1 . As a nature teacher, Han Mingzhe, 30, loves taking kids to ________ trees. “I have the kids close their eyes and let them feel and remember the tree with their hands. I call this game Discover My Tree,” Han said. ________ the kids find their tree, they light up with joy, like meeting an old friend.

Han is always ________ by his students’ imagination. “They ________ call a walnut (核桃) tree a ‘bomb tree’ because its falling walnuts are like ‘bombs’. And the Chinese privet (冬青) might look like a ‘drone (无人机)’ ________ children’s eyes,” Han said.

Han said that looking at trees is a ________ activity that doesn’t need any special tools or knowledge from before. You can learn about a tree by looking at the bark’s (树皮) ________ and colour. Then look at the leaves and see ________ they are different. If you can find a tree with flowers, that’s even better.

“Apart from looking at a tree scientifically, you can also check a tree using your ________,” Han suggested. You can touch the tree trunk with your eyes closed and feel time go by ________. You can also collect fallen fruit or leaves. They are the gift from the tree.

The biggest ________ of exploring trees is patience. “You can try to relax before looking at a tree… this can help you ________ the tree more quickly,” noted Han.

3 . My grandpa always tells me that people who laugh at their own mistakes will get others to laugh along. Yesterday I learned that he was ________.

“Stay in line,” Mrs. Martin said. I looked at the long line, ________ that there would still be pizza. When I reached the front, I looked at the choices. I would only see chicken, fish and mashed potatoes. I could hear the ________ noise of my empty stomach.

Then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw the ________ piece of beef pizza. I got so excited. “Beef pizza, please.” he said politely. Mrs. Martin handed me the pizza. I took the paper plate so ________ that the pizza fell out. I wanted to ________ it. But it landed on the mashed potatoes. My face started burning. All I could hear was ________ from some kids in line.

As I looked at the upside-down pizza, I heard Mrs. Martin’s voice. “Maria, would you like some mashed potatoes to go with your pizza?” I replied in a(n) ________ voice. “Of course.” Mrs. martin put the mashed potato pizza on my plate with an encouraging smile. I suddenly ________ and relaxed. I looked around laughing, and we all laughed together.

I never really believed my grandpa until I saw others laughing with me. The laughing made me feel _________ instead of just silly.

4 .

Some old Chinese inventions have won wide popularity around the world. Recently, a British woman used an ________ Chinese invention to help her son ________ a math problem.

Dr. Mantri grew up in India. She was taught ________ to use an abacus (算盘) to solve math problems when she was young. After ________ that her son Dhruv had great difficulty with math, she started using the same ancient Chinese tool to help him after school.

“My son was in Grade 5 when I noticed he was ________ in math.” said Dr. Mantri, “I would ask him ________ very easy like‘35-13=?’, but he couldn’t work it out.”

“I never thought I would teach him to use such an old tool ________ I realized I could try the Chinese abacus. It is a useful ________ to help kids better understand numbers and basic calculations (计算). Very ________ I saw the results. After six days, Dhruv started to make progress ________ with the help of the abacus. He even performed with the abacus at a school meeting where some parents came to ________ advice on using it to help their kids.”

Known as the fifth invention of ancient China, Chinese abacus is also ________ as the earliest computer. It helped people solve many math problems in ancient China. ________ you remember the rules, you can easily use it. Sometimes, just move one bead (算珠), then ________ bead, and you will get the answer. What a magic tool!

So far, the Chinese abacus has been listed ________ an intangible cultural heritage of human beings (人类非物质文化遗产) for 10 years ever since 2013.

Chinese traditional culture is made up of many customs and traditions passed down through generations (世代). One important ________ is “filial piety,” which means respecting and caring for elders. This is really important in Chinese families and communities, and it means having good ________ with family and others in the community.

In China, people celebrate lots of traditional festivals around the year. The most important one is the Lunar New Year, also called the Spring Festival. Families ________ for big dinners, give lucky money in red envelopes, and set off fireworks to celebrate the new year. There are also other festivals like the Dragon Boat Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival, and Double Ninth Festival. These festivals have special customs, food, and ________ that show Chinese culture.

Art is also important in Chinese tradition. Calligraphy (书法) and brush painting are very valued forms of art. Calligraphy is a way of writing that is also beautiful and creative. Brush painting often shows nature, animals, and plants, which is important ________ Chinese people like to respect and enjoy nature.

Traditional Chinese medicine is a very old way of keeping the body healthy. It uses things like acupuncture (针灸), herbal remedies (草药), and qigong to prevent sickness and help the body get better ________. In Chinese culture, people think that the mind, body, and spirit are all connected, and that’s ________ they use these methods to stay healthy.

Chinese food is famous all around the world for its delicious taste. There are many different styles of Chinese food, ________ hot food in Sichuan and delicate (精致的) dishes in Guangdong. Each place has its own special cooking style, and Chinese food reflects the country’s geography and diverse (不同的) population.

