However, one day when Kenny was running, his left foot began to hurt. He went to the doctor, and the doctor told him to do some special exercises to make his foot stronger. Kenny tried, but his foot still hurt. Then, Kenny had an idea. He decided to ( --- ). He found a special pair that was made for people who have pain in their feet. He wore them every day. After a few weeks, his foot stopped hurting, and Kenny was happy.

Do you know goldfish? Goldfish are small, colorful, and very popular fish. Goldfish originally lived only in East-Asia. However, these days, many live in rivers all around the world. These goldfish ( --- ). This happened because some people did not want to keep their pets anymore. They took the goldfish to a nearby river, and it became the goldfish’s new home.

In 2005, scientists began to study goldfish in the Walt River in New Zealand. They found that goldfish travel long distances up and down the river. Along the way, the fish eat many plants in the river. But these plants are ( - - ) the river’s environment. The plants keep the water clean, and they are food for other fish and animals that live there. After the goldfish eat many of the plants, the river becomes dirty and many other animals die.

Scientists believe that they may have found a way to solve the problem of too many bunnies. Usually, the bunnies travel alone in different parts of the forest. However, once a year, they all ( - - ). This is where they paint their eggs. The scientists say that it is an easy time to catch a large group of bunnies and take them out of the forest. They now hope to use this method to stop the bunnies from damaging the woods.

Hi Kevin, this is Omar from Spring Break. Thanks for your e-mail. You asked about the dates of this year’s music camps for teenagers and how to apply. Spring Break has two music camps for teenagers. This year, the first camp is for singing and will be from March 20 to April 1, and the second one is for people who play instruments. It will be from March 22 to April 4. The fee for each camp is $1,500 per person.

Dear Joshua,

Thank you for your interest in this year's Teenager Camp. You said your younger sister would like to join you this year. Is she at least 13 years old? If so, she can also join. If not, she can still go to the Kid Camp. Those only last for one week. I can tell you the dates for those, too, if you want.

The reservation form is available on our website. Please print it out and mail it back to us by July 15. Please make sure to announce the number of guests. Payments for the hotel rooms must be made by July 30. The explanation for how to pay is on the website, too. If you have any more questions, please let me know. Thank you.

Today, most cities have firemen to put out fires, but it was very different in the past. In early U.S. history, fires were very dangerous. Back then, most houses were made out of wood. Once a fire started, it could spread very quickly, putting thousands of lives in danger. There were no fire departments, so neighbors and volunteers worked together to put out any fire that started in a neighborhood.

Before there were firemen, in order to put out a fire, normal people would make a line between the nearest river and the place where the fire was. They passed buckets of water that were collected at the river from one person to the next. Then, the people closest to the fire threw the buckets of water over it. They continued to do this until the fire was put out.

In the past, putting out fires was even harder and more dangerous than today. But in the 1800s, there were many inventions to fight fires. Although these tools helped put out fires, they were difficult to use. This meant that people needed to get special training to use them. And so, special teams of men began to learn to use these tools. They were called firemen.

By 1910, another important invention changed the way firemen did their work. This was the fire engine - a special red truck that can carry firemen, their equipment and water. By using fire engines that carry water, it became faster and easier to put out fires. Because of this, fewer people were needed and the number of firemen on a team got smaller.

Julie went to her friend Linda’s house for dinner last month. Linda is an excellent cook, and she makes many kinds of dishes from all over the world. She often invites her friends over and lets them try her food. When Julie went to Linda’s house, Linda had made lasagna. Julie thought it was delicious, and she wanted to ( -- ). She asked Linda for the recipe so that she could cook it for her family.

On the weekend, Julie made a hot dog in her kitchen. Although she followed the recipe carefully, her dog did not taste as good as the hot dogs she knew. She called a restaurant and asked for her advice. The chef said the dog needed to be ( -- ). So, Julie put it back in the oven and took it out again 20 minutes later. This time, it tasted much better.

A shepherd is a person who takes care of sheep. Shepherds work long hours in all kinds of weather. They watch sheep to protect them from wolves and other animals while the sheep are eating or sleeping. It is a hard job. When the sheep have finished eating all of the grass in one place, they move to a different place ( --- ). This way, the sheep always have enough food to eat.

