Seasons

主" 持" 人：祖瑞 正高級教師，江蘇省特級教師，任教于江蘇省南京市將軍山中學。

Pre-reading

What does the start date of seasons depend on？

When do the seasons start？ It depends on who you ask！ Also， the dates of the equinoxes and solstices can change from year to year. Each season has both an astronomical start and a meteorological start. The astronomical start date is based on the position of the Sun in relation to the Earth and the meteorological start date is based on our 12-month civil calendar as well as the annual temperature cycle.

Spring Equinox

Astronomical spring begins on the day of the equinox. In the Northern Hemisphere， depending on which definition you use， spring can include parts or all of the months of March， April， May， and June. South of the equator， it starts in September and ends in December. In 2024， the official first day of spring is Tuesday， March 19， 11：06 P.M. EDT. This date marks the “spring equinox” in the Northern Hemisphere， south of the equator， it’s the September equinox.

Summer Solstice

According to the astronomical definition， the start of summer falls on the summer solstice. In the Northern Hemisphere， astronomical and meteorological summer runs from June to September. South of the equator， it starts in December and ends in March. In 2024， summer begins with the solstice on Thursday， June 20， 4：51 P.M. EDT， marking the astronomical first day of summer in the Northern Hemisphere. But in the meteorological system， summer begins on June 1 and ends on August 31. What exactly is the solstice？ Is it really the longest day of the year？

Autumnal Equinox

When will summer end and the cooler days of fall begin？ The autumnal equinox， it is also called the September equinox; in the Southern Hemisphere， it starts in March. Not only do temperatures fall， but also plant life slows down and so do we. In the Northern Hemisphere，" astronomical and meteorological autumn runs from September to December. South of the equator， it starts in March and ends in June. In 2024， the fall equinox arrives on Sunday， September 22， 8：44 A.M. EDT in the Northern Hemisphere.

Winter Solstice

According to the astronomical definition， winter begins with the winter solstice. In the Northern Hemisphere， it’s the December solstice and occurs annually on December 21 or 22， south of the equator， it occurs in June. The winter solstice is the day with the fewest hours of sunlight in the whole year， making it the “shortest day” of the year. In the Northern Hemisphere， astronomical and meteorological winter runs from December to March. South of the equator， it starts in June and ends in September. In 2024， the date of the winter solstice is Saturday， December 21， 4：21 A.M. EST.

While-reading

1. Read and find out the first dates of different seasons for 2024. You can make a chart or table to help you.

2. What do you think of the seasons？ What winter means to you？

Post-reading

Different seasons have different activities and foods that you like most. Discuss with your partner and then write an article" titled “My favourite activity/food in ...”.

原文呈現

My favourite food in winter

There are a lot of delicious food in winter. Many people like to eat dumplings， and so do I. I like dumplings best mainly because of the following two aspects.

Dumplings taste very good.

Dumplings are delicious， and there are also a variety of flavours for us to choose. At the same time， we can also choose different styles of dumplings， such as dumplings， fried dumplings and so on.

Dumplings have a good meaning.

Dumplings are traditional Chinese food， because they not only symbolize reunion and happiness， but can also make people feel the warmth of home.

Also I think eating dumplings can bring a lot of happiness， and so is making dumplings. Every winter solstice my grandma will make dumplings with me. We will also pick out one of the most good-looking dumplings， and then put a coin in it， and the one who eats it will be the luckiest person in the coming New Year.

I think dumplings are not only one kind of food， but also the inheritance of Chinese civilization and the expectation of a better life， so I like dumplings most.

話題引入不夠精練，略顯生硬。

可以刪去小標題，通過增加或完善段落中心句來表述觀點。

內容表達層層遞進，但缺乏清晰的邏輯關系。主體段落可以從對餃子的表層描述過渡到深層次的對內涵與文化意義的挖掘，同時增加連接詞和表達段落觀點的語句。

升格展示

My favourite food in winter

There are a lot of delicious food for people to eat and share during winter. For me， I like dumplings best.

Dumplings are delicious， and there are a variety of flavours for us to choose. Moreover， we can choose different styles of dumplings， such as boiled dumplings， fried dumplings and so on. The shape of dumplings is like a gold ingot， and the taste is also very fragrant， so they can leave people a fine aftertaste.

Dumplings are traditional Chinese food， because they not only symbolize reunion and happiness， but also make people feel the warmth of home. For example， when people eat homemade dumplings， they always remind people of the taste of hometown.

What’s more， making dumplings is meaningful to most Chinese families as well. Every winter solstice my grandma will teach me how to make dumplings and all of my family members enjoy the time that we spend in making dumplings together. We will pick out one of the most good-looking dumplings， and then put a coin in it. The person who eats it will become lucky in the coming New Year.

To sum up， I think dumplings are not only one kind of food， but also embrace the inheritance of Chinese culture and the expectation of a better life， so I like dumplings most.

（江蘇省南京市第二十九中學初中部 方子墨；指導教師 于安安）

綜合點評

升格文主題明確，邏輯清晰，結構明了，內容層層遞進，語言生動形象。小作者以餃子為線索，巧妙地串聯起了感官體驗、文化內涵與家庭情感三個層面，表達了對餃子的深厚情感與獨到見解。文章語言流暢，情感真摯，讓讀者在享受閱讀樂趣的同時，也對餃子這一傳統美食有了更深的理解和感悟。