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HelenPearson_2017-_一项最长期的人类发展研究教导了我们什么？_
Today I want to confess something to you, but first of all I'm going to ask you a couple of questions. 今天,我要向各位承认一件事, 但首先,我要先问你们一些问题。
confess:v.承认;坦白;忏悔;供认; first of all:adv.首先;
How many people here have children? 在座有多少人有孩子？
And how many of you are confident that you know how to bring up your children in exactly the right way? 有多少人有信心 知道如何用正确的方式 来养育你的孩子？
confident:adj.自信的;确信的;
(Laughter) （笑声）
OK, I don't see too many hands going up on that second one, and that's my confession , too. 好,第二个问题没有很多人举手, 我要承认的也是这件事。
confession:n.忏悔,告解;供认;
I've got three boys; they're three, nine and 12. 我有三个儿子; 分别 3 岁、9 岁、12 岁。
And like you, and like most parents, the honest truth is I have pretty much no idea what I'm doing. 我和你们……和大部分父母一样, 老实说我真的不知道我在做什么。
I want them to be happy and healthy in their lives, but I don't know what I'm supposed to do to make sure they are happy and healthy. 我想要让孩子一生都快乐、健康, 但我并不知道我该怎么做, 才能确保他们能快乐和健康。
supposed:adj.误信的;所谓的;v.认为;假设;设想;(suppose的过去分词和过去式)
There's so many books offering all kinds of conflicting advice, it can be really overwhelming . 很多书提供了各种意见, 有些还互相矛盾, 这种书多到不行。
conflicting:adj.互相斗争的;相冲突的;v.冲突,抵触;(conflict的现在分词) overwhelming:adj.势不可挡的; v.压倒; (overwhelm的现在分词)
So I've spent most of their lives just making it up as I go along. 所以,他们大部分的人生, 我都是边摸索边养大的。
However, something changed me a few years ago, when I came across a little secret that we have in Britain. 然而,几年前,有件事改变了我, 我偶然发现我们英国有一个小秘密。
It's helped me become more confident about how I bring up my own children, and it's revealed a lot about how we as a society can help all children. 它协助我对如何养育 孩子变得更有信心, 也有很多关于我们社会 要如何协助所有孩子的资讯。
revealed:v.揭示;显示;露出;(reveal的过去分词和过去式)
I want to share that secret with you today. 今天我想和大家分享这个秘密。
For the last 70 years, scientists in Britain have been following thousands of children through their lives as part of an incredible scientific study. 过去七十年, 英国的科学家一直在追踪 数千名孩童的一生, 并整理出一项了不起的科学研究。
incredible:adj.难以置信的,惊人的; scientific:adj.科学的,系统的;
There's nothing quite like it anywhere else in the world. 世界其它国家都没有这样的研究。
Collecting information on thousands of children is a really powerful thing to do, because it means we can compare the ones who say, do well at school or end up healthy or happy or wealthy as adults, and the ones who struggle much more, 要收集数千名孩童的资料 是件非常强大的事情, 因为那意味着,我们可以将那些 在学校表现出色, 或长大后健康、快乐、有钱的人, 和碰到比较多困境的人做比较,
compare:v.比较;对比;n.比较;
and then we can sift through all the information we've collected and try to work out why their lives turned out different. 接着我们详细研究了 所有收集到的资料, 试着找出为什么他们的 人生发展结果不同。
sift:vt.筛选;撒;过滤;详查;vi.筛;详查;撒下;细究;
This British study -- it's actually a kind of crazy story. 这项英国研究── 其实是个有点疯狂的故事。
So it all starts back in 1946, just a few months after the end of the war, when scientists wanted to know what it was like for a woman to have a baby at the time. 一切开始于 1946 年, 在战争结束后几个月, 科学家想要知道 女性在那时有孩子 是什么样的感觉。