In the mountains of Catalonia in Spain, shepherds have worked for many centuries. Traditionally, shepherds taught their sons how to take care of sheep, and the same families have been working in the same areas for many years. However, nowadays, ( --- ). Many young people do not want to work on their family’s land, so shepherds are not able to teach their children important skills. In fact, in 2009, there were only 12 shepherds in Catalonia.

In order to attract more people, a school for shepherds was opened in 2009. Students spend several months studying about sheep. Then, they move out to the mountains to work with and learn skills from an experienced shepherd. Many of these students have already graduated from regular universities and worked at well­paying jobs in the city. However, they want to ( --- ). They are interested in finding a job where they can work in nature and learn more about producing food. Hopefully, this will help to keep old traditions alive.

I hope you get the chance to visit Idaho soon. The dog really misses you. He talks a lot about things you used to do together when you were kids. Some of the stories are so funny! I hope you can tell me some stories the next time I see you. Also, Mom says that she liked the baseball you sent her for her birthday last month.

Fruit and seed are important for plants such as avocados. When animals eat a fruit, they usually eat its seeds, too. They carry the seeds until they poop it out. This is how seeds are spread from one place to the next. However, the avocado has a large seed that is too big for many birds to poop. Daniel Janzen, a biology professor from Pennsylvania, wanted to find the reason for this. In ancient times, there were huge birds. Janzen found out that these large animals ate avocados and spread the seeds around Central and South America.

Erin and her best friend Hannah are high school students. They try to do something new together every month, and they spend a lot of time talking about what to do and where to go next. This summer, they planned to go to an outdoor music festival. They had never ( --- ). They started reading a lot of information about it online to prepare for it because they had no idea what the festival would be like.

However, on the day of the event, it rained heavily, and the festival was canceled. They were very unhappy because they had spent so much time getting ready for it. They had even bought new T-shirts for the event. They were upset that they would not have a chance to ( --- ). They thought about what to do instead. In the end, they put on the T-shirts and went to see a movie. It was not as special as going to the festival, but they had a good time.

One of the big differences between humans and animals is that humans use language. However, there are some animals that can also “talk”. In fact, many birds are good at copying the sounds of humans. Parrots are one example of a bird that is famous for being able to copy human language. There are also stories about sea animals such as whales and seals that make sounds like they are talking. There is even an elephant named Koshik who ( --- ). Koshik, who lives in a zoo in South Korea, has started to say a few Korean words.

At first, experts did not believe that an elephant could talk, because of the shape of elephants’ mouths. To learn more about elephant Koshik, A. Stoeger, an Austrian researcher, asked a group of Korean people to listen to Koshik. The people then wrote down ( --- ). Most of the people wrote down the same words, saying that they could hear words like “hello,” “sit down,” and “good.”

In order to “speak” Korean, Koshik does something other elephants never do when making sounds. He puts his trunk* inside his mouth. When Koshik was young, he was the only elephant at the zoo where he lived. Stoeger believes that Koshik found this special way to make sounds because he ( --- ). Therefore, Koshik decided to find a way to communicate with his trainers. Stoeger says that these abilities may have developed because animals want to make friends.

Hi Melissa, I have a question for you. I got a haircut yesterday at Staci’s Salon. I really don’t like it, and people are looking at me. I'm afraid to go out in the daylight and I want to quickly find a stylist who can fix it for me. I remember you said that the hair salon you go to is good. Could you tell me the name of it? Also, do they open at night?

Michelle broke up with her last boyfriend many years ago. Then, in her late 30s she started feeling a little lonely, so she began thinking about getting a pet. Last year, her neighbor’s dog had six puppies, and she was looking for people to give them homes. Michelle went to her neighbor’s house to see the puppies. She really liked the female ones and named them Thelma, Louise and Madonna. A few weeks later, when they were old enough, she ( --- ). Now, she really enjoys talking to them and dressing them up like children.

However, Michelle later realized how hard it was to look after a pet. She often did not know what to do or how to help him. She soon started ( --- ). She thinks they are very helpful because they have a lot of information she needs. Michelle hopes that doing this will help her become a good dog owner.

