Adam Braun set up the organization(组织) Pencils of Promise in2008. Its goal is to make sure all children have a chance for education. Six years later , the non-profit organization is building a new school somewhere every 90 hours.It has helped more than 22.000 children in Africa,Asia and Latin America.

 It all started when Adam Braun was a college student. He was visiting India when a boy stopped him and asked for money on the street, Mr. Braun asked the boy what he would want, if he could have anying in the world.

“I thought the answer was going to be  'a house' or 'a car' or 'a boat'.His answer was 'a pencil'.So I gave him my pencil and he was just happy and excited . I  realized he never had been to school before ,and that was the reality(现实) for 57 million children around the world. " Braun said.

 Adam Braun started working in finance(金融) after he graduated from college, But he never forgot the boy and the problem he realized.

“We live in a world in which every child can have a chance to get a good education ,because we have everything necessary already.We are able to educate every child .  So I promised to help create that world .” Braun said.

  Mr Braun raised money for his project. He paid for building the first Pencils of Promise school,in Laos, five years ago. Since then ,his organization has helped pay for more than 200 schools in the countryside of Laos,Nicaragua,Guatemala and Ghana.

    Mr and Mrs Smith have two sons and two daughters. They're Tom,Jack,Sally and Mary. They're quadruplets(四胞胎), so their birthday is on the same day—July 22nd.

    It's their fourteenth birthday today. Their parents buy some things for them:four cakes, two T-shirts and two skirts. The four cakes are the same, and one cake is 15 dollars. The two T-shirts are the same,too. They are yellow and 35 dollars for one. The price of the two skirts is the same and one skirt is 60 dollars. But their colors are not the same. Sally likes blue and Mary likes green, so the blue skirt is for Sally and the green one is for Mary.

    Marco Polo was born in Italy in 1254. When he was 17, he travelled along the Silk Road with his father, who wanted to trade with the Chinese. Finally, they arrived in Beijing. They were guests at the Emperor's Palace Marco was very clever and could speak four languages. The Emperor was impressed by him and they became friends. He asked Marco to serve in his court (宫殿) and sent him to do many important jobs all over the country.

    Marco was amazed by how beautiful China was. He was impressed by Beijing and the Emperor's Palace, especial the Summer Palace which was described as "The greatest palace that I've ever seen". The walls were covered with gold and silver and the hall was so big that it could easily hold 6,000 people for dinner.

    Marco was also attracted (吸引) by the inventions and developments in China which couldn't be found in Europe at that time. Marco was surprised to see Chinese people using paper money in the markets. In Europe, people paid for goods(货物) with gold and silver. He could not understand how people paid for food and valuable things with paper! He was also puzzled by the black stones people used to burn to produce heat. The black stones were coal, but Marco had never seen coal before!

    After he served the Emperor for 17 years, in 1291, Marco returned to Italy. He was a very wealthy man then. A writer wrote down all the stories that Marco told him in a book called The Description of the World, which became one of the best-selling books in Europe.

    People enjoyed the book, but many of them thought that Marcos stories about China were too fantastic to be true. However, Marco always stood by his tales. Just before he died, aged 70, Marco was asked the question, “Was it all true?” And this was his answer, “I have only told a half what I saw!”

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    It's Wednesday afternoon. School is over. The students are putting their books, pencil-boxes into their school bags. The teacher comes in and says to the students, "Don't go, children. ⑴我有事情要告诉你们. Listen to me. Tomorrow is Thursday. ⑵明天早上九点我们学校有一个家长会(parents meeting). ⑶Here are your school reports and letters to your parents. Take them home. Give your parents letters and show them your school reports. ⑷Ask them to come to the meeting.  If your parents are working in the other place now, let your aunt or uncle come, please. Because I'm going to say something about next term. ⑸Ask them to come on time. "

    This teenager can be a good boy and his mum's very happy with him

{#blank#}1{#/blank#} He goes to school, does his homework, meets his friends and enjoys playing sports. But between 5: 30 and 6: 30 from Monday to Friday, Tom does something different. He cooks dinner for all the family: mum, dad, younger brother Joe and elder sister Emma.

    "{#blank#}2{#/blank#} Maths and English are important, of course, but they need other skill to help them in today's world. First I taught Tom how to cook easy meals like pizza or egg and chips. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} Yesterday he made vegetable soup. It was good!

    We all liked it very much. "Toms mum says

    "I love cooking and I think I'm really good at it.{#blank#}4{#/blank#} I don't know why, it isn't difficult and it's great fun! "Tom says

    In the past, Tom didn't help out at home and his mum wasn't pleased with him.{#blank#}5{#/blank#}

    Because of the high price of housing, many of us are living in smaller spaces than we'd like. However, living in small spaces is not that bad. It has some advantages.

    {#blank#}1{#/blank#} It can take thousands of dollars to make a large space look better. Small spaces, however, make decorating simpler and more affordable. Instead of many pieces of large, expensive furniture, you only need a few to make your style. You'll have plenty of money left for other things.

    They're easier to clean. This must be one of your favorite things about living in a small space. The bigger the space is, the longer it takes to tidy up. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}That's why small spaces are welcomed by those who like being surrounded by cleanliness and don't want to spend much time and energy in keeping them that way.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} It takes a lot to pay for heating, cooling and electricity, which can also cost much energy. When you compare the electricity bill of someone living in 500 square feet with that of someone living in 3, 000 square feet. the difference can be great, We use less energy and produce less waste when we live in small spaces. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    They're easier to show your own style. Have you ever walked into a large home that feels more like a museum than the small home of someone you know? It's usually not the most familiar or welcoming atmosphere. Actually, you want your home to show your personal style. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}

A. They're cheaper to decorate.

B. No one wants to spend hours just cleaning.

C. So it also does good to our beloved Mother Nature.

D. They're money-saving and environmentally friendly.

E. It is much easier to decorate a small home in your own style.