Lifeart is a student-run organization which was 1 by one of my best friends at my school in Boston, US. It sells 2 by our friends and classmates and raises money for cancer(癌症) research. To collect more money, we set out onto the streets of Boston to sell our paintings to the public last spring.
We came to the subway station in order that we could get more 3 . Things didn't go well at first. It was 4 that day, so our paintings kept being blown away. All of us were quite 5 and were slow to ask people if they would consider buying our paintings. We were also worried about being driven away.
One of our girls, Luna, tried to talk to our first customer. Although he did not buy anything, it gave some 6 to the rest of us. With every new customer Luna brought to our little stand(货摊), we had more courage. I also stepped forward and talked to a Korean woman 7 . I felt a bit embarrassed when she said that she didn't have time. But thanks to this short conversation with the stranger, my courage 8 . I kept talking to more people, including some Chinese people. At the 9 of the day, we sold about 20 pieces of paintings. It might not be as much as we had expected，10 the courage that we got made up for the day's shortcomings(不足).
As we all know, environmental pollution is still serious nowadays. Our group wanted to know how many students knew about each kind of the pollution and we wanted to learn how often they sorted(分类) rubbish. So we did a survey among the students in our school. Here are the results of our questionnaire(问卷).
The results of the questionnaire
| Do you know about these problems? How often do you sort rubbish? |
Tony and George were painting freely. Each of them had a bottle of blue paint(油漆) and a bottle of yellow paint.
Suddenly George said, "Look, Tony, I made green! "
"How did you do it?" asked Tony.
"I put yellow paint on top of my blue paint — yellow and blue put together make green!" shouted George. Other children came around to watch and wanted to do it themselves.
This is an example of discovery learning or hands-on learning.
People remember things better when they learn them by doing. Here is an example. How will you learn to play football?
Buy a book and read about how to play football or buy a video about football? Or go to the playground and ask a person to teach you?
Which way will help you learn the game best? Learning on the playground is the best way for most people because they try the game and learn the rules as they play. They learn in a hands-on way.
Hands-on learning is good for children. The learner takes an active part in it instead of just sitting and listening. This is the way that we want our children to learn. In order to learn best, children must take an active part in hands-on activities every day. Some good examples of hands-on activities are working puzzles, painting, playing simple board games together and so on.
Nancy's boss has just let her know that her customers' products are about to leave the company. And then he tells her there's a problem.
"The products were damaged(损坏) by someone in our company," the boss says. " But this shouldn't affect the use of the products. If the customers find it, we'll say it was caused by the trucking(货运)company that delivered(运载) the products. "
Hearing this, Nancy feels uncomfortable. "But didn't our workers damage the products?" Her boss looks at her," Yeah, but the customers don't know that. I'll just say they were damaged while they were delivered. Don't worry, the customers won't even notice the damage. "
Nancy's boss walks out. Nancy sits at her desk and she's not sure what to do. She knows it's dishonest to blame(将—归咎于) the damage on the trucking company. It's also dishonest to cheat her customers and give them less perfect products.
Many of us have to make decisions that make who we are and what we believe in. Most often, we face a choice that may seem insignificant(微不足道的). But this doesn't mean that they're not important to us because even the smallest action may make a difference to us.
What would you do if you had trouble seeing clearly? You would probably go to an eye doctor who might give you glasses. For many people around the world, however, such a way isn't that simple.
The World Health Organization reports that glasses can help one billion people in the world. Yet places like Ghana have only one eye doctor every 8 million people. This makes glasses almost impossible to get. Joshua Silver, a teacher at Oxford University, however，may have solved the problem.
Mr. Silver has developed liquid(液体)-filled glasses that users can adjust(调整) by themselves without seeing a doctor! The lenses(镜片) are filled with oil. Using a dial on the glasses, the user changes the amount of oil. This changes the strength(度数) of the lens. After the user finds the right strength, he then fixes the lens.
Results show that among those who have tried the glasses, around 80% are satisfied. Mr. Silver's goal is for everyone who still needs glasses to have such glasses as soon as possible. With a little more effort, Mr. Silver thinks that his goal might be achieved in the near future.
| A. It'll get in the way of our schoolwork. B. I'm reading a novel. C. Mobile phones are part of our life now. D. Anyway, some ways will be found to solve such problems. E. I'm reading the newspaper. F. That's a good idea. G. Sounds like you have a point. |
A: Hi, Wu Lan! What are you doing?
B: Hi, Li Ming!Here, it is reported that mobile phones are banned(禁止) in primary and secondary schools by the Ministry of Education.
A: Oh, no! We've grown up with them.
