單元1：Reading for Fun 好文趣事

【約翰叔叔溫馨小提醒】

看見這麼多英文字，先別害怕！別急著找中文翻譯。

以往錯誤的學習英文模式，是要先查好字典，往往曠日費時，喪失閱讀的樂趣，此篇章閱讀的設計，正是要避免中文翻譯，而單純以找出答案來的英文閱讀，只針對不懂的地方去學習、查閱即可，每個學習者不會的地方都是不同之處。

自行查字典或找答案的過程，往往都會記得更深刻，甚至發現更多。（確切知道我要什麼，哪裡不會）

被動學習（依賴翻譯）往往無法深刻記憶，甚至內化成自己的實力。祝福大家，在英文天地中，找到樂趣。

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文章一：Three Breathing Exercises Benefit Your Health

Below are three different breathing techniques you may consider that use controlled breathing.

Choose a quiet place where you can comfortably and quietly do the exercises once or twice a day. Consider using a journal or diary to record your results, because after a couple weeks and different techniques, it may be difficult to remember which works best for you.

*Diaphragmatic Breathing

This technique is foundational to all the other breathing exercises, so it's crucial to learn this first since it helps activate your diaphragm and teaches you how to fill your belly with breathing.

（123RF）

Step 1—Begin by relaxing and unbracing your midsection.

Step 2—Take a deep breath in and feel the middle of your body get wider. Let your belly go.

（123RF）

*Box Breathing

This is a technique Navy SEALS use to calm their mind under duress. They practice box breathing, so that their use of tactical breathing is effective when it's needed. SEALS use tactical breathing to de-stress in combat situations. There are four steps to practice box breathing and each is done for the same amount of time.

Step 1—Begin by exhaling the air out of your lungs to a slow count of four. Some recommend exhaling through your mouth; others recommend exhaling through your nose.

Step 2—Hold your breath for a slow count of four.

Step 3—Inhale slowly to a slow count of four through your nose, keeping your back straight and breathing through your abdomen so your shoulders don't rise.

Step 4—Hold your breath for a slow count of four and return to Step 1.

*Coherent Breathing

The goal in this strategy is to breathe five times every minute. This means you'll inhale for a count of five, pause and then exhale for a count of six. If this is difficult at first, start with inhaling and exhaling to a count of three and work your way up to a count of six. Work your way up to practicing this for about 10 minutes each day.

You can find several more if you read the article“Top Breathing Techniques for Better Health”on Mercola.com.

1. 根據本文，哪一種呼吸法最根本重要？

2. 哪一種呼吸法，在吸氣、閉氣、吐氣時，都維持相同時間？

3. 分享一個你會的或聽過的呼吸法？它有什麼好處？

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1. 解答：Diaphragmatic Breathing（腹式呼吸法，也叫橫膈膜呼吸法）

2. 解答：Box Breathing（444呼吸法）

（文章來源：英文大紀元時報https://www.theepochtimes.com/breathwork-helps-tame-stress-benefits-your-mind-and-body_3597043.html）

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文章二：Grandparents Play A Key Role In Helping Raise Children

請問你的家庭是多代同堂嗎？多代同堂有何優缺點？（123RF）

About one billion people in the world today are grandparents. Because humans are living longer, we're spending more time in the grandparenting role compared to past generations. What's more, people are having fewer children overall, which means grandparents can dedicate more distinct time to each grandchild.

Grandparents have been universally important in families across time, and their role continues to evolve, but their involvement in their grandchildrens' lives is different around the world. In the United States, roughly 10 percent of grandparents lived with a grandchild in 2012. In Africa and Asia, living in a multi-generational household is a common practice.

A number of recent studies of families in several Asian countries help to shed light on how grandparents are involved in coparenting, which researchers define as the sharing of child care and upbringing responsibility among two or more adults. These studies suggest that children benefit when parents have strong relationships with coparenting grandparents, and point to some ways that this relationship can be nurtured.

1. 根據本文，哪些地區的家庭常見多代同堂？

2. 文中的coparenting指的是什麼意思？

3. 請問你的家庭是多代同堂嗎？多代同堂有何優缺點？

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1. 解答：Africa and Asia（非洲和亞洲）

2. 解答：The sharing of child care and upbringing responsibility among two or more adults（二個以上的成人共同對小孩的撫養與教育責任）

（文章來源：英文大紀元時報https://www.theepochtimes.com/what-happens-when-grandparents-help-raise-children_3599699.html）◇