Ebola is a dangerous virus that can cause people to get very sick and even die. The virus is causing the biggest problems in western Africa, where it has spread quickly. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} But it can get worse and cause life-threatening symptoms(症状), such as bleeding and trouble breathing.

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    Ebola does not spread like colds or the flu because it does not float through the air. Ebola also doesn't spread through food or water, like some other viruses. Instead, Ebola spreads when someone touches the body fluids(液体) of a sick person.

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    An outbreak is when many people are getting sick with the same illness around the same time. You may have heard of a flu outbreak, which is when lots of people get sick from the same types of flu virus. When an outbreak happens because of a virus, more people could get sick because there is a lot of that virus around.

    Where did Ebola come from?

    Scientists aren't sure how the first person gets Ebola at the start. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}Tropical animals in Africa believed to carry the virus include great apes, chimpanzees, gorillas, monkeys, fruit bats, porcupines, and forest antelopes.

    What do kids need to do about Ebola?

    Ebola is making many people sick in Africa, but no matter where you live, it's always a good idea to wash your hands well and often. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}

A. How do people catch Ebola?

B. But they think that people may pick up the virus by touching or eating infected animals.

C. Why do I need to wash my hands?

D. It's very important that infected people get treatment right away.

E. Ebola symptoms can start with fever and headache, kind of like the flu.

F. What is an outbreak?

G. Keeping hands clean can help protect you from common illnesses like colds and the flu.

    English has been called one of the most difficult languages for non-native speakers to learn. One reason is that English has so many rules.{#blank#}1{#/blank#} Sometimes, this leaves learners confused(混淆). For example, the order of words in a sentence can be tricky.

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#} The pronunciation of English words cannot always be judged by their spelling. For example, there are at least six ways to pronounce the group of letters spelled o-u-g-h. And, maybe the worst thing of all is that there are many idioms, or expressions, in English.{#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    So, it is comforting to know that learning root words can help a non-native speaker use English.{#blank#}4{#/blank#} Root words can help you to break down large, new words into smaller units to discover their meanings.

    Learning just one root word can help you understand several words in English.{#blank#}5{#/blank#}Then where can a root be found? A root can be any part of a word that carries meaning: the beginning, middle or end. Prefixes, bases, and suffixes are types of roots. The prefix appears at the beginning of a word, the base in the middle and the suffix at the end.

A. A root word is the most basic form of a word.

B. The English have always been fond of all kinds of rules.

C. You could say we use idioms like they're going out of style.

D. And there are almost as many exceptions(例外)of those rules!

E. Most English root words came from the Greek and Latin languages.

F. Another reason why English is hard to learn is the pronunciation of its words.

G. So, by learning 20 or 30 root words, you can increase your vocabulary to hundreds of more new words.

                                          How to Care for Your Ears?

    Ears not only let us hear, but they also play a role in maintaining our balance, which is vital to our ability to function in daily life. Yet, we ignore them. We can't even see our ears, except in a mirror. We take it for granted what they do for us day in and day out—until we notice something wrong, such as when an earache strikes or when we start having to ask people to repeat what they say.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    ◆Clean your ear with a washcloth—covered finger only.

     Never put anything inside your ear canal, including cotton swabs(药签).{#blank#}2{#/blank#}

    ◆Leave earwax（耳垢）alone.

    Wax is your ear's way of eliminating（消除）anything foreign that gets into the ear canal.{#blank#}3{#/blank#}If you find you have too much earwax, use a few drops of earwax remover in the canal. After a few minutes, wash the ear with warm water.

    ◆Avoid noisy places.

    Rock concerts and construction sites are just a few places that frequently have noise levels that can damage hearing. Any place where you have to shout to be heard should be avoided.

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    Be careful not to play MP3 too loud, especially if using earphone.

    ◆Be careful with illness and medications.

    Respiratory（呼吸的）illnesses should be treated to avoid their spread to the ears. Certain medications can damage hearing, so follow the directions carefully before taking them.

    See your doctor if you suffer from sudden hearing loss or hear noises in your head.{#blank#}5{#/blank#}

A. Turn the volume(音量) down.

B. Avoid using earphones while listening to MP3.

C. In such case, go to see a doctor as soon as possible.

D. This article will show you how to care for your ears.

E. Most people don't need to clean wax out of their ears.

F. Your ear canal is very narrow and a swab can damage it.

G. These can be symptoms of a serious illness which needs to be treated.

    A conversation with a good listener is like a good meal—we walk away feeling satisfied and happy.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}Here are 4 ways to make your conversation partner feel like you're fully tuned in to their personal radio station.

