A young man went to apply for a job in a big company. The director noticed that ______ young man’s scores were excellent all the way.

The director asked, “Was it your father who paid for your school fees?” The young man answered, “My father died when I was ______. It was my mother who paid for my school fees.”

The director continued, “May I ask ______ your mother’s job is?” The young man answered, “My mother ______ as a clothes cleaner.”

The director asked the young man ______ his hands. The young man showed a pair of hands which were smooth and perfect.

The director asked, “Have you ever helped your mother wash the clothes before?” The young man answered, “Never, my mother always wanted me to spend more time on books. And my mother is ______ at it than me.”

The director asked, “When you go back today, could you clean your mother’s hands, and see me tomorrow morning?”

______ the young man felt surprised, he did as the director told him. When he went back, he happily asked his mother to let him ______ her hands. His mother felt happy, but with mixed feelings, she showed her hands to her son. He noticed that there were so many chilblains (冻疮) in her hands. Some of the chilblains were ______ painful that his mother shook when they ______ with water. The young man cleaned his mother’s hands with tears(眼泪) ______. He realized that the chilblains in his mother’s hands were the price paying ______ his graduation, excellent scores and his future. After ______ cleaning his mother’s hands, the young man washed all the remained clothes.

The next day, he went to see the director and ______ him his feelings. Finally, he got the job. From then on, the young man learned to appreciate (感激) the help of ______ and worked hard.

Why do you feel encouraged when your teacher gives you a smile? How do you know your mother is ______ when she frowns (皱眉)? In both cases, the person is telling us something not with ______, but with facial expressions.

Facial expressions are one or more movements on a person’s ______, such as frowning, raising one’s eyebrows (眉毛), and nose and lip movements. They ______ people’s feelings.

Scientists at Oxford University have shown that humans have 80 muscles (肌肉) on their faces. These muscles can create more than 7,000 expressions on the face. However, there are six main kinds of facial expressions that are ______ in all cultures: happiness, sadness, surprise, fear, anger and disgust (厌恶).

Facial expressions are very important to ______. One study at UCLA, in the US, showed that in most conversations, over 93 percent of the communicating is done without speaking.

If people can ______ facial expressions, they may be better at knowing what other people are feeling, so they can understand others better. Someone who does not ______ a certain type of food usually will make a face when they see or taste it. Frowning can express people’s worry or anger ______. Raised eyebrows and open eyes show surprise.

However, there are some taboos (禁忌) for reading people’s facial expressions. For example, it is not a good idea to stare at someone for a long time while reading his or her facial expressions.They may think you are ______.

On the first day of school, I ran into my new English teacher, Ms Kirschmann. I really mean that—I literally ran into her.

As I began to apologize, she started “shouting” at me. I was a bit afraid, but I soon realized that she was just saying hello and welcoming me to her class in a very loud voice.

Kirsch, as she wanted us to call her, had a creative and fascinating character. Her hair color, fashion sense and energy took up the entire room. When we read the play Macbeth by Shakespeare, Kirsch let us play characters and wear masks (面具). There’s a big drum in the classroom. Every time we read the word “thunder” in the text, she would hit the drum! My classmates and I would laugh every time. During group discussions, Kirsch often told us to sit in a circle on the floor. We talked about the play and she took notes of what we said. Doing so made us feel independent and challenge ourselves more with critical (批判性的) thinking.

Kirsch is really a social butterfly. She smiles, laughs and tells jokes wherever she goes. But I found out about another side of her the other day.

After school that day, I saw Ms Kirschmann with her son. She was persuading (劝说) him to put on his jacket. She spoke with such a gentle voice that I was quite surprised. Until then, it didn’t occur to me that Ms Kirschmann could be quiet. I suddenly felt a lot of respect for this lady who was energetic, calm, intelligent and caring all at once.

If the eyes are the windows of the soul, then the body is the mirror of the feelings. If we are feeling great, we may give out our body signals (信号). If we look at someone else’s body, we can often be told how they are feeling by their body signals. So I think reading body language signals is a great tool in daily communication. It can help us communicate with others more easily if we use it in the right way.

Here are some numbers for you to know how important it is to read and use body language. 7% of the information we receive is from what people actually say, and 38% of the information we receive is from the tone and the speed of their voice; while 55% of the information we receive is from their body language.

These non-verbal (非口头的) signals will help you a lot, but you still need to focus on what people are saying. If you pay too much attention on their body language signals, you and the people may feel uncomfortable.

