Problem: Write an article based on this summary: Trace an elegant font. Write in loopy cursive. Copy sections from your favorite book. Practice writing letters of different widths. Emphasize elongated letters. Learn calligraphy, which is the art of creating decorative handwriting.

Answer: Find a font on Microsoft Word or another word processing program, print out the letters, and begin tracing them. Practice tracing these letters on a blank piece of paper. First trace the letters on a lined sheet of paper and then move to a blank sheet. Some pens work better than others. Try gel ink pens and calligraphy pens, however, if you cannot find those then a pencil will work just fine but will not have quite the same. A light box will be very useful for tracing the letters. Instead of printing, try writing your daily notes, homework and other handwriting in a distinctive cursive style. Emphasize the loops in letters and try not to jumble words together. Take your time and really concentrate on making your cursive look pretty. It might help your writing if you practice copying something that you enjoy reading. In your elegant cursive, write what you are reading into your journal or notebook. Take your time and emphasize your style. You can also use line paper if you are still trying to master your style. Elegant handwriting can be thicker or thinner depending on the type of writing utensil used. Markers are going to give you a larger font, while pens and pencils will be skinnier. Try out different writing tools and find one that works for you. Your art teacher or an employee at an art supply store should be able to recommend different writing tools for you to use. Buy a lined paper that has an extra-large space for writing. Think of the kind of paper that you learned to write on when you were little. Slowly write your elegant letters, being sure to fill up the entire space. With practice, you will eventually be able to do this without the lines. Take your time and really concentrate on filling the space. By practicing this visual art, you will learn how to write multiple styles of elegant handwriting. Calligraphy teaches you how to write elegantly with different tools in different medium. You will also develop the skills produce your own unique styles and fonts. If you stick with it, you will eventually be able to print, paint or chisel beautiful words on almost anything. There are workbooks and classes that you can take online to learn calligraphy. Your local community center or YMCA may also offer classes in calligraphy.

Problem: Write an article based on this summary: Read the story. Take notes. Find the main characters. Note down the setting. Note the story's conflict. Note the main events. Note the conclusion.

Answer: It will be very difficult to summarize a story without actually reading it. So crack open your book, or plug in some headphones and listen to it on your iPod. Don't always trust the internet sites that claim to summarize books, because they aren't always accurate. As you're reading, you need to keep in mind what the central idea of the story is. For Lord of the Rings, for instance, the central idea might be something about how the power of greed (i.e. the Ring) is a strong force for evil, or even the actions of one insignificant person (like a hobbit) can change the world. Concentrate fully on the book. Don't get distracted by anything, not even music. You'll need to take notes as you read so that you have refer to them when you're ready to start the summary. Look for the "who? what? when? where? why?" These will give you the basis for what you want to cover in your summary. You'll need to know who the story is about, after all, and you need to figure out which characters aren't as important to the narrative. If you're reading a story with tons of characters, you won't want to note down every single character that appears. For example: for Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone you would write down Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, because they are the main characters. You might even note down Hagrid, Dumbledore, Snape, Quirrell, and Voldemort because they figure importantly in the story. You wouldn't need to write down Peeves the poltergeist, or Norbert the dragon, because while they are important in their places in the story, they don't influence the main storyline enough to be part of the summary. A shorter story like "Little Red Riding Hood" is easy because you only have to note down Red Riding Hood, her grandmother, the wolf, and the woodcutter (depending on the version). The setting is where the events take place. Now this can get complicated if the story you're reading takes place in a lot of different places. If that's the case, you'll need to be more broad. Continuing the Harry Potter example: the main action takes place at Hogwarts, so you could write down something like 'the magical school Hogwarts in the United Kingdoms.' Now for a story like Lord of the Rings, which takes place over a large amount of territory, you can mention that it's Middle-Earth, and note some places of important like the Shire, Mordor, and Gondor. You don't have to go too specific (like mentioning the forest Fangorn, or the tower Minas Morgul). This means whatever is the main problem that the characters are having to overcome. It doesn't necessarily have to be a villain, like with Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings. For Harry Potter, the main conflict is Voldemort's attempt to steal the Sorcerer's Stone and return to menace the Wizard World (and kill Harry). For example, if you're summarizing The Odyssey, the main conflict is Odysseus trying to get home to Ithaca. Everything about the story is driven by his desire to get home and all the obstacles standing in his way. These are the most important parts of the story. You don't need to note down every single thing that a character does. In fact, that is exactly what you're supposed to not do! Just look for the events that further the main conflict, or help resolve it. For Harry Potter, some main events would be Harry finding out he's a wizard, or Harry meeting the three-headed dog and, of course, Harry, Ron, and Hermione defeating Voldemort. It might seem easier for a shorter story like 'Little Red Riding Hood,' but you should only note down the most important moments like Riding Hood meeting the wolf, getting eaten after she mistakes the wolf for her grandmother, and the appearance of the woodcutter. This is the big event, usually, that wraps up the story's conflict and resolves the problems. Even in a book that is part of a series there is usually some sort of conclusion to the story. Spoilers below! For Harry Potter the conclusion is defeating Voldemort. The story after that isn't important to the summary, even if it is important to the overall story. You won't need to go into the conversation between Dumbledore and Harry at the end, or even the Gryffindor House winning points, because it isn't really part of the main Voldemort storyline. For Red Riding Hood, the conclusion is the appearance of the woodcutter to save her and her grandmother. For something like Lord of the Rings, the conclusion is complicated for a summary, because you may want to stop off at the destruction of the Ring, but (especially if the central idea of the story is the importance of the the deeds of one insignificant person) you will want to mention the Scouring of the Shire, and Frodo's departure from the Grey Havens.

