When time comes to December in England, there  1  usually lots of snowstorms. Though they can often  2  traffic accidents,  3  local people and drivers are quite  4  terrible weather. However, to everyone's  5  , a special “apple rain”  6  in Coventry  7 December 12, 2011. “It's 8 thing I've met all my life! ” said Mr Turner, a  9  man who has lived in the city for more than 50 years.

    It was about the rush hour in the evening, and many people were just  10 in the street when the apples  11  fell down without warning. Some people thought the apples might fall from a plane, while  12  regarded it  13 a trick from naughty children.

The UK Met Office(英国气象局) said on 14th that it could be the result of cyclones(气旋) in the storm. It  14  that some storms can carry things like apples away as  15  as 100 miles (about 161 kilometers).

There are so many traffic accidents now. Many people are killed or hurt everyday on roads. It's becoming a more and more serious problem. Why?

      Sometimes drivers drive too fast or don't drive carefully enough. They talk or answer the cellphone during the driving. Some drivers drive against the red lights. What's worse(更糟的是), some drive on the road after drinking alcohol(酒) too much. Now ①“No driving after drinking; No drinking before driving” is very popular.

Many people think the main reason of traffic accidents are from drivers. Is it true?

A survey(调查) shows that the pedestrians(行 人) can also cause the traffic accidents. Some of them often walk in the roads instead of on the walkways. They get into or out of cars in the middle of the road. They walk or run in front of the fast cars. They even walk across the roads against the red lights.

Some people think that too many people cause too many accidents. However, the traffic in Tokyo shows that it is wrong. ② Tokyo(东 京) is one of the world's largest and busiest cities. The police there are strict, the drivers there are careful, the pedestrians follow the traffic rules. There are very few accidents happening there.

      Where is the safe way?

    A new report says African governments are ill prepared to handle the growing number of people over age 65. The population in Africa as in other parts of the world, is getting older. Currently, there are 36 million people on the continent 65 years and above. which is 3.6 percent of the population. up from 3.3 percent 10 years ago. That could rise to 4.5 percent by 2030 and 10 percent by 2050. The African development Bank is raising concerns over the shortage of health insurance and pensions (养老金).

    The African Development Bank says. "Aging is highly linked with long-term physical and mental  disability and a number of long-term chronic (慢性的) conditions."

    "Africa is not well prepared to care for its aging population right now. And it needs to prepare for this fact." said Professor Mthuli Ncube. the African Development Bank's chief economist. African nations spend far less on healthcare than developed nations do___ about $26per person per year. Not so many countries have well developed medical aid plans for the elderly, whether they are privately provided plans or indeed government plans. If you look at the pension plans, you will find the pension industries are not well developed in some of the countries.

    Professor Mthuli Ncube said African governments failed to take action on health insurance and pensions because they were busy with economic reforms.

    Another challenge for Africa is the worsening of informal systems of social protection. That is cash and support from both the extended family and community sources.

    The African Development Bank recommends governments help carry out health insurance and pension plans. Ncube said African governments didn't have to handle the health insurance burden alone. "It is not only a must but also an opportunity for private companies to add their bit in this regard", he said. The report also recommends that African governments consider providing ways of free health services. medications and long-term health care facilities for the elderly.

    After his parents' meeting , Wang Jiaming , 14 , from Beijing knows that he will face invisible（看不见的）“enemies”—“other excellent students”.

    “Look at such and such a student . You and he are taught by the same teachers . Why couldn' t you be as 1 as him ?”his mother would say .

    Many students hear 2 words from their parents . After the parents' meeting , their parents begin to 3 them with other students , especially those who are praised by teachers .

    “I want to encourage my child to 4 them ,”explained Li Shulan , a mother of a 14-year-old boy from Xi'an , Shanxi .However , many children , like Wang , don' t like it .

    “I feel very 5 and sometimes even‘hate'those students ,”Wang said .Parents have good intentions（意图）, but in fact they could 6children's selfesteem(自尊),said Li Ying,a  psychological (心理的) teacher at Xiamen Hubin Middle School in Fujian . If children feel hurt , they should let parents know it .“You can choose a relaxing occasion , for example , over the dinner , and tell your parents your feelings ,”Lin said .“Also , some articles online explain 7 it could be bad for children . You may want to show such articles to your parents .”

    It's not all bad , though . Liu Jiayang , 13 , from Taizhou , Zhejiang said students could take the chance to learn to be open-minded .

    “I find the students that my mom talks about really have strong 8 that I don' t have . I take them as examples and try to 9 with them ,”she said .

    “During the process（过程）, always keep in mind that you' re unique（特别的）. Never 10 heart ,”Lin added .

