Skateboarding has become one of several non—traditional activities that PE teachers around America are introducing to encourage kids to exercise regularly. Some PE classes include in-line skating, yoga, and even rock climbing. Experts have called those types of activities “the new PE”.
Such activities are part of a larger effort to help kids develop lifelong health habits and to keep them from becoming too heavy. Now, 9 million U.S. children and teens are overweight. Obesity (肥胖) can lead to health problems such as diabetes and heart disease later in life.
“Our children and youth are becoming unhealthy and obese,” says Lindsey Johnson. “Skateboarding is a great activity that keeps kids doing physical movement and gives them new skills and interest.”
Some schools don’t allow skateboarding because they say it is dangerous. Cendali, however, argues that regular practice eliminates（减少） a great deal of the danger. “We teach students how to do it and how to do it safely,” he says.
Some people say skateboarding teaches life lessons. “Skateboarding teaches kids to believe that if they stick with something they will finally succeed,” says education expert Richard Sagor of Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Oregon.
Skateboarding encourages kids not to give up in learning difficult skills. “It’s natural for kids to want to learn and get better at things,” adds Sagor. “When kids go to skateboarding, they’ll try a trick hundreds of times before they succeed.” That same effort could be made in schoolwork.
Eric Klassen agrees that skateboarding requires kids to stop saying a task is too hard for them. “A baby will try to walk 600 to 900 times before he or she is successful,” says Klassen. “We tell students that they shouldn’t say ‘I can’t do it’ unless they’ve tried 600 to 900 times.”
33. Skateboarding is introduced into American schools to ______.
A. encourage students to play bravely in competition
B. teach students how to deal with danger
C. stop students suffering from heart disease later in life
D. help students develop the habit of doing sports
34. What life lesson do kids learn from skateboarding?
A. In order to succeed in life you have to learn skateboarding.
B. You will succeed in life if you don’t give up.
C. Only after failing 600 to 900 times can you succeed.
D. There is no hard work after learning skate-boarding well.
35. What would be the best title for the passage?
A. The dangerous PE B. Skills of skateboarding
C. The new PE D. The change of PE