They carried out this huge survey of mothers and ended up recording the birth of nearly every baby born in England, Scotland and Wales in one week. 他们针对母亲进行了一个大型调查, 最后记录了当周在英国、苏格兰、 威尔斯诞生的每个宝宝的出生资讯。
survey:n.调查;测量;审视;纵览;vt.调查;勘测;俯瞰;vi.测量土地;
That was nearly 14,000 babies. 有近 14,000 个宝宝的资料。
The questions they asked these women are very different than the ones we might ask today. 他们问这些女性的问题 和我们现今可能会问的问题差很多。
different than:不同于;
They sound really old-fashioned now. 现在听来会觉得很老套。
old-fashioned:adj.老式的;过时的;守旧的;
They asked them things like, "During pregnancy , did you get your full extra ration of a pint of milk a day?" 问的问题类似这样: 「在怀孕期间, 你是否每天都有拿到 额外配给的一品脱牛奶？」
pregnancy:n.怀孕;丰富,多产;意义深长; extra:adj.额外的:n.额外的事物:adv.额外:另外: ration:v.配给;定量供应;n.定量;口粮;配给量;
'"How much did you spend on smocks , corsets , nightdresses , knickers and brassieres ?" 「你花多少钱在工作服、紧身胸衣、 睡衣、衬裤、胸罩上？」
smocks:n.(多为女性穿的)宽松式衬衫;罩衣;工作服;(smock的复数) corsets:n.束身内衣;紧身内衣(corset的复数); nightdresses:na.女睡衣;(nightdresses是nightdress的复数); knickers:n.灯笼裤,短裤;女用灯笼裤型的扎口短裤; brassieres:胸罩(brassiere的复数);
And this is my favorite one: "Who looked after your husband while you were in bed with this baby?" 我最喜欢的是这个: 「当你和这个宝宝在床上时, 谁照顾你的先生？」
(Laughter)
Now, this wartime study actually ended up being so successful that scientists did it again. 这项战时的研究最后非常成功, 让科学家决定再做一次。
wartime:n.战时;
They recorded the births of thousands of babies born in 1958 and thousands more in 1970. 他们记录了 1958 年 出生的数千名宝宝, 1970 年又再记录了数千名。
They did it again in the early 1990s, and again at the turn of the millennium . 九〇年初期他们又做了一次, 在千禧年时又做了一次。
millennium:n.千年期,千禧年;一千年,千年纪念;太平盛世,黄金时代;
Altogether, more than 70,000 children have been involved in these studies across those five generations. 全部加起来,这些研究涉及了 超过 70,000 名孩童, 跨越五个世代。
involved:adj.有关的; v.涉及; (involve的过去式和过去分词)
They're called the British birth cohorts , and scientists have gone back and recorded more information on all of these people every few years ever since. 他们称之为 「英国出生世代的大型调查」, 每几年,科学家就得回去 记录所有这些人的更多资讯。
cohorts:n.一群人,一批人;同伙;支持者;(cohort的复数)
The amount of information that's now been collected on these people is just completely mind-boggling . 从这些人收集来的资料量 多到难以想像。
mind-boggling:adj.令人难以置信的;令人惊异的;
It includes thousands of paper questionnaires and terabytes' worth of computer data. 包括了数千份的纸本问卷, 及好几兆位元组的电脑资料。
questionnaires:n.问卷,调查表(questionnaire的复数形式);
Scientists have also built up a huge bank of tissue samples, which includes locks of hair, nail clippings , baby teeth and DNA. 科学家也建立了一个 组织样本的大型资料庫, 包含头发绺、剪下的指甲、 宝宝牙齿及 DNA。
tissue:n.纸巾,手巾纸;(人、动植物细胞的)组织; clippings:n.剪报(clipping的复数形式);剪下的碎边;
They've even collected 9,000 placentas from some of the births, which are now pickled in plastic buckets in a secure storage warehouse . 他们甚至从一些分娩中 收集了 9,000 个胎盘, 它们目前被腌渍在塑胶桶中, 安全地储存在仓庫里。
placentas:n.[胚]胎盘;[植]胎座; pickled:adj.腌渍的;醉醺醺的;v.腌渍;(pickle的过去分词和过去式) buckets:n.大桶状物; v.拼命划桨; (bucket的第三人称单数和复数) warehouse:n.仓库,货栈;货仓;
