The craft of Shao Lujie, a 28-year-old Chinese craftsman from Jinhua, Zhejiang Province, is known
Shao’s works mainly feature flowers and other plants. He created multiple works for the 19th Asian Games, featuring the event’s three mascots (吉祥物) and logo. In the past few years, Shao
Since childhood, Shao has enjoyed painting and handicrafts.
In an age
To get youngsters interested in the craft, Shao has gone online, sharing articles
In a house far from the city lived John and his mother. John’s only hobby was wandering in the nearby picturesque forest. In its center was a shiny clear lake with schools of fish dancing in it. Lovely animals such as deer or rabbits were playing around and cute birds were singing in trees. Fascinated by the beauty and liveliness of nature, he desired to become a great artist and present all the breath-taking scenes to the world.
John studied in the local primary school. Life was not easy for John and his mom after his father died. Knowing what hard work his mother did to make ends meet, John really didn’t want his mother to worry. His mother knew the significance of education in life but she was against his dream of becoming an artist. “The profession of artist can’t aid a person in meeting his daily expenses,” she would say. But as each day passed, John’s dream became more passionate.
Due to the living circumstances, even buying some new colors would be a luxury. John only used the worn drawing file and limited colors for his daily practice. Though lacking fine painting materials, he never gave up drawing. He spent a significant amount of time staying in the forest, secretly perfecting his craft. With continuous hard work and a distinct gift for art, he drew beautifully.
One day John read about a competition being held in the town, whose deadline was only two days away. He got the perfect opportunity to fulfill his desire but he was in a dilemma (两难境地) as for the competition he needed special paints and some brushes. He didn’t have the courage to ask his mother for money as he knew her prejudice against art.
That evening his mom returned from work and handed him a few paper notes, saying, “This is for your lunch at school next month.” The money was enough for his desired materials! John’s face lit up.
注意:1. 续写词数应为150左右;
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Early the next morning, John secretly left home with the money.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________A week later, a phone call came to John’s home.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________1. 他/她被推选为“……之星”的原因;
2. 号召大家向他/她学习。
注意:1. 写作词数应为80个左右;
2. 请将题目补充完整,并按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Star of ______
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4 . White dressed up as Captain America for the annual Anti-Bullying (反霸凌) Superhero Day. But when spotting
It was rush hour. White was
DeAngelis, the man behind the
White
A.barrier | B.unfairness | C.violence | D.trouble |
A.give way to | B.fall back on | C.get around | D.forget about |
A.cycling | B.running | C.driving | D.walking |
A.locate | B.miss | C.search | D.contact |
A.outcome | B.tendency | C.process | D.problem |
A.stop | B.move | C.report | D.disable |
A.Mistakenly | B.Sincerely | C.Decidedly | D.Hesitantly |
A.following | B.separating | C.threatening | D.approaching |
A.waved | B.escaped | C.wandered | D.raced |
A.struck | B.measured | C.grabbed | D.broke |
A.bug | B.lift | C.blow | D.kick |
A.scene | B.pickup | C.wheel | D.seat |
A.shocked | B.ashamed | C.discouraged | D.amused |
A.protected | B.encountered | C.created | D.played |
A.rescue | B.visit | C.guidance | D.comment |
5 . Your neighbors are probably the first line of defense in case of any problematic situation.
The first step is introducing yourself when you move to a new neighborhood or when a newcomer moves in. Leave them a note under their door to introduce yourself.
Be respectful of your neighbors. It’s in poor taste to have regular insensitive parties at your place causing disturbances. Before your party, it’s good practice to notify your neighbors. Besides, avoid chatting them up for hours on end, which may be inconvenient, especially if you don’t know their schedules.
As Emma Seppälä put it, “social connectedness generates a positive feedback loop (圈) of social, emotional and physical well-being.” It feels so easy to just stay home without having to engage with your neighbors but connecting with them is worth the effort.
A.Remember every small gesture counts. |
B.A crisis is a test of communication skills. |
C.It can actually boost your mood in the long run. |
D.Slipping it in their mailbox further solidifies friendship. |
E.It’s essential to ensure you maintain decent relationships with them. |
F.Alternatively, you can give them a gift while making yourself known to them. |
G.Only by establishing healthy boundaries will you achieve peaceful coexistence. |
6 . Imagine being an Olympic racer. Before stepping onto the track, you have to decide which pair of shoes to wear: One made from sustainable materials or a traditionally built model? If you’re like most people, you’d opt for the non-sustainable version. Consumer behavior research indicates sustainable products are often assumed to be weaker, less durable and perform worse than non-sustainable ones.
But are there instances in which sustainability is not a liability? To investigate this, researchers conducted a series of studies. They theorized that under some circumstances, sustainability may provide a halo effect, meaning that being perceived as sustainable also leads consumers to assume other positive characteristics about them as well.
