Children at US School Show Their Support for Victims in Japan

Children at US School Show Their Support for Victims in Japan

Cranes are large birds with long legs and necks. In Japan and other East Asian cultures, they represent luck and long life.

Japanese tradition says a person who folds one thousand paper cranes gets the right to make a wish. Some schoolchildren in the United States have been folding cranes. They want to show they care about the victims of the March eleventh earthquake and tsunami in Japan.

Almost forty Japanese-American students attend Somerville Elementary School in Ridgewood, New Jersey. But all five hundred twenty-five students at the school have heard about the disasters. So they have decorated their school with paper origami cranes. Their wish is for a speedy recovery for the Japanese people.

Art teacher Samantha Stankiewicz says the activity gives students a way to express empathy for victims.

SAMANTHA STANKIEWICZ: "For children, the folding of the cranes has been a really positive way for them to feel like they're actively engaged, even though the cranes are symbolic."

These students thought out loud as they folded cranes in the school library.

BOY: "The crane is a symbol of hope, so we try to have a lot of hope for those people in Japan."

GIRL: "It makes me feel really happy that everyone's caring for another country."

GIRL: "I feel sad for them, like really sad for them. But I also feel happy for us, because we are really trying to help out."

And that help is not just in the form of paper cranes. The school principal, Lorna Oates-Santos, says children at Somerville Elementary have raised about two thousand dollars for disaster relief agencies.

LORNA OATES-SANTOS: "We will be donating that money to the American Red Cross and Save the Children. They are two groups that are ready on the ground in Japan to help the people of Japan."

The school has a television club that produces weekly programs on different subjects. Fourth-grade teacher Gabrielle King is director of the club, and says the students are involved in the school's efforts.

GABRIELLE KING: "When the earthquake happened, the children wanted to know what they could do to inform other students and raise awareness for the people in Japan. So, we decided to do a show on the earthquake, and to also making the cranes, the origami cranes."

Some American children have shown their feelings for the victims in Japan in other ways. Yasuhisa Kawamura is Japan's deputy consul general in New York.

YASUHISA KAWAMURA: "One American young girl dropped by the consulate a couple days ago with her own painting. The painting shows the two countries, Japan and the United States, shaking hands over the ocean, and saying 'We are with you.' So, we are very, very moved and touched by this young girl's expression."

And that's the VOA Special English  Education Report. The East Asia Program at Cornell University in the United States has a lesson plan and directions for folding origami cranes. You can find a link at www.kekenetcom. I'm Steve Ember.

 

基本翻译

n. 领事；（古罗马的）两执政官之一

翻译

鹤是有着长长的腿和脖子的大鸟。在日本和东亚其他文化中，鹤代表着幸运和长寿。

按照日本传统，折一千只纸鹤的人可以许一个愿望。美国一些学生现在就在折纸鹤。他们希望对3月11日地震和海啸的日本灾民表示关怀。

大约40名日裔美国学生在新泽西州里奇伍德萨默维尔小学就读。但是这所学校所有525名学生都听说了这场灾难。所以，他们用纸鹤将自己的学校装饰起来。他们的愿望是，希望日本灾民迅速恢复过来。

美术教师Samantha Stankiewicz表示，这项活动为孩子们提供了向灾民表达同情的机会。

Samantha Stankiewicz：“对孩子们来说，折纸鹤是一种积极的方式，可以让他们感觉到自己的参与，尽管纸鹤仅仅是象征性的。”

这些学生在学校的图书馆折纸鹤时大声说出了自己的想法。

男孩：“纸鹤是希望的象征，我们对日本人民也寄予很多希望。”

女孩：“每个人都关心另外一个国家，这让我感到非常开心。”

女孩：“我为他们感到伤心，非常伤心。但是我也非常高兴，因为我们正努力帮助他们摆脱困境。”

学生们的帮助不仅仅是折纸鹤。这所学校的校长Lorna Oates-Santos表示，萨默维尔小学的孩子们为灾难救济机构筹集了大约2,000美元的善款。

Lorna Oates-Santos：“我们将把这笔捐款捐赠给美国红十字会和儿童救助会。这两个组织已经准备好赶赴日本帮助灾民。”

这所学校拥有一个电视俱乐部，每周都会针对不同的话题制作节目。四年级教师Gabrielle King是这个俱乐部的主任。她说，学生们非常积极参与学校的活动。

Gabrielle King：“地震发生的时候，孩子们希望知道怎样通知其他学生，怎样提醒日本民众。所以，我们决定制作一期关于地震的节目，同时也要制作一些纸鹤。”

一些美国学生还以其他方式表达了自己对灾民的同情。Yasuhisa Kawamura是日本驻纽约的副总领事。

Yasuhisa Kawamura：“一位美国女孩几天前拿着自己的绘画来到领事馆。画面显示日本和美国隔着海洋握手，说‘我们和你们在一起’。我们被这个小女孩的画深深的感动了。”

 

词汇

1.attend vt.出席,参加;照顾,护理;伴随,陪伴

 

例句：The school was attended almost entirely by local children.

