【正文】 cult. At the beginning of the term, he was struggling to keep up with his classmates. So I was very pleased that at the end of this term, Zhao Xing came top of his class. All areas have improved greatly. In his writing, his spelling and punctuation are much better. He is able to correct his own work and help correct other pupils‘. In speaking, he is much more confident. He can have English conversations with his friends and with me. He takes part in group work and he is not afraid to speak anymore. He is able to read and understand quite difficult texts much more easily. When I ask him questions in English, he smiles and can answer them quickly. Zhao Xing should feel very positive about the progress he has made this term. If he continues like this, he will do very well indeed. End of Term Report Student‘s Name Sam Smith Subject English Teacher Mrs. Black Sam is a popular member of the class. He is also very clever. However, his results this term in English have been very disappointing. In his final writing exam, he made a lot of mistakes and came last in the class. He should try and check his writing more and concentrate on his spelling. When he is speaking, he should remember to speak more slowly and clearly. Sometimes, it is very difficult to understand what he is saying. He doesn‘t seem to listen carefully either. His knowledge of basic English grammar is poor. He needs to buy a good grammar book and study it every day. I realize that Sam is the youngest member of his class. He is an intelligent pupil who could do well, if he tries harder. 3. GHATTING ONLINE Zhao Xing: Hi Sam. How‘s it going? It‘s great to have an online pen friend. I‘m feeling great today. We got our end of term reports and my parents were so pleased. I‘ve never seen them smile so much. How about you? Sam: Hi Zhao Xing. Yes, it‘s good to hear from you. My report came today and I‘ve never seen my parents look so unhappy. I can‘t believe it. Zhao Xing: I‘m sorry to hear that. Do you remember the advice June gave me about setting up an English club? Well, I did! A group of us meet after school and talk about things that interest us. Often we just talk about films we have seen. There‘s only one rule when we meet – you must speak English! I enjoy meeting different people. It‘s really helped me to feel confident when I speak English in class. Why don‘t you try and do the same? Sam: That‘s a really good idea, thanks. There are lots of people from different countries in my school. The trouble is, they stay in little groups and don‘t mix very well. Zhao Xing: It must be difficult for you. There must be things you can do outside school. I really like football, so I‘ve joined a football club. It‘s great because we do something we really enjoy and speak English at the same time! And we get fit as well! How about trying the same? Sam: I can‘t play football but I can play the drums! I‘ve got a friend who can play the guitar. Another can play the piano. Maybe we could make a music group instead! Zhao Xing: Yes, great idea. Do it and let me know how you get on. But make a rule for your music group. When you are together, you may only sing and speak in English! 4. ENGLISH JUST GOT HARDER! Many teachers who teach English language in the USA and England HATE mobile phones! They hate text messages. English language and grammar are hard to learn. English spelling is even harder and people in the USA and England spell a lot of words differently. English spelling has rules. But it also has lots of words that break the rules. You have to learn each of these words. Now text messaging has made spelling even harder. Text messages have to fit onto a small mobile phone screen. The job of text messages is to say as much as possible with as few letters as possible. It is a whole new language. Most teenagers do not use much punctuation. Here are some examples: ―I‘ll see you later and we‘ll go shopping‖ bees ―C U ltr 2 shop‖. ―Come to the pub at 8 o‘clock‖ bees ―cum 2 pb 8‖. Teachers do not mind ―2‖ instead of ―to‖, ―too‖ and ―two‖ too much. The biggest problem is when students use text spelling in everyday writing. These include: cum=e alredi=already amazn=amazing coz=because enuf=enough See if you can work out what the following text words mean: mayB cmputa 4eva centR B4 MT Answers: mayB=maybe cmputa=puter 4eva=forever centR= centre B4=before MT=empty 5. ERIC IN LOS ANGELES Hi Ben, A new student joined our class today. She es from London, England. She‘s telling us all about London. Is Oxford like London? They are both cities in England, but I guess that doesn39。t told me much about Oxford and I haven39。t get much colder than 9176。t get wet if it is mining either. It takes me about ten minutes to walk to school. If it rains, I39。t get enough exercise, so I think it is probably a good, idea for you to walk. You are going to school in the healthiest way. You may not be the closest to the school, but you are close. A tenminute walk to school each day will help to keep you fit. Maybe you need an umbrella for wet days? I39。ll be home again. I‘m ing home, I‘m ing home. Oh lord. I‘ll be home again. 15. WHAT‘S ON? TEAHOUSE Beijing People‘s Art Theater presents Teahouse by Lao She on Saturday November 5 at 8 pm and Sunday November 6 at 3 pm at New York State Theater. If you‘ve never seen this amazing play, then you have to e! The play takes place in a typical, old Beijing teahouse. The main characters are the teahouse‘s owner (Wang Lifa) and his customers, who all live in the same neighborhood. They e in and out of the teahouse and chat to each other. The play reflects changes in the lives of almost 70 characters. It‘s in three parts. The first act takes place in 1898 at the time of the Qing Dynasty. The second act j