u Reading 2 PREPARING TO READ ‘The words in blue below are used in the reading passage on pages 12-13.Complete BUILDING each sentence with the correct form of the word. Use a dictionary to help you. VOCABULARY community volunteer factor long-term grateful well-being 1. Aperson’s______goals can include saving money for retirement. 2. Insome: cdult children __ their elderly parents financially by paying their medical and household bills. 3. Healthy food, exercise, and interpersonal relationships are important for a person's physical and mental 4, Many people to help those who were affected by the earthquake. The victims were very _____for the help they received. 5. Aperson’s _— can change depending on the weather. For example, — such as sunlight and higher ternperatures can make you feel happier. (B) Discuss these questions with a partner. USING VOCABULARY 1. How would you describe your community? What is it like to live there? 2. What are some things that put you in a good mood? (© The reading passage on pages 12-13 looks at four basic factors for happiness. Write BRAINSTORMING the factors in the word web below. Then, with a partner, brainstorm some words or phrases that you think might relate to each one. Goo HAPPINESS 11eet ine HAPPINESS eatPa Researchers have found that different people need different things to be happy. But there are some basic things that anyone can do to become happier. Here are four areas of your life you can focus on to improve your long-term happiness. 1. STAY CONNECTED Psychiatrist Robert Waldinger directs the Harvard Study of Adult Development, one of the longest-running studies of adult behavior. The study tracked the lives of two groups of men in the United States for over 75 years. One of the main findings from the study is the importance of social connections. “It turns out that people who are more socially connected to family, to friends, to community, are happier,” says Waldinger. “They're physically healthier, and they live longer than people who are less well-connected.” The happiest people meet regularly with friends and family, and support each other in difficult times. 2. KEEP ACTIVE Nic Marks is the founder of the Happy Planet Index, which tracks national well-being around the world, One of the most important ways to improve well-being, he believes, is to keep active—healthy people are happier people. “The fastest way out of a bad mood,” Marks says, is to “step outside, go for a walk, turn the radio on and dance. Being active is great for our positive mood.” Being close to nature can also boost happiness. “Our pleasures are really ancient,” says psychologist Nancy Etcoff. “We have a response to the natural world that’s very profound.” Walking a pet in the outdoors, for example, can improve our mood. Pets not only encourage their owners to be healthy, they also provide love and friendship, increasing their owners’ self-esteem. 3. BUY LESS: The amount of money you have is a factor for happiness—but your salary may be less important than how you use it. Think carefully before buying expensive clothes or a new car, for example. Try to spend money instead on things that will really enrich your life, such as music lessons, or a vacation with family or friends. “We need to think before we buy,” urges designer Graham Hill, and “ask ourselves: ‘Is that really going to make me happier?”” Too often we buy things we don’t really need. The less stuff we have in our lives, Hill argues, the happier we will be. 4. GIVE AWAY Social science researcher Michael Norton has studied happiness levels around the world. He found that the act of giving money to people has a powerful effect on the giver as well as the receiver. “Almost everywhere we look,” says Norton, “we see that giving money away makes you happier than keeping it for yourself.” The amount of money isn’t so important, “What really matters is that you spent it on somebody else rather than on. yourself,” he adds. Another way to give away is to donate your time instead of money. People who volunteer at homeless shelters, for example, find that it helps take the focus off their own problems and makes them feel grateful for what they have. Author David Steind|-Rast believes that being grateful may be the most important foundation for happiness: “It is not happiness that makes us grateful, It’s gratefulness that makes us happy.” HAPPINESS 13UNDERSTANDING THE READING UNDERSTANDING —() Which sentence best summarizes the reading passage? THE MAIN IDEA . a. There are four different types of happy people in the world. b. There are some small changes everyone can make to increase happiness. . Forming social connections is more important for happiness than other factors. IDENTIFYING MAIN (BI) Read the six scenarios below. Check (7) the four that follow the advice in the reading IDEAS passage. 1. Astudent installs a budget app on her phone to help control her spending, ‘A woman offers to take her neighbor's dog for a walk each morning, D3. Aman uses all his ings to pay for an ex nsive new sports car. 4, Ateenager spends time each Saturday helping at a children’s hospital Ayoung woman decides to reduce her number of working hours each week, 6. Anelderly man decides to join an art class at a community center. CRITICAL THINKING: (J Find and underline the bold words and phrases below on pages 12-13. Use context to INFERRING MEANING identify their meanings. Then circle the correct answers to complete the definitions. 1. Ifyou have high self-esteem, you feel (confident / unsure) about yourself 2. Salaryis the amount of (work / money) that an employee eceives, To enrich something means to make it (better / last longer) f you take the focus off something, you give it (more / less) attent CRITICAL THINKING: (BJ) Choose three factors from the reading passage that you feel are most important for REFLECTING happiness. Write a sentence for each one describing how you can change that area of your life to become happier. Then share your ideas with a partner. Example: Keep Active—Ican go swimming every week