Hey, guys!
Welcome to Archimedes English Teatime! Here is today’sepisode.
Children’s Games
One of my favorite places in a park is the lawn, wheremany parents hang out with their young kids, most of whom are toddlers. Duringthe National Day Holiday, I took a walk in the Huangxin Park and witnessed someinteresting games.
In the far corner on the lawn near the lake, Iunfolded my picnic sheet and sat myself on it. When I looked around, I saw fivefamilies who looked like friends. They put up their tents next to each other.All their children’s toys were kept in a stroller, where a two-year-old boy wassitting. All the other five kids were running after each other, screamingexcitedly.
While other parents were sitting and chatting heartedlynear the lake, a middle-aged father clapped his hands and began to talk. “Hey,kids! Come here. Let’s play a game named The eagle is coming!” Soon, the fivekids followed his order and stood in a line. He continued: “For the first time,I’m going to be the eagle and Lily is going to be the hen while all the othersare chickens. Once I say: Go, I will run after you to catch you. Every chickenshould tag to each other closely. Is that clear?” “Yes!” After he shouted Go, unexpectedly,the hen untagged herself from the flock immediately and ran away as fast as shecould. Not surprisingly, all the chickens followed suit and scattered around. Themiddle-aged father laughed to the hen: “Your job was to keep your chickenssafe.”
One of the chickens was so amused by the game that helay himself on the ground. Therefore, he was caught. According to the rule, hebecame the eagle in the next turn. No kids behaved in exactly the same way.They held different attitudes towards the game. Some were very serious aboutbeing MVP while other simply were having fun. As a result, those who were seriousabout the game were often angry with their teammates who did not try their bestto win the game.
When the kids grew tired of the game, they invented agame funner, pulling the cart in which the little boy was dwelling. Some kidswere pulling the handle of the cart while others were pushing it from behind.They were driving the cart uphill and downhill with seemingly infinite energy andpleasure. The young dweller in the cart enjoyed his privilege so intensely thathe held high a sword like a general and loudly commanded his men to chargeforward. The new game went on for about five minutes and all kids shouted atthe top of their lungs. It came to a sudden halt when the cart rolled over.Luckily, the lawn was soft and the “general” was intact. He was not afraid atall and climbed back into the cart in no time and gave order for anotherattempt. His parent, the middle-aged father, stopped the little army fromtaking another adventure just in time.
Then came the intriguing moment. The kid who hadspared no effort to be MVP in whatever game took a pair of sunglasses from thecart, where all the toys were kept. The “general” burst into crying and demandedthe sunglasses back. The MVP hesitated for a while, seeming to take stock ofpros and cons of what to do next. He took a glance at the middle-aged fatherwho was standing near the tent, yielded reluctantly and gave the “general” thesunglasses. Then he came up with a trick. He took a toy telescope and seemed tobe enjoying it when he pointed it skyward. As he had expected, the “general”was so amazed at his enjoyment and begged to trade his sunglasses for the telescope.The MVP nodded his head and looked very content with the deal.
The game was going on and the kids were rehearsingtheir social skills, which can be vital to their life journey. For those who gotwhat they wanted through contact, this gaming experience may become their steppingstones for further opening up. On the contrary, for those who lost what theywanted through the contact, this gaming experience may become their obstaclesfor moving on. Meanwhile, there is no denying that the “general” enjoyed moreadvantages because his parent was involved in the games better than his counterparts.However, the MVP may grow more independent because he figured out somestrategies to get what he wanted without resorting to his parents’ help.
Compared with them, those kids who were neglected andlacked strategies may meet more challenges on their way forward.
孩子的游戏
公园里我最喜欢的地方之一是草坪，许多父母和年幼的孩子一起出去玩，他们中的大多数是蹒跚学步的孩子。国庆长假期间，我在公园散步，目睹了一些有趣的游戏。
在湖边草坪上的角落里，我铺开野营的毯子，坐在上面。当我环顾四周时，我看到五个家庭，他们看起来像是朋友。他们各自的帐篷相互临近，而所有孩子的玩具都放在婴儿车里，一个两岁的男孩坐在婴儿车里。其他五个孩子都在奔跑，兴奋地尖叫着。
当其他父母坐在湖边开心地聊天时，一位中年父亲拍着手，开始说话。"嘿，孩子们！过来这里。让我们玩一个游戏叫老鹰抓小鸡！”很快，五个孩子按照他的命令站成一排。他继续说："第一次我做老鹰，莉莉做母鸡，而其小朋友都是小鸡。我一说：开始，我就会跑去抓你们。每只小鸡都应该抓住前面一个的衣角。明白吗？"明白！他喊了一声"开始"后，不料，母鸡立刻从鸡群中脱身，以最快的速度跑开了。毫不奇怪，所有的小鸡都学她的方式，四处逃散。那位中年父亲笑着对母鸡说：“你的任务应该是保证小鸡的安全。”
其中一只小鸡被游戏逗乐了，他索性躺在了地上。因此，他被抓住了。根据规则，他成为下一轮游戏里的老鹰。在这个游戏里，所有孩子的行为方式都不一样，他们对游戏持不同的态度。有些孩子非常认真地想成为 MVP， 而另一些人只是想玩得很开心。因此，那些对游戏很较真的小朋友常常对队友们感到愤怒，责怪他们没有尽力去赢得游戏。
当孩子们玩够这个游戏时，他们自己发明了一个更好玩的游戏，去推拉小男孩乘坐的手推车。有些孩子在拉手推车的把手，而另一些孩子则从后面推车。他们驱赶着手推车上坡和下坡，释放无限的精力和乐趣。手推车上的乘客非常享受他的特权，他像“将军”一样高举一把玩具剑，大声命令手下向前冲。新的游戏持续了大约五分钟，所有的孩子都声嘶力竭地喊叫。当车向一边侧翻时，游戏突然停了下来。幸运的是，草坪很柔软，"将军"完好无损。他一点也不害怕，很快爬回车上，并下令再次冲锋。他的父母，那位中年父亲，及时阻止了这支军队的再次冒险。
然后是耐人寻味的时刻。那个不遗余力地成为MVP的孩子从车上拿了一副太阳镜，当时所有的玩具都放在车上。坐在在手推车里的"将军"嚎啕大哭，要求把太阳镜放回去。MVP犹豫了一会儿，似乎在评估下一步该做什么的利弊。他瞥了一眼站在帐篷旁的那个孩子的中年父亲，不情愿地屈服了，把太阳镜给了"将军"。然后他想出了一个主意。他拿起一个玩具望远镜，表现出很享受的样子，把望远镜指向天空。正如他所料，"将军"对他的举动非常惊讶，并恳求用太阳镜交换望远镜。MVP点点头，看起来他对这笔交易非常满意。
游戏正在进行，孩子们正在排练他们的社交技巧，这对他们的生活旅程至关重要。对于那些通过交往获得他们想要的东西孩子来说，这种游戏体验可能成为他们进一步敞开自我的垫脚石。相反，对于那些在交往中失去他们想要的东西的孩子来说，这种游戏体验可能会成为他们敞开自己的障碍。同时，难以否认的是"将军"享有更多的优势，因为他的父亲比其他家长更多参与了孩子们的游戏。不过，MVP可能会变得更加独立，因为他想出了一些对策以获得他想要的东西，并且没有求助于他的父母的帮助。与他们相比，那些被忽视和同时又缺乏策略的孩子在未来的道路上可能会遇到更多的挑战。
祝愿所有的孩子们健康茁壮成长！