In the first study, 595 participants were asked to make judgments about several household products like washing powder. The results suggest one’s values do play a role: People with higher environmental values viewed sustainable products as also being higher-performing, thus lending support for the halo effect theory.
The second experiment looked specifically at the effect of messaging, testing to see whether focusing the sustainability claims on the company, as opposed to the product, would be more effective in driving participants’ belief in product performance. 270 participants were asked. The results suggest that associating sustainability with the company has a much larger impact than messaging about product sustainability.
Study 3 sought to further expand these mechanisms by examining the influence of societal impact. 148 participants who saw various advertisements for products either described as having a “sustainable benefit” or “societal benefit” were more likely to see the products as being of higher performance if they were presented as positively impacting society, above and beyond merely being sustainable, supporting the idea that the halo effect is driven by the belief of the company as a moral agent engaged in socially beneficial behavior.
Contrary to previous thinking, this research illustrates that sustainability claims can produce positive belief about product performance in the above conditions. Like the track star, consumers often feel sustainability and performance exclude each other. When the brand (品牌) presents it just the right way, there doesn’t need to be a trade-off. These can be one and the same.
1. What does the underlined word “liability” in paragraph 2 mean?A.Priority. | B.Secret. | C.Drag. | D.Target. |
A.highlight the product | B.are aimed to generate profits |
C.contrast with consumers’ values | D.are made about the company itself |
A.Previous experience. | B.Sales statistics. |
C.Respondents’ opinions. | D.Social phenomenon. |
A.How Green Products Benefit Consumers |
B.How Consumers View Company Culture |
C.How Sustainability Claims Impact Product Quality |
D.How Psychology Helps the Belief in Green Products |
7 . Jimmy Jiang envisions a future where every house is powered by renewable energy stored in batteries.
Jiang and his team at the University of Cincinnati have developed a new battery that could have far-reaching implications for the large-scale (大规模) energy storage needed by wind and solar farms.
“Batteries store renewable energy for when it’s needed, not just when it’s produced. This is crucial for getting the most out of wind and solar power,” Jiang said. “Energy generation and energy consumption is always mismatched. That’s why it’s important to have a device that can store that energy temporarily and release it when it’s needed.”
They described their novel design in the journal Nature Communications.
Traditional car batteries contain a mix of sulfuric acid and water. While they’re inexpensive and made from readily available materials, they have severe drawbacks for industrial or large-scale use. They have a very low energy density (密度), which isn’t suitable for storing sufficient power needed to power a city. And they have a low level for electrochemical stability, which means they can blow up.
Water has a voltage (电压) limit. Once the voltage of such a battery goes beyond the stability window of 1.5 volts, the water can decompose into hydrogen and oxygen, which is explosive.
But Jiang and his students have developed a battery without water that can generate nearly 4 volts of power. Jiang’s novel design does so by removing from a battery the membrane, which is a huge component of upfront costs and accounts for as much as 30% of the cost of the battery. They invented a new type of energy storage material that improves performance at a lower cost. “Membranes are also inefficient. They can’t separate the positive and negative sides completely, so there is always crossover,” he said.
The group has submitted temporary patent applications. “There is still a long way to go, but we’re advancing toward a dramatic battery transformation in the next decade. I’m confident about that. There is a lot of intense research going into pushing the boundaries of battery performance,” Jiang said.
1. What’s mainly talked about in paragraph 3?A.Why batteries are essential. | B.How to store renewable energy. |
C.Why green energy is needed. | D.How to conserve natural resources. |
A.They’re too pricy. | B.They’re made of rare materials. |
C.They’re slow to charge. | D.They have a potential explosion risk. |
A.It may reshape the battery industry. | B.It’s inappropriate for large-scale use. |
C.It may help minimize power consumption. | D.It’s subject to mature industry standards. |
A.Dismissive. | B.Uncertain. | C.Positive. | D.Pessimistic. |
8 . For sharks, the Mesoamerican Reef, which stretches over 600 miles, is a busy highway. Sharks use it to find their way and it provides them with food and habitat.
But as with on-land highways, this superhighway can be dangerous. Overfishing, commercial development and illegal practices are endangering the species. “We’re seeing a continued decline in shark populations. Our goal is to turn that round.” says Rachel Graham, founder of Mar Alliance, a non-profit organization focused on conserving sharks.
By monitoring sharks, Mar Alliance can collect important knowledge on the species to help inform conservation and push for political action. But rather than acting in opposition to the local fishing community, MarAlliance enlists their help.
“They are the ones who are on the sea every single day,” says Graham, “and they’re the ones who decide the species’ future.”
MarAlliance employs up to 60 fishermen across its range, mostly on a project basis, training them to collect data, record and release fish. Not only does this provide an alternative income to fishing communities, making them less dependent on natural resources, but it also teaches them about the benefits of a healthy ocean ecosystem and how to fish sustainably.
Among them, Ivan Torres, who used to catch sharks to sell locally as food, has learned how critical they’re to the whole ecosystem, saying he’d never fish sharks any more.
