2 . Due to the heavy academic pressure and safety issues, our children’s movements are limited by a lack of extra-curricular activities, which usually ensure that they meet the daily recommended level of physical activity.

For those children attending a high school, my own included, the morning and afternoon walk could be the only chance that they get to spend time outside. This is a golden opportunity to add sports into their day, without taking part in group sports or going to a closed indoor gym(健身房).

For walking to school, there are also many other benefits, such as improving school performance, reducing anxiety, improving spirits, better sleep, a sense of independence,opportunities to meet friends or think alone, paying attention to small details and being amazed by the surrounding environment.

However, parents still have fears. Parents fear cars, injury, extreme weather and even wild animals. These fears, many of which are almost impossible to happen, prevent parents from allowing their children to do something that’s actually beneficial to them. “Removing an opportunity to be active leads to an increase in childhood obesity(肥胖), which can have a greater negative impact on a child’s life than the risk of being injured due to being active,” saidDr. Mariana Brussoni, a professor who researches children’s outdoor and risky play.

When it comes to changing the culture around parents driving children to school, much work still needs to be done. Therefore, parents should try to let go slowly and give up the idea that driving their children to school is convenient. Brussoni said, “We hope to shift parents from focusing on protecting their children to trusting their independent abilities.Schools can also play a role in encouraging children to walk to school.”

3 . Traditional Chinese culture featured noticeably in the opening and closing ceremonies of the Hangzhou Asian Games. While they stressed the solar terms, the he-he culture, meaning harmony and cooperation, was a common thread that ran through them.

Each of the 24 solar terms coincides with (与……一致) events in the natural world. The terms were put forward more than 2,000 years ago to guide not only agricultural activities, but also customs concerning food, dressing and social life. Nowadays, although Chinese people refer to more modern systems in daily life, except for in the agricultural area, they maintain a strong emotional and cultural bond with the solar terms as reminders of the wit (才智), creativity and diligence (勤奋) of their ancestors.

“I previously had no connection to Hangzhou, but now, after the closing ceremony, I think I share a special bond with this city, said Wan Li, a 22-year-old college student at Fujian Normal University. “Watching the ceremony was also a wonderful chance for me to learn about the he-he culture, in which I was uninterested before.”

Kong Xianglong, a research assistant who worked in Hangzhou on an Asian Games research program and watched the ceremonies, expressed his admiration for the show as well as the Asian Games volunteers, who he said were walking examples of the he-he culture.

“The dance performances were absolutely attractive, a perfect display of the he-he idea and a highlight of the Asian Games,” Kong told Beijing Review. “The considerate service the volunteers provided every day actually invited people to learn about the he-he culture, which moved me a lot.”

Pakistani cricketer Muhammad said he believes that the opening and closing ceremonies played an important role in bringing people from different countries together. “I saw a lot of different countries’ athletes coming together, sharing their cultures and performing. I see a huge success,” he told Xinhua News Agency.

5 . Go For Goal With Your Poem

Football, the world’s most universally loved sport, unites people from all walks of life. Since its establishment in 1992, the English Premier League (EPL) has welcomed players from 115 different nations. This multicultural group reaffirms (重申) that regardless of our diverse backgrounds, we all share a common love for the beautiful game. In celebration of this unity, the league has launched an exciting poetry competition this year.

The Competition

The competition invites young poets to express how football celebrates our differences while also serving as a joining-together force. This theme can be explored through any form of poetic writing, from traditional words to songs. The distinguished judges include poet Joseph Coelho, football star Rio Ferdinand, and beloved pop star Olly Murs.

The Prizes

The winning poems will be honoured with publication in a special poetry collection. There’s more: the winning class stands a chance to win an enriching poetry session, and even a visit from a Premier League champion to your school! The competition will recognize three first-place winners and ten second-place winners from Stage 1(five to seven years old)and Stage 2(seven to eleven years old)respectively.

How to Enter

The competition is heating up and the closing date is Friday 21 December. Teachers are encouraged to register their classes on PLPrimaryStars. com as soon as possible this week. The first 1,000 schools to enter will even receive a special gift bag filled with a selection of wonderful poetry books. So, don’t wait, and kick off your poetic journey today!

6 . 阅读下面短文, 在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式｡

Tai Chi is definitely part of the life in Handan. Early morning walks are     1     (reward) with high quality Yang Tai Chi being performed all over the place.

Each morning on one of Handan’s main     2     (square), only a few minutes’ walk from the Jinan Hotel, large groups of Tai Chi practitioners gather     3     (study) with a variety of teachers. The quality of the Tai Chi is really good. Across the road is the main park of Handan, with     4     (it) rebuilt historic buildings from the Warring Period. The park is great to wander through.

Again there are people everywhere     5     (perform) Tai Chi in the mornings, big groups around teachers, and individuals     6     (elegant) practicing. The quality often looked very high, and as people walked past, I’d note their posture (姿势) and stride (步态) and wonder     7     made them so good at Tai Chi.

A seven-yuan taxi ride can get you to any of     8     other parks, all of which seem to be well used in the mornings. In another park, I     9     (spot) a group of women practicing sword forms and they were beautiful to watch. There was also a smaller group of people on a wooden platform next     10     a lake, and their Tai Chi was more elegant against the clear water.

10 . Boston Marathon runners in recent years may have seen a smiling furry face around the two-mile mark. It’s Spencer, the therapy (治疗) dog, who became known as an unofficial mascot (吉祥物) for the marathon, He’s shown up on the sidelines every year since 2015—rain or shine.

One particularly rainy marathon catapulted Spencer’s fame, In 2018, his owner, Richard Powers, decided to put a bright yellow rain coat on the dog, making him stand out even more than he usually does. Photos of Spencer, who holds a “Boston Strong” flag in his mouth, went viral, and he became an inspiration to runners and onlookers alike, During the marathon, some runners stop in their tracks to take selfies with the dog-the line sometimes growing to 20 runners long.

But in 2020, Spencer was diagnosed with a tumor (肿瘤). His owner was worried, but Spencer is a fighter. He got the care he needed and survived. In 2021, he was back on the course and it was really kind of a miracle and that really hit home to a lot of people.

Unfortunately, Spencer caught another tumor—this one cancerous—and Spencer began chemotherapy. Powers didn’t think his beloved dog would make it out to the marathon of 2022. “Miraculously, he’s still here with us and an even bigger miracle, he was strong enough to go to the marathon,” he said.

After recovering, Spencer was back to work—not just at the marathon—but as a therapy dog, alongside his companion, Penny, who is also a golden therapy dog. Powers takes his two therapy dogs around to schools, hospitals and senior living centers.

“He’s a gift to us and we’re very lucky to have him. He’s too good so we want to share him with as many people as we possibly can. He does make a difference,” Powers said.