It is useful to learn how to send the right signals and avoid the wrong signals, and it is useful to be able to read people’s body language too. Body language may be given several interpretations. Many signals have different meanings. It depends on the person, the situation and the culture. For example, in the US, people wave goodbye with the palm (手掌) facing the person they’re waving to. But in other cultures, people may wave goodbye with the palm up to the sky, and the fingers opening and closing. To people in the US, this might look like a gesture asking someone to come closer. So you have to be sure of the meaning when you are trying to read a body language signal.

Emma stared sadly out of the window of the bus. Only 50 miles outside town was the farm where she grew up. She thought about the farm all the time, especially the animals.

When her family sold the farm and moved to nearby town, Emma was excited. But when she got to the new school, she felt out of place. She had few classmates to talk to.

With a sigh, Emma turned her attention back to the present. The bus came to a stop. “Welcome to the Nature Center,” her teacher said.” A guide will give us a presentation about the animals, and then you’ II help to feed the baby squirrels. Now, I want everyone to find a partner.”

Emma didn’t have any friends yet who would be her partner? Emma got close to Julia, a talkative and outgoing girl. “Could I be your partner?” Emma asked uncertainly.

“Sure,” said Julia warmly.

Together, the girls walked into the center. After the presentation, a keeper showed them how to hold the bottle of milk for baby squirrels. Then the girls started to feed their own baby squirrels.

After the babies finished eating, the keeper asked, “Would you like to help feed the adult squirrels, too?”

Emma was quick to volunteer, but when the keeper opened the first cage, a squirrel inside jumped out. Emma remained calm, held out her hand, made quiet sounds, and then quickly got it.

“Wow! You are so brave!” Julia said. “You’re always so quiet. I thought you were afraid of everything.”

“I know that we have to stay calm when animals are frightened or excited.”

The keeper nodded in agreement and asked Emma, “Would you like to volunteer to help out with the animals at the center?”

“Cool! I would love to work here! That’s a great chance!” Emma replied cheerfully.

That afternoon, in the bus on the way back to school, Emma sat next to Julia, her new friend. A rush of new-found happiness washed over her.

Many teenagers love mysteries. Here are some top-selling mysteries for teenagers. There must be one that will win your heart!

Escape From Mr. Lemocello’s Library Mr. Lemoncello is a famous inventor in town. Twelve kids are invited to visit his new library. This, however, is not a good place to spend the night! The kids must solve the clues (线索) and escape! “It’s a great book! I had my nose in it all the time!” Kim, 14 ¥38.60 (hardcover) ¥34.70 (e-book)

The London Eye Mystery Salim suddenly disappears. No one knows where he has gone. His cousins, Ted and Kate, have to follow clues around London in order to find him. Can they make it? Read the novel to find out! ¥74.70 (hardcover) ¥66.60 (e-book)

From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler Claudia and her brother Jamie run away from their home to live in New York City. They become interested in the mystery of an angel statue (雕像) that has been newly brought into the museum. Can they solve it? “It’s a must-read for young fans of puzzles!” Alexa, 13 ¥48.7 (hardcover) ¥34.60 (e-book)

The Name of This Book Is Secret Readers will love following Max-Ernest and Cass as they solve the mystery of a missing magician (魔术师)! “You will never want to stop turning its pages!” Gabe, 15 ¥113.40 (hardcover) ¥33.30 (e-book)

Janet was a five-year-old girl. She s    46     from heart disease when she was born. She didn’t like to communicate with others and she often felt l    47     . But when she was three years old, she showed a great talent for painting. From then on, she often spent her day painting.

Janet’s parents thought that animals were good for children, so they introduced some animals to Janet. A    48     they introduced different lovely animals, Janet seemed not interested in them. Until the cat Mimi arrived, Janet was soon a    49     by her. They got along very well in just a few weeks. Janet often drew about the cat’s eyes and nose in her paintings.

Janet’s mother found that the girl was much happier than before. The f    50     between the cat and Janet has changed the girl a lot. Thanks to Mimi and painting, Janet found a way to express her feeling.

56. 保护和传承中国传统是每个中华儿女的责任，现在得到了越来越多人的重视和关注。最近你校准备举行“你最喜爱的传统技艺”为主题的英语演讲活动。请你用英语写一篇演讲稿，介绍你最喜爱的传统技艺，并号召大家来保护传统技艺。

As we all know, protecting the traditional Chinese skills is our obligation.

Let’s work together to protect this tradition skill and keep it alive.