    People with different cultures (文化) and languages live together in India. It's a very old 1 with a large population. Today there are over1.3 billion people in India. Soon it might surpass (超过) China and 2 a country with the largest population in the world.

    Different 3 China, family planning in India isn't made. In the 1970s and 1980s the Indian government tried to 4 their growing population, but it is still increasing quickly.

    Many women have more than three 5 in India. About one third of India's  6 is under 14. It makes India one of the world's 7 countries. However, India has the largest proportion (比例) of people who can't read 8 write.

    More than 70% of Indian people live in the countryside. These years more and more people in the countryside are 9 to cities. But there they live in crowded places with no electricity (电) or clean water. As a 10 , cities like Mumbai, Calcutta and New Delhi have more and more problems.

    Childhood is a time of fun and games. Many people still remember when they were young, they often played games like hide-and-seek and chess. Playing teaches children how to get with others, and it also helps to exercise the mind and body. However, children today spend most of their time in front of the computer, playing video games.

    A recent survey found that in the US. Children between 8 and 12 spend at least 13 hours a week playing video games or "gaming". Boys of this age spend even more time, almost 16 hours a week. Although some people will say that gaming is helpful, it brings many problems as well.

    One big problem is that kids who spend most of their time on games might have difficulty communicating with real people. They might have trouble sharing and resolving (解决) problems because they do not practice these skills when sitting alone at a computer.

    Another problem is about health. Game players usually sit for hours without doing any exercise. And they might not eat healthily. As a result, they might be out of shape.

    Next, game players might have trouble with their lessons. Many of them spend more time playing games than working on their homework. In the end, they fail in the exams.

    Finally, it is always possible that the gamers become addicted. Some people play four or five hours a day or even all day. This happened to a 28 - year - old Korean man. He spent about 50 hours playing an online game without sleeping or eating well. He died while gaming!

    This is one example of the dangers of video gaming. It tells us that video gaming, like everything else, should not be done too much. A few hours a week should not hurt, but several hours a day just might be dangerous to your health.

    Do you spend over an hour each day sending messages to your friends? Do you often check your mobile phone1messages? If you don't take your mobile phone, will you feel2?Do your fingers sometimes hurt because of using your mobile phone too3?

    If you answer "4" to any of the questions, then it is very possible that you are a textaholic （短信控）. A textaholic is someone who is addicted（上瘾的）to5and receiving messages. These people usually show more6in messages than anything else. If no messages come in, they'll become7more easily and never be sure of themselves. Doctors8that this kind of addiction is bad for people's health, especially for young people's.

    So what can you do if you think you9be a textaholic? The key is to get your life back in balance. Stop10every message you receive, and start to11about leaving your mobile phone at home when you go out. Most importantly, spend more time with12and family and make good use of your time to learn something13than only play with your mobile phone for fun.14this way, you will save time and money and you may15get the pleasure of true communication.

    Popular music in America is what every student likes. Students carry small radios with earphones and listen to music before class, after class, and at lunch. Students with cars buy large speakers and play the music loudly as they drive on the street.

    Adult(成年的)drivers listen to music on the car radio as they drive to work. They also listen to the news about sports, the weather, and the life of American people. Most of the radio programmes are music.

    Pop or popular music singers make much money. They make a CD or tape which radio stations use in many places. Once the popular singer is heard all over the country, young people buy his or her tape. Some of the money from these tapes comes to the singer. Wherever the singer goes, all the young people want to meet him or her. Now the singer has become a national star.

    There are other kinds of music that are important to Americans. One is called folk(民间)music. It tells stories about the common(普通)life of Americans. Another is called western or country music. This was started by cowboys who would sing at night to the cows they were watching. Today, any music about country life and the love between a country boy and his girl is called western or country music.

    In the UK, Saturday evenings have always been a popular time for families to watch television together. One of the most popular programme genres is the talent show, partly because people of all ages are interested in it.

    Early shows, like Opportunity Knocks(1965~1978), required people to vote(投票)for their favourite acts and performers, although in those days voting was done by postcard instead of by telephone, text, or over the Internet. Today, the success of television talent shows has reached a new level. Here are the UK's top three TV talent shows：

    The X Factor In this wonderful singing competition, performers have to face a celebrity judge panel(名人裁判组)before the public vote. Many excellent singers became popular because of it. The show is now made all over the world, from China to Colombia.

    Strictly Come Dancing The programme is so fantastic that it attracts many celebrities. They team up with professional(专业的)dancers and come to the dance floor to win the title of Strictly Come Dancing Champion.

