On September 13th, I woke up in the best mood. It was a late start, so I got to sleep in. Not only did I get my full eight hours of sleep, but an additional two more hours as well. I got ready, danced in my room to my favorite music while I picked out my clothes, made my lunch, and was on my way to school. I arrived at 9: 50 a. m. Little did I know, in the next 20 minutes, my life would change forever. As I got out of my classroom, there he was, holding the gun.

    Although everything happened so fast, in a matter of about 4 minutes, I remember it clearly. I remember every face I saw, and I remember every sound I heard. I remember the fear and the panic of the unknown. And lastly, I remember running. Running for my life. I ran down the stairs, out of the school's front doors, and down the street to the primary school. I remember looking down at my feet. As I looked down I thought to myself, "How am I running so fast?"

    I finally made it to a safe classroom, and 20 other students and I settled in for lockdown. We stayed close to one another and cried. It felt as though the tears going down our faces would never stop. We passed our phones around to text our loved ones that we were safe and that there was a school shooter, shots were fired, and 4 students were injured thus far.

    The lockdown lasted about 30 minutes, even though it felt like forever. Our headmaster made his way to our room and explained that the shooter had been caught and we were all going to make our way to the football field.

    Miss Evans was going to give a speech on Friday afternoon. But on Thursday night she was told that she had to go to an important meeting the next day at the same time. "No one can be in two places at the same time. What should I do?" She thought. But soon, she had an idea.

    At five to three on Friday afternoon, Miss Evans went to the lecture room. There were twenty students waiting for her. "I'm sorry," she said, "I won't be able to give my speech today." The students looked surprised. Miss Evans explained that she had an important meeting. "However," she went on, "though I can't be with you myself, my voice can." Then she put a small recorder on the desk," You see, I've recorded my speech and you can listen to it without me." Miss Evans turned on the recorded and left.

    The meeting ended a little early. Miss Evans decided to go back to her students. She stood for a moment outside the room, listening to her own voice. Then she opened the door. To her surprise, the room was empty. As she looked around, she saw a number of small recorders "listening" to her speech!

    "Well." she thought, "If I can be in two places at the same time, why can't they?"

    Peter lives in a small house. He is a clerk(职员)in a bank(银行).

Peter gets up at 6:30 every morning. He has breakfast and watches TV news at 7:00. After breakfast, he goes to work by bus.

    He gets to the bank at 8:25. He gets ready to work. He has too much work to do. He has lunch in a restaurant near the bank. He finishes his work at 4:30. He likes exercise, so he goes home on foot.

    After supper, he sometimes reads newspapers. Sometimes he looks for things on the Internet. He goes to bed early. He is tired after a day's work.

    More and more people like bicycling and it is no surprise. It is fun, healthy and good for the environment. Maybe that's why there are about 1.4 billion bicycles and only about 400 million cars on roads worldwide today. Bikes can take you almost anywhere, and there is no oil cost!

    Get on a bicycle and ride around your neighbourhood. You may discover something new all around you. Stopping and getting off a bike is easier than stopping and getting out of your car. You can bike to work and benefit (受益) from the enjoyable exercise without polluting the environment. You don't even have to ride all the way.

    Folding (可折叠的) bikes work well for people who ride the train. Just fold the bike and take it with you. You can do the same on an airplane. A folding bike can be packed in a suitcase. You can also take a common bike with you when you fly. But be sure to look for information by accessing on airline websites. Not all airlines are bicycle-friendly to travellers.

    Health Benefits of Bicycling:

    It helps to prevent heart diseases.

    Bicycling helps to control your weight.

    A 15-minute bike ride to and from work three times a week burns off five kilos of fat in a year. Bicycling can improve your mood (心情).

    Exercise like bicycling has been shown to make people feel better, more relaxed and self-confident. Bicycling is healthier than driving.

Dear Ben, 

How's it going with you? I would like to tell you about my school life. 

That's my school life in China. Can you tell me about yours?

Yours, 

Liu Jie

Suggested questions:

1. Who is the successful person in your eyes?

2. Why do you think he/she is successful?

3. What can you learn from her?