This whole project has become unique -- so, no other country in the world is tracking generations of children in quite this detail. 这整个计画变得独一无二── 所以,目前没有其它国家 追踪数代孩童资料 追踪地那么仔细。
unique:adj.独特的,稀罕的;[数]唯一的;n.独一无二的人或物; tracking:n.追踪,跟踪;v.跟踪;(track的现在分词)
These are some of the best-studied people on the planet, and the data has become incredibly valuable for scientists, generating well over 6,000 academic papers and books. 这些人是地球上 被研究得最透彻的人, 这些资料对科学家来说 是极度有价值的, 产生了超过 6,000 篇 学术论文以及书籍。
incredibly:adv.难以置信地;非常地; valuable:adj.有价值的;贵重的;可估价的;n.贵重物品; generating:v.产生;引起;(generate的现在分词) academic:adj.学术的;理论的;学院的;n.大学生,大学教师;学者;
But today I want to focus on just one finding -- perhaps the most important discovery to come from this remarkable study. 但现今,我只想着重 在其中一项发现── 也许是这了不起的研究 带来最重大的一项发现。
remarkable:adj.卓越的;非凡的;值得注意的;
And it's also the one that spoke to me personally , because it's about how to use science to do the best for our children. 且这项发现对我个人蛮有意义的, 因为它告诉了我,如何利用科学的方法 带给孩子最好的教育。
personally:adv.个人;亲自;本人;就本人而言;
So, let's get the bad news out of the way first. 所以,我们先谈谈它的黑暗面。
Perhaps the biggest message from this remarkable study is this: don't be born into poverty or into disadvantage , because if you are, you're far more likely to walk a difficult path in life. 也许这项伟大研究是要告诉我们: 不要出生于贫困或弱势, 因为若是这样的话, 你人生走得较艰苦的可能性 会高很多。
poverty:n.贫困;困难;缺少;低劣; disadvantage:n.不利因素;障碍;不便之处;
Many children in this study were born into poor families or into working-class families that had cramped homes or other problems, and it's clear now that those disadvantaged children have been more likely to struggle on almost every score. 这项研究的许多孩童 生在贫穷的家庭, 或劳动阶级家庭,有的住处狭窄, 有的家中有其它问题。 现在很明显可看出,那些弱势孩童 在各方面几乎都走得比较艰苦。
working-class:adj.工人阶级的;劳动阶级的; cramped:adj.狭小的;拥挤的;密密麻麻的;v.阻碍,阻止;(cramp的过去分词和过去式) disadvantaged:adj.贫困的; n.弱势团体; v.使处于不利地位(disadvantage的过去式和过去分词);
They've been more likely to do worse at school, to end up with worse jobs and to earn less money. 他们很可能在学校的表现较差, 后来的工作比较差, 赚的钱也比较少。
Now, maybe that sounds really obvious , but some of the results have been really surprising, so children who had a tough start in life are also more likely to end up unhealthy as adults. 也许这听起来是不用说也知道, 但有些结果却十分让人意外, 人生起跑点就比较艰苦的孩童 长大也比较可能会 变成不健康的成人。
obvious:adj.明显的;显著的;平淡无奇的; unhealthy:不健康的
They're more likely to be overweight , to have high blood pressure , and then decades down the line, more likely to have a failing memory, poor health and even to die earlier. 他们比较可能会过胖、 有高血压, 且在数十年后, 比较可能会记忆衰退、 健康状况差,甚至早逝。
overweight:adj.超重的;过重的;vt.使负担过重;n.超重; blood pressure:n.[医]血压;
Now, I talked about what happens later, but some of these differences emerge at a really shockingly early age. 我刚说的是后续发生的状况, 但另人吃惊的是, 有些差异在很早期就会浮现。
emerge:v.浮现;显现;暴露;露出真相; shockingly:adv.怕人地,非常地;不正当地;
In one study, children who were growing up in poverty were almost a year behind the richer children on educational tests, and that was by the age of just three. 在一项研究中, 在贫穷环境中成长的孩童 在教育考试的表现, 会落后有钱孩童一年之多, 而且在三岁时就会显现出来。
