最新四级晨读主题美文100篇 43

Teddy Bears Anniversary¹

Americans give and receive many gifts during the holiday season. One gift for children has remained popular for many years. It is the teddy bear. The American-made teddy bear celebrated² its one-hundredth anniversary last month. In November, nineteen-oh-two, President Theodore Roosevelt made news when he refused to shoot a young bear while on a hunting trip. A cartoon of the incident appeared in newspapers.

Morris and Rose Michtom of New York City saw the report and made a small bear from a piece of cloth. They called it Teddy's Bear and put it in the window of their store. Soon, the huge public demand for the bears helped their store expand into the Ideal³ Novelty⁴ and Toy Company. At the same time, the Steiff toy company in Germany was making toy bears for sale. The company also called them Teddy's bears.

An American toy company official saw the bears in Leipzig in nineteen-oh-three and ordered several thousand to sell in the United States. Soon, the popularity⁵ of these bears spread around the world, and the toys became known as teddy bears. And they have been popular ever since. Some experts say the teddy bear is the most popular toy ever produced.

Mental health experts say teddy bears represent good things about people. Children love to play with them and even talk to them. These experts say that teddy bears can help children who have been hurt or scared. Some American police departments keep teddy bears in their police cars. Officers give them to children who have suffered in accidents or fires.

One American group sends teddy bears to needy⁶ children around the world. Operation Teddy Care was started in nineteen-ninety-five by Barbara Moran and her husband Bob Baker⁷. They asked people in their city, San Francisco, California, to give bears to send to the children in Kobe, Japan after the huge earthquake there.

A local newspaper and radio station did stories about their appeal. Operation Teddy Care sent ten-thousand bears to Japan. The group has also sent teddy bears to children in areas of conflict in Europe.

Teddy bears are not only popular with children. Adults love them too. Some people collect them and will pay a lot of money for them. What is the most money ever spent on a teddy bear? In nineteen-ninety-four, someone paid one-hundred-eighty-thousand dollars for a historic⁸ bear produced by the Steiff company in nineteen-oh-six.

1 anniversary   

n.周年(纪念日)

参考例句：

• They celebrate their wedding anniversary annually.他们每年庆祝一番结婚纪念日。
• Today is my parents'30th wedding anniversary.今天是我父母结婚30周年纪念日。

2 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

3 ideal   

adj.理想的，完美的；空想的，观念的；n.理想

参考例句：

• The weather at the seaside was ideal—bright and breezy.海边的天气最宜人，风和日丽的。
• They promised to be faithful to their ideal for ever. 他们保证永远忠于自己的理想。

4 novelty   

n.新奇事物，新奇（感），新颖廉价的物品

参考例句：

• My mother bought a novelty pen for me.我妈给我买了一支新颖的笔。
• At first I enjoyed all the parties,but the novelty soon wore off.起初我喜欢参加一切聚会，但这种新奇感很快就消失了。

5 popularity   

n.普及，流行，名望，受欢迎

参考例句：

• The story had an extensive popularity among American readers.这本小说在美国读者中赢得广泛的声望。
• Our product enjoys popularity throughout the world.我们的产品饮誉全球。

6 needy   

adj.贫穷的，贫困的，生活艰苦的

参考例句：

• Although he was poor,he was quite generous to his needy friends.他虽穷，但对贫苦的朋友很慷慨。
• They awarded scholarships to needy students.他们给贫苦学生颁发奖学金。

7 baker   

n.面包师

参考例句：

• The baker bakes his bread in the bakery.面包师在面包房内烤面包。
• The baker frosted the cake with a mixture of sugar and whites of eggs.面包师在蛋糕上撒了一层白糖和蛋清的混合料。

8 historic   

adj.历史上著名的，具有历史意义的

参考例句：

• This is a historic occasion.这是具有重大历史意义的时刻。
• We are living in a great historic era.我们正处在一个伟大的历史时代。