　　What's the matter? You got an awful haircut. Your brother is blasting his music. You are too busy to meet your friends on time. Did you say something? You can use Would you mind to make complaints and requests. "Would you mind not cutting my hair so short?" "Would you mind turning down your music? "Would you mind if I come a little later?" Would you mind is a way to speak up for yourself. At these web sites, look for ways to make requests and speak your mind. Also, learn some new ways to make complaints!

　　Getting ready

　　1. What annoys you?

　　2. What do you say when you complain?

　　3. Name some common complaints.

　　4. When you complain to someone, what does s/he say to you?

　　Search Engines

　　Ready? Click on the link to go to the site.

　　1. The Complaining Game. At this site kids review computer games and score them 0 - 10. Check out some complaints about on-line games. Click on "reviews." Next, arrange on-line games by score: check these choices and click "Re-sort." For complaints, select the game with the lowest score. Click on "Go" and read "the bottom line."

　　http://www.elecplay.com/

　　2. Letters to the Editor. Have you ever written a letter to the Editor? Some letters support or explore ideas in news articles. Others make complaints. Read the some recent letters to find out students' opinions. Which letters are enthusiastic? Which ones express complaints?

　　http://www.nytimes.com/learning/students/

　　3. Getting things done. At this site is a list of ten chores for teenagers. If you don't do them, what do your parents say? Read "Top 10 Money Making Chores." Change the phrases into requests; be sure to change the verb!

　　http://www.allowancenet.com

　　4. Protest. Don't cry in your tea. Do something! Protest is active complaint. The Boston Tea Party turned complaint into history that Americans will never forget. Read one student's essay on the Boston Tea Party. Next time you're sipping your tea, you can say, "Would you mind dropping those taxes please?"

　　http://www.ga.k12.pa.us/academics/LS/4/sstudies/Colonial/4K/4k98/4keot.htm

　　5. Don't be a Grouch! What's that? Not what but who. When you complain for no good reason, friends and family might call you some names. Learn these names for complainers. Type in: "complainer." Click on "Go." You will find lots things to call a person who complains too much. Check them out.

　　http://www.bartleby.com

　　Questions:

　　1. What was wrong with one on-line game?

　　2. What was the most interesting opinion in the letters to the Editor?

　　3. What chores should your little brother do?

　　4. Name 3 words for complainer.