If this attitude change continues to spread throughout fishing communities, Graham has hope for the shark populations. “The primary threat to sharks is unquestionably overfishing,” she says, “By reforming the industry, populations can bounce back.”
In 2020, Belize outlawed the use of gillnets, large panels of netting of trapping large sealife. The ban’s impact is already noticeable with a recorded 10-fold increase in shark populations.
But such regulations need to be copied along the whole superhighway for long-lasting impact, and countries need to find a sustainable balance between fishers and the fished. “We need to find a win-win strategy between fisher livelihoods and shark survival,” Graham emphasizes. “I hope that through education and providing an economic alternative for fishing communities, MarAlliance will help ensure safe passage for sharks along the reef”.
1. Which of the following best describes the Mesoamerican Reef for sharks?A.Romantic but messy. | B.Vital but insecure. |
C.Adventurous but beautiful. | D.Unfamiliar but reliable. |
A.MarAlliance. | B.The fishers. |
C.Monitoring authorities. | D.The sharks. |
A.A stricter fishing ban. | B.The insurance payout he earned. |
C.An offer of extra work. | D.The fishing communities’ intervention. |
A.Solution to overfishing. | B.Difficulties facing MarAlliance. |
C.Impact of existing regulations. | D.Features of international cooperation. |
9 . KidsWorldFun Short Story Contest
Calling all young writers from around the world! It’s time to release your creativity and share your incredible stories with us. KidsWorldFun presents the ultimate Short Story Contest, open to young people of all ages.
Two Modes of Entry
● Free Entry: get the chance to win a certificate and have your story published on our website.
● Entry Fee of $10: get the chance to receive a cash prize as well as a certificate and have your story published. Payment links will be sent via email for these entries.
Amazing Prizes Await
First Prize: $100, certificate and publication;
Second Prize: $75, certificate and publication;
Third Prize: $50, certificate and publication.
Highly commented stories will also be published for the world to enjoy.
Contest Categories and Word Limits
To ensure fairness, we have set three categories for writers to choose from and minimum and maximum word limits for each category.
Categories | Ages | Word Limits | |
Minimum | Maximum | ||
Sub-junior | 7-9 | 300 words | 1000 words |
Junior | 10-12 | 500 words | 1000 words |
Senior | 13-16 | 700 words | 1000 words |
Submission Guidelines
● Include proof of age with your entry (scan or take a photo of your identity card). Entries without proof of age will be disqualified.
● Your story must be original and unpublished.
● Type your story out.
Our judges will evaluate each story based on content, language and writing style. Their decision will be final. For more information, please contact us at enquiry@kidsworldfun.com. We’re here to assist you every step of the way.
Don’t miss this incredible opportunity to showcase your talent and win amazing prizes! Enter the KidsWorldFun Short Story Contest today!
1. What may a free entry second prize winner get?A.A reward of $10. | B.A certificate and publication. |
C.Prize money and honors. | D.$75, certificate and publication. |
A.A handwritten draft. | B.A science fiction of 1500 words. |
C.An award-winning essay. | D.A printout of a 900-word original story. |
A.To promote a reading website. | B.To appeal for participation. |
C.To explain an application process. | D.To teach kids writing principles. |
“Oh, no!” Jack shouted while looking at the likes and comments on his recent TikTok video.
“Why aren’t people reacting to my content as they used to?”
Jack was a 19-year-old strong and muscular man addicted to the gym. He loved recording exercise videos and posting them on his TikTok account. Initially, his video logs (vlogs) were popular, but his posts’ reach soon decreased.
Jack wondered why people had stopped sharing and liking his videos, “Maybe my audience is tired of watching me work out in the gym,” he thought, determined to change the location of his videos.
The following day, Jack went to the neighborhood park and began filming while walking on the track.“Hi, guys! How about we shake things up a little? I’m to work out in the park today!” he said excitedly, looking into the camera lens (镜头).
“Let’s look for a good spot to warm up,” he said as he walked towards a bench(长椅), on which sat an elderly lady. Jack thought the bench was the perfect place to film his video because of the light.
He put his tripod stand (三脚架) on the bench and set the camera, but he felt like he needed the full bench. He wanted to place his camera where the lady sat, so he gestured to her to move, but the woman didn’t seem to understand.
“Get out of my way!” he yelled.“Can’t you see I’m filming a video? You old fool!” Looking him up and down in surprise, the old lady didn’t argue over his disrespectful attitude and quietly walked towards another bench.
Jack set his camera up, pressed the record button and waved at his followers, ready to demonstrate exercises. Suddenly, he tripped on a loose stone, lost balance and fell down, his head striking the bench and bleeding heavily.
Crying in pain, Jack tried to get up, but he didn’t have the strength to rise. He collapsed on the ground, screaming desperately for help.
注意:1.续写词数应为150左右;
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
There was nobody around but the elderly lady.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________To Jack’s joy, a net friend sent a message saying where the lady lived.
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