How would you use a radio or a telephone if you had no electricity or batteries? This1bothered(使烦恼) British inventor Trevor Baylis. He2 a wind-up(装有发条的) radio. It doesn't need electricity or batteries. You wind it up3hand. It plays for about an hour. Then, you wind it up4.

Later, Baylis invented a mobile phone that is by5. The shoes contain (含有) a small battery that is powered when you6This battery is connected to a mobile phone. These two simple inventions can bring modern7to all parts of the world.

    Baylis doesn't have a university degree in engineering. In8, he left high school before graduating(毕业). He just loves9things to help people. He never knows10ideas will come to him. The idea for the phone came to him in a dream.

Dear sister,

I've been happy here in New York. But when holidays are coming near, I really feel "There's no place like home", just like the English proverb says, "East, west, home is the b{#blank#}1{#/blank#}."

You must be doing well in English class. The letter you sent to me was written in good English.

Well, I want to i{#blank#}2{#/blank#} my friend Diana to our home. I dare not tell Mama directly. If Dad and Mum say that will be all right, please write to me as soon as possible.

Diana is a poor girl whose parents died last month in a terrible accident. She has to spend the holidays alone. She wants to see China and try e{#blank#}3{#/blank#} that we Chinese do. She p{#blank#}4{#/blank#} speaking Chinese for two years and can speak a little now. She has great curiosity about our family life and will ask you many questions about it. Isn't it a good chance to u{#blank#}5{#/blank#} each other? I'm sure you'll learn many things from her.

Please give my love to our father and mother!

Your sister,

Mei

Lifestyles of children around the world are very different.

In Colombia, family relationships are strong and children usually live close to their parents all their lives. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}Colombian children like to play chess. They play the game well.

Children in Sweden experience a different lifestyle. Their school day begins at 8:15 a.m. and most of them cycle to school. After school, many of them go to clubs or take part in sport until their parents pick them up. In the summer, days are long and nights are short. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}

Traditional opinions influence the lives of many children and this is also true in Japan. Japanese children today are surrounded by the very latest and most modern inventions and technologies. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} They are also expected to study hard and succeed in life.

The children of Uganda also enjoy parties and special days but these parties are organized for them by the "Save the Children Fund", rather than by their parents. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}Because of this, many children have lost one or both of their parents to the disease called AIDS. During the weekends, they join group meetings that are run by trained volunteers. These groups give children the chance to play with one another.

{#blank#}5{#/blank#} However, whatever their lifestyles, children should be loved and supported, especially during the early years of their lives.

Li Wen is a 15-year-old boy. He works hard and{#blank#}1{#/blank#}（do） well in school. It is hard to believe, that he used to have {#blank#}2{#/blank#}（difficulty） in school. When he was a little boy, he seldom caused any problems, and his family{#blank#}3{#/blank#} （spend） a lot of time together. 

{#blank#}4{#/blank#}, things began to change a few years ago. His parents moved to the city to work, and they could not be at home to look {#blank#}5{#/blank#} him. So he became less interested in {#blank#}6{#/blank#}（study） and was absent from classes. Then his parents were so worried{#blank#}7{#/blank#} they decided to send him to a boarding school. He found life there difficult. One day he told his teacher that he wanted to leave the school. His teacher advised his parents to talk with {#blank#}8{#/blank#}（they） son in person. This conversation changed his life. He realized that his parents would always love him, and they would be{#blank#}9{#/blank#}（pride） of everything good that he did. Now he is much {#blank#}10{#/blank#} （happy） and more outgoing than he used to be. 

Kiran Alwy, 13, went home with 10,000 dollars in prize money after winning on Food Network's Chopped Junior, a popular cooking show in the US.

On the show, Alwy made lemonade, Lobster tail（龙虾尾）and white chocolate macaroni （通心粉）and cheese into a lobster mac and cheese. She also made a beautiful salad topper. Her ability to improvise（即兴创作）helped make her a winner.

Learning to cook became important to Alwy after her parents got divorced（离婚）. "I kind of had to cook for myself. My mom can't really cook," Alwy said.

Alwy learned her kitchen skills from her father, Moid, and her grandmother, who taught her how to make traditional Pakistani dishes when she was 8. Her parents let her start using the stove while they watched her. Moid taught her how to correctly use a knife. Alwy would practice her skills by following recipe from meal kits.

"The kits helped me learn a few skills," Alwy said. "I also learned how to improvise according to different recipe because I saw what ingredients（食材）were in things. The important thing is having your own idea."

At her dad's house in St. Louds Park, Alwy would try cooking with whatever they had on hand. "If we had ground beef in the fridge, I knew how to make a dish quickly," she said.

Outside of the kitchen, Alwy has the busy life of a middle-schooler. She swims and plays the cello. She hangs out with friends, gets good grapes and watches TV—mostly cooking shows.