Have you ever planned a trip to Europe? What should you consider before you travel? First of all, it is important to think about money. It can be difficult to (A)estimate how much you will spend. (B)A wallet that is lost or stolen can also cause problems.

    Experienced travelers would learn about the money they will use in a foreign country. Most  European countries now use the euro(欧元). So you should know the different value between the euro and the money you use in your own country. We call it exchange rate(汇率). This rate changes every day. You can find out the exchange rate through a bank or the Internet.

It is not wise to carry a large amount of cash(现金). Many travelers prefer to carry travelers' checks(支票) rather than bring cash. (C)They can be used in many places around the world and they can be exchanged for the local money. (D)It is possible to get them back if they are lost or stolen. Travelers can also use bankcards instead of cash. But they must be careful and make sure not to lose them and to keep their passwords secret.

    When it comes to the letter grade on your test or homework, you might notice that there is no letter E. Have you ever thought about why that is so?

    In the A, B, C, D and F grading system, the first four letters are typically considered passing grades. An F in this system simply stands for“fail”.The word“fail”happens to start with the letter F, which seems to leave out the letter E. The fact”．Some schools have U grade for“unsatisfactory”,or I grade for “incomplete”.

    Even with all this said, we should also point out that E grade actually has been used pretty commonly throughout the history of letter grades in the US.

    The first college in the US to use a letter grading system like the ones we use today is Mount Holyoke College. In 1897, they began to use the following grading scale:

A: 95-100%(excellent)       B: 85-94%(good)      C: 76-84%(fair)

D: 75%(barely passed)       E: below 75%(failed)

    We can see the inclusion of E instead of F.

    Gradually,the letter grading system became more popular throughout the US. However, many schools decided to drop the E grade and go straight to F.There is no evidence(证据) to really support this, but one possible explanation is that teachers were worried that some students and parents might mistake E for “excellent”.

    Why do we have letter grades? Well, part of the reason is that they made grading simpler during a time of great change for schools. As the 20th century began,growing cities and an increase in immigration led to larger school classrooms. Most teachers at that time thought this new letter grading system was an easy, fair and clear way to grade students.

    Today, more and more people argue that letter grades don't fully reflect(反映) student learning. However，as teachers try to improve grading methods, many parents continue to favor the letter grades they got as kids, they are familiar(熟悉) and easy for parents to understand. So while they might not be perfect, the letter grades probably aren't going away any time soon.

    Last week, I had a great vacation to Hainan with my family. We had great fun playing in different places. On Monday, the weather was sunny and hot. We went to White Beach and swam in the water. On Tuesday, it was cloudy. We visited two museums. We saw a lot of things. On Wednesday and Thursday, It was rainy and windy. We walked around the city. We bought interesting things and ate some delicious food. On Friday, the weather was cool. We climbed mountains. We were very tired but felt very happy. I really enjoyed my vacation.

Alkane，Canada

I think that having a big family is a really good thing. I come from a small family. I only have one brother. He doesn't want to play with me，so I always like the idea of having a big family. I want to have more brothers and sisters. 

Jeyong，South Korea

There are six people in my family: my parents，two sisters，a younger brother and me. When we are all together（一起），we have great fun. We talk and eat delicious food together. I'm never（从不） lonely. So I think big families are great. 

Simon，Canada

I think a small family is better. If you are the only child in the family like me，you' ll get all your parents' love. They do everything for you. But if you live in a family of eight children，you have to share（分享） everything with the other seven children: your parents' love，your toys and even your clothes. 

Robots can help us in many ways. And Topeliffe Primary School is doing something new by helping autistic（患自闭症的）children through robot friends. These robots can dance，play games and tell stories. They can do Tai Chi as well!

Dr Guldberg，a teacher from University of Birmingham，said，"Studies show that autistic children often feel safe with computers and robots. So we wonder how robots can help the children to communicate with others. For example，robots can act as their friends and listen to them at school. "

Ian Lowe，a teacher from Topcliffe Primary School，teaches about 30 autistic children. He said，"The robots are very smart at helping autistic children with their learning. In the future we hope they can help with learning at home. "

And the students love them. Seven﹣year﹣old Joshua says he likes playing games with the robots. Daniel and Kevin say they like to watch the robots dancing. And Stephen says he likes Robert Max when it tells him stories. 

In a way，the robots are helpful for these autistic children to express（表达）their ideas.