【推荐2】The British Columbia Academy (BCA) welcomed its new school year with a traditional event: the student council election. Every fall, the school holds this event to select student representatives. It’s their responsibility to carry out and manage regular activities of the academy.

    1     Then, they had one week to promote themselves, either through social media or posters. When the promotion process was over, the candidates got to express their administration ideology (观念) and running platforms through a formal speech on election day. They could also call for more votes by showing video clips or performing their talents. Students started to vote for their preferred candidates on the learning platform Moodle.     2    

As a senior student at high school, I wanted to do something for the school since it was my last chance. I ran for prime minister of this year’s student council. By leading the students’ political party, I wanted to make an impressive school year for everyone after two years of preparation.

    3     Nearly 80 percent of the candidates, including me, presented their self-made posters with personal achievements in the hall. On election day, everyone was dressed formally and confidently spoke about their blueprints.     4     During my speech, I showed off a one-minute video clip to demonstrate my accomplishments in more vivid way. I finished writing my speech one week before the formal election and practiced my speaking skills over and over again. These preparations paid off: I was elected.

    5     With the close cooperation between students in different grades, the new crew can hopefully change this year’s activities and turn BCA into a better place.

【推荐3】Each fall brings a lot of opportunities that attract you to your school community. Here are a few ways to get involved.

Join a club! Clubs are probably the easiest and most direct route to getting involved. Typically, high schools have clubs that focus on a wide variety of topics.     1     What about a desire to go into medicine? If you answer “yes”, then you are in luck!     2     Usually, the best way to join a club is attending an after-school fair at the beginning of the school year.

Try out for a sports team! If you have any interest in a sport your school offers, there is absolutely no harm in having a try. The worst that can happen is that you don’t make it and have to try next year. Sports teams are a great way to make friends with people who have similar interests.     3     Sports provide a boost (帮助) to physical and emotional health.

Volunteer! Volunteer work comes in many forms.     4     My point is that volunteer work could be an incredible way to discover passions and shape your personality.

    5     Choosing to get involved in your school community by joining a club, trying out for a sports team, or volunteering is undoubtedly something you will not regret.

【推荐1】In a room at Texas Children Cancer Center in Houston, eight-year-old Simran Jatar lay in bed with a drip(点滴)above her to fight her bone cancer. Over her bald(秃的)head, she wore a pink hat that matched her clothes. But the third grader’s cheery dressing didn’t mask her pain and weary eyes.

Then a visitor showed up. “Do you want to write a song?” asked Anita Kruse, 49, rolling a cart equipped with an electronic keyboard, a microphone and speakers. Simran stared. “Have you ever written a poem?” Anita Kruse continued. “Well, yes,” Simran said.

Within minutes, Simran was reading her poem into the microphone. “Some bird soaring through the sky,” she said softly. “Imagination in its head…” Anita Kruse added piano music, a few warbling (鸣,唱)birds, and finally the girl’s voice. Thirty minutes later, she presented Simran with a CD of her first recorded song.

That was the beginning of Anita Kruse’s project, Purple Songs Can Fly, one that has helped more than 125 young patients write and record songs. As a composer and pianist who had performed at the hospital, Kruse said that the idea of how she could help “came in one flash”.

The effect on the kids has been great. One teenage girl, curling(蜷缩)in pain in her wheelchair, stood unaided to dance to a hip-hop song she had written. A 12-year-old boy with Hodgkin’s disease who rarely spoke surprised his doctors with a song he called I Can Make It.

“My time with the kids is heartbreaking because of the severity of their illnesses,” says Anita Kruse. “But they also make you happy, when the children are smiling, excited to share their CD with their families.”

Simran is now an active sixth grader and cancer-free. From time to time, she and her mother listen to her song, Always Remembering, and they always remember the “really sweet and nice and loving” lady who gave them a shining moment in the dark hour.

【推荐3】Born in Poland, Siwosz began playing tennis at seven and developed the skills that helped her earn a top-50 ranking among the ITF Junior division. Siwosz wanted to do more with her life than just play tennis, which led her to seek chances that would also allow her to obtain a top education. “There’s no collegiate sports in Poland and no culture of sports and academic study there. ” Siwosz said.

Her desire to have a quality education led her to America. While Siwosz was talented enough to begin her collegiate tennis career, she could only attend community college because she missed the deadline to apply for four-year schools, mainly due to misinformation provided in her home country of Poland.

When she had earned all her credits, Siwosz made the decision to attend Baylor in Texas. Her friends from Poland put in a good word for the university, saying that it was a good fit because there were many international players at Baylor. “I thought it would be a good idea, but it really wasn’t what I thought it would be,” Siwosz said. “The level of tennis was high, but the academic standards were no match and I just wanted more.”

After one year at Baylor, Siwosz made the decision to transfer to Berkeley, which was due in large part to her friend Lee, a former Berkeley student and keen tennis player. “I knew she was unhappy there,” he said. “I saw the opportunity for her to come here.” Siwosz visited Lee in Berkeley. “I ended up loving this place and this school,” Siwosz said. “I came here a lot over the summer, I gave it a shot and I ended up with a Berkeley education and a spot on one of the best college tennis teams in the country.”