21世纪阅读材料

A land of dreams准备好了？让我们直奔地球上最快乐的地方！

American has many beautiful places to see and fun things to do. But for children, the most exciting place is Disneyland Park. Not far from Hollywood, California, the west of US, the Disneyland Park attracts many children from all over the world every year. They like it so much they call it "The happiest place on earth”.

Walt Disney, the maker of Mickey Mouse, opened it in 1955. He wanted to give people the fairy (童话般的) world he dreamed (梦想) of when he was a small child. Disneyland has eight "lands" such as Fantasyland, Main Street, Tomorrowland, and Adventureland. Each has different shows and special things to do.

In Fantasyland, you will find places from Disney cartoons like "Sleeping Beauty" and "Snow White".

Main Street looks like a small town in the American West from the 19th century. Tomorrowland looks like the world of the future. Here you can join(加入) characters from "Star Wars?

Many children enjoy exciting rides in Adventureland. You can fly on an elephant, climb a mountain or float (漂流) on a jungle (从林) river.

Best of all, you can go to Mickey's Toontown to meet Mickey Mouse and his friends. They would all like to shake hands (握手) or dance with you!

Largest wild animal park

HOW many elephants can you see at your nearest zoo? One? Two? For the Kruger National Park, in northern South Africa, that's nothing.

Kruger was built in 1898. It's one of the world's best parks for wild(野生的) animals. It has 10,000 elephants, 2,000 lions and 100,000 antelopes(羚羊) in it. There are also lots of different fish, birds and plants.

The park is as large as 20,000 square kilometres (平方公里). It is 350 kilometres from east to west, and 60 kilometres from north to south. Last year, South Africa and its neighbours started to put Kruger and two other parks together. That will make it the world's largest park.

Travelling with wildlife

If you go to Kruger, you can move around by car. Elephants and lions will be very close to you! But don't worry. A guide (向导) goes with you. If there's danger, he can hel p you. He's also a good storyteller. He can not only tell you things about the animals you've seen, but also about the animals that are hiding from you.

You don't need to finish the trip in one day. Kruger has camps (营地) for you to stay in over night. Some visitors also go around on foot.

Fighting off illness

感冒、冻疮把人折磨得够呛。该怎样防治呢？

IF you don't keep yourself warm enough, winter can be a time of illness.

During the winter months, people easily get colds and flu(流感). Many think they are the same, but these two illnesses are different.

Colds can stay with you for up to a week. You will have a running nose, sore throat, headache, cough and a fever.

Flu is more serious. You will feel sick very quickly. You will have a fever and a headache. Your body will hurt and become weak. This could last for up to four weeks.

Is there any way to keep yourself away from colds and flu? Staying clear of people with colds or flu may work.

Try not to touch (触摸) your nose or eyes if you have been close to someone who has a cold. Wash your hands, especially after cleaning your nose.

Going out with wet hair can also give you a cold!

If you catch flu

If you catch a cold or flu, go to bed and rest. Doing this will help you get better. Drink lots of water. Stay in a warm, well-aired room. If you have a headache, or your muscles hurt, take some medicine.

Keeping warm

Once the temperature drops below zero, you must get yourself ready to stop frostbite (冻疮).

Parts of the skin may become too cold and die. This is called frostbite. Your fingers, toes, nose and ears get frostbitten very easily.

The longest time you can stay safely outdoors in the cold is 20 minutes. When you are outside, wear gloves (手套) and a warm hat.

But don't wear too many clothes. Make sure you don't wear anything too tight (紧的) so your blood (血液) can run freely around your body.

Also, make sure you're had enough rest, food and water before going out.

The best way to stop frostbite and being too cold is to stay inside!

Fun snow sports

又到了寒冷的季节，让我们去体验刺激的滑雪橇。

WINTER is a time for many exciting sports: sledding (雪橇), skating and skiing. Skating and skiing needs lots of skills (技巧). Sledding gives you good exercise and is lots of fun!

A sled looks like a boat. It can move easily over snow or ice. Early sleds were made of wood. Now some better sleds are made of glass.

Sleds can be pulled by animals. In some very cold parts of the world, people make animals like dogs, horses, and reindeer (驯鹿) pull goods or people in sleds. Moving sleds

People also sled for sports and fun. Driving a sled does not need much skill. The driver gives a kick (踢) in the snow to start the sled. He or she can also ask

someone else for help. In a sled, there can be one person or several.

Usually, you have to lie on your back, feet first in a sled. As you travel, you move your body and feet to keep it in the right direction (方向).

There is a special sled called the skeleton sled (骨架雪橇). It's very different.

On a skeleton, you lie on your stomach and drive the sled in a head-first way. It is very fast! Many are afraid to ride it. But once they try it they want to do it again!

Animal kingdom

走进迷人的澳大利亚，探访可爱的袋鼠和树袋熊。

AUSTRALIA has a lot of lovely animals. You cannot find them anywhere else in the world. The most famous ones are kangaroos (袋鼠) and koalas (树袋熊).

The kangaroo is the symbol of Australia. They have large eyes and ears. They don't walk, they jump. They use their strong back legs. They can jump at up to 74 kilometres per hour. They can go over nine metres in one jump!

