1 . Don’t Take the Fun Out of Youth Sports

When I joined a private football league a few years ago, the sport meant everything to me.

My coach said that I had lots of potential, and I became captain of my _________. That was before all the fun was taken out of _________. At first, everyone on the team got _________ playing time. Then the team moved up to the top division after winning all its games, and the _________ started. Some parents, who had paid the coach extra so their daughters could have _________ one-on-one training, got angry when she didn’t give them more playing time in our _________. The coach was _________ . The new coach, however, took all the fun out of the game: all we did during practice was _________. I always wished to God that it would rain so we would not have the _________. Of course, all teams run drills(操练); they are __________. But we ran so much that, afterwards, we had trouble __________. Younger people shouldn’t be doing exercises __________ for 18-year-olds. I was very thin __________ I started football, but as a member of this team I wouldn’t eat much, because I was afraid of being too __________ to run. I feared making mistakes, and the added pressure caused me to make more than my usual __________. Is all this pressure necessary?

I __________ up leaving the football team. Four other girls did the same, and two of them stopped playing football completely. That’s __________, because they had so much potential. They were just burned-out with all the pressure they felt from the coach or their parents. I continued playing football at school and __________ my love for it. I joined a private team coached by my school coach. When I started playing for him, he told me I needed to __________ because I looked nervous. After I __________ down, I played better. When you enjoy something, it’s a lot easier to do it well.

2 . Even if you’re a couch potato like me, you’ll know the benefits of running. But if you’re a real fitness fan, the ____ running challenge is to participate in a marathon. While many runners’ ______ is to beat their personal best and cross the finishing line without ______ , they’re also doing it for a good cause – to generate funds for ______ .

But just like other ______ events, the marathon also ______ a massive carbon footprint. Thousands travel - some by plane - to the location, and ______ from food packaging and goody bags gets left behind by ____ and runners. For example, during the London Marathon in 2018, ______ 47,000 plastic bottles were collected. This is becoming a big issue for cities – how to ______ a worthwhile event, encouraging people to exercise and help charities, while ______ the environment?

Several cities have ______formal plans to reduce their environmental influence and ______ sustainable (可持续的) ideas. One event in Wales, for example, introduced the recycling of ______ running equipment. The London Marathon tried to deal with the environmental problem by ______ the number of drink stations on the running route, ______ water in paper cups and offering some drinks in edible (可食的) seaweed capsules. They also tried new bottle ______ made from recycled plastic so 700 runners could ______ water bottles with them during their run.

Dr Andrea Collins from Cardiff University told the BBC: "Training for a marathon makes you more sustainable in day-to-day activities. I started walking or running to work every day and _______ private cars altogether. Being environmentally friendly becomes a good ______ ." So while you not be an excellent runner in a marathon, let’s hope the event, in terms of sustainability, certainly is!

3 . I used to hate running. It seemed too hard, and pushing outside my comfort ______ was not something I was raised to do.

In fact, I wouldn’t have become a(n)______ if it weren’t for my husband Charles He had been a ______ competitive runner for many years. After our marriage, he wouldn’t stop talking about how much he ______ it.

So he picked it up again, and after about a year, I started to join him at the ______. Just a few weeks later, Charles signed us both up for a five-kilometer race. I ______ about doing it. It was too soon.

But on race day, there I was.

The gun went off Thousands of runners ______.

The first kilometer was tough. I was already breathing ______ and painfully aware of the group of runners____ past me.

After another minute I saw the three-kilometer ______.All I could think of was that I was ______.

I rounded a comer, and saw both sides of the street______ with people watching the race, all cheering the runners on. I ______ my legs to keep going.

Then I looked up and saw the clock. The ______ ticking away gave me an incentive(助力). I knew that if I had ______ finished this race I would have achieved something, So, I ______ up, and kicked it.

I had my arms ______ higher when I passed through the finish line. A volunteer put a(n) ______ around my neck.

