Experts analyzed how language can affect children’s lives and the role it plays in everyday life They also determined which languages tend to lead to the best career opportunities as an adult. “We believe that language learning is hugely beneficial for children’s development and it is a real investment for the future,” said Antonella Sorace, professor of developmental linguistics (语言学) at Edinburgh University. The study involved a survey of 2,001 parents with children under the age of 18, as well as another survey of more than 500 business leaders.

So which languages took the top spot? Results indicated that children should be learning French, German, and/or Chinese if they want to be successful within the next ten years. Mastering a second language opens the door to new markets for businesses and allows them to create new relationships with potential partners. Besides being able to speak another language, the academic and interpersonal skills that can be acquired from learning a new language are important as well. “Children who are exposed to different languages become more aware of different cultures, other people, and other points of view. They also tend to be better than monolinguals (只用单语的人) at multitasking and are often more advanced readers,” said Sorace.

A vast majority of parents surveyed in this study (85 percent) believe it is important for their children to learn a second language, and about one in four believe it will increase their child’s career opportunities and improve their chance of being employed. The future employment markets are in need of space tour guides, robot coaches, front-line e-commerce workers, nurses etc. No matter what a child choose to be, multilinguals and cross-culture talents will probably have a good chance to take the lead. However, 45 percent of parents surveyed admit that their child or children cannot speak a second language.

If you want your child to stand out from the crowd, follow the habits of parents of successful people-give children chores, set high but realistic expectations, get yourself educated, make time for bonding, accept and recognize their feelings—and, of course, make sure they learn one of the three success languages!

We all know what a brain is. A doctor will tell you that the brain is the organ (器官) of the body in the head. But a brain can mean so much more.

To tease is to make fun of someone. But a brainteaser is not one who makes fun of someone else’s brain. A brainteaser is a puzzle that makes you think.

To understand the next brain expression you first need to know the word “drain”. As a verb, to drain means to remove something by letting it flow away. So, a brain drain may sound like a disease where the brain flows out the ears. But a brain drain is when a country’s most educated people leave their country to live in another.

Next, we have a brainchild. A brainchild sounds like a really smart kid. But it isn’t. A brainchild is an idea that one has without any help from others. If you have a really great idea, it is your brainchild — no one else’s.

However, if many people are responsible for a great idea, you can say they brainstormed it. It is a process of thinking creatively about a difficult topic. For example, business leaders may use brainstorming to create new products.

But if you can’t find a solution to a problem, you may have to rack your brains. In this way, you may find a solution. Sometimes, you have to rack your brains, trying to remember someone’s name.

Now, if people are brainwashed, it does not mean their brains are nice and clean. To brainwash means to make someone accept new ideas by using repeated pressure in a forceful way. Keep in mind that brainwash is never used in a positive way.

Have you ever found yourself in a group of people with similar ways of thinking and interests to yours? They understand you. They really get you. They may even be wearing similar clothing to yours. We have a great expression for this: Birds of a feather flock together. This means people of the same kind or with the same tastes and interests often find each other.

We have many similar expressions, and many of them use the word “mind” or “brain.” If someone thinks like me, I can say we are like-minded. I can also say we are of the same mind. There is also something called a hive mind. In a beehive; the bees all work together to reach the same goal. People who are part of a hive mind have similar thoughts, ideas, and opinions.

If you are a spiritual kind of person, you can call them your kindred spirits (灵魂伴侣). If you are more of a science person, you can say you are on the same wavelength. And if you are a person who likes to make things, you can use the expression: cut from the same cloth. All these expressions mean the same thing — you feel a strong connection to someone and feel very similar to them.

We have another expression that can also be used in this situation. But we only use it when we have a similar idea with another person: Great minds think alike. If you often listen to VOA Learning English, you belong to a community of like-minded people: People who want to practice their English.