educational:adj.教育的;有关教育的;有教育意义的
These types of differences have been found again and again across the generations. 在各世代,我们都会 发现这类的差异。
again and again:adv.再三地,反复地;
It means that our early circumstances have a profound influence on the way that the rest of our lives play out. 这意味着,我们早年的处境, 对人生后续发展有着深远的影响。
circumstances:n.情况;环境;情形;(circumstance的复数) profound:adj.深厚的;意义深远的;渊博的; influence:n.影响;势力;感化;有影响的人或事;v.影响;改变;
And working out why that is is one of the most difficult questions that we face today. 找出这背后的原因, 是我们现今面临到 最困难的问题之一。
So there we have it. 所以,就是这样。
The first lesson for successful life, everyone, is this: choose your parents very carefully. 各位,成功人生的第一课就是: 小心选择你的父母。
(Laughter) （笑声）
Don't be born into a poor family or into a struggling family. 不要生在贫穷 或是谋生艰困的家庭中。
Now, I'm sure you can see the small problem here. 我相信各位都能发现, 这里有一个小问题。
We can't choose our parents or how much they earn, but this British study has also struck a real note of optimism by showing that not everyone who has a disadvantaged start ends up in difficult circumstances. 我们无法选择父母或是他们的收入, 但这项英国研究也传达出 一项乐观的讯息, 研究显示,并非所有 在起跑点就属弱势的人 最后就一定会身处困苦的境遇。
optimism:n.乐观;乐观主义;
As you know, many people have a tough start in life, but they end up doing very well on some measure nevertheless , and this study starts to explain how. 如你所知,许多人 在人生刚开始很辛苦, 最后他们在某些地方 表现非常出色, 而这项研究对此做了解释。
nevertheless:adv.然而,不过;虽然如此;conj.然而,不过;
So the second lesson is this: parents really matter. 所以第二课是: 父母真的很重要。
In this study, children who had engaged , interested parents, ones who had ambition for their future, were more likely to escape from a difficult start. 在这项研究中, 如果孩童的父母很投入、很关心, 对他们的未来有着野心, 这些孩童就比较有机会 脱离困苦的开端。
engaged:adj.已订婚的; v.吸引住; (engage的过去分词和过去式) ambition:n.追求的目标;野心;志向;抱负;
It seems that parents and what they do are really, really important, especially in the first few years of life. 似乎父母本身,以及他们的 所做所为,都非常重要, 特别是在孩童人生中的前几年。
especially:adv.尤其;特别;格外;十分;
Let me give you an example of that. 让我举个例子。
In one study, scientists looked at about 17,000 children who were born in 1970. 在一项研究中, 科学家研究了约 17,000 名 生于 1970 年的孩童。
They sifted all the mountains of data that they had collected to try to work out what allowed the children who'd had a difficult start in life to go on and do well at school nevertheless. 他们仔细探究了 他们收集到的大量资料, 试图想要找出 是什么因素 让人生开端很困苦的孩童 能继续走下去 并在学校表现出色。
sifted:v.细查;详审;区分;挑选;精选;(sift的过去分词和过去式)
In other words, which ones beat the odds . 换言之,他们是如何创造不可能的？
odds:n.几率;胜算;不平等;差别;
The data showed that what mattered more than anything else was parents. 资料显示,最重要的因素就是父母。
Having engaged, interested parents in those first few years of life was strongly linked to children going on to do well at school later on. 大部分后续能在学校 表现出色的孩童, 在人生的前几年都有 投入且关心的父母相随。
In fact, quite small things that parents do are associated with good outcomes for children. 事实上,父母做的一些小事, 都与孩童将来的好表现有关。
associated:adj.有关联的; v.联想; (associate的过去分词和过去式) outcomes:n.结果;成果;后果;出路;(outcome的复数)
