You may think that English dictionaries have been used for many, many centuries. The spelling of English has always been a problem, but it was more of a problem in the days before a dictionary. In those days people spelt words in different ways which you might find interesting. But it made reading English much more difficult. So dictionaries were invented to encourage everybody to spell the same. In fact, an English dictionary like the kind you use today wasn't made until the time of the Qing Dynasty.

    The largest dictionary in the world is the Oxford English Dictionary, or OED for short. The idea for this dictionary came from an important meeting in Britain in 1857. Twenty-two years later, Oxford University asked James Murray to be the editor of its new dictionary.

    Murray had not been to college. At the age of fourteen, he left his village school in Scotland and taught himself while working in a bank. Later he became a great teacher. After Oxford gave him the job, Murray had a place built in the garden behind his house to do his work. Part of it was one metre underground. In winter he had to wear a heavy coat and put his feet in a box to keep warm. Every morning, Murray got out of bed at five o'clock and worked several hours before breakfast. Often he would work by candle light into the evening.

    Murray hoped to finish the new dictionary in ten years. But after five years, he was still adding words for the letter A! Then others went to work with Murray, and his two daughters were among them. He worked on the dictionary until he was very old. Forty-four years later, in 1928, other editors finished it. It had more than 15,000 words in twelve books. And you thought your English dictionary was big!

Dear daughter,

    You are a wonderful person and your mother and I love you. It will not be long before you leave school to make your way in the world. Can I give you some friendly advice? Here are some things that you should never do.

    Never get upset with your look.

    We think you look great. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Eat well, take exercise and be healthy. Some girls worry too much about not getting the perfect shape. You look fine.

    Never put yourself at serious risk.

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#} And sometimes you have to avoid things that look like they might be fun, like smoking.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    You are great and able to achieve great things, so believe in yourself. When things go badly, never stop believing. Some girls get upset, doubt themselves and lose confidence. Then many problems can follow.

    Never give less than your best.

We are very proud of what you have achieved. You should be proud, too.     {#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    Never forget that your parents love you.

    Whatever happens in life, your family will still be your family. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} We are here for you and we will try to help.

Love,

Dad

    ⒈ Hello, I'm a girl. My name is Alice Miller. I'm seven. Here is my photo.

    ⒉ Hi, my name is Bob Brown. This is a photo of my family. My father, my mother, my sister Gina and I are in the photo. How happy we are!

    ⒊ Hi, my name is Mike Smith. Here is a photo of my family. And these are my parents.

Linda is our new classmate. She is a left-behind(留守的) child. Her parents 1 in another city. She lives 2 her grandparents.

It's November 8th and it is Linda's thirteenth 3 . My classmates and I want to have a 4 for her. In the morning, we decorate(装饰) the 5 with some beautiful paper and balloons(气球). Judy and I buy a 6 birthday cake for her, so everyone can have a taste(品尝). On the cake, there 7 a red flower. The party begins 8 9:30. Tony lights the candles, and then we 9 the song Happy Birthday to You to her. Linda is very happy.

After 10 the cake, we dance and play games in the classroom. All of us have a good time.

2024年，国家主席习近平授予巴依卡•凯力迪别克"人民卫士"国家荣誉称号。

Bayika Kalidibek is 72 years old and he lives in Xinjiang. In 1972, he took over his father's position and worked as a border patrolman (护边员).

Being a border patrolman is hard. The border area has high mountains and difficult roads. Bayika got hurt (受伤) many times during patrols. He faced many problems, but he never gave up. He said, "Protecting the border is a job for all of us, not just the country's."

In 2004, his son Laqini started to work as a border patrolman. Unluckily, he gave up his life when he saved (拯救) a boy from a cold river in 

2021. He was only 41 at that time. "I'm really sad, but I'm proud (自豪的) of him," Bayika said. "Our family has protected the border for more than 70 years. We will pass down our family's tradition from one generation (一代人) to the next."

Bayika's story is touching. We should learn from the old man.