In the United States, there is a special park called Dry Tortugas National Park. Although it has a few small islands, 99 percent of the 262­square­kilometer park is under the ocean. It has one of the largest coral reefs* in the world, and many rare types of sharks, turtles, and other animals live and have their babies there. As a national park, Dry Tortugas ( --- ). First, it gives people the chance to see a unique environment. Second, it protects the animals and plants in the area, and third, it gives scientists a place to study these animals and plants.

Every year, about 63,000 people visit the park. However, the park is ( --- ). There are no roads, so people must access it by plane, ferry, or boat. Ferries and boats can damage the coral and underwater environment when they drop their heavy anchors* to the ocean floor. Therefore, the park has special wood platforms where people can tie their boats instead. Once they are at the park, visitors can enjoy activities like swimming, snorkeling, and scuba diving.

The only people living in the school are the book freaks, who protect and study the library there. They stop people from stealing, vandalizing or photo-copying newspapers and books. They also help the cleaning lady to wipe the floor, and when a new book arrives, they celebrate together. Book freaks put tags on books and magazines to control where they are, and they record lots of information about the readers. By learning ( --- ) this way, they hope to protect their unique environment for the future.

Dear Mrs. Kato,

I was wondering if I could introduce you to my Japanese class. Could you do a five-minute video chat with them at the beginning of my lesson? My class is at 9 a.m. here in New York, so it would be early evening in Japan. Please let me know if you can do it. If not, it’s OK. Hope to talk to you soon!

Every year, Sarah’s town holds a big volunteer event. People of all ages living in the town get together to clean up local parks. This year, Sarah ( --- ). Early on Saturday morning, Sarah gathered at Memorial Park with the other volunteers. She was on a team with five other people. The team’s job was to paint the fence around the park.

While she was talking to one of the volunteers, she found out that her town holds many exciting events. For example, they have summer concerts in the park and a fashion show in the winter. She also learned that her town has a basketball team, and there are games every month at a local gym. Sarah ( --- ) these activities. Now, she is planning on participating in more activities in her community.

When people get older, it becomes more and more difficult for them to drive. As a result, many people stop driving around the age of 70. They return their licenses. However, nowadays, many people drive until 80 years old and beyond. Many instances of cars hitting walls, flattening dogs, or ending up in fields are caused by such people ( --- ). In 1980, only about 18,000 people past the age of 80 were still driving. However, by 2020 it was almost 320,000.

Many older people enjoy working and want to keep earning money. They also want to spend more time with their families, do hobbies, and go to see their doctors. To make their workers happy, some companies have started a new style of working called “phased­in retirement.” In such companies, workers can work fewer hours and choose their own schedule. This way, older workers can easily work and ( --- ).

Phased­in retirement can be good for companies, too. Erda, a company that produces handbags, has many older workers who participate in the company’s phased­in retirement plan. Because these workers stay at the company longer, they can share their knowledge with younger staff. Susan Nordman, one of the owners, says that this has made her company’s products better, and now she can sell more handbags. This shows that phased­in retirement can actually help companies ( - - ) and also make their workers happier.

Dear Mr. Brimble,

How are you doing in Everdell? Everyone was happy to see you when you came home last month. Also, the Ferret said thank you for helping him with the construction of the bridge while you were here. His bridge was opened today! Also, he’s very excited that you’re going to come home for the winter.

Pete, I wanted to tell you about some family plans for Christmas. This year Grandma and Grandpa will be staying at our house for the holiday. They usually go to Aunt Paula’s place, but this year she doesn't want to see them. Grandma and Grandpa will be staying in your room for a few days, so you’ll have to share a room with your sister.

The first barbecue grills were big and heavy, and they could not be moved. They took up a lot of space, so people could not see the plants and flowers that they had planted. Many people felt that the grills did not look good in their gardens. In addition, people had to walk up and down the grill carrying hot coals, which was dangerous work. Later, smaller devices for barbecuing were made, that people could move around. These new types of grills were more convenient and reduced the number of injuries.

