Book 1 Unit 2
Reading
When teenagers’ bodies and minds go through a period of rapid development, every part of their lives can be influenced. The magazine article below is about teenagers’ relationships with their parents. Before you read the article, think about the following questions:
•What physical and mental changes do you experience as you become a teenager? How do you deal with them?
•What do you think “strangers under the same roof” means?
Strangers under the same roof?
Does every dinner with your parents em to turn into a battle? Have your once warm and open conversations become cold and guarded? Do you feel that you just cannot e eye to eye with them on anything? You are not alone. Heated arguments and cold silences are common between teenagers and their parents.kidding是什么意思
Teenagers’ physical changes may result in such family tensions. You may feel anxious that you are developing at a different rate to your friends, shooting up in height or getting left far behind. You might worry about your changing voice, weight problems or spots. When it all gets too much, your parents are often the first targets of your anger.
It can be a big headache to balance your developing mental needs too. You enter a strange middle ground— 5 10 15 Reading 17 no longer a small child but not quite an adult. You have both a new desire for independence and a continued need for your parents’ love and support. You feel ready to be more responsible and make decisions on your own. Unfortunately, your parents do not alwa ys agree and that makes you feel unhappy. “Why can’t they just let me go?” you may wonder. On the other hand, when you are struggling to control your feelings, you wish they could be more caring and patient—sometimes they forget that growing up is a rough ride. It can be difficult when your parents treat you like a child but expect you to act like an adult. All of this can lead to a breakdown in your relationship.
Although sometimes it may em impossible to get along as a family, you can take action to improve the situation. The key to keeping the peace is regular and honest communication. When you disagree with your parents, take a minute to calm down and try to understand the situation from their
point of view. Perhaps they have experienced something similar and do not want you to go through the same pain. After you have thought it through, explain your actions and feelings calmly, listen carefully, and address their concerns. Through this kind of healthy discussion, you will learn when to back down and when to ask your parents to relax their control.
Just remember that it is completely normal to struggle with the stress that parent-child tensions create, and that you and your parents can work together to improve your relationship. The good news is that this stormy period will not last. Everything will turn out all right in the end, and the changes and challenges of your teenage years will prepare
you for adulthood.
Extended reading
Read the short story about a mother’s love for her children.
Mama and her bank account
klkEvery Saturday night Mama would sit down by the kitchen table and count out the money Papa had brought home.
“For the rent.” Mama would count out the big silver pieces.
“For the groceries.” Another group of coins.
“I’ll need a notebook.” That would be my sister Christine, my brother Nels or me.
Mama would put one or two coins to the side. We would watch with anxious interest. At last, Papa would ask, “Is that all?” And when Mama nodded, we could relax a little. Mama would look up and smile, “Good. We do not have to go to the Bank.” We were all so proud of Mama’s Bank Account. It gave us such a warm, cure feeling.
When Nels graduated from grammar school, he wanted to go on to high school. “It will cost a little money,” he said.
Eagerly we gathered around the table. I took down a box and laid it carefully in front of Mama. This was the “Little Bank”. It was ud for sudden emergencies, such as the time when Christine broke her arm and had to be taken to a doctor.
聪明的一休主题曲Nels listed the costs of the things he would need. Mama counted out the money in the Little Bank. There was not enough. “We do not want to go to the Bank,” she reminded. We all shook our heads.
objection
“I will work in Dillon’s grocery after school,” Nels voluntee red.
Mama gave him a bright smile and wrote down a number. “That’s not enough,” Papa said. Then he took his pipe out of his mouth and looked at it for a long time. “I will give up smoking,” he said suddenly.
Mama reached across the table and touched Papa’s arm. Then she wrote down another figure.
“I will look after the Elvington children every Friday night,” I said. “Christine can help me.”
Now there was enough money. We all felt very good becau we did not have to go downtown and draw money out of Mama’s Bank Account. So many things came out of the Little Bank that year: Christine’s dress for the school play,my little sister Dagmar’s operation ... Whatever happened, we always knew we still had the Bank to depend upon.
That was twenty years ago.
Last year I sold my first story. When the check came, I hurried over to Mama’s and put it in her lap. “For you,” I said, “to put in your Bank Account.”泡泡少儿英语
I noticed for the first time how old Mama and Papa looked. Papa emed shorter, and Mama’s hai r was silver now.
“Tomorrow,” I told Mama, “you must take it to the Bank.”
“You will go with me, Katrin?”
“That won’t be necessary. Just hand it to the teller. He’ll pay it into your account.”
Mama looked at me. “There is no account,” she said.“In all my life, I’ve never been inside a bank.”
And when I didn’t—couldn’t—answer, Mama said riously, “It is not good for little ones to be afraid—to not feel cure.”
(Adapted from Kathryn Forbes’s Mama’s Bank Account, which has 17 short stories and describes the struggles and dreams of a family in San Francisco in the early 1900s)
Translation
Unit 2l
Reading
最熟悉的陌生人?
