problem is what happens after these teachers enter the classroom. These teachers often work in high-poverty rural schools. They are more likely to have less-desirable working conditions.

    Diversity is a key component to equality and opportunity. Where there's a diverse teaching workforce, all kids thrive. So solutions must be found at once to turn this trend around. Firstly, schools should develop mentorship programs that support minority teachers once they are in the classroom. Secondly, more money should be spent in improving working conditions in these schools. Of course, school headmasters should also be evaluated on their ability to retain teachers of color.

    With the New Year weeks approaching, you're looking forward to watching the splendid fireworks shows that will welcome 2019 worldwide. Unfortunately, visually impaired and blind people can't experience this joyful celebration. That may change soon thanks to Feeling Fireworks, a fireworks experience invented by the Disney Research Lab in Switzerland.

    To experience the show, users stand before a large flexible screen, place their hands at the base of the screen and move them around to feel the fireworks. Alternatively, their hands can be situated in the center of the screen, where the initial explosions happen, and then moved across to explore other fireworks.

    As the fireworks begin to explode, five nozzles (喷嘴) at the back of the screen start to shoot water, creating movement of water imitating the show. One specializes in the "blooming flower effect", another reproduces the "crackle" effect, and the rest take care of rockets and explosions. A computer controls the timing, and Feeling Fireworks allows users to experience fireworks similar to those in the sky.

    Paul Beardsley, who led the research team, says, "We want blind, visually impaired, and sighted people to all try Feeling Fireworks, and to have a shared and enjoyable memory of a fireworks evening." And the screen displaying the vivid images created by water makes it fun for everyone.

    The low-cost technology is still in its early stage, with only a 66 percent success rate. However, the team plans to continue improving the experience and believes the day when everyone will be able to enjoy the thrill of fireworks shows is not far. When ready, Feeling Fireworks will initially be available only at the Disney theme parks, and then hopefully, at fireworks shows worldwide.