A little boy invited his mother to attend his school’s first teacher-parent meeting. To the little boy’s disappointment(失望), she said she would go. This would be the  16  time that his classmates and teacher met his mother and he  17  lose his face because of her appearance. Although she was a  18  woman, there was a scar(疤痕) that covered nearly the whole right side of her face. The boy never wanted to  19  why or how she got the scar.
At the meeting, the people were   20  by the kindness and natural beauty of his mother even though she had the scar on her face, but the little boy was still embarrassed(尴尬) and hid himself from everyone.   21 , he happened to hear of a talk between his mother and his teacher.
The teacher asked  22 , “How did you get the scar on your face?”
The mother replied, “When my son was a baby, he was in a room that caught fire. 23 was too afraid to go in because the fire was  24 , so I went in.    25 I was running toward his bed, I saw a long piece of wood  26 and I placed myself over him trying to protect him. I was knocked senseless(失去知觉) but luckily, a fireman came in and saved both of us.” She  27 the burned side of her face. “This scar will be there forever, but to this day, I have never  28 what I did.”
At this point, the little boy came out running toward his mother with  29 in his eyes. He held her in his arms and felt a great sense of the sacrifice(牺牲) that his mother had made for him. He held her hand  30  for the rest of the day.

A thousand years ago Hong Kong was covered by a thick forest. As more and more people came to 　31　 in Hong Kong, these trees were cut down and burnt. Now there is　32　 forest left, though there are still some small areas covered with trees. We call these woods.
　　Elephants, tigers and many　33　 animals were living in the thick forest. When people came to live in Hong Kong, the　34　 began to die out. Early farmers grew rice and　35　 pigs and chickens in the valleys. They cut down the trees and burnt them. They needed　36　 to keep themselves warm in winter, to cook their food and to keep away the dangerous animals. Elephants quickly disappeared because there was not enough food for them. 　37　 did most of the wolves and tigers. Monkeys and many other animals soon　38　 in the same way.
　　You might think that there are no longer any animals in Hong Kong　39　 in the zoos. But there are still about 36 different animals　40　 there. One of the most interesting of Hong Kong's animals is the barking deer. These are beautiful little animals　41　 a rich brown coat and a white patch (补丁) under the tail. They look like deer but they are much smaller. They are less than two feet　42　. They make a noise rather like a dog　43　. In Hong Kong the barking deer has only a real enemy--　44　. People hunt these little animals though it is illegal (违法的). There are now not many barking deer left. So it is important　45　 people to protect wild animals.

A new school term begins, Is anything new at your school? Sichuan students are getting an extra (额外的)hour to sleep in the morning.
This year, Sichuan schools decided that students should start classes later. This should help them feel less tired, For Junior high schools, the first classes will begin no earlier than 8:30 am.
The changes have made students happy.
Liu Xian, 15, said his class was excited by the news on the first day of school. “It’s so good we can get up later!” said Liu.
Liu studies in Chengdu No.4 Middle School. He used to get up at 6:40 am. Now he can get up at 7:40 am because class doesn’t start until 8:40 am.
Wu Hongli, 15, said the new timetable is good for her health. “I used to drink coffee every night or I would feel to sleepy to finish my homework, ”said Wu. “Now I can finish it without coffee.”She used to get up at 6:30 am. Now she can get up at 7:30 am.
Wu Hongli’s mother was happy, too. She thought more sleep would help her daughter grow taller.
But some parents worried that more sleep would mean less learning. There used to be five classes in the morning. Now there are only four.
Many teachers, though, say the changes will help students learn better.
“Students used to doze(瞌睡)for the first two classes in the morning,”said Wu Zongping, an English teacher at Chendu No.12 Middle School. “But now they look fine and they learn much better than before.”
【小题1】What made the Sichuan middle school students happy?

A year ago，I paid no attention to English idioms (习语), though my teacher told us the importance again and again. But soon, the importance of English idioms was shown in an amusing experience.
One day, I happened to meet an Englishman on the road, and soon we began to talk. As I was talking about how I was studying English, the foreigner seemed to be surprised. Gently shaking his head，shrugging his shoulders, he said，“You don’t say!” “You don’t say!” I was puzzled. I thought , perhaps this is not a right topic. “Well, I’d better change the topic.” So I said to him. “Well, shall we talk about the Great Wall? By the way, have you ever been there?” “Certainly, everyone back home will laugh at me if I leave China without seeing it. It was wonderful.” He was deep in thought when I began to talk like a tourist guide. “The Great Wall is one of the wonders in the world. We are very proud of it.” Soon I was interrupted (打断) again by his words: “You don’t say!” I couldn’t help asking, “Why do you ask me not to talk about it?” “Well, I didn’t ask you to do so,” he answered, greatly surprised. I said, “Didn’t you say ‘you don’t say’？” Hearing this, the Englishman laughed to tears. He began to explain, “ ‘You don’t say’ actually means ‘really!’ It is an expression of surprise. Perhaps you don’t pay attention to English idioms.” I realized I had made a fool of myself. Since then I have been more careful with idiomatic expressions. Remember: what the English teachers said is always right to us students.
【小题1】A year ago, I paid no attention to English idioms because       .