When Justin Tong was a child, other kids felt sorry for him. His parents always had him doing lots of housework such as carrying out the rubbish and sending newspapers. But when he grew up, he was better off than his childhood friends and lived a happier and healthier life.

This is the finding of a 40-year study that followed the lives of 456 children in London. It showed that the children who had worked hard in childhood had a richer and a happier future. "Children who worked in the home or community gained competence(能力) and came to feel they were worthwhile members of society," said Daniel Brown, the psychologist(心理学家) who made the discovery. "And because they felt good about themselves, others felt good about them."

Brown's study followed these children in great detail. Interviews were repeated at ages 25, 31 and 47. Under Brown, the researchers compared the children's mental-health scores with their childhood-activity scores. Points were awarded for part-time jobs, housework, effort in school, and ability to deal with problems.

    Working at any age is important. Childhood activities help a child develop responsibility, independence, confidence and competence — the underpinnings (基础) of emotional health. They also help him understand that people must cooperate and work toward common goals. The most competent adults are those who know how to do this.

    Yet work isn't everything. As Tolstoy once said, "One can live magnificently in this world if one knows how to work and how to love, to work for the person one loves and to love one's work."

Last night I was preparing for the coming examination when I heard loud noise from my neighbor's house. The 1went on and on. It was 2loud that I could hardly pay attention to my study any longer. So I went to my neighbor's house and knocked at the door. The young man looked3when he 4 me standing outside his door.

I said to him: "5, could you please turn down the TV? I'm preparing 6tomorrow's exam."7he heard these words, his face turned red. And he said politely, "I'm sorry to have made so much noise. Just now, the football game was very wonderful. I was too excited to control 8. I won't bother（打扰）you again. 9 in your coming exam." Then, he 10 the TV and continued to watch the game. After that, I got down to my study.

    My neighbor is a doctor. He and his wife are some of the1people I have ever met. A few years ago, we started this kind of "favor war" where one of us would do something kind for the other, such as2the driveway or building a shed, and next time the other would3to top it with another favor.

    Yesterday morning, it snowed heavily and I remembered he shoveled (铲) my driveway for me. So I took out my shovel and took care of both our driveways and sidewalks because it was my turn to do a favor4. It took a while but I finished it and got into my car for work.

That night I got a5on my door, it was my neighbor. He immediately shook my hands and thanked me for shoveling his driveway and sidewalk, so that he was able to get to work earlier and6a boy.

    "As soon as I started the car early this morning, a call came through that a young boy in our neighborhood was seriously ill.7, my partner and I were only about 2 minutes away, but the closest ambulance 10 minutes," added he. "A young boy got to live his life because you did me the favor."

    It wasn't too much8to shovel a driveway, but what I did got a young boy to see his family again, go back to school again and live his life again.9favor is too small. Even the smallest favor can make the biggest10. One favor will always be followed by another.

Many middle school students don't know how to spend their free time. When they have holidays, they always have nothing to do and feel bored. How can you spend a perfect holiday? Here are some suggestions(建议).

If you like to stay at home, you can do these things. First, you may listen to some light music which helps relax yourself after working for a long time. Second, you can play some indoor(室内的)games such as chess, cards, and able tennis. Third, you can also plant some trees and flowers in your garden to make your home beautiful. Finally, it is also a good way to keep a pet and talk with it. For example, you can chose to keep a dog.

If you don't like to stay at home, you can go for a picnic with your family or friends, take a walk with your parents in a park, or play some sports out of the house. Go out of the house, and you can take some fresh air and keep healthy.

Just have some hobbies(爱好)and you will feel happy during a long holiday.

In 2004, Zhang Guimei saw a girl sitting silently on the side of a road on a cold morning, with a broken basket at her side.

Zhang, a local high school teacher, asked what was wrong. The girl told Zhang that she wanted to go to school, but her family was too poor to afford it. Zhang went to the 14-year-old girl's home and advised her parents to allow their daughter to continue schooling. However, they finally refused her. Unable to help, Zhang left. With the teenager always on her mind, Zhang was trying to work out how to help the local girls.

She came up with the idea of building a girls-only high school where students wouldn't have to pay anything. In 2007, Zhang attended an important meeting. She spoke, through media, to the public about her long-hidden dream. With the support from the local government and warm-hearted people, Huaping Girls' High School was opened in 2008. On the first day of the new school year, 100 students entered the school, most of whom were from mountainous areas. Since she started the school, Zhang Guimei has visited more than 1,600 families, traveled more than110,000 kilometers, and walked to many places to encourage parents to send their daughters to school for more than 15 years, so the girls could improve their education to change their lives.

Thanks to Zhang's efforts to help the students improve their studies, many of them were able to get offers from universities. Zhang Guimei worked silently for years, helping more than 1,800 girls in poor mountainous areas realize their dreams.