话题链接：每年的5月12日是国际护士节。为了纪念英国护理学先驱、护士职业创始人弗罗伦斯·南丁格尔对护理工作做出的卓越贡献，国际护士理事会于1912年把南丁格尔的诞辰日定为国际护士节。

　　International Nurses Day is celebrated around the world every May 12, the anniversary of the birth of British nurse Florence Nightingale．

　　Nightingale was a legend(传奇)in her lifetime but the Crimean War years which made her famous were just two in a life of 90 years．

　　When the Crimean War broke out in 1854, she oversaw the introduction of female nurses into military hospitals in Turkey and dramatically cut the mortality rate(死亡率)．

　　While Nightingale is best known for her work during the war, some of her most valuable contributions came later．She returned to England as a national heroine．She founded the Nightingale School and Home for Nurses at St．Thomas' Hospital, London in 1860, the first of its kind．

　　Although Nightingale was bedridden(卧床不起)for many years due to illness contracted(与……相关)in the Crimea, she campaigned(从事活动)tirelessly to improve health standards, and published 200 books, reports and pamphlets(小册子)．

　　Nightingale was more than a romantic heroine．Her far-sighted reforms have influenced the nature of modern health care and her writings continue to be a resource for nurses, health managers and planners．

想一想：Why are people still in memory of Florence Nightingale nowadays?

Don't misinform your doctor nor your lawyer．

　　Long, long ago, there was an honest and kind-hearted fellow named Niu Lang(Cowhand)．His parents died when he was a child．Later his sister-in-law drove him out of his home．So he lived by himself herding(放牧)cattle and farming．One day, a fairy from heaven(Weaver Maid)fell in love with him and came down secretly to earth and married him．The cowhand farmed in the field and the Weaver Maid wove at home．They lived a happy life and gave birth to a boy and a girl．Unfortunately, the God of Heaven soon found out the fact and ordered the Queen Mother of the Western Heavens to bring the Weaver Maid back．With the help of celestial(天上的)cattle, the Cowhand flew to heaven with his son and daughter．At the time when he was about to catch up with his wife, the Queen Mother took off one of her gold hairpins(束发夹)and made a stroke．One billowy(汹涌的)river appeared in front of the Cowhand．The Cowhand and Weaver Maid were separated on the two banks forever and could only feel their tears．Their loyalty(忠诚的)to love touched magpies(喜鹊)，so tens of thousands of magpies came to build a bridge for the Cowhand and Weaver Maid to meet each other．The Queen Mother was eventually moved and allowed them to meet each year on the 7th of the 7th lunar month．Hence their meeting date has been called “Double Seventh”．

　　任务导入：Put on a play show of“Cowhand and Weaver Maid”with your friends or classmates．(和同班同学上演戏剧《牛郎织女》)

You can do it as the following steps：

1．All the members discuss and choose the best one of you as director．

2．Director divide all the members into three groups as Diagram below：

members of recomposing the play, members of performance and members of service．

3．Group 1 should finish the play script writing in a definite time．While Group 3 should do some preparation for the play, e．g．the clothes, properties(道具)etc．And members of Group 2 discuss the skills of performance．Make a detail Work Calendar as Diagram 2．

4．Then practice the play together．

5．Do a dress rehearsal(彩排)before the show．

6．Show the play before audience．

7．Get some feedback from audience and analyze the reason of failure or success．

Diagram 1

Diagram 2

　　The Spring Festival is the most important festival for the Chinese people and is when all family members get together, just like Christmas in the West．It falls on the 1st day of the 1st lunar month, often one month later than the Gregorian calendar．It originated in the Shang Dynasty(c．1600 BC～c．1100 BC)from the people's sacrificee to gods and ancestors at the end of an old year and the beginning of a new one．During the Spring Festival, people usually completely clean their houses and all their utensils．They decorated their doors with Spring Festival couplets(春联)，Also, pictures of the god of doors and wealth will be posted on front doors to ward off evil spirits and welcome peace and abundance．Jiaozi or Niangao are the traditional food eaten by people on the first of the new year．Children like to burn fireworks for fun．

