Every country has its favourite food. In some countries, people(人们) eat rice every day. They often eat it with meat, fish and vegetables. Australians(澳大利亚人) eat a lot of fish, and they eat a lot of rice, too. In England(英国), the favourite food is fried fish and French fries. In the USA(美国) people like hamburgers a lot. And they like to have cold drinks. In Canada, people eat bread with butter(黄油) on it. In India, people like to eat hot food. Some people eat only fruit and vegetables. They think green food is good for them. They don't like to eat meat and fish.

    Steve visits the nursing home near his house two afternoons each week. On one of those days, he reads to his friend Martin. On the other afternoon, he plays cards and talks with Mrs. Johnson. Steve enjoys spending his extra time this way. He is a volunteer. A volunteer is a person who helps another person or has a job for which he or she does not get paid. A volunteer donates his or her time for free.

    Everyone else in Steve's family is also a volunteer. Steve's mother Mary volunteers one afternoon each week at the local hospital. She talks to patients, delivers flowers, and helps the nurses with odd jobs. Steve's sister Gina volunteers two afternoons at the museum. She welcomes visitors and answers their questions. Steve's father David also is a volunteer. He is a volunteer fire fighter for the town in which they live.

    Steve's family thinks volunteering is very important. Steve's parents think being a volunteer helps to teach values. Steve and his sister learn how to be kind and respect other people.

    Steve's family does volunteer work to give something back to the community. They want to help people who are not as fortunate as they are.

    A family of volunteers

    New rules and behaviour standards(行为规范) for middle school students came out in March. Middle schools are going to use a new way to decide who the top students are. The best students won't only have high grades. The following are some of the new rules.

    Tell the truth. Have you ever cheated(作弊) in an exam? Don't do it again! That's not something honest students should do.

    Do more at school. Good students love animals and care for other people. April is Bird loving Month in China．Is your school doing anything to celebrate it? You should join! In that way，you can learn more about animals and how to protect them.

    Be open to new ideas. Have you ever thought people could live on the moon? Maybe you'll find another earth in space in the future. Everyone's new ideas are important.

    Protect yourself. Has a thief ever taken money from one of your classmates? Don't let it happen to you. If you have to go back home late, you should let your parents know.

    Use the Internet carefully. The Internet can be very useful for your study. But some things on the Internet aren't for kids, so try to look at the good web pages. You can use the web pages for fun or homework.

    Do you like to eat noodles? Come to Mr. White's Restaurant. Our restaurant is big and clean. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}You can order beef noodles，mutton noodles, chicken noodles，vegetable noodles，etc. They are all at good prices. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} A bowl of mutton noodles is only 7 dollars. A bowl of chicken noodles is only 6 dollars. A bowl of vegetable noodles is only 5 dollars. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} The fish soup is a very popular special in our restaurant. The tomato and egg soup is delicious，too. Many people would like to eat in our restaurant.

    Our restaurant is on Center Street. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} It is open from 11：00 a. m. to 8：30 p. m. every day. If you order meat noodles，fruit is free. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} You will get the food in about half an hour.

    Once upon a time, there was an island where all the feelings and senses, including Love, Happiness, Sadness and Wisdom lived. One day they were told that the island would sink(下沉), so they all got on boats and left except Love.

    Love was the only one that stayed until the last possible moment. Finally, Love decided to ask for help.

    Wealth was passing by Love in a beautiful boat.  Love said, "Wealth, can you take me with you?"

    Wealth answered, "No, I can't. There is a lot of gold and silver in my boat. There is no room for you."

    Love decided to ask Pride, who was also passing by in a beautiful ship. "Pride, please help me!"

    "I can't help you, love. You are all wet and might damage(损坏)my boat," Pride answered.

    Sadness was close by, so Love asked, "Sadness, let me go with you."

    "Oh…Love, I'm so sad. How can I take someone else with me?"

    Happiness passed by Love too.  But she was so happy that she did not even hear when Love called out to her.

    Suddenly, there was a voice, "Come, Love, I'll take you." It was an elder. Love was so excited that he forgot to ask the elder where they were going. When they arrived at the river bank(河岸), the elder went his own way. Love was grateful to the elder, so he asked Wisdom, another elder. "Who helped me?"

    "It was Time," Wisdom answered.

    "Time?" asked Love.

    Wisdom smiled and replied, "Only Time can understand how valuable you are."