    Britain's Got Talent In this modern-day version(版本)of Opportunity Knocks, the public can go and choose from many kinds of acts, from dancing dogs to ice skating. The prize is to perform for the Queen in the Royal Variety Performance.

    In the world, soccer of football is the most popular sport. This is because many countries have wonderful teams for the World Cup. The World Cup is held every four years. To remember 2002 FIFA World Cup, children from different countries and more than 60 children from Japanese schools came together and spent three weekends drawing a big picture called "Dream(梦幻) World Cups" in Japan. The children drew animals, flowers and people playing soccer under a blue bright sky. They wished each football team good luck by drawing the flags(旗帜)of all the countries that will take part in the World Cup in Japan and South Korea. The picture was put up in a park near a playground in Yokohama. Some football teams will have games there.

    Are you a football fan(迷)？The World Cup makes more and more people interested in football. Teenagers(青少年)like playing and watching football. Many of them love some football stars so much that they get the pictures of their favourite players on the walls of their rooms. That is the way to show their love for the World Cup as children in Japan.

    December 25th is Christmas Day. In Western countries it is the most important day in the year. All the people come back to their homes and have the day with their parents or their children. On Christmas Day bells ring everywhere. The ringing bell tells people Christmas is coming. People sing and dance day and night. They have a good time.

    Most families buy Christmas trees for their children. And there are some presents hanging(悬挂) from the trees here and there. On Christmas Eve children are very happy. They put stockings at the end of their beds so that their parents can put presents in them. In many places, Father Christmas brings presents to them. He is a kind man in red clothes. There is a big bag on his back. In it there are a lot of presents.

    Many of us wish we would have longer weekend, but for about 18,000 students in Colorado, that wish is coming true. A school district outside Denver has decided to shorten its week to four days—from Tuesday to Friday, and the first school year on this new timetable just started, CBS Denver reports. It began on Tuesday, August 14, because the day students get off is everyone's least favorite: Monday.

    Although this may sound like a dream come true, it means students will have to sit though longer school days to work more for the hours they've lost, according to The Denver Post. So the timetable seems more crowded than ever.

    The decision wasn't made just to give students more days off, though it had practical purpose. The district says that it will save $ 1 million by not having buses on Mondays and spending less on things like electricity and water. That means a lot to the school. However, there are different voice. Parents may pick up some the cost of this change, though, since many will now need to stay home with their kids. If they go to work, they have to find people to take care of their children.

    This isn't the first district in the state to introduce a four—day week:55 % of the state's schools do this, but most of them are in the countryside, according to The Denver Post. Several school in Oklahoma made the some move earlier this year, and some them told CBS News Reports that more teachers wanted to teach there after the change. Most of these teachers have a lot of teaching experience. About 560 districts in timetable influence students' performance.

    The Chinese shopping day called Singles Day (Nov 11) has already finished. There is a similar day in the United States 1 Black Friday. And an increasing number of people in the US 2 shopping online now.

    Black Friday is always the Friday 3 Thanksgiving. On this day, many stores 4 big discounts for products like televisions and computers.

    This year, the, day 5 on Nov 24 and marked the start of the holiday shopping season. People start to buy things 6 Christmas at this time. The season will 7 until the end of this month.

    8, a lot of shopping during the season is done, at physical stores. But more people in the US are turning to online shopping.

    This year's Thanksgiving and Black Friday online sales 9 to $7. 9 billion (52 billion yuan), a record high, and up 17. 9 percent from a year ago, Reuters reported.

    According to a survey 10 the National Retail Federation (美国全国零售商联合会), 59 percent of US customers said shopping on the internet was their top choice for this shopping season.

    Stress used to be an almost unknown word, but now that we are used to (talk) about it, I have found that people are beginning to get stressed about being stressed.
    In recent years, stress has been regarded as a cause of a whole range of medical problems, from high blood pressure to mental illness. But like so many other things, it is only too much stress that

(do) you harm. It is time you considered that if there were no stress in your life, you would achieve a little. If you are stuck at home with no stress, then your level of performance (be) low. Up to a certain point, the more stress you are under, the better your performance will be. Beyond a certain point, though, further stress will only lead to exhaustion, illness and finally a breakdown. You can tell when you are over the top and on the downward slope, by (ask) yourself a number of questions. Do you, for example, feel that too much is being expected of you, and yet find it impossible to say no? Do you find yourself getting impatient or annoyed with people over unimportant things... If the answer to all those questions is yes, you had better(control) your stress, as you probably are under more stress than is good for you.
    To some extent you can control the amount of stress in your life. Doctors (work) out a chart to show how much stress is involved in various events. Getting married is 50, pregnancy 40, moving house 20, Christmas 12, etc. If the total stress in your life is over 150, you are twice as likely

 (get) ill.

