Empathy（同情），the Key to Being Kind

In science class，your teacher tells everyone to find a partner for a project. Out of the corner of your eye，you notice one girl sitting alone and not making eye contact with anyone. You think about asking her to be your partner，but you're afraid people will think you're uncool. You don't reach out. 【小题1】

Empathy is being able to understand and actually feel what someone else is feeling. For some people, this comes naturally; for others, it takes a bit more work. 【小题2】When you practice being empathetic, it gets easier to make kindness a part of your everyday life. If you can understand why people are feeling down, you'll want to help them. Here are some ideas that can help you.

【小题3】Someone not being able to find a group in class might not seem like a big deal--but part of being kind is noticing when someone seems sad, hurt or uncomfortable. After all, you have to notice how people feel in order to feel empathy and want to help them!

When you're trying to make kindness second nature, really getting other people's feelings is important. Whenever you find someone might be feeling lonely or sad, put yourself in his shoes. 【小题4】 Didn't you wish someone would reach out to you? If someone had offered you a few words of comfort, wouldn't it have made you feel so much happier?

So, when you find people around you who are feeling down next time, do not hesitate to put yourself in their shoes and reach out to them with a kind gesture. 【小题5】 There is always a time when you expect others to relate to you and feel what you feel.

   As the pace of life continues to increase, we are fast losing the art of relaxation. _______ you are in the habit of rushing through life, being on the go（忙碌）from morning till night, it is hard to _______. But relaxation is _______ for a healthy mind and body.

Stress is a（n）_______ part of everyday life and there is no way to _______ it. In fact, it is not the bad thing that it is often supposed to be. A _______ amount of stress is important to provide motivation and give _______ to life. It is only when stress gets out of control that it can lead to poor performance and _______ health.

The amount of stress a person can bear _______ very much on the individual. Some people are not afraid of stress, and such a ________ is obviously chief material for managerial responsibilities. Others lose heart at the ________ of unusual difficulties. When exposed to stress, in whatever form, we ________ both chemically and physically. In fact we make a choice between ________ and fight. And in more ancient days the choices made the ________ between life and death. The crises we meet today are ________ to be so extreme, but however little the stress, it requires the same response. It is when such a reaction ________ long, through continued exposure to stress, that health becomes ________. Such serious conditions as high blood pressure and heart disease have ________ links with stress. Since we cannot ________ stress from our lives we need to find ways to ________ it.

So what do you think of stress? What is your way to deal with it?

I’m sorry to trouble you, but _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Thank you!

Yours,

Li Ming

How teens can stay fit

Any type of regular physical activity can improve your fitness and your health.【小题1】

Exercise should be a regular part of your day, like brushing your teeth, eating and sleeping. It can be in a gym class, joining a sports team, or working out on your own. Keep the following tips in mind:

【小题2】A good attitude is important. Find an activity that you think is fun. You are more likely to stick with it if you choose something you like. A lot of people find it's more fun to exercise with someone else,so seek a friend or family member to be active with you.

Take it one step at a time.【小题3】For example, walk or ride your bike to school. Get on or off the bus several blocks away and walk the rest of the way. Use the stairs instead of taking the elevator.

Get your heart pumping. Whatever you choose ,make sure it includes aerobic （有氧的) activities that make you breathe harder and increase your heart rate. This is the best type of exercise because it increases your fitness level and makes your heart work better.【小题4】Examples of aerobic activities are basketball, running, or swimming.

Don't forget to warm up. Do  some  easy exercise or stretch （伸展) before you do any physical activity.【小题5】It is also important to stretch out after you exercise to cool down your muscles.

Why you shouldn't punish your kids for lying

Getting your children to stop lying is challenging. There are many influences（TV，movies and video games）in which lies are common. Children see parents lie to others，if only to be polite. Most parents add to that with tales about the lives and activities of Santa Claus or the tooth fairy. 【小题1】

The most common reactions to children who lie are explaining why it is wrong and punishments. 【小题2】 Here are three better tools supported by research to use instead.

Give praise: You could ask your child to say something that happened at school that is true. When your child obeys, praise him enthusiastically. Be specific. 【小题3】 and give your child a hug or a high five. Aim for one or two interactions（互动）like this a day. If you happen to "catch" your child in a lie，say something like，“That is not true and could get you in trouble outside of the home.”

Act as a model: Explicitly（明确地）tell the truth. This could be about something that happened when you were a child or something that happened during the day. It need not be dramatic. Another option is to play a game at dinner. Each person tells one thing that was true that day. Again，give a little praise to the child who normally lies if she plays along.

Decrease punishments and moralizing（说教）：They are unlikely to change behavior or develop the conduct you want. 【小题4】 Rather，use very mild punishments（light scolding，short loss of privileges，a brief timeout）. More severe punishments（shouting，taking away something for a week，hitting）are not more effective in actually changing the frequency of lying.

【小题5】 Usually they can be dropped by then. It is unlikely that lying will be completely removed，but with the right encouragement，it can be dramatically lessened.