◆Day 14 Beijing—UK 

Fly back to the UK,arriving home later the same day filled with happy memories.

China launched its second space laboratory, the Tiangong II, on Sept 15, which space officials say will become the country’s largest scientific platform in space to date.

The space lab was lifted off atop a Long March 2F carrier rocket from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in Gansu province at 10:04 pm. Around 20 minutes later, the mission was declared a success.

The Tiangong II did preparations in space for about one month and then the Shenzhou XI manned spacecraft rocketed two astronauts to the lab on October 17th. The pair will make it their home for 30 days before being returned to Earth.

The lab’s predecessor, Tiangong I, was launched in September 2011 and was used mainly to test technology involved in space docking.

By comparison, the Tiangong II will be used to conduct more than 40 scientific and technological experiments together with the Shenzhou XI. That’s many times more than those carried out by the Tiangong I and the three previous Shenzhou spacecraft, according to Wu Ping, deputy director of the China Manned Space Agency. China’s manned space program has entered a “new phase of application and development,” he said.

Dear Disney，

   Last weekend，the four members of my family spent an enjoyable holiday at the Magic Kingdom―Disneyland．And one event made our visit seem truly magical．

   We got to the front of the line at Space Mountain，only to find out that our little daughter Gloria couldn’t take her ice－cream on the ride．We were so excited that we all forgot ice－cream was not allowed on the ride．

   Gloria broke into tears and we all had no idea what to do．Then Murphy，one of the staff members，came over．She bent down and told Gloria that she would hold the ice－cream for her and give it to her when she finished the ride．Gloria said，“Promise?”Then she gave Murphy her ice－cream，and she completely enjoyed the ride．

   Sure enough，as we walked out the exit，there was Gloria’s new friend with“her”ice－cream．Now you and I both know what happened，because we know that an ice－cream won’t last twenty minutes on a summer afternoon in Florida．Murphy knew what time we would get off the ride；she went to the nearest shop and bought a brand－new ice－cream thirty seconds before we walked out the exit．Gloria said，“Thank you，”but I’m sure she thought it was the same ice－cream．

   We know that someone tried hard to make our visit special．Thanks so much for going above and beyond!

Yours，

Carmen Rivera

   The rebound (反弹) in numbers of the once-endangered Tibetan antelope has come with some unexpected consequences, a conservation official said on Wednesday.

   While the species' survival is more assured now, its growing numbers also have put some pressure on fragile mountain grasslands.

   The antelope population had declined to about 70,000 in the early 1990s from illegal hunting, but it has reached about 250,000 nationwide, including 150,000 in the Tibet autonomous region, according to a report by the Chinese Academy of Sciences released on Wednesday.

   The antelope was downgraded last month from "'endangered" to "near threatened" dropping two levels, at the sixth World Conservation Congress of the International Union for Conservation of Nature in Honolulu, Hawaii.

   "On one hand, certainly, it is good to see the protection measures are effective." said Yan Xun, a senior wildlife conservation official with the State Forestry Administration, "But on the other, we've received some reports that the animals have done damage to grasslands in some areas."

   The damage has not been serious enough to suggest the antelope population should be controlled, Yan said.

   The population, which reached almost 1 million a century ago, was in harmony with nature. Now, some habitats have been occupied by people and thus the antelope are more concentrated in certain areas, putting pressure on grasslands, he said.

   An academy report based on a three-year study said the ecosystem of the Tibetan plateau (高原) has been stable over the past 20 years, although grasslands have decreased by 0.13 percent.

Dear Max,

    Your mother and I don't yet have the words to describe the hope you give us for the future. We believe all lives have equal value, and that includes the many more people who will live in future generations than live today. Our society has an obligation to invest now to improve the lives of all those coming into this world, not just those already here.

    Our hopes for your generation focus on two ideas: advancing human potential and promoting equality.

    Today your mother and I are committing to spend our lives doing our small part to help solve these challenges. I will continue to serve as Facebook's CEO for many, many years to come, but these issues are too important to wait until you or we are older to begin this work. By starting at a young age, we hope to see compounding benefits throughout our lives.

