As you know, homework is a big part of going to school. Luckily, here are several suggestions for you to make homework easy.

    Make a homework plan

    Most middle school students have two or three hours of homework a night. If it is a heavy homework day, you may need to spend even more time. It is a good idea to come up with some kind of homework schedule(进度表), especially if you are going to do sports or other activities after school.

    Watch where you work

    A bedroom, study or any room where you can get away from noise is good for you to do your homework. But don't study on your comfortable bed, or you might fall asleep there.

    Take a break

    Most people's attention (注意力) don't last very long, so take some breaks while doing your homework. Sitting for too long without relaxing will make you less productive(多产的) than if you stop to take a break regularly. Taking a 15-minute break every hour is a good way for most people.

    Get help when you need it

    Sometimes even though you are listening carefully in class, some subjects seem too hard. The first person to ask for help is your teacher. He or she may be able to work with you before or after school and explain things more clearly. Your classmates may also be able to give you a hand. However, this might not give you the results you want. Lots of people understand something well but are not able to explain it.

    It was a summer afternoon in the countryside. Wan Bo, a university student, was painting while his classmate Tang Qi was making a wooden box by the river. A little riding on a rocking horse caught their eye by chance. It brought them back to their childhood, warm and happy.

    "Why not try to make one by ourselves?" said Wan Bo. "You are good at making things and I am interested in painting."

    "Actions speak louder than words," Tang Qi said. Then, the two young men began to collect some information about it. During those days, watching videos about caring(雕刻) and shaping wood into horse shapes on the Internet became an important part of their life.

    Several months later, a wooden rocking horse appeared. They felt so excited that they put the picture of it on the Internet right away. To their surprise, it attracted lots of people's attention and some even hoped to order one.

    The two young men thought it might be a good chance. They sent some forms to the customers to make a survey. According to the result, they made each customer a special rocking horse. These horses were quite different from those produced in other factories, and they soon became popular among the customers.

    In the first year of their new hobby, Wan and Tang made thirteen rocking horses. Sometimes, they also repaired rocking horses for people. They made the old ones look new again. Wan and Tang helped those people bring back many happy memories.

    Their hobby has now become a successful and busy business.

    You may think that English dictionaries have been used for many, many centuries. The spelling of English has always been a problem, but it was more of a problem in the days before a dictionary. In those days people spelt words in different ways which you might find interesting. But it made reading English much more difficult. So dictionaries were invented to encourage everybody to spell the same. In fact, an English dictionary like the kind you use today wasn't made until the time of the Qing Dynasty.

    The largest dictionary in the world is the Oxford English Dictionary, or OED for short. The idea for this dictionary came from an important meeting in Britain in 1857. Twenty-two years later, Oxford University asked James Murray to be the editor of its new dictionary.

    Murray had not been to college. At the age of fourteen, he left his village school in Scotland and taught himself while working in a bank. Later he became a great teacher. After Oxford gave him the job, Murray had a place built in the garden behind his house to do his work. Part of it was one metre underground. In winter he had to wear a heavy coat and put his feet in a box to keep warm. Every morning, Murray got out of bed at five o'clock and worked several hours before breakfast. Often he would work by candle light into the evening.

    Murray hoped to finish the new dictionary in ten years. But after five years, he was still adding words for the letter A! Then others went to work with Murray, and his two daughters were among them. He worked on the dictionary until he was very old. Forty-four years later, in 1928, other editors finished it. It had more than 15,000 words in twelve books. And you thought your English dictionary was big!

    ［1］It is reported that 300 million people in China have eyesight trouble. More and more parents hope to save their children's eyesight with medicine, or by correcting the ways that children read and sit. But in fact, one should start with the exercise on one's feet. Here are three ways to save eyes:

    First, don't tie your shoes too closely. Try wearing comfortable and soft socks or walking without socks and shoes at home. While you are traveling, try wearing cloth shoes in order to improve blood circulation(循环).

    Second, walking on tiptoes is good for one's eyesight. It can fight against eyesight trouble. Numbers show that most of ballet(芭蕾舞)performers' eyesight is better.

    Third, rope skipping(跳绳)can also be good for one's eyesight. While skipping rope, one has to move quickly, making both the brain and the eyes excited. It may also help make one grow taller.

    ［2］Besides foot exercises, it is good to pull one's ears. Pulling the ears 20 times quickly is also a great way. It can keep one's eyes healthy.

    Sally and Susan are sisters. They are the same in some ways, but different in other ways.

    Both Sally and Susan have long dark hair. They are both outgoing and popular, too. Sally is older and smarter than Susan. She's more serious. She reads more books and likes to talk about the things she reads. Sally isn't athletic.

    Susan is much more athletic than Sally. She plays basketball and volleyball, and she enjoys watching sports on TV. Sally likes to watch sports, too, but she doesn't play them. Both sisters like school and get good grades. But Sally is more serious about her homework. Both of them also like shopping and playing computer games on weekends.