Mr Black is a very large man．He has a loud voice．He is not a giant，but he is much bigger than most men．

    Life is not easy for Mr Black．He cannot find clothes big enough．His feet are too large for most shoes．In buses，trains and planes，he cannot stand up straight．The roofs(顶)are too low．At home，his bed is too short，chairs are always too small．Mr Black has problems because of his size．

    So Mr Black stays at home most of the time．Lire is easier at home．

One day，a friend says，"You spend too much time at home．You should go out and play．There's a good movie at the cinema．"

"I can't sit in cinema seats，"Mr Black says．"l'm too big．"

"That is no problem." his friend says．"l'll buy you two tickets．You can get them at the cinema when you go．""That's a good idea．"Mr Black says．He puts on his best clothes and goes to the cinema．

"You have two tickets for me．"he says to the woman in the ticket office．"My name is Black．"

"0h，yes，Mr Black，"the woman says，"Here you are，seats G4 and Pl2．I'm sorry，you and your friend can't sit together because we are very full this evening．"

Poor Mr Black! He smiles sadly，walks out of the cinema and goes home．

    On Christmas Day, Mike gets up at six twenty. He quickly puts on the clothes and looks for his present in the stocking. "Wow, what a lovely toy dog! I like it very much." he says happily. But his little brother says," it's for me. My present." Then he runs down to the ground floor to see what's in the box. He shakes（摇） the box and listens. His sister, Nancy comes to him," Oh, Mike, you are taking my present." "What? Open it and have a look!" Then they open the box and a pretty dress is in it. Mike looks around, and he sees a box for him under the tree.

    Children all like to play with snow at Christmas. But the climate(气候)is changing quickly. The weather in winters is getting warmer and warmer. And it doesn't snow in some places in southern England. Sometimes it's hard for children there to have a white Christmas. Many children want to have snow to play with.

    But the children in a hospice(收容所)get a big surprise. They have a white Christmas. A rich man called Chris Hopkins bought 10,000 kilos of snow on the Internet for them.

    Mr Hopkins said, "The children here are unhappy. They are too young but they have no father or mother to look after them. All children enjoy Christmas with snow and presents. I feel very happy when I find the snow brings smiles to their faces.

    Betty and Kitty Betty and Kitty are twins. They're 12 years old. They look the same. But they have different hobbies. Betty likes collecting stamps. She has many beautiful stamps. They're from different cities and countries. But Kitty likes growing flowers. The flowers are all very beautiful. Betty and Kitty both like reading books. Betty likes reading storybooks. But Kitty likes reading science books. On Sunday, they usually ride bikes to the park. They can play with their friends there. Sometimes their parents go there, too.

    San Francisco is a beautiful American city. It lies in the west of the United States. It has beautiful scenery. For example, Fisherman's Wharf (渔人码头) and Wax Museum (蜡像馆) are beautiful places to visit. Every day, thousands of people come to visit and take photos.

    San Francisco is a hilly city. The lovely hills in the middle of the city make it the most wonderful place. Many people walk up and down the hills, and some of the visitors also like to drive on the paths. They can see more places then. There are also visitors who like to take cable cars (缆车). They can get a better view of the city.

    Besides Fisherman's Wharf and Wax Museum, Chinatown and Lombard Street are also two places worth seeing. Every day, many people come to visit Chinatown. Some of them are coming to taste Chinese food, others are coming for Chinese shops. You can buy many beautiful Chinese clothes in Chinatown.

Mr. White and Mrs. White are teachers. They have a son and a daughter, Tim and Mary. Tim is seven years old and Mary is fifteen years old. The Whites visited their relatives from 8 a. m. to 7 p. m. yesterday. Later they saw a film together and then went home at half past nine.