Ask just about any 12-year-old what their favorite time of the day is and you’ll get a resounding answer: lunch! But for Alejandro Buxton, it’s a bit different. He can’t wait to get home to dive into his candle-making business. Alejandro has a goal of being a bright light in the world.
It all started when Alejandro discovered that commercial candles gave his mom headaches. He figured there must be a way to make an all-natural candle that was safe. So he dug into the world of wax and found a soy-based wax that is chemical-free. He also found natural oils to add scent, and Smell of Love Candles was born.
Alejandro sells his candles at local fairs and to his neighbors. Then his online orders began picking up. In the fall of 2022, he started seventh grade-and opened his first retail store at Tysons Corner Center, a regional mall outside Washington, D.C. As his candles become a much bigger operation, he is always experimenting with new scents like Donut Kill My Vibe, the perfect after-school scent that gets you in the mood for a snack.
Alejandro started his business to build his college fund. But running a business is about more than making money for him. He sets aside a portion of the profit to give back to the community. Some of the money supports the local homeless shelter, and some goes into a scholarship fund for kids who need a little help with college.
His mother, Patricia, is impressed with her son and loves to spend time with him as his business grows. She says it has strengthened their bond to be together and see how his mind works, adding, “It’s been really inspiring.”
Alejandro has big goals and an even bigger heart. With all the problems that seem to rob many of us of the motivation to move forward, Alejandro has chosen to focus on a solution that works, not only for him, but as an inspiration to others, no matter their age.
1. Why did Alejandro initially produce all-natural candles?| A．To innovate candle products. |
| B．To maintain his mother’s physical fitness. |
| C．To set up an environmental-friendly business. |
| D．To make money for college and helping others. |
| A．Its low cost and high quality. | B．Its safety and attractive scents. |
| C．His donation to the community. | D．His care for the homeless and kids. |
| A．Outgoing and hardworking. | B．Caring and adventurous. |
| C．Creative and generous. | D．Ambitious and romantic. |
| A．A close bond between mom and son. |
| B．A smart seven-grade business owner. |
| C．An innovative candle with new scents. |
| D．A young boy’s tough journey to success. |
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That afternoon, they agreed to be partners. And they set a goal: to open 32 stores in ten years. After doing some research, Buck wrote a check for $ 1,000. DeLuca rented a storefront (店面) in Connecticut, and when they couldn’t cover their start-up costs, Buck kicked in another $1,000.
But business didn’t go smoothly as they expected. DeLuca says, “After six months, we were doing poorly, but we didn’t know how badly, because we didn’t have any financial controls.” All he and Buck knew was that their sales were lower than their costs.
DeLuca was managing the store and going to the University of Bridgeport at the same time. Buck was working at his day job as a nuclear physicist in New York. They’d meet Monday evenings and brainstorm ideas for keeping the business running. “We convinced ourselves to open a second store. We figured we could tell the public, ‘ We are so successful, we are opening a second store.’” And they did — in the spring of 1966. Still, it was a lot of learning by trial and error.
But the partners’ learn-as-you-go approach turned out to be their greatest strength. Every Friday, DeLuca would drive around and hand-deliver the checks to pay their suppliers. “It probably took me two and a half hours and it wasn’t necessary but as a result, the suppliers got to know me very well, and the personal relationships established really helped out,” DeLuca says.
And having a goal was also important. “There are so many problems that can get you down. You just have to keep working toward your goal,” DeLuca adds.
DeLuca ended up founding Subway Sandwich, the multi-million-dollar restaurant chain.
