On Monday, I stopped my car in front of my daughter Juliet's middle school. She jumped in the front seat, feeling down. She asked me to help her study for her science test.

    "Dad I need to memorize a unit about the Reproductive Cycle of Plants. And I can hardly make it."

    "You know memorizing seems like the best way to study, but in fact you can do better in tests if you work on trying to understand the material."

    Juliet was open to my advice. It was Monday afternoon and we had two nights to study before the test on Wednesday. I suggested a plan. "Tomorrow night, you are going to teach the material to me. Tonight, read the unit. Prepare to teach."

    Asking her to teach me was an unusual idea but I was determined to do it. Studies show teaching somebody else is a very useful way to lean, Even if you don't do the teaching, the act of preparing to teach leads to more learning than just trying your best to memorize the material.

    On Tuesday afternoon, Juliet sat down with her Science book facing me said, "Okay Dad, let's study." I wanted her to teach me. But false starts happened. I couldn't be too hard on her. So instead we starred with me asking her some simple questions. She knew some but not other. When she didn't know the answers. I encouraged her to check the book.

    She started checking things that didn't make sense. And she was actively seeking to test her understanding. I was happy to see it. She wasn't memorizing, she was trying to make sense of things, which was exactly what I had hoped she would do.

    One Monday morning, I was waiting at the bus stop in Harvard Square. It was very cold, about -8℃. I just missed the bus, so I had to stand there on such a cold day, waiting for the next bus to go to the hospital. My mind was full of anxiety. "Why didn't I leave two minutes earlier?" "What would go wrong with my husband's operation (手术)?" "Will I get to him before it starts?"

    Among the others at the bus stop was a woman who was about 50 years old. She wore an old hat, an old pair of boots and a dark coat, but she had no gloves (手套). Another woman who looked younger came to the older woman and said, "Your hands must be very cold. You will get frostbite (生冻疮) in this weather if you don't wear gloves." With these words, she dropped her heavy bag to the ground. After a while, she took out a pair of purple gloves from her bag, took the older woman's hands and gently placed a glove on each hand. "Thank you. You're so kind." The old woman said again and again.

    I was deeply moved (感动) by this act of kindness. A moment ago, I was feeling sorry for myself, but now I felt hopeful and optimistic (乐观). I thought in this world there were still many people in trouble who were in great need of our help.

    A few days later, I went to buy 5 pairs of bright purple gloves in a shop and put them in my bag, just in case (以防) I might run into someone in need on a cold day.

    Hi, I'm Dino, the family dog. I help keep people safe, especially on the roads. Take a look at my diary to see what I did last week.

    Sunday

    Some children are really too young to take care of themselves. Our neighbor's boy ran in front of a car to get his ball. The car almost hit him. I saved him though. Remember, always look and listen.

    Tuesday

    People can get very angry when driving, usually for silly reasons. One driver started shouting at Mum today when she stopped to let some children cross the road. I soon made the driver stop.

    Wednesday

    One thing makes me really mad. Grrrrrr. People walk on a dangerous road when they can walk on the safe pavement (人行道). I saw two girls doing that today but I soon made them change their minds.

    Saturday

    Today Mum took me for a walk. One car was parked in a very dangerous place. It was right on the corner of the street. Don't worry though. I left him a message.

    My father is tall and has short gray hair. He wears glasses with heavy black frames(框架). Today I find a picture of him in 1968. What a surprise! In the picture, he's 15 years old. He's short and he has glasses with small round frames. He has long black hair and it's really straight. He's wearing blue jeans and a T shirt with the word "Love". I'm 15 years old now. I'm of medium height and I have short hair. My hair isn't black, but it's brown. My dad thinks it's strange, but my friends think it's great. I wear glasses, but my glasses have square(方的) red frames. They are so cool. I never wear blue jeans. I like big and baggy pants and long T shirts. Most of my T shirts have pictures of my favorite actors or singers on them.