2 . You may have heard video game characters deliver lines like “Shatter (击碎) the darkness with thunder!” But it’s refreshing to hear it in an unexpected place — the classroom. Xia Zhendong is a physics teacher working at a senior high school in south China. Now in his 30s, Xia has won the hearts of millions of online viewers with his classroom experiments.

In one video, Xia pointed a self-made “thunderbolt wand (魔杖)” toward a hanging light tube in his classroom and said, “Shatter the darkness with thunder.” Suddenly, an electric arc (弧线) emerged from the tip of the wand, illuminating the tube. After the cheers from his students, he went on to explain the science behind it—static electricity (静电) and point discharge (尖端放电).

“The idea came when I enjoyed playing a popular game on my smart phone,” he said. In his spare time, he likes to try out what students are interested in to get closer to them. Apart from the “thunderbolt wand”, Xia has done many other creative experiments. Once, he lit steel wool with a battery to show the heating effect of electric current. Another time, he used a “laser weapon” to pop balloons while explaining the principles of lasers.

For Xia, physics is supposed to be fun. So, when he saw his students struggle with physics, he decided to make a change. “Circuit diagrams (电路图) are abstract, and I want them to actually see the electricity through lightning to realize that knowledge is not just on paper. You can see it and even touch it,” Xia said. Now, Xia has also started free live classes online. “I hope that through online classes, more students can also have access to fun physics lessons. And their parents can also join in. I hope that physics could make them feel happier,” Xia said.

As a high school student, you’re definitely struggling for writing a great argumentative essay now. Here are some tips for help.

First, be sure of your argument. What are you trying to demonstrate,     1     or disagreement about the topic? Select the one you are able to     2     and support later in the essay. Second, provide enough     3     of your argument, which can be facts,     4    , research findings or even personal experiences, and should be reliable, sufficient and closely     5     to what you’re arguing. It is also essential to consider and analyze the reasons from the     6     side in order to better     7     you points.     8    , your essay should be written with a clear and appropriate     9     including an introduction, a body, and a conclusion, and accurate and persuasive language.

In     10    , writing argumentative essays requires skills and practices. By following above tips, hope you can write a convincing argumentative essay.

My family and I never talked about school as the ticket to a future. I was in the classrooms, but I wasn’t there to learn to write, read or even speak. When it was my turn to read, I wanted to hide. I was 13 years old, but I tended     1    (hate)being who I was.

I had an English teacher who took so much     2    (responsible)for his job, Mr. Creech. He knew I couldn’t read. In one of my first lessons the teacher said that anyone     3     had a reading age below six had to stand up. Nervously, I stood up. At that time I had some doubt whether I could keep up with the other students. Later that day, Mr. Creech encouraged me and promised he would try his best to     4    (regular)help me learn to read. From then on, I never gave up practicing reading. I became more and more     5    (confidence).

Now I was 41 years old and my     6    (occupy)was an author. One day, I said to my wife, “According to my schedule, I must fly back to Texas to organize a meeting tomorrow.” She nodded and said, “Our son     7    (return)home tomorrow morning and I should take advantage     8     the opportunity to buy something nice for him to eat. ” On my way from the airport, it was so     9    (amaze)to see Mr. Creech buying himself a drink. I rushed over and reached into my pocket to pay for him, “Do I know you?” he asked at the sight of me. “Yes, sir, you do know me.” I answered excitedly, “My name is Anthony Hamilton, You taught me English many years ago.” The look on his face told me that he recognized the boy he’d once encouraged.

“I’m so glad that I have a chance to see you.” I said, “And Mr. Creech, I have great news to share with you.” To his relief, he knew I had had no trouble reading books and articles. I told him that I had worked very hard and finally my effort had paid     10    .

The most important person in my life is my Chemistry teacher in Grade 3 of my High School, Miss Zhang. She is a loving and an     1     (外向的) person, who is p    2     about being a teacher. We had so many great memories.

She makes me a person, both in school work and personality. Before she taught me, I had been a very difficult student. I was a bit lazy and found science boring and difficult, so I lacked confidence in myself. However, my teacher taught me with patience and made everything interesting. I was also asked to give a p    3     to the whole class. At that moment, I felt I had my won strengths and my confidence came back.

I think she is an       4     (杰出的) teacher and I am extremely g    5     to her help.

    1    (据说) our school will hold a singing contest to celebrate the Party’s birthday. It is not yet clear     2    (比赛何时举行，如何组织). But after hearing the news, the students have begun to prepare for it.     3    (大家认为) through this activity, we can express our love for the Chinese Communist Party and     4    (我们能否获奖) or not doesn’t make any difference.     5    (众所周知) under the leadership of the Party, our life is getting better and better.     6    (令我们感到自豪) is that we are living in a stable, peaceful and prosperous country. I’m sure the singing contest will be a great success.

10 . HONG KONG — At the school where Ko Cheuk-kiu works, there are neither school bells ringing nor students running around the playground. “You look good today. Shall we review the text together?” After greeting her student Hei Hei, Ko, in a light blue uniform, turns on her tablet computer and begins to teach at the bedside.

Founded in 1954, the Hong Kong Red Cross Hospital Schools initially provided services in only one public medical institution. Now, it is a special education institute funded by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government, with 26 school units attached to 19 public hospitals. Its services are mainly divided into three fields — general specialty, psychiatry, and homebound teaching programs. The first two provide services for hospitalized students to reduce their difficulties in returning to school, while homebound teaching is aimed at students who need to stay at home to recover for a long period. Teachers are assigned to different hospitals or students’ homes and shift on a regular basis. Depending on the situation, teachers will carry out small group or one-on-one bedside teaching, and each session lasts about 30 minutes.

“Teaching children in a hospital? I was curious and keen to know more about it,” Ko recalls, explaining she first learned about the school from a newspaper report in 2009 when she had just finished her master’s degree in language. Ko, who also studied special education, applied for a teaching position at the school and was hired as a Chinese language teacher.

Teachers in hospitals have to meet students with different medical conditions and face all kinds of challenges every day, but Ko regards these experiences as training, which have led her to have a deeper appreciation of life. Over the years, Ko has received a lot of greeting cards from parents and students showing their appreciation. Looking at these warm words of encouragement, she silently sends her best wishes to the students. “I hope they can soon recover and go back to school, and continue to pursue their dreams,” she says.