My parents don't listen. How can I communicate with them?

Communication is hard work. It's often easier to say nothing than to talk things out. But you shouldn't make excuses not to communicate — "They never listen anyway", "We will only end up fighting", or "They will just make fun of me".

    You should also avoid(避免) communication killers. When your parents don't seem to understand you, it doesn't take long for you to form habits that kill communication. Some of these communication-killers are:

The silent treatment. You don't speak at all to your parents.

Just putting up with（忍受） it. You say what you think your parents want to hear, but then go out secretly and do what you want anyway.

Bigger, better, and nicer. You tell your parents how much better your friends' parents are.

Running away. You get so frustrated(沮丧的) that you leave the room or the house to avoid further quarrelling.

    Don't get frustrated or give up. Keep the lines of communication open. Just follow the tips

below.

You must always keep in mind that they are your parents and that you have to respect them. If you make a mistake, admit (承认) it, and say sorry. If they do something wrong to you, point it out to them without getting loud or quarrelling with them.

    Listen to what they have to say because parents are wiser about some things and are always trying to protect you. Put yourself in their shoes and when you are talking to them, don't say anything which might be held against you. Don't let your anger put down your character.

Communicate with your parents; don't let the day end without reaching an agreement and make sure that the agreement pleases yourself, as well as your parents. Let it all go; tell your parents how much you love them.

37. Which of the following actions belong to "communication-killers"?

   ①Refusing to talk.

   ②Comparing your parents with others'.

   ③Shouting at your parents.

   ④Running away.

   A．①②③            B．①②④        C．①③④      D．②③④

38. When our parents make a mistake, we should_______.

   A. ask them to say sorry   B. avoid it        C. point it out politely  D. forget it

39. Why should we listen to what our parents have to say?

   A. Because they are always trying to stop us from being hurt.

   B. Because they are our parents and we have to respect them.

   C. Because it will make communication easier.

   D. Because they will be angry if we don't.

40. The last paragraph mainly tells us that_______.

   A. we should understand our parents

   B. we should love and respect our parents

   C. we shouldn't care only about the result of the communication

   D. we shouldn't leave the problem with our parents to tomorrow

    When I was a child, my mother often told me, “Don’t run around, or bad uncles will grad（抓住） you. And you know what? You will never see Mum and Dad again.”

    “Why, Mama? Why would these uncles grab me?” I would ask. “The city is a dangerous place and we don’t trust any strangers, ”she would reply.

  Well, that might answer the question of why my second brother never picks up calls from an unknown person either on his mobile or his home phone. It seems that he doesn’t care if he misses an important call. because he thinks that all unknown calls are from bad persons.

    So, have we given too much protection to our young kids? Perhaps it is so. But the adults’ thoughts are indeed easy to understand. The kids meet swindlers sometimes as we adults tell them. Also they get some news about cheating（欺骗） in newspapers or on TV every day. That makes the kids believe that they just cannot trust strangers.

    Let’s look at an example from everyday life. Say, if someone carrying a wooden stick（棍子） comes nearer to you, will you try to run away at once even before he or she starts talking to you? Will you guess this person’s intentions（意图） and think that he or she wants to rob（抢劫） you of something? Think of the answer for yourself.

    Of course, the kids should look after themselves, but overprotection can sometimes stop them from making new friends. Sometimes it’s not good for their new friendships.

    Trust is like a mirror. When we offer trust to people, they might just show you trust in return.

1 What do “swindlers” probably do?

  A. They cheat other people.

  B. They often call other people.

  C. They rob people of something.

  D. They teach children to protect themselves.

2 Which of the following is NOT the reason why children don’t trust strangers?

  A. Their parents tell them not to trust strangers.

  B. They get to know some news about cheating in newspapers or on TV every day.

  C. Strangers always have bad intentions.

  D. They sometimes have experiences of being cheated.

3 What does the writer want to tell us?

  A. Children should always follow their parents’ advice.

  B. We should never talk to strangers.

  C. Parents should learn to protect their children.

  D. People should try to trust each other.