Before I even started school, people felt that I was not going to amount to much. At the age of four, I started speech lessons because even I could not speak well enough to be understood.
First grade was a struggle. I not only had difficulty speaking, but I was expected to learn to read and I just couldn't do it. My parents grew more and more frustrated. They bought books and offered great rewards if I could read one of them from start to finish to them. Well, with my speech problems and now my reading problems, I did not like to do reading and so refused to do it whenever possible.
Second grade was not much better. It was in the second grade that the teacher decided that I needed special education. I remember the days of taking the physical exams. However, after all that, they decided that I did not qualify for special education.
It was in third grade that a new school was built close to where I lived. I remember going there with my parents and helping to get the school ready so that we could transfer(转学). It was a happy day that we started school at Vandalia. However, things did not get better as my parent expected.
It was now time for fifth grade. Mrs. Wakefield was my teacher, and if ever there was a teacher that deserved a gold star, it was her. She did not make me feel upset. Instead, she helped me in so many ways and built my self-confidence so that I actually did believe that I could do something special. And that is just what I did.
For the past 22 years, I have been a fifth grade teacher. Because of Mrs. Wakefield's influence in my life, I am now encouraging students who have had difficulties in their lives to believe that they can overcome and become someone. I have won a large number of awards but I know that all of them belong to one fifth grade teacher who believed in me and challenged me to be all that I could be.
I still have a class picture of her with her fifth grade class hanging on the wall of my office, encouraging other teachers to reach out to their students.
【小题1】 What does the underlined phrase “amount to much” mean in Paragraph l?

Bai Yansong, a famous TV host, expressed his support for students wearing green scarves (绿领巾) at a primary school in Xi’an. He wore a green tie on a TV program on October 19, 2011. “I just want the students to know that I’m also wearing green. And we are all great people and are as good as those wearing red scarves.”
The First Experimental Primary School in Xi’an made children with poor schoolwork and behavior wear green scarves. Parents whose children wore green scarves were angry. “The children still need their self-esteem (自尊心) even though they are very young, and they know the green scarf means something is not quite right,” said one mother. Now, the school has stopped the practice.
Educational expert Li Zhenxi said that primary and junior high school students have strong self-esteem. They are eager to be respected and understood. Punishment will hurt them. “It’s better to encourage them rather than separating some ‘bad’ students,” he said.
A survey made by the Ministry of Education (教育部) shows that 75 percent of students feel nervous and scared when the teacher is about to announce their grades. Some schools have done better in protecting students’ privacy and encouraging them. In American schools, teachers post test results on the wall. Instead of using student names, they use secret numbers. This way, students know their secret numbers and can check their own grades only. Some teachers might call the students up to the desk and tell them their scores one at a time.
But test scores are not the only measures of a student’s ability. Everyone has his own strengths and everyone can make great progress by working hard.
【小题1】Bai Yansong wore a green tie in a TV program in order to _______.

Bai Yansong, a famous TV host, expressed his support for students wearing green scarves (绿领巾) at a primary school in Xi’an. He wore a green tie on a TV program on October 19, 2011. “I just want the students to know that I’m also wearing green. And we are all great people and are as good as those wearing red scarves.”
The First Experimental Primary School in Xi’an made children with poor schoolwork and behavior wear green scarves. Parents whose children wore green scarves were angry. “The children still need their self-esteem (自尊心) even though they are very young, and they know the green scarf means something is not quite right,” said one mother. Now, the school has stopped the practice.
Educational expert Li Zhenxi said that primary and junior high school students have strong self-esteem. They are eager to be respected and understood. Punishment will hurt them. “It’s better to encourage them rather than separating some ‘bad’ students,” he said.
A survey made by the Ministry of Education (教育部) shows that 75 percent of students feel nervous and scared when the teacher is about to announce their grades. Some schools have done better in protecting students’ privacy and encouraging them. In American schools, teachers post test results on the wall. Instead of using student names, they use secret numbers. This way, students know their secret numbers and can check their own grades only. Some teachers might call the students up to the desk and tell them their scores one at a time.
But test scores are not the only measures of a student’s ability. Everyone has his own strengths and everyone can make great progress by working hard.
【小题1】Bai Yansong wore a green tie in a TV program in order to _______.