托福写作范文系列文章(Part 26)

　　1 Some young children spend a great amount of their time practicing sports. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of this. Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.

　　Most kids love to play sports. It’s important to them, but for the majority, it’s just one type of activity out of many that they do. For a small number of kids, though, a sport becomes their whole life. They spend almost all their time and energy practicing. This has both advantages and disadvantages.

　　Sports are good for young children in many ways. Kids who enjoy sports are likely to have better health. They develop good habits of daily exercise that will keep them healthy as adults, too. Today, many children and adults are overweight, but those who love sports stay in shape. Plus, by developing their physical abilities, they will learn how to work hard towards a goal. Their achievements in sports will make them feel good about themselves. They’ll also make friends and learn teamwork. Sports, whether a little or a lot, can have positive effects.

　　We admire the talent and dedication of young athletes, but we also wonder if they’re losing something. Their focus is very narrow. If they devote most of their time to sports, are they neglecting schoolwork? What about other interests? Children should try out many different activities. In addition, many young athletes are pressured by parents or coaches to succeed. Kids whose drive comes from inside usually do okay, but others can be unhappy and have health and emotional problems. So sports, like anything else in excess, can have negative effect too.

　　When I was young, I liked books and hated sports. I saw other people who loved sports and hated school. Now that I’m older, I’ve found a better balance. People have to figure out what’s right for them. Is there such a thing as too much sports? There is no right answer, because there is no “right amount.” Everyone is different.

　　2 Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Only people who earn a lot of money are successful. Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.

　　Many people believe that a large income equals success. I believe, however, that success is more than how much money you make. Some of those measures of success include fame, respect, and knowledge.

　　Most people assume that famous people are rich people, but that isn’t always true. For example, some day I would like to be a famous researcher. Few scientists are rich by today’s standards. Still I will feel myself to be successful if I am well-known. Additionally, there are many famous humanitarians who are not rich. Mother Theresa was one. Certainly, no one would say she was not successful.

　　I also believe that being respected by coworkers indicates success. Without that respect, money means little. For example, I once did some work for a top attorney in a law firm. He made a very good salary, but he wasn’t a nice man. No one ever did work for him willingly. He orderd everyone around, and we didn’t respect him. In contrast, however, I had a wonderful band director in high school. He had to take extra jobs just to make enough money to support his family. However, his students had great respect for him and always listened to what he said. As a result, we were a very good band. In my opinion, my band director was more successful than the attorney was.

　　Finally, I think one of the most important indicators of success is knowledge. Wealthy people don’t know all the answers. For example, in the movie Good Will Hunting, the only person who could solve some complex problems was the janitor. He knew a lot, and decided what he wanted to do with that knowledge rather than just think about money. In my opinion, he was extremely successful.

　　When we think of history, there are few people that we remember simply because they were rich. Overall, we remember people who did something with their lives － they were influential in politics, or contributed to science or art or religion. If history is the ultimate judge of success, then money surely isn’t everything.