讀美國小學五年級作文有感
不久前，我家五年級的小學生嚷嚷著要去社區圖書館借關於電影特技方麵的書。這是幹啥呀？咱家地方小，全家上下沒有會表演的人，照貓畫虎咱都不會，玩兒什麽電影特技呢？小寶一聽我在逗他玩兒，趕緊給我解釋，他借電影特技書是為了做寫作課題(project)。
在美國，Project(課題) 這個詞簡直被用爛了。從小學開始，美國娃娃們就得慢慢學會做課題了。據小寶介紹，他們的語文老師讓全班同學一人找一個課題(project)，所有同學都從零開始，以紙上談兵的方式，每人要解決一個研究課題。
記得我在中國讀中小學時，所有的作文課總是搞一刀切，全班五十幾人全都圍著一個作文題轉悠。常常有中國的教育學家對中國學生的創造力擔憂。在我看來，中國學生創造力的提高首先得從思想解放做起。比如讓學生自由選擇作文題，就是最簡單的思想解放運動。如果孩子們的大腦被捆住了，他們的眼睛再機靈，手腳再利索，也很難創造出活躍的思想。
根據我對小寶的簡單采訪，我得知他們的這個作文題目任選。美國孩子本來就思想活躍，一旦讓他們自由發揮，作文內容的範圍之廣，真會讓人感到驚奇。比如為了對付這個美國小學五年級作文，有的學生研究動物(豬，馬，牛，狗任選)，有人研究植物(大樹，小草，鮮花隨你挑)，有人研究政治(共和黨，民主黨你看著辦)，有人研究醫學(內外婦兒精神病可供選擇)，有人研究作家(詩人，小說家，散文家五彩繽紛)，有人研究天文學(太陽，星星，月亮，火星，金星讓你眼花繚亂)。瞧，全班二十幾個學生，通過搞作文課題這種方式，真的可以達到上通天文下通地理琴棋書畫無所不包的境界了。
值得一提的是，雖然作文題目可以天馬行空，但美國小學老師對不同作文的評分標準卻是嚴格統一的。不久前，我剛剛上完一門美國大學寫作課，我對美國大學老師的作文評分標準可謂是了如指掌。我再對照一下小寶老師的評分標準，我吃驚地發現，美國小學老師和美國大學老師的作文評分標準居然基本一致: 作文引言(introduction)，內容(contents)，結尾(conclusion)的模式，幾乎一模一樣。
如此這般的評分標準，你不覺得很有趣嗎？如果認真服從這個作文評分標準，美國小學生能寫出大學生水平的作文，就根本不奇怪了。這也解釋為什麽時常會有國內外家長慨歎美國小學生寫的作文真不簡單。以我家小寶為例，為了應付這篇作文，他做的努力幾乎和美國大學生一模一樣：去圖書館借書，到網上查資料，分析搜集到的資料，寫提綱，正式寫作文，為文章配圖。
我剛剛讀了一下我家小寶寫的作文，我的感受是，反正我在中國小學五年級時，我肯定是寫不出這樣的作文的。如同小寶老師的評語所示，他的作文內容之廣，文章之流暢，可謂全優。看了美國小學老師對小寶的作文評語之後，我不禁想起了美國大學老師對我作文的評語，兩位老師的評語幾乎也是一模一樣的。
經對比一看，我總算弄明白了，好好寫作文，要從娃娃抓起。美國孩子隻有在小學時就好好練習寫作文，上大學時才能與時共進。假如眼下的中國小學生有意將來赴美讀大學，孩子一定要從現在就開始，要按照美國的作文要求好好練習寫作文了。隻有這樣，才能避免將來初來異國留學時的挫折感。
附注：我家小寶下麵的作文得了99分。除了少數的幾個單詞沒大寫，老師幾乎沒挑什麽錯。
Special Effects
Special effects make live-action movies magical, but they are complex to make. They are used to create things that can’t really be filmed in real life, like Godzilla or Frankenstein. The research of special effects is important because it will make you realize that it is possible to create anything such as aliens, ghosts, explosions, and magical fantasylands using a variety of techniques including CGI! I will answer questions such as how to actually create the effects, how to transform humans into un-humane creatures and whether the guns in movies are real. Special effects are the main reason why we have out-of-this-world movies.
