Dear Ryan,

I am Li Hua, one of your students. Regarding the grouping method for the oral training course, I would like to raise some concerns and suggestions. While it is true that randomly mixing up students can encourage more communication and interaction, there may also be some potential issues to consider.

Firstly, random grouping can result in students with vastly different speaking abilities being paired together. This may make some students with stronger communication skills feel inhibited, while those with weaker speaking skills may feel overwhelmed. Additionally, some students may feel uneasy and uncomfortable having to work with unfamiliar classmates.

Therefore, I suggest that a more thoughtful grouping method be adopted, such as grouping students according to their exam grades, verbal performance, or interests. This would allow each student to practice their spoken English with peers who are of a similar proficiency level, and ones with similar interests, which would serve to enhance student motivation and confidence. This approach also ensures that students with varying abilities have opportunities to develop their language skills.

I hope that my suggestions will be considered. Thank you for your attention.

Sincerely,

Li Hua

Dear Ryan,

My name is Li Hua, one of your esteemed students. I write to express my opinion concerning the grouping strategy proposed by you for the oral training course. While it may be true that random pairing of students can foster greater interaction and communication, there are potential drawbacks to consider.

Caution must be exercised in randomly grouping students, particularly in a scenario where their communication abilities vastly differ. It may lead to a situation where high-level communicators feel violated and inhibited, while those lacking are bogged down by the overwhelming challenges of the class. In addition, some students may feel uneasy working with unfamiliar classmates.

With this in mind, I propose that a thoughtful grouping strategy be adopted, albeit grouping students according to their exam scores, verbal proficiency or individual interests. This, in turn, ensures that every student can practice speaking English with like-minded peers, thereby boosting their motivation and confidence. More importantly, it guarantees that students with varying communication abilities have equal opportunities to develop their language skills.

It is my fervent hope that my suggestions would gain approval, and taken into account. I thank you for your unwavering attention.

Yours sincerely,

Li Hua

Dear Ryan

I think it's not a good idea to randomly pair up students for the spoken English training class. I have a few reasons for my opinion.

Firstly, randomly pairing up students may lead to imbalanced language abilities within the groups. Some students might have advanced speaking skills while others may struggle with basic conversation. This can hinder the progress of both students as the more advanced one may dominate the conversation, leaving little room for the other student to improve.

Secondly, students may feel uncomfortable or less motivated if they are paired with someone they don't get along with or have difficulty communicating with. Building a positive and comfortable learning environment is crucial for effective language practice, and randomly assigning pairs might undermine this.

Instead, I suggest implementing a system where students can choose their own partners based on their language abilities and personal preferences. This allows students to collaborate with someone they are comfortable with, ensuring a supportive and productive learning environment.

Yours,

Li hua

Dear Ryan

I am your student, Li Hua. I have some questions and suggestions regarding the grouping of students in the oral training class. While random grouping can encourage communication and interaction to some extent, there may be potential problems.

Firstly, students with significant differences in speaking skills may be grouped together, which may make stronger speakers feel restrained and weaker speakers feel overwhelmed. Moreover, some students may feel uneasy and constrained when paired with unfamiliar classmates.

Therefore, I suggest adopting a more reasonable grouping method, such as grouping students based on their exam scores, speaking ability, or interests. This would allow each student to practice speaking English with peers at a similar level and shared interests, boosting their motivation and confidence, and promoting mutual improvement among all levels of students.

I hope my suggestions will be accepted. Thank you!

Best regards,

Li Hua

原作品信息

标题：Lighting the Candle: A Wild Ride

作者：Carmen Agra Deedy

出处：The Horn Book Magazine

网址：https://www.hbook.com/story/lighting-the-candle-a-wild-ride

（点击文末可导航到对应网页）

阅读部分

When I was in middle school, my social studies teacher encouraged me to enter a writing contest, sponsored by an organization in our hometown. I demurred.

I loved history.

I did not love writing.

I was a Cuban refugee, and English had been my nemesis from the moment I first shoved a chunky No. 2 pencil up and down the dashed lines of D’Nealian paper.

My teacher knew my writing was cursory. And I knew that I lacked discipline. (What neither of us knew was that I was also dyslexic.)

Writing was so excruciating that my teacher had allowed me to present my paper on the sinking of the Titanic as an oral report — a one-act play, where I played all the parts. No one wheeze-laughed harder than he.

So, why the sudden hectoring to do something at which I was sure to fail? His reply: “Because I love your stories. And if you’re willing to apply yourself, I think you have a good shot at this.”

***

Few things motivate a writer like a bit of shameless flattery.

I chose Paul Revere’s horse as my subject. The story would come straight from the horse’s mouth. Not a brilliant notion, but funny; and unlikely to be anyone else’s choice.

What did the horse think, as he ripped through the night, his coat sloughing sweat, his eyes wide with adrenaline? Did he get tired? Have doubts? Did he want to quit?

I sympathized immediately. I got tired. I had doubts. I wanted to quit.

But, like Revere’s fabled horse, I kept going.

I worked hard. I checked my spelling. With a dictionary. I enlisted my older sister to correct my grammar. I checked out a half-dozen books on Paul Revere from the library. I even read a few of them.

