Some people think that parents should control how their children save and spend their money; Others think that children should be free to spend their money as they wish. Which view do you agree with？
题目：家长应该帮助控制孩子的用钱还是给孩子自由支配的权力？这是一个经典的parenting话题的题目，相信工作室的宝宝们都非常熟悉了吧！如果同意的话我们就说家长可以帮助他们培养对金钱的观念和理财意识，如果交给孩子自由支配他们只会挥霍在一些对他们来说很吸引人的地方（比如游戏，对）。如果反对的话我们就说孩子讨厌被支配，让他们独立成长吧！独立学习如何用钱比每一次消费都咨询父母意见更加让他们印象更加深刻。
认同：
From my perspective, I think it’s better for parents to help control their children’s money. First and foremost, parents are the biggest influence throughout the course of a child’s life. They have the responsibility to help guide their children on everything including financial habits before they step into adulthood. Otherwise, their children might get into really big trouble. For example, imagine a boy receives a certain amount of money, and he is told to use the money to his free will, what kind of things will he choose to buy? Probably splurge all of his money on a toy car. This can cause problem. Because once he runs out of his money, he will ask for more from his parents!
否定：
In my point of view, parents should give their children freedom to use their own money as they want. In the first place, children can learn how to budget the money by themselves. For example, when children made mistake and throw their money on things they don’t really need, they would run out of their money quickly and become financially struggled. So they’ll learn from their experience how to use their money reasonably when they started to earn money by themselves. On the contrary, if parents want to control over each purchase they make, they will feel upset because parents don’t have trust in them. This will cause a lot of conflicts, which may harm the parent-children relationship.
I would have to say that I agree with the statement that children should be free to spend their money as they wish. I think this is good for kids because they can learn how to make purchases for themselves. However I do realize that kids will most likely make some impulse buyings which might not be too practical. Take me for example. When I was young I bought a pair of roller blades which I thought I really wanted only to use them three times and to find out later that I actually preferred skateboarding way more. I think this helped me to make more thoughtful purchases in the future. Since I have experience buying things on my own from an early age, I have really learned to put more thought into what I buy and it has really helped me cherish the things I own and not take them for granted.
Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? It is always best to state your honest opinion, even when you know that others disagree. （重复2021.11.14考题；disagreement相关话题2015/2017/2018/2019年初第一场考试均重复考到）
题目：你是否同意如下观点：直抒己见永远是最好的，即使知道他人可能持有异议？
倘若同意问题抛出的观点，则可以说做人要诚实、实事求是，另一方面，坚持自己的意见可以给他人提供看待问题的不同视角。但通常来说，当提问中带有always，absolutely，never等绝对化字眼时，通常表明该言论过于武断，所以此题如果选择不同意，其实难度会有所降低——1. 有时候人们需要善意的谎言，这样可以避免伤害他人，此处建议举例说明 2. 适当保留自己的观点可以避免与他人的冲突升级
认同：
I actually agree with such statement. It is always best to state your honest opinion, even when I know that other people would disagree. This is because being honest is very important. For example, if my friend asks me a question about my favorite food, I would not hesitate to tell him the truth, because to me, there is no need to be shady about something so small. Or, if my friend asks me on a serious societal issue, I would also give my most sincere response, because it helps to provide view from different angles, maybe he will think twice on how this problem should be solved.
否定：
Well, I cannot speak for everybody, but personally, I would disagree with such statement. I don't think it's a good idea to state my honest opinion all the time, especially when I know that other people would possibly disagree. This is because, sometimes we need to lookout for other people's feelings I don't want to hurt my friend’s self-esteem, I don't want to break her heart. For example, one day, I went shopping with my best friend and she spotted a dress. Next thing was that, she tried the dress on, and asked for my opinion. Well, the thing is, that dress looked like hell, and the details on the dress looked disturbing. But I chose to keep honest words from vomiting and kept silence instead. The reason was simple- I think she could buy whatever she likes and, who am I to judge another soul’s taste?
This is definitely a tricky question but I would have to disagree with the statement that it is always best to state your honest opinion even when you know that others will disagree. I personally believe this due to the fact that being too honest with everyone can get you into arguments or offend others. There have been countless times I have wanted to be honest but held back my true opinion just for the sake of avoiding any kind of awkward situation. I recall one time specifically when my coworker asked if I liked his new car and quite frankly I thought it was an absolute eyesore because it was neon green and it had a super annoying loud muffler. I wanted to tell him I hated it but I knew he was excited about it and I did not make things uncomfortable with him because after all we had to work together everyday. If I had been honest he would probably have thought I was a real jerk!
Some people like to read fiction in spare time; others prefer non-fiction. Which one do you prefer and why? （重复2012.2.11/TPO38 Task2）
题目解析：
你更喜欢虚构文学还是纪实文学？
无论哪种文学体裁，阅读一定是放松的一种方式。所以无论选择哪一个，我们都可以用万用理由relax作答。但同时，我们要考虑到哪一种体裁我们更加熟悉，积累的语料更多，更容易作话题发展。那么，二者相比，fiction应该是对同学们来说更好的选择。如果积累过电影相关的语料，也可以稍加修改用在这个话题中，比如Harry Potter，Hunger Game等，都是基于小说改编的电影，如果同学们在备考中多考虑语料的应用口径，那么就能做到事半功倍。
范文
Personally, I would like to read fictions in my spare time. Firstly, reading fictions enables me to get a relief. From Monday to Friday, I have a lot of schoolwork to deal with. That’s why I need to take a break from all that and relax on weekends, and reading novels is usually my go-to choice. Moreover, reading fictions could improve the relationship between my friends and me. Most of my friends enjoy reading novels or science fictions. If I read them too, we could have more common topics, which will bring us closer.
