It’s the end of the school year. Most schools in the United States close for the summer. They don’t have air conditioning, and it’s too hot to be inside. Students and teachers can look forward to a summer vacation that lasts three months.

Students are excited about the summer. Some students will go to summer camps. Others will go on vacation. Kids join sports groups and go to the parks and the beaches. Some kids take swimming lessons at community pools.

Older kids have jobs. It’s important to start saving money for college, so they find jobs at stores and restaurants. They cut lawns or babysit. Some kids help their parents on the family farm.

Teachers also get jobs during the summer. Teacher’s salaries in the United States are not as high as they are in other industrialized countries. A summer job becomes necessary, especially for teachers who have large families to support.

Nowadays, it’s possible for students to take classes online during the summer. They don’t want to forget anything, so they continue learning. There are a lot of free programs in the areas of math, science, and English. If you want to get ahead of the other students, the summer is a good time to do that.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

Now you try it. Read the paragraph above. If you have a microphone, you can record your voice and compare it to my voice.

  How much do you remember from the reading? Fill in the blanks.

• 1A: How long is summer vacation?
• 1B: It __________ months.
• 2A: Where can kids learn to swim?
• 2B: They learn to swim at ___________ pools.
• 3A: Why do older kids get jobs in the summer?
• 3B: They want to save money for __________.

 (Answers: 1. three; 2. community; 3. college)

  back    next

Or….Move forward to the Red Level