I used to hate being asked to do something in class because I didn’t like attention drawn to myself. I always chose to sit at the _________ of the classroom.

All this changed after I joined a sports team. My teacher suggested I _________ for the basketball team. At first, I thought it was a _________ idea because I didn’t have a good sense of balance (平衡), nor did I have the ability to play basketball well. But the teacher _________ advising me to go for it, so I decided to have a try. When I first _________ the practice course, I didn’t even know some basic rules of the game. Sometimes I was so nervous that I even got the ball in our own team’s basket. That made me feel really _________. Luckily, I wasn’t the only one “new” at the game. Then I _________ to put my heart into learning the game and do my best during the practice. I practiced and practiced. Soon I knew the rules and the “moves”. Being part of a team was _________. As time goes by, I learned how to play and made friends. I never had so much _________! And I started to feel better about myself.

Now I have more self-confidence (自信) in myself. Even if I am not sure about the answer, I raise my hand __________ “hiding” in the back of the classroom. So, let’s change from now on. It will really make us much better.

Mr. Charles was very upset because some of his boys whistled(吹口哨) during school hours. At last, he was so angry that he said he would punish anyone who whistled again.

The next morning, when the room was very quiet, a loud whistle was heard!

The students were very surprised, and Mr. Charles at once looked around to find out who did it.

The blame(责备) fell on a big boy, John. He was often a troublemaker. But he strongly shook his head, yet nobody believed him. Mr. Charles would bring him up for punishment. At that time, a thin little boy was off his seat.

“Do not punish John, sir,” Max said to the teacher. “It was I who whistled.”

“I was working on a difficult math problem, and I finally found a way to solve it. But before I remembered where I was, I had whistled right out, sir!”

“I am very, very sorry, sir. I did not mean to whistle, but I cannot let John be punished for my fault(错误).”

Mr. Charles said, “OK, since you did not whistle on purpose, I can’t punish you.”

Max returned to his seat with a red face, but all the students in the class were proud of him, for every student could see how bravely he had acted.

Max was truly a brave boy. He had done what he should do, even though at the time he might be punished.

When it comes to planning a big party, writing an invitation is the first step. So how can you write a proper invitation? Here are some ways to tell you how to do that.

The invited person

You should write down the names of the party guests first. You must make sure who will come to your party. You need to write the names correctly and neatly(工整). This is a good way to show your respect(尊敬)for the guests.

The purpose of the party

It is important to tell your guests what your party is about. People can prepare for it. For example, people can choose their own clothes to the party according to the subject of it. They can also prepare gifts.

The place for the party

Then the place is necessary. Your invitations should include detailed(详细的)address. We know everyone has maps on their phones. But it’s better to add a map for everyone. A map is helpful for them.

The time for the party

How long the party will last should also be written in invitations. That can tell your guests when to arrive. It can make them better plan their own time.

Other information

If you’re planning a party outdoors, you should consider the weather first. No one wants to have a party in the bad weather. Be sure the weather is fine to make people comfortable.

Writing an invitation is important for a party. With a good invitation, people will enjoy themselves at the party.

If you’re working to become better or hoping to make a change, you’ll probably hear your family and friends say “go big or go home”. They think you should set high expectations(期待). But is it really good?

Having high expectations could be good. It can motivate you. When you have high expectations for something, you’ll probably try your best to make them come true. For example, if you believe that you can get an A in a test, you will probably spend a lot of time working on it. Also, when you start meeting your expectations, you’ll set even higher expectations for yourself. Besides, having high expectations on yourself doesn’t only do you good. It will make a difference to others.

But if your expectations are too high to realize, it can be bad. Having high expectations can sometimes lead to mind problems, such as worry and unhappiness. The findings of a study showed that some students were under serious stress(压力) because they wanted to be perfect. Great expectations can also let you down. This is especially true when you set expectations on other people whose actions you cannot control. For example, if you’re feeling alone and you call up your friends, you surely expect them to make you feel better. When this fails to happen, you will feel down and unsatisfied with your friends. To avoid this situation, you should set your expectations realistically(切合实际地).

It is hard to manage expectations, but the main thing is to set a more realistic and achievable expectation.

ChatGPT is a powerful chat robot developed by OpenAI. The company has introduced a new language model: GPT-4.

On March 14, GPT-4 showed the world how smarter it is than GPT-3.5. It can understand pictures. For example, if you show a picture of a phone using the wrong charger (充电器), GPT-4 can tell why the picture is strange or funny.

GPT-4 can code (用代码编写) games and produce the code for a website based on a hand- made drawing. It can also change the style (样式) if you ask it to do that. GPT-4 is much better than the older GPT at passing tests.

GPT-4 will also be used as a tool to power other apps and services. For example, the language learning app Duolingo plans to use GPT-4. Users can learn languages by talking with AI. Another app, Be My Eyes, will have a digital assistant (数字助手) to help blind people better understand the world around them. As the Icelandic language is at risk, the government of Iceland plans to use GPT-4 to protect it.

However, there are still problems with GPT-4. It can’t get completely correct answers, especially with newer information after September 2021. GPT-4 also sometimes “hallucinates (产生幻觉)”. It will be sure that wrong information is true.

My mom said that cooking was full of happiness. I knew it was     71     important skill, but I was not interested in it at all. One day, I found an app. There were different     72     (kind) of videos in the app. The videos taught people     73     to cook dishes. They were quite     74     (use) for beginners. Then I     75     (pick) out a video and cooked fish. When I finished it, it was     76     (exact) what I wanted. It was my     77     (one) time to get such a strong feeling of satisfaction from cooking. Now I can cook more dishes. It     78     (seem) that I have a gift for cooking. I plan to invite my friends     79     my house this weekend. I will show     80     (they) my new skill. I hope we will have a good time.

The summer vacation is coming. How can we have a happy and meaningful vacation? Here is my advice.

I hope you can have a colourful vacation.