Text:

Experiments have proved that children can be instructed in swimming at a very early age. At a special swimming pool in Los Angeles, children become expert at holding their breath under water even before they can walk. Babies of two months old do not appear to be reluctant to enter the water. It is not long before they are so accustomed to swimming that they can pick up weights from the floor of the pool. A game that is very popular with these young swimmers is the underwater tricycle race. Tricycles are lined up on the floor of the pool seven feet under water. The children compete against each other to reach the other end of the pool. Many pedal their tricycles, but most of them prefer to push or drag them. Some children can cover the whole length of the pool without coming up for breath even once. Whether they will ever become future Olympic champions, only time will tell. Meanwhile, they should encourage those among us who cannot swim five yards before they are gasping for air.

Words & and Expressions 

*pedal /ˈpedl/ 骑车，踩踏板

--Tim got on his bike and pedaled around town.

--She was pedalling furiously(=very fast).

*reluctant  /rɪˈlʌktənt/ adj. 勉强的，不愿意的

--She gave a reluctant smile.

--Reluctantly, he agreed.

*gasp /ɡæsp/ v. 喘气

--the last gasp:the point of death or exhaustion or completion最后时刻，奄奄一息

--gasp for air/breath: He climbed slowing, gasping for breath.

*appear to be好像，仿佛

--appear to be reluctant 面有难色

--appear to be stalling/improving 蓄意拖延/好转

--Understandably, they appear to be in shock and angry by the tragic, unexpected events.

*be accustomed to = be used to 习惯于

--She has got accustomed to this sort of work.

*swim against the tide/current 逆流而行（不随波逐流）(opp：swim with the tide)

--Light given out by distant galaxies has to swim against the tide of expansion to get to us.

泳衣的种类？

连体泳衣：one-piece swimsuit

三点式：bikini suit

Writing Practice:

The most common swimming styles include the freestyle stroke, the breaststroke, the backstroke and the butterfly stroke. I can swim dog-paddle only until attended a swimming course on breaststroke and freestyle stroke several years ago. In my opinion, swimming is one the best ways to make you stay fit and healthy and active in life, since swimming is very helpful to improve our endurance and brings less harm to joints and muscles in water. Apart from this, swimming is a fundamental skill, which can possibly save our lives in some emergency situations.  Once you learned how to swim, it's far more likely that you will try some other water sports like diving, boating or rafting as you are not afraid of the water any more.

In summer time, I take Andrew, my son, a two-year-old boy to the swimming pool almost everyday. He plays water and giggles often while sitting in a baby life buoy.  I think he will be a good swimmer perhaps next summer. It's said scientists have proved that children can be instructed in swimming at a very early age.

Pronunciations

*pool /puːl/

*Los Angeles /lɔːsˈændʒələs, -liːz/

*champion /ˈtʃæmpiən/

*encourage /ɪnˈkɜːrɪdʒ/ our组合发/ɜːr/  ，courage 一样的情况。