Looking for books suitable for your juniors? Here are what our editors recommend:
Room for Everyone
Musa and Dada drive to the shore — but the bus stops many times: "You need a ride? Come in! There's still room!" One stop becomes two stops which soon becomes ten, and the bus is overcrowded, but there's always room for one more if you make the room, making this trip a joyous tale.
Author: Naaz Khan
Reading age: 4—8
Wonder
Auggie Pullman was born with a facial difference which prevents him from going to a mainstream school. Entering a new school, he wants nothing more than to be treated normally — but his new classmates can't ignore his extraordinary face. Auggie is a hero to prove that you can't give in when you were born to stand out.
Author: R. J. Palacio
Reading age: 8—12
Starfish Hardcover
Ellie is tired of being fat and she's found her safe space — her swimming pool — where she feels weightless in a fat-obsessed world. In the water, she can stretch herself out like a starfish and take up all the room she wants. Finally, with the support of those loving her, Ellie might be able to be a starfish in real life — by being her own excellent self.
Author: Lisa Fipps
Reading age: 10—13
Swimming to Antarctica: Tales of a Long-Distance Swimmer
Lynne Cox started swimming almost as soon as she could walk. By age sixteen, she had broken all records for swimming the English Channel. She narrowly escaped a shark attack, and was cheered across the Cook Strait by dolphins. She even swam a mile in the Antarctic. Lynne writes the same way she swims, with tough spirit and joy.
Author: Lynne Cox
Reading age: 14—18
"Sunshine might be healthier than most people think, outweighing the risk of skin cancer", British doctors suggested last week. The four researchers at Bristol University were accused of weakening years of campaigning to warn people of the dangers of too much sun. Experts agree exposure to the sun's ultraviolet rays increases the risk of skin cancer and accelerates the signs of aging. But in the British Medical Journal the Bristol team led by Andrew Ness wrote, "There is evidence that the potential benefits of exposure to sunlight may outweigh the widely publicized negative effects on the incidence of skin cancer."
Vitamin D, made in the body in reaction to sunlight, prevented rickets (软骨病) in children and was associated with a protective effect against heart disease.
Sunshine was also useful for treating certain skin conditions and there was also the "feel good effect of lying or sitting in the sun". The researchers said it was too early to advise people to spend more time in the sun, but suggested the basis of the current advice to cover up should be reviewed.
"Perhaps, while we await the conclusions of such formal analyses, those of us who enjoy spending time in the sun can rest assured that the chance that we will be one of the people dying from the sun small." they added.
Their article was strongly criticized by health campaigners who claimed it was unbalanced and not backed by scientific evidence. Britain's Health Education Authority said skin cancer was the most common form of cancer in the country, with more than 50, 000 new cases diagnosed each year and more than 2, 000 people dying from the disease. It said treatment almost always required surgery and almost 50 percent of cases were fatal. The authority's skin cancer campaign manager Christopher New said, "We are very disappointed with this controversial article. It doesn't have enough supporting evidence and runs the risk undoing many years of "good health education"".
For some of us. it needs not be a long life as long as it's been a fulfilling life of achievements. happiness and no regrets. But. how many of us actually go on to experience that entirely? It sometimes sounds more like a pipe dream—a fantasy rather than reality.
It's a common misconception that you must give up certain parts of your full life to fulfil others—from work. to health. to relationships. Maybe you're overwhelmed(压垮)by all the daily demands. Maybe you don't feel like you have enough time and energy. Or maybe you just haven't discovered your own strengths and potential to achieve everything you want in life. and so when in times of difficulty. you just give up trying to balance them all.
And then you'll also get comments from some. saying that this ‘fulfilling life' is only possible if you're so rich that you don't have to care about working. paying the bills or providing for your family. While there is some truth to that. I'm happy to say that financial(财务)freedom isn't the only answer to living a fulfilling life.
But here's the truth： We cannot afford to keep trading one important part of our lives to achieve another. No one can achieve true happiness this way. The reality is that different aspects of your life are interlinked and interdependent. Everything influences the other; for example. a bad family life can bring down your career. and poor health can bring down everything.
What you don't realize is that you will pay great consequences later if you trade off one thing to achieve another right now. And these consequences are almost irreversible(不可逆转的). The secret to have a fulfilling life is to not just balance all areas of your life—but to do them all well. too.
In the digital age, we rely on technology such as social media in trying to build interesting and varied lives. Social networking sites like Facebook are designed and promoted to make us believe enthusiastically that they are able to open up new experiences for us. There are constant notifications(通知)and updates, urging us to check-in to find out what is new.
But if we do not use the technology wisely, we can end up becoming overly attached and trapped in a cycle of social media FOMO, a sign of deeper unhappiness. FOMO, or fear of missing out, is a fear that exciting or interesting events are happening somewhere else and that we are not able to join.
People who experience high levels of FOMO have been found to be more likely to give in to urges to write and check text messages while driving, as well as to use Facebook more often directly after waking, while going to sleep and during meals.
When it comes to lasting happiness, it is best not to give in to FOMO, but rather to deal with the cycle of desires that fuel it. Hard as it is, we are better off working toward facing the fearful reality that we cannot experience everything we might like than to get caught in a cycle of checking behaviors that only cause anxiety.
If we have become used to using social media as part of our attempts at living interesting lives, we must admit that it is not easy to change our approach. But change is almost always worthwhile in the long run.
