Green is an important colour in nature. It is the colour of grass and the leaves on trees. It is also the colour of most growing plants.

Sometimes, it describes something that is not yet ripe or finished. For example, a “greenhorn” is someone who has no experience, who is new to a situation. In the 15^th century, a “greenhorn” was a young cow whose horns had not yet developed. A century later, a “greenhorn” was a soldier who had not yet had any experience in battle. By the 18^th century, a “greenhorn” had the meaning it has today—a person who is new in a job.

Green is also used to describe the emotion of jealousy(嫉妒). The“green-eyed monster”is an expression used about 400 years ago by William Shakespeare in his play“Othello”.It describes the unpleasant feeling a person has when someone has something he wants. A young man may suffer from the“green-eyed monster”if his girlfriend begins going out with someone else. Or, that“green-eyed monster”may affect your friend if you get a pay rise while he does not.

In most places in the world, a “green light” is a signal to move ahead. In everyday speech, a “green light” means “agree to continue with a project”. We want you to know we have a “green light” to continue this project next week.

(no more than 8 words)

If you are worried about things and are under a lot of stress at work or school, then you are probably not sleeping well. Worry can keep you awake, and turning in bed until the early hours of the morning when you eventually fall asleep. When you wake up, you don’t feel refreshed, but tired and worn out and unable to face a new day.

Dr. Henry Winkle, in a recent newspaper article entitled Stress and Sleep, indicates that stress / worry and (lack of) sleep are directly related. Dr. Winkle says,“The more we worry, the less we sleep, the more we are unable to deal with stress. If we can find a way to get a good night’s sleep，”he adds,“we can often find the energy to deal with what’s worrying us.”

So, what is a good night’s sleep? Research shows that the amount of sleep which people need in order to keep healthy varies a lot. Seven hours is about the average amount, though strangely enough, sleeping longer often gives you a headache instead of making you feel more refreshed.

Dr. Winkle believes that preparing for sleeping is important. People who work late should try to give themselves a short break and do something restful before going to bed. This could be watching TV or listening to music. Doing some exercise earlier in the day should help you to feel physically as well as mentally tired. A bedtime drink can also help, but coffee or tea should be avoided as they contain caffeine and will keep you awake.“When you put the light out，”Dr. Winkle says,“concentrate on relaxing your muscles, working slowly up from your feet, and you’ll be asleep before you know it.”

_____________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________

Leo’s Big Night

Leonardo DiCaprio is one step closer to his first Oscar win. On Jan 30, the actor won Best Actor for his work in The Revenant（荒野猎人）at the 2016 Screen Actors Guild Awards. When DiCaprio was announced the winner, Kate Winslet, his Titanic co-star, seemed more excited than he was. The actress clapped excitedly and gave DiCaprio a big hug and kiss. On the red carpet, Winslet also explained why she looked so surprised to win a Golden Globe last month. “To be honest with you, it’s because I’ve been so focused on Leo and him winning everything and being so excited for him,” she said.

DiCaprio’s career took off when he played the leading role, Jack, in Titanic in 1997, which helped him to win lots of fans. After five acting nominations（提名）and 22 years of disappointed hopes since his first nomination (for What’s Eating Gilbert Grape in 1993), the 41-year-old actor finally won his first Oscar. It is said that the film Revenant will hit Chinese cinemas on March 18^th.

Although I think there is much for me to learn in the area of communication, I've been told by my friends that I’m a great person to speak to. It seems that I have a talent for having conversations go on without boring others. In fact, I don’t think there are any “tricks” you have to use to be a great conversationalist. Below are some rules I apply in all my conversations.

     Focus on the positives. Go for the positive topics. Instead of talking about past sadness, choose a discussion of future goals. During your conversations, always take a forward-thinking attitude. Less complaining, more solutions. Less judging, more understanding. Doing more of the latter will make you a more enjoyable person to speak to.

   It's fine to express your opinion, but don't force them to accept. Respect other people’s privacy. Respect other people’s personal choices—don't criticize or judge. Remember, everyone has his right to be himself, just as you have the right to be yourself. That is, respect others. Respect other people’s point of view.

      Be true to yourself. Your best asset (财富) is your true personality. Value it and let it shine. Don’t cover it up. It’ll be pretty boring if you just repeat the other person’s words during a conversation. If you want to communicate with others very well, be ready to share your real thoughts and opinions and let others know the real you.

      50-50 sharing. I always think that a great conversation should be made up of equal sharing by both people involved in it. Sometimes it may be 40-60 or 60-40 depending on the circumstances, but in general, both should have equal opportunities to share and contribute to the conversation.

It is well-known that many animals do not stay in one place. Birds, fish and other animals move from one place to another at certain times. They move for different reasons: most of them move to find food more easily, but others move to get away from places that are too crowded.

    When cold weather comes, many birds move to warmer places to find food. Some fishes give birth in warm water and move to cold water to feed. The most famous migration is probably the migration of the fish, which is called “salmon”. This kind of fish is born in fresh water but it travels far to salt water. There it spends its life. When it is old, it returns to its birthplace in fresh water.

In northern Europe, there is a kind of mouse. They leave their mountain homes when their homes become crowded. They move down to the low land. Sometimes they move all the way to the seaside, and many of them are killed when they fall into the sea.

    Recently, scientists have studied the migration of a kind of lobster (龙虾). Every year, when the season of bad weather arrives, the lobsters get into a long line and start to walk across the floor of the ocean. Nobody knows why they do this and where they go.

    So, sometimes we know why humans and animals move from one place to another, but at other times we don’t. Maybe living things just like traveling.

  In a recent business magazine article, a president said, Laughter in the workplace is a waste of time. This is a place to do business, not to laugh, some researchers, however, disagree with his words. As scientists have learned more about the brain, they’ve discovered that smiles and laughter stimulate the brain, which can help increase happiness and reduce pain.

