18岁，告别纯真少年，我们开始新的人生旅程_初级阅读
a birthday to remember18岁，告别纯真少年，我们开始新的人生旅程。
many american girls look forward to their "sweet sixteens". jewish boys celebrate a bar mitzvah (犹太人的成人礼) at 13 to show they've reached manhood. still, no birthday is as important to young americans as their 18th.
an american's 18th birthday is the date when he or she stops being a child and becomes a legal adult. "your 18th birthday is the beginning of your adult life. it's the day you become legal for almost anything," says richelle stephens, a senior at heritage high school in texas. once a person turns 18, he or she can vote (投票), buy cigarettes, and go to many concerts and dance clubs.
some teens use their new freedom to do something different, grown-up, or maybe even a little bit risky. "when i turned 18, my best friend and i went down to the beach," says ben flanagan of north carolina. "we bought cigarettes, even though we didn't smoke and went to several '18 and over' dance clubs." other 18-year-olds celebrate their birthdays in an even more extravagant (奢华的) fashion. jeff leduc of massachusetts travelled all the way to orlando, florida for his party. "it's silly. i had just become an adult, but i really wanted to go to disney world (which is in orlando)," leduc remembers.
turning 18 is not just fun and games, though. becoming a legal adult also carries its share of responsibility. "the morning of my 18th birthday, i registered to vote," says jamal cool of san francisco, california. "i wanted to fulfill (履行) my civic (公民的) responsibility."
turning 18 also brings some things young adults might not want to do but must. they must face unpleasant chores like jury duty (陪审团职责) and will suffer more serious penalties (处罚) if they break the law. also, 18-year-old males must register with the draft board (征兵局) soon after their birthday. even non-citizens must register with the draft board after they turn 18. "i had to fill out the form," says zhang yan, a chinese national who was studying in the united states at the time of his 18th birthday. "i didn't want to do it, so i used very bad handwriting."
for most americans, their 18th birthday marks the end of one part of their life and the beginning of another. "my birthday was fun," recalled ben flanagan, "but what was most exciting was knowing that high school was coming to an end, and college was just around the corner."
teens点金
词汇
legal adj. 法定的；法律的；法律许可的；
seek legal advice; take legal action
freedom n. 自由
用法： -dom后缀和形容词、名词一起构成名词；表状况或地位；例如：wisdom; boredom
register v.登记；注册
用法：register (at/for/with sth)
register at a hotel;
where can i register for the english course?
many american girls look forward to their "sweet sixteens". jewish boys celebrate a bar mitzvah (犹太人的成人礼) at 13 to show they've reached manhood. still, no birthday is as important to young americans as their 18th.
an american's 18th birthday is the date when he or she stops being a child and becomes a legal adult. "your 18th birthday is the beginning of your adult life. it's the day you become legal for almost anything," says richelle stephens, a senior at heritage high school in texas. once a person turns 18, he or she can vote (投票), buy cigarettes, and go to many concerts and dance clubs.
some teens use their new freedom to do something different, grown-up, or maybe even a little bit risky. "when i turned 18, my best friend and i went down to the beach," says ben flanagan of north carolina. "we bought cigarettes, even though we didn't smoke and went to several '18 and over' dance clubs." other 18-year-olds celebrate their birthdays in an even more extravagant (奢华的) fashion. jeff leduc of massachusetts travelled all the way to orlando, florida for his party. "it's silly. i had just become an adult, but i really wanted to go to disney world (which is in orlando)," leduc remembers.
turning 18 is not just fun and games, though. becoming a legal adult also carries its share of responsibility. "the morning of my 18th birthday, i registered to vote," says jamal cool of san francisco, california. "i wanted to fulfill (履行) my civic (公民的) responsibility."
turning 18 also brings some things young adults might not want to do but must. they must face unpleasant chores like jury duty (陪审团职责) and will suffer more serious penalties (处罚) if they break the law. also, 18-year-old males must register with the draft board (征兵局) soon after their birthday. even non-citizens must register with the draft board after they turn 18. "i had to fill out the form," says zhang yan, a chinese national who was studying in the united states at the time of his 18th birthday. "i didn't want to do it, so i used very bad handwriting."
for most americans, their 18th birthday marks the end of one part of their life and the beginning of another. "my birthday was fun," recalled ben flanagan, "but what was most exciting was knowing that high school was coming to an end, and college was just around the corner."
teens点金
词汇
legal adj. 法定的；法律的；法律许可的；
seek legal advice; take legal action
freedom n. 自由
用法： -dom后缀和形容词、名词一起构成名词；表状况或地位；例如：wisdom; boredom
register v.登记；注册
用法：register (at/for/with sth)
register at a hotel;
where can i register for the english course?