I have been teaching the tenth-grade English for four years. Needless to say，I love my subject and promise to one day pass my love of literature on to my future students. Well，I must admit，I have made more than a difference. I have changed the way students perceive（感知）literature and have even inspired some to become English teachers.

One student in particular is named John. I met him last year when he was a student in my English class. He sat in the back often，saying very little. However，I sensed that he was taking in all that I taught. John was never absent nor was he late. He seemed very mature for his age.

As the year progressed，we read lots of poetry and various stories about different cultures and real-life experiences. I have always wanted literature to speak to my students so that they could find related connections which would finally give them that motivation（动力）to read，write and interpret. While reading and writing poetry，John wrote some beautiful poetry that spoke of his experiences in America.

On the last day of school，students were asked to write a brief autobiographical essay and to dedicate（献给）it to someone he or she thought was significant in his or her life. John dedicated his essay to me and used clip art that decorated the dedication with roses.

He stated in the essay that "Some people you meet in life are flowers，but then there are those who are roses. Ms. Hopkins，I just want you to know that you are a rose in my life and I have enjoyed every minute of being in your class. You have shown me that I have a purpose in life and that I am a poet. I will never forget you." Tears streamed down my eyes. I had had a particularly hard personal life that year but somehow that letter made it worth the struggle.

Making a significant contribution to someone's life is something money could never buy. Teaching allows teachers to make a positive difference in the life of students.

   An angry voice awoke Wang Lin. The 21-year-old electronic information science and technology major at Nanjing University heard a voice shouting，"Why are you constantly changing my consultant（顾问）？""It must be my roommate arguing again with his study abroad agent，" Wang thought. It had already happened several times，which made Wang wonder if having an agent was a wise choice.

In fact，many students who plan to study abroad have the same concern. Below，their upperclassmen（高年级学生）will talk about their experiences and professionals will offer some advice.

Poor writing

Zhang Na is a student of Peking University. She decided to leave the application work to a study abroad agent. At first，the process was smooth，but when Zhang read her recommendation letter she noticed a problem. "I wasn't satisfied with it，" says Zhang. "I could tell the writer hadn't put any thought into it because it said‘I'm a promising young man’ in the letter."  She had to rewrite the personal statement and recommendation letters by herself in the end. "I didn't trust them any more，"she says.

Change of consultants

Another problem Zhang experienced with the agent was changing consultants. "My first two consultants left the company midway through the application process, so I had to get used to a new one twice," she says.

Do it by yourself or find a study abroad agent?

Meng Fang, 22, studies computer science at Tsinghua University. She decided to apply for the master's degree program by herself after comparing the process of applying by herself to applying through an agent. "I evaluated different elements of the application process and came to the conclusion that I should do it by myself," she says.

Cao Xianshui, a senior study abroad expert, believes that whether students should hire a study abroad agent or not depends on their individual case. "For students from rich families who want to apply for a less competitive university, finding a study abroad agent is a good way to save some trouble," he says. "But for students who have good learning and analysis skills, applying by themselves may give them a better chance of getting into a top university."

   The 2019 SAVE THE FROGS！A poetry contest will be run from January 15th to October 15th，2019.

Who can enter？

Anybody！We encourage students and teachers to get their writing classes involved on Save The Frogs Day. We encourage amateur and professional poets to take part as well. And the more countries represent the better！

Inspiration

The Japanese poet Basho wrote a famous haiku（十七音诗）in the 17th century：

an ancient

a frog jumps in

the splash of water.

How do I write a frog poem？

Here are some ideas for your frog poems：

（1）Find out a particular kind of frog and describe the world from that frog's point of view.

（2）What if you found the last frogs alive on the planet...What would you do？How would you feel？

（3）Write a poem that makes the readers understand the importance of saving frogs，or one that makes them realize the danger frogs are in.

（4）Write a poem about any of the threats to frogs.

（5）Imagine all kinds of daring ways in which you could save the frogs.

Categories

Category winners will be chosen from the following categories：

（1）18 + years old group

（2）13-17 years old group

（3）Under age 13 group

Contest Rules

（1）Submitted poetry must be your original creation！

（2）You may submit up to two poems. Please always give us the title of each poem. Please do NOT name your poems "Save The Frogs".

（3）All entries（参赛作品）are to be handed in no later than 11：59 pm on October 15th，2019.

Attention！

If you are a teacher，please inform your fellow teachers. If you are a student，please deliver this flyer（小传单）to your teachers. Please put this flyer up around your school as well.

If you are active on a poetry website，post an announcement. If you have a website，please link to this page. If you have a Facebook or Myspace account，put up a notice on your page，and tell your friends. In Facebook，you can post a link to this page. Thanks！

   You'll probably never go to Mars or sing on the stage with The Rolling Stones. But if virtual reality （VR）ever lives up to its promise, you might be able to do all these things - and many more - without even leaving your home.Unlike real reality, virtual reality means simulating（模拟）bits of our world. Apart from games and entertainment, it's long been used for training airline pilots and surgeons and for helping scientists to figure out difficult problems such as the structure of protein molecules（蛋白质分子）. Then how does it work?