　　People attach great importance to Spring Festival Eve．At that time, all family members eat dinner together．The meal is more luxurious than usual．Dishes such as chicken, fish and bean curd cannot be excluded, for in Chinese, their pronunciations, respectively“ji”,“yu”and“fu,”mean auspiciousness, abundance and richness．After the dinner, the whole family will sit together, chatting and watching TV．In recent years, the Spring Festival party broadcast on China Central Television Station(CCTV)is essential entertainment for the Chinese both at home and abroad．According to custom, each family will stay up to see the New Year in．

　　问题导入：随着人们欣赏水平的提高和娱乐活动的丰富，许多人认为春节联欢晚会没有以前那样重要了，节目也不是特别吸引人了，但也有许多人认为春节联欢晚会多少年来给人们带来许多快乐，已经成为人们心目中不可缺少的春节大餐。你认为还有必要继续举行春节联欢晚会吗？

　　Do you think it is still necessary to have the Spring Festival party broadcast on China Central Television Station(CCTV)?

　　A farmer from the countryside：It's necessary to have the programme because families get together at that time and have a big meal．After the meal, they watch the TV programme as it is an enjoyable way of spending time together．Family members can have a lot of fun together through watching the programme．

　　A director for CCTV：We should continue the programme．It's like a delicious taste of Chinese culture and should be enjoyed by people at home and abroad．It's also a symbol of a united China and gives the Spring Festival a special atmosphere．

　　A young student from a city：It is boring, I don't like it and the performances are just getting worse and worse．Local governments can hold other more meaningful activities．These may be more exciting and can attract more people．

　　A journalist：The Spring Festival programmed is quite important, though there are some problems here and there．It has become a custom for Chinese people now．What is the most important is to improve the show and make it appealing(吸引人的)to people at home and abroad．

Your view：________________________________

　　The Maltese Islands have often been referred to as the islands of sunshine and history, and with good reason．With a history looking back to 6000 years of civilization(文明)，every square inch of its land, temples and monuments are witness(见证人)to these past civilizations．For those of you with a wish for culture, Malta and Gozo are strewn with interesting historical and archipelago(群岛)sites, some of which look back to earlier than the Pyramids!

　　The people speak their own tongue－Maltese, a language of Semitic origin．Through the ages, many foreign words, particularly Italian, became part of the language, and Maltese is the only Semitic language written in Latin characters．

　　English is one of the two official languages, and is widely spoken in Malta and Gozo．The official religion is that of the Roman Catholic Church, and the majority(大多数)are church-goers．There are no other denominations of subtown size among the Maltese, but churches of other denominations are also to be found, for changing religious(宗教的)needs．

［想一想］Why are foreign languages covered in some countries and last many years just especially in some small countries and small islands?

________

　　It is a problem that is noticed by language teachers and students．

　　Mr Kevin Huang Xi, 23, an English major at the Beijing University of Technology who graduated this year with a bachelor’s degree(学士学位), feels it in his daily usage of the Chinese language．

　　Part of the debate(讨论)was whether there was a need to learn so much English, as it was not useful locally in some instances, he said．

　　What is more, because of a lack(缺乏)of an environment for learning English in most places, the result of hard work by the students is often not good．Kindergartens have started teaching English, showing that demand is high for English-language training from an early age．In Shanghai, for example, about a fifth of kindergartens offer English-language lessons．

　　Earlier this year, some kindergartens even advertised themselves as English-only, improving the Shanghai education authorities(当局)to step in．The education commission(委员会)made it clear that “the mother tongue is still the basis for teaching in kindergartens”．The wish for English learning and the effects on the Chinese language have come to the notice of the state education authorities．

　　Also, usage of putonghua would grow as China developed as a market economy and literal exchanges(交流)increased, thus boosting demand for a common language．At the same time, the government has in recent years also strengthened measures to popularise(普及)putonghua, writing into law for the first time in 2001 the status of putonghua and Chinese script(描述)as the “national common language”．

　　“The final result most possibly is that the market for putonghua will continue to grow bigger while that for dialects will come down, but it can’t be helped, it’s a social trend(潮流), ”someone said．

　　They will finally be kept in museums as history and as research material and research objects for language scholars, someone added．

［问题导入］How do you think about“Putonghua and English language”?

