ESL Podcast 883 – Taking Care of a Willful Child

 　　Mrs. Mason: So, how did things go?

 

　　Carl: Well...

 

　　Mrs. Mason: What’s the matter? Didn’t you and Jason have a good time while I was away?

 

　　Carl: It was interesting. He was a little willful.

 

　　Mrs. Mason: Yes, he can be a little strong- willed at times, but if you just do what he wants or give him what he wants, he’s just fine.

 

　　Carl: He wanted to eat all of the cookies and I told him no. He threw a tantrum.

 

　　Mrs. Mason: A tantrum? My son can be stubborn, but he never throws tantrums. What did he do exactly?

 

　　Carl: Well, he threw his toys against the wall, jumped on the couch while shrieking¹ at the top of his lungs, and he tried to bite my hand.

 

　　Mrs. Mason: Oh, he was just expressing his displeasure, that’s all. You don’t want children to bottle up their feelings. You should just have given him the cookies to pacify² him.

 

　　Carl: Really? I didn’t want to spoil him, and eating all of those cookies wouldn’t be good for him. He seemed to have too much energy already, and he didn’t need another sugar rush.

 

　　Mrs. Mason: Next time, you should just do what he wants. He’ll grow out of this willful stage soon.

 

　　Carl: Next time?

 

　　Mrs. Mason: Yes, didn’t you say you could babysit Jason again on Saturday night?

 

　　Carl: Oh, I’d made a mistake. I have another commitment on Saturday night.

 

　　Mrs. Mason: That’s too bad. We’ll call you the next time we need a babysitter.

 

　　Carl: Sure, I can’t wait.

 

　　Script by Dr. Lucy Tse

1 shrieking   

v.尖叫( shriek的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The boxers were goaded on by the shrieking crowd. 拳击运动员听见观众的喊叫就来劲儿了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They were all shrieking with laughter. 他们都发出了尖锐的笑声。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 pacify   

vt.使(某人)平静(或息怒)；抚慰

参考例句：

• He tried to pacify the protesters with promises of reform.他试图以改革的承诺安抚抗议者。
• He tried to pacify his creditors by repaying part of the money.他为安抚债权人偿还了部分借款。