    What was life like of years ago? Let me tell you. There were no machines then. People did things by hand. Of course, there were no , either. It was for people to go into space. But the was a lot better. People could enjoy the blue , white clouds and clean water.

    Life today is much because of the invention (发明) of machines. But it has some new problems. One of the biggest problems is. . For example, rivers, lakes and the are polluted by factory sewage (污水). It's for people to drink the water.

     Luckily, people have realized (意识到) these problems and they're' doing something to solve them. They more trees. They go out by bike or on foot.

Life is full of difficulties. No matter what you are, you have to face endless problems.

As a son of my family, I find it tiring to stay at home. It's because my mother will ask me to do this or to do that. When I finish all the chores and have time to listen to my favorite music, she will turn it off and ask me to study. I get crazy about my mom. I don't want to talk to her anymore.

As a student at school, I think the school life is too boring. All we have to do is only to study. We sit in the classroom for a whole day with different kinds of subjects and homework. Tests and exams are the most scary. During the exams, I am always so nervous that I forget how to answer the questions. So I often fail in exams. And my parents are angry with me.

In fact, I want to try my best and get better grades. But what should I do? Should I make any resolutions? How can I keep them? If you have any good advice for me, please write to me soon at 59766894321@qq.com.Thank you so much.

Zhou, the father of a student in Nanjing, didn't speak to his son's teachers for along time. He wasn't invited to a parents' meeting!

Zhou decided to ask his son. The answer was his son a man 50 yuan and asked him to be his "father" at a parents 'meeting!" I did badly on my exams and I didn't to tell my father about that, "says the boy." I didn't want to make him feel angry. "

This boy is not the only student to do that. Six of his classmates have used their money to do that, too. Most of them were afraid of being punished for getting bad Teachers say that Parents are too much of their children. They say. "Sometimes many students fail, and they don't know how to face their parents then."

Students should make friends with their parents. Experts on teenagers say that is exactly best way to deal with this problem. Then students will be able to have heart-to-heart talks with their parents. These talks will be to solve the problem.

Young foreigners think High-speed trains. Alipay (支付宝), shared bikes and online payment are the new Four Great Achinveman1s of China, according to a video survey. In the video, young people from 20 countries along the Belt and Road(一带一路) told us some great inventions, they said these inventions influenced their lives in China. The following is what they said from 4 young people of them.

Justin: I'm from Romania. China is a great country and its high-speed railways are very fast, convenient and tidy. It takes me only 6 hours from Beijing to Shanghai by train. It saves a lot of time and it's cheaper than by plane. I wish we will have high-speed railways in our country someday.

Yala: I'm from Nepal. l always go out by bike. The bicycle-sharing system allows people to borrow a bike from point "A" and return it at point "B". It's cheap and a low carbon and healthy way of life. I like it very much.

Archana: I'm from India. My life in Beijing is quite different from that in India. I hardly take money with me when l go out. I can pay for almost everything by Zhi Fu Bao. Oh, it's amazing. In India, if you don't take money with you you'll be awkward.

Bond: I'm from Thailand. In China, you can find many wonderful things that we don't have. Alipay or other online payment Apps are convenient. So I can go shopping without stepping out of the doors(足不出户). lf only(要是……就好了) l could bring them back to my country.

Parents may be surprised at how fast their kids grow up, but a study finds that U. S. teenagers are developing more slowly than those in the past.

Scientists at San Diego State University have worked on a study of over 8 million U. S. kids aged 13-19 for 40 years. The findings show that today's teenagers are less responsible(负责任的) and that most of them don't have a part-time job. "The whole development has slowed down. Today's 18-year-olds are more like 15-year-olds in the past, " said Professor Jean Twenge. "Teenagers are taking fewer risks than those in the past. "

Scientists have also found that more teenagers spend longer time living with their parents instead of renting(租)their own room or apartment. So is that slower development "good" or "bad"? It may depend on how you look at it, the scientists said. "The upside of slower development is that teenagers aren't growing up before they are ready, " said Professor Twenge. "But the downside is that they go to college and into the workplace without as much experience with independence. Today's students may be smart and creative, but they often have trouble with planning, time management (管理) and problem-solving, "added Professor Twenge.

One of the reasons for these changes is that today's teenagers would like to spend much time online. They keep on watching videos or playing games on the Internet instead of spending more time with their family and friends in person. Another one is that parents have become much more "child-centric". In fact, parents had better let their children do everything by themselves. They should try their best to make their children become independent as soon as possible.