Dear Lin Tao，
I am writing to you in English. I hope you can understand（懂）it.
I love studying in London and I have many new friends. Most of them are my classmates. From Monday to Friday，we have English，math，physics and P. E. in the morning. I like English and physics，because they're interesting. I don't like math. It's too boring. At noon，I have to have lunch at school because my home is far from（远离）my school. We usually have two classes in the afternoon﹣art and politics. We finish our classes at 3 ：30 p. m. After school，my friends and I always play football on the playground. And then we go home by bus.
On weekends，we have no classes. We often go to the park and sometimes we go to the movies in the evening. We see movies twice a month. I like some famous（著名的）actors like Jackie Chan.
Oh，I have no time to write more. Please write back soon.
Best wishes，
Wang Gang
What do pandas，tigers，whales，lions and wild camels have in common （共同的）？They are all endangered（濒临灭绝的）. Here are the reasons.
Hunting：For centuries，people hunted elephants for their tusks，killed tigers for their fur，and caught many other animals for their meat.
Foreign animals：In 1505，some people discovered a beautiful island named Mauritius in the Indian Ocean. People brought dogs，pigs，monkeys and rats with them，but this was bad news for dodo birds. The birds did not have natural enemies （天敌） before. They ate fruit that fell from trees and built their house on the ground. But when people came，dodo birds were in big trouble—men killed them for their meat，and the new animals broke their homes and ate their eggs. The number of dodo birds became smaller and smaller and finally extinct. The last dodo bird was killed in 1681.
Loss of living space：People cut down forests for farming and building houses. People build dams （水坝） to make sure they have enough water. While we make our lives comfortable，other animals have less and less space.
Food is interesting. It's also interesting that different food has different meanings in different countries.
Onions ﹣﹣ In Egypt，many farmers use the onion as a symbol of truth （真理）. When they have different ideas with each other，they often have an onion in their hands and put it up high to show the truth is in their hands. A town in Switzerland has the Onion Festival. It is on the fourth Monday of November. Food shops and restaurants make all kinds of onion food on that day.
Tomatoes ﹣﹣ They are the "Number 1" food. They are a kind of vegetable and a kind of fruit. They are very helpful. They're important to hamburgers and salad. They may taste bad if there are no tomatoes. In some countries of Europe，young men and women often pick tomatoes for each other when they are in love.
Carrots ﹣﹣ We can usually see them in vegetable salad. In Netherlands （荷兰），the carrot，onion and potato are country food. People in some countries call the carrot "Queen".
Potatoes ﹣﹣ They have two other names ﹣﹣ "apples in the forest" and "the second bread".
The holiday season will be here soon，and with it come tons of parties. Here's how to mind your manners at the dinner table：
First things first：
Mind the little details. Respond to invitations in time；it's always better to be overdressed；be fashionably on time；bring a gift for your host or hostess；and remember to silence your phone and keep it out of sight.
After you sit down：
The first thing you should do is place your napkin（餐巾）in your lap. Leave it there until the end of the meal. If you excuse yourself from the table，the most common practice is to place it on your seat until you return. If you're worried that your napkin has food on it that could make the seat or your clothes dirty when you sit back down，place it to the left of your plate instead.
To locate your bread plate and drink：
When in doubt，look to your hands. With your palms（手掌）facing each other，connect the tip of each pointer finger（食指）with your thumbs（拇指）. You'll see that your left hand will form a "b"，and your right hand，a "d". These stand for "bread" and "drink"，which you will find to your left and to your right，separately.
What to do with utensils（餐具）：
Your safest bet is to start from the outside﹣the utensils farthest from your plate﹣and move inward as the meal progresses. However，dessert（甜点）utensils may also be found above your plate.
Resting utensils：
If you are taking a break from eating，imagine your plate is a clock and place your knife and fork down at the 3 o'clock position. You can show that you are finished eating by placing your utensils in the 10 and 4 o'clock positions.
