根据短文内容回答下列问题。

    Camping in your backyard is full of fun, whatever your age is. It's great for keeping us relaxed. It offers chances to check the night sky and to be noisier than usual. It lets us have friends over to stay who might not fit inside the house! Follow these instructions and you'll have a night you'll never forget!

    Put up your tent.

    Depending on the number of family members and guests, you may need more than one tent. Tell your friends to bring their tents if needed. Follow the instructions or check out the articles on how to put up a tent on the Internet.

    Prepare your bedding.

    You'll want your guests to be able to relax in comfort. Put something soft to lie on on the floor: A blow-up air mattress or thick comforters may work well. Fill the tent with soft toys and blankets(毯子). Have lightweight sleeping bags or cotton blankets. They are especially important if you live where the night temperatures drop greatly.

    Prepare a seating area.

    If you have a picnic table, that would work best. If not, set up a few chairs and a small table to set out drinks and food. A simple choice is to lay out a blanket in the sun, so that your friends can eat and talk. Be sure the grass isn't wet!

    Make memories.

    Plan some activities. You're camping in the backyard, so it's time to make the most of being outdoors.

    Have a camera nearby to take silly photos of you, your family members, and your friends. Take one large group shot with everyone smiling and laughing. Be sure to make copies for everyone!

    California is one of the richest states in America．It has a large amount of land．And it also has more people than any other states．It has plenty of natural resources （资源），too．

    But everything （A）_______ not perfect there．California has two major problems：earthquakes and forest fires．

    The San Andreas Fault runs through California．（B）As a result of it，the state gets many earthquakes．（C） 其中一些地震非常强烈 For example，there was a strong earthquake in San Francisco in 1906．It destroyed many buildings．And it started a large number of fires．（D）More than 3，000 people died after it ． There have also been many other strong earthquakes．Some people fear that the"big （E）one"will hit someday．They think an earthquake will cause a huge amount of damage （破坏）．

    During summer and autumn，much of California is dry．So forest fires，or wildfires，often start．Those fires can spread （F）rapidly ． They burn many forest．But they can also burn people's homes and buildings．They often kill people．（G）_______ firefighters can put them out．

    I'm David．Not long after I started my college course(课程)，I began to look for some work experience．It was a busy course，but I had a free day each week．I wanted to do all I could to make myself employable(具备受雇条件的)．Like many students，I was worried about leaving college with no job to go to．And this encouraged me to go out and look for placements(实习职位)．

    I had several different placements．I decided I wouldn't let any opportunities(机会)go．I quickly realized that me way to impress possible employers

is to show them，that you are ready to work hard．Employers don't want someone who just does what they are asked and makes tea．What's more．I took every placement I was offered even if it didn't have to do with my course．

Among the things I did was to work at a radio station and at a newspaper．I think it's been more useful than just reading books．You do need to study，of course，but college doesn't teach you everything．I have much more confidence(信心)now．I'm ready to deal with anything．While I was working at the radio station，I met a lot of interesting people and they helped me a lot．Some of them may help me find work in the future．I certainly advise getting some work experience while you're in school．

    The lifestyle of families has changed because of science and industry（工业）.

    More Americans used to live on farms, nearly each family had many children. In a farm family, parents and their children often lived with grandparents. Uncles and aunties often lived nearby, too. But when industry became more important than agriculture（农业）in American life, families became smaller, industry needs lots of workers. They must be ready and able to move off the land and move again whenever necessary. It isn't easier for large families to move from place to place as small families can. Today, more and more small families have appeared, smaller families may have no children and they may have only a man and a woman because keeping children is really hard work. It takes parents not only money and time, but also much more energy and makes young couples（夫妇）busy working, studying and enjoying their lives all day. They are probably not important in keeping children.

    That's why the increasing of population in most developed countries are becoming more and more slowly, In China today, each family has only one healthy child because of one-child policy.

    In this way, the country can develop farther than before and young children can have more opportunities to get education and to find suitable jobs.

    The Old Man and the Sea is a short novel written by the American author Ernest Hemingway in 1951 in Cuba. It tells the story of a fight between an aging fisherman and a giant marlin (枪鱼). The novel opens with the fisherman, Santiago, who has gone 84 days without catching a fish. He is so unlucky that his young apprentice (徒弟), Manolin, hasn't been allowed by his parents to sail with the old man. On the 85th day, Santiago sets out by himself, far onto the Gulf Stream. He sets his lines and by noon, a big marlin takes his bait (鱼饵). After three days' struggle with the fish, Santiago manages to tie the marlin to the side of his boat. While Santiago sails back to the shore, sharks are attracted to the blood left by the marlin in the water. Though Santiago makes a great effort, they have almost eaten up the marlin. Santiago knows that he is defeated (打败) and tells the sharks of how they have killed his dreams. Once home, he is so tired that he goes straight to bed and falls into a deep sleep. Manolin feels much worried. The next day he brings him newspapers and coffee. When the old man wakes, they promise to fish together once again. The old man doesn't feel well and also coughs up blood a few times towards the end of the story. Readers think that the story is about man's fight against the natural world. In the story, Santiago and the marlin show similar qualities of pride, honour, and bravery, and both have to obey the same natural law—they must kill or be killed.

    The novel has received so much praise and is considered to be one of Hemingway's most famous works. It was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1953 and the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1954.

    Each year, many Chinese people go abroad because of all kinds of reasons. They are becoming younger and younger year by year. Even some Chinese parents send their children to foreign countries when they are only in a middle school. They think their children can get a wider view, less academic(学业的) competition or family honor. But life can be hard for young people there. At first, they have to face the cultural differences and language problems. However, these are not always the most difficult things to overcome(克服).To most children, controlling (管理)themselves well is a big challenge when they are studying alone in a strange country. Yu Yang, a 15-year-old student from Guangdong Province studies in a high school in Toronto, Canada. ⑶To his surprise, his teachers there seldom push students to study hard. And usually there isn't too much homework .Students have lots of free time to do some activities. Some of his friends spend their whole year's money in the first two months of the new term. So they have to ask their parents for some more money. On the one hand, studying abroad can help students learn foreign languages quickly and open up their eyes, but on the other hand, some children may feel lonely, become bad, lose themselves, etc. Many problems may happen to them. These are different from their original thoughts. ⑷So parents should think them over before their children go abroad.