Have you ever ridden a Ferris wheel lately? Can you imagine the flying feeling as you are pulled up to the top and then moved down to the bottom quickly again?

    Today a Ferris wheel is usually 40 to 60 feet tall. That seems very high when you are on the top looking down. But the first Ferris wheel was 264 feet high- taller than a twenty-story building! Can you imagine the view from the top of that?

    The first Ferris wheel was built for the 1893 World's Fair in Chicago. The people who planned the fair were looking for an attraction that would bring people to Chicago. George Ferris handed a drawing of a giant wheel that people could ride on. At first everyone laughed at his strange idea. But Mr Ferris did not give up, and finally the idea was accepted. The ride opened in June of 1893.

    Today's Ferris wheels have 12 to 16 seats, which each carry 2 or 3 people. But that first one had 36 enclosed cars, each holding 60 passengers. When filled, it carried 2,160 people. During that summer in Chicago, about 1.5 million people rode the Ferris wheel.

After the fair, the ride was moved to a nearby amusement park built especially to show off the wheel. In 1904, it was moved again一to St. Louis for the Louisiana Purchase Exposition. After the fair there, the wheel stood unused. In 1906, it was finally sold to a company for scrap metal(废金属).

    Luckily a Chicago bridge builder, W.E. Sullivan, figured out how to make a smaller Ferris wheel that could easily be taken apart and put together. In 1906, he started the company that still makes many of the Ferris wheels used today.

    But, whenever you ride one, remember that it all began with George Ferris's strange idea!

It's 9 o'clock onSunday morning. Betty and Tony are in Lingling's home. Betty likes collecting {#blank#}1{#/blank#} (硬币) and {#blank#}2{#/blank#}(英镑) and (纸币),such as British {#blank#}3{#/blank#} US {#blank#}4{#/blank#} (美元). She thinks they are {#blank#}5{#/blank#} (有价值的). She also collects {#blank#}6{#/blank#} (邮票)from all over the world.

Tony collects tickets,bus tickets and train tickets. He says he can't do anything {#blank#}7{#/blank#} (用)them, but old tickets {#blank#}8{#/blank#} (一定) be helpful to remember some wonderful places. Lingling agrees withhim. She says the {#blank#}9{#/blank#} (价值) is not the most important. People collect old things{#blank#}10{#/blank#} (仅仅) to remember something important in their lives.

When they are talking,Betty finds a big collection. They are Lingling's favourite {#blank#}11{#/blank#} (扇子). People often give her some fans {#blank#}12{#/blank#} (作为)presents, and Lingling usually puts them on the {#blank#}13{#/blank#} (架子). But today the room is a bit of a {#blank#}14{#/blank#} (凌乱). Betty is very surprised at the collection, and meanwhile(同时)she begins to {#blank#}15{#/blank#} (使整齐)up the room. What good friends they are!

I'm Carl. I love soccer and I play soccer with my friends every week. In one game I break my leg (摔断了腿). My friends take me to the hospital. 

The doctor says I need an operation (手术). The doctor is very nice. He helps me to relax. Then I go into the operating room. Another doctor is there. She is very nice, too. She gives me anaesthetic (麻醉). Then I fall asleep (睡着). 

About 4 hours later, I find I'm on a white bed. My parents and my friends look at me. The doctor says I must stay in bed for six weeks and that I can't do any sports in the next six weeks. It is difficult for me, but I must listen to the doctor because I want to be healthy and play soccer again. 

Barry lives in the west African nation of Guinea (几内亚). He wanted to study at one of the best schools in Cairo, Egypt, but he didn't have money to pay for the bus or train. Then, Barry drew a map of Africa and started his trip on a second- hand mountain bike.

With only a few clothes, a flashlight(手电筒), and a small tool, the 25- year- old young man rode more than 4,000 kilometers across Africa, in the hope of getting into the school and finding a way to pay for it.

