Did you ever notice your shadow at different times of the day? Shadows change as the day goes on.

    In the morning the sun makes long shadows. In the middle of the day, the sun seems to be right over your head and your shadow is very, very small. As the sun goes down in the afternoon, shadows grow very long again. But the long afternoon shadows fall in a different direction from the long morning shadows.

    Long, long ago people told time by the shadows. Put a piece of paper in the sunlight. Stand a pencil in a spool in the middle of the paper. The shadow of the pencil will fall on the paper and move as the day goes on. Use a watch and every hour marks the place where the shadow falls. Now your paper is a sundial（通过太阳辨别时间的日规）and you can tell every sunny day. Just look at your paper sundial and see where the shadow falls.

    Nowadays, a new method is used to decide who are the top students in school. The best students are those who not only get high marks, but also follow the rules and the behavior standards for middle school students. Here are some of the new rules and standards.

    Tell the truth. Have you ever copied someone else's work in an exam? If you have, then don't do it again! That's not something an honest student should do. If you have played computer games for two hours in your room, don't tell your parents you were doing your homework.

    Learn to be loving and caring. Good students love animals and care about other people.

    Learn to work together with others. It would be more fun when more people work together. Did you quarrel(争吵) with your teammates when your basketball team lost? Only working together can make your team stronger. Be friendly to the people you are with. Try to think of others, instead of only yourself.

    Be open to new ideas. Have you ever thought that people could live on the moon? Perhaps you'll discover Earth II some day. Don't look down upon new ideas. Everyone's ideas are important. You should welcome them, because new ideas make life better for everyone.

    Use the Internet carefully. The Internet can be very useful for your study. Some websites on the Internet are not for kids, so make sure to visit the web pages that are good for you. You can use the web for fun or homework. Can't you find any good websites for children?

    The morning of March 2, 2012, was a busy one for the students in Mrs. Goodknight's class in Henryville, Indiana. There was morning meeting with poems to read, jokes to share, and tests to prepare for. "It was just an ordinary day," says student Lyric Darling, 12.

    At noon, while students played basketball under a sunny sky, a huge tornado (龙卷风) was forming 50 miles away. Around 2:25 p.m. 20 minutes before school was supposed to let out, a huge tornado touched down in Fredericksburg, 20 miles away. As word spread, parents rushed to the school. Teachers rushed to get kids onto buses or into waiting cars. By 2:45, the skies were darkening.

    "I was crying," says Lyric. "All around me, kids were crying." Two buses returned to the school with students whose parents had not been home. Teachers brought the kids to the office, where they all took cover under desks. Suddenly the power went out. And then the tornado attacked the school, filled with wood and trees and glass. The tornado was over the school for less than one minute. In that time, it almost completely destroyed the school. Teachers were about to lead the group out of the office when a second tornado was upon them. When it finally ended, the group made its way out of the building.

    Over the next few hours, parents arrived, overjoyed to find their children. The next day, it was clear: All of Henryville's people were safe.

    There were so many sad and frightening stories. Some students saw the tornado with their own eyes. Some lost their homes. But many described how the community (社区) came together to help and support each other. "You learn what's important," Mrs. Goodknight says.

    I must have looked deep in thought, or as deep in thought as an 11-year-old man can, when my grandmother glanced up from her weeding to ask, “You have something on your mind, don't you?”

    “Yes, I was thinking that someday I want to be an Olympic speed skating champion like my hero, Eric Haiden, I want to be a doctor like my parents and I want to help children in Africa.”

    I immediately knew I had confided in the right person when a knowing smile broke across her face. “Johann, of course! You can do anything you want to do!” she said simply. And with my grandmother's support, I set out to pursue my passions.

    14 years later, I was well ready to take hold of my first dream: becoming an Olympic champion. The Olympics in 1994 were in my home country, Norway. As I entered the Olympic stadium, I wasn't the best athlete, and many had doubts about my ability to perform well. But I had something special working for me. I had a woman in the first row who believed in me following my passions just as much as I did. For the first time ever, my grandmother was going to see me skate.

    It happened. Breaking a world record, I won the gold.

    As I stood on the podium(领奖台) that I had dreamed about my entire life, a curious question popped into my head. Why me? Why did I win, given all the other incredible competitors out there? The reason had to be more than a grandmother who shared a belief in her grandson's dream. The question led me to only one answer: because I wanted to make a difference in the world, and with all the media attention on my success, I could.

    I immediately knew what that difference had to be: hope in the lives of the children in Africa. Six months earlier, I'd been invited to Eritrea as an ambassador for Olympic Aid.

    "I will need to open your neck to remove the tumor," the surgeon told me on a hot summer day. The words turned into white noise. "So, an ugly scar across my neck, then?" I asked. The nurse said: "Don't worry. The closure is like his signature. Just like you want a perfect scar, he wants to give you one. You'll barely see it." I found some comfort in that.

    I googled "cancer surgery scar" and was presented with neck images: necks with red and purple lines, closed with stitches or glue; necks with multiple scars....It was enough to make me shut my Macbook, as anxiety pulsed through my body. In the mirror, I admired my neck, running my finger across a gold chain I wore. Then a tiny voice said:" Mummy!"

    My then fie-year-old son. Jack, appeared in the mirror behind me. Our reflection was a big reality check. See, my son didn't know I had cancer and was having surgery. I'm a single mom. Jack lives with me and doesn't have a relationship with his father. I'm his hero. I'm the homework helper, nurse, chef, taxi driver, and every other variation of parent. I knew I couldn't lose heart over cancer or some scar on my neck --I'm this kid's life!

    So I did the next best thing I could think of: I made an appointment to get my hair done a few days before the first surgery. My goal was simple: golden hair to frame my scar. If I couldn't hide it, I might as well show it off. I never had any intentions of hiding the scar. I didn't want my son to think my scar was something to be ashamed of. I'm his role model and I needed to set a good example. Bad things can happen, but it's how you deal with them that matters.

    The scar proves I faced my fear and won. If I got through that I can get through all the hardships, land on my feet and live boldly.

There are various ways in which to read body language so that you can understand how someone is feeling.

Reading emotional clues (线索)is one of them.

Crying is considered to be caused by an explosion of emotion in most cultures.Often times crying is considered a sign of sadness,but crying can also be an expression of happiness.Crying can also come about through laughter and humor.Thus,when judging crying,you'll need to look for other signs to determine the meaning of the crying.Crying can also be forced in order to gain sympathy or to cheat others.This practice is known as "crocodile tears",an expression that draws on the wrong idea that crocodiles"cry" when catching prey(猎物).

Signs of threat include v-shaped eye brows, wide eyes, and an open or down-turned mouth.In a similar way, arm tightly crossed over the other is a common sign that the person is angry and is closing himself off to you.

When people show anxiety, they display increased facial movements, and their mouth made into a thin line.

Individuals who are anxious may also play with their hands, unable keep them in one spot.Anxiety can also or have nervous legs.It can be conveyed when people seemingly unconsciously(无意识地)tap their feet or have nervous legs.

Embarrassment can be expressed by turning the eyes or shifting them away.If someone looks down at the floor a lot,they are probably shy,afraid,or embarrassed.People also tend to look down when they are upset,or trying to hide something emotional.People are often thinking and feeling unpleasant emotions when they are in the process of staring at the ground.

There are also some signs of pride.People show pride by displaying a small smile,holding their head backward,and putting their hands on their hips.