Kangaroo mothers have pouches (育儿袋) to carry their babies. The babies stay inside to get milk and keep warm.

Kangaroos are everywhere in Australia. They are on TV, in books and in the shops. The government even wants to put them on passports (护照).

But did you know that millions of kangaroos are killed every year? There are too many of them.

There are about 20 to 25 million kangaroos in Australia. That's more than the number of people in the country!

Some kangaroos go hungry because there is not enough to eat. They break into farms for food. Farmers are very angry with them.

To help the farmers, the Australian Government kills some kangaroos each year. The koala is another famous Australian animal. They look like bears, and have small eyes and big noses. They eat leaves from gum trees (橡胶树), where they spend most of their time.

Koalas have a special smell. They use it to mark (标识) their home —"this is my place, you can't come in!"

Like kangaroos, a koala baby lives in its mother's pouch.

But koalas have fewer places to live. There are about 100,000 koalas in Australia. There is a law to keep them safe.

The city on the sea

威尼斯多么让人憧憬啊。可你知道吗？它也面临着覆没的危险。

A CITY without cars would be very strange, right? But Venice is such a city. Venice is in the northeast of Italy (意大利). It wasn't built on land, like Beijing or Shanghai, but on more than 110 islands. Seawater is everywhere around the city. Even so, travel isn't that difficult. The waterways have always been the best way to get around. There are 117 waterways and more than 400 bridges that can lead

(带领) you where you want to go.

People in Venice move from place to place by boat. They like to enjoy cool summer nights while taking boat trips. They can talk to other people as they go along.

Venice grew out of small islands in saltwater lakes when some Italians escaped (逃跑) from a war more than 1,500 years ago, and built homes there.

Water problem

Water makes the city special, but it is also a big problem.

Once, people used too much underground water. This made the city get lower, little by little. Now the city has gone down by 23 centimetres.

Every year, high waters hit the city in autumn and winter. When a lot of water comes, more than half of the city is under water.

Another problem is the rising seawater. The temperature has risen over the years. This has made arctic ice melt (融化).

Scientists are trying different ways to stop the city from getting even lower.

Changing rooms

假日里动手扮靓你的房间，让它也“大变脸”！

ARE you tired of your boring bedroom? Try to decorate (装扮) it yourself during the holidays. Use your imagination to change the way it looks.

Your room is your own special space. It's more than just a place for you to study and sleep. So make it fun and enjoyable to live in. Here are some tips to help you. Try to make it different. Give your room a theme (主题). Having a theme makes your room look more stylish and beautiful.

A room's theme can be different. It could be about one of your favorite things, like football or music or a colour. Pick a theme and keep it in mind, then decorate the room around the theme you have chosen.

For example, some boys like skateboarding(滑板). Paint the walls in skater stripes(条纹), and hang disco balls from the ceiling and use skateboards as shelves (架子). Build a skate ramp (斜坡) at the head of the bed, to make it look cool.

If you are a girl, you may be more interested in animals like dolphins (海豚). Pick curtains (窗帘) and bed covers with dolphin patterns on them. Put dolphin toys on your bed, too. Draw or paint pictures of dolphins playing on your walls. Make your room as blue as the sea. So when you walk into the room, you feel like it's a home for dolphins!

Do you want to change the way your room looks? Then decorate your room this holiday and show all your friends.

Wildlife braving the winter

天变凉了，候鸟成群结队跋山涉水，飞到南方去过冬天

IN China, children like to sing a lovely little nursery song that goes like this: "little swallow (燕子), wears bright clothes, and comes here every spring.

But, have you ever wondered where all the swallows go during the cold winter? Like many other animals, swallows will fly south when the days turn cold and the leaves from trees begin to fall. They travel many miles to find a warmer winter. This type of travel is called migration (迁徙).

Birds are animals that like to migrate a lot when it is cold. About 600 out of 9,000 kinds of birds do it. They leave in autumn and come back during the warm spring months.

Many birds don't like the cold. They need food, but plants die and insects (昆虫) hide in winter. So they'll only come home the next year when there will be plenty of food for them to eat.

But the trip is often hard and not safe. Many like to fly in groups and make noises. Cranes (鹤) fly in groups like the letter V, or in a line. Others travel in pairs or alone.

Some can travel a very long way. They fly between lands. For example, the Arctic tern (燕鸥) can travel 20,100 kilometres! They build a home near the North Pole (北极), go to the Antarctic (南极洲) in autumn, and then come back in spring! How do the birds find their way? They look at things like the sun, moon and stars. They never get lost.

It's not just birds that migrate. Animals like fish, butterflies and whales (鲸鱼) do it too. One kind of butterfly in America goes to Mexico.

Some of them don't move that far. Fish go to different waters. Some insects go deep into the ground.

They need food, but plants die and insects (昆虫) hide in winter. So, they'll only come home the next year, when there will be plenty of food for them to eat.

But the trip is often hard and not safe. Many birds fly in groups and make noises. Cranes(鹤) fly in groups like the letter V, or in a row. Others travel in pairs or alone.

