短小的簡單的英語故事

　　故事是孩子們特別喜歡的,他們的童年一直由故事陪伴著,故事教學同時也是小學英語教學的重要組成部分。小編分享，希望可以幫助大家!

　　：Hurricane Dean

　　Hurricane Dean looked like a monster. It developed into a category 5, the highest and most dangerous level. Category 1 is called “minimal,” with wind speeds up to 95 mph. Category 5 is called “catastrophic,” with wind speeds of at least 156 mph. It blows over trees and destroys small buildings. Hurricane Dean hit Jamaica, just south of Cuba. It destroyed hundreds of homes in Jamaica, and then continued west toward Belize and Yucatan, part of Mexico. Cancun, a Mexican resort town on the Gulf of Mexico, was also in danger.

　　Thousands of tourists caught early flights out of Cancun. But some stayed. “Hurricanes are usually more bark than bite,” said one tourist from Mississippi. “Of course, sometimes they’re all bite, like Katrina a couple of years ago, and Andrew and Camille before that.”

　　“Don’t forget Hugo, and Charley, and Agnes, and Rita,” his wife chimed in. “Oh, yeah, and Gilbert! And what about Wilma?”

　　“Yeah, you’re right. They can be dangerous. But usually, they just bring lots of rain and wind without much destruction. My wife and I are having a great time here in Cancun, and we’re not going to pick up and leave, especially considering how much this vacation is costing us. We’ll take our chances.”

　　This tourist and his wife were lucky. Dean traveled south of Cancun, causing little damage to the resort. In fact, two days later, Cancun was almost completely cleaned up and bustling again. It was as if Dean had never been there. The hurricane brought heavy rain to parts of Mexico, but died out two days after hitting land. Two weeks later, Hurricane Felix, also a category 5 at one point, passed south of Jamaica and headed straight toward Nicaragua.

　　：Fire-Starters

　　Police arrested five young men for setting the Malibu Canyon fire that recently destroyed 53 homes, resulted in the temporary evacuation of 12,000 people, and burned 5,000 acres of woodland. The fire began in a small public park that prohibited alcohol and fires. The men, with seven friends, were drinking beer and wine; a campfire helped keep them warm that chilly, windy evening. They were roasting hotdogs and marshmallows on the campfire.

　　Firemen and deputy sheriffs searched the park afterward, and found some food, food packages, empty bottles and cans, and even a few receipts. The deputy sheriffs went to Ralphs, the local supermarket that the receipts came from. The assistant manager was there the night the food and booze were sold.

　　“Oh, yes, I remember them very well,” he said. The men were regular customers, who showed up at least once a month on Friday or Saturday night. They usually bought firewood, food, and alcohol, often with a credit card. He wondered if they might be using the firewood in a prohibited area, but he never said anything about it. “They seemed like intelligent people,” he told a deputy sheriff.

　　At a televised news conference, County Sheriff Lee Baca announced the arrests. However, at least one homeowner was still bitter. “That’s good detective work, but so what?” asked Martha Knapp. “These arrests aren’t going to rebuild our homes or diminish our misery. These guys are young—half of their income for the rest of their lives should go toward paying for our losses. But that will never happen. I wish they had all been in my home when it burnt down. I would have enjoyed kicking their dead bodies.”

　　：The Clapper

　　If you have two hands, you can’t help but applaud the original Clapper. First sold in 1985, it worked with a lamp or any other electric device. You plugged the Clapper into an outlet. Then you plugged your lamp into the Clapper. By clapping twice, you turned the lamp on or off. It was a convenient gadget that also became popular with handicapped people. TV commercials showed grandma lying in bed reading. She put her book down, clapped twice, and went to sleep with a big smile on her face. She didn’t have to reach for the lamp switch or get out of bed and turn off the wall switch. The only problem with the original Clapper was that your barking dog, or your neighbor’s dog, could also turn your lamp on or off.

　　The current Clapper works with two lamps or other devices, such as radios and TVs. TV commercials show grandma reading in bed while the TV is on. She puts the book down, claps twice to turn off the TV, and claps three times to turn off the lamp. Then she goes to sleep with a big smile on her face.

　　Clapper Plus is a big hit, too. It can be adjusted to respond to the loudness of your clapping. It has a light to indicate if you are clapping loudly enough. It has an “Away” setting for security; when you’re not home, Clapper Plus will automatically turn on a light or the TV if it detects a noise. The light or TV should help scare away intruders. Clapper Plus also comes with a remote control, so that if grandma is extra tired, all she has to do is click the remote. The two versions sell for about $20 and $30.

　　A $40 version might be in stores next year. Because many people feel that clapping or clicking is “a lot of work,” the company is developing a voice-operated Clapper. The ultimate goal, said a Clapper spokesman, is a thought-operated Clapper.