Skipping School (2)

Vi: Well, we don't have a family emergency or anything urgent going on. And I don't think our teachers would appreciate us skipping to study for a test. Besides, the only reason I would ever feel OK about missing school is if I were sick.

Mi: OK, OK. But for me, other things take priority over school attendance.

Vi: Like what?

Mi: Sometimes people want to stay home for a mental health day or because they're dealing with some emotional problem. Maybe they're being bullied and have to get out of the situation. Just because someone skips school doesn't mean they don't think their classes are worthwhile.

Vi: Maybe for some people those are good reasons, but I think it's good to be in class as much as possible. Besides, what if we have a pop quiz in one of the classes we skip? That wouldn't be good.

Mi: Well, that's true. OK, if you really feel uncomfortable missing school, I guess I can stay awhile longer before going home.

Vi: Thanks! We might not agree on whether or not to skip school, but we can always agree to help each other.

Grammar Gym 
just because....doesn't mean...
- Just because someone skips school doesn't mean they don't think their classes are worthwhile.
- Just because a person looks tired when you're talking to them doesn't mean he isn't interested in what you're saying.
- Just because your friend forgets your birthday doesn't mean he doesn't care about your friendship.

Info Cloud
Teaching Topic: What English Really Needs

With all its rich vocabulary and fun quirky slang, there's still one thing that's sorely missing in the English language: a singular, gender-neutral pronoun.

OK. We're reminded of this deficiency again in today's lesson, when the singular "someone" gets paired up with the the two plural words, "they" and "their."

If we were to rewrite this sentence, keeping all the pronouns consistent, it would read, "Just because someone skips school doesn't mean he or she doesn't think his or her classes are worthwhile."

Now, that's solves the problem, but communicating like this is just really awkward.
So, for many years, the solution was to use "he" and "his" as the default gender-neutral pronoun.
The thinking was inaccuracy in gender was less troublesome than inaccuracy in number.

That's why you've heard it said, "When someone helps you, tell him thanks."
But today, this style is considered prejudice.
How can we be so sure the person who helps us in the future will be a male.

Right! We can't.
So, until something better, comes along, we'll continue to make "they", "them", and "their" work double duty.
That's why it's still OK to say, "When someone helps you, tell them thanks."

這裡的文法主詞someone+單數名詞skips，後面應為單數的he/she，跟單數的所有格his/her，才能保有主詞和代名詞一致性。但是本句用複數的they/their，這是因為用he/she太累贅了，如果用he/his則女性會抗議性別歧視，所以，後來口語的講法，就採用複數代名詞they/them/their，雖然不符合文法，但這是一個實用的妥協。

Language Lab
attendance n.出席、參加、出勤
the act of being present at a place
- Attendance at this course is compulsory.
這門課程規定一定要出席
the number of people present at an event, meeting, etc.
- Attendance at the amusement park is dropping.
這個主題公園的進場人數正在下降

emotional adj.情緒的、情緒上的；表達強烈情感的、感情脆弱的
relating to emotions;
showing emotion — used especially to describe someone who is crying because of strong;
causing a person to feel emotion
- The book introduced the emotional development of a child.
這本書介紹小朋友的情緒發展
- Mandy gets really emotional when she is criticized.
當Mandy被批評時，會變得非常情緒化

uncomfortable adj.令人不舒服的、不自在的
not feeling physically comfortable, or not making you feel comfortable
- The sofa looks nice, but it's actually very uncomfortable.
這張沙發看起來很好，但實際上非常不舒服
- Irene felt uncomfortable when she was questioned by her boss.
當Irene被老闆詢問時，她覺得很不自在

awhile adv.一下子、片刻
for a short time
- After resting awhile, the mountaineers continued their climb.
休息片刻後，登山客們又繼續爬山
- Patricia talked awhile to her kids and then rushed back to the office to work.
Patricia和孩子們談了一下，然後匆匆趕回辦公室上班