Some can travel a very long way. They fly between lands. For example, the Arctic tern(北极燕鸥) can travel 20,100 kilometres. They build a home near the North Pole (北极), go to the Antarctic (南极洲) in autumn, and then come back in spring.

How do the birds find their way? They look at things like the sun, moon and stars. They never get lost.

It's not just birds that migrate. Animals like fish, butterflies and whales (鲸) do it, too. One kind of butterfly in America goes to Mexico.

Some of them don't move that far. Fish go to different waters. Some insects go deep into the ground.

Fun in cool seasons

你冻得不敢出门的时候，地球的另一端也在经历严冬吗？

COLD air. Snow. Shorter days. We are in winter now.

Winter is the coldest season of the year. It comes between autumn and spring. For us, the winter months are usually November, December and January. But that is only because we live in the northern part of the Earth.

In China, winter is the time between the beginning of winter(立冬), and the beginning of spring. But, this is the time that the southern part of the Earth, has its summer. Imagine(想象) when we are playing with snow, Australian kids are enjoying ice cream!

Winter isn't always gray. It can also be bright. Here's how.

Put on a holiday play and try acting. Ask your cousins or classmates to come to your house and make beautiful clothes and write a play. Act it out for your family.

Play around. Go outside and enjoy yourself. Make a snowman with your friends.

If you really have to stay indoors, give your room a clean and decorate (装饰) it. You'll find it a lot of fun.

The shortest day

THE shortest day and longest night of the year are in winter. We call it the winter solstice(冬至). December 21 was the solstice this year. It meant the days grew longer and the nights shorter.

Beautiful snowflakes

看空中的雪花多美！你知道是谁第一个把它的美丽定格在瞬间吗？

LOOK at the light and beautiful snowflakes (雪花) falling. Ever wanted to hold them in your hands? They are always lost when they meet your hands.

Well, this isn't just a problem for you. It was a problem for Wilson Bentley, too.

A quiet boy

In the 1870s, Wilson Bentley was just a teenager. His family lived in a small town in northeast America. Winters there were long and hard.

Bentley's mother was once a school teacher. She taught him at home. Bentley didn't go to school until he was 14. He was a quiet boy, and loved reading his mother's books.

But it was his mother's microscope (显微镜) that interested him. When the other

boys were playing with balls, little Bentley was studying things like drops of water, flowers and snowflakes.

Bentley loved watching snowflakes. For the next two years young Bentley spent many winter days in a cold room watching these ice crystals(晶体) under his microscope.

The boy thought they were so beautiful that he started to draw pictures of them. But there were so many snowflakes that he couldn't draw them all.

How could he keep their beauty forever? Bentley thought of buying a camera. The boy and his mother asked his father to buy one. But, his father didn't agree. He thought the whole thing was a bad idea. He thought the only thing a farmer should do was farming.

But finally Bentley did get a camera. For more than a year he tried to take pictures of snowflakes.

On January 15, 1885, during a snowstorm, Bentley took the first ever photo of an ice crystal with his camera.

"It was the greatest moment of my life," Bentley said later.

For 13 years, Bentley worked quietly and took thousands of photos of ice crystals. Later he became known as "Snowflake?Bentley.

Tale of Nian

从前有个凶恶的怪兽叫做“年”。为了对付它，人们想了很多很多的办法……CHINESE people call the Spring Festival 揘ian? But did you know that Nian was once the name of a terrible, scary monster (怪物)?

A long time ago, the monster Nian lived in the mountains. It looked like an ugly dragon (龙), and got angry easily.

Nian ate animals. But in winter, it could not find food. So it came to many villages and ate people. Nian could eat a lot of people at the same time!

People were very afraid of Nian. They had to lock their doors before evening during the winter.

One day, an old man came to a village. He was very wise (聪明的). He told people in the village that Nian was afraid of three things ?the colour red, fire and noise. He told people to play drums and gongs(铜锣), make big fires and set off fireworks. All these things would make Nian go away.

On a moonless, cold night, Nian went to the village again. The moment it opened its big mouth, people made loud noises and made fires. Nian was really scared (害怕的) and ran away. Wherever it went, there was noise and fire.

When Nian was tired and could not run anymore people killed the monster. Since then, on the coldest day of winter, people beat drums and gongs, and let off fireworks to celebrate (庆祝) the death of the monster Nian.

They put up red lanterns and eat and drink at big dinners without sleeping

during the night.

In the morning people greet each other happily. That is how the Spring Festival came into being.

The martial art spirit

去韩国学两招跆拳道飞腿功夫。

PEOPLE say it is hard to understand South Korea without knowing taekwondo (跆拳道). Taekwondo is the spirit (精神) of the country.

In South Korea, parents ask their kids to learn taekwondo from an early age — five or six years old —to have a stronger body and to protect (保护) themselves. There are taekwondo teams in middle schools and colleges. Students do taekwondo very often.

In cities like Seoul, there are many taekwondo schools. Make sure you visit a school when you're in South Korea to learn a few kicks.

What is taekwondo?

Taekwondo got its name in the 1960s. But people began to practise it centuries ago. People say taekwondo borrows from Chinese wushu.

