Dear Cousin，

    As you know, I will graduate f毕业)in a few months and I can't decide what I should do after graduation．I had planned a two month trip to Argentina．I'm sure it will be fantastic．But I just found out that I have been accepted for the internship(实习期)at American Airlines．If I work hard，perhaps they will offer me a job at the end of the summer．This happened to another student last summer．Both are great，but I really need your help in making the fight decision．

If I travel to Argentina，I can relax and have fun with my friends．I have never taken a vacation with them and this might be the last time we can all travel together．Once I start working, it will be difficult to find so much time for a vacation．As for the internship，if I take it，I probably won't get any time to relax．I will have to start the day after graduation and I'll be busy working all the time．It will be very stressful．

     Despite(尽管)the stress，it will be a good start for me to work for American Airlines．Although I won't get paid，I will get experience．However, traveling to Argentina will let me practice my Spanish and I know that many companies(公司) want people with good Spanish skills．I also promised my friends that l would go with them．I really don't want to let them down．

    What should I do? I'm looking forward to your advice．

    Yours，

    Susan

    Once upon a time, there was an old woman who lived in a small house. She planted a lot of beautiful tulips (郁金香) in her garden.

    One night, the sounds of sweet singing and of babies laughing woke her up. She looked out of the window. The sounds seemed to come from the tulips, but she could see nothing.

    The next morning she walked among her flowers, but there were no signs of anyone having been there the night before.

    On the following night she was again wakened (弄醒) by the sounds of sweet singing and babies laughing. She got out of bed and walked softly into her garden. The old woman looked closely and she noticed that a fairy (精灵) mother was singing softly, and that in each tulip-cup was a little fairy baby, laughing and playing.

    The old woman went back to her house quietly. From then on, she never picked a tulip. She didn't allow her neighbours to pick the flowers, either. When the old woman died, all the tulips disappeared overnight. But her grave (坟墓) looked beautiful, because the fairies sang above it and kept it green.

    My name is Sally. I am 14 years old and I am in New York. My favorite subject is music. I don't like science because it is boring. I usually do my homework at 7 o'clock and I go to bed at 9 o'clock. My favorite teacher is Mr. Furness.

    My name is Jackie. I am from New Zealand. I get up at 6 o'clock and I have breakfast at 7 o'clock. I like swimming and painting. I want to join the art club. I don't like science. I think it is boring. I speak English and a little Chinese.

根据短文内容完成下列小题

    Li Yaotang is considered to be one of the most important and widely-read Chinese writers in the 20th century. He wrote under the pen name of Ba Jin. Ba Jin started writing his first work in the late 1920s. Li was born in Chengdu. He was born in a rich family of officials. As a child, Li was taught to read and write first by his mother. In 1920, Li entered Chengdu Foreign Language School to study English. Three years later, Li moved to Shanghai and then studied there. In 1927, he went to Paris with his friend for further study. After returning to Shanghai in 1928, Ba Jin continued writing and working on translation. His first novel came out in 1929. Then he wrote a lot of famous novels during ten years. Most of Ba Jin's works could be easily understood by anyone with high school education, which made him one of the easiest modern Chinese writers. Ba Jin died of cancer in Shanghai at the age of 101. His death marked the end of a century for Chinese literature. He was one of the masters of language like Lao She.

    What do you think of when talking about India? The Taj Mahal(泰姬陵)? Song and dance? The list goes on and on. India is an interesting and mysterious country with a long history. It is one of the four oldest civilizations(文明) in the world.

    Home to more than 1.2 billion people, India is the country with the second largest population in the world. The country is also the birthplace of many famous people. Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941) is a great poet. His poems use fresh and beautiful language to describe nature and his love for India. Many Chinese children learn his works at school.

    Besides, fast economic development is making India a rising power. India is strong in the information technology (IT) industry. By the end of 2012, 2.5 million Indian people were working at its IT companies. One third of them worked in Bangalore. The city is called the Silicon Valley(硅谷) of India. It is the centre of the IT industry in India. IT products from India are common in people's lives. If you buy a computer, some of the software may have been made in India.

    Many young people love Bollywood films. Most of these films tell stories with a happy ending. They have exciting music and dance. Some of the best ones are Slum-dog Millionaire (2008) and 3 idiots (2009). Yoga comes from ancient India. It helps people deal with their stress. It is said that curry was made in India more than 5,000 years ago. Traditional Indian curry is spicy. Indian people usually have curry with rice. Curry soup is also one of their favourites.

Improving Listening Sills in the Classroom

    Listening is a skill that needs to be learned and used well to be able to succeed in any environment. In the classroom, great listening skills mean the difference between a successful student and one who struggles (挣扎) in school.

    Come to class rested.

    {#blank#}1{#/blank#} When your body is well taken care of, your mental (精神的) focus will be much better. If you come to class sleepy or tired, it may be impossible for you to keep your eyes open and concentrate (集中) on what the teacher is saying.

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    Have everything you need at the start of the class. If you have homework, make sure you are ready to hand it in. Bring out your notebook and pen so you can start taking down notes Also, try to read your textbooks before coming into class. It will help you understand more easily what your teacher is talking about.

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    When you're in the front of the class, you'll have an easier time hearing what the teacher has to say you won't have a daydream when the teacher is near you.

    Take down notes.

    Write down what you hear in class. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} It will also make you concentrate more on what is being said So you can properly take notes. Try to concentrate when you are in class so that you are able to get the key points during a lecture. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Once you learn techniques to help you with this skill, you should see an improvement in your listening.