The fact that FOMO is so common in our digital age is a sign that there is something wrong with the way we are pursuing happiness and that we are not as happy as we might think we are. It should warn us that, in our eagerness to use digital technology to try to make ourselves happier, we may unintentionally(无意之中)be bringing on exactly the opposite result.
Most travelers face the language difficulty in Italy nowadays. There are a few things that you should know before you step out of the airport.
There's no such thing as "Italian food".
In Italy each area has its own personality,its own dialect,and its own food. Get to know what's Produced locally and what's in season,and you'll be eating the freshest and best of what that area has to offer.
Most Italians pay for things on a day-to-day basis with cash from their morning coffee to dinner.Those of you who have grown used to paying for milk and bread at the grocery store with a card find it very difficult to travel.
The waiter isn't being rude when he leaves you alone to eat.
In Italy, after your meal is served,you may not see the waiter at your table again until it's time to clear your plates.This is not the waiter being rude.
An empty restaurant doesn't mean the place is bad.
Many times I've gone into restaurants in Italy at what I thought was dinner time only to find the place nearly empty. The dinner hour in many cities doesn't start until at least 8 pm.Many restaurants in bigger cities and towns will be open earlier than that,but the earlier opening time isn't for the locals.It's for visitors.
A. Cash is king in Italy.
B. Trains are always late in Italy.
C. Later,I learned Italians eat late.
D. If so,traveling to Italy can be an attractive experience.
E. However,it's still a very easy and comfortable country to visit.
F. This is the waiter letting you enjoy your meal as long as you want.
G. It's a shock to those of you who think you've already known what Italian food is.
About 15 years ago, Andrew McLindon, a passionate cyclist, was riding his bike when he suddenly thought about a friend's son. The boy had never known the 1 of biking because he suffered from 2 problems.
When he got home, McLindon went online and found a three-wheel recumbent bike(斜躺自行车)with a seat belt, 3 for a child with balance issues. Soon the boy was 4 with his peers and having fun. McLindon saw his friend's reaction after this small act of 5 . "To see his son interacting with other kids," McLindon says. "I'll never forget the 6 on his face."
That smile 7 the McLindon Family Foundation. The group finds children who can 8 from an adaptive bike and helps craft(精心制作)each bike to the child's 9 needs. A bike may 10 a headrest, a shoulder harness(系带), and a seat belt. For kids 11 enough to get one, they're a life changer.
"We worked with a 14-year-old who has spina bifida(脊柱裂)," says McLindon. "She spent most days on the couch watching TV. Soon after she got her bike, she was 12 for special-needs triathlons(三项全能运动)." In an interview, she said, "I always knew there was a(n) 13 in me."
So far, the foundation has 14 450 bikes. "I do a lot of things," McLindon says. "But getting these kids their bikes is the most 15 thing that I do."
Just now, I entered the website "Topic for Today". I feel (interest)in the report on middle school students' using cell phones. In fact, more students now come to school cell-phones. People have different opinions about this phenomenon. Some think it is convenient (get)in touch with others with the cell phone, which also makes you feel safe especially in time of trouble. Besides, it is enjoyable to use (variety)functions of different cell phones. However, think differently. First, the cell phone is not must in school, there are some IC phones there, (make)it easy to call others. Second, many students often play e-games and send e-massages with their cell phones, even in class, will surely have bad effects on their study. What's more, it (result)in a great waste of time and money. In my opinion, the cell phone is a useful tool in our daily life. But it doesn't mean we can use freely in school.
内容包括：1.阅读经典好书的意义；
2.活动的内容与安排；3.期待她的参与。
注意：1.词数120左右；
2.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
Dear Lily,
Yours sincerely,
Li Hua
Michael turned around to a slightly agitated(焦虑不安的)man tapping his foot and nodding at him to move
forward.
"Right, sorry," he mumbled(嘟哝). He had been too busy practicing what he was going to say to realize the person in front of him had stepped aside. Of course, this was just a formality(走形式). He always ordered the same thing, and the food was hardly the reason he was there. The real reason was Michelle. His morning visits to the coffee shop had become a priority since she started working there three weeks ago.
Michael approached the counter, squeezing(紧捏)the loose bills in his hand nervously. But before he could get out the words, Michelle cheerily greeted him.
"Oh, hello there! Same thing today, Michael?"
"Yes, please." As she prepared his standard order of a medium coffee and a blueberry muffin(玛芬), he went through all of the different things he wanted to say—How are you? What do you like to do? Do you want to have lunch some time? But by the time she turned around and handed him his order, all he could muster(鼓起勇气说)was, "Nice day, isn't it?" Michelle smiled and gave a sort of chuckle(轻声地笑)before nodding. Michael could feel his cheeks turning red.
He could hear the man behind him start to tap his foot louder and faster. He took his order and started to walk away – but then felt a rush of bravery. Why not just ask her? What's the worst that could happen? He spun around quickly, immediately colliding(碰撞)with the impatient man who had been standing behind him. Or rather, his very hot cup of coffee collided with the man's arm.
Horror came over Michael's face as he looked at the man's coffee-soaked suit sleeve and then at Michelle's surprised face. He reached for napkins on the counter, and tried to pat the coffee off of the man's suit. By now, the man was furious(暴怒的). He grabbed the napkins from Michael's hand. Michael was so embarrassed. He had no idea what he should do.
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。
Paragraph 1:
At a loss for words, he sheepishly held out his muffin to the stranger as an apology.
Paragraph 2:
Michael and Michelle started to laugh.
