阅读既是一种能力的表现形式,更是语言学习的一大助力。就小学英语教学而言,阅读的地位至关重要，通过英语故事来教英语能够提高学生的学习兴趣。下面小编为大家带来，欢迎大家阅读!
：Up, Up, and Away
Twelve people in British Columbia experienced a disastrous balloon ride when it accidentally caught fire. The balloon was still tied to the ground when the fire started. Three people jumpedout immediately and safely. But the ropes securing the balloon burnt through and the basket started rising.
Seven more people jumped out as quickly as they could, but each one jumped from a higher height. The last two jumped from almost 50 feet up. Their clothes were on fire. They survived, butboth would be in the hospital for several months, according to officials. The others escaped with broken bones and first- and second-degree burns, but nothing “critical.” Officials said thatanother balloon fire, causing no deaths and only minor injuries, had occurred only a week earlier.
The two balloon riders who failed to jump out were a married couple celebrating their 50th anniversary. Their oldest son had surprised them with this “champagne flight” as a gift. The coupleburnt to death in the basket, which ascended to about 500 feet. Then the entire balloon burst into flames and plummeted to the ground, landing in a trailer park. The basket was still burningfuriously. It looked like an orange torch as it descended, brilliant against the blue sky. Four trailers were destroyed by the bomb-like effect of the basket’s heavy landing. When the dustfinally cleared, the married couple were found, completely charred, embracing each other.
：Man's Best Friend
A professional football player was charged by government prosecutors with breeding dogs to fight, providing the site for the dog fights, gambling on the dog fights, and killing dogs that werenot good fighters. The quarterback, Roger Cheney, at first denied everything. He told the media that he hoped his mother would not hear about any of this and, if she did, she knew him wellenough not to believe any of the charges.
Unfortunately, all the people that worked for him immediately confessed everything, hoping for reduced sentences. They all pointed a finger at the quarterback.
The media interviewed Cheney’s father, who said that he had told his boy that dog-fighting was evil and he should stop it. His son told him that it was only some dogs—it wasn’t like he wasdestroying lions or elephants. “He told me that humane societies destroy thousands of dogs a month, so what was the big deal,” Cheney’s dad said.
Two weeks after the initial charges were made, Cheney agreed to plead guilty to several reduced charges, including animal cruelty. He could be sentenced to five years in jail. Across thenation, football fans and animal fans were equally outraged at his admission. “Athletes are supposed to be a model for our nation’s youth,” said some. “He is more of an animal than any of hispoor dogs,” said others. Few were surprised or saddened when the National Football League suspended Cheney without pay for an undisclosed term.
：Six Feet Under
Six coal miners in Utah were trapped 1,500 feet underground when the support beams collapsed. Digging was immediately started in an effort to rescue the six. Five volunteer miners riskedtheir lives to descend down to the location of the cave-in. A day later, another cave-in occurred, killing three of the five would-be rescuers. All five were pulled out of the mine.
The government banned any further attempts at rescue by men. Instead, machines would be used to burrow into the ground. Listening devices would be able to detect any human activity, andprobes would be able to detect the amount of oxygen present. Even though most people figured that the original six had died almost immediately, five more holes were dug during the next twoweeks in an effort to find, and deliver food and water to, survivors. This effort was made more difficult because searchers did not know the exact location of the original cave-in.
After the fourth, fifth, and sixth digs had produced no positive results, the owner of the mine said that was it. Enough was enough. He had done all he could do, and after two weeks of nofood and water, it was impossible that anyone could still be alive. The families of the six miners were outraged, telling the media that the owner had given only lip service to rescue attempts.They planned to sue.
