Jim went to school to study history, but when he finished his first year, he didn't pass the exam and the teacher said to him, “You have to leave school.”

When the boy's father heard this news, he was much worried. He came to the school to see the teacher. He found the teacher in the office and asked the teacher to let Jim go on with his studies the next year.

“He is a good boy. He always does well in history,” said Jim's father, “and if you let him pass the exam this time, he will do better next year and pass the exam.”

 “No, no, that's impossible!” answered the teacher, “Last month I asked him when Napoleon（拿破仑）died and he didn't know.”

“Please sir, give him another chance.” said Jim's father, “You know we don't have any newspapers in our house, so nobody in our family knew that Mr. Napoleon was ill.”

    It's March, 2050. Frank and Mary Smith wake up in their comfortable house in the morning and turn on the bedroom computer to get the latest news. They get used to reading the Times over the years. The only difference is that they changed to electronic newspapers many years ago.

    After breakfast, as they watch the screen, Mary orders the household robot to make coffee for them. Frank is a computer engineer, working for several companies. He goes into the study to take part in a video conference with his partners around the world.

    Mary takes a quick look at the shopping channels at home before beginning the video phone to talk to her assistant. She also has a job and she is doing medical research.

    Frank and Mary have one daughter, Louise, who also has her own work station at home. She goes to school only one day a week, mainly to play with other students. Louise is studying Chinese at present. - Chinese has become an important language in the world.

    According to the family doctor, Louise will live to at least 130 years old. Her wish is to work for a few decades and then spend her time on music and painting.

    People say that one person can't really make a difference, but I don't believe that. If all of us just do "one" thing like the following three heroes, we will make a difference.

Super Girl

    When she was 7, Brooklyn Wright wrote The Adventures of the Earth Saver Girl. In the book, a girl learns she has the power to make the Earth free from rubbish. She calls her Super Girl and tries her best to save the Earth. Brooklyn Wright has visited more than100 schools to teach students about pollution. Last year, she received a Gloria Barron Prize for Young Heroes for her work.

A Voice for Elephants

    Many elephants are being killed for their ivory. After learning the facts, China's Celia Ho, 14, decided to take action. By making posters and writing letters to newspapers, she hopes more people will learn about the problem.

Turning Cooking Oil into Fuel

    Jane Lin didn't start out "to be green" .At first, she was worried about her neighbor who couldn't afford heat in winter. At a science expo, she saw someone turning old cooking oil into fuel. Suddenly, she came up with a plan to collect old cooking oil for the poor family. So far she has collected about 21, 000 gallons of fuel for 210 families. At the same time, she helps reduce the emission（排放） of CO₂  and other greenhouse gases.

Face—to—face with the New Me

    Jessica's mother noticed Jessica hadn't returned to the dentist waiting room just before her surgery was supposed to start. She walked to the bathroom and found Jessica in here, crying. She took her daughter into her arms. "We're going to say goodbye to the old Jessica," she said. "And hi to the new Jessica."

    Jessica, from St Louis. US, had been wishing for this day since high school, when the bullying about her started. Now that it was finally happening, she was nervous.

    It was a social—media post two months ago that got her here. Someone posted a photo of Jessica with a comment about her overbite. The post was shared many times, with many people making mean remarks about her appearance.

    The bullies didn't know the road Jessica had traveled. She underwent nine operations on her ears from age 2 to 12 years old. She was almost deaf in her right ear. Her adult teeth didn't start coining in until she was 11 or 12, and doctors couldn't figure out why they were pushed outward. It got worse as she got older. Jessica had been trying for years to get her teeth fixed, but it was always too costly.

    When her story got out, Maryann Udy, a dentist, got in contact with Jessica and offered her a new smile—free of charge. The surgery was long and complicated It took several months before Jessica's new smile was ready.

    Later that year, she looked at her old photos online and smiled. "I loved her," she said. She's grateful to be in less pain, to be on the path to a new smile. Sometimes, though, it feels like something is missing from who she was.

    Still, she loves taking selfies and admiring her new appearance. "I looked good before," she said. "I look even better now."

    The Sixth Time I Went to the Principal's Office When I was in the seventh grade, I had problems behaving. My heart was in the right place, but I couldn't always follow the rules. I played many tricks on my schoolmates. Once, I even pulled a girl's hair on the school bus to get her attention. As a result, I was repeatedly sent to the office of the principal(校长).

    Although I hated going there, I did not hate the principal, Mr. Ratcliff. Mr. Ratcliff was a kind, elderly man. When he spanked(打屁股)me for putting some ants into a classmate's pencil box, it didn't hurt at all, but it did hurt my feelings. I thought so much of him and moments like that seemed to prove I was hopelessly bad.

    When I got called to Mr. Ratcliff's office for the sixth time, I had no idea what I had done. I felt disappointed as I walked down there. I went into his office, sat down, and looked at the floor. Then he said the last thing I expected to hear:"

    Kevin, I've heard you've been behaving really well lately. I want you to know how proud I am of you, and I just called you down to my office to give you a peppermint."

    "Really?" I was surprised.

    "Yes. Now you can take that peppermint and go back to class."

    I carried the peppermint with me as if it was a gold coin. When I got into my classroom, I bragged(吹嘘)to my classmates about my turnaround, excitedly. I wasn't so bad after all.

    Mr. Ratcliff was really kind. He made me realize that I was just a kid who had problems with behavior. He bought some peppermints and took the time to notice me when I got something-anything-right. Mr. Ratcliff gave me some hope by giving me some love. I will just remember him for the rest of my life.