After the party：
Don't forget a thank﹣you note. It should be sent within two weeks after the event.
Once upon a time，there was a boy named Tim. He lived in a small 1 with nice mountains（山） and rivers. It was great to play there，2 Tim was always busy with his computer games and never noticed the beauty around him.
Tim's grandfather was worried and always 3 about how great the nature（自然） was with him. "What clean and beautiful lake it is!"，his grandfather often said. One day，his grandfather asked Tim to go on a trip with him. Tim agreed，but he was not very 4 .
As they walked in the village，Tim's grandfather pointed out many 5 things，such as colourful flowers with bright leaves，mother birds flying back homes with food to 6 their babies. They even climbed to the top of the hill so that they could see the sights 7 . His grandfather also told him some stories behind each place. Some of the stories were really funny and made Tim 8 all the time. Tim got to enjoy these beautiful things for the first time.
At the end of the trip，Tim's grandfather told Tim not to 9 the small things in life，like a sunny day or a friendly smile. From that day on，Tim learned to enjoy every moment and be thankful.
He thought that there was much more to life compared to 10 . Tim decided to spend more time outdoors and take short trips with his grandfather more often.
When I was in the seventh grade，I always liked to eat or listen to music in class while I was doing homework. This bad habit 1 my poor grades directly. My mother was worried about my study. So she found my head teacher Susan and asked her to be2 with me.
I thought my head teacher would3 me. At that time，I was very worried until one day my head teacher asked me to go to the playground to meet her. I4 rushed to the playground though I was afraid.
5 I ran to my head teacher，she gave me a stick. She asked me to draw a circle on the ground with my left 6 and a triangle with the other one at the same time. Then I began to draw circles and triangles with both hands. I7 many times but I failed.
Half an hour later，my head teacher smiled and said to me， "In fact，almost 8 can draw a circle and a triangle at the same time. After all，our energy is not enough to finish many 9 at the same time. We must pay attention to one thing to succeed. " From then on，I began 10 my heart to my study. Since then，I have made rapid progress.
BIRO was the（invent）of the ballpoint pen. He was born in Budapest，Hungary. In the 1930s，when he worked a newspaper editor，he used a fountain pen almost every day. ，he had to refill it all the time. The ink also did not dry（easy），and it sometimes（make）a mess on the paper. BIRO wanted a better pen. His brother，George，decided（help）him develop a special ink. The ink dried soon. Then both of（they） developed a new type of pen together. There was tiny ball at the tip of the pen. The ball rolled ink onto paper as it moved. They called the（success）invention "ballpoint pen". Everyone enjoyed（use）it.
A：Let's go fishing sometime next week，shall we？
B：That's a good idea!I'm not going to do much work next week because my boss is on holiday in San Diego.
A：What are you going to do on Monday morning？
B：Let me see. Well，a friend of mine is coming from Shanghai and I am going to meet him at the airport. In the afternoon we're going to have dinner together，so I am afraid I can't go fishing with you on Monday.
How about Tuesday？
A：Let me see. I'm going to have a meeting in the afternoon at 2：00. How about in the morning on Tuesday？
B：Isn't the time too short for us？It will take us an hour to drive there and at noon we're going to drive back.
A：You are right. But I don't think I can go on Wednesday because I am going to help my dad clean the house. But I'm going to be free on Thursday.
B：I'm going to have a meeting. Friday is OK with me. What are you going to do on Friday？
A：Friday is OK with me，too. Let's make it Friday.
B：Good!
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露西和莉莉是双胞胎姐妹，她们看起来长得一模一样，不过露西学习更努力。她是全班最认真学习的学生；妹妹莉莉学习没有露西努力，但她是个乐于助人的人。同学们都很喜欢她们，她们也都是老师最喜欢的学生。
她们在家里常帮助父母做家务，不过现在还做不了最繁重的工作，但是爸爸妈妈说只要尽力了就是好孩子。
Lucy and Lily are twin sisters.
