Tyler was a troublesome student. He sat in the back row. Every time I called him to answer questions, he'd reply with a flip（轻率的）answer. If he got it wrong, he would get very angry.
    Usually kids could sit quietly in class. However, Tyler was just loud. One day, Tyler was talking while I was teaching. I said to him, “Tyler, why not join in our discussion instead of having one of your own?” He got up from his chair, pushed it over, and shouted something I can't remember. I sent him to the office and he received a week's out-of-school punishment.
    The week was a wonderful time for me, but when it came to an end, I began to feel worried. So I came up with a plan. On the day of his return, I told him I wanted to start over with him. If he felt like he was going to lose control in class, he could step outside the door for a moment.
    From then on, Tyler was a changed student in my classroom. In fact he was a smart child and he even stopped a fight between two students one day. And he never used the privilege（特权）to leave the class for a moment. I believe that just letting him decide for himself made all the difference.
    When the year was over, he wrote me a thank-you note about how good the year had been for him. I still have it today and find it very moving to reread when I get stressed about teaching.

      An American named Crum invented potato chips in 1853, although that was not his intention (意图). He was a chef(厨师长) at a beautiful restaurant in Saratoga Springs, New York. A regular dish on the menu was fried (油炸的) potatoes, which was an idea that had started in France. At that time, French fried potatoes were cut into thick slices (片).

      One day, a dinner guest at the restaurant sent back his fried potatoes to the chef because he did not like them so thick. So Mr. Crum cut the potatoes a little thinner and fried them. The guest did not like those either. That made Mr. Crum angry, so he thought he would just show the man. He sliced the potatoes paper-thin and fried them, thinking that the man would say nothing about it. However, to his surprise, the man loved the thin potatoes very much. Other guests tried them and also liked them. So, Mr. Crum's potato chips were added to the menu. They were called Saratoga Chips.

      Finally, Mr. Crum opened his own restaurant to sell his famous chips. Now potato chips are packaged (包装) and sold in stores.

    John gets up early from Monday to Saturday, because he must go to school before 7:30 on weekdays and go to the Drawing Club at 8:00 on Saturday mornings. He usually goes to the bookshop on Saturday afternoons, and after supper he watches TV until(直到) midnight.

    He doesn't get up early on Sundays. John's parents both work on Sundays. John always watches TV after he gets up. Then he usually goes to KFC to have a hamburger and some juice for lunch. After that, he goes back home and starts to play computer games until his parents come back. He does his homework after supper. He usually has lots of weekend homework, so he must spend three hours on it. He usually goes to bed at about 11:00 p.m. on Sundays. He often complains(抱怨) he has too much homework to do.

    Valentine's Day is a very old holiday. It goes back to the times of Ancient Rome (古罗马). One of the characters we often see on Valentine's Day is Cupid. He was the son of Venus, the goddess of love. He shoots people with arrows (箭) of love. When a man and a woman are hit by his arrows, they will fall in love.

Today people celebrate Valentine's Day on February 14. If a man and a woman are in love, they will give each other gifts. The most popular gifts are flowers (especially roses) and chocolates. Couples may also go to a restaurant for a very nice dinner or plan something else romantic.

    In the United States, Valentine's Day is not just for lovers. Children make special Valentine's cards for their classmates. Families and friends may give candy or other small gifts to each other. It can be a fun day.