Some people prefer to resolve problems with their friends directly face to face or on the phone, while some others prefer to resolve problems by writing and sending emails or text messages. Which do you prefer and why? （重复2020.12.5/2017.10.29考题）
题目：这道题可以和其他所有的线上线下（online communication）的题思路通用，包括老师反馈作业（2017.11.4/2018.7.8），完成作业（2020.6.12家考版），面试（2018.11.24)，开会（2018.5.6）等。如同意前者，可以说效率更高，可以避免线上方式引起不必要的误会或信息的遗漏，另外有的人喜欢面对面交流的方式原因是线上交流略显冰冷，线下可以拉近人与人的距离；如同意后者，可以说发信息或邮件比较礼貌和正式，而且避免了线下通勤的麻烦，对于解决问题来说更加及时。
I think it really depends on the situation. For me personally I find that I prefer to resolve more serious problems by writing a well thought out email. I prefer this method simply because I can take my time to really express how I feel and get my point across crystal clear. There was one time a family member and I had a huge blowout and didn’t speak for months. We both knew we had to resolve it sooner or later but if we had tried to resolve it face to face we might have ended up getting really frustrated and possibly saying things we regret in the heat of the moment. I took the initiative of writing a long and detailed email to him and I could tell he really took it to heart. I think people kind of realize that when you take the time to write something out it often gets taken more seriously and feels more sincere. So I think this method is more suited for how I like to resolve problems.
线下：
I think problem-solving is better done face-to-face, because firstly face-to-face discussion allows people to communicate their ideas more clearly and more accurately. When you raise a question that need an immediate response, people can help instantaneously in person, but through texting you may not be able to receive a reply in a timely manner. Secondly, face-to-face interaction leads to a stronger relationship while when texting, there are often misunderstandings and misinterpretations. Because of some non-verbal cues, people won’t misunderstand each other. It’s not what you said, but your facial expressions and gestures deliver more message and bring you closer to each other.
线上：
One of the main reasons why I prefer texting is that I’m afraid to say the wrong thing and texting gives me more time to think about what to say and phrase it in a way that will not hurt the other person. While on phone you have to say the first thing that comes to mind, which might not be the best of replies for that particular situation. By planning out what I say, I can avoid creating a bigger issue. Also, face to face is great if you happen to be in the same geography. But in my company, people literally work all over the world, getting the whole team all in one room can be a hassle, so we use emails to communicate our problems. It allows us to answer at the most convenient time for them, and also saves the trouble of coordinating our schedules and travelling for a long distance.
Do you agree that watching television is not a good use of time? （重复2021.12.22家考版考题）
题目：你是否同意看电视不是很好的时间利用方式？这道题也太太太常规了叭。看电视的利弊，说起来想必大家已经可以滔滔不绝。好处比如学习知识，了解时事，缓解压力，联络感情……弊端比如不良内容，耽误学习，影响工作，伤害视力，有害健康……
Your professor is asking you to help with some research work on the weekend,
but you have planned to go to your sister’s birthday party. Which would you choose to do? Explain why? （重复2016.6.18考题）
题目：你的教授让你周末去帮他做研究，但你周末本来计划要参加你姐姐/妹妹的生日趴体。你会怎么做呢？这道题虽然和近年来常考的，大家熟悉的题目“长得”不太一样，给了一个非常具体的日常场景，但是并不难，大家用自己的真实想法来答即可。如果选姐姐/妹妹的生日派对可以说我不想错过她人生中重要的一天。如果我不能去，她会很难过，我也觉得有遗憾。如果我提前把情况告诉教授，我相信TA会理解的，而且，教授也可以再找其他的学生帮忙，我的缺席不会带来问题。反过来，则可以说对于目前的我来说，GPA和课业是最重要的，我不想放弃任何可以impress教授的机会，因为教授对我的好评对我的成绩，简历还有未来有很大的影响。然后第二个理由也很容易想到，因为题目里面还有另一个对象，那就是我的亲人。如果我提前把情况告诉我的sister，我相信她一定会理解的，不会生我的气，因为TA是一个很considerate的人。而且我会给她买很棒的礼物来补偿她。
生日派对：
To be honest, family always comes first, and I would choose to go to my sister's birthday party because first it's gonna be her sweet eighteen birthday and I’d hate to miss out on the party. If I promised her to go but didn’t show up, she would feel disappointed. As for the research, I don’t think my prof is really counting on me. By that I mean my absence won’t cause any problem. So why not speak with her and see if she has any one else to help? Or to see if there’s any chance I could get the work done before then. I think my prof can understand since it’s such a short notice and I can explain it to her that I have already made the plan for the weekend.
It would be a dilemma for sure. But from where I stand, I would definitely choose to go to my sister's birthday party. Since I spend most of my time at school, I regard it as a great opportunity to get reunited with my family. It would be a fun celebration. For example, last year we went to a fancy Greek restaurant for my sister’s birthday, we ordered bunch of Mediterranean cuisines that I had never tried before and they were so delicious. And after the feast, we went to the party in a local bar where we got to meet and hang out with a few of my sister’s best friends. We were chatting and dancing together the whole night. I still remember that on the way home my sister told me that it’s the best birthday party she’d ever had!
学术研究：
As a student who prioritizes academic performance over everything else, I would definitely choose to go and help with my professor’s work. To begin with, getting a better grade on test or an opportunity to impress the professor is important to me. If I can help my prof with her work and probably do a pretty good job, I can also turn to her for help at a later time. For example, she may help me select courses and advise me on graduation requirements when I am having trouble keeping all the things organized. As for my sister’s side, I will compensate for my absence by buying her a gift later on. I think she will understand and support me if I made an apology and explained it to her, because she is always being nice and considerate. That’s what family members are like!