    As you begin the next generation of the Chan Zuckerberg family, we also begin the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative to join people across the world to advance human potential and promote equality for all children in the next generation. Our initial areas of focus will be personalized learning, curing disease, connecting people and building strong communities. Over short periods of five or ten years, it may not seem like we're making much of a difference. But over the long term, seeds planted now will grow, and one day, you or your children will see what we can only  imagine.

    We will give 99% of our Facebook shares --currently about $45 billion -- during our lives to advance this mission. We know this is a small contribution compared to all the resources and talents of those already working on these issues. But we want to do what we can, working alongside many others.

C

Many people think that the most popular way of communicating with other people is through the mouth. But what they don’t know is that actual communication using mouth accounts for only around 10% (or even less) of all the means to communicate a message.

Moreover, you can never determine the honesty of people by what they say alone. In fact, words expressed through mouth do not reflect what people really think or feel. The only way you can determine their true inner feelings and thoughts is by reading their body language.

Have you ever wondered what it would be like if you can “see through” the emotions of other people? For example, you ask a person if he can do an important task. He says “OK”. But deep inside, you are questioning yourself, “Is he really willing to do this job?” or “Does he have the confidence to finish this task?” You can’t question him directly because that would be like belittling him. And even if you ask him those questions, his replies will not tell you what he really feels or thinks.

Then what is the final solution? Here are just a few of the magic tricks you’re about to discover：

◆Actions to make someone like or trust you.

◆How to win in a negotiation(谈判).

◆How to attract the opposite sex using body language.

◆How to increase your sales using body language.

◆How to help you find out who is telling a lie.

And a lot, lot more!

Body language is very easy and fun to learn. With this book, you will make body movements to achieve the success you’ve always longed for. Do yourself a big favor and get a copy of Body Language Magic.

Welcome to Australia

The Great Outdoors

Australia is the world’s oldest continent and indigenous Australians have one of the world’s oldest culture．

In Australia you will see unique plants and animals and some of the most beautiful scenery in the world．Many parks have information centres offering advice on where to go, what to see and how to see it--for both your personal safety and to protect our sensitive, natural environment．

Banks and Money Matters

Banks are generally open between 9:30am and 4pm on Monday to Thursday and 9:30am and 5pm on Friday．

Foreign currency or traveller’s cheques can be changed at all banks and some of the larger hotels．There are currency exchange facilities at all international airports．

___________________

Take care! Our sunlight is very strong and you can get sunburnt．

For best sun protection, it is advisable to wear:

l  A broad-brimmed hat

l  A shirt with a collar and sleeves

l  Sunscreen with high protection factor．

Swimming

We have so many beautiful places to swim--beaches, lakes, rivers and creeks．

l  Many of our waters are safe for swimming, but if you have any doubts, ask before entering the water．

l  Most of our popular ocean beaches have patrols with life-saving service．Red and yellow flags mark the area that you are advised to swim within．

l  If there are no flags and no life guards on the beach, talk to local people about the best areas to swim．

Staying Safe on the Roads

l  Australians drive on the left-hand side of the road．

l  For safety, everyone in the car, including children, must wear a seat belt．

l  Motor cyclists and bicyclists are required to wear a helmet．

l  Watch out for native animals crossing the roads, especially at night．Road signs are erected in places where animals are commonly seen．

(B)

        Teaching materials for learning Chinese are provided here. There are sites where you may find interesting instructions suitable for you. Here are some sites to begin your surfing.

      You may start with these pages from these websites--just to get a little taste of it without working too hard.

     ●A Is for Love

    Flash cards for learning a few Chinese words.

    ●Listening to the sound of Chinese

    Play a few words of Chinese on your computer.

    ●A few Chinese words

    Each word is enlarged for easy study.

    If you are studying Chinese，these tools can help.

    ●Zhongwen site

      More than a dictionary!

    ●Clavis Sinica

        Excellent programme by Professor David  Porter. It displays(显示)  a whole document in Chinese [GB] or [BIG5]，and gives individual(个人的) word's definition(定

义)，pronunciation as well as much more information when you click on that word. If you are studying Chinese，this is a very useful tool.

