英文課外閱讀文章
英文課外閱讀文章
小編今天給大家準(zhǔn)備了英語(yǔ)作文的優(yōu)秀范文，希望可以幫到同學(xué)們，同學(xué)們可以認(rèn)真的看一看，背一背，加深作文的印象
課外閱讀1
As parents we all want to give our kids every advantage, and in our hypercompetitive world, it's easy to get caught up in what's become an arms race of ever-more classes at ever youngerages.
為人父母的我們都希望能夠給孩子提供一切優(yōu)勢(shì)，在現(xiàn)在這個(gè)競(jìng)爭(zhēng)激烈的世界上，讓孩子們加入比拼才藝的“軍備競(jìng)賽”可謂易如反掌，可供孩子們選擇的補(bǔ)習(xí)課程越來越多，孩子們開始接受輔導(dǎo)的年齡也越來越小。
And as in any arms race, it's easy to get so caught up in escalating for the sake of escalatingthat we lose sight of our goals.
和所有的軍備競(jìng)賽如出一轍，兒童才藝大比拼也非常容易陷入為競(jìng)爭(zhēng)而競(jìng)爭(zhēng)的惡性循環(huán)之中，以至于我們會(huì)失去為何而爭(zhēng)的目標(biāo)。
At some point we should ask: is all this investment of time and money really benefiting ourchildren?
某些時(shí)候我們應(yīng)該捫心自問：我們投入的時(shí)間和金錢是否真的能使我們的孩子受益?
'Don't you feel it's important to give kids a good start?'
“你不覺得給孩子一個(gè)成功的起點(diǎn)至關(guān)重要嗎?”
My husband and I are not experts in parenting. To the contrary, we're just like every other setof parents on Earth, just trying to do the best with the resources that we have.
丈夫和我都不是育兒專家。相反，我們和世界上所有的家長(zhǎng)一樣，只是在竭盡全力地為孩子們提供我們力所能及的一切資源。
We have two daughters: Pip is now four and Lila is two-and-a-half. Recently, a friend droppedby to visit us, and promptly was welcomed into an imaginary tea party that they were having.
我們有兩個(gè)女兒：姐姐四歲，妹妹兩歲半。最近，一位朋友順路拜訪我家，由于當(dāng)時(shí)我們正在舉辦一場(chǎng)夢(mèng)幻茶會(huì)，我們便馬上邀請(qǐng)這位朋友加入了我們。
Delighted, my friend exclaimed: 'Your girls are so happy! So friendly! Not at all like otherChinese kids!'
我的朋友歡快地大聲說：“你們的女兒們看起來可真快樂!真友好!和其他中國(guó)小孩一點(diǎn)兒也不一樣!”
She asked what activities they do. Well, Pip just started a Tae Kwon Do class, I said, and tennis. Lila has yet to start any formal activities.
她詢問到孩子們都在進(jìn)行什么樣的活動(dòng)。姐姐剛開始上跆拳道課，還有網(wǎng)球課，我說。妹妹現(xiàn)在還沒有正式開展任何活動(dòng)。
My friend's delight turned to concern.
我朋友的表情瞬間由喜轉(zhuǎn)憂。
'Your girls don't play piano yet? But haven't you heard that piano lessons should start by agefour?
“你的女兒們還沒學(xué)彈鋼琴?但你沒聽過嗎，鋼琴課應(yīng)該在四歲就開始了?”
'They haven't started ballet? Chess? No academic tutoring at all?'
“她們還沒開始學(xué)芭蕾?國(guó)際象棋?從來沒上過學(xué)業(yè)輔導(dǎo)班?”
No, no, and no.
我喃喃地回答：“沒有，沒有，沒有。”
Actually we avoid packing our girls' schedules too full, I explained. When they're awake and notin school, our girls love to play together, swinging in the playground, pretending with theirdolls, cutting and gluing paper together in (very) abstract art projects.
