2020-2021学年度第19-20期总第737期
Stopping screen time (P3)
吉林毓文中学  王荟娟
Lead-in
What are your online classes like?
How do you feel about online classes?
too much screen time
too much homework
too tiring
too boring
too stressful
…

Reading for main idea
Read the text and answer the question.

What’s the main idea of the passage?

Some students from one Philadelphia high school in the US staged a protest against too much screen time.

Reading for details (para 1-2)
1. When and where did the protest take place?
The protest took place in Philadelphia on Dec 14.

2. Why did the students stage the protest?
They hoped to draw attention to the plight of stressed teenagers across the city and beyond.
Reading for details (para 3-5)
3. What problems did Leilani Ferrara and her classmates complain about?
The current school schedule is unworkable.

From 8 am to 3 pm since March. 

4. What is the current state of Leilani and her classmates?
They are all breaking down every day.

I barely eat, I’m sleeping all the time, and my grades are slipping.
Reading for details (para 6-7)

5. In what ways has Ismael Jimenez seen students grow increasingly stressed?
The students worry about too much work, not enough time to finish it and a lack of one-on-one time with teachers. In addition, KCAPA attendance has been declining.

Students are expected to be in class for 10 hours, with 7 minutes between classes and a lunch break. 

Reading for details (para 6-7)
6. What was the principal’s reaction to the students’ concerns?
He has not made meaningful changes to the schedule.
Reading for details (para 8-12)
7. What was the attitude of Malika Savoy-Brooks, the district’s Chief of Academic Support, to the protest?
She understood that remote learning is challenging, and encouraged those who have concerns to work with their school leaders to create an environment where students’ progress is the ultimate priority.
Understanding sentences
1. Fed up with too much screen time, some students from one Philadelphia high school in the US refused to log on for school on Dec 14, staging a protest that they hope will draw attention to the plight (困境) of stressed teenagers across the city and beyond. 

本句中Fed up with too much screen time为过去分词作状语,表示主语some students的状态。
本句中staging a protest …为现在分词作状语,表示主语some students发出的动作。
本句中that they hope will draw attention to the plight of stressed teenagers across the city and beyond.为定语从句,修饰先行词protest。

2. “We encourage anyone who has concerns about this matter to work with their school leaders with the ultimate goal of creating an environment where students’ progress is the ultimate priority,” Savoy-Brooks said. 

本句中who has concerns about this matter为定语从句，修饰先行词anyone.
本句中where students’ progress is the ultimate priority为定语从句，修饰先行词environment.

Translation
1. stage            上演，策划
2. plight            困境
3. virtual        虚拟的
4. decline        下降，衰退，谢绝
5. shirk            逃避
6. logoff            下网
7. slip            下降
8. overwhelm    淹没，压倒
9. ultimate        最终的，终极的

Word study
1.stress (n.)-- stressed (adj.) --stressful (adj.)
2.assignment (n.)-- assign (v.)
3.unworkable (adj.)-- workable (adj.)  
4.increase (v.)-- increasingly (adv.)
5.attend (v.)-- attendance (n.)
6.challenge (n./v.)-- challenging (adj.)
7.courage (n.)-- encourage (v.)
8.priority (n.) -- prioritize (v.)

Phrase study
1.be fed up with             对……感到厌烦
2.draw attention to         吸引注意力  
3.log on                 登录，注册
4.participate in             参加
5.break down         （身体）垮掉，（机器）坏掉，（精神）崩溃，（计划或谈判）失败
6.catch up on            赶上，弥补
7.drop out of school        辍学

Homework
Discuss with your classmates and put forward some practical suggestions on how to take online classes effectively during the COVID-19 pandemic.