Problem: Write an article based on this summary: Manage portion sizes. Understand the glycemic index and glycemic load. Pay attention to carbohydrates. Avoid white bread and eat whole grains instead. Eat green leafy vegetables. Add lean meats into your diet. Drink sparkling water instead of sodas. Eat oatmeal. Incorporate fiber into your diet. Eat well-balanced meals.

Answer:
Blood sugar levels elevate when you eat larger portions than you should. That means if you eat larger portions, your glucose levels will increase. Carefully manage your portion sizes for each meal and snack so that you can manage your blood sugar levels. Measure the ingredients and serving sizes of your meals. Use measuring cups, measuring spoons, and a food scale. Follow the guidelines given by your doctor. If the doctor hasn't given you any guidelines, look at the nutritional label for the foods. Measure out a half or full serving of the food based on the serving size. Make sure to read labels for serving sizes. One package or one item may not be a single serving. For example, some bread is based on one ounce servings while many slices of bread are larger than one ounce. Weigh fruits and vegetables. Depending on the size and type of fruit or vegetable, this can vary. It is especially important to weight fruit. Glycemic index (GI) is based on the quality of carbohydrates you are consuming. Glycemic load (GL) is one number that combines both the quality of the carbs (GI) and the quantity of carbohydrates. The quantity is based on the grams of carbohydrates a food item has. When thinking about which carbs to eat to regulate blood sugar, think about the glycemic index and glycemic load. You want to have a GI medium. This can be achieved by eating a balanced number of GI foods with every meal. You can also combine high GI foods with foods containing lots of protein and other low GI carbs, like fruit and legumes. Low-glycemic foods are rated at 55 or less. Medium foods are rated between 56-69. High-glycemic foods are rated between 70-100. When trying to control blood sugar, refrain from eating high-glycemic foods. Low-glycemic foods include: bran cereal, black and kidney beans, skim milk, apples, oranges, peanuts, and wheat tortillas. Medium foods include: barley, brown rice, oatmeal, whole grain bread, and whole grain pasta. High-glycemic foods include: baked potatoes, French fries, sugary drinks, candy bars, couscous, white pasta, white basmati rice, and processed cereal. Digestible carbohydrates break down into sugar after you eat them. Simple carbohydrates result in a fast rise in blood sugar. Complex carbohydrates, which contain fiber, vitamins, and minerals, digest slower, and cause blood sugar to rise more slowly than simple carbohydrates. Not all complex carbohydrates are equal. White bread and white potatoes are complex carbs, but they are mostly starch instead of fiber, so they are bad for blood sugar levels. Avoid processed foods if possible. Processed whole grains have a higher glycemic index than those that have no or minimal processing. Carbohydrates are just as important as sugar in regards to controlling blood sugar. Eating too many carb heavy foods increases blood sugar levels just like eating too much sugar does. White bread is quickly converted to sugar when you eat it. Instead of eating white bread, look for foods with whole grains. Whole grains are full of fiber, which help keep you full. Whole grains are found in bread, cereal, tortillas, and crackers. Look for whole wheat flour, whole-grain cornmeal whole oats, whole rye, or buckwheat flour. Try eating whole wheat English muffins, bran cereal, whole