我解釋到，實(shí)際上，我們盡量避免把孩子們的時(shí)間表安排得過滿。在她們不睡覺也不在學(xué)校的時(shí)間里，她們喜歡一起玩耍，在游戲場(chǎng)上蕩秋千，和布娃娃過家家，還喜歡把紙片剪剪粘粘成非常抽象的藝術(shù)作品。
When their favorite songs play on the radio, they love to sing and dance along, but they justdon't seem ready yet for more formal music training.
當(dāng)收音機(jī)里播出她們喜歡的歌曲時(shí)，她們總是邊唱邊跳，只不過她們看起來還沒準(zhǔn)備好接受更為正式的音樂訓(xùn)練。
My friend was quiet. Then: 'Don't you feel it's important to give kids a good start when they'reyoung?'
我的朋友陷入了沉默。隨后她說：“你不覺得在孩子們小的時(shí)候，給她們一個(gè)成功的起點(diǎn)至關(guān)重要嗎?”
Emotional development and creative play
情感發(fā)育及創(chuàng)造性游戲
It's not that we don't focus on our kids' development. But at this stage in their lives, we'refocusing on the skills that we consider most important to their future success. And happily forour girls and for us, our approach to parenting emphasizing emotional development andcreative play -- involves less pressure and more fun for everyone.
并不是我們不注重孩子們的發(fā)展。但是在她們生命中的這個(gè)階段，我們正著重培養(yǎng)我們認(rèn)為對(duì)她們今后的成功最為重要的技能。幸運(yùn)的是，對(duì)兩個(gè)女兒和我們夫妻來說，我們的育兒方式──重視情感發(fā)育及創(chuàng)造性游戲──給每個(gè)人都帶來了更多的快樂，同時(shí)施加了更少的壓力。
In his intriguing book Brain Rules for Baby, neurologist John Medina describes thephysiological changes occurring in a child's brain between the ages of zero and five. During thistime, a child's brain is developing rapidly, he says, and parenting that helps a child'semotional development actually helps his neural architecture develop toward lifelongemotional stability.
神經(jīng)學(xué)家約翰・梅迪納(John Medina)在他引人入勝的著作《讓孩子的大腦自由》(Brain Rules for Baby)中，介紹了大腦在幼兒零至五歲間發(fā)生的生理學(xué)變化。他表示，在這個(gè)期間，兒童大腦的發(fā)育非常迅速，有助于兒童情感發(fā)育的育兒方式事實(shí)上能夠幫助兒童神經(jīng)系統(tǒng)的構(gòu)建和發(fā)育，并使他們朝著終生情緒穩(wěn)定的方向成長(zhǎng)。
A child parented this way will become an adult with better self-control, fewer incidences ofdepression and anxiety disorders, greater empathy, deeper and richer friendships, and manymore friends.
用這樣的方式培養(yǎng)出的孩子日后將成為一名自控力更強(qiáng)、罹患抑郁和焦慮癥的概率更低、更富同情心、更易建立深厚友情、擁有更多朋友的成年人。
Dr. Medina's conclusions feel right to me. Having been a political leader and a CEO headhunter, by now I've met tens of thousands of people in many countries, and it seems to me that thehappiest and most successful people are not those who are best at following the rules.
梅迪納博士得出的結(jié)論引起了我的共鳴。曾經(jīng)作為政界領(lǐng)袖和高管獵頭的工作經(jīng)歷，使我有幸接觸到了數(shù)以萬(wàn)計(jì)、來自不同國(guó)家的人，在我看來，最快樂、最成功的人并不是那些最善于遵循規(guī)則的人。
The happiest and most successful people are the ones who understand the rules, but thenchoose how to live their own lives. They have self-confidence and creativity and theyunderstand keenly how to relate to others.
最快樂、最成功的人是那些明白規(guī)則，但選擇按照自己的方式生活的人。他們充滿自信、擁有創(chuàng)造力，并且深知該如何與人交往。
Pip is learning to be more assertive
大女兒正在學(xué)習(xí)如何做到自信
Our approach to parenting is embraced by the school we chose, and recently we went there todiscuss Pip's development.
