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kjy06b_20200621s
ifyouwere
If you were...
2020.06.19
What would you do if you were Nora and Liam?
Nora and Liam always spend their lunch hours in the library, they are library helpers. Due to their passion (熱愛)for reading, they have a strong sense of belonging(歸屬感)in the library. One of the roles (職責)of Nora and Liam is to alert (提醒)students when a book on the waiting list is returned by inputting(輸入)update information into the school computer. They help to sort the returned books by categories(種類)and the school librarian, Miss Sezto, is responsible to put them back on shelves.  Due to the Coronavirus Covid-19, the school was closed for months, like all other schools in Hong Kong. Now students can go back to school, but the library is still closed. Miss Sezto has been out of town(出埠)and was able to come back to Hong Kong only very recently(近期). She has to go through a quarantine(檢疫隔離)period of fourteen days. This is a preventive measure(預防措施)from the Hong Kong Government. Without Ms. Sezto, the books students returned are piling(疊放)up in heaps(一堆堆)on the floor. No one can walk through. Seeing this, the principal suggested closing down the library after the first week of school. What a dismay(氣餒)to Nora and Liam. They always have a thirst(渴望)for reading.  Putting the books back on the shelves will simply provide a solution to the situation, but should Nora and Liam voice out(提出)to volunteer? They are students after all. Who should they speak with? What would you do if you were Nora and Liam?  I must know my place(懂分寸)in the first place. As a student, if I put back the books and made a mistake, I would be severely(嚴重地)blamed by whoever uses the library. Miss Sezto would not thank me for helping because it would be more work for her to rectify(矯正)my mistake(s). Also, it would be so very awkward(尷尬)to go directly to the principal as he did not even know me at all. I’d choose to keep my mouth shut and go to the nearest public library instead.  There might be other students who also wanted to use the library. Though the principal might not know me before, I had nothing to lose to speak my mind(說出我的想法). Or I could ask my class teacher to ask the principal for me.   
kjy03b_20200308s
400 400 FAMOUS_SAYING
Stories Behind Popular Sayings
2020.03.06
Leap year
If you have a look at this year's calendar, what date is the last day of February ? It is the 29th of February. While the month of February normally has 28 days, this year's February has 29 days. This extra day is called a leap day and this year, 2020, is called a leap year.  The insertion of this extra day is known as “intercalation”. To simplify the term, scholars use “leap year” because each date on the calendar jumps ahead two days of the week instead of one. For example, Christmas 2018 fell on Tuesday, and last Christmas(2019)fell on Wednesday. This year, Christmas will “leap” over Thursday and fall on Friday.  In astronomy, it takes the earth approximately 365 days and six hours to complete a full orbit around the sun. This is a solar year. That means we need a leap year every four years to synchronise the calendar year with the solar year.  In 1582, Pope Gregory XIII(教宗額我略十三世)set a new formula where a century year is a leap year only if it is divisible by 400. Thus, in the Gregorian calendar,1900 was not a leap year, but 2000 was.  A person born on the 29th February may be called a leap-year baby. It is up to them whether they want to celebrate their birthdays on either the 28th of February or the 1st of March. In legal terms, most countries define that a leap-year baby comes of age on the 1st of March.  Glossary  Leap year  閏年 Insertion  插入 Intercalation  置閏 Astronomy  天文學 Orbit  軌道 Solar year  太陽年 Synchronise  同步 Legal  法律
kjy05b_20191215s
ifyouwere
If you were...
2019.12.13
What would you do if you were Rosette?
“ I cannot focus with all the singing and chatting outside in the sitting room no matter how hard I try. Oh dear, it will be hours like this. How can I ever finish my homework ! ”  Rosette is a very earnest(認真)girl, she cares for(關注)her studies a lot. Just that she also has ADD, which stands for Attention Deficit Disorder(注意力缺失症). She can be distracted(分心)by a fly flying by or the noise of a dripping tap (滴水的水龍頭). Music to her is also a distraction, she needs complete silence. Still, she works triple hard to overcome(克服)her symptoms(症狀). She has very high achievement at school.  Rosette comes from a devoted(虔誠) Catholic family. Every third Saturday of the month, her parents organize a prayer meeting at home for other Catholic neighbours to worship(敬拜)together. After that, there is always a casual(簡單)dinner with simple food for fellowship(聯誼). Since they have no maid, her mother is the cook. She always starts preparing food after worshipping, which takes her an hour and a half. While she is cooking, the group will sing and talk, creating much noise, which of course disturbs Rosette from her revision. So every third Saturday night, Rosette knows she cannot focus and finds it a headache. Since the gathering starts at 6:30pm, one hour of worship, one and a half hours of chatting(mainly waiting for food). People then slowly disperse(散去)after ten.  Rosette is always a generous(慷慨) person, and she doesn’t blame her parents for entertaining Christian neigbours. Of course God likes it when we share, whether it’s our place, food, time or our talent(才能). But she doesn’t know what to do if the flat is so noisy for the whole night.     What would you do if you were Rosette?   I’d honestly tell my parents to control the noise level and put on a headphone so I might cut off all the noise from the sitting room. I’d read out(讀出聲)everything I would be reading or writing so I could hear nothing but my own voice.  Since I could not focus on my work anyway, I’d help my mom to prepare the simple dinner and once they finished worshipping, dinner could start immediately and they could leave earlier. This way I’d also make the neigbours feel more welcome. 
kjy05b_20191110s
ifyouwere
If you were...
2019.11.08
What would you do if you were Tobias ?
" If I say yes and cook as Grandma wants, she'll be happy but that will be very bad for her health. If I keep her diet(日常飲食)very strict(嚴格), she threatens she’d rather die⋯⋯ what to do with this childlike old lady! "  Tobias is one of the very few boys who can cook and is willing to cook for the family. Both of his parents work long hours. Though coming home late and sleeping at the wee hours(午夜後), Mom and Dad aspire(渴望)to maintain good health. Eating healthy is one of the ways to achieve that. Tobias started cooking for the family since Primary 5. Before that, Grandma would prepare a hearty meal nightly(每晚). She did not concur(贊同)that boys should be inside a kitchen. Until a great opportunity befell(降臨), Tobias didn't come to realize his talent and interest in cooking. That year he was eleven, the brother of his dad from overseas visited and stayed for a fortnight(兩星期)at their place. That uncle advocated(主張)that cooking is for just everyone, male or female, and taught Tobias many dishes.  Not long after, Tobias coaxed(勸誘) Grandma to let him help in cooking dinner. He performed(表現)so well that eventually Grandma passed onto him the title " main chef(主廚)of the family ". Tasting Tobias' dishes has been a joy to everyone at home.  Lately, Grandma was diagnosed(診斷) with diabetes(糖尿病)and high blood pressure(高血壓),that means she has to stay away from savoury(鹹味)and sweet food. As instructed by the doctor, she should not take any sugar or salt at all. Tobias follows closely. Now, every day she bleats about(絮絮叨叨地抱怨)the bland(淡而無味)tasting dishes.    What would you do if you were Tobias ?   For her health, I’d stick to strict cooking without condiments(調味品)and keep encouraging her that as time goes by, she would get used to that.  To put a balance between mental health and physical health, I’d encourage her by having the whole family taking the same food as hers, and I’d also seek advice from my parents to see how much seasoning(調味)would be appropriate. I’d start to bring down the taste little by little.