When did you last say “I love you” to your father? If you can't remember, then you can get the chance this Father's Day on June 19.

Generally compared to(与—相比) a mother's gentle love, a father represents qualities such as independence(独立), confidence, courage and adventure(冒险).

    Also, caring fathers help their children get along with others. Fathers can lead their children into their social circle(社交圈). They can al so teach them how to behave and control their feelings.

    For example, Microsoft founder Bill Gates was quiet and didn't like to talk with others when he was a little kid. So his father often held family parties and let Bill play games with family members. “my ability of leading and cooperating(合作) became better through games.” Gates once said in an interview with US Fortune magazine.

    US actor Will Smith said that his father taught him important lessons through small things. His father once planned to tear(拆) down a wall of their shop and rebuild it. But little Will thought it was impossible. After a year and a half, they did it. “You didn't try to build a wall. You are going to lay a brick every day. And soon you have a wall,” he said on TV show.

    “One father is more than a hundred schoolmasters”, British poet George Herbert once said. Do you agree?

    Confidence is very important in daily life. It can help you to develop a healthy attitude (态度). A study shows that the people who are more confident are much happier. They can have more chances to make themselves successful. The following is about how to be more confident.

    Speak loud.  When you are not confident, you can't do well what you want to do. You speak in a voice so low that other people can hardly hear you. Try to speak loud enough so that people can hear you clearly. The high voice can help you become more confident.

    Play sports.  Physical exercise makes you tired but completely relaxed. A strong body helps you be full of confidence.

    Encourage yourself.  To see how many things you have done well, you can write down a list of things you did during the day. Did you finish your homework? Did you tell a joke that made everybody laugh? Give yourself praise for the good things you've done.

    Pick up a hobby.   If you like singing, sing as much as you can. In some ways, a hobby can make you outstanding. And it will make you happy and confident.

    Get rid of (消除) fear. Fear comes along with failure (失败). But it's easy to overcome (克服) if you know that failure is part of your life. Don't hide your head just because you said something stupid last time. Try to start again and believe you can do better.

    In the Charles E. Johnson Elementary School in New York, there is a special radio. It gives people warnings (警报) about bad weather.

    One day, there came a sound from the radio. This sound brought the piece of news: a heavy storm was coming. William Tomic, principal (校长) of the school, he asked teachers to bring children indoors and put them in a safe place at once.

    Minutes later, the storm came. However, because of the warning of the radio and the quick work of the principal, no one was hurt. “The radio really did work very well. 我们对它的工作感到很高兴,” William Tomic said. “The parents were as well.” The US government hopes there will be more such success stories. It plans to give this kind of radios to all 97, 000 public schools in the country.

    Every year, more than 10,000 big thunderstorms, 2,500 floods, 1,000 tomatoes (龙卷风) and some hurricanes (飓风) take place in the US, so the warning radios are very useful.

    They not only give people warnings about bad weather, but also give warnings about other dangerous things.

    Laurence Kim was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, on November 11, 1951. He was not like other children when he was young. A medical scan (扫描) showed that the two halves of his brain were not connected in the usual way. He developed an amazing memory. He started to read when he was two. He remembered everything he had read.

    To read more quickly, he read the left page with his left eye and the right page with his right eye. By reading the two pages at the same time, ⑴看完一本书花他不到一小时的时间。By the age of 30, he had memorized around 12,000 books.

    However, he did not develop so well in other areas. ⑵He could not walk before four years old, and he had problems putting on his clothes and shoes. His social skills were poor, and he was extremely sensitive (敏感的) about new people. In 1984, Peek and his father met Hollywood movie writer Barry Morrow. Morrow was fascinated by Peek and began to write a new play about Peek's experiences. The movie Rain Man won an Oscar for Best Picture in 1988. ⑶This changed Peek's life. ⑷He got used to being the center of attention. He became more self-confident. He appeared on TV and traveled around the country with his father to develop awareness(意识) of his condition.

    Peek was not only an amazing man but also a real Rain Man. Sadly, Peek died of a heart attack in 2009.

    Most of us probably dreamed about becoming an astronaut when we were little. But how many of us have actually become one, or are at least working toward it? It's true that the advice" Always follow your dreams" is something that is typically easier said than done.

    But still, this is the one piece of advice that Alyssa Carson wants to share with her peers. This 17-year-old girl from the US has become one of the candidates (候选人) for NASA's 2033 project to go to Mars. If everything goes well, Carson will be one of the first human beings to ever set foot on the red planet.

    Carson began to dream of going to Mars when she was only three years old. After watching an astronaut-themed cartoon and hearing from her father that humans had only been to the moon but not Mars, Carson decided that she wanted to be the first one to do so.

    To realize her dream, she has worked hard toward it. At the age of 12, Carson became the first person to attend all three NASA space camps, and she sat with real astronauts to discuss the future of Mars missions. Now 17, Carson is continuing with her space training while still taking on her high school work like a "normal " teenager, except that she studies all her subjects in four languages - English, French, Spanish and Chinese.

    "I don't think there's anything specific that makes it easier for me or makes it something that others can't do," Carson said in an interview," I've just really focused myself on what I want to accomplish."

    Besides, Carson is willing to make sacrifices (牺性) for her dream, She's fully aware of the danger of the mission and the possibility that she might never be able to come back. She also accepts the fact that she can't get married and start a family because any loved ones left on Earth may be a distraction for her and for the mission, But Carson believes that it's all worth it, summarizing her view with this ancient Greek proverb she once quoted," A society grows great when old men plant trees whose shade they know they'll never sit in."

    While some people's dreams may sound out of this world, Carson is on her way.

    Jada and Jessie are twins. They were born on August 5. They are ten now and in the fourth grade. Jada and Jessie do everything together. They are in the same class. They dress alike. They look the same. People always get confused (困惑 ). This really makes Jada and Jessie laugh. Teachers always get them mixed up at school. Even their father has trouble telling them apart (分辨). Their mother doesn't, though. She always knows who they really are, Jada and Jessie often try to confuse her, but it

has never happened.

    Their elder brother, Jared, is fifteen. He can't tell the difference between the two sisters. He doesn't even try Jada and Jessie have the same friends. Their friends always mix them up. It doesn't matter to Jada and Jessie.

    One day, their father told their mother to get one of them a different haircut so that he could tell them apart. Jada and Jessie were horrified (恐惧的). They didn't want to look different. They liked looking the same. Their mother came to the rescue ( 拯救), and refused to make them cut their hair. The girls were happy just the way they were and didn't want to change. Their dad just shook his head. He would have to stay confused. Jada and Jessie didn't care. They knew who they were, and that was all that mattered .

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