我們的育兒方式得到了我們給女兒所選擇的學(xué)校的贊同，為了和老師溝通大女兒的教育問題，我們最近拜訪了學(xué)校。
The teacher started off by assuring us that Pip's schoolwork is progressing well. Every time theystart a new project, she said, the other kids crowd around to see how Pip solves the problem.
老師首先肯定地告訴我們，女兒的課堂任務(wù)完成得很好。她說，每次同學(xué)們開始做新課業(yè)時(shí)，其他孩子都會(huì)圍過去看女兒是如何解決問題的。
Then she said: 'What we're working on with Pip is her assertiveness. Especially around boys.'
她接著說：“我們正在幫助她增加自信，特別是當(dāng)有男孩子在身邊的時(shí)候。”
She gave an example:'Just yesterday, Pip was playing next to a sandbox where two boys werethrowing sand around, and some sand flew in Pip's direction. She got up, found me and askedme to tell the boys to be more careful. I asked if she had said anything to them herself. Shesaid no. I asked her if she wanted me help her address the boys, and she said yes. So we wentover, and I suggested some words she could use: 'I was sitting here and felt some of your sandhit me. Please stop throwing sand in my direction.' Pip repeated these words. The boysapologized and promised to be more careful.
她舉例子說：“就在昨天，她正在沙盒旁邊玩，兩個(gè)男孩兒揚(yáng)起沙子嬉戲起來，一些沙子因此被撒到了她身上。她站起來，找到我，并請(qǐng)我去告訴男孩們應(yīng)該小心點(diǎn)。我問她有沒有自己和他們講過這件事情。她說沒有。我又問她，是不是想讓我?guī)退湍泻兘簧妫f是的。所以我們走過去，我向她建議了一些可用的措辭，比如，我剛才坐在這兒，你們揚(yáng)起的沙子打到了我。請(qǐng)不要朝我這邊揚(yáng)沙子。她復(fù)述了這些話。男孩們道了歉，并且保證會(huì)小心點(diǎn)。”
I asked Pip if she was happy with the outcome and she said yes. Then I asked her if the nexttime something like this happened, she felt she could resolve the problem herself, and sheagreed to try.'
我問大女兒對(duì)于這樣的解決方式是否滿意，她說是的。然后我又問，下次如果有類似的事情發(fā)生，她是不是能夠自己解決問題，她答應(yīng)試一試。
Self-confidence, creativity and the ability to relate to others.
自信、創(chuàng)造力和人際交往能力
When the teacher shared this example, I felt especially moved, because as I've written before inthis column, I've always had trouble saying no to other people. Once I got stuck in adestructive boyfriend relationship precisely because as an adult I didn't know how to protectmyself in the way that my four-year-old now is learning to do.
當(dāng)老師和我分享發(fā)生在女兒身上的事情時(shí)，我被深深地觸動(dòng)了，因?yàn)檎缥乙郧霸谶@個(gè)專欄中所寫的那樣，其實(shí)我一直都不善于對(duì)別人說“不”。我還曾經(jīng)陷入一段極具破壞性的感情，原因就是作為一個(gè)成年人，我并不知道該如何保護(hù)自己，而我四歲的女兒現(xiàn)在正在學(xué)習(xí)此道。
Maybe if we get this parenting thing right, our kids will struggle less with the things I'vestruggled with, and perhaps then their lives will be better.
如果我們能做到用正確的方式撫育子女，我們的孩子將不會(huì)像我當(dāng)初那樣備受煎熬，或許她們的生活將更美好。
In our hypercompetitive, hurry-up world, we always assume that fast beats slow, but what dowe risk if we pressure our kids to do too much too soon?
生活在這個(gè)競(jìng)爭(zhēng)激烈、快節(jié)奏的世界上，我們一向都認(rèn)為快勝過慢，但是如果我們過早地給孩子們施加過多的壓力，是否在拔苗助長(zhǎng)?
Self-confidence, creativity, the ability to relate to others: these are the skills and braindevelopment processes that we're trying to nurture in our kids and that may remainundeveloped if formal learning monopolizes their time and attention.
