How to Choose Extracurricular Activities

From sports to clubs to outside organizations, there are many activities to take part in outside the classroom.  Fortunately, it becomes quite easy once you figure out what you enjoy doing in general. With a little more careful thought, you can also choose an activity that interests you.

Think about your interests and know your advantages. Before you start considering specific(具体的)activities, take a step back. Think about what excites you and find your passions(热情).  Now that you have a better idea of what you like to do in general, decide on those that you are good at. Ask yourself what skills they show. Then find activities that require the same ones. Make sure that you will enjoy yourself by choosing an activity that lets you shine.

 In addition to your interests and advantages, know what you would like to improve about yourself. Use activities as a way to make yourself better. Find out new challenges, without the added stress of having to earn good grades at them. You can use activities to develop general skills that you may not have.

Find out what activities are available(可用的)and look into each one. If the website seems incomplete, talk with your teacher or parents. Also look for calendar details, such as start-and-end dates, plus event schedules, to make sure it won't get in the way of anything else going on in your life. Once you have a list of activities that match your interests, do a little research.

A. Think about skills you want to develop.

B. This can make choosing one a little difficult.

C. Use your freshman year to explore your choices.

D. In this way, you will have a better idea of what to expect.

E. Also make sure that their culture is a good match for your own personality.

F. Use those to decide on activities that will keep you interested for a long time.

G. Search your school's website for a complete list of all the activities it provides.

Going to outer space is a little like going camping. Food with all the water dried out is lightweight and doesn't spoil (变坏). So, many space foods are dried on Earth and stored in special packets.  

On Earth, gravity is the force that keeps your feet on the ground and your sandwich on your plate.  To keep food from floating (漂浮) away, astronauts on the Space Shuttle attach the packets to a special tray (托盘). The tray can be fixed to a wall or to the astronaut's lap. To prepare their food, astronauts use liquid forms of salt and pepper. The liquid sticks to the food better. Regular salt and pepper would float away, maybe up an astronaut's nose.

 So astronauts drink everything from a small bag with a straw (吸管) that can be closed. Astronauts say that most space foods taste pretty good.

Some, such as apples and pudding, are the same as the foods you eat on Earth. Astronauts eat tortillas instead of bread because they make fewer crumbs (碎屑).  Your body uses food in space the same way it does on Earth. Your body must deal with waste in space too.

During take-off and landing, astronauts can't leave their seats to go to the bathroom. They wear diapers (尿布) under their spacesuits instead. The Space Shuttle has a bathroom the size of a small closet. The toilet has bars that keep astronauts from floating away.  

A.Liquids float right out of cups and glasses.

B.But there's no gravity in space.

C.In outer space, everything seems to be different.

D.Rubbish from daily life can not be thrown everywhere.

E.Some, such as dried pears, taste good right out of the packet.

F.Floating crumbs could get stuck in equipment or an astronaut's eye.

G.A strong flow of air is used instead of water to flush waste down the toilet.

Children's Games in Ancient China

    Unlike the children nowadays, the children during ancient times didn't have smart phone, iPad or computer to entertain(娱乐) themselves.  Let's take a look.

    Flying kites

    Kites have quite a long history. The earliest kites were made of wood, instead of paper. Nowadays, the three most famous kites are the Beijing kite, Tianjin kite and Weifang kite.  For example, the swallow-shaped kite is a well-known Beijing style.

    Playing hide-and-seek

    Hide-and-seek is a traditional game for children, popular around the nation. Even nowadays, many children like playing it. There are two ways to play. One way is covering a child's eyes while other kids run around to tease(戏弄) him.

    The closest thing to watching a film or television for entertainment during ancient times was going to see a shadow play. Folk artists manipulate puppets behind the screen, narrating stories and accompanied by music.

    Setting off firecrackers(鞭炮)

    Firecrackers have a history of more than 2,000 years. It is said that there was a beast (野兽)named Nian in ancient China.  After gunpowder was invented, it gradually replaced the bamboo joint cracker. Crackers are still set off during Spring Festival to symbolize auspiciousness(吉利).

A. Watching shadow plays

B. Each of them has special features.

C. Different materials are used to make the kite.

D. Shadow plays were the popular entertaining form in ancient times.

E. And to scare off the beast, people burnt bamboo joints to make it blast.

F. More commonly, participants hide and one child must try to find them.

G. Instead, they came up with(想出) interesting games to play in their childhood.