学进去

Since first grade, I had always done well on tests. When it came to fifth grade science, however, I was _______. I couldn’t seem to understand or _______ it no matter how hard I tried.

My mom and dad had always been so _______ of my grades, and I didn’t want to let them disappointed. So just before the test I had written several _______ from the textbook on my desk in pencil. The writing was so light that it could hardly be seen. I went _______ as the teacher started to hand out the test paper. I didn’t want to be caught, but I didn’t want to _______ either.

As the teacher was starting down my row, suddenly the _______ went off. We all _______ the door and stood together, waiting to be allowed back into the building.

As I stood outside in the warm sunshine, I realized what a fool I had been. I knew my mom and dad would still love me no matter what my _______ were. As soon as we came into the classroom, I walked to my desk and ________ the notes away. I had been given a second chance, and I wasn’t going to ________ it. I took the test, did my best and felt ________. I don’t remember what my grade was, but what happened that day has stayed in my mind ever since.

Life is full of second chances, but you have to be willing to ________ them. You have to be willing to accept your ________ and grow from them. When you are given a second chance in life, cherish it! And use it ________!

Foreign visitors to the UK might be disappointed when they learn that not everyone there speaks like Harry Potter and his friends. Usually, there’s an assumption by many non-Brits that everyone in Britain speaks with what’s known as a Received Pronunciation (RP，标准发音) accent, also called “the Queen’s English”. However, while many people do talk this way, most Britons speak in their own regional accents (口音).

Scouse, Glaswegian and Black Country — from Liverpool, Glasgow and the West Midlands — are just three of the countless non-RP accents that British people speak with. There are even differences in accents between towns or cities just 30 kilometers apart. What is even more disappointing is that not speaking in a RP accent may mean a British person is judged and even treated differently in their everyday life.

In a 2015 study by The University of South Wales, videos of people reading a passage in three different UK accents were shown to a second group of people. The group then rated how intelligent they thought the readers sounded. The lowestrated accent was Brummie, native to people from Birmingham, a city whose accent is considered working class.

However, there is no need to be disappointed though you are not speaking in a RP accent. In fact, doing the opposite may even give you strength.

Kong Seongjae, 25, is an Internet celebrity from Seoul. After studying in the UK, he picked up several regional accents. He’s now famous for his online videos, where he shows off the various accents he’s learned. “British people usually get really excited when I use some of their local dialect words, and they become much friendlier. I think it makes a bit of bond between local people and foreigners to speak in their local accent,” he said.

So if you’re working on perfecting your British accent, try to speak like someone from Liverpool, Glasgow or Birmingham. You may not sound like Harry Potter, but you are likely to make more friends.

Top Summer Music Festivals to Travel to

Summer is the great time of a year for music lovers, especially if you love the outdoor concerts. Festival season is just beginning, and there is much to look forward to in the coming months.

Primavera Sound

To start the summer, there’s no better place than Barcelona. At the concert, you’ll find bands like The Zombies, Arcade Fire, and Bon Iver. Then take some time to taste the local food and wine.

May 31-June 4, Barcelona, Spain

Music Type: Rock, hip-hop

Price: $86-$323

Governors Ball

One of the great summer concerts in New York City is Governor’s Ball, which takes place in early June at Randall’s Island Park. Some of the playing artists include Tool, Phoenix, Lorde, Flume, and the Wu-Tang Clan.

June 2-4. New York, USA

Music Type: Rock, hip-hop, pop

Price: $ 105-$ 405

Bonnaroo

Bonnaroo is another summer event that attracts crowds of around 60,000 each year. Some of the most well-known musicians will be playing this year, including U2, Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Weekend, and Chance the Rapper.

June 8-11, Manchester, Tennessee, USA

Music Type: Rock, hip-hop

Price: $ 210-$ 554

Firefly Music Festival

Many people haven’t thought of going to Delaware for a summer vacation, but mid-June is a great time to plan this trip if you love music. Bands for this year’s show are The Weekend, Muse, Twenty One Pilots, and Chance the Rapper.

