“Thank you” is one of the first few phrases(短语） that our English teacher taught us when we began to learn English. Each time we receive help from others, we say “Thank you”. We may say it many times a day. It seems that “Thank you” is very popular among us Chinese students. But is it as popular in the UK?

    The answer is “no”. According to a recent survey （最近的报告）in the Daily Telegraph newspaper, “Thank you” is only the 20^th most popular way of expressing gratitude（感激） in the UK.

    The survey shows that British people like “Cheers” most to express their thanks. For example, when friends invite each other for a drink after a game, a smile and a “Cheers” may be the best way to say “thanks”.

    You may often hear the word spoken between two good friends. “Great”, “nice one” and “all right” are also popular informal（不正式的） ways of showing gratitude among friends in the UK.

    Of course, there are some formal ways to say “thanks” among British people. For example, when a stranger is especially helpful, they may say “brilliant” or “much appreciated” to express their gratitude.

    By the way, how do British people usually answer “thank you”? They like to say： “ You're welcome.”, “No problem” or “Sure”.

    Since you have many more ways to show your thanks, next time you want to say “thank you”, why not try one of these new British phrases?

    Do you like visiting parks? The following three may be the ones you are interested in.

    Hyde Park，the biggest royal park of the UK，lies in the center of London，next to Green Park.It was built to be a royal park in 1536. About one hundred years later, the park was open to the public. Speakers' Corner in Hyde Park is famous all over the world. Anyone can make a speech there on Sunday afternoons.

    Central Park is a man­made park in the center of Manhattan, New York. It was built in 1858 and in 1873 it was open to the public. With 21 playgrounds and 2 zoos, Central Park is a wonderful place for children to have fun．

    Banff National Park，the largest park in Alberta, Canada, was open in 1885.The park is as large as 6, 641 km2. Whether by car, boat, bus, bike or on foot, you can enjoy the mountains, lakes, as well as the plants and wild animals. The most famous is its ski areas in the park，which attracts millions of people to come every winter.

                                 Information Card

    It is not easy for people to sail (航海) around the world in quite small boats. Sometimes the weather gets bad. Accidents(事故) can happen easily and quickly.

    One family once had an accident. A big fish swam under their boat and bit holes(洞) in it. Sea­ water came in and the boat soon went down. Luckily these people had another small boat—a lifeboat, so they all got into the lifeboat. They lived in the boat for many days. They ate and slept, and always hoped. At last people in a ship saved them.

    How do people live in a very small lifeboat for a long time? They must be strong in every way. They must have a hope, and they must have a strong desire(愿望)to live. People cannot drink seawater. If they drink a lot of seawater, they will quickly die. They must catch rainwater and drink it. They must also catch fish and birds for food. Lifeboats do not often carry cookers. So people cannot cook their food in the lifeboats. Raw (生的) fish and birds are not very nice but they are their only food. They must eat raw food, or they will die.

●Build a good home learning environment.

    School is not the only place for study. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}It is important to provide a workplace of their own, so that they can read books or just write a letter to their friends.

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    Kitchen and dining room are not suitable for regular study, because books and pens get in the way of daily uses of those areas. Find a place where a child can leave his papers and pens without having to clear everything away every night. For a child that likes being alone, give him a corner in his bedroom. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}.

●Keep things in order.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#} Parents should encourage their children to leave them neat and orderly when they aren't using their workplaces. It is important for the children to have room for themselves. The workplace should be personal, but not another part of the playroom.

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    Encourage the whole family to help support the environment that children need for success at school. Give them a good example of how to deal with problems, how to manage time and how to get things done in the right way. Study will be more enjoyable when it is supported by the whole family.

   Eileen Collins is the first woman ever chosen to be a spaceship pilot. She is also the first woman to be a leader in a spaceship. Today she has flown for more than 5,000 hours in more than 30 kinds of airplanes.

   Talking about high school, she said, "I began reading all kinds of books about famous women pilots. These women went and flew into dangerous places. Their stories encouraged me." In 1977 Eileen got a pilot's license (证件) and the following year she finished her university. She went into space in 1999 at the age of 43. She took the hopes with her and dreams of a nation of young people on the earth.

   Eileen is not only an astronaut, but also a wife and the mother of a young daughter. She has short curly hair and friendly brown eyes. She met her husband, Pat, while they were together in the air force (空军).

   When she was named as the First Woman Spaceship Commander (指挥官) in 1998, Eileen smiled and said, "When I was a child, I dreamed about space. It was only a dream that I would be one of the astronauts some day. I hope all children will be encouraged to reach for their dreams, when they see I go into space. I believe dreams do come true!"