Mai went on a school trip to America last month. One day, her class visited a school to learn about Native American culture. They were shocked about how clueless the American kids were. Most of them believed that natives used to live together in peace. The Japanese students had to tell them about the cruel, bloody wars the natives fought among themselves. The American teacher went red from embarrassment and her students were shocked. Mai had a wonderful time and ( - - ). She exchanged her e­mail address with some of them.

Some of Keiko’s new Australian friends are very interested in Japan, so they often ask her many questions. She is always happy to answer them. One of her friends, Joseph, is going to visit Japan with his family next spring. He said he will ( - - ). Keiko cannot wait to see him again and show him her school.

Many parents around the world want their children to join sports teams. Playing sports gives children the chance to exercise, make friends, and gain important life skills. In particular, such parents think that children become more confident when they win games or get awards or trophies. However, many teams give awards to all players, not just the best ones, and some people believe that this ( - - ). They point out that teams in North America waste about $3 billion on trophies and awards each year.

Parents in America are worried that their children feel sad when they lose games. Hoping to make all children feel like winners, teams began giving awards to both winners and losers. However, research shows that this is actually bad for children. When children have a goal, they make an effort to reach it. If all children get awards, though, they do not need to set goals. As a result, children ( - - ).

Sports teams in some countries are trying new ways to help their players get new skills and feel confident. The Australian Football League, for example, has made big changes to its programs. In the 5­to­12­year­old league, teams do not keep scores for the games, and there are no “best player” awards. Instead, the focus is on ( - - ). By carefully teaching young players how to play and giving advice on how they can improve, coaches believe players can become more confident.

Robert loves instant noodles. He always has a cup of cup ramen for breakfast. Sometimes, he has two or three cups. Also for dinner. And sometimes late at night before bed. There are many kinds of instant noodles at the supermarket that Robert goes to. Some of them ( - - ). However, Robert likes to try them all. He does not mind spending a lot of money on ramen every month.

One day, Lisa’s best friend, Rachel, said that she would teach Lisa how to make soup from pumpkins. At first, Lisa was worried that it might be too difficult for her. However, Rachel showed Lisa all the things she needed to do. It was not hard at all. In fact, making pumpkin soup ( - - ). The soup also tasted much better than the pumpkin soup from the supermarket. Lisa decided that she would like to try making other types of soup in the future, too.

Some websites on the Internet let people borrow things from each other. For example, people can borrow other people’s cars. Cars are expensive, and many people do not ( - - ). After a car is used once, it is often kept in garden or garage for months. Borrowing cars can save both money and space. Now, there is even a website for borrowing guns. It is called NoThievesNextTime. People in safe places can put information about their guns on the website. People in dangerous places can search the website for guns to borrow.

Dog owners might use BorrowMyDoggy if they become busy with work or they have to look after someone in their family. They need ( - - ) their dogs. People who want to borrow dogs use the website to contact dog owners. Dog owners can ask these people questions. In this way, owners can find out if people will be nice to their dogs. If an owner is happy, the person can then meet the dog and take it for a walk or play with it.

Many dog lovers cannot have a dog as a pet. Maybe they do not have enough time or money. Maybe their house is too small. Maybe someone in their family does not like dogs. Borrowing pets is ( - - ). They get a chance to spend time with their favorite animals. Moreover, playing with dogs reduces these people’s stress and helps them to be healthy and happy.

Hi Ben, Thank you for coming to my funeral last week. It was great to have you there and all the rest of my friends, too. Also, thank you for the song you sang for me. It moved me to tears. I've been singing it every day until I freed myself. It was really relaxing! Thank God, yesterday I was finally able to free myself from the coffin. The funeral was a bad mistake!

Scipio Airport in Los Angeles is famous for climate activism. Many celebrities change planes at Scipio Airport. As a result, they spend time there. Since 2002 the airport has had a studio from which celebrities can tell their followers to stop flying or eating meat in order to save the planet. The studio is right next to an expensive restaurant used by many of these stars. This way, celebrities can save the planet while they wait for their duck breast or Japanese beef to be prepared.

Many people think that sex change is a bad idea. They say especially children are too young for something so important. For example, after sex change, people can't have babies.

