"Look here, Watson," Holmes said after we finished lunch. "Please sit down. I want to talk to you. I don't know what to do, and your advice is important to me. You smoke your cigar (雪茄烟) while I explain."

    "Please continue," I said, as I lit my cigar.

    "Now there're a few important points in young James' story. One, his father cries Coo-ee before he sees him. Two, he talks about a rat (老鼠). I think young James is telling the truth (真相)."

    "So why did Mr. McCarthy shout Coo-ee then?"

    "Well, he was not shouting Coo-ee to his son. It was by chance that James heard. The Coo-ee was to call the person he was meeting. But Coo-ee is an Australian cry, Australians usually say it when they meet to catch attention. Perhaps Mr. McCarthy was meeting someone from Australia."

    "I see. But why did he talk about a rat, then?" I asked.

Holmes took a piece of paper from his pocket and put it on the table.

    "This is a map of Australia," he said. He put his hand over part of the map. "Now, Watson, what can you read there?" he asked me.

    "ARAT," I read.

    "And now?" Holmes moved his hand.

    "BALLARAT," I read.

    "Yes. That was the word the dead man said. It's a place called Ballarat. His son only heard the 'rat' part of the word. Old Mr. McCarthy was trying to say where his murderer was from, the town of Ballarat. The grey cloak is point No. 3. If James is telling the truth, there was a grey cloak (斗篷). So now we have an Australian from Ballarat with a grey cloak."

    "Great!" I replied.

    "And it's someone who lives nearby, as the Boscombe Pool isn't open to the public. Only people from the farm nearby or the Turner house can go there," said Holmes.

    "That's wonderful, Holmes!" I exclaimed.

No one knows when the first kite was made. The first record of a kite was more than 2,000 years ago in China. Han Xin, the leader of an army, wanted to bring down a king. He decided to dig a tunnel (隧道) into the king's palace. He flew a kite over the wall of the palace to make sure the length of its string (线). In this way, he could determine how long the tunnel should be. His men in the tunnel took the kite string with them. When they reached the end of the string, they knew to dig up.

  Kites have been flown in Japan for hundreds of years. In the 1700s, kites were flown in autumn to give thanks for a good harvest. They were also flown to send good wishes to couples who had their first son. Today in Japan, kites are often flown as part of a celebration, such as the beginning of a new year. And kite festivals are held each year in many parts of the country.

  Kites have been used for scientific purposes in the western world. In 1752, Benjamin Franklin tied a key to a kite and flew it in a storm to find out that lightening was a form of electricity. In the 1890s, Lawrence Hargrave invented the box kite to test ideas about flight. From 1898 until 1933, the United States Weather Bureau (气象局) used box kites to collect weather data. The Wright brothers also experimented (试验)with kites. What they learnt helped them make the first airplane flight in 1903.

    Reading Oliver James' Affluenza, I thought about what often happens at home. My 12-year-old daughter is in tears. "I have to take a test tomorrow. I don't understand any of it, "she cries out. After shouting and shutting her door, she calms down enough to go through her notes. The following day I ask her how the test went and she just says "OK, I got a nine".

    "Wow. Well done!" I say, before she finishes with "But I never get a ten!"

    According to James, this obsession with getting top marks has been a bad development, which encourages people to think of education in terms of work and money. To test this, I asked my daughter why she was so worried about her tests. She looked at me as if I was thick. "Well, if I don't get good grades, I won't be able to afford nice things like a car and stuff."

    I was quite surprised, because I don't consider myself a pushy parent. But James suggests and it leaves students feeling failures even if they are very bright. He points to the Danish system (体制) of education as a better model. Creating happy citizens who have good social skills is seen as more important than high achievements at school or the needs of business.

    For me, I cannot remember the last time I had to work out the area of a circle, recite a Shakespeare poem or grammar rules, yet I have lived a happy life. What I really needed to learn at school was how to make polite conversations, or how to avoid getting into debt or how to develop good personality.

    This is in fact similar to what Oliver James really has in mind. And he is looking for schools where students are encouraged to find and follow their own interests, something more like Tongjon.  Tongjon has been developed in some Korean private schools. It is quite different from the more rigid system of learning things by heart that is used in Korea, and indeed in many other school systems around the world.

    As the Russian poet Pushkin said," Inspiration(灵感)is needed in geometry(几何学)just as much as in poetry", and inspiration does not come from endlessly revising for tests or getting worried about them.

I'm a teacup at an antique (古董) store. With the pretty look and strong body, I'm 1 . Many people want to buy me. 

2 , I haven't always been a teacup. Once I was just a piece of 3 . A man took me and rolled (翻滚) me over and over. I said, "Don't do that. I dislike it!"

But he only said with a smile, "Not yet!" Then, WHAM! I was put on a machine and turned around and around. " 4 it! I'm feeling sick," I shouted. But the man still said, "Not yet."

Later the man put me in the oven. I never felt such 5 . When I thought I couldn't 6 it another minute, the door opened. The man carefully took me out and put me on a shelf (架子), and I 7 to cool. Oh, that felt so good! After I cooled, he started brushing me. The paint smelled so terrible that I asked him to give up. He only shook his head and said, "Not yet!" An hour later he handed me a 8 and said, "Look at yourself." I did that, and I was greatly 9 . "That's not me! It's so beautiful!" I shouted. 

"The process was 10 , but if I hadn't done that, you would never meet the best of you. Now you're not common clay, but a great product," the man said.

Dear Jenny, 

How are you these days?

You shared with me about your favourite subjects in your last letter. I like English too. I think it is interesting and useful. You also like Maths, but I am not good at it. I think it is too difficult. Maybe you can help me with it next time. 

Our classes are over at 4:30 p. m. and I can get home at 5:00 p. m. , but I seldom go home after class because I take part in different activities. On Monday afternoon, I have a violin lesson for an hour. On Tuesday and Friday afternoon, I go to the Reading Club with my friends. We talk about the books and the writers, and we enjoy it so much. On Thursday, I go to the Chess Club. I often play chess for about an hour. What is more, we have a school field trip every term. We often visit a farm. We can learn how to grow different kinds of crops (作物) and pick fruit. It is great fun. 

On Saturday, I don't have classes. I often practice singing in an art school. I like singing and I can sing better now. I usually go to the park with my friends or have a rest on Sunday. I am busy every day, but I enjoy my life very much. 

Yours, 

Alice