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    Making your conversation partner feel safe starts with two things: an open mind and keeping judgment to yourself. Just as immersing（沉浸）yourself in a novel requires suspension of disbelief, immersing yourself in listening requires suspension of opinions or advice. While judgments may appear into your head, set them to the side.

    Ask questions to follow your natural curiosity.

    When you're interested, ask questions.{#blank#}3{#/blank#}Ask for examples. Ask for details. Following your natural curiosity by asking questions not only shows you are listening and interested, but almost always produces an interesting story.

Listen with your whole body.

    In many a kindergarten classroom, teachers emphasize something called “whole body listening”. It goes like this: use your eyes to watch nonverbal（非语言）, your brain to think about what is being said, your heart to feel emotions» and keep the rest of your body quiet to show respect. But many of us lose it over time, especially as life gets busy. The result? We often try to multitask while listening.{#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    Validate（使生效）with simple phrases.

    Keep in your back pocket some validating words and phrases to show you've heard someone.

    “Of course.” “That makes sense.” “Naturally.” “Clearly.” “For sure.”{#blank#}5{#/blank#}In conversation, combining those little phrases: “Of course you feel that way.” or “That makes total sense.” doesn't necessarily convey agreement, but it does convey something even bigger： acceptance.

A. Create safety.

B. Devote yourself to listening.

C. It's appealing to talk about your own experience.

D. We half-listen while getting things done or staring at a screen.

E. Think like a journalist and ask what, when, where, why or how.

F. But being a good listener goes way beyond just not interrupting or nodding your head.

G. All of these statements confirm a person's experience or feelings as worthy and accepted.

    Not all people like to work but everyone likes to play. All over the world men and women and boys and girls enjoy sports.

    {#blank#}1{#/blank#} They help to keep people healthy and feeling good. When they are playing games, people move a lot. This is good for their health. Having fun with their friends makes them happy.

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#} In small towns, crowds meet to watch the bicycle races or the soccer games. In the big cities, thousands of people buy tickets to see an ice-skating show or a baseball game.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}What are your favorite sports now? You probably play the games that people in your town or city play. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} Then swimming is probably one of your sports. Boys and girls in Australia love to swim. There are wonderful beaches there and the weather is good for swimming. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Then you would like to ski. There are many skiers in Austria where there are big mountains and cold winters. Does it rain often where you live? Then kite flying would not be one of your sports. It is one of the favorite sports of Thailand.

A. How many sports do you like?

B. What's the weather like?

C. Is the climate hot where you live?

D. Or do you live in a cold climate?

E. Many people enjoy sports by watching others play.

F. What games have you played?

G. Sports help people to live happily.

How to Develop Appropriate Self-Confidence

Under most circumstances having self-confidence is a good thing. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} It is this strong sense of confidence that allows them to go out in the world and reach for their goals.

But can you have too much self-confidence? {#blank#}2{#/blank#} In most cases, knowing your strengths and having the assuredness to go out and take risks are admirable qualities. But when this confidence makes you inflexible, opposed to trying new things, and incapable of listening to others, it can become harmful to success and well-being. So what can people do to ensure that their self-confidence is realistic, authentic and socially appropriate?

{#blank#}3{#/blank#} Whether you are evaluating your own success or offering praise to your children, try to place a greater emphasis on the work that went into the task rather than just focus on how things turned out. You cannot always control how things go, but you can control the amount of work you put into achieving your goals.

Keep learning new things. Even if you are highly confident about your skills in an area, keep looking for new challenges. It is easy to become overconfident if you think you know everything there is to know about a subject. Finding new challenges to overcome does sharpen your skills. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}

Listen to what others have to say. Overconfidence can sometimes cause people to become rigid and even arbitrary. Instead of assuming that your way is the right or only way, try to keep an open mind. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} However, it is important to listen in order to gain a new perspective.

A. Focus on the effort, not the outcome.

B. Is overconfidence definitely a good thing?

C. You might not always agree with other people.

D. Having too much self-confidence is beneficial to us.

E. Are you teaching in a different way and extremely excellent?

F. Confident people tend to be more successful in a wide variety of fields.

G. Finding new challenges also reminds you that there're fresh ways of thinking about things.