Kingfishers (琴鸟) are small beautiful birds. They have blue bodies, and look 1 cute. Fish is 2 favorite food. They don't live 3 the trees. They live in holes (洞) in the riverbank. But kingfishers are in great 4 now. People change (改变) many rivers. The rivers have new riverbanks, 5 kingfishers are losing their 6. People also make many rivers very 7, so there 8 no fish in the river. There isn't 9 food for kingfishers. We must 10 kingfishers.

    You're thirsty and you get yourself a glass of water. Do you ever1how old that water really is? The glass of water that you're2may have fallen from the sky as rain only last week. However, water itself has been around pretty much as3as the earth has! In fact, 4oceans, seas and rivers cover 70％of the earth, there is a 5 supply(供给)of water, which keeps on moving round the earth. This is6of what's known as the water cycle. The sun heats up water and it turns into clouds, which are7from water vapor(水蒸气).When the clouds become8, the water falls back onto the earth as rain. Of course, clean water is absolutely essential for good health. The amount of safe drinking water has gone up around the world, but9one billion humans are still in great need10clean, drinkable water.

    National Eye Care Day on June 6th is a good chance for us to improve our eye health. What are common eye problems we have today? How can we protect our eyes? Read on to find out the answer.

    Eyes are important in our everyday life. We use them to read books, see colors and view the wonders of the world. But sometimes, we use them too much and it hurts them.

    In the past , nearsightedness（近视）was a common eye problem among children . This is mostly because of their bad eye habits, such as watching TV too long and reading books in bed .

    However , today's technology is changing the way we live . Children spend more time working and playing in front of computers , smart phones and iPads . US children spend more than 42 hours a week in front of electronic screens（电子屏幕）, US'ABC news reported .

    This has caused a new problem for our eyes : digital（数字的）eyestrain（眼疲劳）. People with digital eyestrain may get headaches , dry and red eyes , eye pain , watering and other eye problems .But don't worry . The following tips can help you protect your eyes . Try them out .

Screen advice :

⒈ When you are watching electronic screens , keep them at least 30 cm from your eyes . Try not to use your smart phone in direct sunlight .

⒉ Blink（眨眼）more often when you are looking at the screen . This can help to stop dry eyes .

⒊ Remember to take a 20-20-20 break : every 20 minutes , take a 20second break and look at something 20 feet ( about 6 meters ) away .

⒋ Spend less time in front of screens . One to two hours a day is OK for your eyes .

Did you know that vocabulary is more important than grammar? If you have good vocabulary, you can communicate successfully, even if the grammar is not completely perfect.

However, one common problem is learning new words and then forgetting them. So when you want to use a new word in a conversation, you can't remember it at that moment. Does this often happen to you? The reason for this difficulty is that most students try to learn vocabulary by studying lists and dictionaries and remembering the words. But it may not work if you don5t have a very good memory.

The best way to learn vocabulary and remember the words well, is to learn new words and use them at once.

You can do this with a very simple exercise. Every time you learn a new word, for example, from an English lesson or an article, write it down in your vocabulary notebook. Writing is more active than just reading a definition. You should write the word, the definition in English or translation, one example sentence from the article or dictionary and one example sentence that you create.

Imagine you just learn the word "generous", write in your vocabulary notebook: generous (adjective), definition—giving or willing to give freely. Example one, from the article: Thanks for paying for my dinner, you're very generous. Example two, my example: My brother is generous because he volunteers at the animal shelter on weekends. It's best if your example sentences are true to your life, because this creates a personal connection with the new word. The next day, read your vocabulary notebook again and try to add one more example sentence using the new word. It's helpful for you to remember it. These two simple steps—writing the word and using it at once—help you remember and use new words.

Do you have a vocabulary notebook? If not, start now.

Homeschooling

What do most people remember about their school days? Playing with classmates during breaks, eating food in the dining hall, or going to the headmaster's office, perhaps. But 850, 000 teenagers in the United States don't experience these things, because they are homeschooled. They don't go to a regular school.

Their parents teach them. Their education takes place at home and in the community. What is it like to be home- schooled? Read Dylan's blog about his homeschooling experience.

MONDAY. July 10

I'm Dylan and I'm 14 years old. This is my third year of being homeschooled by my mom, a university professor(教授). A lot of people ask me how I feel about it. They ask, "Do you miss being in school with other kids?"

Well, my daily life is different from the daily lives of millions of children who go to regular schools, but I'm enjoying my time with my mom. I'm learning things at my own pace. We can go fast or slow. depending on the subject. These days, I'm reading books that most kids only read when they get to college. I'm studying French German, art, and the his tones of the world-things I'm very interested in.

A lot of kids think I never get to communicate with other kids, but that's not true. I get together with the other homeschooled kids during our weekly sports games and at social events. I don't just study at home. My mom takes me to all kinds of field trips-to museums, theaters, libraries and lots of other cool places. And college? I'm not worried about it. I know I'm preparing myself well for it.

You love reading, but you've read all your books four times, and don't want to read the same ones. You are planning to go to the library, but don't know what kind of books to get. With the following ways, it's easy to choose a good book!

Answer these questions first. What are your interests? {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Type your hobbies into your library catalog search (目录搜索). By doing this, you will find books that you might like.

Search your house next.{#blank#}2{#/blank#} Maybe you forget about one or other family members have some good books. Also by searching your house, you can find some books that you can read. They won't even cost you any money.

Then join a book club, please. Being a book club member is often a way to have new books to read with other members. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} And you can also read and talk about the books with others.

Finally, read the first part of each book. Of course, if you have many books to read, this can be time-consuming (耗时的). {#blank#}4{#/blank#} And you won't have a hard time looking for books again in this way.

Give your advice on how to choose a good book. (Within 20 words){#blank#}5{#/blank#}