The number of overweight people around the world is increasing. For example, in China the number rose from 9 percent to 15 percent between 1989 and 1992. The increases in Latin America and Europe were similar. However, the most worrying statistic is the increase in the number of overweight children. In America, almost 33 percent of children under five are overweight. In some parts of Europe, the rate is almost 30 percent. Even developing countries have problems. In Egypt, Chile and Armenia, for example, the rate is over 5 percent.

The problem is the change in our diets combined with the change in our lifestyles. We used to eat whole grains, vegetables, and fruit. Now we eat foods that contain a lot of fat and sugar. Experts(专家) say that it isn't surprising that people eat too much of the wrong foods. Everywhere we look there are advertisements for high-calorie, high-fat foods. These foods are low in nutrition but also low in cost. In other words, they may not be good for us, but they are really cheap. Some experts call this a toxic-food(有毒的食品) environment. Most of us do not realize this unhealthy environment. Therefore, we believe if we are fat, it's our responsibility. This is not completely true.

Today, many food companies are focusing on developing countries. In 1998, one soft-drink company told its employees that "Africa is a land of chance for us." The largest American fast-food company opens five new restaurants every day; four of them are located outside the United States.

It is terrible to think that we may soon live in a world where everyone eats fast food and drinks soda. However, it is not unavoidable. Governments should educate their people about the dangers of eating the wrong food. This is particularly important for tomorrow's adults.

Food waste is a growing problem both in America and across the globe. In North America alone about 30-40% of food ends up as rubbish each year. While much ends up as rubbish, over 48 million Americans live in households that do not have enough food! Now, concerned citizens are trying to raise awareness of the issue with some creative ideas.

In New York’s Westchester County, students at 18 schools join in a program called We Future Cycle. Started by Anna and Ashley in 2014, it teaches kids to recycle, compost (堆肥), and most importantly control food waste in an easy and efficient manner.

Lunch areas at those schools are equipped with three clearly marked bins— compost, recycle and share. While the first two are common in schools, the third is rare. This is the bin where kids can put their unwanted drinks, fruits, and even untouched sandwiches. Food there is available for any student that wants them. Whatever remains at the end of the day is given to the local soup kitchen or food bank. Anna says the three bins have helped reduce the number of trash bags produced at the mid-day meal from an average of 22 to just 2!

To ensure kids form similar habits at home, the non-profit has created plans to educate families about the importance of sorting waste into the proper streams of recycling, composting, and food to donate. They also urge parents to have open conversations with their kids about food choices.

Kids are not the only ones that waste food. Adults are equally bad, if not worse! To fight that, Brooklyn-based Josh founded Salvage Super Club in 2014. The randomly organized dinners promise customers a multi-course meal for merely 50 dollars per person. The delicious food is made from perfectly safe ingredients (成分)   that are past their prime and, therefore, headed for the compost or trash bin.

There is a common belief among parents that schools are no longer interested in spelling. No school I have taught in has ever considered spelling unimportant as a basic skill. There are, however, quite different ideas about how to teach it, or how much priority (优先) it must be given over general language development and writing ability. The problem is, how to encourage a child to express himself freely in writing without holding him back with spelling.

If spelling becomes the only point of his teacher’s interest, clearly a bright child will be likely to “play safe”. He will write only words within his spelling range (范围). That’s why teachers often encourage the early use of dictionaries and pay attention to content (内容) rather than technical (技术的) ability.

I was once shocked to read on the bottom of a sensitive piece of writing about a personal experience: “This work is terrible! There are far too many spelling mistakes.” It may have been a sharp criticism (批评) of the pupils’ technical abilities in writing, but it was also a sad thing for the teacher who had failed to read the composition (作文), which contained some beautiful expressions of the child’s deep feelings. The teacher was not wrong to draw attention to the mistakes, but if his priority had centered on the child’s ideas, an expression of his disappointment with the presentation would have given the pupil more hope to seek improvement.