自信、創(chuàng)造力和人際交往能力，這些都是我們千方百計(jì)想要孩子們學(xué)到的技能，同時(shí)也是大腦不斷發(fā)育的過程。如果正規(guī)學(xué)習(xí)占據(jù)了孩子們的時(shí)間和精力，那么我們的追求可能將落空。
Are my husband and I parenting our kids well? At this point, it's impossible to know. Theycertainly seem to be enjoying a more fun childhood than some of their peers.
丈夫和我在子女教育上成功嗎?現(xiàn)在，我們還一無所知。不過我們確定的是，和很多同齡人相比，她們的童年看起來更快樂。
But is our way of parenting the right way to help them reach their potential as happy andsuccessful future young women? We hope and believe the answer is yes. But only time will tellfor sure.
我們的育兒方式是激發(fā)她們潛能，并幫助她們成為未來快樂成功的年輕女性的正確方式嗎?我們希望并相信：答案是肯定的。但是只有時(shí)間能真正揭開謎底。
課外閱讀2
After a hard day studying international politics at Peking University, Valerie Ang Yi Lin kicksback in a cafe.
在北京大學(xué)上了一整天的國(guó)際政治課之后，瓦萊麗·昂依林找了一個(gè)咖啡館坐下來休息。
Ang Yi Lin, 23, a Singaporean of Chinese descent, attended a school for Singaporean Chinesefrom an early age, which explains her fluent Mandarin. Despite this, she admits hardly knowinganything about China before coming to Peking University. But as China’s economy booms, the “motherland” is catching the attention of ethnic Chinese such as Ang, who were raisedelsewhere.
23歲的昂依林是一位華裔新加坡人，自幼就讀于中文學(xué)校 ，因此說一口流利的普通話。盡管如此，她仍然承認(rèn)自己在來北大之前，對(duì)中國(guó)知之甚少。但隨著中國(guó)經(jīng)濟(jì)的發(fā)展，“祖國(guó)”正吸引著他們這些在外長(zhǎng)大的華裔人士的目光。
In the past, the West was the most popular destination for Singaporeans studying abroad. However, in 2005, when Ang was in her third year at junior high school, a “Bicultural StudiesProgram” was added to the Singapore curriculum, teaching Chinese culture, history, politicsand economics. The Singapore government also began handing out scholarships to encourageyoung people to study in China. With China developing at a breakneck pace, the aim was toraise a generation of Chinese-literate citizens who could contribute to Singapore’s future. Thesame year saw 20 Singaporean Chinese heading off to study in Beijing. By 2006, this numberhad increased fivefold.
在過去，西方國(guó)家是新加坡人海外留學(xué)的首選目標(biāo)。但2005年，當(dāng)昂依林讀初三時(shí)，新加坡課程中增加了“雙元文化項(xiàng)目”，教授中國(guó)文化、歷史、政治和經(jīng)濟(jì)。新加坡政府還通過將獎(jiǎng)學(xué)金項(xiàng)目來鼓勵(lì)年輕人去中國(guó)留學(xué)。隨著中國(guó)的迅猛發(fā)展，新加坡政府的目的是培養(yǎng)一代熟悉中國(guó)的國(guó)民，為新加坡的未來做貢獻(xiàn)。同年，有20名華裔新加坡人來北京留學(xué)。截至2006年，這一數(shù)字增加了五倍。
Singaporeans receive a Western–style education, so Ang says people of her generation tend tohave the same outlook as young people in the West.
新加坡人接受的是西式教育，因此昂依林說她們這一代人與西方的年輕人擁有同樣的觀念。
Ang used to think Chinese people often lacked manners.
她還一度認(rèn)為中國(guó)人通常不講禮貌。
“I couldn’t understand why they didn’t queue properly and tried to push others out of theway,” she says.
她說：“我不明白為什么她們不愛排隊(duì)，還試著把別人推出隊(duì)伍。”
After studying in Beijing for four years, though, her outlook has changed slightly. “Once youlive in China you understand; with so many people here, you wouldn’t get anywhere if you justqueued up politely. I realized that if you want to survive in China, you just have to fight yourway through.”