“You did great! I’m so proud of you!” Charles was thrilled that I’d ______.

“That was amazing! I want to do another race.” I proudly hugged my medal as we started to walk to the post-race festivities. My lungs and my comfort zone both______.

4 . Earlier this spring, we asked NPR Ed readers to send in stories of teachers going to great lengths to help students succeed in and out of school. We_____from hundreds of you. Many of you said that every teacher you know____the bill. Here is a teacher that caught our eye. When Arinn Filer, a social studies teacher, started teaching social studies at Humanities and Arts Academy in Los Angeles, she_____noticed that many of her students were football____.One of them — a sophomore (大二学生)—already had a( n)_____to play at University of Southern California. During football____many players didn't have time for_____between school, practices and games. Filer_____to make sure these student-athletes had a point-person to______them. She created a_____for athletes to complete work,______study skills, and plan out their classes to ensure that they're NCAA appropriate — to ensure that they’re____to play in college.

"I like to work with the athletes because I feel like they____have a place to go on our campus,” she says. She checks their report_____, talks to them about their_____,，and leads lessons on___skills, like goal-setting. One of her coworkers, LaNea Austin, who teaches English, wrote to NPR, No matter what, she helps____a future for these athletes. ”

Filer's football players______the state championship in the fall, and many have offers to play for big-name football schools. “ Give back to someone else and be an______to someone else, ” Filer tells her students. “That’s what will make me_______’’

5 . Cali Scores a Goal

It was the last game of the season. Cali had been playing soccer all summer. She really enjoyed __________ around with the other players in her blue uniform, chasing the black and white ball across the grassy field. As much as she tried, __________, Cali still had not scored one single goal.

“Don’t give up,” said her coach. He showed Cali and her team how to pass the ball to each other and take shots at the goal. Cali was pretty good at passing the ball, but she couldn’t kick the ball __________ the goalkeeper. She wondered if she should __________ soccer.

“Don’t give up,” said her teammates. ”You just need to keep trying and you will get __________ .” So Cali stayed on the team and did her best.

“Don’t give up,” said Aunt Lisa. But it was half-time, and Cali was feeling __________ . She was trying! Every time she got a(an) __________ to kick the ball, it would go in the __________ direction or a player from the other team would take control of it.

The break was over and the referee(裁判) blew her whistle to __________ the game again. The two __________ walked back onto the field, both __________ to win. Cali heard her aunt whisper in her ear. “Look for an opportunity to get the ball. You can do it.”

Cali took a deep breath. __________ she didn’t get one goal all summer, she knew that she had tried her best. She dreamed she’d leave her team after the game was over. Suddenly, she was woken by some __________ that was the sweet, happy jingle of the ice cream truck. It was driving right beside the soccer field, playing its music loudly to attract __________ .

The players on both teams turned to __________ at it. A few girls pointed to it and cheered. The soccer game had nearly stopped. Cali looked around and saw the soccer ball close by, __________ by the nearest player from the other team. Cali dashed over to the ball. She dribbled(带球) it between her feet, moving forward toward the net of the yellow team. By the time the other girls had __________ , Cali was positioned right in front of the net. The goalkeeper was __________ to one side, looking at the ice cream truck. She turned back __________ to guard the net as Cali kicked the ball hard.

The keeper __________ out her gloved hand. The ball touched the tips of her fingers as it swooshed past, right into the net. “Goal!”

6 . I used to hate running. It seemed too hard, and expanding my comfort zone was not something I like. In fact, I wouldn’t have become a runner if it weren’t for my husband Charles. He had been a serious competitive ______ for many years. After our marriage, he wouldn’t stop talking about how much he ______ it. So he picked it up again, and after about a year, I started to ______ him at the track. Just a few weeks later, Charles signed us ______ up for a five-kilometer race. I ______ about doing it because it was too soon.

The ______ sent a signal. Thousands of runners pushed forward. The first kilometer was ______. I was already breathing heavily and painfully aware of the group of runners ______ me. Charles was trying to ______ me, to get me focused on something _______my discomfort.

