An Interview with David | |
Topic | ( 1 ) education |
Reason | No ( 2 ) schools |
Subjects | Maths, English and ( 3 ) |
Methods | ●Use books or Internet ● ( 4 ) |
Activities | ●Go to the sports club every weekend ●Go to the dance club ( 5 ) a month |
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●Go to the dance club a month
I was standing in line behind a woman in her 60s. When it was her turn to pay, the shop owner greeted 1 and asked how she was doing.
The woman looked down, shook her head and said, “Not so 2, my husband just lost his job. I don't know how I can 3 the holidays.”
Then she gave the shop owner the food stamps（食品券）for poor families.
My 4 hurt, I wanted to help but didn't know 5. Should I offer to pay for her food, or ask for her husband's resume（简历）?
6 I walked towards my car, I met the woman again. I remembered something in my wallet. It wasn't any money or an offer of a job, but7 it would help.
"Excuse me," I said, "I heard what you said to the shop owner. It sounds like you're going through a really 8 time right now. I'm so sorry. I'd like to give you something."
I 9 her the small card from my wallet.
When the woman read the two 10 on the card, she began to cry. Through her tears, she said, "You have no idea how much this 11 to me."
To tell the truth, her reply was a little 12. Having never done anything like this before, I didn't know what could happen. All I could say was, "Would it be OK to give you a hug?"
After that, I walked into my car and began to13 too.
The words on the card?
"You Matter."
A few weeks earlier, a friend gave me a similar 14 as encouragement for my work. When I read it, I really felt 15. So I ordered my own box of You Matter cards and started sharing them.
World's history in one place
Is it possible to put millions of years of the world's history into one building? The British Museum seems to think so. "A history of the World in 100 Objects", an exhibition about rare and ancient objects from the world, has made it a success.
The British Museum says it owns at least 8 million historical objects. But why choose these 100 objects to tell stories of our world's history?
It all started with a challenge（挑战）.
Neil MacGregor, who was once director of the British Museum, was asked by BBC to choose 100 objects from the museum's huge collection. The objects had to include things from the beginning of human history about 2 million years ago to the present day.
MacGregor accepted, and took four years to choose each object himself.
In 2010, MacGregor appeared on BBC radio, giving a detailed（详细的）explanation of each object. The show was a big hit and all these 100 objects were shown in the British Museum. A book with photos of each object soon followed.
"The objects had to cover the whole world, from a cooking pot to a golden galleon, from a Stone Age tool to a credit card." MacGregor wrote.
The collection includes many important objects from China. There is a banknote from the Ming Dynasty, showing China as the first country to use paper money.
But it's not just ancient things that are shown. Among them are some modern things like a solar-powered lamp and even a throne made of weapons created by an African artist.
"Of course, the collection could only be 'a' history of the world. But it is still a history that people in the present world need to know." MacGregor wrote.
Almost all animals need to sleep to stay healthy. But sleeping can also be dangerous because other animals may hurt those who are sleeping. This leads to many different ways of sleeping that help them stay safe. Some of these ways may surprise you!
Almost all bats sleep upside down. They hang from a branch of a tree or the ceiling of a cave. Up high, bats are safe from most other animals. If they are in danger, they just fly away.
A dolphin sleeps with just half its brain at a time. It must stay awake to breathe and to watch for danger. Dolphin mothers and babies can go without sleep for as long as two months to stay safe.
Some ducks sleep with just half their brains, too. These ducks often sleep in a line. The ducks at both ends help to keep the group safe. They keep one eye open to watch for danger. The ducks in the middle sleep deeply with both eyes closed.
Seals breathe air, but that doesn't stop some of them from sleeping underwater. They hold their breath and dive deep to sleep for up to twenty minutes at a time. Sleeping deep underwater helps these seals stay safe from animals that hunt them near the surface.
Horses often sleep standing up. Their legs lock in place so they don't fall over. If a horse is lying down, it needs a long time to get up. A horse can run from danger more quickly if it is already standing.
A flamingo can sleep while standing on one leg. The standing leg locks so it stays straight. The other leg remains close to the flamingo's body. Its head rests on its back. A flamingo lives (and sleeps) near many other birds to stay safe.
Some seabirds can sleep while they fly. These large birds spend most of their lives over the ocean. They are in danger on the water, but they are safe in the air. They fly for many hours without flapping（拍打）their wings. Sometimes they sleep while they are flying.
Would you like to sleep how they sleep?
D
I remember the green coat in my fifth and sixth grades.
When I needed a new jacket, my mother asked what kind I wanted. I described something like bikers wear. She listened long. I thought she understood for sure the kind I wanted.
The next day when I got home from school, I discovered, on my bed, a jacket which was not what I had expected. I went close to the jacket slowly, as if it were a stranger.
From the kitchen mother shouted that my jacket was in the closet. I rushed and pulled at the clothes in the closet, hoping the jacket on the bed wasn't for me but my brother. No luck, I wanted to cry because it was so ugly and so big. But I knew I'd have to wear it a long time before I'd have a new one. I looked at the jacket, like an enemy, thinking bad things before I took off my old and small jacket.