     ●Chinese Character Visual Dictionary

    If you tike to know more，go to the following sites on the Internet.

    ●The Chinese Outpost

    Pronunciation，Character and Grammar by Mark Andrew Baker. The best. A must-visit site.

  ●Learn Cantonese/Mandarin Online

    ●Internet Based Chinese Teaching and Learning

    ●Rainland Kids discover Chinese -- Site is in Germany

    If you want to have a better understanding of China，go to this one.

    ●Wanfang Data

    As an affiliate(分支) of Chinese Ministry of Science ＆. Technology，Wanfang Data has been the leading information provider in China since 1950s. With a wide range of database resources and value-added  services，Wanfang Data has become a gateway to understanding Chinese culture，medicine，business，science，etc.

A powerful earthquake struck the northeastern coast of Japan at 2: 46 p. m. local time on March 11th, 2011. Japan's Meteorological Agency released its first tsunami warnings just three minutes later. The country has one of the best earthquake early warning systems in the world.

    There are over 4,000 Seismic Intensity Meters( 地震烈度测量仪) in place throughout Japan to measure earthquake activity. These meters provide information within two minutes of an earthquake happening. Information about the strength and the center of the earthquake can be learned within three minutes. There are also concrete sea walls around much of the Japanese coastline. But these measures proved no match for the powerful earthquake and tsunami.

    Castas Synolakis is a tsunami expert in Los Angeles. He says, “Japan is one of those most well-prepared countries on earth in terms of tsunami warning. They had a warning. I think what went wrong is that they had not anticipated the size of this event.”

    He says there are two reasons for this. Japan has not had any event anywhere near as big as this one in the last 150 years. And scientists had not expected such a large earthquake happening off the coast of Japan.

    The 9.0-magnitude earthquake was the 4th most powerful earthquake ever recorded worldwide. It was also the worst earthquake ever to hit Japan. The tsunami waves that followed were reported to have reached as high as 13 meters in some areas.

    Costas Synolakis says Japan's concrete sea walls were not built to handle such high waves. A tsunami wave can travel as fast as 800 kilometers per hour. To get to higher ground people would often have to travel for many kilometers. This can take more time than a fast traveling tsunami will permit. This is especially true in cases like Japan, where the center of the earthquake struck so close to the coastline. The tsunami waves followed almost immediately.

    Experts say early warning systems will continue to be limited by these facts until earthquakes and tsunamis can be predicted.

Here is some general information about Edison Elementary School. For more information, you can visit our website which is printed on the cover.

Attendance

Please contact the office at 480-472-5282 if your child is going to be absent.

The Renaissance Reading

The Accelerated Reader(AR)Programme is a computerized reading enrichment programme that combines great children’s literature with computer skills. As an individualized reading programme, it is designed to motivate students to read more and to read good literature. Students of different abilities can use this programme. It is not a competitive programme but one that improves any students’ reading ability.

Here is how it works. Students select books in their reading range from our Accelerated Reader Selection and read it at their own pace. Once the student has completed the book, he/she is ready to take an AR quiz. Each quiz consists of 5, 10, or 20 multiple choice comprehensive questions about the book.

After taking the quiz, the computer shows the student how many questions he/she answered correctly, shows the correct answers for missed questions, and praises the students’ efforts with an on-screen personalized message. Passing the quiz assures the teacher and the parents that the child actually read and understood the book. Each student tests independently—reading the quiz questions himself/herself.

The computer keeps track of reading points, books, and average test scores, as well as other data. A student may test on a book only once and should, therefore, have thoroughly read and understood the contents before taking the quiz. Each student is responsible for reading the screen to be sure that the quiz, by title and author, is the correct one he/she wishes to take.

Students are recognized for their accomplishments with praise from the teachers and special recognition at the classroom level when individual and/or classroom goals are met.

P. T. O.

We have an active Parent-Teacher Organization. They have monthly meeting. Check the calendar for the meeting times and places.