【推荐2】Letter writing may seem like a lost art to many of us, but for Emerson Weber, it’s a way of life. Emerson is a fifth-grader. Her dad said the 11-year-old has a(n) _________ letter writing habit and _________ dozens of letters to her pen pals (笔友) each week. She pours her heart out in these simple homemade _________, often including jokes, drawings, and stories about her family.

One day, she decided to write a _________ letter to Doug, their mail carrier, to thank him for helping everyone stay _________.

“You may know me as the person that lives here that writes a lot of _________ and decorates the envelopes,” she wrote. “Well, I wanted to thank you for taking my letters and _________ them. You are _________ to me. I make people _________ with my letters, but you do too. I don’t have a ____________, so how else am I supposed to stay in touch with my friends? You make it ____________!”

Emerson gave Doug the letter and was ____________ to receive a reply from him the very next day. He also included some stamps to help Emerson do what she ____________ best!

Now that their story has gone viral (传播开来), Emerson’s dad is ____________ more people to reach out. After all, everyone ____________ human connection, and it doesn’t take much to let someone know they’re not alone.

【推荐3】An African farmer had heard tales about other farmers who had made millions of dollars by discovering diamond (钻石) mines. The farmer was so ________ that he could hardly wait to ________ his farm and go to search for diamonds himself.

So he sold the farm and spent the rest of his life ________ the African continent, searching ________ for diamonds. Finally, broke, worn out, and ________ with life, he threw himself into a well and drowned.

Meanwhile, back at the farm, the man who had ________ the first farmer’s farm happened to be crossing a small stream (溪) on the farm one day when he saw something ________ at the bottom of the stream. He ________ it up. It was a shining ________. He took it home and later put it on his desk.

Several weeks later, a visitor who had heard of the stone came to admire the stone. He looked ________ at it and weighed it in his hand. Then he asked the farmer if he knew what he’d ________. When the farmer said no, the visitor told him he had found one of the largest diamonds ever ________.

The ________ was astonished (惊讶的). He told the man that his ________ was full of these brilliant “stones”.

Needless to say, the farm the first farmer had sold, turned out to be the most ________     diamond mine on the entire African continent.

If the first farmer had not sold the farm, his dreams would have come true.

【推荐1】This is a story which I’ve told every February ever since I started my teaching in 1999. It was a tale about _______ and heartbreak.

In the sixth grade, I fell _______ in love with a tall, cute but naughty boy, who wasn’t _______ me actually. However, to my great surprise, I received one _______ card from him just on Valentine’s Day. With shaking hands, I _______ open the envelope and _______ a sparkly (闪耀的) image of a queen seated on her throne (宝座). So _______ was I that I almost couldn’t _______ myself. Then, my eyes traveled up to the writing above his signature which read: “To the _______ girl in our class.” I could still remember how embarrassed I was with my eyes full of tears, my nose stinging and my cheek ________. It shook what little ________ I have in myself for a long time. From that day on, Valentine’s Day, to me, meant nothing but ________ and cruelty. Fortunately, I ________ all those.

Every February, I would also ________ to my students the reason why we should ________ a party on this day is that we are expected to express thanks to people around ________ cruelty. The night before the party, I usually cut the pink paper into hundreds of small squares and handed out construction paper, ________ they can write whatever they want to ________ their classmates.

Looking on as they compose each message is always a(n) ________. But the real fun comes when they read what people wrote to them. Watching a shy boy ________ open a card and then break into a big smile is worth all of the trouble.

【推荐2】Candice was a lovely thirteen-year-old girl. She often invited her friends to her father’s cake shop to _________ his new products. All children liked Candice and the cakes very much. _________, they all had no idea that Candice had a habit of telling _________.

One day, Candice told her friends that her father was going to make her a huge cake. When she begged her busy father to do one, he _________ it. To save her face, Candice lied to her friends that her father fell ill and couldn’t do that. The children all felt very _________ and one of them told it to his father, Mr. Forbes, who _________ to be a business partner of Candice’s father. He drove to _________ his old partner without delay, only to find Candice’s father was _________. After some discussion, they finally _________ the whole story. Considering Candice often lied, Candice’s father decided to do something. A few minutes later, Candice got home. She was very __________ to see her father lying in bed with __________ on his face. She couldn’t believe that her words became a __________. She cried. She regretted it so much and __________ to her father in tears. Candice’s father knew Candice had got a(n) __________ and then told her the truth. Candice felt ashamed and promised, “__________ will I tell a lie to anyone for the rest of my life.”

【推荐3】My little brother and sister, Tex and Indi, are five-year-old twins. When it comes to being lovable, they’re the _______. But when it comes to keeping _______, they’re the worst!

My parents _______ to celebrate their wedding anniversary by taking a _______. But at the last minute, my dad came home from work with bad news that their getaway would have to _______. That’s when I came up with the _______ to surprise my parents with a cake. I could get help from Abuela, the grandmother of my friend Ollie.

Once I had my mom’s _______ to go to Ollie’s, I hurried toward the door. Indi and Tex ran up. I whispered to them I was going to _______ a cake for Mom and Dad’s anniversary. They wanted to _______.

“You can stay here and make cards. But remember, we don't say a single thing about the ________ until after dinner,” I said. They nodded.

Abuela was extremely ________, we made a beautiful cake. I brought it home and ________ it on a shelf in the garage. ________ was going as I’d hoped until I walked into the house. Tex and Indi waved their cards and ________ “Surprise!”

“No,” I said. “Not yet!” Right then, my mom rushed in and asked what was ________!”

“We won’t ________ you about the cake!” said the twins.

“I was trying to give you and dad the perfect anniversary surprise,” I ________, “but two members of this family just ________ everything.”

“We don’t care if it’s a ________,” said my mom. “It’s the thought that counts, and you just ________!”