I put the big jacket on. I stood in front of the mirror（镜子）, turning right and left. I looked ugly.
I threw it on my brother's bed and looked at it for a long time before I put it on and went out, smiling a "thank you" to my mom.
The next day I wore it to school. At the morning break, my best friend, Steve, looked at me for a long time. The girls turned away to whisper. The teachers looked my way and talked about how foolish I looked in my new jacket. When it was time for the whole school to get together on the playground, ▲ . Although they didn't say out loud, "Man, that's ugly!" I heard their talk and even laughter.
And so I went, in my jacket. So embarrassed, so hurt, I couldn't even do my lessons the rest of the day. I received Cs on tests.
I wore that thing for three years. All in those years no love came to me.
I blamed（指责）that jacket for those bad years. I blamed my mother for her bad taste and her cheap ways. It was a sad time for the heart. Anyway, I spent my sixth-grade year, looking forward to something good to happen to me.
And it was about that time I began to grow, still in that green ugly jacket, which had become my brother who went along wherever I went.
him cup among manage even though |
A ceremony（仪式）where boys become crocodile（鳄鱼）men
When does a teenager grow up and become an adult? In many countries, it happens on your 18th （生日）, but in some parts of the world, you have to do something special to （进入）the world of grown-ups.
On an Oceanian island, some people live near the Sepik River, which is （充满的）of crocodiles. They believe that crocodiles made the （地球）and its people. When it is time for teenage boys to become men, a "crocodile ceremony" takes place.
The boys are taken to small house （叫作）the "Crocodile Nest". In the house, the boys are told to think of their crocodile "fathers and mothers". Old people in the village say that if the boys think of their crocodile parents, they will be stronger and （勇敢的）because the ceremony will cause great pain. To take their minds off the pain, the boys tell jokes in the house, rather than just stay （沉默的）. Surprisingly, some of the boys even sleep （在……期间）the most painful parts of the ceremony! It will be （八）weeks before they leave the house.
When the boys （最后）leave the crocodile house, there is singing and dancing in the village to welcome the new crocodile men.
Pablo and I were walking home from playing football. On the way, I told him that our school needed football team. At once, Pablo suggested, “Why not run for（竞选）class president so that you can set one up?”
“Who would want (I)?” I asked, surprised at the idea.
Pablo made a list of reasons: I was the (good) student of all in sports and lessons; I was (friend) to everyone. When I told him running for president would be much work, he (promise) that he would help me.
I did run, and Pablo did help me. First, we made posters to hang in the hallway. Next, Pablo helped me (write) a speech about why I'd make a good class president.
The big day came. I gave my speech in front of the whole grade, promising my (classmate) that if they chose me, I'd start a football team.
As Pablo and I nervously waited the results, I was told that my speech was so successful I was the right person to be class president.
Now we went (happy) to Coach Simpson and asked how I could start our new football team.
English is the first language of several countries. However, it has many differences. British, American, and South African English are all spoken differently. In many English language courses, the British and American differences are taught. One is not more correct than the other, but there are important differences between the two.
Probably the biggest difference between American and British English is the vocabulary. Different words and expressions are used to talk about the same thing. For example, in the United States, people throw their garbage into the trash can. In England, people throw their rubbish into the dustbin. In Britain, people take a lift to the fifth floor. In America, people take an elevator.
American and British grammar can be also different. For example, speakers of British English will ask "What did you do at the weekend?", but Americans usually say "on the weekend." In the United States people usually say "I've gotten a new car.", but in the UK they will say "I've just got a new car."
The pronunciation in American and British English is also different, even when the spelling is the same. The word "tomato"—pronounced "to-mah-to" in British English—is a classic example of this.
Vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation are three ways English is different in different parts of the world. Learning all these is not easy, so English learners should just know that they are always there.
Differences | ||
Br E | Am E | |
Vocabulary | ●Throw the rubbish into the dustbin ●Take a ( 2 ) to the fifth floor | ●Throw the garbage into the ( 1 ) ●Take the elevator |
Grammar | ●At the weekend ●I've just ( 4 ) a new car. | ● ( 3 ) the weekend ●I've gotten a new car. |
( 5 ) | Tomato—pronounced “to-mah-to” | |
( 1 ) ( 2 ) ( 3 ) ( 4 ) ( 5 )
Key points（要点） | Words and expressions for reference（参考词汇） | |
What the name is | The Old Man and the Sea | … |
Who wrote it | Ernest Hemingway, America | … |
What it is about | Fisherman, Fight against fish and nature | … |
Why I like it | Meaningful, never give up, Well-known sentence: "Man is not made for defeat（失败）.", … | Interesting, helpful, … Well-known sentence: … |
注意：1）可选择使用所给的书名及内容，也可另选书籍；
2）短文内容可适当增加；
3）文中不得出现真实的人名和校名；
4）词数：80~100；
5）短文首句仅供选择使用，不计入总词数。
短文首句：
The book I'd like to share with you is The Old Man and the Sea.