________

　　A senior teacher’s view：Putonghua or Chinese language is more important than English language now in the world．

　　A boss’s view：English is the most widely used in the world and is the threat to Chinese Language．

　　A villager’s view：The dialect should be developed and kept the local land lively．

　　A teenager’s view：English is left out and it is our native language．

　　An editor’s view：We must develop English, Chinese language and putonghua, in this way we can communicate with each other, and people perhaps can understand each other and get rid of trouble．

　　My view：________

　　My best friend is James Greenacre and he is the most unforgettable bloke(哥们)I’ve ever met．We were friends since the New Year 7 boarders(董事长)meeting day at Cranbrook School．We were both boarding in the same house as well and we lived in the same dormitory．He is a tall guy with brown hair and blue eyes．We were really good friends because we lived in the same dorm for two years．We knew each other so well because we had gone through good times and bad times together．Last year, we were both in the 14Bs’ for rugby(橄榄球)and it created more chances for us to get together．

　　I could still remember when I was at Cranbrook, he often helped me with English and I ften helped him with maths．However, to be called good friends you must go through bad times, otherwise you wouldn’t understand the value of friendship．Of course, I had gone through these experiences just like everybody did．That was once when we were playing rugby at the school oval(圆门)．He suddenly ran over me but didn’t apologize．I was quite angry with him and we even started a fight．We did not speak to each other for a while．However, I really did not want to give up on our friendship．In the end, I left a piece of paper on his table saying that I was sorry．Later, he ?apologized to me．After that we were friends again．Now I have come back to Hong Kong．I miss the times that I spent with him at school so much．I hope I will see him again one day!

　　Although we are few hundred miles away from each other, we still manage to keep in touch．And we are always true friends in our hearts．In my opinion, true friends must learn to forgive one another and will never give up their friendship no matter what．

　　“Together forever, never apart．Maybe in distance, but never in heart．”

　　“Promise you won’t forget me, because if I thought you would, I’d never leave．”

　　“A good friend is someone who will help you when you are down．”“True friends are the people who are there for you unconditionally(无条件地)．They are the people who encourage you no matter what the conditions are．They are the people worth living with．”“A real friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out．”

　　In kindergarten(幼儿园)your idea of a good friend was the person who let you have the red pencil when all that was left was the ugly black one．

　　In primary school your idea of a good friend was the person who went to the bathroom with you; held your hand as you walked through the scary(令人受惊的)halls; helped you stand up to the class bravely; shared their lunch with you when you forgot yours on the bus; saved a seat on the back of the bus for you; knew who you had a quarrel on and never understood why．

　　In secondary school your idea of a good friend was the person who let you copy their ?social studies homework; went to that “cool”party with you so you wouldn’t wind up being the only fresh there; did not let you lunch alone．

　　In pre-university(大学预科)your idea of a good friend was the person who gave you rides in their new car; convinced(使……信服)your parents that you shouldn’t suffer a lot; consoled(安慰)you when you broke up with Nick or Susan; found you a date to the party or went to the party with you(both without dates); helped you pick a university and let you be sure that you would get into that university; helped you deal with your parents who were having a hard time letting you go．

　　On the adulthood(成年期)your idea of a good friend was the person who was there when you just couldn’t deal with your parents; let you be sure that now that you and Nick or you and Susan were back together, you could make it through anything; just silently hugged you as you looked through blurry(污点)eyes at 18 years of memories; and once again let you be sure that you would make it in university as well as you had these past 18 years; and most importantly sent you off to university knowing you were loved．

［问题导入］How do you think about “a good friend”?

A senior citizen’s view：A good friends is one with whom we feel comfortable enough to．

A humanist’s view：A good friend is a magnet(磁铁)that attracts us all the time．

A housewife’s view：A good friend is our greatest joys and our greatest sorrows．For without our most happy friend our world is often filled with sad tomorrows．

A teenager’s view：A true friend is never forgotten, he lives within our hearts and souls，forever, and always, dancing on our stage of memories．

A writer’s view：An honest friend is necessary and important for us, but sometimes we need the friends who can tell us the truth directly．

My view：________