Four months later, he arrived in Cairo and got a full scholar(全额奖学金) to the school." If you have a dream, keep with it and be strong," Barry said.

Barry rode about 100 kilometers each day. He rode through(经过) Mali, Burkina Faso, Togo, Benin, Niger and Chad. After the long ride through those countries, his luck came in Chad. There, a kind man read about his trip online and helped him fly straight to Egypt. With his help, Barry arrived in Cairo successfully(成功地) and days later got a full scholarship to the school.

Barry wants to go back to Guinea when he finishes his studies." When I go back to my country, I would like to be a teacher. I want to tell people how to do good things," he says.

It was just after the fourth of July that my twin sister Grace and I were playing on the beach near Grandparents' house. The sky was as clear as the water. I saw Mum coming toward us with her camera and a Santa's hat. 

"I'm glad Mum's taking our Christmas picture now, so we don't have to get it done at a studio this year, " Grace said. 

The Christmas picture is a big deal in our house. Mum prints the photo on the Christmas cards. Mum says that sharing her"angels" at Christmas is one of her greatest holiday joys. In fact, in the year we were born, Mum dressed us to look like angels and stuck feathery wings to our backs. Grace and I, in every Christmas photo, tried to smile as we stood uncomfortably in scratchy (扎人的) dresses. It's a little embarrassing when our family and friends talk about it every year. 

When Mum printed last year's photo and I saw the expression on my face, I said, "Next time, maybe  ▲  so our smiles look real. "

"We're always happy in our bathing suits at the beach, " Grace pointed out. 

So Mum agreed to try a beach photo this year. That's why we were there. 

After a while, Grandpa came over. "What are you girls up to?"

"Making a snowman for the photo, "I said. 

I had an idea. I asked Grandpa to lie in the sand, "Come on, Grace. Let's cover him!"

"Bottle caps for buttons(纽扣) and sticks for arms, " said Grace. 

 We made sand around Grandpa's head and his body. He made a fine"snowman". 

"Mum, come quick!" I said. 

But before Mum could take the picture, Grandpa jumped up and shouted, running to ward the sea. Mum laughed and took a picture of that, but it was not the picture we were hoping for!

I felt a raindrop. "It looked like another year of scratchy dresses with smiles not true, " disappointedly I threw myself back onto the wet sand. It felt scratchy against my sunburned back, like those holiday dresses. Then I began to plow the sand with my arms and legs, just like doing star jumps lying down. 

"Mum, come look!"I shouted. 

"A sand angel! Good idea, Caroline!" She took a photo. Grace threw on the Santa hat and lay next to me. Our arms and legs moved up and down. "Keep going. Great! I got it!" said Mum. She smiled with pride…

We finished our Christmas cards the day after Thanksgiving that year. Below the photo, I wrote, "Smiling Angels in the Snow!"

The perfect language learner

Every language student wants to know the secret to making the most progress in the shortest time. What does the perfect learner do to better acquire a foreign language? The following are some tips which may help you improve your language skills.

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Even when you are really tired, do some learning, even if it's only 5 to 10 minutes. Never miss a chance to increase your knowledge. Use it, or lose it! Practice makes perfect.

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To really learn a new word, you have to remind yourself of it six times over hours, days and weeks. Write down all your new vocabulary in a little book that you can always carry around with you. Or keep a record in your mobile— you always have it with you, don't you? According to a recent study, 86 percent of the participants(参与者) believe that they are more likely to be successful in remembering new words with a vocabulary list.

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Don't worry about small mistakes! No one minds! When you learn new vocabulary or grammar, use it as soon as possible. If you can't use them accurately, it is likely that someone will point out your mistakes at once. Challenge yourself! Go for it!

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You can use technology to improve your English such as listening to podcasts (播客) of native speakers, reading news in the language you are learning, watching videos, etc.

Cheer up! You can be a perfect language learner!

Is vocabulary learning important to you? Why or why not? {#blank#}5{#/blank#}