每天的家庭晚餐幻化成激烈战斗？热情开朗的谈话蜕变成冷淡警惕？无论什么事情都夏虫语冰？其实大家都一样。青少年和父母之间，无论是激烈争论，还是冷面以对，都并不少见。
这种家庭紧张气氛有可能是由青少年的身体变化引发的。你可能因为发育速度和朋友不同而焦虑不安，比方个子窜得太快或比别人矮半个头；你也可能因变声情况，体重问题或者长了雀斑而担心不已。如果此类变化经历太多，父母往往就成为你倾
泻怒火的首要人选。
在发育过程中，如何平衡你的精神需求也会让你头痛不已。你进入了奇怪的进退维谷状态----你已经不是小孩了，却又还不是大人。你既渴望独立，又需要父母的关爱支持。你觉得自己已经准备好担负起更多责任、做出自我决定。可惜你的父母并不完全这么想，所以你感到相当郁闷。“为什么他们就不能放手呢？“你百思不得其解。你努力地抑制自己情绪，同时又希望父母能有更多的关心和耐心----他们有时忘记了成长的坎坷艰辛。父母把你当孩子看，却又期待你处事像个大人。所以你们的关系产生了裂痕。
exceptfor
尽管有时候你觉得再无法与父母亲如家人，但是可以采取行动来改善这种状况。和平相处的关键是要定期进行开诚布公的沟通。和父母意见不一的时候，不妨冷静一分钟，试着设身处地地考虑下情形。说不定他们有过前车之鉴，所以不想让你重蹈覆辙呢。等考虑周全了，你再心平气和地解释你的所思所想，同时要仔细倾听，解决他们的心中疑虑。这样的健康讨论能让你学会何时做出让步，何时要求他们放松管控。
记住，亲子关系紧张会造成压力，与这种压力作斗争是完全正常的，你和你的父母可以携手努力，改善关系。好在这场暴风骤雨不会长久。一切终将回归正常，青少年时代的变化和困苦能让你有备无患地迎接成年时代。
（译者：黄一竹，CATTI certificated translator）
颜色看性格Extended reading
妈妈和她的银行账户
每个礼拜六晚上，妈妈都会坐在餐桌边，数一数爸爸带回家的钱。
“这些交房租。”妈妈点出一些大面额银币。
“这些买杂货。”又点出一堆硬币。
“我要买笔记本。”说话的是我的妹妹克里斯汀，要么是我哥哥内尔斯，要么是我。overhead cost
我们兴致勃勃地看着妈妈在桌边放上一两个硬币。最后爸爸会问：“都算好了吧？”妈妈点点头，我们都舒了一口气。妈妈抬起头，微笑着说，“挺好。不用去银行取钱了。”妈妈的银行账户是我们的骄傲。让我们感觉那么温暖，那么有安全感。
内尔斯从文法学校毕业了，他想继续读高中。他说：“这要稍微花点钱了。”
我们急切地围在餐桌边。我小心翼翼地把一个小盒子放在妈妈面前。这就是我们的“小银行”。小银行的钱用于处置突发的紧急状况，例如有次克里斯汀摔断了手臂要去看医生，就动用了小银行。
内尔斯列出了上学需要的费用。妈妈把小银行的钱都清点出来。不够。“我们可不想去银行取钱。”妈妈提醒道。我们都点了点头。
“我每天放学后去狄龙的杂货店打工，”内尔斯自告奋勇。
妈妈给了他一个灿烂的微笑，随即写了个数字。“不够，”爸爸说着，然后把烟斗从嘴边拿了下来，端详了好一会。“我把烟戒了，”他突然冒出一句。
throughout
妈妈伸出手，隔着桌子摸了摸爸爸的胳膊。然后又写下一个数字。英语6级分数线
“我每个礼拜五晚上去艾文顿家，帮忙照顾孩子。”我说道，“克里斯汀做我的帮手。”
这下钱够了。我们大家都深感欣慰，因为我们不用进城从妈妈的银行帐户中取钱了。那一年，小银行解决了好多事情：克里斯汀学校演出的服装，小妹达格玛的手术……不管发生什么事情，我们始终知道，有妈妈的银行做我们的靠山。
二十年过去了。
去年我卖出了我的第一篇小说。支票刚到，我就匆匆来到妈妈家，把它放在妈妈的腿上。我对她说：“给你，你存到你的银行帐户里去吧。”
我第一次注意到，爸爸妈妈看起来那么的苍老。爸爸没以前高了，妈妈也已是满头白发。
“你明天得把支票送银行去。”我对妈妈说。
“你是不是跟我一起去，卡特琳？”
“不用我去。你只要把支票交给柜员就好了。他会把钱转进你的银行帐户。”
妈妈看了看我，说：“我哪有什么账户，我这辈子都没去过银行。”
我没有回答（我也不知道怎么回答）。只听妈妈认真地说：“不能让小孩子感到害怕，
