James is a poor boy in our community. He has no father, and his mother is poor in health. He studies hard and is good at all his lessons. At weekends, he has to work to make money.

On Saturday and Sunday mornings, he rides his bike to the post office to get newspapers, and then gives them out from house to house before breakfast. So he usually gets up early at 5:00 a.m. He goes to the street corner after breakfast and shines shoes(擦鞋) for people there. James has no time to go back home for lunch. Very often he has some dry bread with cold water. He keeps working for ten hours a day like that.

The following picture shows the money he earns(挣) each week.

Because the family have to pay sixteen dollars for food each week, their life is really hard.

Do you have a “tiger mother”?

Many Chinese mothers are afraid that their children will fall behind their classmates, so those mothers are becoming “tiger mothers”. They believe the harder their children study, the happier life they will have in the future. Is it true? Lulu and her sister Sophia may have a say.

Lulu and Sophia have a “tiger mother”. She pushed them a lot when they were young. For example, they couldn’t get grades lower than A’s. They had to practice the piano or violin for hours a day. There were no sleepovers or TV.

The tiger mother, Amy Chua, is a Chinese-American teacher at Yale Law School. Amy wrote a book named Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother and shared her strict parenting style in it.

Many people don’t like Amy’s style of parenting. They once worried that her daughters would not be happy. However, the two girls have grown up and they thank their mother. Sophia is hard-working, friendly and helpful. Not long ago, she shared some useful study advice online. Lulu is also a warm, smart and popular girl in her friends’ eyes. She said that the tiger parenting believes that a child can succeed, and it can push a child to study hard.

Still, not everyone agrees with the tiger mother’s parenting style. In fact, there isn’t a parenting style that fits everyone. What’s the best parenting style for you? Maybe you should work it out together with your parents.

Jim was a well-known radio host. In fact, he was not only known for his hosting skills, but also as a good dresser. Every morning he would take the time to get ready in a suit and tie. He would always arrive at his office on time.

But many people thought that what he was doing was meaningless. “No one ever sees you. Why do you dress like that?” He always just made it into a joke.

One day Jim was invited to appear on TV. There was a special show for the oldest radio hosts. For the first time, people who only knew his voice would see his face. But he arrived late. The director was not going to criticize（批评）so outstanding a host, but he was very curious. “Usually you arrive on time, but today you are 10 minutes late. Why?”

“When I got dressed,” said Jim, “I noticed that my socks were too old. It is my first time to be on TV. So, I ran to the store for some new socks.”

“Why do you need new socks?” asked the director. “You could have come without socks. We will only show you in close-up（特写镜头）, above your waist.”

“I need to feel spotless in everything, starting with my shirt and finishing with the pen in my pocket. If my socks have holes or my shoes are dirty, I’m not spotless anymore.”

The director smiled. He realized that only with the right attitude can you achieve your best.