In American schools there is something called Homecoming Day. Many high schools and colleges with a football team have a homecoming game. This can be the most important event of the year except graduation or commencement (毕业典礼)Day. Students plan Homecoming Day many weeks in advance.

    Several days before Homecoming, students start to decorate the school. There are signs to wish luck to the team, and many other signs to welcome all the graduates. Many people still come to Homecoming twenty or thirty years after their graduation.

    The members of school clubs build booths(售货棚）and sell lemonade(柠檬汽水), apples and sandwiches. Some clubs help to welcome visitors.

    During the day alumni and their wives will gather at the school. They like to look for teachers that they remember. Often they see old friends and they talk together about those happy years in school.

    Everyone soon comes to watch the football game. When the game is half over, the band comes onto the field and plays school songs. Another important moment is when the Homecoming Queen or King appears. All the students vote the most popular student Homecoming Queen or King. It is a great honor to be chosen.

    Homecoming is a happy day, but it is not perfect unless the football team wins the game. Even if the game loses, the students still enjoy Homecoming. Some stay at the school to dance, and others go to a party. For everyone it is a day worth remembering.

    Certain activities can be good or bad for our brains, so let's see which of the seven habits you should carry on doing or give up.

    As Amy Hagdorn rounded the corner across the hall from her classroom, she ran into a tall boy from the fifth grade running in the opposite direction.

    "Watch it. Squirt." the boy yelled, as he kept away from the little third grader. Then, with an unfriendly smile on his face, the boy took hold of his right leg and imitated the way Amy limped(跛行) when she walked.

    Amy closed her eyes for a moment.

    "Forget it!" she told herself as she headed for her classroom.

    It wasn't as if he were the only one. It seemed that ever since Amy started the third grade, someone teased her every single day. The tease made Amy feel all lonely.

    Back home at the dinner table that evening, Amy was quiet. Her mother knew that things were not going well at school. That's why Patti Hagdorn was happy to have some exciting news to share with her daughter

    "There's a Christmas Wish Contest on the newspaper, she announced." Write a letter to Santa and you might win a prize.

    Out came a pencil and a piece of paper and Amy went to work on her letter. She wrote:

Dear Santa Claus,

    My name is Amy. I am 9 years old. I have a problem at school. Can you help me, Santa? Kids laugh at me because of the way I walk and run and talk. I have cerebral palsy(脑瘫). I just want one day when no one laughs at me or makes fan of me.

Love

Amy

    The next day, a picture of Amy and her letter to Santa made the front page of the News Sentinel. The little girl's story spread quickly. She asked for such a simple, yet remarkable Christmas gift-just one day without being teased.

    During that unforgettable Christmas season, over two thousand people from all over the world sent Amy letters or cards of friendship and support.

    Amy did get her wish of a special day without being teased. Additionally, teachers and students in her school talked together about how bad tease can make others feel.

    Some people dream about becoming engineers. Luckily, the new IMAX film Dream Big shows how engineering can improve people's lives. It teaches viewers how engineers use high-tech to help the world. The film hits IMAX theaters nationwide on February 17 to celebrate Engineers Week.

    The film, taking place in locations like China, Dubai and Africa, tells the stories of engineers who try to come up with creative ideas to save energy and help people.

    Dream Big was directed by Greg MacGillivray who has 38 films under his belt, including some of the most successful films ever shown in IMAX theaters.

    How did MacGillivray get into the moviemaking business? “I grew up at the beach. My first movies were about surfing and the ocean. As time went on, I saw the changes in the ocean including polluting and overfishing. So I started making films about conservation of nature.” He told TFK. Now, his films cover a variety of topics, from the natural world to human creation.

    One of the engineers in Dream Big is Angelica Hernandez. In high school, she was on a team that best MIT, a university, in an underwater robotics competition. Today, the engineering work she does focuses on helping people use less energy and save money and resources. “I work with companies to promote energy efficiency with their commercial customers, so it's really trying to push forward all the measures that customers and high-energy users can apply, she explains.

    Engineering is such a good job-you make good money, travel around the world, solve amazing problems and help people.” She says.

    The mission of Dream Big is to show people the good that engineers can do to the world. “That was the impulse of making this movie”, MacGillivray explains, “We want to explain engineering in a way that will get the kids very excited about it.” “Whoever and wherever you are, you can become an engineer,” he adds, “All you need is the creative spirit.”

    The UNESCO has recognized the Chinese art of paper cutting on its Intangible Cultural Heritage List. But paper cutting is at the risk of disappearing.

    Voyo Woo, a Chinese immigrant, who loves paper cutting, worked hard to celebrate the ancient art form. With a keen interest in paper cutting, Ms Woo held a paper cutting exhibition at a shopping center near Washington. "I really love it. I get so much fun by doing it. So I'm just kind of hoping that more people will learn about this art which is about to disappear. I think it's time to take action. So I held it."

    Voyo Woo began to study paper cutting when she was a 14-year-old girl in southeastern China. Voyo Woo's teacher gave her extra training after class because Voyo Woo discovered a special love for it. Later, her beautiful paper cuttings won second prize in a national painting competition. "Paper is the easiest material that you can find. You can just turn it into beautiful art. I think it is like magic to me."

    Ms Woo came to the US after she finished college in 2008. She has been invited to show the art at a wide collection of events. She also has shown her skill and works at famous museums like the Smithsonian Institution's Freer and Sackler art galleries in Washington.

    "I saw so many people coming to me and asking me. They were amazed. I think it's important to introduce the art form to American people or anyone who is interested."

    Ms Woo placed examples of her art around her as she displayed paper cutting at the shopping center. Ann Russ, a shopper, was attracted by the nature of the work. She said it put her at ease. "I like to know about Chinese art, specifically because it's almost relaxing to put that much effort into it," Russ said.

I stood outside my front door catching my breath. After a lazy Christmas holiday, I had to recover from climbing stairs with carry-on bags and a suitcase. I looked up — Red tape crossed the door. I didn't understand French, but the one English word said enough, "POLICE". Google Translate told me I would be caught if I entered, so I didn't.

Finally, I called my rental agent (收租人). He went to the police station for more details. The thief had taken a few items from the top drawer as well as a small amount of money in the bottom drawer. Not only were my files undisturbed, but so were the TV and printer. My agent also said something about fixing the locks tomorrow and making a list for the police.

Then one day, I remembered that I had left another jewelry box in the flat. My heart sank as I thought of a gold locket (项链坠) with a picture of my late Grandma inside. When I realized the box was missing, the whole experience seemed to crash down on me. I cried. At the end of January, I received a letter from the police. The thief hadn't been found, and the case was closed. I slept with my purse by my bed. I hid my laptop when I showered. And then another challenge came — I was unexpectedly fired by my company.

One July night, I reached into my third drawer to pull out my jean shorts. I heard something fall to the ground. I looked down: It was the tiny jewelry box I thought had been stolen six months earlier. Inside was the locket with honey Grandma smiling at me, being there for me, telling me not to give up. I started to cry. I knew that things were going to be OK.