It is Sunday afternoon. Mary goes shopping with her mother. Her mother wants to buy some food for supper. Mary wants to buy a T-shirt and some school things. They come to a shop.

     "What does your shop sell?" Mary asks. "A lot of things," the girl in the shop says. "You can buy food, drinks, clothes and school things in our shop."

    Mary and her mother go into the shop. There are many people in the shop. Mary finds a nice white T-shirt.

    "How much is the T-shirt?" Mary asks the girl in the shop.

    "It's eighty yuan."

    "That's too dear. Do you have a cheap one?"

    "What about the green one? It looks nice. And it's only thirty yuan."

    "OK, thanks a lot." "You are welcome."

    After that, Mary buys some school things too. Her mother buys a lot of food, like bread, cakes, meat and fish. They get home very late.

Feb. 17 should have been the start of the spring semester for many middle and primary schools in China. However, to control the spread of the COVID-19, many schools had delayed the start of the semester, following instructions from the Ministry of Education (MOE). But students in China were still studying.

Instead of having classes at school, many students in Beijing and Guangzhou began their first day of online classes on Feb 17. Students in Shanghai started online classes on March 2. "In the morning, I have English class, followed by Chinese and math, " Liu Bo, a Junior 3 student from Beijing, told Xinhua. "I have also learned about epidemic(流行病) prevention. "

According to the MOE, students were mainly taking classes to review previous knowledge rather than taking new classes during the online study period. Online courses were required to include contents about epidemic prevention, psychological health (心理健康) and educational activities (教育活动).

"Online courses are only temporary measures (暂时的措施) taken during the epidemic, so when the new semester begins, schools should not replace(替代) classroom teaching with online classes, " Lu Yugang from the ministry told China Daily.

The ministry also called on schools not to increase their students' schoolwork burden(负担). Schools should not ask students to study online for long periods of time or study things beyond( 超出) their curriculum(课程). Students must have enough time to rest, the ministry added. Also, it stressed that protecting students' eyesight must be a priority(优先).

I have three children, so our house is always noisy.1 , I love gardening （园艺） and my garden helps me relax. 

For a long time, the garden was full 2 peace. When the children followed me into the garden, I would give them jobs and expect3 to work quietly. "You 4 the onions. You dig the holes, and. . . " Soon they would be 5 , and they would leave the garden. 

But on a spring morning, 6 I was working in the garden, my 13-year-old son John noticed me. He 7 a tool （工具） and began helping me. Working as a team, we finished the job soon. I 8 John and enjoyed working with him. 

The same thing happened—one or two of the9 would often join in the gardening. Each time, I would feel 10 that the work was easier because of their help. 

One day, when I was picking the peas （豌豆） 11 , Abby saw me and ran over to help me. "Mom, it was so 12 . I want my brothers to try it. " Suddenly, I knew I had been wrong for a long time. I had tried to keep the 13 of gardening to myself, and here was a child who couldn't wait to share with others. 

"Sure, let's pick some. We'll make a 14 dinner. "

Now I enjoy all of the garden's beauties with the children. We bring the 15 back home and cook them together. We know that everything is better when we share it. 

Last month, we held an English Week at school. There were a lot of activities in it. It i{#blank#}1{#/blank#} English Book Fair, English Speaking Competition and English Play. Believe it or not? I acted as Snow White in an English play. In the beginning, I was very shy. I was not c{#blank#}2{#/blank#} on the stage. I spoke in a low voice. However, as the seven dwarfs (七个小矮人) sang and danced, I became relaxed. They were so f{#blank#}3{#/blank#} that the audience laughed again and again. Finally, we won the first p{#blank#}4{#/blank#}. We were so excited because we were the best!

The English Week provided us with a chance to i{#blank#}5{#/blank#} our English. Most of us are better at English than before. It's really cool!

A: I want to spend my holidays in Dalian. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

B: Yes, I have been there many times. 

A: {#blank#}2{#/blank#}

B: Yes, I like the city very much. She's becoming one of the most modern cities in the world. 

A: {#blank#}3{#/blank#}

B: The city is clean and beautiful. The people are kind and the football team is strong. 

A: {#blank#}4{#/blank#}

B: No, not very hot. You may have a swim in the sea. 

A: How cool!  Swimming in the sea must be more wonderful than in the lake. 

B: I'm sure you'll have a good time there. 

A: Would you please go with me?

B: {#blank#}5{#/blank#}

A: What a pity!

A small boy was trying to move a heavy wooden box out of his room. The box was much bigger than the boy. He tried his best to move it, but the box would not move at all. After resting for a short time, the boy tried to move it again. He pushed it with every muscle (肌肉) in his body, but he couldn't even move the box a little. He was very tired and upset (不安). 

The boy's father was coming home from work around this time. He stopped to watch his son's fruitless efforts (徒劳的努力). The father didn't help him, but instead (相反) asked, "Son, have you tried your best and are you doing everything you can?"

"Yes, I am!" the boy cried. "No, " his father said calmly (平静地), "you're not. You have not asked me to help you. "

Asking for help is not a weakness (弱点). At some point, even the best of us need help. It is important to know when to ask for help and understand why you need it. Never be afraid to ask other's for help when you're in trouble.