3 . Want to buy some gifts for children? See the following ones.

Wonder Crew dolls

Wonder Crew creates dolls for boys. The dolls are aimed at encouraging boys to express kindness and other characteristics not encouraged in their other toys. “I wanted to address the developmental needs of the whole child.” Wider told USATODAY. “Toys have the power to teach.”

Sale for $29.99 on Amazon.

Barbie dolls that use a wheelchair

Mattel created dolls with disabilities to inspire girls to tell more stories. Barbie expanded its Fashion line to showcase dolls in a wheelchair and a removable prosthetic leg (假肢). “We can have the conversation around physical disabilities by including them into our fashion doll line to further Show a special view of beauty and fashion,” Mattel said.

Sale for $19.99.

Dolls inspired by children with autism

Lottie Dolls offers a doll inspired by a boy with autism. The doll kit includes an astronaut’s suit and a companion dog named Cookie. Lottie Dolls, an Irish company, offers a host of dolls that highlight diversity.

Sales for $30 on Amazon.

Plastic Army Women

A 6-year-old girl wanted to play with female plastic soldiers. She got her with when Pennsylvania company BMC Toys agreed to make Plastic Army Women. When completed, a pack of 24 figurines (小塑像) will include six different poses and should be available on the company website and on Amazon. It is available for pre-order at different price points.

4 . Every year, young, talented, and ambitious nature conservationists from all over the world participate in the presentation of the Future For Nature (FFN) Award, an honorable international award.

The Future For Nature aims to:

• Reward and fund individuals for their outstanding efforts in the protection of species of wildlife.

• Encourage winners to sustain their dedicated work.

·• Help winners to raise their profiles, extend their professional network and strengthen their funding basis.

Benefits

• The winners each receive 50,000 euros and may make their own decision to spend the money in the service of nature conservation.

• FFN offers the winners a platform and brings their stories to the attention of conservationists, financiers and a wide audience, allowing them to increase their impact and gain more access to funds.

• FFN is building a growing family of winners, dedicated people who form a community of people with the same interest. FFN offers them the opportunity to meet each other and continue to learn with each other in order to continue their fight for nature as efficiently and effectively as possible.

Qualifications

The candidate (候选人):

• Must be born on or after the 31st May 1988 and before the 28th of August 2005.

• Is able to explain his/her conservation work in fluent English (written and spoken)

• Has achieved substantial and long-term benefits to the conservation status of one or more animal or plant species.

• Must be determined to continue his/her conservation work, as the Award aims to stimulate the winner’s future work. It is not an “end of career” prize.

Additional Remarks

For the 2024 Future For Future Awards, we are again searching for natural leaders, who have proven that they can make a difference in species’ survival.

From all applications, 6 to 10 nominees (被提名者) will be selected. These applicants will be asked to provide additional information, which will be used to select the final Awardees. Ultimately, three inspiring wildlife heroes are selected as the winners.

Application Process: Apply online through the Apply Now link.

Application Deadline: 28^th August, 2023

5 . Bristol Old Vic

When the Theatre Royal (now Bristol Old Vic) was built, electricity hadn’t been discovered. For over 250 years the people who have owned, worked inside and visited the theatre have kept records about their activity. These are kept safe at the University of Bristol Theatre Collection, and you’ll discover a range of documents which record the history of the theatre, from its foundation in 1764 up until the present day. Here are some of them.

In 1764 businessmen Alexander Edgar and Thomas Symons suggested building a new theatre between Baldwin Street and the back of Coopers’ Hall in King Street. The estimated cost was f2, 000 to be split among 40 subscribers, but the building work cost more than expected. Owning shares allowed them to influence decisions about the theatre.

Each of the original Bristol Old Vic shareholders was given a silver ticket that promised sight of any performance held at the theatre. As the holders were clever businessmen, they insisted that the silver tickets could be loaned or traded. This enabled them to make some extra money but made it extremely difficult for the theatre managers to keep track of who was allowed to see shows for free.

In May 2016, the theatre celebrated its 250th birthday! As the oldest continuously-working theatre in the English-speaking world, it deserved a proper party, so Bristol-based Limbic Cinema was hired to create a film of the theatre’s historical highlights which was projected (放映) onto the theatre itself.

