What are the best words to describe Latin America? It could be called a “wild” and “happy” land.

Latin America has a lot of natural     31    . There are volcanoes, high mountains and large grasslands in Latin America. It has the world’s    32     rainforest—the Amazon. The rainforest is home to many of the world’s strangest plants and animals. There are books and movies that tell     33     stories about the Amazon.

People in Latin America have open and romantic     34    . They are usually easy-going. They like to    35    sing and dance. Dances like the samba, rumba, cha cha and tango all come from Latin America. The music is cheerful and the dancers hold each     36     tightly. People become closer     37     dancing together.

Singing is     38     a talent for many Latin Americans. Many singers there are internationally famous. Shakira from Colombia and Rihanna from Barhados are famous Latin American musicians.     39     music usually has strong rhythms.

    40     you like to go to Latin America and enjoy its sights and sounds?

It’s not strange to see people in the streets wearing masks (口罩) these days. It has become a habit for people _______ many parts of China, especially in the north, where the smog and PM 2.5 have been _________ influencing people’s lives.

Recently, Beijing issued a red alert (警报) for_________ air pollution. During red alert days, the PM 2.5 level in Beijing was around 300. “There was a burning smell in the air, and the thick smog blocks your way, keeping you from seeing _______,” Song Ting, a 21-year-old student in Harbin, told China Daily.

Beijing has already taken action. The government _________ limits (限制) on car use and cut some factory hours. It will also _________ companies that pollute. If they aren’t closed, heavily—polluting companies will have to buy water and electricity at higher prices. They also suggested that people reduce (减少) outdoor_________.

Although smog makes people stay indoors, an indoor environment does not always mean good air. Many parents have started to_________ their children’s health. They suggested that schools put air cleaners in classrooms, and some parents in Shanghai even _______ money themselves to buy air cleaners.

To help bring back blue skies, everyone can help out. We can take buses and subways instead of driving cars and taking taxis. People can also light fewer fireworks (烟花) during the Spring Festival and eat__________ street barbecue— both of these actions can reduce air pollution.

One evening, while Peggy’s mom was preparing dinner, her 10-year-old daughter came into the kitchen.

Peggy watched her mother cooking for a few minutes and then suddenly asked, “Mom, what’s puberty (青春期)?”

Her mom was surprised at the question. She wasn’t sure how to answer it. So she suggested that Peggy look the word up in the dictionary, after which they could talk about it.

Half an hour later, Peggy returned. Her mom asked her what the dictionary said. “Puberty means,” answered Peggy, “the earliest age at which a girl is able to bear children.”

“What do you think of that?” her mom asked. “I’m not sure actually,” Peggy replied. “I have always been able to bear children. It’s adults who I can’t bear at all.”

In English, the word “bear” can have several meanings. In the dictionary, “bear” means “to give birth to a child”. But obviously, Peggy was thinking about its other meaning— “to endure (忍受) something”.

We throw away garbage almost every day. Do you know where it goes? Most of it goes into the sea. There are five large garbage patches (垃圾带) in the sea. The largest one is the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Scientists are saying that the patch is getting even bigger than before.

The patch is in the Pacific Ocean between California and Hawaii. It is quite large. According to Live Science, it has an area of 1.6 million square kilometers. That is about 100 times bigger than Beijing. Most of the garbage is plastic (塑料), including bottles, bags and fishing nets. According to Fox News, there are about 79,000 tons of plastic in the patch. That’s about 250 pieces of plastic for every person on Earth. Is one of those pieces from you?

This plastic can harm sea animals and pollute the water. Scientists are trying different ways to clean up garbage in the sea. But the most important thing is to stop garbage from going into the sea in the first place.

Christmas is as important to British people as the Spring Festival is to us. Every year on Dec 25, English people gather together to celebrate this holiday.    61    

In the UK, people start preparing for Christmas soon after Halloween—even as early as the beginning of November! In every shop window I pass on my way to school, I see Santa decorations (装饰) and presents.     62    

One tradition in the UK is to have an advent calendar (圣诞倒数日历). It has 24 little flaps (片状小门) that you can open starting from Dec 1.     63     It can be makeup, chocolate or stationery, depending on what kind of calendar you buy. You can open one flap each day until you get to the last flap on the morning of Dec 25! This tradition began in the mid-19th century in Protestant areas in Germany.

    64     Every November, London is lit up by thousands of decorative lights. The lights are shaped like the common symbols of Christmas, such as angels and Christmas trees. It is a breathtaking sight from far away and it is wonderful how the colors create an atmosphere (氛围) of celebration.

In London, we don’t celebrate Christmas for only one day.     65    

Many people see Vincent Van Gogh (文森特·梵高) as a great artist. But the Dutch painter’s life was filled with failures.

Van Gogh didn’t start painting until he was 27 or 28. But he had finished nearly 900 oil paintings by the time he died at 37. Born to a rich family in the Netherlands, Van Gogh once worked as an art dealer (艺术品商人), a teacher and a minister (牧师), but failed in all. He started to paint in 1880. In 1886, Van Gogh moved to Paris. Influenced by a number of impressionist artists (印象派画家), Van Gogh began to use bright colors. He used them to express his feelings, which changed the direction of art forever.

However, people were not ready to accept his way of painting. Tired of his hard life in Paris, Van Gogh moved to Arles in southern France two years later. Although he made a number of works there, his serious depression (抑郁) led him to cut off the lower part of his left ear. American authors Steven Naifeh and Gregory White Smith said in 2011 that he was shot (枪击) by two boys accidentally, according to the BBC.

Today, Van Gogh’s paintings sell for record-breaking prices. However, during his lifetime, he sold only one picture called the Red Vineyard.

71. Have you done any meaningful things in your life? Share one with us. Write a passage with the title “A meaningful thing I did”. Your writing should include the fllowing information:

A meaningful thing I did