E.  Do you like the NIKE T-shirts?

C

    Shopping on the Internet is becoming more and more popular. Why do people use the Internet to shop? Some people say it is more convenient. They don't have to leave their homes to order something;    ①   ; they can find things for sale that they can't find in the stores near their homes.  ②   .

    If you want to buy something on the Internet, you need a credit(信用) card. You have to type your credit card number and information on the website and send them to the store over the Internet. You have to be sure that the store will not use your information in the wrong way. You don't want someone to get your credit card number, so be careful with it, because people sometimes steal credit card numbers from stores.

    The Internet is also a good place to go window-shopping. Window-shopping is when you look at the things for sale in a store, but don't plan to buy anything. In window-shopping you can see what kinds of things you are able to get and how much they cost. Some stores like Ross Stores have a website for information about their stores, but not for shopping. Some stores have a website for information about their stores, and can shop on-line there, such as Office Depot, Payless Shoe Source, Safeway. Some stores like Amazon. com are only for on-line shopping.

    When it comes to the letter grade on your test or homework, you might notice that there is no letter E. Have you ever thought about why that is so?

    In the A, B, C, D and F grading system, the first four letters are typically considered passing grades. An F in this system simply stands for“fail”.The word“fail”happens to start with the letter F, which seems to leave out the letter E. The fact”．Some schools have U grade for“unsatisfactory”,or I grade for “incomplete”.

    Even with all this said, we should also point out that E grade actually has been used pretty commonly throughout the history of letter grades in the US.

    The first college in the US to use a letter grading system like the ones we use today is Mount Holyoke College. In 1897, they began to use the following grading scale:

A: 95-100%(excellent)       B: 85-94%(good)      C: 76-84%(fair)

D: 75%(barely passed)       E: below 75%(failed)

    We can see the inclusion of E instead of F.

    Gradually,the letter grading system became more popular throughout the US. However, many schools decided to drop the E grade and go straight to F.There is no evidence(证据) to really support this, but one possible explanation is that teachers were worried that some students and parents might mistake E for “excellent”.

    Why do we have letter grades? Well, part of the reason is that they made grading simpler during a time of great change for schools. As the 20th century began,growing cities and an increase in immigration led to larger school classrooms. Most teachers at that time thought this new letter grading system was an easy, fair and clear way to grade students.

    Today, more and more people argue that letter grades don't fully reflect(反映) student learning. However，as teachers try to improve grading methods, many parents continue to favor the letter grades they got as kids, they are familiar(熟悉) and easy for parents to understand. So while they might not be perfect, the letter grades probably aren't going away any time soon.

    Ben was hoping for a video game for his birthday. There was also a board game he wanted. Finally, he wanted some comics.

    He got the board game and some comics, but what was in the last package? It was from his sister, Karen. He slowly unwrapped the package. It didn't feel like a video game.

    It was a purple sweater. Purple was his least favourite colour. He smiled and thanked Karen nicely, but he didn't want 'to wear that sweater. He couldn't wear purple!

    He quickly put the sweater away in his room. Then he ran off to play his new board game with his family.

    One day a few weeks later, Ben's mother asked him about the sweater. "Why don't you wear your purple sweater today?" she asked him. "Your sister made it just for you!"

    "I'm not cold," Ben said without thinking. That day he was cold all day.

    Then one day they were going out to dinner as a family. His mother asked him to wear the sweater again. "I don't want to wear it because I hate it," he quickly replied.

    "Ben," said his mother," I know it's not the nicest sweater in the world, but think about how important Karen is to you. You know she will be proud if you wear it just this once."

    Ben walked slowly to his room. He knew she was right. He wore the sweater to dinner.

    His sister smiled all night.

    Qinghai Lake is in the northeast of the Qinghai Tibet plateau(青藏高原). ⑴It's the highest inland (内陆的)salt lake in China. It's like a blue mirror shining between snowy mountains and grasslands.

    There are three small islands in the lake. They are the paradise(天堂)for birds. Every year, thousands of tourists come here to enjoy the beautiful scenery(风景).

    ⑵People are trying to protect the lake and the land which is around it. Blue sky, clear lakes green grasslands and snowy mountains are all our treasures. We must treat them as our eyes.

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