1. Deluca opened the first sandwich shop in order to _______.
| A．support his family | B．pay for his college education |
| C．help his partner expand business | D．do some research |
| A．He put money into the sandwich business. |
| B．He was a professor of business administration (管理). |
| C．He was studying at the University of Bridgeport. |
| D．He rented a storefront for DeLuca. |
| A．It stood at an unfavorable place. |
| B．It lowered the prices to promote sales. |
| C．It made no profits due to poor management. |
| D．It lacked control over the quality of sandwiches. |
| A．had enough money to do it |
| B．had succeeded in their business |
| C．wished to meet the increasing demand of customers |
| D．wanted to make believe that they were successful |
| A．Learning by trial and error. | B．Making friends with suppliers. |
| C．Finding a good partner. | D．Opening chain stores. |
【推荐2】Marathon on a Walker
A 9-year-old boy with cerebral palsy(脑瘫) and autism (自闭) has raised $100.000 charity after completing a marathon up.
Tobias Weller completed the final of his 26.2mile marathon in Sheffield, northern England, on Sunday surrounded by socially distanced neighbors and well- wishers.
Tobias cannot stand or walk unaided, and requires support with most tasks, but, inspired by Captain Tom Moore, an old soldier who raised millions for the UK’s National Health Service by waking laps of his garden ahead of his 100th birthday. Tobias set his sights on a marathon.
“I heard about Captain Tom and I thought why don’t I use my walker to try to complete a marathon by walking up and down my street every day,” he said in video, knitting it would be an “enormous challenge”.
At the beginning of lockdown, Tobias could walk a maximum of 50 meters a day, but he grew closer to completing his challenge — which took him 70 days, he was walking up to 750 meters a day.
“I can’t believe I completed a marathon, every bit of it has been totally awesome,” he said. “I love it when my neighbors clap and cheer for me, I’m getting stronger and stronger every day. It’s such a good feeling.”
So far, Tobias has raised over £81, 600 — £50, 000 more than his original target of £30, 000 for a school that supports children and adults with cerebral palsy and autism.
Tobias’s mother said they were going to continue walking and were aiming to reach 50 kilometers. “I’m so, so pleased that he’s completed his marathon. He’s done really well. He’s tried so hard all the way through. He’s really achieved a massive goal,” she said. “I’m bursting with pride for my little boy.”
1. How did Tobias raise $ 100,000 for charity?| A．By creating a video | B．By organizing a race. |
| C．By walking in his garden. | D．By finishing a marathon |
| A．Kind and determined | B．Humble and start |
| C．Selfless and easy-going. | D．Brave and qualified |
| A．It is never too old to learn. | B．Time and tide wait for no man. |
| C．Success belongs to the persevering. | D．A friend in need is a friend indeed. |
【推荐3】My name is Caroline and I work as a doctor in a children’s hospital. I must share a heart-warming experience I enjoyed last week.
Last Friday there was a big party at the hospital. Most of the doctors and nurses would be there, but of course some of us had to stay to look after the children. I felt a little sad because I was not free to go to the party. I enjoyed dancing very much. While my friends were getting ready to go to the party, I felt very sorry for myself.
At ten o’clock, I went to see each child one after another and said good night to them. Then I came to a little boy called Jimmy. Jimmy was only 10 years old, but he already talked like an adult. Poor Jimmy was badly ill. In fact, he was getting weaker day by day. However, he was always thinking about others. We all liked the little boy very much.
When I came up to his bed, I noticed a piece of cake on the table beside his bed. When I was thinking why the cake was there, he said, “I’m very sorry that you have to miss the dance because of us. But we are going to have a party for you. Have you seen the cake? I saved it from my supper today, so It’s quite fresh.” I thanked him. “I’d dance with you myself if I was able to get up,” he added. His words warmed my heart.
Suddenly the hospital party seemed very far away and not at all important to me.
1. Caroline works in ________.| A．a bank | B．an office | C．a school | D．a hospital |
| A．sad | B．lucky | C．happy | D．surprised |
| A．he was a little boy | B．he often gave doctors cakes |
| C．he got weaker day by day | D．he always thought about others |
| A．Jimmy was not badly ill | B．Jimmy warmed Caroline’s heart |
| C．Jimmy danced with Caroline | D．the hospital party was far away |
【推荐1】In my childhood, my parents never shared their worries in economy, instead choosing to let us have a carefree childhood. But I knew, as children often do, that there were times they went without and that they couldn't afford certain things my friends had.
