Andrew Holleman, a 12-year-old boy, loved playing in the open land near his home. The land was wet and forested, and made a home for birds, other animals and many different plants. It made the perfect place for him to study and get to know the nature. He had seen some red-tail hawks, red foxes, wood turtles and other animals. He also found special native flowers.

      Suddenly it was announced that the “empty” land would be improved by a lot of houses on it. The plants would be removed, the animals would run away and most would probably die. Then the wet soil(土壤) would be covered with extra grounds. When he heard about the news, he was not happy. He was very worried that the land and water would be polluted.

      Andrew wrote down clearly all the research he had done about the area, and how the houses would affect the local environment. He sent letters to members of local government and television reporters. He also called on his neighbors to oppose the building of the houses.

Although he was only 12 years old, he had the courage and wisdom of a person much older. Andrew's teachers described him as gentle, shy and active. His classmates also admired how much he knew about local animals and plants and the environment. Each day after school, Andrew went door-to-door, to ask the people to sign, who did not want the houses to be built. In only one month, he got the signatures of 250 people. In the end, the land remained a safe place for birds, animals and plants that belonged there.

      Andrew won many prizes for his brave and great work to stop the houses being built, and thus help save the environment.

    Samantha (her husband， John， called her Sam) left the doctor's house looking perfect， satisfied with her appearance.

    The year was 1862. It seemed that the war with the North would never come to an end. Sam's father had left as soon as possible， fighting for their land， for their new government， for the South.

    At last， Samantha reached the house that she and John owned. It was a cold， rainy night， and she was glad to be home. She stepped into the sitting room. John sat in an armchair， reading a book. When he saw her， he put the book down， and stood， reaching his arms out for her. They kissed briefly. He put a hand to her now slightly round belly(肚子) and asked， “What did the doctor say?”

    “He said the baby was fine and that I seemed healthy. Do you have any news?”

    “Surprisingly， yes.” John hesitated for a moment， as if deciding how he would stop what he was about to say， and then unwillingly continued， “I've been required to join the army.”

    Sam screamed， “What?” She was near tears. “But-but we're just starting out.” Her voice shook. “I thought that after two years of begging my mother to let the two of us get married that our life would finally be happy. Isn't there any way you can get out of this?”

    John answered， “I'm afraid not.”

        “Please. Please， John， if you love me， please get out of this. Break a leg or do something.” She began to cry. John comforted her， resting her head on his shoulder.

    “Sam.”

    “What?”

    “Name the child after me； name it John or Joanna. I'll come back as soon as I can. I promise.”

    Sam smiled， knowing that John never broke a promise. She put her hand to her belly， and， unknown to her， the baby was a girl.

    And unknown to both of them， the promise that John had just made would be the only promise he would ever break.

    My name is Alan. I'm 12. I am English. My English teacher is Ms. Green, Her daughter is Helen. She is 13. Helen and I are good friends. This is Helen's school ID card. Its number is A-207789. My school ID card number is A-308828. I lost my school ID card this morning. I must find it. If you find it, please call me at 031—5655. You can e mail me at alan@163.com, too.

At the beginning of the school year, each student would be given a special job for which they would be responsible (负责任的) for the whole term. Rita, a quiet and hardworking girl, hoped for an exciting task, like taking care of the class plants. Instead, she received a small box with sand and a small ant. 

Even though the teacher explained that this task was very special, Rita could not help feeling disappointed. However, she decided to do her best with her new job. She began to study and care for the ant, learning about its habitat (栖息地) and needs. She made the box a comfortable home for the ant, and it grew much bigger than anyone expected. 

Rita's efforts caught the attention of her science teacher, Mr. Thompson. He turned her work into a class project, and Rita became the class expert (专家) on ants. Her hard work helped the whole class learn about ant behavior and habitats. They even built a small ant farm in the classroom to observe the ant closely. 

Gradually, Rita's classmates became more and more interested in the ant project. They started asking her questions and observing the ant's behavior themselves. Rita organized a presentation where she shared her findings with the whole school during the science fair. 

At the end of the year, Rita's class was recognized as the best of the year. Rita was as well praised for her hard work and how she turned a small task into something big. Rita learned that every task, no matter how small, could make a big difference. She also learned that sometimes the most unexpected things can lead to great success.

Peggy used to say very little with others. But that all changed when her family moved to a new house.

When they got there, she found 1 old book outside their house. To 2 surprise, the book shone(发光) in the dark. "How strange! What is the book 3 ?" she asked her parents, but they had no idea.

That night, she started reading the book with her pet dog beside her. But she could hardly understand it. Just then, her dog started speaking, "4 interesting book you've found!" She couldn't believe it, 5 the dog continued telling her all kinds of interesting things. After some time, she asked, "So how can you be talking?" "I don't know." said the dog.

Peggy 6 to find out the truth. So she showed the book to some other animals. All of them started talking with her 7 a friendly way, telling her some pretty interesting stories.

During the next several days, Peggy was having fun with her new friends. However, one day, the book disappeared and so did the "voices of the animals". She 8 looked everywhere, but she couldn't find 9 the book was.

When she returned to school again, Peggy was surprised 10 most of her schoolmates special. Little by little, she started talking more to them. And now she has got more friends than anyone else in school.