wheat pasta, whole grain bread, or brown rice. Adding non-starchy vegetables to your diet can help you sustain and lower your blood sugar. These vegetables are high in fiber and low in carbs. Green vegetables include broccoli, spinach, kale, and green beans. Don't cut starchy vegetables, like peas, corn, squash, and lima beans, from your diet. Eat them in moderation, and make sure to control your portion sizes. Meats high in proteins are good for helping control blood sugar. They don't have a drastic affect on your blood sugar like carbohydrates do. Choose lean cuts of meat, without the skin and excessive fat. Make sure to grill or bake the meat instead of frying. Also remember to eat these foods in proper portions. Good meats to incorporate into your diet include skinless chicken breast and fish. Try salmon, tuna, and tilapia. Sodas contain a lot of sugar and carbohydrates, unless you are drinking diet sodas. Sodas and diet sodas are not good for you, and drinking juice - which is full of sugar - isn't a good alternative. If you don't want to drink just plain water, try sparkling or seltzer waters. They are flavored and have carbonation if you miss the bubbly taste of sodas. Seltzer waters are all natural and contain no additives. They are sugar and carbohydrate free, so you can drink as many as you want without affecting your blood sugar. Sparkling waters are another good alternative. These do have additives, and some come in varieties that contain sugar and carbohydrates. Make sure to read the label to find the appropriate drink for yourself. Oatmeal is a good carbohydrate because it is high in soluble fiber. When you eat it, it digests slowly so it won't spike your blood sugar. Barley, a similar food to oats, is also high in soluble fiber. Evidence shows that it may also help control blood sugar. Oatmeal offers a steady source of energy. It also helps keep you full longer, which helps with weight loss. Fiber helps cleanse your system and improve digestion. It also helps keep you satisfied along with slowing the rate of digestion, which helps control blood sugar levels. When looking for high fiber foods, try to find ones with low starch content. Foods with high fiber have a lower glycemic index. Fruits, vegetables, and beans are great sources of fiber. Try spinach, green beans, and broccoli. Try to eat fruits with lower sugar and starch content, like strawberries. Grapefruits are also great. Unprocessed whole grains have a lot of fiber. Look at the label for ingredients labeled as "whole" or unrefined. Stay away from refined ingredients. Your meals should have a mixture of different food types. Focus on a plate that has complex carbs, fruits and vegetables, proteins, and fats. Make sure not to eat too many fats, and when you do eat fats, eat healthy fats. Protein can be found in lean meats. Good sources of starches are peas, corn, squash, and lima beans. Lima beans are really good because they are high in fiber. Just remember to watch portion sizes with these foods. Eat skinless chicken breast, lean meat, and fish in your diet. Salmon is a great option because it has omega-3 fatty acids, which promote heart health. Meat is important when trying to control blood sugar because it contains chromium, which helps insulin function and aids your body in breaking down carbohydrates. Mackerel and herring are also great protein sources. Eat peanuts or peanut butter. This adds needed fat and protein into your diet that can help control blood sugar. You can also try almonds and almond butter, walnuts, and pecans. Since nuts are high in calories, make sure to pay attention to portion size.