Mr. Read works in a big shop. He's very 1 and always gets to the office on time. The 2 is satisfied with (对……满意) him and pays him more. One evening he was very tired, and as soon as he had 3, he put his watch on the table and went to bed. Little Mable, one of his daughters, came in and 4 something there. She dropped the watch to the floor. She picked it up and 5quickly. The next morning he got up on time. After breakfast he had a look at his watch and began to 6 newspapers. When he got to his office, it was half past eight. He was 7 for the first time! At that moment he found something was wrong with his watch. He had to ask someone to 8 it. This morning Mr. Read was going to take a train to London. But he 9 it because his watch was slow again. He was very surprised and said, "It was all right yesterday, but why is it 10 now?" "Last night I found it was dirty," said Little Mable. "I had to wash it for you!"
Long long ago people made fires(火) from lightning(闪电). But they had to keep the fires burning(燃烧), for they couldn't start it again if there was no lightning. Later, they found out hitting two pieces of stone(石头) together could make a spark(火花). The spark could fire dry leaves(树叶). In this way they could make the fire again if it went out. Then people also learned to make a fire by rubbing(摩擦). They made a hole on a big piece of wood(木头) and put a smaller stick(树枝) into the hole. They turned the stick again and again. After a few minutes they got a fire.
As years went by, people learned other ways to make a fire. Sometimes they used the heat(热) from the sun. They held a piece of glass in the right way and made a piece of paper on fire.
About two centuries(世纪) ago, people began to make matches(火柴). Matches brought people a quick and easy way to make fires. Today matches are still being used, but people have more new ways to make fires. One of them is to use an electric(电子) fire starter. Of course an electric fire starter is much more expensive than a box of matches. But it is convenient.
a. with a match b. from the sun c. from lightning
d. by rubbing e. with an electric fire starter
We have some new helpers in our Community Centre (社区活动中心). Have a look at their information cards (卡片).
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John Smith Retired(退休的) Maths Teacher 40 years of teaching experience(经验) Good at Maths and Science Free from Monday to Thursday Phone number: 81414887 Email: oldsmith1999@126.com |
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Allan Green Computer programmer(程序员) Working in HP Good at fixing(修理) computers and phones Phone number: 81392236 QQ: 741323748 (Flying Tiger) |
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Diana Brown A good gardener(园丁) Good at looking after flowers and plants Come to the community centre every Friday QQ: 66776786 (Green World) |
A TV program has become popular in China recently. It has made people all over China become interested in writing Chinese characters(汉字).
The increasing use of computers and smart phones has left most young people hardly able to write by hand. Many of them are even unable to remember the 10,000 characters used in daily life without electronic help.
CCTV started the Chinese Character Dictation Competition to improve the population's handwriting skills. Contestants(参与者) on the show were school pupils, but it was found that 70% of adults in the audience(观众) were unable to remember how to write the word "chan chu".
Because computers allow people to type characters simply by entering pinyin, they don't need to remember how to write them. "The keyboard age has had a big influence on the handwriting of Chinese characters," Guan Zhengwen, who designed and directed the show said.
He added that he hoped to encourage people to keep it alive as an art form.
Hao Mingjian, an editor of a magazine, putting his heart into Chinese characters, said, "Learning Chinese characters goes on throughout your life. If you stop using them for a long time, it is very likely that you will forget them."
— I'm going to play volleyball.
A. Sometimes it's too boring. B. I work in the post office. C. Are you a shop assistant? D. But sometimes it's very busy. E. I sell computers. |
A: Sonia!
B: Yes, I am.
A: What do you sell?
B:
A: Do you like your job?
B: Not really. I want to be a doctor.
A: A doctor? It's interesting!
B: Yes, I really want to be a doctor. What about you, David? What do you do?
A: I'm a postman. but I want to work for a magazine as a reporter.
B: A reporter? Why?
A: Well, I want to talk with all kinds of people.
B: Oh, it's exciting.
