Jessie felt her life so boring one summer day. She was tired of watching TV, she read all her books, and her friends were on vacation. She wanted something different to do. Suddenly, she saw the lawn mower（割草机）sitting in the yard.
“Mom," she shouted, ‘‘I think I will mow the lawn." Her mom ran into the yard and said,“Oh no, you don't. You're too young to mow the lawn."
“I'm fourteen years old and know how to do it," Jessie said. "Besides, it would help Dad out, and he won't have to worry about it over the weekend."
Mom thought for a while and then decided to let Jessie give it a try. After all, she was home and would keep an eye on her. Jessie already knew how to start the lawn mower from watching her dad. Jessie checked the gas（汽油）to make sure it was full, and put on her gardening gloves to protect her hands. Mom watched from the kitchen window. Jessie really does know how to mow the lawn. She was very careful around the flowers and trees. When she finished, she felt so good, but she was so hot. Mom brought her some ice tea and said, "You really did a great job. Dad will be very surprised."
Later that day, Dad came home and said to Jessie's mom, "You didn't have to mow the lawn. I was going to do it on Saturday. It looks great. Thanks."
"I didn't mow it. Jessie did."
"Wow, our little girl is growing up!" Dad told Jessie what a great job she had done.
"It was fun, and I will do it again next week," said Jessie.
The neighbor next door came by and asked Jessie if she wanted to mow his lawn and make some money. "Sure!" said Jessie. Jessie began mowing his lawn. Two other neighbors asked so, then another three. Jessie was now mowing lawns for them all and making some money. She was no longer bored! "I won't have time to spend my money," she laughed to herself.
【小题1】 In order to do something different, Jessie decide to _______.

Are Sports Important?

Sports are all around us．We watch and read sports news．There are also sports clubs，and even sports—only channels（频道）on TV．In many countries，players make millions of dollars every year．

But why are sports so important? They're only games，right?

Our readers answer：

Vlad（Ukraine乌克兰）

Sports bring people together．In 2006，our team was able to play in the 2006 World Cup for the first time．Everyone was happy．Rich and poor，old and young，men and women—everyone was in the streets together!

Mike（USA）

Sports bring people together，but they divide them，too．Fans of different teams fight all the time—they shout and hit each other．And here's another example：My brother plays high school baseball．Last week，his team played an important game．At the game，two parents fought about a call．Come on… baseball is only a game! Sports are so competitive（有竞争力的）these days．It's all about winning．Then the game isn't fun．

Oba（South Africa）

Right now，some of the world's best soccer players are from African countries，and the 2010 World Cup games will be in South Africa．Yes，some players make a lot of money—may be too much．But sporting events（like the World Cup）bring tourists and money to countries and people．And that is good for Africa．

1．What does Mike think of a game when players and fans only think about winning?

A．It's important．                                        B．It's exciting．

C．It's not fun．                                             D．It's not necessary．

2．Why are sports important for Oba?

A．Because sports are competitive these days．

B．Because sports can make money for a country．

C．Because sports can make players rich every year．

D．Because sports can make people happy．

3．What does the underlined word “call” mean?

A．Decision．           B．Telephone．            C．Suggestion．          D．Seat．

4．What is the main idea of this passage?

A．Sports are popular all over the world．

B．Sports divide people from different countries．

C．People have different opinions about sports．

D．Sports bring tourists and money to Africa．