In taekwondo, people use their feet more than their hands. If you are good at taekwondo, you can kick someone else three metres above ground.

Taekwondo makes you a better person, both in body and mind. People learn to be polite. They bow to each other to show respect (尊敬). They also learn not to give up. Sometimes they have to stand for a long time.

Belt levels

There are different coloured belts(腰带) that show how good you are at taekwondo. There are white, yellow, green, blue, red and black belts. A beginner wears a white belt. A master (大师) wears a black belt.

Today, taekwondo is a popular world sport. More and more young people in countries outside South Korea, including China, are learning taekwondo. In 2000, taekwondo became an Olympic event.

Smell the spices

五彩缤纷的香料调出印度传奇美食！

INDIA is famous for its delicious food. Some say that in India, you could eat for a lifetime and never have the same dish made the same way twice!

Spices (香料)

Do you like curry(咖喱)? If you do, then India is the right place to go. Curry began in India. But it is not the only kind of spicy dish you can find there.

Spices are the key to all Indian food. There are hundreds of different kinds of spices in India. They make dishes more delicious.

In an Indian kitchen, you can often see many small boxes of spices. People put them together to make different tastes (风味). There are thousands of ways to mix

up these spices. That's why Indian dishes change every day.

Indian bread

Indians make very good bread. The one you cannot miss is chapatti (薄煎饼). In most Indian homes, people eat it every day.

To make a chapatti, people put water and salt in flour (面粉) and make it into dough (生面团). Then they make the dough as thin as a piece of paper, and they fry (油煎) it.

After a while, people throw the thin bread into an open fire! In one second, it becomes like a balloon!

It is quickly taken out of the fire and is thin again. Then it's ready for you to eat. Indians often eat with their fingers but only with the fingers on their right hands. So it's important to always wash your hands before eating. They also use knives and forks.

Enjoying the music

去德国的广场音乐会感受一下那里的动人旋律吧！

NO matter what kind of music you like, in Germany (德国) you'll find something to enjoy.

Music is very important to German people. One out of every four Germans plays a musical instrument (乐器) or sings in a group.

Many famous musical names are from Germany, like Johann Sebastian Bach, Ludwig van Beethoven and Robert Schumann. Their music is still played across the world.

This great past has made young people love music.

Many German kids have music lessons at school. They have lessons twice a week, for two to four hours each time. Piano lessons can be even longer!

Music lessons

What do children do in their music lessons? Sit down and sing? Some German music lessons are different. Students walk around and can try any instrument they like. Sometimes teachers ask them to listen to music and then act it out. Music is everywhere in Germany. Don't forget to sit for a while in a restaurant. You can enjoy light music there.

Remember to visit a church (教堂) or a square (广场). There you can listen to people playing music. Many German kids enjoy music with their parents. There are more than 100 music festivals (节日) in Germany each year.

Home of world famous ballet

去俄罗斯欣赏轻盈优雅的芭蕾舞。

HAVE you ever seen the ballet Swan Lake (天鹅湖)? The dancers stand on the tips of their toes(脚尖). They jump lightly and make quick turns. They are as beautiful as fairies (仙子).

Russia is famous for ballet dancing, folk songs and circuses (马戏). Of these, ballet is the best. Most travellers to Russia will go to the ballet.

In the late 1800s, Russia became the centre of the ballet world. Some of the greatest ballet dancers of all time are Russian.

Russia has three great ballets with music by Tchaikovsky —"Swan Lake", "Sleeping Beauty" and "The Nutcracker"(《胡桃夹子》).

Children enjoy "The Nutcracker" most. There is bright music and the dancers wear colourful clothes and make beautiful moves. The story is a happy one.

A lovely story

On Christmas Eve, the child Clara gets a nutcracker doll from her godfather (教父), Drosselmeyer. Her brother Fritz becomes jealous (嫉妒的) and breaks it. Her godfather repairs it. Clara falls asleep under the Christmas tree.

At midnight, magic (神奇的) things begin to happen. Clara grows smaller and the toys come to life. Her room is full of mice dancing with the Mouse King!

The nutcracker leads the toys to fight. Clara throws her shoe at the Mouse King, hitting him on the head. Then all the mice run away.

The nutcracker turns into a prince and takes Clara to the Land of Snow. It's a forest with dancing snowflakes (雪花).

The prince takes Clara to the Land of Sweets. They meet the Sugar Plum Fairy (糖果仙子) who dances for them.

Clara wakes to find it was only a dream.

Winter wonderland

加拿大人爱雪，冰天雪地里也一样有着许多的乐趣！

CANADA has long and cold winters. But people there are not afraid. Ice and snow are just a part of their lives.

In the coldest months, people across the country go to snow festivals (节日). Canadians believe that there is a winter king living in an ice palace. To make the king happy, they make snow sculptures (雕像). Canadians are really good at it! Many young people take a snow bath (雪浴) to show that they are not afraid of the cold. They take off all their clothes, then play and dance in the cold snow! Other exciting games are skiing, skating, and snow rafting (雪上橡皮艇).

