Many people have heard of Peter Dinklage from his role in the popular TV drama Game of Thrones(权力的游戏). But few know his story. Peter Dinklage is only 135 cm tall. His life shows that a small man can have a great effect(影响).

Dinklage was born with dwarfism(侏儒症). As he grew up, his legs and arms stopped growing, but his head kept becoming bigger.

At first, Dinklage’s look brought himself much trouble. Other boys often made fun of him. Dinklage felt sad but he never gave up on himself. When he was in the fifth grade, he played his first role in a school play. The show was successful. That made him want to be an actor. After high school, Dinklage went to Bennington College to study acting. There his teachers and students helped him turn his look into his advantage(优势). From then on, he began to act in films and TV dramas.

Many people think of Dinklage as a spokesman for people with dwarfism, but Dinklage doesn’t think so. He says, “Everyone is different. Just because I’m OK with it, I can’t preach(传道) how to be OK with it.”

Think of somebody you really admire. You will probably find that their success didn’t come easily. It is necessary for us to learn from them. Here are four stories about famous people.

Confucius, the greatest teacher in the history of China, was born in 551 B.C. Confucius was born in a poor family but he received a fine education. He was an obedient son to his mother and seldom made his mother angry. He began to devote himself to serious studies at the age of fifteen. When he began teaching in his early twenties, many people supported him and learned from him. He was not only a learner, but also a man who had political ideals.

Picasso was born in Spain. He lived in a small town in Spain when he was young. His mother liked to call him “Piz”. It is the Spanish word for pencil. As a baby, he liked pencils and chalk better than any of his toys. Picasso’s father was an artist. He spent a lot of time teaching his son how to draw.

Andersen was born in a poor family in 1805. He was the greatest writers of his time. He lived very simply. He often wore an old hat when he went out. People in the street laughed at him, but he never minded. He liked making friends with them and he often told his new stories to the people around him and shared his new books with them. He was one of my favorite writers.

Stephen Hawking was born on January 8, 1942 (300 years after the death of Galileo) in Oxford, his family moved to a town about 20 miles north of London. Stephen went to Oxford University, his father’s old college, but he did physics instead. After three years, he won a first class honor degree in Natural Science.

Everyone has someone they admire the most. So, who do you admire most? Are they great historical figures or outstanding figures from all walks of life?

Poverty(贫困)is a big problem around the world. But Chinese people have their own ways to do with it. Let’s learn more about what four of them did.

	Zhang Guimei starts the Huaping Senior High School(高中)in Lijiang, Yunnan in 2008. It is the first free senior high school for poor girls in China. The school sends more than 1, 800 students to college (大学).
	Chen Zaiming, an expert(专家), comes from Zhejiang University(大学). He helps the farmers in Jingdong Yi autonomous county(彝族自治县), Yunnan to grow the small fragrant mushrooms (小香菌). Last year, 22 families in the county made more than 5 million yuan.
	Mao Xianglin helps more than 100 villagers in Xiazhuang village, Wushan county, Chongqing to build the road with their hands. It takes them seven years to build an eight-kilometre road. Mao then asks the villagers to grow oranges. Now 269 villagers are rich.
	Xia Sen is not rich. She lives a simple life and gives her money to the poor student. She donates(捐赠)more than 2 million yuan to help students and schools in need. The “Xia Sen scholarship(奖学金)” makes 182 students study in the college.