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SCMP Reporter

Respect for family members is important

I think respect in a family is really important. If everyone respects his family members, everyone can live happily.

If one of the family members does not respect the others, the family relationship will deteriorate.

I think parents are mostly to blame for family problems.

They put too much pressure on their sons and daughters to be the best in the class.

If they are unable to achieve this,  the parents will ignore them or get angry.

The worst thing is violence. If parents use violence on their children, the young people will no longer respect them.  They will think their parents are cruel.

Every parent has been a child.  They should know what their children want.

Parents should communicate with their offspring and try to make them happy just like their children do for them.

If a student has tried their best but the result is still poor, they should not blame them. They should try to help them.

Wong Sze-fung

Po On Commercial  Association Wong Siu Ching  Secondary School

Swimming is fun and good for you

Many Hong Kong people like swimming.  Over the summer holidays, many parents take their children to the beach or public pools to swim.

Swimming is a healthy sport. It burns fat and keeps you fit.

Singer Alex Fong Lik-sun used to be a swimmer.  He represented Hong Kong and won many medals.

I like swimming because it is very exciting. It also takes practice and concentration.

Each time we swim, we have to do stretching and warm-up exercises.

You also have to make sure  family or friends are nearby in case of an accident.

It is cheap to get into one of Hong Kong's many public pools.

Some districts and schools organise swimming teams and hold  galas.

They make a good opportunity to take part in this healthy and worthwhile sport.

Chan Tsz-ying

Our Lady of the  Rosary Collage

Talk to people - not at them

Most students have to present projects in front of their class at some point or other.

When we give presentations, our teachers always tell the rest of the class to pay attention.

But many students sleep, talk or daydream when others are presenting.

I think this is rude.  As the audience, we show our respect by paying attention.

But respect is a two-way process, which means, as speakers, we should also respect our audience.

We must talk to them instead of talk at them. To do this, we need to be well prepared so that we don't have to read from a script.

Some students  read out what they have to say and then sit down as quickly as possible.

There is no eye contact or interaction.

Talking at people is disrespectful and I think it is a habit all of us should try to get rid of.

Christy Chiang

SKH Lam Kau Mow  Secondary School

Is milk healthy?

I watched a  documentary about milk.  It said that milk isn't healthy for us, and, if we drink too much, it increases our chances of getting cancer.

The specialists experimented on rats, and their findings proved that drinking milk  doesn't have any health benefits.

Many babies get stomach ache after drinking milk, as  their stomachs can't digest cow's milk.

Doctors say  that breast milk is much better than  milk powder.

Even when we are grown up, milk is difficult to digest.

But the idea that milk is good for us is popular. Many people don't want to give up drinking milk, including me.

But the expert raised one idea in particular that has stayed with me:  Milk is what baby cows drink -  so why do people drink it?

Wong Wan-chi

Christian Alliance S.C. Chan  Memorial College

Never give up

I watched a European League football game recently, Roma versus Manchester United. Both teams played well, but what really impressed me was not the result of the game - a 2-1 win to Roma.

Instead, it was the performance of Christiano Ronaldo which taught me a lesson.

Although  he was marked by many Roma players  throughout the game, he still tried his best to help his teammates to  score.

Finally, 60 minutes into the game, he got the ball and ran for about 30 metres.

Using his excellent ball skills,  he got past the Roma defenders  and passed the ball to his teammates so they could finally score.

Ronaldo's determination  made me realise  that when you try your best and never give up, some day you will succeed.

I hope everyone can learn from Ronaldo's spirit of never giving up.

Alex Chang

The Chinese Foundation  Secondary School

Get a good night's sleep

Good quality sleep  is more important to your health than you may realise.

Living in a fast-paced society, people  spend more hours working than sleeping.

But a prolonged lack of sleep  will affect your  concentration  at work, and even in daily life.

I take a ride on my bike every morning  to school. Sometimes I don't realise  how tired I am, and I misjudge how fast I am going and  crash into somebody.

Sleeping is as important to a healthy lifestyle as eating properly and exercising.

We should pay attention to the quantity and quality of  our sleep.

On average, a healthy adult needs between six and eight hours a night while children need more than nine hours.

But, duration is not the only  factor.

A person who does not sleep enough, or who has disturbed sleep,  may suffer from  sleep debt, and the recovery will take much longer than the actual hours lost.

So go  to bed early and have a good night's rest.

Suen Choi-kan

Hang Seng School of  Commerce

Singapore in summer

Our English teacher asked us to think about a trip overseas  this summer holiday.

I would choose  to go to Singapore.

Singapore is beautiful and tidy. I want to know how they keep their country so neat and clean.

More than that, I want to learn English there. Most people speak English, not Putonghua, in Singapore. Some people think they can learn Putonghua  there but that may not be the case.

When I go on holiday there, I prefer living in hostels to hotels as money is  a concern.

But more importantly, I can have more fun and make more friends if I stay in a hostel.

There are other reasons why I prefer Singapore to other English-speaking countries such as the US or Australia.

First, a trip to Singapore is much cheaper. Also, my parents  like that Singapore is closer to Hong Kong.

I  love going overseas if I can afford it.  I believe I can learn a lot from the real world.  I am also old enough to learn to be independent.

Janty Yu

Kwai Chung  Methodist College



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