1 . This morning, a former student sent me a message, telling me he is living a happy life. He said he often thinks of me and that he especially misses my _________ classes.

My thoughts went back to that shy, overweight boy who _________ to our school in his fifth grade. He was quiet and _________. Some of the boys teased him about his lack of _________ ability. When they played games, Gibby would often be left standing alone. Several times I went to the playground and asked to _________ a team. I would call out several _________ and then, around the fourth or fifth spot, I would call Gibby and a few others who never seemed to get _________ by their peers. My team may not have been the best, but we were the happiest and definitely the most _________ and loyal.

That spring I decided to give my students more _________. We began by running, but after one or two circles around the playground, Gibby would lag far behind, __________. However, after a month, he lost a few pounds and could __________ the group easier. Then we added floor exercises to the program. Gibby was still there, stretching and bending, lifting and kicking, as __________ as ever. He never gave up or made __________. Many students admired his __________ and in time, he gained confidence and began to smile and talk more. He was no longer the new kid.

Messages of this kind always call up sweet memories. Yes, as a (n) __________ teacher, I love all my students and help them become what they can be.

2 . One day I came home, frustrated. I asked my mom to no longer put Middle Eastern _________in my lunch.

She and my father became quiet. My father _________ his crossword puzzle and my mother, through questioning, got me to _________ that the other students gave me a very difficult time when I pulled out food that didn’t look like everybody else’s. So I asked, ―From now on, could we do peanut butter and jelly on Wonder Bread and an apple?

And then my brother and sister walked in and said they’d like the same because they were _________ it as well.

My father’s family was from Syria; my mom’s from Palestine. We had _________ that weren’t exactly in agreement with our schoolmates; we had food that was _________; we had holiday customs that were not the same as everybody else. Sometimes we could _________out.

My mother didn’t say too much when I brought up the lunch _________. But about a week later the teacher _________ that we should not bring lunches the following day, nor should we bring lunch __________ for the cafeteria, that we were going to have some sort of a __________ food event.

The next day at lunch, in __________ my mother with boxes of Middle Eastern food. The teacher __________ her. ―This is Mrs. Nimen. This is Tom’s mom.

She pulled out tabbouleh, hummus, babaghanoush, and her homemade bread. She had baked bread for the __________ class to take home.

Now, I would like to tell you that this __________ some of the low-grade racial issues we faced. And she, if I think about it now, is a very early pioneer of diversity, in a very smart way, using Middle Eastern hospitality.

4 . Stefany Bibb, a teacher in an elementary school is teaching students the importance of kindness. She provides ______ activities for them to practice it daily. She also ______ the school’s “Kindness Crew”. Students in the club often hold the ______ for others, each sunny morning ______ students and teachers with posters that have ______ messages, focus on being helpful and respectful, and help others to remember to be ______.

Fourth-grade member Aniyah Cox’s ______ act of kindness is giving hugs. She knows this action makes others smile because it can ______ the world. John Johnson, a fifth-grade student, loves being able to hold the door for other people, because it shows that he always ______ others’ feelings.

During spring break, Mrs. Bibb created a ______ garden outside of the school’s building where students could place painted works with ______ of kindness or happy designs. Students can keep them for up to one week before ______ them to the garden. If students choose to keep the rock longer, they can paint another one and ______ the one they took. They can also pass their artwork down to their friends so as to make them happy.

Mrs. Bibb hopes these students take the ______ of kindness they’ve started at the school and continue to build upon it in the ______. “I just gave them the chance to do what they ______ do. There’s nothing I can take ______ for how amazing they are and the kindness they ______,” she said. “In the ways we are generous or not we can change the course of someone’s life. Kindness is a ______ but necessary quality teachers work to ______ among their students throughout the school years.

6 . I joined the girls’ tennis team in Grade 2. A freshman transferring in from Britain also joined the team. But she was quickly ________ for her accent, which made her anxious and ________. Refusing to accept this unforgivable behavior, I ________ her, praising her accent and befriending her.

This inoffensive (不冒犯人的) interaction had its root in the deep-seeded ________ from a previous situation where I failed to ________ and ultimately hurt an innocent girl.

I met Catherine when I ________ survived my first year in America. Catherine made me feel ________ by greeting me with her thick but cheerful southern accent each morning. We quickly became best friends.

However, it was short-lived. Catherine and I ________ to join the school drama club. Unfortunately, cruel gossips (流言) unfolded at Catherine’s expense before the interview. Desperate to be ________, I just stood by.

Catherine would still greet me, her ________ not fading. Deeply buried in the ________ of “betraying” my friend, I couldn’t forgive myself. Our relationship was ________ destroyed.

I wish I could go back with the ________ to defend her, but I can’t. I can, however, ________ to never give in to such fear. Courage wasn’t the absence of fear, but the ________ over it.

8 . As one of the most common students. I pulled myself through every day hoping to stay invisible(隐形的)，yet somehow I wondered why it was impossible for anyone else to_______me.

Then one day, a simple_______from a teacher changed my life.

That day, Mr. Curtis, our band director, played a B-flat pitch and asked us to tune(调音) our instrument one by one. As he listened，his serious face and impatient steps showed his ______with each note.   No one____

My turn was coming soon, and I was fearful. I had to play all by myself while others sat and listened! I felt_______in my chair.

“Maya! It’s your turn. Play!”

“It was only a note.” I closed my eyes, and took my turn. I played my single note quietly, and with all the feelings I had felt that year. I poured my heart into that one moment of music, and the sound echoed softly through the room. I was right on pitch, but I didn’t _______Mr. Curtis’s reaction.

He looked at me as if for the first time; his serious face relaxed into a relieved smile. “That is what I have been_______! That was a perfect note!” And then he said something I have never forgotten. “Maya, that one note has earned you an ‘A’ this year. Keep it up.”

Nobody could imagine my_______at that moment. I had remained unnoticed for so long, yet Mr. Curtis helped me see my________

One ray of light came into the shadow of my school life, and a seed started to sprout(发芽). Thanks to Mr. Curtis， I found a place to________

10 . What was I going to do? School was going to be over soon, and one quiet little girl in my class still had not _________ an octopus (章鱼). I made them from bright-colored yarn (纱) and gave them to my _________ as awards for doing something excellent.

I had introduced the octopus award early in the school year. The first winner was a little boy. I was _________ a paper in one hand and an octopus in the other.

I said, "You did very well in this math test. To reward your much _________ , I've decided to give you the very first octopus award." He had the _________ of his classmates as the first winner of this award.

By the end of the year, only the quiet little girl had _________ to win an octopus. One Friday afternoon, I gave a _________ assignment. “Draw any picture of your choice. Write a few words to tell me about it.” I collected their papers and took them home to _________ .When I saw the little girl's drawing，I got _________ She had __________ a blue sky and green grass by a pond. On a path nearby were three people side by side. One was __________ crutches（拐杖），one was in a wheelchair，and one had no clear __________ fault.

Above her drawing she wrote: “The sky is __________ . The grass is green. And all the people are different.” I couldn't wait to get to the __________ and give the girl an octopus for her wonderful drawing. When I called her forward, I saw the __________ expression on her face.