Do you have a talented young artist, photographer, or designer in your life? It's never too early to start helping them get their work out there! We've rounded up the top art contests for kids and teens that can help these young creators share their first masterpieces with the world. Best of all? Most of them are totally free to enter!

    Global Canvas Art Competition

    Ages: 16 and under

    Mediums: Drawing, painting

    Global Canvas is all about the environment. Launched by the David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation, this art competition wants to inspire the next generation to be more mindful of how we take care of the earth. The judges are looking for artists to capture the wonderful places that wildlife call home.

    Toyota Dream Car Art Contest

    Ages: Four to 15

    Mediums: Drawing, painting

    Time to design a dream car! Toyota wants to get junior artists thinking about what the future of transportation might look like. Prizes include cash and a chance to tour one of the Toyota manufacturing plants.

    Advena World's art Competition

    Ages: 15 and under

    Mediums: Drawing, painting

    Advena World's art competition aims to promote creativity and self-expression. Instead of a theme, they ask the participating artists to simply express their feelings—anything from sadness or joy to anger or excitement—through their chosen medium,.

    Progressive Young Artist Awards

    Ages: 13 to 19

    Open to: All international applicants

    Mediums: Painting, drawing, photography, mixed media, sculpture

    Cost to enter: $5 USD

    PYAA is all about expressing and celebrating progressive values. So, if there is a creative teen in your life who wants to do good in the world, sign them up for this art contest for teens. The prize is a scholarship which they can put toward their post-secondary schooling.

    The European Union(EU) is an organization of European countries. The countries are independent and are governed in different ways. In the United Kingdom, for example, the head of state is a king or queen. In France, on the other hand, the head of state is a president. But each of them sends representatives(代表)to European Parliament, which has some control over what happens in each of the member countries.

    The idea of the EU began in the 1950s. The first members were France, Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Italy. Little by little, the number increased during second half of the twentieth century. By the year 2000, there were 15 member countries. The new countries were Austria, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Ireland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom.

    In 2004, the EU increased to 25 members. The Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, the Slovak Republic and Slovenia, plus the Mediterranean islands of Cyprus and Malta all became members. The expanded EU has a population of more than half a billion people, twice as big as the population of the US.

    Daniella was brushing her daughter's long brown hair when she noticed that bunches of it were coming out. That was January 1, 2017. Within 20 days, seven-year-old Gianessa's hair and eyebrows were completely gone, and her doctor said they would never grow back. Gianessa had become one of the 6.8 million Americans with alopecia, a disease that causes hair loss.

    Alopecia isn't painful, but for kids who suffer from it, the acute mental pain comes from standing out from the crowd. For the most part, the students in Gianessa's first-grade class in Salem, Utah, were understanding. But occasionally, she still felt like an outcast(被排斥者). "I did not want her to not feel beautiful," her mother told Today.

    Then the school announced its "Crazy Hair Day" competition in April, and Daniella and Gianessa decided that rather than hiding Gianessa's baldness(光头), they would celebrate it. Daniella bought sticker jewels and decorated her daughter's head with colorful designs. "They just fit her personality," Daniella told CNN. "She's so full of life."

    On the morning of the competition, Gianessa was nervous. Would her friends think it was funny? She had nothing to fear. Gianessa was a hit—and the winner of the crazy-hair competition. Gianessa is now glad she dared to go bare. "I was sad at first when I lost all my hair," she told People, "but now I love being bald. I can do things to my head that other kids can't. I'm thinking now it might be fun to decorate my head with some shiny butterflies and flowers."

    If you walk through the doors of one of the Smithsonian Institution's museums in Washington, D.C., you may be greeted by an unusual guide. A Japanese tech company recently sent 25 humanoid robots to the Smithsonian. All of them are named Pepper.

    Each Pepper stands 4 feet tall and has a computer screen attached to its body. Built by SoftBank Robotics, the robots are programmed to share information about the museum in which they are based.

    "Pepper is basically an experiment," Goslins, director of the Smithsonian's Arts and Industries Museum, said. "The idea is to explore and see how a robot performs in this kind of environment."

    Museum visitors communicating with Pepper. The robot can tell stories and answer basic questions. People even take pictures and dance with it.

    "The robot draws big crowds," said Allison Peck, director of marketing at the Hirshhorn. "People just love Pepper."

    According to the Smithsonian Institution's website: "Pepper gives our museum workers a new way to reach and serve visitors." For example, Pepper teaches Swahili words to visitors of the "World on the Horizon" exhibit at the Smithsonian's National Museum of African Art.

    Pepper also has the special ability to draw guests to less-visited areas of the Smithsonian's museum. When Pepper is placed in a spot, crowds are attracted to that place.