Kids' fun

For Canadian kids, making snowmen or rooms out of snow are the most fun things to do. To make a snow room, they make a big hill out of snow. Then they scoop (挖) out a small room. Inside, a lamp will keep the snow room warm. Travelling in the snow

Sometimes, heavy snow makes getting around difficult. But Canadians don't worry. They have clever and strong Husky dogs. Usually six to eight dogs work together pulling one sled (雪橇). Dog-sledding is also a popular sport.

To make travelling through snow faster, Canadians use snowmobiles (雪地摩托). They move as fast as cars, but they are only for brave (勇敢的) people!

Learning about nature is fun

只要你关注自然，善于发现，寒冷的冬天也可以有动人的景色。

LAST Sunday, my mum decided to take us for a walk in a nearby park. Some volunteers(志愿者) lead the tour. They do it twice a day every Saturday and Sunday.

"But not today!" I said. It is the day after Christmas. It has been very cold for a week. What can you see there? Who wants to drive half an hour to tour a bog (沼泽)? We will be the only ones foolish (愚蠢的) enough to go！

But mum didn't agree. We have been doing almost nothing out of doors for too long, she told me.

Nature walks

To my surprise, about 10 people are there already. There are many fathers and sons and two tour guides.

A man is writing notes in a notebook. The tour guides are volunteers, Cathy and Jane.

They are showing us how to use binoculars (双筒望远镜).

"Sometimes, people say there is nothing to see. So, we made a list of things we might see — who will be the first people to find them? Whoever finds them first writes his name on this piece of paper."

My little brother and two other kids looked excited, but not me. Would there be anything to see?

"Does anyone know what a bog is?" Jane asked.

"I know, I know, it a swamp!" my brother answered quickly. The park is a bog, the only open water bog in Illinois (伊利诺斯州).

When we are standing on a boardwalk, Cathy tells us to look at the cattails (香蒲). She explains how their seeds are flying around in the wind.

When we are looking at some footprints in the snow, Jane finds the footprints of a mink (貂). When we are studying a special plant, Jane shows us how its leaves can catch food.

Cathy and Jane really know a lot about nature. How kind of them, to come and show people around the bog, how wonderful to teach nature.

Chinese language

你身边的人都说普通话么？

ONLY half of the Chinese can speak in standard mandarin (普通话), showed a study of 470,000 people last week. Only 66 per cent of people in the cities can speak Mandarin. But only 45 per cent of people in the countryside can use it. The report also said that young people speak more and better than old people. People

need to know Mandarin as it will help people understand each other better.

Beijing Olympics

开动脑筋为北京奥运写口号

BEIJING wants to have a slogan (口号) for its 2008 Olympic Games so that more people know about it. In January, anyone will be able to write words to say something special about Beijing's Olympics. The words should be easy to read and remember. Athens used "Welcome Home" because the Olympic Games was born there. For more information (信息) visit https://www.360docs.net/doc/6713925386.html,.

Viet Nam bird flu

禽流感趁冷又侵袭越南

MANY places in Viet Nam have had found bird flu in birds in the past 20 days. The Vietnamese have killed 10,000 birds to try to stop the flu. Many say that the cooler weather could make the virus go around. Experts have warned (警告) of the spread (传播) of bird flu in Asia. It could kill millions of people. So far, 32 people have died of bird flu this year.

Watch for the warm

南极洲开始生长可越冬绿草

THE Antarctic(南极) is one of the coldest places on earth. No plant has ever lived there in winter. But this winter green grasses have grown on some places of this cold land. Scientists think it is because of the warmer weather on earth. They are afraid that animals that live there, like penguins (企鹅), may die because of the warmer weather.

Birthday hits, not parties!

为朋友的生日来一个特别的庆祝方式？你可以把他暴打一顿

GUESS what? Today was Evan's birthday!

Evan is a kid on my school bus. He turns 14 today. I'm sitting in front of him on the school bus that takes us home, and watch the whole thing. When we were younger I remember that we had birthday parties. That has changed. When we become older birthdays aren't special enough to have birthday parties.

Today is interesting.

One guy shouts, "Today is Evan's birthday!"

"Oh, cool." Tony sits quickly down next to Evan and begins hitting (打) him —this is a tradition on people's birthdays.

"One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen!"

Tony hits Evan very hard 14 times. Evan is groaning (呻吟) and laughing at the same time before Tony is finished.

Everyone on the bus is happy, and even the bus driver doesn't mind.

Birthday hits

But that's not the end of it. Two other guys get on the bus — I know one of them. They sit down.

"Hey, today's Evan's birthday!"

The two get up and walk toward him looking very interested.

"Augh, don't touch (碰) me!"

They both start hitting him. We are all shouting happily. I think they hit him more than 14 times!

Then the bus begins to move, and we are on our way home.

Later, Evan is getting off the bus. The rest of the kids and myself each hit him once as he walks by. "Happy Birthday!"

Migrant schools

民工子弟明年上学有去处

BEIJING plans to build five to 10 schools in 2005 for migrant (外来的) kids. In Beijing, there are now 235,000 children from migrant families. About 10 per cent of them cannot go to public schools because their families don't have much money. New schools will ask them to pay less to study.