Back in those days, hot lunch was a luxury for the wealthier kids, and hot-lunch buyers sat separately from the students who brought cold lunch. My brothers and I brought lunch from home every day. We would look on longingly as the rich kids proudly sat down with their steaming plates of chicken or fish, cold milk, and a piece of cake.
I never said anything, but my first grade teacher, Mrs. Caruso, must have seen the yearning (渴望) in my eyes. One day she quietly pressed a note into my hand and whispered, “Give this to your mother.”
I skipped home and gave my mom the note. She read it and smiled. “Well, Mrs. Caruso said because of all your hard work, she wants to buy your lunch tomorrow.” The next day, I proudly carried my plate of chicken across the dining hall and took my seat at the hot-lunch table. Honestly, the food wasn't as great as l had imagined, but I was pleased to be there and felt honored to be a part of the group.
I don't know why Mrs. Caruso took a shine to me. Maybe she also grew up in a family that struggled. Maybe she knew what it was like to feel just a little less than everyone else. Somehow, even with her quiet charity, she never made me feel ashamed. She just made me feel loved and important. Thanks to her, I learned that I had just as much right as anyone to sit at the hot-lunch table.
I don't remember what Mrs. Caruso looked like anymore, but I sure do remember how she made me feel. I've never lost that feeling—of being important to someone and being protected by her. After all these years, I'm still grateful to that wonderful teacher.
1. What kind of life did the author have when he was a child?| A．His parents couldn't afford to send him to school. |
| B．He suffered from hunger every day. |
| C．He could get whatever he wanted. |
| D．His family was poor but he was well protected by his parents. |
| A．Because he worked very hard. |
| B．Because she and his mother were close friends. |
| C．Because he didn't like the home-prepared cold food. |
| D．Because she noticed he longed to have a taste of it. |
| A．It was the most delicious food that he had ever had. |
| B．It tasted worse than his cold food. |
| C．He was greatly encouraged by it. |
| D．He knew how the rich lived from it. |
| A．Kind. | B．Hard-working. | C．Humorous. | D．Patient. |
【推荐2】Alexis, 17, sat quietly in the passenger seat of her dad's car. She let her eyes lazily scan, the field for wildlife. Then a deer came into sight about 200 yards in front of them. "Dad, there's a deer there!" Alexis said. It was a male deer with sharp antlers(角)on each side of its head.
As the car moved closer, Alexis saw that the deer's head was bent toward the ground. Then she heard a scream and saw an arm fly up near the deer's head. Alexis realized the deer was attacking a woman. Sue, a 44-year-old mother, had been out for her morning run. The deer followed her and edged closer. "I knew I was in trouble," Sue says. She went to pick up a stone for self-protection, and the deer attacked. It lifted her with its antlers and threw her into the air. Sue could feel blood flew down her leg. Within seconds, the deer had pushed her off the road.
When Alexis and her father pulled up, the deer was throwing Sue like a doll. Alexis looked into the woman's frightened eyes, and before her father had even stopped the car, the teenager jumped quickly out of the car and ran toward the deer. "I was kicking it to get its attention," she says. Then her father, who had followed his daughter, pushed the deer away from the women.
Alexis helped Sue into the car, and then applied a piece of cloth to Sue's injured leg. "We're going to take you to a hospital," Alexis said. Then she heard her father shout loudly. He had been knocked to the ground. Alexis took hold of a hammer from the car and ran to where her father lay on his back. She beat the deer's head and neck, but it didn't scare it away. "I was losing faith," she says. "More strikes, Alexis," said her father. "You can do it." Turning the hammer around. Alexis closed her eyes and beat the deer's neck with all her strength. When she opened her eyes, the deer was running away. Alexis got in the driver's seat and sped toward the nearest hospital.