When I handed in the finished essay, my teacher read it, laughed out loud, and said, “Great. Now, write it again. And no name. Entries are anonymous.”

I wrote it again. And again and again. If I didn’t win, I didn’t care. I had poured a wobbly writer’s blood and sweat into something that made my teacher proud.

在我上中学的时候，我的社会学老师鼓励我参加一个由我们家乡的一个组织主办的写作比赛。我表示反对。

我喜欢历史。

我不喜欢写作。

我是一名古巴难民，从我第一次用粗粗的2号铅笔在D 'Nealian纸上的虚线上下划起，英语就成了我的克星。

我的老师知道我写得很潦草。我知道我缺乏自律。(我们都不知道的是，我也是诵读困难症患者。)

写作是如此折磨人，以至于我的老师允许我把关于泰坦尼克号沉没的论文作为口头报告——一出独幕剧，我在其中扮演所有的角色。没有人比他笑得更厉害了。

那么，为什么突然逼我我去做一件我肯定会失败的事呢?

他回答说:“因为我喜欢你的故事。如果你愿意努力，我认为你有很好的机会。”

* * *

很少有什么比一点无耻的奉承更能激励作家的了。

我选择保罗·里维尔的马作为我的主题。这个故事会直接从马嘴里说出来。这不是一个聪明的想法，但很有趣;，而且不太可能是别人的选择。

那匹马在黑夜中奔跑，外套上淌着汗水，眼睛因肾上腺素而睁得大大的，他在想什么?他累了吗?有疑问吗?他想辞职吗?

我立刻表示同情。我累了。我有过怀疑。我想放弃。

但是，就像里维尔传说中的马一样，我继续前进。

我努力地学习，认真检查了拼写。拿着字典，请姐姐纠正我的语法。

我甚至读了一些从图书馆借的六本关于保罗·里维尔的书。

我的老师读了我的作文，大声笑着说:“太好了。现在再写一遍。不要署名或者作者就写匿名。”

我不断地又写了一遍又一遍。即使结果失败了，我也不在乎。我把一个摇摇欲坠的作家的心血和汗水倾注在了让老师感到骄傲的事情上。

续写部分

Weeks passed. I forgot the competition. Thoughts of winning — a pipe dream to begin with — gave way to the enticements of a Georgia spring.

Then came the news.

There were two winners from each grade. A lanky, sweet-natured redhead in my class won second place.

I won first place.

That may have been the first time in my chatty life I was struck dumb, in any language.

Our teacher hooted with delight, my classmates stared at me in open disbelief, and Second-Place Red gamely shook my hand.

The following week, the winners met with the head of the sponsoring organization. We stood in the office, clutching our plaques and tittering to one another, when a small, birdlike woman entered. She spoke to the adults, then made her way down the line of winners, congratulating each of us and shaking hands. Red and I were last. We introduced ourselves. She looked from one to the other.

She didn’t speak.

She didn’t extend her hand.

After a few awkward seconds, she cleared her throat and explained that there had been an embarrassing mistake.

Then she gently reached down and took our plaques — hands crossing at the wrists, she re-assigned them — and apologized for the error.

I was now the second-place winner.

No one challenged her.

It wasn’t until later that I remembered. Our entries were anonymous. How could she have known which child had won what?

***

I can’t tie a bow on the end of this strange tale and make it pretty. It’s not that kind of story. But there is this: I got a taste for writing that spring. I learned to respect a writer’s labor and perseverance. And — despite the challenges of both dyslexia and a second language — I never stopped writing.

几周过去了。我忘记了比赛。

我被乔治亚州春天美丽的景色迷住了，因为本来获胜只是白日梦。

接着传来了消息。

每个年级都有两个获奖者。我班上高瘦、性格温和的红发女孩获得了二等奖。我获得了一等奖。

这可能是我爱说话的生命中，第一次被弄得哑口无言。我们的老师兴高采烈地大笑，我的同学们则惊讶地盯着我，二等奖的红发女孩雷德勇敢地握了我的手。

接下来的一周，获奖者与赞助组织的负责人会面了。我们站在办公室里，拿着我们的奖牌，互相窃笑着。这时一个身材娇小、像鸟一样的女人走了进来。

她先跟大人们说了几句话，向我们每个人表示祝贺，并和我们握手。最后是红发女孩雷德和我。我们自我介绍。她看着我们两个，却没说什么。她也没有伸出手。

尴尬的几秒钟后，她清了清嗓子，解释道发生了一个尴尬的错误。

然后她轻轻地伸手拿走了我们的奖牌——手腕交叉着，重新分配了奖项，并为这个错误道歉。

我现在是二等奖得主。没有人质疑她。直到后来我才记起：我们的参赛作品是匿名的。她怎么可能知道是谁获得了什么奖项呢？***

我不能为这个奇怪的故事做一个漂亮的结束。这不是那种故事。

但是有一点：那年春天我品尝到了写作的滋味。我学会了尊重作家的劳动和毅力。尽管我有阅读障碍和语言障碍，我从未停止写作。