2021-2022学年度第41期总第778期
Youth leave their legacy (P4)
北京中学 李萍
Lead-in
What is a legacy?

A legacy is money or other personal property that's granted by the terms of a will—often a substantial gift that needs to be properly managed.

Activate your brain
What does it mean to leave a legacy?
It means putting a stamp on the future, and making a contribution to future generations.
Why do people leave legacies?
People want to leave legacies because they want to feel that their lives mattered.

Predict
 What questions come to mind when you see the title?
Youth leave their legacy

Read for gist
Youth leave their legacy
Read the article and answer the question:
What is the article mainly about?
The article is mainly about a report on why youth leave their legacy and what they leave in their wills.
Read for details
Read the article again and complete the following table.

More and more young people are getting wills.

For most young people, the main reason they leave a will is thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic. Apart from the pandemic, public knowledge of notable people’s health conditions has led to more people writing wills.

Music and pop culture collections were among the top things included in wills. Besides, leaving their gift to a charity is also included in wills. Apart from these, nearly one-fifth of the people were making wills to ensure their pets were well looked after.
Think and share
1. What do you think of youth leaving their leagacy?
2. Can you come up with some other ways for young people to leave their legacy?

1. What do you think of youth leaving their leagacy?
As far as I’m concerned, it’s far too early for young people to leave their legacy. Although the current climate we are facing is not so positive and COVID-19 is depriving many people of their lives, it is not necessary for us to panic. Thanks to the ongoing effort of people and the government, we have made progress in fighting against the pandemic.
    In my mind, youth is a precious stage where young people should look on the bright side. They should strive to realize their ambitious dreams and make contributions to society. As long as they treasure every minute of their lives and live life to the fullest, they will not only be remembered by their loved ones, but by the whole society.

2. Can you come up with some other ways for young people to leave their legacy?

Write a book.
Serve as a good role model.
Be a mentor.
Volunteer.
Start a business or a non-profit organization.
Start a new program in their community, such as starting a recycling program, planting a community garden or constructing a playground.
Pass down skills and know-how.
Identify strengths, develop skills and be true to themselves.

Language study
1. But in recent years, this perception has started to change.
但近年来，这种看法开始改变。
perception: (1) Your perception of something is the way that you think about it or the impression you have of it. 理解，看法，认识
e.g. There is a general public perception that standards in schools are falling.
(2) Someone who has perception realizes or notices things that are not obvious. 洞察力，认识力，悟性
e.g. It did not require a great deal of perception to realize the interview was over.  
词汇拓展：
perceive v. 意识到，察觉到；理解
perceptive adj. 感知的；有理解力的

2. In the current climate, you can’t really get away from death – it’s something my generation has never been faced with so distinctly before.
在当前的环境下，你无法真正摆脱死亡——这是我们这一代人以前从未如此清楚地面对过的事情。
get away from: 远离
be faced with: 面对
e.g. In recent years many cities have been faced with the problem of heavy traffic.
distinctly: easily or clearly heard, seen, felt, etc
e.g. He was beginning to feel distinctly uneasy about their visit.
词汇拓展：distinct adj. 明显的，清晰的
3. Apart from the pandemic, public knowledge of notable people’s (名人的) health conditions, like the British royal family, has led to more people writing wills.
除了新冠疫情之外，公众对英国王室等名人的健康状况的了解，导致更多的人写遗嘱。
apart from: except for; in addition to; as well as 除了......外（还）；此外
e.g. It was a difficult time. Apart from everything else, we had financial problems.
lead to: 导致，通向
e.g. Lack of exercise can lead to feelings of depression and exhaustion.
4. The highest number of wills written on a single day in 2021 was on Feb 18, following the late Prince Philip’s admission to hospital, according to data from Farewill, one of the UK’s biggest death planning companies.
Farewill是英国最大的殡葬服务公司之一，其数据显示，2021年单日立遗嘱数量最多的一天是2月18日，此前已故菲利普亲王入院接受治疗。
following在此用作介词，以为“在......之后”，相当于after。
admission: the action of taking sb to a hospital, or other institution where they can receive special care 接收入院；收治
e.g. Two crash victims were admitted to the local hospital.