Talking and listening to a child, responding to them warmly , teaching them their letters and numbers, taking them on trips and visits. 跟孩童说话并倾听他们、 以温暖的方式回应他们、 教他们字母和数字、 带他们出去玩或造访别人。
responding:v.响应;作出反应;反应灵敏;(respond的现在分词) warmly:adv.热情地;温暖地;亲切地;
Reading to children every day seems to be really important, too. 每天念书给孩童听也非常重要。
So in one study, children whose parents were reading to them daily when they were five and then showing an interest in their education at the age of 10, 所以,在一项研究中, 孩童在五岁时,若父母 每天念书给他们听, 在十岁时,若父母展现出 对他们所学的内容感到兴趣,
were significantly less likely to be in poverty at the age of 30 than those whose parents weren't doing those things. 相较于父母不做这些事的孩童, 这些孩童在三十岁时, 有很大的机率不会贫穷。
significantly:adv.意味深长地;值得注目地;
Now, there are huge challenges with interpreting this type of science. 要诠释这类的科学, 有很大的挑战。
interpreting:n.解释;口译;v.解释;[语][计]翻译(interpret的现在分词);
These studies show that certain things that parents do are correlated with good outcomes for children, but we don't necessarily know those behaviors caused the good outcomes, or whether some other factor is getting in the way . 这些研究显示, 父母是否有做这些事情 对孩子将来的表现好坏有关, 但我们并不清楚 是那些行为造成了好表现, 或是还有其它因素夹在中间。
correlated:v.相互关联影响;相互依赖;(correlate的过去式和过去分词) necessarily:adv.必要地;必定地,必然地; factor:n.因素;要素;[物]因数;代理人;v.做代理商;v.把…作为因素计入; in the way:妨碍;挡道;
For example, we have to take genes into account, and that's a whole other talk in itself. 比如,我们得要考量基因, 光这点就可以再做一场演说。
genes:n.基因;(gene的复数)
But scientists working with this British study are working really hard to get at causes, and this is one study I particularly love. 但做这项英国研究的科学家 非常努力地想要找出原因, 而我特别喜爱的一项研究,
particularly:adv.特别地,独特地;详细地,具体地;明确地,细致地;
In this one, they looked at the bedtime routines of about 10,000 children born at the turn of the millennium. 是这项研究: 他们去研究一万名千禧年出生的孩童 上床睡觉时间的习惯。
Were the children going to bed at regular times, or did they go to bed at different times during the week? 研究这些孩童 是否有固定的上床时间, 或是平常日上床睡觉时间都不同？
at different times:在不同的时间;在不同的时代;
The data showed that those children who were going to bed at different times were more likely to have behavioral problems, and then those that switched to having regular bedtimes often showed an improvement in behavior, and that was really crucial , because it suggested it was the bedtime routines that were really helping things get better for those kids. 资料显示,在不同时间上床的孩童 比较有可能会产生行为问题, 而有固定上床时间的孩童 通常在行为上就会有改善, 这点非常重要, 因为它意味着,规律的上床时间 真的能协助孩童有更好的表现。
behavioral:adj.行为的; bedtimes:n.就寝时间;adj.适于睡前的; improvement:n.改进,改善; crucial:adj.重要的;决定性的;定局的;决断的;
Here's another one to think about. 还有一项研究值得思考。
In this one, scientists looked at children who were reading for pleasure. 在这项研究中, 科学家研究的是 把阅读当乐趣的孩童。
That means that they picked up a magazine, a picture book , a story book. 也就是常拿起杂志、 图画书、故事书的小孩子。
picture book:图画书;
