Sara walked slowly home from school kicking stones along the sidewalk and thinking about the assignment（作业）. Mrs. Peters, her teacher, gave the 1 in class right before school finished so that students could think about the assignment over the weekend. "This assignment will be a 2 one!" she said. "Each of you will find something that you are good at and write a report for the class. I'm sure you'll be happy to do it!"
As she had expected, students immediately began to talk about all the ideas that they had for the report 3 in class. Sara's best friend, Betsy, loved to play the piano and was already a skilled pianist. Tom was the captain of the school team and would write his report about basketball. Everyone seemed to have an idea for the project except Sara.
"It's impossible for me to choose 4 ," thought Sara, as she walked in through her front door—remembering her basketball for the wrong team and her strong dislike of running! She loved to sing and dance, but she did it only for fun with her friends. As for art, she believed that her paintings were about the same quality as her little sister who was five. Sara 5 what in the world she would write her paper about.
The minute Sara walked through the door, her sister came running towards her to give Sara her daily after-school hug! Suddenly, Sara 6 the happy moments with her sister. Every day, Sara tried to think of something special that they were going to do together. Sometimes, they went out for a walk or played in the backyard. Other days, they stayed inside the house to read or watch their favorite show on TV. Today, Sara was planning to help her sister make a castle out of pillows, chairs and blankets. With a smile, Sara considered how much she 7 being a big sister.
As Sara gathered blankets, pillows and snacks to eat in their castle, her sister shouted happily. Then an 8 came to Sara—she was an expert at something! Sara smiled as she knew that she also had a wonderful report. She believed she would hand in an excellent assignment next week.
A Use chants, songs and pictures to help you remember new words. Word cards can also be used for enlarging your vocabulary. Then test yourself again after one or two days. Don't forget to review the new words often! | B For long passages, try to understand the general meaning and key points first. It doesn't matter when you read some sentences with difficult words that you don't know. Just read the sentences before and after and try to guess the meaning of the new words. |
C Just start with some short sentences and do it day by day. You'll find that you can write long sentences and even paragraphs one day! If you have some time, try to read some books before writing! | D It's useful to talk to yourself in English as much as possible. Besides, going to the English Club in your school will be better. Just stick it out, and after some time you may feel less nervous when you speak English in class. |
I feel nervous when I speak English in class and I want to improve my speaking skills.
I have difficulty in understanding long passages, especially when I meet some difficult words.
I can't remember so many new words and I want to try something different.
First Impression
The day that I met my best friend for the first time, I was full of anxiety. I was trying to do some revision for an important oral exam in the local library and people kept disturbing（打扰）me. I was getting more and more annoyed and the more upset I got, the less I was able to concentrate. I couldn't stand when I heard someone singing loudly behind me. I turned around and glared at the person who was singing. It was a tall girl about the same age as me and she was standing with a book in her hands. I picked up my books, looked at her and said angrily, "Thanks to your noise. I've been unable to study. You're so selfish!" Then I left the library in a hurry.
When I got home, I realized I'd left my textbook behind and there was nothing I could do as the library was closed. I was so upset that I almost cried. Just then, the phone rang. A girl named Jenny had noticed my book in the library and she got my phone number from the librarian. She said she didn't live far away and could bring it around for me.
I was so grateful and agreed to meet her at the store down the road. When I recognized Jenny was the girl I had shouted at for singing, I was filled with shame and apologized several times for my rude behavior.
Jenny was kind enough to pardon me. Ever since then we've been best friends and we got along very well. I often think how lucky I am! We two girls are much alike and I trust her more than anyone else.
From the experience I know that the first impression is untrue sometimes and we can't judge a person only by the first impression.
We rely on our memory for sharing stories with friends or learning from our past experiences. Yet evidence shows that our memory isn't as consistent as we'd like to believe.
There are countless reasons why tiny mistakes might happen each time we recall past events. And whenever these mistakes happen, they can have long-term effects on how we'll recall that memory in the future.
Take storytelling for example. When we describe our memories to other people, we might ask ourselves whether it's important to get the facts straight, or whether we only want to make the listener laugh. And we might change the story's details depending on the listener's attitudes. It isn't only the message that changes, but sometimes it's also the memory itself. This is known as the "audience-tuning effect", showing us how our memories can change automatically over time, as a product of how, when, and why we access them.
In fact, sometimes simply the act of repeating a memory can be exactly what makes it easy to change. This is known as "retrieval-enhanced suggestibility". In a typical study of this effect, participants watched a short film, then took a memory test a few days later. But during the days between watching the film and taking the final test, two other things happened. First, half of the participants took a practice memory test. Second, all of the participants were given a description of the film to read, which contained some false details. Participants who took a practice memory test shortly before reading the false information were more likely to reproduce this false information in the final memory test.