June 15-18, Dover, Delaware, USA

Music Type Blues rock

Price: $ 179-$ 499

Everybody has gone through bad days, and some bad days feel like the world is on our shoulders and we just can’t bear the weight of it any longer. 1． Consider the following ways when you are experiencing the worst days of your life.

Reflect.

When you have the worst day of your life, turning to reflection can remove any bad mood. 2． Others like to spend time writing in journals to express their feelings. The point of the quiet time is to release the bad mood of your day.

Reach out to others.

When you are feeling like your world has ended, you need to reach out to others for help. Sometimes this might mean seeking professional help if you are in a state of depression (抑郁), or it might simply mean talking to a well-trusted friend. 3．

Change your mental state.

Sometimes it is just a matter of turning them into active thoughts. 4． Once you are able to do that, you will see that it really was not the worst day ever after all.

5．

To deal with the worst day, you can set goals for yourself to make changes, so that you will turn it into a growth experience which moves you forward rather than holds you back. What could you do differently if this situation might happen again? Setting goals makes you forward.

My teacher held up a piece of broken glass and asked, “Who broke this window?”

Thirty boys tried to think about not only what they had done, but also what our teacher may have found out. She seldom became angry, but she was this time.

“Oh,” I thought. I was the one who broke the window. But I didn’t mean to do it. Actually, it was caused by a naughty throw of a baseball. If I admitted guilt, I would be in a lot of trouble. How would I be able to pay for a big window like that? I didn’t even get pocket money. “My father is going to be extremely angry.” I thought. I didn’t want to raise my hand, but some force much stronger pulled it upward. I told the truth. “I did it.” It was hard enough to say what I had.

My teacher took down a book from one of our library shelves and I knew my teacher had never struck a student, but I feared she was going to start with me.

“I know how you like birds,” she said as she stood looking down at my guilty face. “Here is a field guide about birds. It is yours now. It’s time we got a new one for the school. You will not be punished as long as you remember that I am not rewarding you for your misdeed, I am rewarding you for your honesty.”

I couldn’t believe it! I wasn’t being punished and I was getting my own bird field guide — the very one that I had been saving money to buy.

What my teacher taught me that day is about a lesson, which remains in my heart every day, and I will appreciate it forever.

Some people will say that you can place a value on anything. We may know the price of milk. We can also find out the value of the most expensive building in the world. Do you think it is possible to put a price on the Earth or other planets?

You probably think this is impossible. Scientist Greg Laughlin thought differently. In March 2009, NASA sent the Kepler telescope (望远镜) into space to explore the Milky Way galaxy and to find Earth-sized planets orbiting (环绕) other stars. As there are billions of stars within the Milky Way, it could mean there were several thousand planets to discover. How could scientists decide which ones to study further and which ones to take no notice of?

Professor Laughlin used information received from the Kepler telescope to create a formula (公式) that puts a price on planets. The age and size of each planet, its temperature, and the energy (能量) it created were considered. Older planets were given a higher value. The most important consideration was whether or not it may be possible for life to live on the planet.

By using his formula, Professor Laughlin found that planet Earth was the most important. He gave it a value of five quadrillion (千的五次幂) dollars. Mars was given a value of US$16,500 and Venus was valued at zero. That’s because it’s impossible to support life on Venus because it is too close to the Sun. The professor said that any planet that had a value of more than US$100 million was worth studying further.

By November 2018, about 1,200 planets in total had been looked at. Most of them were worthless because of their unsatisfactory conditions. So should you run to the bank and borrow US$16,500 so you can buy Mars? Maybe not today. You should just enjoy the five quadrillion dollar planet you already live on — and learn how to look after it.

Looking forward to your sharing. Best wishes.

Yours,

Li Hua

Because of my strong interest in math, so I dream of becoming a mathematician. But every time I didn’t do well in the math exam, I felt really sad and would cry, which bothered us a lot. My math teacher suggested I tried to fix the problems instead of just crying, an useless approach. Therefore, I started by thinking logically and discussing questions with my teacher frequent. Then I found out my weak points when I needed more practice, and gradually improved myself. I made a habit to practise math out of school every day. Under the help of some online math apps, I’ve been more enthusiastic about the subjects. Now I’m fully motivating and that’s already half the battle.