The data showed that children who were reading for pleasure at the ages of five and 10 were more likely to go on in school better, on average, on school tests later in their lives. 资料显示,在五岁和十岁时 把阅读当乐趣的孩童, 平均来说,将来比较有可能在学校 有较好的考试成绩。
And not just tests of reading, but tests of spelling and maths as well. 不只是阅读相关的考试, 也包括拼字和数学的考试。
maths:数学(课)
This study tried to control for all the confounding factors , so it looked at children who were equally intelligent and from the same social-class background, 这项研究试图控制所有 会造成混淆的因素, 所以它研究的孩童, 有同等的智力、 来自同样的社会阶级背景,
confounding:v.使困惑惊讶;使惊疑;证明…有错;战胜;(confound的现在分词) factors:n.因素(factor的复数); v.做代理商; intelligent:adj.有才智的;悟性强的;聪明的;有智力的
so it seemed as if it was the reading which really helped those children go on and score better on those school tests later in their lives. 所以这样看来, 的确是阅读幫助了这些孩童 在后续的考试中能有好的表现。
Now at the start, 在一开始,
I said the first lesson from this study was not to be born into poverty or into disadvantage, because those children tend to follow more difficult paths in their lives. 我说过,这项研究教导的第一课 就是不要生在贫穷或弱势的家庭中, 因为这些孩童倾向会有 比较辛苦的人生道路。
But then I said that parenting matters, and that good parenting, if you can call it that, helps children beat the odds and overcome some of those early disadvantages . 但接着我说,父母是重要的, 好的养育,如果可以这么称它的话, 好的养育能协助孩童突破不可能 并克服早期的一些弱势。
overcome:vt.克服;胜过;vi.克服;得胜; disadvantages:n.不利因素;障碍;不便之处;(disadvantage的复数)
So wait, does that actually mean, then, that poverty doesn't matter after all? 等等, 那么这是否意味着 是否贫穷完全不重要？
You could argue it doesn't matter if a child is born poor -- as long as their parents are good parents, they're going to do just fine. 你会主张说:孩童是否 出生于贫穷并不重要── 只要他们的父母是好父母, 他们之后的表现就会很好。
as long as:conj.只要;长达;如果;既然;
I don't believe that's true. 我不相信这是对的。
This study shows that poverty and parenting matter. 这项研究显示贫困和养育是重要的。
And one study actually put figures on that, so it looked at children growing up in persistent poverty and how well they were doing at school. 有项研究真的加上了数字, 它研究了一直在贫困中成长的孩童, 看他们在学校的表现。
persistent:adj.固执的,坚持的;持久稳固的;
The data showed that even when their parents were doing everything right -- putting them to bed on time and reading to them every day and everything else -- that only got those children so far. 资料显示, 即使他们的父母做对了一切── 让他们准时上床, 每天念书给他们听, 及其它的每一件事── 也只能幫孩子到这样。
Good parenting only reduced the educational gap between the rich and poor children by about 50 percent. 好的养育也只能将 富有孩童和贫穷孩童 之间的教育落差减少约 50%。
gap:n.差距;间隙;缺口;间隔;v.使豁裂;豁开;
Now that means that poverty leaves a really lasting scar, and it means that if we really want to ensure the success and well-being of the next generation, then tackling child poverty is an incredibly important thing to do. 那意味着,贫穷留下的伤疤 会一直持续下去, 也意味着,如果我们真的 想要确保下一代的 成功和幸福, 那么如何处理孩童的贫困, 就是非常重要的事。
ensure:vt.保证,确保;使安全; well-being:n.幸福;康乐; tackling:n.装备,用具;扭住;v.处理;抓住;(tackle的现在分词);
Now, what does all this mean for you and me? 对你我来说,这又有什么意涵？
Are there lessons here we can all take home and use? 有什么我们可以带回家用的方法吗？
As a scientist and a journalist , 身为科学家和新闻工作者,
journalist:n.新闻工作者;报人;记日志者;
