Do some colours makes you feel calm while others give you energy? Scientists have studied the connection between colour and mood(心情) for a long time. Many believe that colour can influence our moods.

    Warm, bright colours such as yellow and red are positive colours. They can give people a pleasant feeling. Cool colours such as blue, purple, and green are relaxing colours. They help people experience calm feelings.

    Many public places are decorated(装饰) with certain colours in order to create certain moods. Orange makes people feel hungry, and many restaurants are painted in this colour.

    People use colour in their homes to create moods as well. Blue is a peaceful colour. It helps you rest, so it is a very good colour for a bedroom.

    Colours can also create bad moods. Some types of blue make people feel sad. Red can make people feel angry.

    What is your mood right now? Now look at the colour of the walls round you. Does it match your mood?

    Volunteering is fun and rewarding(有益的), but if you want to be a good volunteer, you need to learn more.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    Be well-trained. Know what you're doing as a volunteer. If you need to learn about your job. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}If you're good at your job, it will be easier to help others.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}Work as part of a team and make sure everyone works together and shares the work. If someone asked for help, just give a hand. If you need some help, ask politely for it.

    Be understanding.{#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    Be friendly. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}To be a volunteer, you might meet new people who want to make friends with. You might just meet someone who becomes a friend for the rest of your life.

    Rishi was a 10-year-old boy. Just like any other boy of his age, he hardly did the housework his parents told him to do, and usually he would completely ignore(忽视) them.

    It was a 5-day holiday. He spent a good time with his mother. She took him for outings. They went to the beach and parks and had delicious meals. She cooked his favourite foods and played with him. Three days was left and Rishi's mother wanted him to clean the house with her. To her surprise, he agreed and did everything well.

    After Rishi finished the work his mother asked him to do, he gave her a piece of paper written by him. She was greatly surprised to see what he wrote.

She didn't say a word and wrote on a piece of paper and gave it to her son. She wrote:

    The boy was in tears and rushed to his mum and gave her a big hug. He told his mother, "Mum, I love you. I'm sorry for everything." Rishi's mother kissed him on his forehead.

    Reading books is a good hobby for all kinds of reasons. First, reading books is fun. You can always keep yourself pleased if you like reading. This is especially useful when the weather is bad. It is a relaxing hobby, too. You can really become lost in a book.

    Next, you can read a book almost anywhere, in a car, in a waiting room, on a plane, in bed--even in a bath. All you need is a book. Reading is a convenient(方便的) hobby as it is easy to stop and then start again.

    Another good reason for reading books is that it is useful. If you keep reading as a hobby, you will get better and better at it. This means that you will read faster and will become better at understanding what you read. As your reading improves, you will probably find that your schoolwork becomes much easier. Many school subjects depend on(依靠) good reading and, as you read, you will learn more and more.

    Some people say, hat reading is out of date. That is not true. You have to be able to read on the Internet. And the more you read, the better your computer skills will be. Reading is hardly out of date!

    Good readers are most likely to be good writers, too. They are usually good at spelling as well, and have more things to write about.

    Reading books is a wonderful hobby, one of the best. What other hobbies could be more useful or more enjoyable?