In April this year, lots of bags full of small change(零钱) were seen at bus stops in Tianjin. They were made for passengers to turn their notes into small change. And such an idea came from four students from Zhongbei Middle School, Tianjin.

    "People will surely feel worried when they take a bus without coins. We just want to do something to help them," said Wang Yongcun, 15, one of the four students.

    The four boys spent their whole weekend making the change bags. After that they went to see the number of the passengers at each bus stop near their school, and then chose the top six stops to put the bags.

    Many people think that the four boys have really done a good job. But, things didn't go as the boys thought. Two days later, they found that the money was gone, and that even the bags were taken. It really made them sad but they would not give up. Their classmates and teachers came to help them in time. They put their pocket money in bags again. And the teachers also taught them to make better change bags. They tried their best to do it.

    The four boys feel very happy because they have done something good for the passengers. Their warm hearts are moving. More and more people are beginning to join in the activity.

    My name is Paul. My parents and I live in a small house in the forest(森林). There are many trees around our house. A lot of animals live in the forest. Sometimes we can see cute deer(鹿) near our house. Deer are my favorite animal. I also like birds. They always sing happily in the trees. There is a lake behind our house. The water is very clean. I often swim in the lake in summer. My father likes fishing in the lake. My mother is good at cooking, so we often have delicious fish to eat. My pet cat Angela can enjoy a big fish dinner often.

    Look at this. What's this in English, do you know? Ah, it's a photo. Who's that in the photo? It's Li Yan. Li Yan is my good friend. She is a beautiful girl. Who's that? The boy in black? It's Jim. He is an English boy. He is very cool. He is my friend, too. We are all in Class 3,Grade 7. I like Jim and Li Yan.

    Marco Polo was born in Italy in 1254. When he was 17, he travelled across Europe and Asia with his father, who wanted to do trade with the Chinese. Finally they arrived in Beijing. They were guests at the Emperor^ Palace. Although Marco Polo was young, he was very clever and could speak some foreign languages. The Emperor was impressed by him. He asked Marco Polo to serve in his court (宫廷) and sent him to do many important tasks across the country.

    Marco Polo was amazed by the beautiful China. He was impressed by Beijing and the Emperor's Palace, especially the Summer Palace which he described as "The greatest palace that ever was..." The walls were covered with gold and silver and the hall was so large that it could easily seat 6,000 people for dinner.

    There were inventions and developments in China which were not used in Europe at that time. He was puzzled (困惑的) by the black stones people used to bum to produce heat. The black stones were coal, but Marco Polo had never seen coal before!

In 1295, after 17 years of service to the Emperor, Marco Polo returned to Italy. He was then a very wealthy man. A writer wrote down the stories that Marco Polo told him in a book called The Travels of Marco Polo.

    Although people enjoyed reading the book, many of them thought that Marco Polo's stories about China were too fantastic to be true. But Marco Polo always stood by his tales. Just before he died in 1324, Marco Polo was asked the question, "Were they all true?" And this was his answer, "I have only told half of what I saw!"

    When I was about 12, I had an enemy, a girl who liked to point out my shortcomings (缺点). Sometimes she said I was thin. Sometimes she said I was lazy. Sometimes she said I wasn't a good student. Sometimes she said I talked too much, and so on. I tried to put up with (忍受) her as long as I could. At last, I became very angry. I ran to my father with tears in my eyes.

    He listened to me quietly, and then he asked, "Are the things she said true or not? Mary, didn't you ever wonder what you're really like? Go and make a list of everything she said and mark the points that are true. Pay no attention to the other things she said."

    I did as he told me and to my surprise, I discovered that about half the things were true.

    I brought the list back to my dad. He refused to take it. "That's just for you," he said. "You know better than anyone else the truth about yourself. When something said about you is true, you'll find it will be helpful to you. Don't shut your ears. Listen to them all, but hear the truth and do what you think is right."

    Many years have passed. The situation often appears in my mind. In our life we often meet with some trouble and we often go to someone and ask for advice. For some advice you will treasure (珍惜) all your life!