After Sue was treated, she tearfully thanked the teenager and her father. "You expect a teenage girl to get on the phone and call for help," she says, "not to beat up a deer."
1. What was Sue doing when she was attacked by the deer?| A．She was driving home. | B．She was resting on the road. |
| C．She was taking exercise. | D．She was feeding wild animals. |
| A．changed | B．cut | C．attacked | D．moved |
| A．She pushed the deer away. | B．She hit the deer with her feet. |
| C．She drove the car to hit the deer. | D．She beat the deer with a hammer. |
| A．Strong. | B．Well-educated. |
| C．Energetic. | D．Brave. |
【推荐3】Sammie Vance, 14, knows there’s nothing worse than feeling left out. For years, she’s been helping kids who feel lonely make friends. What she was doing was running the Buddy Bench program. The idea was that anyone at school who was feeling lonely could sit on the “buddy bench.” That let other kids know someone needed a friend. “It’s really helpful to have other people be able to notice you,” Sammie says.
The idea quickly caught on. The bench brought kids together. Since then, Sammie has helped communities all over the country set up buddy benches. “It means a lot to me,” she says, “that this is making a difference in people’s lives.”
Sammie got the idea for the Buddy Bench program at summer camp in 2017. She thought it would be cool to have a buddy bench in her school, so when she got home, she presented the idea to her principal, her teachers, and her parents.
Getting approval for the project was just the first step. “There have been a lot of small challenges, like money,” Sammie says.
To reduce costs and be eco-friendly, Sammie decided to make the bench out of recycled material. So she called on her community to gather bottle caps.
Word of the project got out, and soon Sammie was getting caps from people in all 50 states. She even got them from people in Germany, the Netherlands, and other countries. In the end, she collected more than 1,200 pounds of bottle caps. A company called GreenTree Plastics was able to upcycle these into three benches.
In addition to all the kids her project has helped, Sammie is grateful for how it has changed her. “It just helped me grow in so many different aspects of my life,” she says.
Before long, Sammie was helping other schools acquire benches. She has donated more than 200 benches to schools and parks all around the country, and in Mexico and Australia. Her work continues to spread kindness far and wide.
Even small acts of kindness can be powerful. “It can make someone’s day and lead to a chain reaction,” she says. “You never know. Just be kind, in general.”
1. What do we know about the Buddy Bench program?| A．It helps lonely kids to make friends. | B．Only lonely kids can sit on the bench. |
| C．The program brought all the kids together. | D．It made Sammie Vance popular among the kids. |
| A．lacking money | B．collecting materials for the bench |
| C．gaining support from her classmates | D．getting approval of her school and her parents |
| A．She collected the bottle caps from all over the country. |
| B．The benches were made to be eco-friendly and low-cost. |
| C．A company upcycled the caps into three benches for free. |
| D．She donated benches to schools and parks all around the country. |
| A．It helped her grow in many respects. |
| B．She became popular among the students. |
| C．It can brighten her day and lead to a chain reaction. |
| D．Her work continues to spread kindness far and wide. |
【推荐1】Warren Edward Buffett was born on August 30, 1930. As the second oldest kid in his family, he has two sisters. He showed an amazing talent (天资) for both money and business at a very early age.
At the age of six, Buffett bought six-packs of Coca-Cola from his grandfather’s store for twenty-five cents and resold each of the bottles for five cents. While other children of his age were playing, Buffett was making money. Five years later, Buffett took his first step into the world of high finance (金融).
He bought three shares (股票) of Cities Service Preferred (CSP) at $38 per share for both himself and his sister, Doris. Shortly after buying them, the shares fell to just over $27 per share. Though Buffett felt frightened, he held his shares until they went up to $40. He immediately sold them ---- a mistake he would soon come to regret, because each share of the CSP went up to $ 200. The experience taught him that investing (投资) needed time and a patient wait.
