You might think that Olympic athletes are the healthiest people in the world. It's true that many are. However, it's also true that many Olympic athletes had to overcome (克服) illness early in their lives.

    One excellent example is Wilma Rudolph. She competed in track-and-field (田径) events in the 1960s Olympics. She didn't win just one gold medal (奖章).She won three. At the time, people called her ”the fastest woman in the world”.

    Actually, as a young child, Wilma could not take part in sports. She had serious illnesses, and then, at the age of 4, she got polio (小儿麻痹症).She lost the function of her left leg, and the doctor said she could never walk again.

Wilma's family did everything they could to help her walk again. Wilma and her mother used to travel 100 miles to get treatments for her leg. Her brothers and sisters took turns to give her leg a daily massage (按摩).Four times a day, they helped her do special exercises for her leg. Amazingly, by the time Wilma was 9 years old, she was able to walk again. Before long, she started playing basketball and running. In high school, she was a track star and then she went to the Olympics.

    Wilma stopped being a runner when she was 22 years old. She then became a teacher and a track coach. Her story encouraged many people to work hard and to overcome difficulties.

Characters: Evan, Mrs. Bordoni, Mr. Cortez, Rita. Marco. Tom

Setting: An elementary school

Mrs. Bordoni: (Stands at the school gate) Good morning! You need to go straight to your classrooms, children. (A shy boy walks up, with a red face.) What is your name?

Evan: (Looking at the ground) My name is Evan.

Mrs. Bordoni: Welcome to Northside. I'm the principal(校长), Mrs. Bordoni.

Evan: (Looks surprised) Oh! Good morning.

Mrs. Bordoni: I know you are new to our school, but you will like it here. I will take you to your classroom.

Evan: I didn't want to move… and leave my friends.

Mrs. Bordoni: You will have friends here. You'll see.

Mrs. Bordoni: Here's your room, 106.

Mr. Cortez: Welcome to our class! I'm Mr. Cortez.

Evan: (The class looks at him. He speaks softly.) Hello.

Mr. Cortez: We are talking about a story we just read. Who can tell Evan what it was about?

Rita: This family moves to a new state. Their story is both funny and sad.

Evan: (Cheering up) Did they like the new place?

Marco: Not at first. But they made lots of new friends.

Mr. Cortez: What happened to make them change their minds?

Tom: The girl from next door said she needed help. When they got to her house, a sign said, “Welcome”.

Marco: It was a surprise party for them. The whole family was laughing.

Mr. Cortez: The neighbors made the family feel welcome.

Mrs. Bordoni: (Stands in the doorway) Evan, it's time for lunch. (They enter the lunchroom. A sign says, “Welcome Evan”.) It is hard to change schools and leave old friends. Now, we are your friends.

Evan: (Smiles) I can't believe you did this for me.

    My name is Dora. I'm American and I'm thirteen. I'm a student in No. 7 Middle School. I like music very much. I can play two instruments — the guitar and the piano. I play them very well and I'm on the school art club.

    Jeff and Michael are my brothers. They are students, too. But we aren't in the same school. They like sports. Jeff plays basketball and soccer very well. Michael swims and plays ping-pong very well. I am not good at sports. They help me with sports after school.

    We live in London with our parents now. My mother is an English teacher and my father is a musician. My mother swims well. My father can play the violin.

    Jerry worked in an office in the city. He worked very hard and really looked forward to(期待) his vacation. He usually went to the seaside, but one day he saw an ad(广告) in a newspaper.

    "Enjoy country life. Spend a few weeks at William Farm. Good food, fresh air, horse riding, walking, fishing…"

    "This sounds like a good idea," he thought. "I'll spend a month at William Farm. I'll go horse riding, walking and fishing. It'll be different from the seaside." Four days later, he returned home.

    "What's wrong with William Farm?" his friend Jack asked him. "Don't you enjoy your country life?"

    "Country life was fine," Jerry said. "But there was another problem."

    "Oh, what problem?" Jack was very surprised.

    "Well, the first day I was there, a sheep died, and we had roast(烤) mutton for dinner."

    "Fresh meat is the best."

    "I know, but on the second day a cow died, and we had roast beef for dinner."

    "Lucky you!"

    "You don't understand," Jerry said, "On the third day a pig died, and we had roast pork for dinner."

    "Wow, a different roast every day!" said Jack.

    "Let me finish." Jerry said, "On the fourth day a farmer died and I didn't want to stay there for dinner."

    Sydney Fredette is very busy. Not only is she a high school student, but she has also set up her own organization（组织）, Beary Merry Christmas. She volunteers(志愿) to offer services to poor children and families in Orange Country in California, US.

    To remember her best friend who died of cancer nearly 10 years ago, Fredette decided to offer services to those in Orange Country who are less lucky than she is.

    She began with the easy idea of collecting donated(捐赠) Build-A-Bears, the popular toy animal that is made by children themselves in the stores' workshops. Fredette then gave them as presents to the homeless children in California during the holiday season.

    With donations at more than 100 bears a year, Fredette and volunteers hold activities every year, where volunteers not only give out the bears, but also clothing, meals, and other things.

    Not wanting to limit(限制) the giving to just the holiday months, Fredette held other activities for Valentine's Day, Mother's Day and Halloween, offering the chance to her volunteer team to make a difference through the year.

    "I love making friends with the people I offer services to," Fredette said. "It's so cool to hear their stories and see how happy they are."

    Fredette even built a public food bank and offered a self-development class to students in her school.

    She plans to stay local and continue to help out in her hometown.