Today, people in China are working hard to ________ their traditional culture. They want to make sure the customs are passed down to future generations. These efforts help keep Chinese traditions ________ and make people proud of their cultural heritage (遗产).

Last Sunday, I went to the post office to subscribe (订阅) some magazines. I was there for half an hour and there was still a long line _______ me.

My turn came at last. I quickly got _______ done, and was ready to leave. Just then, someone came near to me. I looked up and saw him old and thin, with a _______ coat on him which has worn out. I could see _______ that he was a migrant worker (外来务工人员) . Instinctively (本能地) I _______ backward. I was in my new red coat.

He told me he wanted to send some money home but didn’t know _______ to fill the form. He asked me if I could help him. “_______ you can ask the cashier (出纳).” After these words, I froze into _______.

“I have asked her. But I still can’t follow her _______. Would you kindly help me?” Just then, my mobile phone rang. It was an ________ to refuse him. I had my own business to do. Hopelessly and sadly, he ________ begging me and tried to find someone else who would give him a hand.

As I stepped out, I became ________ about it. How could I refuse someone who was in need of ________; especially such an old migrant worker? Was it because he was poor and dirty?

I want to say sorry to this migrant worker in this ________. It’s been in my ________ for a long time. And I hope to feel better by doing this.

Catherine Jin

A farmer found a wounded (受伤的) eagle (鹰) in his field. He was so _______ that he took it home and cleaned its wounds (伤口). After that he placed it outside in the yard, in the hope that it _______ get well soon.

Strangely enough, the eagle soon got used to the _______ of all the chickens in the yard. It learned to _______ from side to side like chickens, and eat happily from a trough (食槽). For many years, the eagle _______ his new life on the farm.

Then one day, one of the farmer’s friends pointed to the playing eagle and asked, “_______ is that eagle acting like a chicken?” The farmer told him what had _______, and the friend felt quite _______.

“What a pity!” said the friend. “It should fly in the sky instead of living here!” He picked up the eagle, and _______ it into the air. The eagle was ________, and cried loudly. Then it just fell down on the ground.

That night, the friend could hardly sleep as he remembered the chicken-like eagle. The next morning, he headed back to the farm for another ________. This time he carried the eagle to the ________ of a nearby mountain.

When he stood at the highest place of the mountain, he looked into its eyes and shouted, “Don’t you understand? You weren’t made to live like a chicken!” As he ________ the eagle up, he made sure it was facing into the bright ________ of the rising sun. Then he ________ tossed (抛) the bird into the sky. This time the eagle opened his wings, and disappeared into the clouds.

8 . This past autumn, my husband and I went into a store. While paying, I __________ the cashier (收银员) say “How are you today?” as usual. Then I __________ her and said, “And how are you doing?” and waited kindly for an answer.

She was a little surprised, but then she looked __________ because her grandfather was in hospital. He had a terrible _________ . She felt __________ . “I know he is ninety-one, but…”she began crying. “Don’t worry too much. He will be ____________ soon,” I said. “Oh, thank you!” she ____________ .

Several weeks __________ , I went to the store again. I wanted to do some __________ . Also, I wanted to see the cashier again. After the usual “How are you”, I stopped, then __________ said, “I hope this is not a bad question, but how is your grandfather doing?”

She _________ at first why I was asking such a question. Then she _________ and started excitedly telling us about how he was a brave old bird, how he was doing well. She felt happy, and even after we __________ what we bought, she kept talking, sharing her happiness with people around.

Sometimes all we need is _________ to see and care us. Taking time to listen when we ask “How are you” is __________ a small action. It is helpful and important to others!

10 . It was a sunny and enjoyable day. Everyone in the ________ station was waiting for the train to arrive. Among the crowd, there was a group of young friends who were on board for vacation.

It was a ________ station with a lot of people and some juice stores, coffee and tea stalls, newspaper stores, etc. The train was arriving and everyone prepared to ________ the train.

The group of friends made loud noise to ________ the train as it moved into the station. They ran to get their seats ________ anyone else entered the train.

The empty seats were full and the train whistled (鸣汽笛) to move. A man with a teenager aged around 15 had their seats just next to the group of friends. The teenager was so ________ to see everything. He cheered, “Dad. The train is moving, and the things are moving backwards.”

His father ________ and nodded his head.

As the train started moving fast, the teenager again shouted, “Dad, the ________ are green in color and run backwards very fast.” his father said, “Yes, dear.” and smiled.

Just like a kid. He was watching everything with great ________.

A fruit seller passed, the teenager said to his dad, “I want to eat apples.” His father bought some for him. He said, “Oh, this apple looks a lot sweeter than it tastes. I love this color.”

The group of friends were watching all the ________ of this teenager, and asked the teenager’s father. “Does your son have any problems? Why is he behaving so ________?”

“His son is mad, I think.” a friend from the group made fun of him, and shouted.

The father of the teenager, with patience, ________ them, “My son was once badly ill. He is seeing different things in his life for the first time.”