In 1947, Buffett graduated from high school when he was 17 years old. It was never his plan to go to college. He had already made $5,000 by delivering newspapers. His father had other plans and strongly advised his son to attend the Wharton Business School at the University of Pennsylvania. Buffett only stayed there for two years, saying that he knew more than his professors. He returned home and went to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Despite working full-time, he managed to graduate in only three years. Buffett approached graduate studies with the same resistance he displayed a few years earlier. He was finally persuaded to apply to Harvard Business School, which refused him because he was too young. Buffett then applied to Columbia University, where he got an experience that would forever change his life from famous investors Ben Graham and David Dodd.
1. What do we know about Buffett?| A．He didn’t get along well with his sisters. |
| B．He was born in a poor but loving family. |
| C．He often made mistakes during his childhood. |
| D．He showed a natural ability to do business in childhood. |
| A．Six. | B．Eleven. | C．Seventeen. | D．Nineteen. |
| A．Investment needs patience. |
| B．Regretting is useless in the investment |
| C．Experience is valuable for investment. |
| D．Mistakes are unavoidable during the investment. |
| A．He wanted to help his grandfather. |
| B．He was not satisfied with his professors. |
| C．He preferred the university in his hometown. |
| D．He showed he was unwilling to make friends there. |
| A．Buffett’s interest. | B．Buffett’s family. |
| C．Buffett’s education. | D．Buffett’s working experience. |
【推荐2】Bill Gates is the co-founder of Microsoft Corp., the world’s largest personal-computer software company. Since he stepped down as chairman of Microsoft Corp., he has put his mind to donating money to several charities.
Bill and Melinda talked about what to do with their great wealth.
In 2000, the couple created the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Bill read a report several years ago.
| A．We were surprised! |
| B．That’s what we want! |
| C．They didn’t care about fame. |
| D．It was about children in poor countries. |
| E．They decided to give 95 percent of it away. |
| F．A foundation is like a business that is set up to give away money. |
| G．Some important people in Bill’s life encouraged him to be generous. |
【推荐3】Jack Ma, whose Chinese name is Ma Yun, became the richest man in China, when the company he founded floated on the stock market last year with a value of around ￡140 billion. Here are some interesting stories about him.
1. "Beer" was the first word that Jack Ma searched for on the Internet
In 1995 Ma made his first trip to the US and used the Internet for the first time. After searching for "beer" and then "China", he saw that no results came up relating to China. He decided to set up a Chinese website一the seed for Alibaba had been sown.
2. Jack Ma applied to study at Harvard 10 times and was rejected (拒绝) each time
Ma failed the entry exams for colleges in China three times and was also rejected for many jobs in China, including one at KFC. He was turned down by the Harvard 10 times after applying.
3. Jack Ma learnt English by giving tourists free guides一every day for nine years.
Limited resources meant it was difficult to learn English when Ma was young. However, he found that he could learn the language by giving tourists free tours around his hometown of Hangzhou一something that he did during his teenage years every morning for nine years. He found everything they said and did was so different from what he had been taught at school and by his parents, which opened his mind.
4. Jack Ma named his company Alibaba because it's a globally known story
Ma simply wanted his company to have a global and interesting name, and realised that Alibaba is a story known across the world and it begins with A, appearing top of lists.
The company was founded in 1999 and since then has grown from 15 employees to more than 30,000. Ma hopes to keep expanding Alibaba outside of China.
1. Ma Yun decided to set up a Chinese website when _______.| A．he applied to Harvard | B．he visited America for the first time |
| C．he began to learn English | D．he wanted to make a fortune |
| A．He took the entry exams for colleges three times. |
| B．Some employers didn’t offer him a job. |
| C．Harvard turned down his application for his poor English. |
| D．He once wanted to work at KFC. |
| A．he is a man with strong will | B．he made a lot of money as a guide |
| C．he accepted the values of foreigners | D．what he had been taught at school was wrong. |
| A．make more profit (利润) abroad. | B．settle in America |
| C．merge (合并) with other companies | D．expand his business in China |
