Learning a new language is hard. In a recent research, scientists found that your chances of reaching fluency(流利) in a new language drop off at the age of 10. Does that mean you should give up your French class if you are older than 10? No!

The research found that it’s “nearly impossible” to reach fluency if you start learning a language after age 10. That’s not because your language skills start to get worse. “You’re still learning fast,” says Joshua. “It’s just because your ability to learn starts dropping at around 10 or 11 years old.”

The researchers say people who try to learn a new language after 10 may still become quite good. But they will probably not become fluent. Kids may better than adults at learning new languages for many reasons. One is that children’s brains are more adaptable(能适应的)than adults’ brains. This means they are better able to change. Kids may also would like to try new things. And adults may depend on the rules of their first language. But kids are able to accept a new language without them.

Addyson is an 8-year-old girl from Kansas. Maurine is a 9-year-old girl from a village called Bartabwa in Kenya. It might not seem as if the girls have much in common, but when they met at a dinner two years ago, in Kansas, they became friends at once.

The dinner was hosted by the group World Vision International. In some parts of the world, people must walk several miles each day to collect water from a stream（小溪） or another water source. Often, the water is polluted. World Vision builds well（井） and rain catchers in these communities.

Addyson was at the dinner because her family supports World Vision. Maurine was there because her village had been without clean water. World Vision solved that by building a water station there. Addyson was influenced by Maurine. “People helped Maurine so she could have clean water, and kids are dying because they don’t have it,” Addyson says. “Addyson says. “I want to help.”

Races are one way World Vision raises money to pay for its water projects. Runners promise to run a race, often a 26-mile marathon or 13-mile half marathon. They ask people to support them by giving away to World Vision.

Addyson decided to run the 2017 Knasas City Half Marathon for World Vision. She’d raised $20,000. She’s the youngest person in World Vision history to raise more than $ 10,000. In 2018, she ran again—and raised $36,000.

Addyson and Maurine still keep in touch. Last year, Maurine returned to the U.S. and they met up in Chicago. But Addyson’s work is not finished. “My purpose is for every kid to have clean water,” she says.

Each weekday, more than 30 million students in Canada eat meals in school cafeterias. And when lunch is over, they fill the rubbish cans with uneaten food.

More than $1 billion worth of food is wasted every year. Wasted food is wasted money. It’s also a missed chance to feed hungry people. And it’s had for the environment: farming, packing, and transporting food produces greenhouse-gas emissions（温室气体排放）. They pollute the air.

Schools have developed ways to cut back on（减少） waste. Making lunch period longer helps. It gives kids time to eat everything on their plates. Many schools follow government rules that say students must take a certain number of healthy things at mealtime. Those rules help kids get a better meal. But they can lead to more waste. That’s why schools in Canada set up something called share tables. Students put untouched food on the table. A student who wants the food can take it. There are rules to make sure the food is safe. Food that isn’t taken from the table is served another day.

Students also waste food because they don’t like how it tastes. Cook Sam wants to change that. He works with a program called Cooks in Schools. He helps dining hall workers develop dishes kids enjoy.

You can fight food waste too. At the store, look for “ugly” produce. Fruits and vegetables with bad shapes are still delicious, but they are often not noticed. At home, read safety labels（标签）. If a label says “best before”, the food is still safe to eat for a little while after the date. If the label says “use by”, the food is no longer safe after the date.

A．

B．

C．

Why Recess (课间休息) is So Important for Children?

Recess used to be a daily thing—if you drove past your local school after lunch, you’d see hundreds of children running, playing and just being children.
16．. Recent researches have found that recess is important for more than just keeping children healthy and fighting children fatness—it also helps improve cognitive (认知) skills.
17．.

Social Benefit (利益)

Children start learning social skills as soon as they start communicating with their parents. Once they reach the school age, their communications turn into with other children.
18．. These skills will carry them through childhood and into their adult lives.

19．

Besides the social benefits, recess also has some cognitive benefits that are just starting to be developed. Science has shown that recess helps children to get information better, learn new things faster and improve creativity. Recesses from the school day are good for both the body and mind, and they help keep children more active in their studies and get the information they’re taught in class.

Physical Benefits

20．. At present, about 18.5 percent of children in the United States are considered fat. Much of this problem can be caused without recess. Kids might spend their time on computer games at least 30 minutes a day, recess can help them run, jump, play and just be kids. Now it’s summer time, get them to spend some time in the swimming pool to get their weekly exercise.

Neijae is one of the world’s youngest barbers（理发师）. At just 7 years old, she completed training at the Junior Barber Academy.

Neijae says she didn’t think much about hair or styling before she heard of the academy, “I would braid（编成辫）my own hair and my doll’s hair,” she said, “but I wasn’t really interested in barbering course. I thought only boys could do it.”

Her mom, Graham, says she tried to get Neijae’s older brother to take the barbering course. When he didn’t want to go, Neijae decided to give it a try.

Neijae was the youngest student in her class. She was also the only girl. “I was never afraid,” she says.

During the six-week course, Neijae asked her teacher a lot of questions. “If she needed to say it in a way that she could understand, she would ask right away,” Graham says, “She’s not afraid to use her voice. She’s not afraid to ask questions.”

What was the most important thing Neijae learned from the course? “Safety first,” she says. “That’s always the first thing, cleaning our tools, that’s the second most important thing. I have to protect myself and my customers.”

After Neijae finished the course, a video of hers became popular. Since then, she has had the opportunity to meet professional barbers and famous persons.

After I had surgery (手术), the doctor said I needed to stay at home for at least a week. With exams coming up, I worried about missing the class. My family thought for a _______: I would go to school as a robot.

The company my mom works for _______ me with a five-foot-tall robot on wheels. Using it was _______. I quickly learned how to move it forward and back and turn it. I soon forgot I was controlling a machine from home.

It _______ everyone else a little longer to get used to the new me. A screen showed my face at its actual size. The _______ allowed me to feel in class and others to see me.

For a few days, I was the most _______ object in the school. Everyone crowded around me. But once they didn’t feel excited. I was just another _______. I ate lunch with everyone else, attended class, and went to the rehearsal (排练) for my school _______. I felt as if I were actually in school. I was only reminded of my difficulties as a robot when my teachers _______ papers.

Life as a robot was an enjoyable ________. Technology can be a great help to people. If you are in need, I hope you can have a robot helper.

Many animals migrate（迁徙）. 1. They travel in big groups from one place to another. Some animals migrate when the weather changes. Others set off to find new food and water. 2. Lots of animal migrations take place in Africa. Here, you can read about three of them.

As the seasons change, zebras（斑马）travel in large groups. They make the trip year after year. 3.斑马为什么走那么远？They are looking for better grass to eat.

Wildebeests（牛羚）are always on the move. They travel by day and by night. Their journey can take them through rivers and streams.4.牛羚擅于游泳。But crossing the water is dangerous.

Flamingos（火烈鸟）fly together in the shape of V. They head for Africa’s salt flats（盐滩）. A salt flat is an area of water that has dried up. During the rainy season, a salt flat becomes a wetland. 5. It’s a great living place for flamingos.

随着学习压力的增大、科技的进步和父母的包办，一些学生不理解劳动、不愿意劳动、不尊重劳动。针对这些不良现象,永州某中学决定举办一场以 “热爱劳动,从我做起”为主题的英语演讲比赛。假如你叫李华，是该校的一名学生，请以 “Loving labor starts from me”为标题写一篇英语演讲稿。

My name is Li Hua. I’m happy to stand here to take part in the speech competition. Today my topic is that “Loving labor starts from me”. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Thanks for your attention!