6 . A TV series in England, Away from It All, has surprised everyone by becoming a huge success with young people.

Its success is surprising because its main character is a shepherd(牧羊人), and the series is about the relaxing lifestyles of people who live in the country. There is none of the action that we usually see on TV. There are also no stressful moments, busy offices, or crowded cities. Away from It All is set in the peaceful English countryside and tells simple stories of people’s kindness.

The director of the series says its success is a sign of teenagers suffering from stress. He says that watching Away from It All helps teenagers forget about the pressures of exams and homework and the troubles that fill the world. He also claims that it’s a good sign that today’s youth are switching to happier TV series, as it shows they would like a happier and healthier life.

Although the series’ success might have a good side, many teachers and parents are worried. They say that some of their students and children are becoming couch potatoes(电视迷)and are using Away from It All as an excuse for not completing homework. Some students have even refused to study for exams because they say that they can only achieve happiness by avoiding stressful situations completely.

One mother, Lucy Linney, said of her son Patrick, “Before he started watching Away from It All, he loved challenges and volunteered every afternoon. But now he has become a couch potato. His grades have dropped and he no longer volunteers. He says it doesn’t matter as he just wants to ‘get away from it all’. ”

And what do the experts say? Paula Ray, a doctor, says that TV can influence young people’s lifestyles. But she says that if a young person reacts as strongly as Patrick, it’s likely that there are other reasons for his change in the behaviour.

7 . Here are some books that are carefully picked for your kids.

Corduroy

It’s about a little bear, Corduroy, in a toy shop. He has lost one of his buttons. This makes him very sad because he wants to be taken home by a kid. So he decides to find a new button. Corduroy contains some hard words. So you’d better use a dictionary while reading it.

Price: $18; a 10% discount on Sunday

Curious George

Curious George, a monkey, is a little too interested in everything, which causes humans to bring him from the forest to a big city. However, there he calls the fire department, is sent to prison, escapes from prison and is carried into the sky by balloons. Though the book uses a lot of short and simple sentences, some of its words are not simple.

Price: $20; a 20% discount on Sunday

The Story of Ferdinand

Ferdinand, a bull, loves to smell the flowers in the grasslands. One day people come to pick a male cow for bullfights. Ferdinand doesn’t want to be chosen, but a bee stings (蜇) him. It causes him to jump around crazily, so he’s picked. In Ferdinand’s first fight, he lies down to smell the flowers instead of fighting. So he is sent back to the grassland. The book has many similar stories that bring laughter. And it has everything that makes a children’s book great for English learners—simple and hard words.

Price: $16; a 10% discount on Sunday

Green Eggs and Ham

In this book, a cat named Sam really likes green eggs and meat. So he offers them to a friend. Read the book to see if his friend likes the meal or not. This book is a poem. Despite the simple vocabulary, the words are used in a way that feels smart.

Price: $15; a 5% discount on Sunday

8 . The 2024 “Chinese Bridge” Chinese Proficiency Competition for Foreigners across the Globe—Calligraphy and Painting Challenge has been officially announced.

This competition invites painting, calligraphy, and Chinese language enthusiasts from all around the world to take part in this exciting event.

Participants are encouraged to submit their creative themes for the contest, with the theme selection process being determined through public nominations.

If you’re interested, feel free to submit the theme that you believe fits best with the requirements of the competition.

Here are the requirements:

Who Can Apply

The call for creative themes for the Calligraphy and Painting Challenge is open to any Chinese language enthusiasts worldwide, with no limit to age or nationality.

Submission Dates

Submissions will be accepted from June 15, 2024, to 12:00 PM on June 30, 2024(Beijing Time.)

Announcement Date

The selected theme for the Calligraphy and Painting Challenge will be announced on July 1, 2024, which also marks the official start date of the submission period for works under the selected theme.

Submission Methods

Participants can send their theme and related information to chinesebridge@chineseplus.net. “Chinese Bridge” also accepts direct messages on its official account on Facebook, Instagram, WeChat, and Weibo.