B: Well, I think it's a good rule, though. If we bring mobile phones to school, we might want to check them out from time to time.
A: But we can try to control ourselves.
B: Even adults can't always control themselves, let alone(更何况) kids like us.
A: However, I have to use a bike-sharing app on the phone every day.
B: Hmm. . . Maybe it is a little inconvenient sometimes. .
A: Well, I hope so.
A: Hi, Wu Ming! ?
B: Hi, Laura! Pretty good! I'm looking forward to the Dragon Boat Festival.
A: The Dragon Boat Festival?
B: OK. It's a traditional Chinese festival. It's on the fifth day of the fifth lunar(阴历的) month.
A: Oh, ?
B: To remember an ancient poet(诗人),Qu Yuan.
A: Aha, I see. ?
B: We usually eat zongzi and watch dragon boat races on that day.
A: Zongzi? They must be delicious.
B: Yes, and I really like zongzi with meat. But do you know what I like best about the festival?
A: ?
B: The dragon boat races. They're exciting to watch. Maybe you can celebrate the festival with my family next week.
A: Of course I'd love to. Thanks for your invitation.
| as just which drink begin slow if fall cost little it time |
Do you know China's Teeth Care Day? It on September 20 every year. It began in
1989. Its aim is to take good care of people's teeth.
There are thirty-eight students in Wang Bin's class, and eleven of them have tooth problems bring them much trouble.
Mao Kang said, "I had three bad teeth. Each tooth me four hundred yuan, and I had to see the dentist five . "
Liu Jian said, "Something is wrong with my front teeth, I don't like to open my mouth. My classmates say my teeth look like an old woman's, I'm sad to hear that. And I can't speak clearly now. "
Do you have good teeth, my friends? you want to take care of your teeth, please do these:
◆Brush your teeth at once a day. If you can, brush them after every meal.
◆Brush all your teeth, do not brush the front ones.
◆Brush your teeth and carefully. Spend four minutes or more each time.
◆Do not use your teeth tools to open bottles. It's very easy to hurt your teeth to do such jobs.
◆Use soft toothbrushes. Get a new toothbrush every three months.
◆Eating and drinking is also important to your teeth. Eat lots of fruits and vegetables and drink water. Try not Coke and other drinks.
Mary was waiting for the airplane to take off. She was happy to have a seat by herself. Just then, an air hostess(空姐) came up to her and asked, "Would you mind changing your seat?" The girl behind Mary had a black-and-blue face and a sad expression. She had her arms broken, and she needed help. "I don't want to sit there. " Mary thought immediately. But the soft voice came again, "She needs help. " Finally, Mary moved to that seat.
The girl was named Emily. She had been in a car accident and now was on her way for treatment(治疗).
When the snacks and juice arrived, Mary realized that Emily could not feed herself. Mary considered offering to feed her but hesitated(犹豫), as it seemed too impolite to offer service to a stranger. But then Mary realized that Emily's need was more important. Mary offered to help her eat. Although Emily was uncomfortable to accept, she agreed. They became closer and closer in a short time. By the end of the five-hour trip, Mary's heart had warmed, and the time was really better spent than if she had just sat by herself.
Mary was very glad that she had sat next to Emily and fed her. Love sometimes goes beyond human border(边界) and removes(消除) the fears that keep people away. When we reach our hands to serve another, we grow to live in a larger and more rewarding (有回报的) world.
A friend's grandfather came to America from East Europe. After arriving at Ellis Island, he went into a cafeteria(自助餐厅) in Lower Manhattan to get something to eat. He sat down at an empty table and waited for someone to take his order.
Of course nobody did. Finally, a woman with a tray(餐盘) full of food sat down opposite him and told him how a cafeteria worked.
"Start out at that end," she said," Just go along the line and pick out what you want. At the other end they'll tell you how much you have to pay. "
"I soon learned that's how everything works in America. " The grandfather told a friend, "Life's a cafeteria. You can get anything you want as long as you are ready to pay the price. You can even get success. But you'll never get it if you wait for someone to bring it to you. You have to get up and get it yourself. "
In fact, life is like a cafeteria. Don't wait for success to come to you. And success is in your own hands.
When the door of happiness closes, another opens, but we often look so long at the closed door that we don't see the one that has been opened for us. Giving someone all your love doesn't mean that they'll love you back. Don't expect love in return. Just wait for it to grow in their hearts.
Dream what you want to dream, go where you want to go, and be what you want to be. Because you have only one life. And it is the only chance for you to do all you want to do.
Don't let anyone steal your dreams. Follow your heart, no matter what happens.