Why might this be? One theory is that repeating our memories of past events can temporarily make those memories malleable. In other words, retrieving（找回）a memory might be a bit like taking ice-cream out of the freezer and leaving it in direct sunlight for a while. By the time our memory goes back into the freezer, it might have naturally become a little misshapen, especially if someone has influenced it purposely in the meantime.
These findings lead us to wonder how much our most treasured memories have changed since the very first time we remembered them. Remembering is an act of storytelling, after all. And our memories are only ever as reliable as the most recent story we told ourselves.
When Helen Keller was nineteen months old, a brief illness made her both deaf and blind. With such limitations, how could Keller ever be expected to find happiness?
Because happiness has been considered a personal concept, it is difficult to define（定义）. Many people throughout history have tried. Greek scientist and philosopher Aristotle wrote, "Happiness depends upon ourselves," which is not a definition but an observation that individuals are responsible for their own happiness. Roman statesman and philosopher Lucius Seneca wrote of a particular quality of happiness, saying, "True happiness is to enjoy the present, without anxious dependence upon the future."
Is there a scientific basis（基础）for happiness? Researcher suggests happiness is a matter of perspective: "Truly happy individuals construe life events and daily situations in ways that seem to maintain their happiness, while unhappy individuals construe（理解）experiences in ways that seem to reinforce unhappiness". Basically, this means the way you choose to remember events and situations affects your happiness.
Some research concludes happiness is made up of three parts: pleasure, engagement and meaning. Pleasure involves things that give physical and emotional joy, such as playing a sport or seeing beautiful art. Engagement involves positive interactions（互动）with other people, such as studying or working with people whose company you enjoy. Meaning relates to feeling that your work is useful and important to others.
Even with scientific rationalization（合理化）, questions remain. For example, are younger people happier than older people? In fact, the opposite seems to be true. This may be because younger people tend to experience higher levels of negative emotions, such as anxiety and anger. The young also have less control over their lives because they lack both independence and the ability to make many of their own decisions.
Perhaps the most important question is whether you can change how happy you are. Studies of identical twins suggest that genetics forms about half of your happiness level. Your quality of life influences about 10 percent of your happiness. That means about 40 percent of your happiness is determined by your choices and actions.
From this explanation we can see that one way you can make yourself happier is to set goals. Keller had a definition of happiness in keeping with this idea. She felt happiness did not come from simply trying to satisfy your own desires but rather by contributing your time and skills to improve the world in some way.
Even if you are unable to achieve a goal that makes the world better in some small way, simply trying will likely give your life meaning and, at the same time, happiness.
Smile to the Lost Present
The one who has never gained something will never experience the pain of losing whatever that something is. That is pretty clear. But I consider the absence of the joy of "having" to be more miserable（痛苦的）than that of having lost something after having once had it.
When I was six years old, a lovely doll caught my eye. My mom refused to buy it for me, so I took a "job", my first, selling sweets in a park. Holding the doll which had been earned by myself, I was the happiest girl in the world. However, the doll ended up losing during a family trip. My tears couldn't bring it back.
In Grade Nine, my closest friend became estranged（疏远）from me. We had shared our innermost secrets with each other and supported one another through difficult times. At the time she kept me at a distance, I was very disappointed and even wished I had never known her. Accustomed to our friendship and her company, I didn't know what to do without her at one time.
Recalling the past, I'm not that sad about those lost treasures now. Instead, I am thankful for them for making my life colorful. I am proud of the persevering little girl who managed to acquire her coveted doll. And the memory of my ex-friend's warm smile continues to encourage me from time to time. How much would I have missed in life if I hadn't bought that doll or hadn't befriended that girl?
Experiences are of great importance to our lives. The world is so changeable that nothing is able to last forever. Nothing actually belongs to us except our own feelings. How much regret do you think exists in this unfilled blank which we create for ourselves when we give up on our reasonable wants just because of our fears of potential loss? For me, nothing could be more miserable than a risk-free but boring life in which you have the constant desire for something but have not the courage to make it your own!
Face peacefully the fact that, while the treasure itself is gone, the memories are still very much alive. Walk out of the shadow and accept the new present that is being delivered to you. Let these wonderful past moments shine like stars in the night sky.
Don't cry because it's over; smile because it once happened.
提示词语：the Science Museum, do experiments, interesting, knowledge
提示问题：•What did you do in the social practice activities?
·What benefits have you got?
Dear Chris, I'm glad to know that you're interested in our social practice activities. I hope the above is helpful. Please feel free to ask for more information. …… Yours, Li Hua |
某英文网站正在开展以"用心交流，学会沟通"为主题的征文活动。假如你是李华，请用英语写一篇短文投稿，谈谈你生活中一次有效沟通的经历以及你的收获。
提示词语：share, a good listener, respect, helpful
提示问题：·How did you communicate with others?
·What have you learned from the experience?
It is very important for us to get along with other people. …… |
