Many textbooks are not written in the kind of English that we speak every day. In fact, sometimes the reading is so difficult that it almost seems like a foreign language. In a way, it is — the language of science. You should not expect to be able to read a difficult science passage the same way you read an interesting story; you should not expect to read it easily and all at once. Instead, you may have to read it several times through, catching on the meaning of difficult words, going back over difficult sentences, and finally putting the whole thing together. Do not be discouraged if the whole passage don’t make sense to you at first. You need to pick it apart patiently until you can understand it.

These are the steps to follow when you are reading something difficult:

1. Start to read normally until you run into a sentence that doesn’t make sense to you.

2. When a sentence doesn’t make sense, go back and read it again more slowly.

3. Look for any word you don’t know in the sentence. Try to understand their meanings using word parts and context clues(上下文线索). If necessary, look them up in the dictionary.

4. Look at the next few sentences to see if they explain more about the sentence you are working on. Do not read very much farther ahead until you understand what is being said.

5. Finally, read the sentence again. Try to put it into simpler words.

6. Read through the passage once. Try to understand all the hard parts well. Then read the whole passage once more at a usual speed. This helps you to put all ideas together.

The stops sound a lot harder than they are. It is really just the normal way good readers understand anything that is difficult to read. After you have done the best you can this way, you should always feel free to ask for help from your teacher, if you have one.

We do eye exercises. We wear sunglasses. We do lots of things to protect our eyes. But we usually forget another important part of our body — the ears. Ears help us hear the world. But many things, such as loud noises, can hurt our ears, even make us deaf. Once this happens, it’s hard to get your hearing back. March 3rd is Ear Care Day. So how can we protect our ears? Let’s take a look together.

Keep your ears dry and warm

Dry your ears with a towel (毛巾) after swimming or taking a shower. If you feel water in your ear, shake your head a little bit. This can help you get the water out of your ear. Also, when the sun is shining, wear some sunscreen (防晒霜) on your ears. During the winter, protect your ears with a hat or a scarf.

How to clean your ears

Usually, our ears clean themselves. The earwax (耳垢) builds up, dries out, and then comes out of the ear along with some dirt. Don’t clean your ears with anything sharp (尖锐的), or it may make the earwax go too deep into your ears and hurt them. But if your ears start to hurt, you can go to a doctor for help.

How to use earphones

Don’t listen to loud music on your earphones for a long time. Follow the “60 Rule”: listen to music for no more than 60 minutes a day. Over-ear (头戴式) better than in-ear ones. It will do a better job of stopping outside noise. So you can listen at a lower volume.

Some children like to eat boiled (煮熟的) eggs. Do you know how to make boiled eggs? It’s easy. Let me tell you.

First, you need to find the materials. You need hot water, one or more eggs. Of course you need a pan (平底锅), too. Then please follow the steps.

●Step One: Pour the hot water into the pan and let it boil on the stove.

●Step Two: Put the eggs into the boiling water. You should put them slowly.

●Step Three: Let them stay in the hot water for about 10 minutes. Take the eggs out. Let them cool for about 5 minutes.

●Step Four: Peel off the eggshells (鸡蛋壳) and eat the eggs with a little salt and pepper (胡椒).

That is how to make boiled eggs. Isn’t it easy?