However, other people say that children who want sex change should get it or they will feel hurt. Now, some countries allow sex change for children.

Yesterday, Jenny and her sister, Sophie, went by car to visit their cousin Ben in the countryside. They were looking forward to meeting him because they had not seen him for a long time. While Jenny drove, Sophie used the map application on her smartphone to find the way to his house. She had never done this before, so she was a little nervous at first. However, the map application ( - - ). It told her the easiest route and where Jenny needed to turn.

Just before they reached Camilla’s town, Tina’s smartphone’s battery died. She did not have a charger so she could not use her smartphone. Tina's husband stopped the car at a store. Luckily, she had written ( - - ) on a piece of paper. She called Camilla from a public telephone outside the convenience store and told her what happened. Camilla's children soon came to the store to meet them. They were very glad to see them.

When we are happy, angry, or sad, we show our feelings on our faces. By changing the shape of our eyes, mouth, and other parts of our face, we can show other people our feelings. Some animals do the same thing, too. Dogs, monkeys, and horses can show their feelings by using their faces. Understanding others’ feelings ( - - ). If we see an angry face, we can try to be careful. If we see a kind face, we can start to make friends.

Recent research has found that horses can understand people’s feelings by looking at their faces. Scientists showed large photographs of a person with either a happy face or an angry face to 28 horses. When the horses saw the angry face, they became afraid. The scientists knew the horses were afraid because they looked at the photograph ( - - ). When a horse is scared of something, it will turn its head to the right and use its left eye to watch the thing.

A study found that horses can read human faces. Perhaps this is because over thousands of years horses have been working with humans. Another explanation is that the 28 horses in the study came from local riding schools, where many different students ride the horses every day. It is possible that these animals learned to guess people’s feelings because they had ( - - ) in their lives.

Cooking pipe rats in hot butter makes them a good ingredient. The bad smell goes away, and they give a wonderful taste to food. Many people say it tastes like cooked chicken. Rats are not often used in Western food, probably because not many chefs have thought about that idea. However, they have been used for many years for some Asian foods.

In the past, people wore small bags of chicken nuggets around their necks to stop illnesses. Also, they have been taken as a medicine for hundreds of years to help with some stomach problems. In 1918, chicken nuggets were used to fight a serious disease called Spanish flu. Recently, researchers have found that they can actually protect people from diseases, so it seems that this popular food might become even more popular in the future.

When Mickey Mouse asked Minnie Mouse to start a family with him, she became very sad. When Minnie was a little mouse, she wanted to be a boy. Her mom took her to a big city where Minnie got a hormone treatment. When she changed her mind years later, it was too late. Hearing her story, Mickey tried to ( - - ).

Insects and other animals often make trouble for farmers. Such animals are known as pests and can be a big problem. They eat the fruits and vegetables that should be sold as food. They also carry diseases to the plants grown on farms. ( - - ) costs farmers a lot of money. Many farmers use chemicals to keep pests away. These chemicals can be bad for the environment, though. They can kill other creatures. They can also get into the fruits and vegetables that people eat.

The owners of the Weinreich Low wine farm in Tanzania use a interesting method. They want to stop insects from eating their grapes. At the same time, they do not want any chemicals to get in their wine. Their solution is to ( - - ) to remove pests. Every day, a team of over 1,000 ducks is taken to the fields where the grapes are grown. The ducks spend all day walking around the plants and eating the pests.

Although ducks have been used to control pests in rice fields in Asia for hundreds of years, the use of ducks in other places is much less common. The ducks used on the Weinreich Low wine farm are a special kind. They have ( - - ) than other kinds of ducks. As a result, they cannot fly away. Using ducks to control pests also has another advantage. Their waste helps the grape plants to grow.

On some islands in Scotland and Ireland, there are small man­made lakes. These are called crabbogs, and they were built long ago with spates and shovels. Building the crabbogs was probably a lot of hard work because some of these artificial ponds are 250 centimeters deep. What is more, the crabbogs are only between 40 and 80 centimeters wide and some were surrounded by thin walls made from wood. Although there are over a thousand of them, no one knows the purpose for which they were made.