Should Children Begin Their Formal Schooling at an Early Age?
　　Different people have different views on what children should do at an early age. Some think that children can begin their formal schooling early. But I argue that children should enjoy their childhood instead of going to school when they are too young.
　　Firstly, I strongly believe that children are supposed to enjoy a happy childhood. Innocent as kids are, they should be given enough time and freedom to observe surrounding people and things. Secondly, children have difficulty in focusing their attention if forced to begin schooling at an early age. It has been proved that their attention on one thing usually lasts for no longer than 15 minutes. Thirdly, children's different abilities can be developed if they have time at disposal. Kids can cultivate his or her communicative ability and imaginative power when playing with other children.
　　In general, children should be given more free time to play and have fun, so that they could have a good start to formal schooling and a better commencement to their following life.          (173 words)

formal  adj. 正式的，合乎规矩的
be supposed to...  应该......
innocent  adj. 无罪的，清白的
surrounding  adj. 周围的
disposal  n. 处理
imaginative  adj. 想象的
commencement  n. 开始，开端



One never lose anything by politeness.
有礼貌不吃亏。

儿童要不要在很小的时候接受正规教育？
　　儿童应该在早期阶段做些什么，不同人有不同的看法。有些人认为，孩子应该更早地接受学校正规教育。但是我觉得孩子小的时候应该更多地享受童年，而不是去学校。
　　第一，我始终坚信儿童是要享受童年乐趣的。孩子总是天真无邪的，应该给予他们更多时间去自由观察身边的人和事。第二，太小的孩子上学往往很难集中注意力。研究表明他们集中注意力的时间通常不超过15分钟。第三，儿童的各种能力还能在玩耍中得到锻炼。而且和其他孩子一起玩也能培养他们的交际能力和想象力。
　　总而言之，我们应该给儿童更多的时间玩耍娱乐，这样他们能更好地迎接学校的正规教育和将来的生活。

1. Some think that children can begin their formal schooling early. But I argue that children should enjoy their childhood instead of going to school when they are too young. 有些人认为，孩子应该更早地接受学校正规教育。但是我觉得孩子小的时候应该更多地享受童年，而不是去学校。
2. Innocent as kids are, they should be given enough time and freedom to observe surrounding people and things.  孩子总是天真无邪的，应该给予他们更多时间去自由观察身边的人和事。
3. It has been proved that their attention on one thing usually lasts for no longer than 15 minutes. 研究表明他们集中注意力的时间通常不超过15分钟。