Dear friends, would you like to be a genius (天才) like Einstein? A genius needs to learn and think. Reading is a good idea, but it’s not enough. Here are some ideas:
Ask. When you look at new things, ask why they’re new or different. Ask questions. Ask yourself and ask others. Keep thinking carefully until you find the answer.
Read. Try to read new things. Read books from different parts of the library. After you read, think about the ideas you learned before. Are they different from what you thought?
Relax. Many ideas come up when you relax. Take some time to relax yourself in the ways like taking a walk in a park, going to a concert or a museum.
Share. Einstein used to talk to his friends and explain his ideas. Sometimes, a friend can help you find the answer to a problem.
Be brave. Don’t be afraid that other people say your ideas are silly. If others don’t agree with your ideas, try to explain your ideas to them.
| Ask | If you watch |
| Read | Read different kinds of books and |
| Relax | Take some time to relax yourself. When you get |
| Share | Share your ideas with your friends. Maybe they can help you |
| Be brave | If others |
2 . How to beat sadness
We all have days when we are down, tired and unhappy. That’s OK. You need days like this, or how would you know you are happy? You’ll enjoy your good days even more when you have a few bad days. Even if sadness is a part of life, let’s try to make it small. Here are a few simple ways to help you feel better when you are feeling sad.
1. Stand up straight and this helps your energy flow (流动). When your energy is flowing freely, you can flow too.
2. Smile! It’s easy to do and have good results. This way can not only leave you in a good mood (情绪) but also bring others a good mood.
3. Listen to music. It can be your favourite music. Some kinds of music work better than others, so try and find out what kind of music works the best for you.
4. Take some “me” time. You can find pleasure in reading a book, watching a sunrise or having a hot bath, or something like that.
5. Exercise. Even something as simple as taking a walk will get your blood flowing. It is a great way to clear your mind of anything that makes you sad.
These ways will cheer you up when you are down, but don’t just use them when you are sad. Try and practice them every day to make them a habit. You will be surprised to learn that these simple ways will keep your sadness away. But if you are in a deep depression (沮丧), go to see a doctor.
根据短文内容完成表格所缺信息，每空一词。
Opinions | ※ It is OK to feel down, tired and unhappy. ※ It is possible to make sadness a small |
| Simple | ※ Stand up straight so that your energy can flow freely. |
※ | |
※ Listen to your favourite music because it works the best. | |
※ | |
※ Take a walk and you can clear your mind of sad things. | |
Suggestions | ※ Try to make these simple ways a ※ Go to see a doctor when you are in a deep depression. |
The traditional Chinese lunar calendar divides the year into 24 solar terms. Grain Rain (谷雨), as the last term in spring, usually starts on
Grain Rain comes from the old saying, “Rain brings up the growth of hundreds of grains”, which shows that this period of rainfall is very important for the
| * ①People drink tea in southern China, which is good for the eyes and would prevent bad luck. ②People eat the vegetable Toona sinensis in the *The Grain Rain Festival The festival is celebrated by fishing villages and the fishermen |
What would the world be like if cars could drive themselves? Imagine seeing an empty car passing by on its way to pick up its owner, or a car full of passengers who are reading, listening to music or even sleeping. But none of them are worried about the road ahead.
Well, all of this could be the future of driving. There are several companies, including Google, working on driverless cars. So far, no Google self-driven cars have gotten a traffic ticket (罚单), but some of them have been in accidents when other cars hit them.
These cars are now still in the testing stages (阶段). But, if the tests are successful, these electric self-driven cars could be put into use very soon.
The cars are so special that they can take the place of drivers during certain situations. They are able to park themselves, or slow down when they notice objects close by. They can also control the speed if there is danger.
Scientists and engineers believe, with the help of wireless signals (无线信号) , cameras and GPS, creating a safe self-driven car might be possible. The cause of deadly (致死的) road accidents is usually careless drivers or bad conditions. The self-driven car may be able to prevent these. However, some people don’t like the idea. American lawyer White Drake does not believe these cars are safe. He thinks that technologies can also be mistakes.
Self-driven cars | |
| Future of driving | An empty car can drive |
| Situation | They are in the |
| Qualities | They can park themselves, slow down and |
| Different ideas | Scientists think they can prevent road |
5 . As a teenager, you’re trying to learn who you are. You’re going through mental and physical changes. You’re dealing with different kinds of stress and trying to succeed in school.
The good news is that though the teen years are tough, there are skills you can learn to make them a lot easier.
If you’re a teen and trying to manage your feelings better, here are a few skills for you to deal with your feelings.
Name the feeling. What feeling are you experiencing? For example, are you sad, stressed. angry, joyful or excited?
Accept what you’re feeling. Many people worry that their feelings will increase. So they are not willing to accept them, hoping that they’ll just go away. However, that’s impossible. Remind yourself that it’s OK to feel your feelings.
Become familiar with your feelings. To understand your feelings better, you should pay attention to your feelings all the day. You may record how you’re feeling in the morning, afternoon and at night on a piece of paper. Next to your feeling, also write down where you notice it in your body.
Express your feelings. Expressing a feeling is a good way to reduce it. For example, you can express your feelings by crying, exercising, writing about them or talking to someone you trust. Just be sure that whatever activity you choose, it doesn’t hurt you or anyone else.
At different times in your life, you’ll experience different difficulties. But by learning some helpful skills, you’ll be able to live a comfortable life.