Rice for the world

粮食多了就没人挨饿了吗？

THE world will grow 611 million tons (吨) of rice this year. This is 27 million tons more than last year. This is mostly because China and Indonesia (印尼) have made more. But the UN says this is not enough. In Africa, 23 countries can't get enough rice.

Soldier's Christmas匈牙利从伊拉克撤军过圣诞

HUNGARIAN soldiers in Iraq will be enjoying a peaceful (和平的) Christmas this year. The last 300 of them left Iraq for home on Monday. A bomb (炸弹) killed one Hungarian soldier months ago. Around 159, 000 soldiers from nine countries are still in Iraq. Most of them are Americans, Britons(英国人), South Koreans and Japanese.

Space science

去天文馆感受高科技吧！

CHINESE kids have an exciting place to learn popular science. Beijing's new Planetarium(天文馆) opened last week. The new building is the biggest one in China. Visitors can watch exciting movies in its space theatre and be an astronaut (航天员) in its "space capsule (太空舱)".

My speech on Spanish history

声音洪亮是高分法宝。

TWO days ago I was quite sure of getting an "A" for my Spanish project. I had got myself ready.

I looked for information on the Internet for a week. I wrote a speech and I even

drew a few pictures of Spain.

I didn't want to forget what I was going to say, so I practiced (练习) the speech a lot.

On the day of my presentation (陈述) I didn't get nervous. I didn't forget what I was going to say.

But, ah! Look at the great pictures and speeches my classmates made! I wasn't feeling very good.

What are you bad at?

However, everybody has one thing they are bad at. Some people are bad at drawing pictures. Others are bad at talking. Some are bad at spelling. My problem is that my stories about Spanish history sounded boring.

After giving my speech and showing my pictures I thought I was going to get a bad grade.

Many people like to do big projects. But to me, big projects are very difficult.

It takes a lot of time, and I always worry about the day it has to be finished and the grade I'll get.

Anyway, I ended up getting an "A-". I think that's very lucky. The teacher said I made all my classmates listen — I was talking very loudly (大声地)!

Train crash in India

印度火车相撞死伤逾百人

TWO trains crashed into each other in northern India on Tuesday. At least 50 people were killed and 150 hurt. A railway worker said heavy fog (雾) may be the reason for the accident.

Chinese wonder7大奇迹评选长城列第一

THE Great Wall may become the world's greatest wonder. It is doing well in a poll (投票) by a Swiss group called New Seven Wonders. They are asking people to pick the seven greatest wonders of the world. The Great Wall has won more than 11 per cent of 17 million votes (票) so far. The poll will end in February, 2005. Everyone can vote at https://www.360docs.net/doc/6713925386.html,.

Scientists' warning气候变暖警钟再次敲响

WHAT will happen if the temperature(气温) of the world goes up by 2 ℃? It would mean much less water in Latin America. China may have 10 per cent less food by 2050. A group of European scientists said this on Tuesday in Argentina (阿根廷). They said big countries need to cut down on harmful gases from cars and factories.

Help for girls“春蕾计划”助女童上学

THE Spring Bud Project has now collected 600 million yuan and helped 1.5 million girls finish their middle school studies. The project started in 1989. At that time, many girls in the countryside (农村) could not go to school, because their

families were poor (穷的). So the project gave them money, or let them study for free.

Tiger is most loved最新调查：老虎成人类最爱

TIGERS are the world's favourite animals, a study says. The dog, known as "man's best friend", came second and the dolphin(海豚) was third. More than 50,000 people from 73 countries took part in the study by British TV programme "Animal Planet" in September and October.

More help needed发达国家越来越吝啬

COUNTRIES like the US, Germany and Japan haven't been able to keep their promises(承诺) to help poor countries. As a result, 45 million children in poor countries will die by 2015, British group Oxfam said on Monday. In 1970, these countries promised to give 0.7 per cent of their money to help the poor. But the US has given only 0.14 per cent.

Around the world驾驶飞机70小时环游地球

AMERICAN adventurer (探险家) Steve Fossett wants to travel around the earth in an airplane by himself in 70 hours without stopping. It means he can't sleep for three days. The 60-year-old will take off from Salina, a city in central America, early next year.

Hotline can help广东青少年帮助热线开通

A FREE hotline to help young people started taking calls on November 12 in Guangdong. Teens who have psychological(心理的) problems can call for help. More than 100 experts will be ready to answer questions. Call 12355 if you are in Guangzhou and 020-12355 if you are outside.

More fun with troublemakers

你们班上有调皮捣蛋的同学吗？有时候他们也能给课堂带来滑稽的气氛。

A GROUP of students were giving a talk at the front of the classroom. The kid next to me began singing a dirty song in my ear. The teacher, of course, couldn't hear him. I told him to be quiet. But he wouldn't.

I couldn't really pay attention by this time. Soon, all four of us at our table were laughing. The teacher came over angrily, not knowing why we were laughing. This kid's name was Patrick, and I'd known him for a few years. He always told lots of jokes, but the teachers didn't like him. He was always playing tricks (耍花招).

He is not the only one. In my science class of 24 people, I think about six of them are troublemakers.

