Watching Television

Nowadays the most common leisure activity in Hong Kong is watching television. Almost all households have at least one television set. After a hard day's work or study, most people want to relax in front of the television. "Television" (or "TV") is also called "telly" in British English. Do you spend your free time watching TV? What television programmes do you like most? There is a variety of television programmes ("programs" in American English) or shows in Hong Kong such as news, sports, and documentaries.

Most children prefer children's programmes, particularly cartoons. Why do many children like watching cartoons? Probably this is because cartoons on the television are funny, not dull, and full of fantasy. Children laugh merrily when the cartoon figures do funny things and make funny jokes. Children's imaginations come to life when they see something impossible in the cartoons. 

In Hong Kong, a lot of families watch soap operas (or "soaps" informally) while having their dinner. A soap opera or a serial is a series of television drama about the daily lives and problems of a group of people. It consists of many episodes and runs over a long period. In Hong Kong, soaps are normally broadcast from Monday to Friday every week.

However, a survey said that children of all ages are watching television or playing on a computer more than ever. Experts believe that watching too much TV will increase the risk of health problems including obesity, and might be changing children's brains as they develop. How many hours do you spend watching TV every day? Experts recommended that children aged seven to twelve years old should be limited to one hour of TV a day. 

Glossary:
Programmes:節目
Documentaries:紀錄片
Soap operas:肥皂劇
Serial:連續劇
Episocles:集