How to deal with your feelings | |
| Main idea | The teen years are tough, |
| Skills to help you manage your feelings | Name the feelings that you are experiencing. |
| ◇Be willing to ◇Remind yourself not to hope that the feelings will go away. | |
| ◇Pay attention to your feelings the ◇Write down where you notice them in your body. | |
| ◇Express your feelings ◇Don’t hurt anyone whatever activity you choose. | |
| Conclusion | Learn some helpful skills, and you can live comfortably even though you may have |
Over the past thirty years, many big changes have taken place in our hometown, Yuwan. Many big companies and factories have been opened. Lots of tall buildings are standing here and there. In the past, Yuwan was only a lonely seaside village. Now it has become a modern city.
Look! This is the new train station. In the past, people here never saw trains or buses. Few people had bikes. Most people walked if they wanted to leave Yuwan. Now the train station is big. And there are more buses to take people to every part of the city and other places. There are also parks, museums and places for people to enjoy sports, music and art. The city government has built more roads. Some people have stopped riding bikes. They have bought cars. The traffic has been very heavy today. It’s a modern city now.
Thirty years ago, there were only one thousand people living in Yuwan. Now the population is much larger. More and more people are coming here to work or live. It has become a new tourist attraction (吸引地) as well. More supermarkets have been opened and you can enjoy beautiful beaches. Sea food and some places of great interest.
Changes to our hometown | |
| In the past | Our hometown was only a lonely seaside village |
| Only one thousand people | |
| It was hard to see a bike and people had to go to other places on | |
| At present | People have changed Yuwan into a |
| People can take trains, buses or their own car to other places if necessary. | |
| You can find many tall buildings, companies and museums. Now it has become a new | |
Koala bears (考拉熊) and kangaroos (袋鼠) are two kinds of animals in Australia. They are both national treasures (国宝) of Australia. They are also very famous around the world.
The koala bear is a kind of little, short and fat animal. It has two big ears on its head. It is very cute and looks like a toy bear. A baby koala is very small when it is born. It has no hair and it cannot see anything either. It lives in its mother’s pouch (育儿袋) around a year. The koala sleeps during the day and eats at night. It feeds on a kind of leaves. It gets water from those leaves, so it doesn’t need water. The koala seldom swims, although it can swim well. Koalas once were in danger because some people killed them. Now they are protected better than before. Their number now is about 40,000.
However, the kangaroo is another kind of animal in Australia. It has short front legs, long and strong back legs, so it can jump very high. It looks like a big mouse. The kangaroo’s favorite food is grass. Most of them like to eat outside. It likes to live in groups. It is the national symbol of Australia. There are more kangaroos than people in Australia.
National Treasures of Australia | ||
Items (项目) |
Koala Bear |
Kangaroo |
Appereance (外貌) | little, short and fat | short front legs, long and back legs |
Food | grass | |
Habit | live in | |
about 40,000 | more than people in Australia | |
Some people see a hobby as a waste of time. They think a hobby is only something to pass the time. In fact, a hobby is much more than that. Its advantages (优点) are as follows.
★People can have time for themselves.
If one has a hobby, he or she can enjoy quiet time. People usually think more clearly when they enjoy their favorite hobbies. People often get some good ideas at that time.
★People can discover their talent.
People often find new talent of themselves when they enjoy their hobbies. Some people find their talent for playing the piano only when they sit down and play. The only way to find this talent is to try. The first thing you should do is to find something that you are interested in.
★People can feel relaxed.
Most hobbies are good ways to relax. Coming home from work and sitting down to enjoy things you like help you relax. Hobbies also help you get a better sleep.
The | |
| Helping people have time | When you enjoy your hobbies, you may |
| Making people discover new talent | |
| Helping people feel relaxed | When you come home from work, hobbies can help you relax and |
Andy’s mom died in a car accident. A drunk driver hit his mom’s car. Andy was angry and accused (控告) the driver. The drunk driver is now in prison. Andy visited the prison to confront (对峙) the driver. The drunk driver said sorry many times. Andy kept crying. “‘Sorry’ is not going to bring my mom back. Your carelessness took away my mom,” he said. Andy was mad and left the prison. He couldn’t stay calm when he confronted the driver. He wanted him to stay in the prison for the rest of his life.
Andy was not in the mood to work. He asked his boss if he could take a week off. He loved his job, but he could not stop thinking about his mom’s death.
Andy’s wife told him to do something useful instead of watching TV all day. Andy agreed with her. It was time for him to start doing something that would make his mom proud. Andy created a program to prevent drunk driving. He wanted to give drunk people free rides. Andy visited colleges, clubs, and bars all across the country to encourage people to avoid driving after drinking.
Prevent driving after drinking | |
When happened to Andy’s mother? | Andy’s mother Although the driver said sorry again and again, but Andy |
How did Andy deal with his sadness? | Andy couldn’t walk out of his mother’s |
What did Andy do to stop drunk drinking? | He wanted to make his mom feel |
Hello, my name is Mike. I work at a training (培训) school in Shanghai. And I teach students English. My work is very interesting, because I meet a lot of lovely boys and girls every day. Now let me introduce (介绍) my day for you.
My work is from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. I get up at 5 o’clock every day. I don’t live in Shanghai. I live in Nanjing with my family, because I want to be with them. So I have to take the train (火车) at 6:00 to Shanghai. It takes (花费) me two hours to get to Shanghai. It’s a long time. I can do a lot of things on the train. I can read books, draw pictures and talk with my friends on the phone. Sometimes, I don’t go home after work. I go to the sports club and do some sports. At night, I live with my friends.
Mike’s | |
Mike’s job | An English teacher |
How long he works a day | For |
How to go to work | By |
What he does on the way | |
| What he does | Going to the sports club and doing some sports at times |
