1 A Letter to a Student I helped
Dear Zhang Hua,
I am so excited to receive your letter telling me that you have passed the college entrance
examination and will soon go to a local university. All your efforts and hard-work are eventually
paid back. Congratulations.
I do hope you will study hard in the future because knowledge and skills are of great
significance in today’s world. For one thing, the world is developing so fast, we can only keep up
with its pace by acquiring more knowledge to broaden our horizons. For another, the
development of our country is in great need for people with knowledge and skills. Besides, only
those with specialized skills are able to win in the competitive job market.
Once you are armed with knowledge and skills, you are sure to realize your dreams. I
would like to suggest that you try all means to acquire knowledge and skills in college and put
them into practice.
Sincerely yours,
Wang Peng
2. How Should We Spend Our College Time
How should college students spend their time? Opinions vary from person to person. Some
are willing to devote time and energy to extracurricular activities. They argue that taking part in
some school activities can help them broaden their horizons and develop skills of cooperation and
communication, which will benefit their future career. Besides, they believe that “all work and no
play make Jack a dull boy”, so it is necessary to participate in some school activities to recharge
their batteries.
Others, however, prefer spending their time in studying. In their views, the competition of
modern society is becoming increasingly intense. They must study hard to acquire as much
academic knowledge as possible, and those who have extensive knowledge will have a brighter
future.
As everything has its strength and weakness, spending college life is no exception. I hold the
view that these two ideas are both correct. Surely, students should study hard, but school activities
are also very important. Therefore, I suggest that college students learn how to arrange college
time. On one hand, they should study hard; on the other hand, they should spare(抽出) some time
to participate in school activities.
3. How to Get Along with Roommates
Last Sunday, two of my roommates got into a serious fight because of a trifle. Now they are
still very angry with each other and no one wants to apologize first.
The story is not rare. Nowadays, many college students are not able to get along with their
roommates, which does considerable harm to both their college lives and their future development.
On one hand, quarreling and fighting ruin the friendly atmosphere, making dorms unpleasant
places to stay in; on the other hand, if a person is not able to establish good relationships with
his roommates, it is hard for him to develop other interpersonal relationships which are important
for his future development.
Therefore, I advise those students to take it seriously. And the following are some of my suggestions. First, respect your roommates, thus you can also win respect from them. Second, if
your roommates encounter difficulties, try to help them out, so that they will appreciate your help.
Finally, don not talk about other’s affairs behind their backs. These are certainly not the only
points you should pay attention to. But I am sure if you are willing to follow them, you will get
along well with your roommates.
4. A Memorable Trip
Last summer vacation, my friends and I went to Huangshan for a tour. It’s a trip full of
surprises to every one of us.
The 21 hours of train traveling was tiring; however, we all became excited at the
announcement of the arrival of Huangshan station. We decided to climb Huangshan the next day,
because we were warned it would be very energy-consuming. The first part of the climbing was
boring, with stairs after stairs ahead. Hardly had we arrived at the first resting spot when it started
to pour, and our hearts sank. Surprisingly, half an hour later, the sun emerged from the clouds. As
the sky turned bright blue, we were amazed at the spectacular view of the mountain range, sea of
clouds, and pine trees in the fog. All exhaustion vanished all of a sudden(突然地), and we were
jumping and cheering. For the rest of the trip, we were deeply impressed by more fantastic rocks
and fancy pine trees.
I started to understand better the saying that life is full of things beyond any expectation,
just like the trip we had at Huangshan. Splendid views were waiting for us after our great efforts.
5. Competition or Cooperation
Recently a debate has been arising upon competition or cooperation, which should be
stressed in college students’ education. Opinions vary greatly.
Some people claim that college students should learn how to compete. From their point of
view, competition exists everywhere in our modern society and people can hardly avoid it. Thus a
course of competition is needed to help college students build up enough courage to face up to all
difficulties they may encounter in the workplace or in their personal lives.
However, others believe it is more useful to learn how to cooperate. Their opinion is that
nowadays it is hard for a person to succeed if he lacks team spirit or does not know how to
cooperate with others. For example, if a man wants to win a football game, he has to cooperate
with his playmates. He can’t win by himself. So learning how to cooperate with others should be
stressed .
As for myself, I believe that both competition and cooperation are indispensable(二者缺一不可) for leading a normal social life. Because in most circumstances, we can see competition
goes hand in hand with cooperation. Therefore, both essential skills should be put forward to
educate college students.
6. Seeking Help
Confronted with difficulties, we will naturally seek help from people around us. We will
turn to our parents when we need their help to support our schooling and daily necessities. We will
seek help from our teachers for learning problems, and discussing all sorts of questions and doubts.
Certainly, we will ask our friends for help, sharing bitter as well as happy experience.