There are many ways to make visual effects in movies. People use something called mechanical effects (also called practical or physical effects). This means that they use mechanized props such as scenery, scale models, animatronics, pyrotechnics (fire), and atmospheric effects (weather). Some examples include blowing up cars or buildings. They can be used to enhance fight scenes such as using break-away doors, etc. There are many other processes such as the Dunning-Pomeroy process. Today filmmakers use CGI more often. CGI can be put into sets and makeup. There are a variety of techniques to create visuals! I used to think that some effects are “real” and not all made from a computer. For example, atmospheric machines make rain, fog, wind, clouds, etc. I also thought that CGI (computer-generated-imagery) being used more often made sense because I learned that as technology grows, CGI could be cheaper. CGI is also safer. People use effects to create environments and cool sci-fi things, but you can also use them to create un-human creatures.
Special effects are used for cool things such as explosions, but they can also use them to turn ordinary people into unearthly things. Filmmakers use something called prosthetic make-up to do this. First, the filmmakers take a mold of a body part (often the face) for making the prosthetic. The mold is made out of prosthetic alginae. Recently they have used skin-safe silicone rubber. A hard mother mold is created overtop for support. The edges have to be as flawless as possible for it to look good. I never knew that some of the non-human creatures in movies were real people. I used to always think that they were computer-made. Boris the Animal from Men in Black 3 is an example. I also was surprised when I found out that some actors/actresses wear a MASK when they are playing the role of something un-human. I used to think that the makeup was used straight on their face with a paintbrush or something. As you finally realize, sometimes you won’t scream when you see a Wolf man on the screen.
Scenes with special effects aren’t always filmed on the spot with mechanized props; sometimes you have to add them in with a computer. Chroma key compositing, or chroma keying, is a special-effects/post-production technique for compositing (layering) two images or video streams together based on color hues. A color range in the top layer (usually green and blue screens) is made transparent revealing another image behind it. Mechanical effects are often used during live-action shooting. Filmmakers also add in special effects with CGI (computer-generated-imagery). Sometimes they film something like its not there and then they go back to it on a computer and put in special effects to make the thing they filmed imaginably real. I also didn’t know that you could use a blue screen for movies; I thought they were only green. Visuals are amazing for many things, such as explosions etc., but I always wondered whether the weapons and guns in the movies are real and I wonder when you need them.
The weapons you see on screen may seem like props, but I learned that some filmmakers use real weapons. Although the weapons are real, they fire blank ammunition almost all the time. A leading supplier of weaponry in movies called Bapty and Co supply filmmakers with some old guns or even the modern rifle. The suppliers discuss the weapon they should use for a character, and then the armourer who makes the weapon decides how the weapon will be used and what versions of the gun they need. Many guns included rubber guns, practical guns, non-practical guns, etc. Before they can use the guns, the government has to allow them. I never knew that sometimes people use real guns because I thought it was unsafe but then I learned that they usually fire blanks. I also thought that if you use a weapon, you make it yourself all the time but there is usually a weaponry supplier. Guns and weapons have a huge impact on movies with genres like sci-fi.
Ageing in movies is one of the greatest techniques to use on young actors/actresses. Filmmakers and make-artists use things like foam latex eyebags, and sagging lips or chins. They can use these to make people like then 33 year old Dustin Hoffman look ninety years older in the movie Little Big Man. People used to use masks with built in wrinkles and sags. The simplest thing for the hair is dying it gray or another color. Sometimes if actors/actresses don’t want their face to be older using prosthetics, the filmmaker uses a wire running around the lower teeth. At the sides there were molded dental plastic to push out the lower cheeks to give the impression of jowls. I used to always think that the elderly people in the movies really are old people but sometimes they just use makeup on young people’s faces! It was cool when I found out that you could paint your face to give wrinkles. As it turns out, young actors/actresses can be turned into 100 year olds.
Special effects are good to use when filming things that don’t exist. My research has shown that special effects can be created with mechanized props, that prosthetic make-up is used to make un-human creatures, and that the guns in movies are usually real. Special effects impact a lot on today’s movies. Special effects are not only used to enhance movies, they are used to amaze our mind and imagination.
