Before you can commit to achieving a goal, you have to define what exactly your goal is. This is much harder than it may sound. It can take a lot of thought and consideration to find out what you want.【小题1】

Try free writing to come up with ideas. If you’re having trouble coming up with abroad idea for your goal, try a free writing exercise.【小题2】You may find that your brain gets more creative when you’re not forcing it to come up with ideas.

Avoid goals based on external (外部的) factors.【小题3】Otherwise, you risk getting frustrated if you can’t complete your goal because of something that’s out of your control. For example, if your goal is to be the best player on your baseball team, and someone else ends up being better than you, you won’t be able to reach your goal.

Judge if your goal is sufficiently challenging but not impossible:【小题4】You shouldn’t, however, set goals that are so difficult that you get frustrated and stop.

【小题5】It helps to set a date that you would like to achieve your goal by. This will help prevent you from putting off working on it. It will also help you track your progress by setting benchmarks (标准).

Does your school have any problems with discipline? What happens when students step out of line? Here are some examples of bad behaviour:

◎Playing truant(missing school without permission from parents).

◎Stealing，smoking，hitting，swearing(说脏话)，running，kissing.

◎Cheating in exams.

◎Calling a teacher or another pupil bad names.

◎Not doing homework.

◎Not listening or not paying attention in lessons.

◎Wearing unsuitable clothes.

Here are some of the ways that UK school children can be punished:

Exclusion:a pupil is asked to leave the school and not come back.The pupil has to find a new school or a different method of education.

Suspension:a pupil cannot enter the building or attend lessons until the school has a meeting about their situation.Suspension can last from one to 45 days.The pupil is usually given work to do at home with a special teacher.

Detention:a pupil is asked to stay after school and work for 30—60 minutes before they Can leave.

Lines:a pupil has to write a sentence many times(e.g.100 or more)on a sheet of paper，e，g，“I must not shout in class”.

Freya MacDonald，a 15-year-old pupil from Scotland，made the news when she refused to accept her school’s punishment.Her family says that she was given 11 detentions for trivial things in class and coming into school through a fire door.

Freya says that repeated detentions disrupted her fight to an education under Scottish law and made it difficult for her to learn.She refused to return until the school respected her civil rights.She wants the headmaster and her teachers to sign a letter to promise this.Hundreds of schools in Scotland were told not to use detention as a punishment because of her legal action.

Many UK schools now give parents a home-school contract，explaining their discipline and rules.Parents must sign this document to agree that they accept the school’s rules and discipline and that they are responsible for their child’s behaviour.

How to Select a College

Second term of junior year can be a scary time. The college application process is approaching and your fears are becoming more realistic. You may not get into every college you apply to, which is why it’s important to have “safety schools” that are practically guaranteed to accept you. It is also important to have “reach schools” that are more difficult to get into but offer a greater education. 【小题1】 Then there is the “dream school” --- the one you would do almost anything to get into.

Here are my tips on selecting a college:

Do you have any idea where you want to go? Juniors should make a top-10 list that includes three safety, three reach, and four dream schools.

【小题2】 Sites like Princeton Review.com and College Board.com are very helpful in finding out what ACT or SAT score may be required to be accepted, as well as what sets a college apart from the others, and if it offers extra-curricular activities in which you are interested.

Apply and visit. After you have thoroughly researched your top 10 schools, narrow the list to five. These are the colleges to which you will most likely apply. Check deadlines, but applications should usually be sent by November. 【小题3】 If you are unable to visit, email the admissions office with any questions.

【小题4】 Your acceptance and sadly rejection letters will come in April. Now, this may sound easy, but it is necessary to list the advantages and disadvantages of all the schools where you are accepted. Examine every fact you know about the college. Whichever school has the highest pro to con ratio should be your pick.

Have fun in college! You likely made the right choice, but college life may be difficult so always remember to study hard, get plenty of sleep, and fasten your seatbelt --- 【小题5】