US high school students learn construction by building homes 美国高中生通过建造房屋学习建筑

马秀艳

为了培养学生们在建筑领域上的实践能力，美国高中学校让学生们动起手来，建造真正的房屋。学生们在这样的实践课程中，学会了用石头、砖、混凝土等材料进行建造，也体会到了建筑的乐趣。

[海 词 积 累]

1.hands⁃on adj. 实践的

2.masonry n. 砖石建筑

3.mortar n. 砂浆

4.pier n. 桥墩

Many high school students in the United States get hands⁃on training in construction skills by building real houses.

One such program was created for construction and design students in Waterloo， Iowa. The students have already received training in many areas of house construction. They have put up walls， built windows and doors and completed some wiring.

The project is run by the Waterloo Career Center. The center offers students different programs designed to prepare them for careers in technical fields. Students from the Waterloo Community School District recently took part in construction training that centered on the skill of masonry work done with stone， brick or concrete materials.

The students spent five days at their school learning from experienced workers， who taught them how to mix mortar and build walls with bricks and blocks. One of the goals for the students was to build a pier—a solid support built to hold vertical pressure. It usually goes out from land and into water. Learning such skills will help the students be able to build their own solid structures later in their careers.

In this kind of hands⁃on setting， students can learn exactly how much mortar is needed to create a safe wall. The right mortar level for the students pier project should be about one centimeter.

They started the pier by putting five blocks in place and finished the project by putting bricks and mortar on the outside to complete the look.

As the students worked， they were told to be sure to use a leveling tool to check that the wall stands straight and level. “Its fun...its something to do，” West High student Nathan Elliott told the Waterloo⁃Cedar Falls Courier. He added that this kind of learning is much better than sitting at a computer. “I like the hands⁃on stuff，” he said. Other students also said they liked this method of learning， because it got them excited about future careers in construction.

Bringing the program into schools is an important way to find the next generation of workers. It is great having a whole week in here to present masonry to kids.

[Reading][Check]

1.Whats the purpose of programs offered by the Waterloo Career Center？ （no more than 10 words）

2.What do the students in Waterloo Community School District learn in construction training？ （no more than 15 words）

3.How do the students like the hands⁃on training？ （no more than 8 words）

[Language][Study]

Important vocabulary

1.put               建造

2.be               to 旨在

3.mix...             ... 把……和……混合在一起

4.              place 在適当的位置