My house is made of wood, glass and stone. It is also made of software.

    If you come to visit, you'll probably be surprised when you come in. Someone will give you an electronic PIN to wear. This PIN tells the house who and where you are. The house uses this information to give you what you need. When it's dark outside, the PIN turns on the lights nearest you, and then turns them off as you walk away from them. Music moves with you too. If the house knows your favorite music, it plays it. The music seems to be everywhere, but in fact other people in the house hear different music or no music. If you get a telephone call, only the nearest telephone rings.

    Of course, you are also able to tell the house if you want something. There is a home control console (控制台), a small machine that turns things on and off around you.

    The PIN and the console are new ideas, but they are in fact like many things we have today. If you want to go to a movie, you need a ticket. If I give you my car keys, you can use my car. The car works for you because you have the keys. My house works for you because you wear the PIN or hold the console.

    I believe that several years from now on, most new homes will have the systems that I've put in my house. The systems will probably be even bigger and better than the ones I've put in today.

    I like to try new ideas. I know that some of my ideas will work better than others. But I hope that one day I will stop thinking of these systems as new, and ask myself instead, “How did I live without them?”

    I am a little lion. My name is Nancy. I have a big head. I'm yellow. But my favorite colour is green. I like living in the forest. I like to eat little animals. But I live in the zoo now. I don't like the zoo. I get up in the cage（笼子） in the morning. I have breakfast, lunch and dinner in the cage. I go to bed in the cage in the evening, too. People watch me every day. Some boys hit（打） me with stones（石头）. I don't like them. They are not my friends. I can't go out. I want to go back to my friends in the forest. I want to live with them.

Not everyone is born smart or good at sports. But everyone can study to become smarter and train to get better at sports. Science shows that anyone can get better skills.

Your brain is made up of billions of neurons（神经元）. They are all connected and send messages to each other. Scientists have found that when we learn, neurons make new connections and old connections grow stronger. But if connections aren't used, they will break down. So learning is like exercise for your brain.

A mindset is a way of thinking. Some people have a fixed mindset. They think they are either smart or stupid and they will stay that way forever. Other people have a growth mindset and they think they can learn and get better.

According to Dr. Carol Deck's studies, people with a fixed mindset worry about grades. They're afraid of looking stupid when they make mistakes and try to find different ways of solving problems. They ask for help when necessary. In only two years, babies learn to walk, talk and feed themselves. They never worry about looking stupid when learning. If they make mistakes, they just try again.

Deck's team discovered that kids can choose to have a growth mindset. They can do better in school. So notice what mindset you have. If you ever think yourself stupid, it's not true. You just have not learned how to do something yet.

Why Learning a New Language Is Good for the Whole Family？

Ever thought of making language learning part of your family's activities？Learning a new language together can have unexpected emotional benefits for the whole family.

Combining （兼顾） family time and language learning time is a great way to have more quality time with your family.Learning a new language as a family can be a fun group activity.Everyone loves a game night or movie night.You can play games like Bingo，using vocabulary from the target language.Or maybe you have a particular vacation destination （目的地）（常规） and reconnect with those you love.

Language is all about communication and connection.Learning a new language brings family members closer because they talk to each other all the time when learning.All you have to do is change to your new language and practice with your family members whenever you want — no classroom needed.Telling family stories with what you have recently learned is a good place to start，which could inspire questions and additional conversations，and even create a familect—secret words and phrases shared only among the members of your family.

If your family is big on gardening，make labels （标签） together for your plants and tools.Making fun labels in your target language together can also help you connect with loved family members.It opens up more opportunities like family contests.You could surprise each other with notes on pillows，inside dresser drawers — any place your family will find them.Using these words later recalls these family memories.

Each family is really its own little unique social world，and that world is being built through language.The power of language learning lies in its ability to draw people together.

As a student, you may be required to write reviews.{#blank#}1{#/blank#} Writer Luisa Plaja offers her suggestions on how to write a good review of a book. 

Start with a couple of sentences describing what the book is about. As a common rule, try to avoid writing in detail(细节) about anything that happens from about the middle of the book. If the book is part of a series(系列), it can be useful to talk about this. 

{#blank#}2{#/blank#} Pay attention to your thoughts and feelings about the story and the way it was told. You could try answering a couple of the following questions:

Who was your favourite role, and why?

What was your favourite part of the book, and why?

Did the book make you laugh or cry?

Did the story keep you turning the pages?

Talk about anything you disliked about the book.{#blank#}3{#/blank#} For example: Did you wish the ending wouldn't be magic because you found it surprising? Did you find it difficult to care about a main character, and did you know why? Did the story focus on a topic you aren't interested in?

{#blank#}4{#/blank#} Summarise (总结) some of your thoughts on the book by suggesting the type of readers you'd introduce the book to. For example: younger readers, older readers, fans of relationship drama, mystery stories or comedy. 

Write a title for the text (not more than 5 words). {#blank#}5{#/blank#}

 Do you like music? If you do, you can go to Harbin, a music city(城市) in China.

 In Harbin, you can see people playing music everywhere. They are in the park, in the street and in the music center. Some people play the violin, some people play the guitar and some people play the erhu.

____ But when they go to Harbin Music Museum, they' ll find it's also a music city. In the museum, people can watch great music shows. Some musicians in the shows play the violin and the piano. Some musicians(音乐家) in the shows play Chinese traditional instruments, like the erhu and the gehu. They show the stories of Chinese and Western (西方的) music to people together.

 People in Harbin are also good at singing and dancing. Many singers and musicians from other countries go to Harbin and live there. They sing, dance and play music with the people in Harbin.A lot of Chinese musicians go to Harbin, too. And lots of students also go there to learn music. These music lovers make Harhin a music city.

Do you know Harbin Summer Music Concert? The 36th Harbin Summer Music Concert opened (开幕) on August 6th,2023. It lasted (持续)42 days. In fact, there is Harbin Summer Music Concert for people every two years. Do you love it? Why not go to Harbin?