A lot of teenagers are good at art at school, but how would you feel if people called you “the new Picasso(毕加索)” or if presidents and other famous people collected your paintings?

    Alexandra Nechita was ten when her paintings became famous all over the world. She visited Britain, France, Italy, Japan, Australia, New Zealand and her family's native place (祖籍) Romania where 5,000 fans came to see her at the airport. Alexandra said, “When it all started, I was moved. It was very exciting and I loved the traveling, but I got very tired. And I missed home.”

    Alexandra is a good student. Her studies always come first. She only starts painting after she's done her homework. She works on two or three paintings at a time. The paintings sell for thousands and Alexandra's parents have given up their jobs to work for their daughter. Life for the Nechita family is very different from what it was like a few years ago. Alexandra's father Nike left Romania for political (政治的)reasons in 1985. At first he tried his best to learn English and had different kinds of low-paid jobs. In 1987, he brought his wife and Alexandra, who was then 18 months old, to America. The family was very poor. Alexandra began to draw at the age of three.

    She was drawing for four or five hours a day. Soon people offered(提出) to buy her paintings and she had her first art show at the age of eight. Stories about this child appeared(出现) in the newspapers and television. They now live in a large house with a swimming pool. Her mother said, “We started without anything, but thanks to Alexandra, we have everything we ever dreamed of.”

    You probably know who Marie Curie was, but you may not have heard of Jane Addams. Of the outstanding ladies listed below, who do you think was the most important woman of the past 100 years?

    Jane Addams (1860-193)

    Anyone who has ever been helped by a social worker has Jane Addams to thank. Addams helped the pot and worked for peace. She encouraged a sense of community by supporting education and services for people in need in 1931, Addams became the first American woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize.

    Rachel Carson (1907-1960)

    If it weren't for Rachel Carson, the environmental movement might not exist today. Her popular 1962 book Silent Spring raised awareness of the dangers of pollution and the harmful effects on humans and co the world's lakes and oceans.

    Rosa Parks (1913-2005)

    On December 1,1955,in Montgomery, Rosa Parks would not give up her seat on a bus to a white passenger .Her simple act brought a great change to the life of the black community in the US." The only tired I was, was tired of giving in, "said Parks.

    Sandra Day O'Connor (1930-now)

    Wan Sandra Day O' Connor finished third in her class at Stanford Law School, in 1952, she could not find weak at a law company because she was a woman. In 1981, she became the first woman to join the US .Supreme Court O'Connor gave the deciding choice in many important cases during her 24 years in bar field.

{#blank#}1{#/blank#} ⑴The first thing to remember is that when a friend invites you over, you need to arrive on time. If your friend tells you to come "around 3:00", that means you can turn up a little bit after 3:00. But usually it is a good idea to arrive at the right time.

{#blank#}2{#/blank#} ⑵Often it is also nice to bring something to your friend's house. This could be a box of chocolate for you two to share, or maybe a movie that you can watch together. You can also bring some flowers. A little gift is a nice way to show your friend that you are excited to be at his house.

{#blank#}3{#/blank#} ⑶When you visit your friend's house, you may also meet his parents. You should tell them who you are and they may tell you their names, and then they may tell you to call them by their first names. Another way to show respect is to call them Madam or Sir.

{#blank#}4{#/blank#} ⑷As we all know, students should learn how to get on well with others. But in what ways? First of all, we should respect others. Everyone has their own way to do things, so we should understand each other. Besides, it is important for us to communicate with each other. What's more, we should be kind to others and offer necessary help to those who are in trouble.

{#blank#}5{#/blank#} ⑸Everybody has his parents. But not everybody gets on well with his parents. Well, first, we should respect our parents because they bring us up and care for us all the time. Second, we are supposed to do some housework at home. We should help clean the room, cook meals and so on. Third, we should care for them, have a talk with them about their work.

Anna Mary，known as Grandma Moses，grew up on a farm. As a child，she loved drawing. But she hardly（几乎不） did it because she had to do busy farm work. Grandma Moses spent all her life on the farm. When she was old and found farm work difficult，she started to paint at the age of 78. 

An art lover found Grandma Moses's paintings in a shop in 1938. He bought them，and the next day he went to her farm and bought all her paintings. Soon Grandma Moses became famous. In 1940，at the age of 80，she had her first painting show in New York. "Do your favorite thing，and you will finally be successful（成功的），"she once said. 

Grandma Moses died in 1961，at the age of 101. She painted over 1600 paintings in the late part of her life. Many people loved the bright colors and beautiful farm views in her works. After knowing Grandma Moses's life story，they felt relaxed about their future（未来） because becoming old didn't mean anything. Also，they thought confidently about their future. They finally knew that age wouldn't be a problem for those who wanted to make a change（改变）. 

Sara walked slowly home from school kicking stones along the sidewalk and thinking about the assignment（作业）. Mrs. Peters, her teacher, gave the 1 in class right before school finished so that students could think about the assignment over the weekend. "This assignment will be a 2 one!" she said. "Each of you will find something that you are good at and write a report for the class. I'm sure you'll be happy to do it!"

As she had expected, students immediately began to talk about all the ideas that they had for the report 3 in class. Sara's best friend, Betsy, loved to play the piano and was already a skilled pianist. Tom was the captain of the school team and would write his report about basketball. Everyone seemed to have an idea for the project except Sara.

"It's impossible for me to choose 4 ," thought Sara, as she walked in through her front door—remembering her basketball for the wrong team and her strong dislike of running! She loved to sing and dance, but she did it only for fun with her friends. As for art, she believed that her paintings were about the same quality as her little sister who was five. Sara 5 what in the world she would write her paper about.

The minute Sara walked through the door, her sister came running towards her to give Sara her daily after-school hug! Suddenly, Sara 6 the happy moments with her sister. Every day, Sara tried to think of something special that they were going to do together. Sometimes, they went out for a walk or played in the backyard. Other days, they stayed inside the house to read or watch their favorite show on TV. Today, Sara was planning to help her sister make a castle out of pillows, chairs and blankets. With a smile, Sara considered how much she 7 being a big sister.

As Sara gathered blankets, pillows and snacks to eat in their castle, her sister shouted happily. Then an 8 came to Sara—she was an expert at something! Sara smiled as she knew that she also had a wonderful report. She believed she would hand in an excellent assignment next week.