There once lived a rich businessman who had a lazy son. The businessman wanted his son to realize the value of labor.

    One day, he told his son, "Today, I want you to earn something. If you fail, you won't have your meal tonight."

    The boy didn't want to find a job, so he asked his mother for help. She gave him a gold coin. In the evening, when the father asked his son what he had earned, the son showed him the gold coin. The father then asked him to throw it into the well (水井). The son did as he was told.

    The father guessed that the gold was from the boy's mother. The next day, he sent his wife to her parents' home and asked his son to earn something. Since no one helped him, the son had to go to the market to look for a job. A shopkeeper told him that he would pay him a coin if he carried heavy tools for him. The son accepted. As he returned home and gave the coin to his father, he was asked to throw it into the well. The boy cried, "Dad! My body is aching. I'm tired. How are you asking me to throw my hard-carned coin into a well?"

    The businessman smiled. He told his son that one feels pain only when the fruits of labor are wasted. The son realized the value of hard work. He promised not to be lazy any more.

    "We only had one recess (课间休息) today!" a girl from Connecticut said sadly to her mom. The mother, Lucy Dathan wishes her daughter had more recess time. "It helps kids build relationships and be creative thinkers," Dathan is working to pass a state bill(议案). The bill would require at least 50 minutes of recess every day.

    Advantages of recess

    There was a report about recess in 2017. It said that playtime encourages kids to be active. It can build healthy bodies. It also helps kids make friendships. Last year, the state started requiring two recess periods a day. Most U.S. schools offer 27 minutes. But some schools offer none at all.

    Powerful Voices

    At least six states have laws that require primary schools to provide recess. Other states are considering the same thing. Kids can help. In Arkansas, they asked lawmakers to consider a state bill. This bill requires 40 minutes of recess. Izzy Kopsky is one of those kids. Playing with his friends is his favorite part of recess, but he felt like he didn't have enough time to do that. He spoke in front of lawmakers and told them that more recess time could help students pay attention in class. The governor of Arkansas signed the state's recess bill on April 1st.He likes the kids' efforts. "Young people can have a powerful voice."

    Test Case

    Many schools have to make sure students do well on state tests. That's why some schools have shorter recess. It makes more time for class. But cutting back on recess may not be the right choice. Recess can improve a child's memory and focus.

Betty and Jenny are inParis now. They {#blank#}1{#/blank#}(到达)there byplane the day before yesterday. Her aunt met them at the {#blank#}2{#/blank#} (机场). They were very {#blank#}3{#/blank#} (疲劳的) so they relaxed at home and began their {#blank#}4{#/blank#} (旅行) of the city yesterday.

They went to theLouvre Museum yesterday. It has many {#blank#}5{#/blank#} (举世闻名的) works of art. In the evening they had dinner in a Frenchrestaurant. The food was delicious. They took a walk this morning. There wereshops and restaurants everywhere, and they loved the street {#blank#}6{#/blank#} (市场). They sold good fruit and vegetables. They also did some shoppingand they {#blank#}7{#/blank#}(买) some presents. They took the {#blank#}8{#/blank#} (地铁) to the Eiffel Tower in the afternoon. They went to the top. They {#blank#}9{#/blank#} (等候) till all the lights were on. It was {#blank#}10{#/blank#} (如此)wonderful that they liked it very much.

Two Canadian teenagers, Faiz and Leo, have been taking on a series of wonderful challenges. Their most recent achievement was following the Lake Ontario coastline for 73 kilometers, walking from Toronto to Hamilton, Canada, in about 18 hours.

"We enjoy trying new things that are good for our bodies and minds. We like to overcome challenges like these. And we feel going on a long walk seems to be the purest form of challenge that you can have," Leo said.

With very little preparation, the two 16-year-olds began their journey at 6 am, starting in darkness and finishing before midnight. They took several breaks, stopping at benches with nice views along the way.

On their walk, one of the interesting things they came across was a cargo ship (货船) which was no longer used. "You' d be surprised by the things that you don't see when you' re driving and that you will see when you' re taking your time walking," said Leo.

However, the journey was not only a trial (考验) for bodies but also an important test of minds. There were moments of loneliness for the pair, requiring them to support each other along the way.

Around 70 km into the walk, they ran into a person on a bridge who appeared to be experiencing something painful.

"I wasn't sure what was going to happen me and Leo, we tried to talk him out of it and ended up calling the police, and the situation was eased and everyone was OK," Faiz said.

The walk is now long over but Faiz and Leo are not done challenging themselves, with plans to start a two-day 100 km walk in the near future.