After another minute I saw the three-kilometer ______. “Painful” couldn’t _____describe how I felt. And there was pain, so much pain. I rounded a ______, and saw both sides of the street ______ with people watching the race, all ______ the runners up. I tried to keep my ______ going. I knew that if I actually ______ this race I would have achieved something. So, I ______ up and went on.

Finally I passed through the finish line. A volunteer put a medal around my neck. I ______ held my medal, walking to the post-race celebrations with Charles. My lungs and my ______ zone both expanded.

7 . When Thomas Moore, 11, stepped up to the plate (棒球比赛中的本垒板) at Oriole Park at Camden Yard in Baltimore, the crowd went wild. It was the biggest applause（掌声） the park had ever heard for a ______ baseball player.

“ I was very ______. I didn’t know that was going to happen,” says Moore.

What happened was that the Baltimore Orioles (金莺队) and their fans were recognizing Moore ______ a hero for something he did that nobody in the city ever ___________. After seeing a picture of a young cancer ______ on social media, Moore let his hair grow for two and a half years. Then he donated his hair and helped provide wigs (假发) for three kids ______ cancer through having chemotherapy.

This ______ boy had no idea what was waiting to happen to him ______ he decided on his act of kindness. “I just thought I got ______   to an Orioles game,” he says.

Moore is one of just 50 heroes recognized by the team-and the one ______ has so far inspired the biggest reaction. He waved and smiled when he was ______ on the big screen, and he enjoyed being ______ by strangers. Just as exciting: before the game, he had the ______ to talk to Orioles star Adam Jones.

“We talked about my hair ______,” Moore says. “I felt even more proud of myself. And I was already proud.”

Jones said that Moore was a role ______ for other kids.

Besides meeting one of his heroes, Moore got to meet someone who ______ him as a hero, Mo Gaba, an 11-year-old who is fighting cancer and ______ from one of Moore’s wigs. Baltimore’s radio listening community has helped ______ more than US$33,000 on the Internet to help with Gaba’s medical care. His cancer _______haven’t broken his spirit or affected his ______ for the game.

8 . The day that I will always remember is when I ran my first 10km.While putting my toe on the starting____, I felt my heart drop to my stomach. However, I would____my heart, because in running, when you run out of your____, you just run with your heart.

That day the____was cool and fresh, and my courage had____. The race was about to start. Bang! The____of the starting gun ran into the air. I took off running,____like the wind. I knew it would be a really great____for me. In the first four miles, I felt like a cheetah (猎豹). I felt____and forceful in my pace.

I saw the finishing line and I felt like an Olympic____who was about to win the race. I had____been happier, and felt proud too when I had my____put around my neck. As the saying goes, “Running is the greatest metaphor (比喻) for life,____you get out of it what you put into it.”

9 . After having a child, I found my regular exercise interrupted. I was not only busy: I also lacked the motivation. Solo gym sessions or some quick______following the DVD while the baby sleeps didn’t______me at all. So I decided to sign up for a hiking______in Peru, hoping that it would get me______again.

Looking over my travel arrangements before I left. I______phrases such as “3-hour hike______primitive forests” and “sliding with a rope down waterfalls”, and I started to feel a little______.

However, as we made our way through the forests and were______with amazing views of______waterfalls, this team of strangers______me to go on. Being physically active with a group motivated me to reach the______or the valley below-rather than simply lying down on the forest floor and giving up,______I might have done if I were alone.

____confirm my experience: Group exercise can really start a new attitude toward fitness. “People get a better______in a group than they do on their own,” said Allison Kimmel, a group______instructor. That’s because other people______both support and competition. “Humans are______animals and the shared experience of facing a challenge______is compelling(不可抗拒的),” said David Ezell, the CEO of fitness provider Darien Wellness.

With the______of a group, I'm slowly getting back into a______lifestyle.