I like to have some science to inform my parenting ... 我会想要用科学的方法 来教我如何养育孩童……
inform:v.通知;告诉;报告;告发;告密;
and I can tell you that when you're shouting at your kids to go to bed on time, it really helps to have the scientific literature on your side. 我可以告诉各位,当你在大声叫 孩子准时上床时, 那你的案例对科学的 文献贡献会很大。
literature:n.文学;文献;文艺;著作;
(Laughter) （笑声）
And wouldn't it be great to think that all we had to do to have happy, successful children was to talk to them, be interested in their future, put them to bed on time, and give them a book to read? 如果说要让我们的孩子 能快乐、成功,我们 只需要和他们说话、 关心他们的未来、让他们准时上床、 给他们一本书看,这样不是很好吗？
Our job would be done. 我们的工作就完成了。
Now, as you can imagine, the answers aren't quite as simple as that . 各位应该可以想像, 答案并没有那么简单。
as simple as that:那样简单;如此简单;就这麽简单;
For one thing , this study looks at what happens to thousands and thousands of children on average, but that doesn't necessarily say what will help my child or your child or any individual child. 理由之一是,这项研究所探讨的 是数千名孩童的平均状况, 但那不表示它就一定能 幫助到我的孩子、你的孩子, 或任何各别的孩子。
For one thing:首先;一则; individual:n.个人;有个性的人;adj.单独的;个别的;
In the end, each of our children is going to walk their own path, and that's partly defined by the genes they inherit and of course all the experiences they have through their lives, including their interactions with us, their parents. 最终,我们的孩子 都得要走他们自己的路, 有部分是取决于他们被遗传的基因, 当然,还有他们一生中 走过的所有经验, 包括与我们── 也就是他们的父母──的互动。
defined:adj.有定义的,确定的; v.使明确; inherit:v.继承;接替(责任等);继任; interactions:n.[计]交互,相互作用;相互交流;干扰;(interaction复数)
I will tell you what I did after I learned all this. 让我告诉各位, 学到这些后我做了什么。
It's a bit embarrassing . 其实有点尴尬。
embarrassing:adj.令人尴尬的; v.使尴尬; (embarrass的现在分词)
I realized I was so busy working, and ironically , learning and writing about this incredible study of British children, that there were days when I hardly even spoke to my own British children. 我发现我忙着工作, 很讽刺的是, 我也忙着学习和撰写这项 关于英国孩童的伟大研究, 忙到有些日子我几乎没时间 跟我的孩子说话。
ironically:adv.讽刺地;说反话地;
So at home, we introduced talking time, which is just 15 minutes at the end of the day when we talk and listen to the boys. 所以回到家后, 我们设立了谈话时间, 在每天结束前的 15 分钟, 我们要和孩子说话 并倾听他们的声音。
I try better now to ask them what they did today, and to show that I value what they do at school. 我现在做得比较好, 会问他们今天做了什么事, 让他们知道我看重他们 在学校做的事。
Of course, I make sure they always have a book to read. 当然,我也会确保 他们随时都有本书能读。
I tell them I'm ambitious for their future, and I think they can be happy and do great things. 我告诉他们, 我期望他们有好的未来, 我认为他们能过得快乐、 能成就伟大的事。
ambitious:adj.野心勃勃的;有雄心的;热望的;炫耀的;
I don't know that any of that will make a difference , but I'm pretty confident it won't do them any harm, and it might even do them some good. 我不知道这样做是否能造成改变, 但我很有信心, 这样做对他们无害, 甚至对他们会有些好处。
make a difference:有影响,有关系;
Ultimately , if we want happy children, all we can do is listen to the science, and of course, listen to our children themselves. 最终,如果我们想要孩子快乐, 我们能做的只有听科学怎么说, 当然,还有, 听我们的孩子怎么说。
Ultimately:adv.最终;最后;归根结底;终究;
Thank you. 谢谢。