然而，在北京學(xué)習(xí)了四年，她的世界觀發(fā)生了細(xì)微的變化。“一旦你生活在中國(guó)，你就會(huì)明白。中國(guó)人實(shí)在太多了，如果你僅僅是有序地排隊(duì)，你永遠(yuǎn)也輪不到。我開始意識(shí)到，如果想要生活在中國(guó)，你就必須突出重圍。”
Ang says she is not a fan of everything modern-day China has to offer. “To take one example, China clearly has a problem with air pollution. But Singapore says it needs workers who havelived in China, so if I keep heading down this path, it will position me well for the future. I willhave an advantage over others. That’s the main thing for me.” She plans to stay in China for awhile after graduating.
昂說她并不盲目追求現(xiàn)代中國(guó)提供的任何東西。“舉例說明，中國(guó)存在明顯的空氣污染問題。但新加坡政府說需要曾在中國(guó)生活過的員工，所以如果我一直朝著這個(gè)方向努力，未來職業(yè)發(fā)展就很看好。我會(huì)比別人有優(yōu)勢(shì)。對(duì)我來說，這是主要的事情。”她計(jì)劃畢業(yè)后在中國(guó)待上一段時(shí)間。
The pull of China’s growing economy can also be felt in Indonesia, where ethnic Chinese are inthe minority.
印尼也感受到了中國(guó)強(qiáng)勁的發(fā)展勢(shì)頭，印尼華裔僅占人口的少數(shù)。
“I am so happy China is doing well. It makes me feel proud,” says Herman Kasem, 39, a workerat the Indonesian branch of a major Chinese steel company.
今年39歲的赫爾曼·卡薩姆是中國(guó)一家大型鋼鐵廠印度尼西亞分廠的工人，他說：“看到中國(guó)越走越好，我十分高興，也倍加自豪。”
A fourth-generation immigrant, Herman lived in Jakarta up until university and could speak noChinese at all. At age 25, he accompanied a sick relative who was going to China to receivelong-term treatment at a Beijing hospital. While there, he studied Chinese. On his return toIndonesia two years later, he got a job at a lumber company. When one of his Chinese clientsrealized Herman could speak Chinese, he was offered a job.
赫爾曼是第四代的移民，從出生到上大學(xué)一直居住在雅加達(dá)，他不會(huì)講任何漢語(yǔ)。25歲那年，他陪同一位生病的親戚準(zhǔn)備前往中國(guó)北京的一家醫(yī)院接受長(zhǎng)期治療。就是在那，他學(xué)習(xí)了漢語(yǔ)。兩年后，他回到印度尼西亞，在一家木材廠找到了工作。赫爾曼的一個(gè)中國(guó)客戶知道他會(huì)講中文，因?yàn)檫@個(gè)原因，他得到了這份工作。
Anti-Chinese demonstrations were common in Indonesia under the regime of former PresidentSuharto, who held office for more than 30 years. For a long time, it was forbidden to teachChinese in schools. Shops owned by ethnic Chinese were also targeted in riots in the late 1990s. Herman recalls being bullied as a child because of his Chinese ancestry. In recent times, though, Indonesia’s rulers have worked hard to improve relations with China.
在印度尼西亞前總統(tǒng)蘇哈托執(zhí)政的30多年間，印尼的反華游行十分普遍。在相當(dāng)長(zhǎng)的一段時(shí)間里，學(xué)校是禁止教習(xí)漢語(yǔ)的。在20世紀(jì)90年代后期，華裔商人開的店也經(jīng)常遭到攻擊。赫爾曼回想起來，在他孩童時(shí)代，還曾因?yàn)樽约旱闹袊?guó)血統(tǒng)被別人欺凌。然而近幾年，印度尼西亞的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)者都在竭力改善同中方的關(guān)系。
“Lots of cash is flowing into Indonesia from China and there are now more chances forIndonesian Chinese like me. People won’t look down on me anymore,” he says.
赫爾曼說道：“當(dāng)前，大量現(xiàn)金正從中國(guó)流入印度尼西亞，這就給像我這樣的華裔印度尼西亞人提供了更多的機(jī)會(huì)。人們不會(huì)再輕視我了。”
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