Liu Wei is very famous in China because he can play the piano with his toes(脚趾).

    One day when Liu Wei was only 10 years old, he played a game with some friends. He lost both his arms because of electricity.

    Liu Wei was very sad when both his arms were cut off after the accident. But soon he had to make a choice.

    "For people like me, there were only two choices. One was to give up all the dreams, which would cause a quick death. The other was to work hard without arms to live an excellent life, " says Liu Wei.

    Liu Wei's dream was to be a pianist. He learned to play the piano with his toes. And teaching himself to play the piano with his toes was very hard. Many times he wanted to give up, but his parents went on encouraging him and he wanted to make his parents proud.

    Maybe you cannot believe that Liu Wei is able to play well only with his toes. The audience(观众) were deeply moved and very excited when they watched his performance.

    Dai Shifang was an easygoing girl, who seldom argued with her parents. But when she became a ninth-grader, things started to change. "We often have arguments, sometimes because of some little things," she said.

    Maybe Dai has got the "ninth-grade syndrome (综合征)". Some experts think ninth-graders usually suffer a lot because of the changes in their body and mind.

    A study shows that the lack of support from parents makes things even worse. Dai's classmate Liu Shijia is an example. "The exams in Grade 9 are more difficult. So I'm under great pressure. But my parents push me so hard and they don't support me at all," she said sadly.

    As ninth-graders enter the rebellious phase (叛逆期), they want to be free and have their own ideas. The study shows that about 47 per cent of ninth-graders try to make their parents agree with them when they have different ideas. Dai feels this deeply. "I think I am an adult already. I can make decisions for myself," she said. For example, she thinks there is nothing wrong with playing with boys, but her parents don't agree with her. They often argue about that.

    To deal with these problems, an expert from Nantong gave useful advice to students. "First, talk with your parents. Sometimes you may not fully understand each other, but keep trying. Second, pay more attention to your studies. Finally, learn about the changes in your body and get to know yourself better. Then try to accept them and control your feelings," she said.

    We never forget when Perronet came to us. It was on a spring afternoon. We never knew who drowned Perronet, but David pulled him out of the water and saved his life, People sometimes asked us what kind of dog he was, but we never knew, except that he was the nicest possible kind. Mother said we could not afford him because of the tax(税) and his keep. The tax was five shillings(先令), but it was nearly a year before the time when it must be paid. At last, we decided that all three of us would give up sugar toward saving the cost of his keep. It was the hardest for David because he was fond of sweet things, but then, he was fond of Perronet. So we all gave up sugar, and Perronet was allowed to remain.

    We were very happy that summer. The boys were especially happy. The only thing that vexed me was Perronet's tax money, for months and months went on and we didn't save it. One day, I found David alone with Perronet in his arms. He was crying, and feeding Perronet with cake. I can't bear to see boys cry. I begged of David to stop, and told him I should certainly think of something.

    One day, we were all in school. The schoolmaster told us that there was to be a flower show for the school children this year, and that an old gentleman would give prizes to the best arranged wild flowers. There was to be a first prize of five shillings, and a second prize of a half crown, for the best collection of wild flowers, with their names upon them. I squeezed(挤) David's arm, and whispered, "Five shillings!"

    I thought I could never get my lessons that day, for all day I was thinking about Perronet's tax money. At night, I said to them, "Look here! I'll make a collection of flowers. You two can make a collection of mosses(苔藓). There are ten kinds of mosses by the river, and we have names of our own for them." The boys agreed. Richard made me a box. We put wet sand at the bottom, then feather moss, and into that I stuck the flowers. I got all the flowers and all the grasses ready and printed the names on pieces of cardboard, to stick in with them. I didn't like it when it was done, but Richard praised it and that cheered me. I thought their mosses were beautiful.

    The day of the flower show was very hot. When we reached the tent, it was filled with grown-up people. It was very hard work getting about and trying to see the stands with flowers. We kept seeing tickets with "First Prize" and "Second Prize". It made me feel sick with heat and anxiety, to think of them. We had walked slowly all round the tent. We had seen all the cucumbers, onions, lettuce, grapes, long potatoes, round potatoes and everything else. At last we saw my collection! It had a label on it, marked "First Prize", and next to it came the boy's moss, marked "Second Prize". We cried "Perronet is paid for!"

    Traditional Chinese opera is finding new life in a different art form. More than100 primary school teachers came to a training course to pass on the art to schoolchildren. After learning Chinese opera-themed (戏剧题材的) cartoons, they are now confident that they can spark (激发) children's interest.

    These school teachers proved to be quick learners in Chinese opera. They are practising a classic piece of Yueju Opera, a major branch of the Chinese opera family.

    Fang Tingting, the performer of Shanghai Yueju Opera Troupe, said, "I was actually nervous about teaching them, because I thought they may not be interested. But their passion (热情) swept away my worries. I think they will do well in helping Chinese opera."

Cartoons naturally attract the attention of children. Introducing Chinese opera to them in this way proved to be great.

    Liu Hui,a school teacher, said, "The children are really interested in the cartoons. As teachers, we give them some directions and they start to copy something from the opera."

    The teachers also believed this digital method really builds a bridge between the children and this traditional art form. And it really helps them learn the rich culture of China. They are glad to be trained here to take on this task.

Kian Hamer, 14-year-old, has become one of the youngest members (成员) of Mensa. Mensa is an international organization (国际组织) for IQ (智商). Mensa has about 110,000 members all over the world. Only eight percent of the members are under 16. Kian's IQ is 162 and it's two points higher than Albert Einstein's.

Mensa sent a letter to Kian's home. The letter wrote, "Kian is one of the cleverest people in the world." Kian is really excited to join Mensa. He always works hardest on everything he does. Although people call him a genius (天才), he still wants to be a football player when he grows up. He loves playing football very much.

His dad Rich Hamer said, "Kian is clever but I'm not calling him a genius like others. I want him to keep his feet on the ground. He needs to study hard all the time. Never be proud (骄傲). He always does well at school. He works really hard and always tries his best."

Rock climbing（攀岩） did not become a sport until late in the 1900s. But now it has become a popular outdoor activity. While rock climbing may still be necessary for mountain climbing，most people just climb low mountains for fun. 

If you have ever done rock climbing，you will know that it is not a very easy sport. Indoor and outdoor rock climbing both need practice. What most people don't know is that rock climbing is one of the sports that depend on your body and mind（意志）. 

To climb successfully，one must use wonderful skills. One of the important rules is to always have three parts of your body on the rock face. Another important rule is that your arms only hold you close to the rock face while your legs are pushing you up，the closer you are to the rock face，the easier it is to climb. 

Rock climbing is a wonderful sport. Once you start to learn how to climb，you'll find more fun. People who like games such as chess playing or problem—solving may love rock climbing，because they are nearly the same in the way of thinking. For anyone who wants to get into beautiful shape，rock climbing is a fun and good way. Anyone who enjoys a difficult game and loves the outdoors should think of taking rock climbing as a new hobby.