   Why do we need laughter in our lives? Laughter is a powerful tool for our health．In a number of studies that were carried out, it was shown that people who are more humorous have stronger immune systems(免疫系统)while people who feel stressed have weaker immune systems．Humor can help make your immune systems stronger

    Here are some tips to add more humor to your life：

   ·Laugh at yourself. Don’t  take yourself too seriously. Have a positive attitude towards yourself and your worries will become lighter too.

    ·Don’t  worry why people laugh--just appreciate it．Be funny．Look for the humorous side of and otherwise difficult situation．

    ·Prepare a first-aid laughter source．11Iis could include books，cartoons，CDs or videos．Write down the amusing things that happen and save them for a sad day．

   ·Be open to silly things．Humor the child within yourself．

   ·Laugh with others for what they do，rather than what they are．

   Research has shown that laughter is indeed the best medicine，so make time for humor now．

 ______________________________________________________________________________

 ______________________________________________________________________________

 ______________________________________________________________________________

 _______________________________________________________________________________

 _______________________________________________________________________________

Ben and his sister Jane are new students in our school. They are from Australia, so they speak English. Ben is eleven. And Jane is eleven too. We have eight subjects this term. Ben likes Maths and Jane likes Chinese. They have some hobbies. Ben likes playing football and Jane likes singing. They usually play with us on Sunday.

(1)Where are Ben and his sister from?

______________________________________

(2)What languagedo they speak？

______________________________________

(3)Does Jane like Chinese?

_____________________________________

(4)What does Ben like doing？

______________________________________

(5)when do they play with us?

______________________________________

I’m not an athlete, but I am a lover of the Olympics. My biggest sports moment ever didn’t require me to be the fastest, the highest, or the strongest. It just required me to be in the right place at the right time, and catch the opportunity when it came to me. It was to carry our national flag for the Olympic Torch Relay.

As a part of the celebration, flag bearers(旗手) were needed. I served in the army at that time and the Olympic organizers asked for volunteers to help carry some of the flags. Although it demanded that I give up part of my weekends and get up early, I thought that it was the chance of a lifetime.

There were several different groups that took part in the event as flag bearers. We soldiers were going to be out in front leading them. On the day of the event, we arrived early at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Many people arrived to see the flame arrive from Greece, and the beginning of the Olympic Torch Relay. It was exciting to wait for our turn to enter the coliseum.

As a flag bearer, I was supposed to run out in front. Though the flag was fairly heavy, I picked it up and ran with it. I ran past rows of people. I ran through television cameras. It was one of the most amazing experiences of my life, being able to carry our national flag in an international event like the Olympics. I was very proud of it．

I had never been able to attend the Olympics, and I might never be important enough to carry an Olympic torch or anything like that, but I did get to carry our national flag in the torch relay, although I will no longer have the opportunity to carry the flag in the Olympics, and that would be one sports experience that would be difficult to forget.

   _________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

Reading can be fun, but it can also be time-consuming (taking a long time) if your speed is not as fast as you'd like it to be. An average reading speed can range from 200 to 350 words per minute, but that rate can vary depending on the material and your reading experience. Here are a few tips to help you improve your reading speed.

    Preview（预览） the material you're going to read. Look at main headings, chapters divisions , and other related parts - to develop clues about the structure of the work.

    Adjust（调整） your reading speed as you read the material. Slow down when you need to be sure that you comprehend one section（部分） of the material. Speed up if you are already familiar with or don't need to know other sections,

    Readers can greatly improve their reading speed by taking in several words in the line of text at one time (instead of sounding out each word, or focusing on each letter of the word),    Another way to improve your reading speed is to pay more attention to the key words in the sentences. A significant amount of reading time is wasted on conjunctions, prepositions, or articles (i.e a, an, the, but, and, or, nor, but, etc.).

   Talk about what you've read. Some readers find that by talking about their reading with friends of  fellow students, they are able to effectively synthesize(综合理解） the material. Find a reading spot, where nothing or nobody will disturb your reading.

    Don't reread right away; it will slow you down. If you absolutely don't understand part of the reading selection, go back and review the material later.

Practice. Practice. Practice. The best way to improve your reading speed is to practice reading. Try out some of these techniques(技巧), and then perfect the strategies (策略)that work best for you.

Afternoon tea, that most essential of English customs，is a relatively new tradition,although the custom of drinking tea dates back to 3 BC in China. It was not until the mid 19th century that the concept of “afternoon tea” first appeared.

Afternoon tea was introduced to England by Anna, the Duchess(公爵夫人), in the year 1840. The Duchess would become hungry and depressed and complain of "having that sinking feeling" around four o'clock in the afternoon. At the time it was usual for people to take only two main meals a day: breakfast and dinner at around 8 o'clock in the evening. The evening meal in her household was also served fashionably late at eight o'clock, thus leaving a long period of time between the two meals. The Duchess asked that a tray of tea, bread and butter and cake be brought to her room during the late afternoon. Later friends were invited to join her in her country house and this practice proved so popular that the Duchess sent cards to her friends asking them to join her for "tea and a walking". This pause for tea became a fashionable social event. During the 1880's upper-class and society women would change into long dresses, gloves and hats for their afternoon tea, which was usually served in the living room between four and five o'clock.

Traditional afternoon tea consists of a selection of delicious sandwiches served with frozen cream. Cakes and cookies are also served. Tea grown in India is poured from silver tea pots into delicate bone china cups. Nowadays however, in the average suburban home, afternoon tea is likely to be just a biscuit or small cake and a cup of tea, usually produced using a teabag.

___________________________________________________

 ________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________

___________________________________________________