It's interesting to visit another country. butsometimes there are problems when we don't know the 1 very well. It may be 2 to talk with the people there. We may not knowhow to use the telephone in the country we are visiting. We may not know how tobuy the 3 we need. In the 4countrywe might not know where to eat or what to order(点菜) in a 5.It is not easy to decide how 6 to tip(小费) waiters ordrivers. When we need help, we might not know how to ask for help. We may be 7 to have an experience like that. 8 a short time, however, we learn what to do andwhat to 9. We learn to enjoy life in anothercountry, and then we may be 10 to leave there. Do you think so?
In modern society there is a lot of disagreementabout competition. Some value it highly, believing that it is good for socialprogress. Others say that competition is bad. It sets one person againstanother. And it leads to unfriendly relationship between people.
I have taught many children who believe thattheir self-worth depended on how well they did at tennis and other skills. Forthem, playing well and winning are often life-and death matters. In theirsingle-minded dream of success, the development of many other human qualities （品质）is sadly forgotten.
However, while some seem to be lost in thedesire （渴望）to succeed, others take a different attitude. In a culture whichvalues only the winners, they are strongly against competition. Among themost vocal are youngsters who are under competitive pressures（压力）from their parents or society. They are always told to be the topones, but they think it's really hard. When I teach these young people, I oftenfind them in a desire to fail. They seem to search for failure（失败）by not trying to win or achieve success. By not trying, they alwayshave an excuse:" I may have lost, but it doesn't matter because I reallydidn't try. If I had tried and lost, that would mean a lot."
Clearly, this belief is the same as that ofthe true competitors who try to prove themselves. Both are based on themistaken belief. They think one's self-respect depends on how well one doescompared with others. Both are afraid of not being valued. Only as this fearbegins to dissolve（消除）can we discover a newmeaning in competition,
Tony Wheeler was born to travel. His father served in an airline. For the first 16 years of his life, Tony and his family lived in many different countries.
In the early 1970s, Tony met Maureen. They soon married. Before getting jobs, Tony and Maureen wanted to travel. They took a one yearlong trip from England, through Asia, to Australia. On the trip, they visited places like Iran, India and so on.
When Tony and Maureen arrived in Australia, people asked many questions about their trip. To answer these questions, Tony wrote a book called Across Asia on the Cheap. The book told people about different countries' weather, customs and places to see. But unlike other travel books then, Tony's book also talked about places most tourists did not go. He also wrote about unique things to see and do. The book was very popular.
Tony and Maureen started a company called Lonely Planet, They continued travelling. They wrote books for each place they visited. Today, about 800 people work for Lonely Planet. The company has over 650 books. Tony, the great traveler, still writes about travels to many places and will bring us more surprises.
As a volunteer teacher, I travelled a long way to a small village school in Longzhou, Guangxi. On my way there, I thought about the village, the school and the children there. However, my heart sank(心情沉重)when I arrived there. It was out of my expectation (预料). It had only three rooms. One was for Grades 1, 2 and 3; one was for Grades 4, 5and 6, and the third one was for me.
They asked me a lot of questions, and I told them stories about myself and my life in Shanghai. The next day, I gave them a test to find out their levels. To my surprise, though the test was very easy, over half of the students failed it, yet they all wanted to learn new things. I was busy preparing lessons and reading test papers every night. I enjoyed teaching these lovely and hard-working children, and I could see that they were making progress with my help. I understand their lives more, and we are good friends now.
I'm very happy and the experience has been very useful to me. I love the small village and the children. In fact, I would like to continue(继续)working here.
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A. I have also learned a lot from them. B. The children welcomed me warmly on my first day. C. I knew they needed me. D. The children seemed to know everything about me. E. I have worked in Longzhou for a year. F. It didn't look like a school at all. |
Tony and Lingling are good friends. They are talking about how to (度过)their holidays. Lingling is going to take part in as peaking (比赛). It can help (提高)her speaking, and the first prize is" My (梦想)holiday ". That's just what Lingling has (一直)wanted. The plane (票)are usually expensive, and Lingling can't (买得起)them.
However, it's a (可惜) that Tony has stopped (尝试)now. He has (参加) many of them, but he has never (获胜). Lingling knows Tony is good at writing, so she (建议)him not to lose his heart. There's a writing activity" Around the World in 80 Days ". Students need to write about a (短的)story about a place they've visited. It (听起来)wonderful, but Tony hasn't travelled much. So Lingling (邀请) Tony to make up a story. Tony agrees and they wish to get good luck for their holidays.
Simon Dale didn't want to live in a city's apartment building. So he made up his mind (build) his own home in the countryside. He moved to Wales with his family and built a wooden eco-house. With the help of his father-in-law, a builder, he moved into a comfortable new home only four months. only cost $ 4, 700 to build the house.
The house is made of ( nature) materials (材料). Simon and his father-in-law dug into the side of the hill and then used the mud and stones (make) the walls. The (floor) are made from wood from the nearby area. There is no central heating(供暖), there's a wood burner and solar panels (太阳能电板) the top. Drinking water is from a nearby spring. The fridge stays cool, thanks to air from under the ground. Simon says, "We try to live peace with nature. "He has (certain) done his best to achieve that.
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A. Is it free to enter? B. Good luck to you! C. You know I'm interested in singing songs. D. I'm sure you'll win the competition. E. I have never entered an English competition. F. What's the first prize? G. I'm nervous before competitions. |
A: Good morning, Daisy! What're you up to?
B: I'm preparing for the English competition.
A: An English competition?
B: But you've entered lots of singing competitions, right?
A: That's true.
B: I'm not good at that, but I like English so much.
A: When is the competition?
B: Next Friday. I have four days to get ready for it.
A:
B: It's a journey to Beijing for free.
A: That's so cool! I've never been to Beijing.
B: It's hard to say. But I'll try my best.
A: It would be great if I could enter a competition like that!
B: Thanks. You can enter it next time.
A: 1 think I'd better join an English club to practise my English first.
B: That's a good idea.