Close your eyes and think of virtual reality and you probably picture something like this:a man wearing a wrap-around headset and data gloves wired into a powerful workstation or supercomputer. What distinguishes VR from an ordinary computer experiences the nature of the input and output. While an ordinary computer uses things like a keyboard, a mouse, or speech recognition for input, VR uses sensors that detect how your body is moving. A PC displays output on a screen while VR uses two screens （one for each eye） , surround-sound speakers, and maybe some forms of touch and body feedback as well.

VR has been routinely used by scientists,doctors, engineers, architects, archaeologists, and the military for about the last 30 years. Difficult and dangerous jobs are hard to train for. How  can you safely practice taking a trip to space, making a parachute jump, or carrying out brain surgery? All these things are obvious candidates for virtual reality applications.

Like any technology, virtual reality has both good and bad points. Critics always raise the risk that people may be addicted to alternative realities to the point of ignoring their real-world lives, but this criticism has been leveled at everything from radio and TV to computer games and the Internet. Like many technologies, VR takes little or nothing away from the real world: you don't have to use it if you don't want to.

   I grew up on a 10-acre farm in the small rural community of Catawissa，Missouri，as the sixth of seven children. My parents，Archie and Altha，often _________ during meals how everything on the table came from the _________.

Besides running the farm，Dad was also a _________. in the fall of 1970，he was working on a house when the ladder broke all at once. His back was fractured（折断）in two places and _________ needed rescue.

He stayed in the hospital for three weeks，_________his back to be treated correctly so the bones would _________ perfectly.

On Thanksgiving Day，Dad was still in the hospital. We always _________ pigs the day after the holiday so that we had enough pork _________for the next year，and that year my uncle _________ with a couple of cousins to help my three older brothers prepare our year's supply.

After Dad returned home，he was in a back brace and saddened for __________ to work. Worse still，the doctor told us his chance of complete recovery was __________. I was too young to realize our family had no __________ coming in as Christmas approached.

One night we heard a car coming up the long driveway. Always __________ about company（客人），we kids were curious about who was visiting.

Peggy Phelan was at the door，holding an envelope __________ with money which，according to her account，she had __________ in the community. And she was there to __________ it！

Dad tried to __________ but Peggy would have none of it. I can still hear her saying，"Archie，whenever someone's baler（压捆机）is broken，you bale their hay. Every time someone passes away，Altha is cooking. It's our __________."

That evening，I understood what being a good neighbor was，and that __________ my parents were good neighbors, their __________ would be paid back.

In Sydney，a multi-million dollar export industry starts with a simple trip to the shops. Lee Wenjing，a college student from Chongqing，carries 【小题1】（vary）Australian products from a discount chemist 【小题2】（sell）to customers back home in China. Lee 【小题3】（work）part time for the past two years as a daigou operator，a freelance（从事自由职业的）retail consultant. She is glued to her phone，【小题4】（use）the messaging app WeChat to build a network of 100 clients who aren't afraid to pay high prices 【小题5】 trustworthy Australian goods.

In Australia，it's estimated that there are 20，000 daigou operators，【小题6】buy on sb.'s behalf. The online shopping agents are 【小题7】（most）from the Chinese mainland，and are young migrants or international students looking for flexible ways to help cover 【小题8】（they）rent and university fees.

These freelance exporters have created thousands of trading routes both small and big into China，【小题9】 market potentially worth billions. "We think daigou operators are a positive force 【小题10】 they are good for the local economy，" says Peter Nathan，chief executive of the local food industry.

   An increasing number of old U.S. citizens are traveling abroad. The U.S. Department of State wants you to be prepared so that you can enjoy your trip. Please consider the following tips as you plan your travel.

Travel Documents.

【小题1】Some countries require that passports be valid for six months after your trip ends and some foreign countries require that U.S. travelers obtain a visa.

【小题2】

A secure way to maintain your emergency contact information is to enroll （登记）with our Smart Traveler Enrolment Program. Your information is stored securely and enables the American Embassy to contact you，your family，or your friends in an emergency according to your wishes.

Health Information.

Health care tops the list of concerns for many old U.S. citizens who are thinking about traveling abroad. Consult with your physician prior to your travel overseas to identify your health care needs at your destination. Research the environmental conditions at your overseas destination that may contribute to your specific health concerns. 【小题3】

Medical Insurance Beyond Medicare.

Medicare，the U.S. government health plan for people aged 65 years and older，does NOT cover health care overseas. 【小题4】 Many companies offer short-term health and emergency assistance policies to cover health care expenses incurred overseas，including emergency services such as medical evacuations（撤离）.

Smart Travel.

【小题5】Be aware that sudden changes in diet and climate can have serious health consequences for the unprepared traveler，no matter your age. At the same time，if you aren't sure about anything，turn to the Internet.

Last month, my good friend Mark got expensive watch as his birthday present. He showed it to everyone in the class proud. I really envied of him, so I also asked my mum to buy me an expensive birthday present. However, to her disappointment, I only got a second-hand bike on that special day. One day while I am riding my “dear”bike back home from school, I passed the shop that my mum worked. I saw a familiar figure kneeling in front of the shop, cleaned the outside steps. It was my mum! She worked so harder to raise me! Tear in my eyes, I got off the bike but worked together with her.

Yours truly，

Li Hua