A boy was sitting on the steps of a door one day. He had a stick in one hand,1in the other hand a large piece of bread and butter, which somebody had kindly given him. While he was eating it and singing a song happily, he saw a poor little dog quietly2not far from him. He called out to it, “Come here, poor dog!”

    Hearing this, the dog woke up, rose with its ears3and wagged its tail. Seeing the boy eating, it came near him. The boy held out to it a piece of his bread and butter. As the dog stretched out its head to take the4, the boy quickly drew back his hand and hit it5on the nose. The poor dog ran away,6loudly, while the cruel boy sat, laughing at the trick he had done.

    A gentleman, who was looking from a window on the other side of street, saw what the7boy had done. Opening the street door, he called him to8over, at the same time9up one dollar between the finger and thumb.

    “Would you like this?” said the gentleman.

    “Yes, if you10, sir,” said the boy, smiling, and he quickly ran over to seize the11.

    Just as the boy stretched out his hand, the gentleman hit12on the knee with an umbrella. “Why did you do that?” shouted the boy angrily. He made a very13face and cried, “I didn't hurt you, nor ask you for money.”

    “14did you hurt that poor dog just now?” said the gentleman. “It didn't hurt you, nor ask you for bread and butter. As you served it I have served you. Now, remember it can feel as well as you, and learn to behave15towards animals in future.”

    Mr. and Mrs. Brown are from America. They are now teaching English in Zhengzhou. Their son Jack is with them. Jack speaks English. They want him to learn some Chinese. Jack is in Grade Three in a Chinese school. He plays with Chinese children every day. He listens to Chinese, speaks(讲) Chinese, reads books in Chinese and writes in Chinese. He is doing well in his Chinese.

    How would you use a radio or a telephone ifyou had no electricity or batteries? These1bothered (使烦恼) British inventor Trevor Baylis. So in 1996 he2awind-up (装有发条的) radio. It doesn't need electricity orbatteries. You wind it up3hand. It plays for about an hour. Then,you wind it up4.

    Baylis also invented a mobile phone that ispowered by5. The shoes contain (含有) a small battery that is powered when you6.This battery is connected to a mobile phone. These two simple inventions canbring modern7to all parts of the world.

    Baylis didn't have a university degree inengineering. In8, he left high school before graduating(毕业). He just loved9thingsto help people. He never knew10ideas would come to him.The idea for the phone came to him in a dream.

I'm enjoying my staying in Canada. It is my first experience of studying abroad, and I am trying to 1  as much as possible. Classes here are much more fun and very different from classes in 2  . There are very few chances to practise 3  and listening in China, so although many Chinese students have good 4  , their speaking is not good. Studying English at Fern is much more practical. We actually 5  the language we are learning. I couldn't speak any English at all when I arrived here. 6 after about a month, the situation changed. Things started getting 7  and I made friends and started to settle in(安顿下来). I am really 8  to learn English here and Fern is a very good language school.

I have always wanted to have a sister. In my Canadian host family my dream has 9 . On the first day when I arrived, my host family welcomed 10  warmly. All the family members were 11  and helpful, and they made me feel at home at once.

My " 12 " , Joise, is very kind. She often explains their manners to me. Her mother explains ordinary things like housework. Together they 13  me to study and understand Canada. Joise told me a 14  . Last year, she met a Chinese student on a plane. She said she felt sorry 15 she did not say anything to the girl.

I'm happy to live in Canada. I think it will be an important experience in my life.

I took my 9-year-old daughter Susan and 5-year-old son Robbie, to the shopping centre. As we got there, we saw a big sign that said, "Petting Zoo". The kids jumped up and asked, "Daddy, can we go?"

Both my wife and I were out of work. However, I said, "Sure", giving them a quarter each. They went away, leaving only fifty cents left in my pocket.

A petting zoo is made up of a hundred of little baby animals of all kinds. Kids pay their money and stay in the enclosure (围场) pleased with the little animals while their parents shop.

A few minutes later, I saw Susan walking along behind me. I was surprised and asked what was wrong.

She said sadly, "Well, Daddy, a ticket for petting zoo costs fifty cents. So I gave Robbie my quarter." Then she said the most beautiful thing I ever heard. She repeated the family motto (座右铭), which is "Love is Action!"

I knew clearly no one loves little animals than Susan. She had watched both my wife and me do and say "Love is Action!" for years, and now she had put it into her lifestyle. It had become part of her, because she knew the whole family motto. It's not only "Love is Action"; it's "Love is SACRIFICIAL (牺牲的) Action!" Love always pays a price.

I was moved. We went back to the petting zoo. Susan stood with her hands and chin (下巴) resting on the fence and just watched Robbie go crazy petting and feeding the animals. I had fifty cents burning a hole in my pocket. I put my hand into my pocket and took out the money. Sure, I must do that!

①You want to go on holiday, but don't have enough money for luxury hotels and expensive trips? Backpacking might be right up your street. 

②Backpacking is a very cheap kind of travel. European and American students and young adults who may not have all that much money often do it. It is called backpacking because, instead of using a suitcase, people put all their things in a large backpack. A backpack sits on your back, and you pack all your clothes inside. 

③The most popular places for backpacking are Southeast Asia and South America. These countries aren't very expensive, and are also very hot for most of the year. India and Australia are also very popular. Last year over 400, 000 backpackers hit Australia. 

④Backpacking, in fact, is much more than a holiday—for young people in Europe, it is seen as a way of learning about the world. Backpackers often travel alone for many months, as this is seen as more of an adventure and challenge. Beyond finding new worlds, backpacking, people say, is all about "finding yourself".