①Gamaham: The most difficult thing about learning English is to remember new words. I study the words and remember them, but a week later I have forgotten most of them. When reading something in English, I always get into trouble when I come across a new word. There must be a better way to learn new words. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} 

②Viekers: I have been studying English for so long now, and I don't enjoy it any more. I used to like it, but now I feel as if I'm not making any progress. I wish there was something I could do to make me interested in studying English again.  {#blank#}2{#/blank#} 

③Selina: I wish I could improve my spoken English. Every time I join in a group discussion or try to speak English to someone, I find it difficult to express myself. I don't know what to say and I can't think of the words I need. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} 

④Gina: I don't like English at all. Why do we have to study English? I'd rather spend more time on maths and science, because I think those subjects are more important. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} 

⑤Jim: I think it's easy to remember new grammar rules, but when writing something I always make a lot of mistakes. How can I learn to use the rules that I have learned? {#blank#}5{#/blank#} 

Some birthday customs are quite similar in many parts of the world—- birthday candles(蜡烛), birthday games, and birthday cakes. But some customs are more specific to certain countries. Here are some children talking about their customs.

Linda: I am fourteen. I come from Aruba阿鲁巴岛（拉丁美洲）（荷属安的列斯群岛中的大岛）. In our country, Children take something special to school for their classmates and all teachers. Each teacher gives the birthday child a small gift like a pencil, an eraser or a postcard. The birthday child is also allowed to wear special clothes instead of the school uniform.

Lucy: I am one year older than Linda. Denmark（丹麦） is my country. A flag is flown outside a window to show that someone who lives in that house is having a birthday. Presents are placed around the child's bed while they are sleeping so they will see them at once when they wake up.

Tom: I am as old as Linda. I am from Brazil. The birthday child receives a pull on the earlobe(耳垂) for each year in my country. The birthday person also gives the first slice of cake to his/her most special friend or relative, usually mom or dad.

    This is a train timetable. If you want to go to Shenyang, you should take Train {#blank#}1{#/blank#}. You have to spend {#blank#}2{#/blank#} hours on the train if you go to Shenyang from Beijing. If you want to go to Taiyuan from Chengdu, you can take the T8 train. The T8 train arrives in Taiyuan at {#blank#}3{#/blank#}.The Train T7 will take you to {#blank#}4{#/blank#} from 22:46 to 20:50. If you want to go to Beijing from Tianjin, you can take Train {#blank#}5{#/blank#}. It will take you 33 minutes.

    The digital(数字的)age has come into our life. In the USA, some teachers think digital search tools(工具)have had a good influence on the American teenagers, but others don't think so. More than 2,000 high school teachers took s survey on the Internet.

    75 percent of the teachers agreed the Internet and digital search tools have had a "mostly good" use for their students' research habits and skills. But 87 percent thought that these technologies" make the students not have enough attention." And 64 percent said the technologies "do little to help them in courses."

    Judy Buchanan is a director of the National Writing Project. Ms. Buchanan says digital search tools are helping students learn more, and lean faster. Teachers really like these tools because they are ways to make some of learning very exciting. Young people enjoy using these tools. And the goal is to help them do creative work, and not just that kind of copyist(模仿者，抄写员).

    But one problem is that many students don't have a good understanding of how to use the digital knowledge well. In other words, they trust too much of the information. Judy Buchanan says these students have not developed the skills they need to tell whether the information on the Internet is good or bad.

    Another problem is something that might not seem like a problem at all, being able to quickly find information from the Internet. Teachers say the ability of their students to work hard to find out answers is becoming weaker. They say students depend too much on search tools and do not make enough use of printed books.

    Besides, many teachers are also worried about the problem that the Internet makes it easy for students to copy work done by others, instead of using their own abilities.

The survey on whether digital tools {#blank#}1{#/blank#} American teenagers