      上这个学校读书的几乎全是当地的孩子。

 

2.decorate vt.装饰

 

例句：My mother likes to decorate rooms.

      我妈妈非常喜欢装饰房间。

 

3.speedy adj.快的,快速的,迅速的

 

例句：Have you finished your composition already?You are very speedy.

      你已经写完作文了吧?你动作真快。

 

4.empathy n.<心>移情作用;同感;共鸣 ['empəθi]

 

例句：I felt real empathy for my mother and what she had been through.

      我对母亲所经历的一切深有同感。

 

      She had a deep empathy with animals.

      她对动物有深切的感情。

 

5.symbolic adj.象征的；使用象征的；作为象征的；象征性的

 

例句：The Christian ceremony of baptism is a symbolic act.

      基督教的洗礼仪式是一种象征性的做法。

 

6.weekly adj.一周一次的[地], 每周的[地]

 

例句：He writes a weekly letter to his parents.

      他每周给父母写一封信。

 

7.awareness n.察觉;觉悟;意识

 

例句：a growing awareness of healthy living

      不断增强的健康生活的意识

8. crane [krein]

基本翻译

n. 吊车，起重机；鹤

vt. 用起重机起吊；伸长脖子

vi. 伸着脖子看；迟疑，踌躇

9.victim ['viktim]

基本翻译

n. 受害人；牺牲品；牺牲者

10. origami [,ɔri'ɡa:mi, ,ɔ:-]

基本翻译

n. 折纸手工；折纸手工品

网络释义

Origami:玻璃面 | 折纸教学 | 折纸

11. positive ['pɔzətiv, -zi-]

基本翻译

n. 正数；[摄] 正片

adj. 积极的；[数] 正的，[化学][医] 阳性的；确定的，肯定的；实际的，真实的；绝对的

12.symbolic [sim'bɔlik]

基本翻译

adj. 象征的；符号的；使用符号的

13. Think out loud, say it again大声说出来

think aloud (out loud)边想边说出声

14. relief [ri'li:f]

基本翻译

n. 救济；减轻，解除；安慰

 

15. donate [dəu'neit, 'dəu-]vt. 捐赠；捐献vi. 捐赠；捐献n. 捐赠；捐献

 

16. cultures ['kʌltʃəz]

基本翻译

n. 文明，文化（culture复数）

17. think out loud 自言自语；想的出神说出声来

18. help out 帮助摆脱困难

19. principal ['prinsəpəl] n. 校长；委托人，当事人；资本；主犯  adj. 首要的；最重要的

20. relief [ri'li:f]  n. 救济；减轻，解除；安慰

内容解析

1.Cranes are large birds with long legs and necks.

with long legs and necks介词短语作后置定语

有些形容词常与某些介词短语搭配，作后置定语。

The leaders present at the meeting totalled eight．出席会议的领导共有八人。

This is a subject worthy of careful study．这是一个值得仔细研究的问题。

另外，有些形容词（表语形容词除外）与介词搭配时，我们还可以把它和其后的介词拆开，即将形容词置于名词之前，将介词短语置于名词后。如：a question different from this one= a different question from this one 一个与此不同的问题

2.Some schoolchildren in the United States have been folding cranes.

have been folding现在完成进行时

现在完成进行时和现在完成时有相同之处，也有不同之处。

(1) 现在完成时强调动作的完成，而现在完成进行时强调动作的延续，因此，表示动作的完成，只能用现在完成时，而不能用现在完成进行时。如：He has changed his idea. 他改变了想法。

(2) 在表示动作的延续时，虽然既可用现在完成时，也可用现在完成进行时，但现在完成进行时强调动作的进行。因此在需要明确表示动作还要持续下去时，应用现在完成进行时。如：

We have been studying here for two years. 我们在这儿已经学习了两年了。

(3) 有些延续性动词(如 keep, learn, live, stay, study, work等)，用于现在完成时或现在完成进行时的区别不大。如：

I have lived here for many years.=I have been living here for many years. 我在这儿住了多年了。

3.But I also feel happy for us, because we are really trying to help out.

help out帮助, 帮助…出来

例句：She's always willing to help out.
      她总是乐于帮助人。

4.One American young girl dropped by the consulate a couple days ago with her own painting.

drop by顺便拜访

例句：Drop by whenever you like.
      想来就随时来坐坐。