Have you ever been so worried about something that you have a headache or even can't sleep at night? Then you cannot pay enough attention during a test or in your study. If so, then you know that is stress. You are worried too much about something. The bad feeling in your mind can make you angry, sad, or scared, and can even give you a stomachache or a headache.

    However, some kind of stress is good. You might feel excited when you are called to give a speech at school. You feel nervous but excited. This kind of stress can help you to get things well done. And you may do a better job in your test if the stress pushes you to prepare more beforehand(提前).

    On the other hand, bad stress can last long if you are unable to come over your problems. You may not feel well, if your parents are having a quarrel, if a family member is badly ill, if you're doing poorly at school, or if anything else makes you unhappy. That kind of stress isn't going to help you. And it can actually let you do worse in your daily life.

    The best way to fight the stress is to have a balanced life. Make sure you get enough sleep and eat properly. Have some regular exercise. You should take some time for fun. Get advice from your parents, teachers and friends. Soon after that, you'll probably get away with your stress.

    It's a Saturday morning. Mary doesn't need to go to school. She says to her mom, "I need some clothes. Can we go to Nice Girls' Store?"

    "Well, what do you need, Mary?" Mom asks her. “My skirt is small, so I want to buy a skirt. And (A) I need a pair of sports shoes, too," Mary says.

    "I see. Let's go and see now." In the store, Mary sees a blue skirt. It's nice. So she asks the clerk , “how much is it?"

    The clerk says, "It's twenty dollars." "OK. Let me think about it. Thanks."

    Mary asks her mom, (B) "What do you think of that blue skirt, Mom?"

    "It's nice, but I don't think blue is nice on you. What about this green skirt, Mary? "

    "Oh, it's nice! " Mary says.

    They take(C) it at a good price. Only 12 dollars! They buy a pair of green sports shoes, too. It's 32 dollars.

    My hobby is playing chess — one of the greatest games in the world. My mum taught me how to play when I was seven years old. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} But then, on my eighth birthday, I won for the first time. I nearly always beat her now.

    To learn the rules doesn't take long. One day is enough. But if you want to be good, you have to practice for years. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} — just a chess set and someone to play with. Chess sets can be very cheap, or quite expensive. Some people collect chess sets as a hobby, but I enjoy playing.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} We meet on Wednesday every week to practice. I am the best player in the club, and the captain（队长）of the school chess team. This year we won the All England Schools Championship (冠军赛).

    I'm saving up my money to buy a chess computer. They are very expensive, but also very good for practice. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} I'm sure I will be a world chess champion some day.

    Canada is the second-largest country in the world, with almost 10 million square kilometres of landmass. Due to (由于) its size, it is divided into four different regions(地区).

    The Atlantic Provinces

    Fishing is the old industry in this region. Agricultural crops, such as fruit and potatoes, and forests, which produce paper and lumber(木材), form part of the industry. Traditionally depending on fishing and farming, they are developing other natural resources, such as oil and copper.

    Central Canada

    Ontario and Quebec form the industrial and manufacturing (制造业的) heart of Canada. They produce three quarters of Canada's goods. More than half of Canada's population lives in the cities in the southern part of Ontario and Quebec. Most of the people living in Quebec speak French.

    The West Coast

    The British Columbia Coast is Canada's western continental coastline (海 岸 线 ). Europeans settled (定 居 ) in British Columbia in the early 1800s. The railroad built by the government in the late 1800s made moving much easier. Thousands of Chinese came to British Columbia during this period to work on the railroad. British Columbia has the most valuable forest industry in Canada.

Salmon (鲑鱼) fishing is not only a popular sport, but also an important part of the industry. Pacific salmon are exported (出口) all over the world.

    The North

    The Yukon and the Northwest Territories (领土) cover a third of Canada. This huge region has a very small population. Most of the people are natives. There are several native languages, which are equal (平等的) in status (地位) to English and French. During the Gold Rush at the end of the 1800s, thousands of miners (矿工) came to make their fortune (财富). Mining is still an important industry in this region.