    When not educating museum visitors, Pepper stays in the Smithsonian offices, getting charged and programmed. After being charged, Pepper can run for about 8 hours at a time.

    Pepper plays an important role, but the robot "is not meant to take away human jobs at the museum," Goslins explained. "It is meant to give our visitors a more enjoyable experience while they are here with us."

    My mother is a diligent and kind woman. She is very busy from morning till night. As a teacher, she works hard.  Both my brother and I love her dearly as she loves us.

    My mother has been teaching math at a middle school in my hometown. She goes to work early in the morning and does not return home until late in the afternoon. She treats them with patience and teaches them well. For her excellent quality and very good teaching results, she has been elected as a model teacher several times.

     Every day, when she comes back home from work, she sets about doing housework, sweeping the living room and bedrooms or cleaning the furniture, and putting everything in good order. She seems to be busy all the time. As she has been very busy working every day, she looks older than her age. But she looks as cheerful and happy as ever. Mother never buys expensive dresses for herself, but she often buys some inexpensive but high quality clothes for us.  She just eats a plain meal outside when she is too busy to cook herself. She lives a busy yet simple life, without any complaints.

    Often she says to us, "work while you work, and play while you play. That is the way to be happy and gay. If you do not work, you will become lazy and be of no use to society". What a piece of good advice this is! This advice of hers will always serve as a guide to my behavior. My mother is great indeed, and I always feel proud of her.

A. She enjoys listening to classic music.

B. As a mother, she takes good care of us and gives us every comfort.

C. She loves her students and cares for them.

D. She never goes to expensive restaurants to enjoy meals.

E. My mother is hard-working and never wastes money.

F. I never forget it and always bear it in my mind.

G. Can you tell us something about your mother?

    When I settled(定居) in Chicago，my new city seemed so big and unfriendly. Then I had a 1 problem and had to go to hospital for a 2examination.

    It seemed a small 3 compared to the one I was about to face, but things started to go 4 right from the beginning , not having a car or5 the city, I was depending on the buses to get me from A to B, 6I'd left myself plenty of time, soon it was 7. I was going to be late, because I had mistakenly boarded a bus that was taking me in the 8 direction.

    I 9 the bus and stood on the road not knowing what to do, I looked into the eyes of a 10 , who was trying to get past me, 11 , instead of moving on, she stopped to ask if I was 12. After I explained my 13to her, she pointed to a bus stop across the street, where a bus would take me back into the city to my 14. Sitting there waiting, I felt 15that someone had been willing to help. 16, hearing a horn(喇叭)nearby, I looked up to see a car with my new friend 17 at me to get in. She had returned to offer me a 18 to the hospital.

    Such unexpected 19 from a passer-by was a lovely gift to receive. As I climbed out of the car at the hospital and turned to thank her, she smiled and told me not to lose  20, for all things are possible.

    My name is Nora. I live in Moscow now, but I was born in Qingdao. We(move) to Moscow four years ago when my dad got  new job here. I didn't want to leave China, I had a great life there. I had lots of(friend) and everyone got along well each other. We had fun swimming almost every day after school. And the weather was always great. At first, I didn't like the life in Moscow when we arrived. It was still winter,the weather wasn't very nice. It was(real)cold and it snowed all the time. I didn't have any friends. I felt sad and lonely and wanted to go back to China. Things got (good) when I started school. All the kids at school were friendly to  (I). Now I enjoy  (live) here. I think Moscow is a great city.

增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号(∧),并在其下面写出该加的词；

删除：把多余的词用斜线(\)划掉；

修改：在错的词下划一横线,并在该词下面写出修改后的词。

注意：⒈每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；

⒉只允许修改10处,多者(从第11处起)不计分。

Dear Mr Smith,

    How are you? As a exchange student, I am writing to tell you I would prefer to move into a single room in next term, as I find it inconvenient share a room with others. My roommate often held parties at night, made much noise. Besides, his friends are always visiting him, that disturbs me a lot. So I hope to draw your attentions to this problem. If you think in my position, I am sure he will agree that the only solution for me is to get a room of my own, one not in the same building and as near to the school campus as possible. I would be gratefully if you could do me the favor.

    Best wishes.

Yours sincerely,

Li Ming

⒈反应学生目前英语学习的现状

⒉提出建议并提出建议的理由

注意：⒈词数120左右；

⒉可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯；

⒊信的开头结尾已为你写好。

Dear Mr. Ralf,

    I am glad to know that you will teach us this term. I'd like to tell you how we are getting on with English and my advice on how we can study better.

Yours sincerely,

Li Hua