A week ago, a boy named Dakota turned on a tap (水龙头). We were taking notes on something, and the teacher didn't see him.

It took a while for the teacher to find out what was happening. The sink (水池) was deep, and was put in the middle of a big table near the wall. The water came

out of the sink. It was running over the top of the table. By the time the teacher found out, a lot of her lab equipment (设备) had been soaked (浸泡). The things are made of glass, so no harm (损害) was done.

For a minute I thought the teacher was going to throw Dakota out of the class. But in the end, she never found out it was him.

These kinds of people make trouble. But I think every class needs troublemakers, or nothing funny would ever happen at school. Where would we be without them?

Making history历史怎能随意篡改?

LAST week, the Minister of the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (日本文部科学大臣) said he was happy with a new history textbook. It talks less about what the Japanese army (军队) did in China during World War II than other books. The ministry says middle school students can read the textbooks in 2006.

I don't believe you!撒谎了别人会知道吗？

ALWAYS tell the truth —people can tell if you're lying or not! American scientists found that brains (脑) are different when lying and telling the truth. Scientists

used machines to take pictures of people's brains when they told a lie. They found seven parts of the brain are active (活跃的) when someone lies, while only four are if they are telling the truth.

More miners killed陕西铜川发生特大矿难

COAL mines (煤矿) are very dangerous places for Chinese orkers. Last week there was an explosion (爆炸) when 293 workers were underground in Tongchuan, Shaanxi. So far 166 workers have died. The government has started finding out how the accident happened.

Talking about AIDS珍爱生命，远离爱滋

DECEMBER 1 was World AIDS Day. Many young people in Sichuan have started a month of activities (活动). They are using pictures and videos to tell people how to keep away from AIDS. They are also trying to care for people with AIDS.

Swimming club asks for money为募捐我要游一个英里！

"ANYONE else give money?" I asked my mum when she came home from work. "Yes, one more."

"How much money do we have now?"

"US$45."

Not bad, but it's still far away from my goal (目标) —US$140.

I'm in a swimming club. In a week, the club will have a swim-a-thon. Sounds like a "marathon"? People run a very long way in a marathon. In the swim-a-thon, we will swim a very long way in a pool.

We want to raise (筹集) money for our swimming club.

I wrote an email to the people working with my mum. I asked them for some help.

My mum's boss (老板) will give 30 cents for each part of the race. I will swim 66 parts!

Another gave US$10 and sent a nice card. In it he wrote, "I was in a triathlon (三项全能) and know how hard it is to swim a mile." My parents will help me too. But, I still need more.

Who would give me more help? I know in marathons people raise money for homeless and sick people. They need it.

But we middle-class (中产阶级) kids in the swimming team are not poor. Do we have a good reason to ask people for money?

I don't know if we can get all the money we want to. I love our swimming club. Here I get to meet people. We all love swimming. It is lots of fun.

Even if I can't get US$140, I'm still looking forward to the swim-a-thon. I will try hard to show people how well I can do.

Leaders' meeting让世界贸易更加繁荣

LAST Saturday, 21 top leaders from the members of the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation(APEC,亚太经合组织) had their yearly meeting in Chile(智利). The leaders said they would work together to push world trade forward and make the world safer. The first meeting of APEC was in 1989. It wants more business among its member countries.

Fastest plane超音速飞机刷新飞行纪录

A NASA plane flew over the Pacific Ocean (太平洋) at about 7,000 miles (11,260 kilometres) an hour last week. This broke the world record(纪录). The plane is about four metres long and 1.5 metres wide. Scientists spent eight years making the special plane.

Family stamps中国发行首套姓氏邮票

IS your family name on a stamp? Last week China began to sell its first 50,000 family name stamps. Every set has 128 stamps — one for each important family name in China. More than 3,000 family names are widely (广泛地) used in China.

Plane accident东航班机在包头坠毁

ON November 21, a plane flying from Baotou to Shanghai fell into a lake in Baotou, Inner Mongolia (内蒙古). All 53 people on the plane and one worker in the park died. Scientists are trying to find out why the accident (事故) happened.

Doing very well in my maths test一次好成绩全班炸开锅。

David Nai, 13, is an eighth grade student (Junior 2, in China) in Illinois in the US. He writes for Teens to tell us about his life in the US.

WE are going to take a test today. The test will show if we are smart enough to

get in a better class next year. But, I don't think it is hard for me. It is the maths part — my favourite.

We took the test by computer. There were 52 questions for us to do in one hour. The boy behind me and the girl to my left all looked nervous (紧张的).

But, when I began answering the questions, I saw the whole thing as a game.

I looked at the girl to my left and said to her, "Good luck, Lauren." I don't think she heard me.

I tried to find easy ways to do the problems. "Am I moving too fast?"

At the end of the test, my score was on the screen — 307.

But what does 307 mean? Was it 307 out of 307? Out of 320? Out of 400? I have no idea.

So I said to my friend John, "That was easy!" He looked at me like he wanted to hit me.

I asked him, "What did you get?"

"I got 227. What about you?"

"I got 307."

"Oh my God. You're a genius (天才)!"

I asked other people, and got the same answers. "How did you get so smart?" Finally, I walked up to Lauren. She saw me. "David! How did you do on the test?"

