I was very sympathetic with world leaders burdened with resolving conflicts between nations. When my three children were young, in most days it was hard to keep my house from becoming a war zone. It got worse as they grew older. Three years ago, Zack, then 16, couldn’t make it through a day without playing tricks on his sisters, Alex and Taryn, then 11 and 9.
My husband and I tried to understand his adolescent moodiness. We begged, reasoned, punished, and left heartfelt notes on his bed about how his behavior was hurting our family. His response was a shrug and “I say it because it’s true”.
I even tried telling the girls to fight back. But it was a bad idea. Now I had three kids at war. At wit’s end, I poured my heart out to my sister in an e-mail. She wrote back, “Don’t e-mail me. E-mail him.”
Our son was online every day, mailing and instantly messaging his friends. So what if I was within shouting distance? Maybe he would actually hear me this way. There’d be no yelling or door slamming(猛然关闭). Zack wouldn’t feel under attack. And with a few simple keystrokes, he could respond. Or not. Zack didn’t reply for days. When he finally did, his entire message was four words. I expected the worst, but then smiled when I read them, ”You are right. I’m sorry.” The kids still fought, of course, but Zack scaled back the abuse (恶习). Best of all, I now have an effective way to communicate with not one but three easily annoyed teens. They don’t tune me out as much. They don’t like to listen to me nag (唠叨) .Or as Alex says, “You’re so much nicer online.”
All I know is that the house is quiet, and we’re talking. In fact, Taryn just instantly messaged me from upstairs. It’s time to take her to softball practice.
The purpose of this passage is to tell us _________ .
A.how to solve family problems |
B.how a mother shows her love to her children |
C.how to treat kids in a more sensible way |
D.the value of understanding between parents and children |
By the first sentence of the passage, the author really means to be_______.
A.humourous | B.sympathetic | C.serious | D.inspiring |
How did Zack react when the author first tried to stop his bad behavior?
A.He was annoyed and got worse. |
B.He talked back to the author. |
C.He felt sorry and changed. |
D.He was persuaded and acted politely. |
Zack stopped fighting with his sisters because _________ .
A.his mother learned how to mail him |
B.his mother stopped yelling and nagging |
C.his sisters learned to instantly message him |
D.his mother had more friendly communications with him online |