Traditional Chinese opera is finding new life in a different art form. More than100 primary school teachers came to a training course to pass on the art to schoolchildren. After learning Chinese opera-themed (戏剧题材的) cartoons, they are now confident that they can spark (激发) children's interest.

    These school teachers proved to be quick learners in Chinese opera. They are practising a classic piece of Yueju Opera, a major branch of the Chinese opera family.

    Fang Tingting, the performer of Shanghai Yueju Opera Troupe, said, "I was actually nervous about teaching them, because I thought they may not be interested. But their passion (热情) swept away my worries. I think they will do well in helping Chinese opera."

Cartoons naturally attract the attention of children. Introducing Chinese opera to them in this way proved to be great.

    Liu Hui,a school teacher, said, "The children are really interested in the cartoons. As teachers, we give them some directions and they start to copy something from the opera."

    The teachers also believed this digital method really builds a bridge between the children and this traditional art form. And it really helps them learn the rich culture of China. They are glad to be trained here to take on this task.

    It was a sunny morning. A poor(贫穷的) young man with1 right hand came to Mrs. Brown's door. He asked her for some2.

Mrs. Brown3, "You see, young man. There are some bricks(砖头) behind my house. If you help me4 them to the front, I'll pay you twenty dollars."

    "Can't you see that I lost my right hand?5 can I do it?" The old lady smiled, put one of her hands behind her body6 then picked up one brick with7. Seeing this, the young man didn't say a word and started to work right away.

    After he did the work, the young man8 with the money from Mrs. Brown and he looked a little different.

    Two years later, the young man came again with some gifts. "Thank you for9 that day. I know you didn't need me to do the work. You just wanted to make me feel better. I learnt that I could make money by working hard, too. And now I have a pancake store and a beautiful wife."

    Think10 and you will make your life better.

From the Other Side

Lara and Tara are twins. They look like each other, but they are very different in everything else. For example, hot food is Lara's favorite, and Tara has a sweet choice.

However, this isn't the problem with the twin girls. They always argues that the opposite one was wrong. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}, while Tara thought mornings were fresh and it was difficult to stay up till midnight.

{#blank#}2{#/blank#} To put an end to their fights, their parents decided to create a small drama. They wanted the girls to understand that they were both correct from their own point of view. Their parents covered the girl's eyes with black ribbons (带、条), and brought them to the dining room. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} Lara was asked to stand on one side of the board and Tara on the other. They couldn't see the other side of it. When the ribbons were taken away, they were surprised to see a huge board between them.

Now, their father asked Lara, "What's the color of the board?" She replied, "It's black!" {#blank#}4{#/blank#} She replied, "It's white!" The two girls began to argue again. While Lara was confident it was black, Tara was sure it was white. Then, they were asked to exchange (交换) their places. They couldn't believe their eyes. Tara, who insisted (坚持) it was a white board, saw a black one. Similarly, Lara, who argued the board was black, was surprised to see a white one. They understood that each of them was right in her own view. Most of us are like Lara and Tara. We are right most times, but insist that others are wrong!

    Not many years ago, a wealthy and rather strange old man named Johnson lived alone in a village in the south of England. He had made a lot of money in trading with foreign countries. When he was 75, he gave ￡12,000 to the village school to buy land and equipment for a children's playground.

As a result of his kindness, many people came to visit him. Among them was a newspaperman. During their talk, Johnson remarked that he was 75 and expected to live to be 100, and the newspaperman asked him how he managed to be healthy at 75. Johnson had a sense of humor. He liked whisky and drank some each day. "I have an injection (注射) in my neck each evening", he told the newspaperman, thinking of his evening glass of whisky.

The newspaperman did not understand what Johnson meant. In his newspaper he reported that Johnson was 75 and had a daily injection in his neck. Within a week, Johnson received thousands of letters from all over Britain, asking him for the secret of his daily injection.

Taking Root.

How many kinds of plants are there in the world? Lucy Braun wondered that as a child. She showed great interest in plants at a young age. She often had energetic walks with her family through the nearby woods. Some plants and wildflowers seemed to shout at her with their wildcolours. Others hid behind rocks.

Lucy looked at the shapes of leaves as she walked in the woods. She kept a record of what she saw. She also learnt to draw what she saw. Then she could compare all kinds of plants. Later, Lucy grew more and more interested in botany, the study of plants.

Branching Out

At university, Lucy took classes in geology, or the study of rocks and minerals. Her work with geologists changed how she looked at the natural world. She continued her studies in botany as well. Lucy also took classes in ecology (生态学). Lucy believed that plant life in some are as was able to move to other places over time.

In Full Bloom

In 1917, Lucy began to teach botany at a university. She lived in a house near the woods. Lucy collected plants from all around the country. She took many photos of them, too. Colour photography was still new then. Because of that, people enjoyed her lessons and photos a lot.

The    ▲     of Labour (劳动)

Later in her life, Lucy wrote many field guides. In 1950, she published her most important guide. It describes the plants in the forests across the country. Ecologists still use it to study changes in the forests over time.

Today, Lucy has a few plants named after her. One of them is Lucy Braun's snakeroot, which is now in danger. Lucy's work in the protection of nature may help prevent its disappearance.

Lucy Braun lived to be 81. In her years as a botanist, Lucy collected nearly 12,000 plants!