Would she think I was crazy just like other people? I answered, "If I tell you, will you kill me?"

She laughed. "I got 284."

"I got 307."

"Nice." That was it.

Yangtze flows north北京人即将喝上长江水

BY 2010, people in Beijing may start getting water from the Yangtze River. Many places in northern China are terribly short of water because of years of draught (干旱). Yangtze water will pass to the eastern, middle and western parts of the country through three 1,300-kilometre canals (运河).

Too fat is not good小胖敦更要注意远离糖尿病

FAT kids are more likely to get diabetes (糖尿病) when they grow up. The World Health Organization(WHO, 世界卫生组织) said this last week. They found most people with diabetes are overweight (超重的). WHO says young people should do more exercise to stay healthy.

Cartoons at school去学校机房看电影玩游戏

SHANGHAI students may soon be able to enjoy playing computer games and watching cartoon films at school. Shanghai is going to buy computer games and cartoons to make school life more colourful. These games and cartoons must be

interesting and teach kids to help others and be honest.

Learning Chinese首所孔子学院将落户汉城

THE first Confucius College(孔子学院) will open on November 21 in Seoul, South Korea. It is to teach Chinese. About 100 million people in 100 countries are using and learning Chinese outside China. China is going to have 100 Confucius colleges all over the world.

Stealing food at school

小偷小摸在校园中招摇而过，而我多希望自己能勇敢地制止这种行为！

I DON'T know how they do it. No one sees them.

In the cafeteria (自助餐厅) at my school, students buy food in a line. They move along the line, and take things. When they reach the end, they pay for them and bring them to a table to eat.

But some of the kids I know steal (偷) food from the line. They are very good at it.

Lots of ice cream

Yesterday I sat next to one of them — Briston.

"What's up, Briston?"

"Hi," he said.

"I'm writing for a teens?newspaper. Can I ask you about something?"

He laughed. He was eating an ice cream, and there was another one on his plate.

"Then did you start doing this?"

I knew him well, so he was honest (诚实的).

"Before, I went to a different school. People were always watching you. But here, no one cares, nobody sees you."

He came here last year, so I guess he has been stealing for about a year.

"How much do you steal at a time?"

He looks ashamed (害臊的) for a second, and then faces me. " want to take four," he says, starting his second ice cream. "But it's safer to take two or three."

I believed (相信) him. He once gave me an ice cream.

"Why do you do this?"

He thought for a second. " like ice cream."

I knew he would say that. Another boy I know likes bags of chips (薯片).

People should know about the problem. I've told one teacher to look out for kids with big pockets, but I don't think she understood!

The only way to stop it is to report the problem, but am I brave (勇敢的) enough to report people who I know well?

Year of sport2005:"国际运动与体育年"

THE United Nations made the year 2005 the International Year of Sport and

Physical Education last week. " port is the best school of life," said UN Secretary General (联合国秘书长) Kofi Annan. Sport helps people from different countries to become friends. It also helps young people to learn how to work in a team (团队).

No more chicken防禽流感老虎改吃牛羊

TIGERS and bears in the Guangzhou Zoo can't eat chicken anymore. Zoo workers say this is to help animals stay away from bird flu. For the next three months, they can only have beef, mutton (羊肉) and rabbit. Last month 147 tigers at a zoo in Thailand became sick with bird flu after eating chickens.

Olympic opening北京奥运会开幕日子选定

THE opening time for the Beijing Olympics is 8 pm, August 8, 2008. Beijing mayor (市长) Wang Qishan said this last week. At first, Beijing wanted to start the Olympics in late August because it is very hot in early August. But some big world sports events(项目) like the US Open also begin in late August. So the Beijing Olympics have to start early.

Big Iraq attack费卢杰的战火愈烧愈烈

THE US began a big attack (攻击) on Fallujah, Iraq on November 8. They think many soldiers that are against America are in the city. About 15,000 American and Iraqi soldiers were fighting. So far 2 Iraqi soldiers and 10 American soldiers have died.

A Halloween party万圣节晚会上我们玩了最惊悚的游戏！

OCTOBER 31! In America, that's the night of Halloween (万圣节前夕). During that holiday kids dress up in strange costumes(装束), knock on doors and ask for sweets. It is called "trick-or-treat". Some people have parties.

I am a bit too old to trick-or-treat. So I went to my classmate's Halloween party. When I got there, I saw many people.

There were his neighbours (邻居), their parents, and several other classmates. There were about 30 people in that house!

My classmate's family really like the holiday. They had spent a month building a maze (迷宫) in their basement (地下室). It was great!

There was a secret pass, a circle (圆圈), and a moving skeleton (骷髅). We played in the maze for much of the night.

Then the interesting things began. One of the neighbours' little children got lost. How did it happen? Some fell over and made a hole in the wall of the maze. So the children were in the hole!

For the rest of the evening, I played chess with a kid named Matt. He kept knocking over his pieces, then putting them back on the board in the wrong places. I thought he might be doing it on purpose (故意地).

It's just the beginning of the holiday season!

Tigers go abroad两只华南虎“留学”南非