2016年初中英语日常训练：My experience with foreign coins

 Someone often asks me， “What’s your hobby? Do you like collecting stamps?”

　　In fact， I’m fond¹ of fishing， collecting stamps， and playing basketball. But I spend most of my spare time collecting foreign coins. Maybe collecting foreign coins is my real hobby.

　　I still remember my first foreign coin is a Dutch² guilder(荷兰盾). I was fascinated(入迷的) by the strange coin that I had never seen. From then on， I lost myself in collecting foreign coins. I have some nice coins， most of which have the head of a famous person on one side. On the other side there may be a famous emblematic(象征性的) building of the country or the date and the value³ of the coin.

　　Most foreign coins are circular(圆形的)， but some have different shapes. For example， the coins of Hong Kong are different from those of other countries. They are just like beautiful Chinese redbud(紫荆花). When I first saw them， I even thought maybe they’re souvenir⁴ coins(纪念币)， but when I watched them carefully， I found that they are coins.

　　Coins can be made of different kinds of metal. Some are made of nickel(镍)， and some are made of different metal mixture⁵.

　　Now I have a lot of coins from different countries： U.S. dollar， German mark， Singapore dollar， Thai baht(泰铢) and so on. I think I will go on collecting foreign coins， because it makes me happy every day.

　　教师评语：

　　It is great that you are interested in the coins of other countries. It is so important to understand the cultures and lifestyles⁶ of other countries that all countries can learn from one another and make the world better. Well done!

1 fond   

adj.喜爱的，多情的，喜欢的

参考例句：

• Volleyball is a sport of which I am very fond.排球是我很喜欢的运动。
• I was fond of playing on the beach when I was young.小的时候，我喜欢在河滩上玩耍。

2 Dutch   

adj.荷兰(人)的；荷兰语(或文化)的；n.[the~]荷兰人；荷兰语

参考例句：

• The British and Dutch belong to the same race.英国人和荷兰人是同一种族。
• Do you know anyone who speaks Dutch?你认识会讲荷兰语的人吗？

3 value   

n.价值，价格，有用性，重要性；[pl.]价值观念，标准

参考例句：

• This lesson adds to the value of the book.这一课增加了这本书的价值。
• People do not know the value of health till they lose it.人们直到失去健康，才知道健康的可贵。

4 souvenir   

n.纪念品，纪念物

参考例句：

• Please accept this little gift as a souvenir.请留下这个小小礼物作为纪念。
• I was going to save that as a souvenir.我本来准备把它做为纪念品保存下来的。

5 mixture   

n.（不可数）混合；混合物，混合剂

参考例句：

• Air is a mixture of gases.空气是各种气体的混合物。
• White is a mixture of all the colours.白色是由一切颜色混合而成的。

6 lifestyles   

n.（反映个人或团体之态度及价值观的）生活方式( lifestyle的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The target market for a product describes demographics as well as lifestyles and sometimes job roles. 产品的目标市场描述了人群统计和生活风格，有时也涉及职业角色。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓
• She broke your heart and inadvertently drove men to deviant lifestyles. 她会伤害你的心，悄悄的腐蚀你的生活。 来自电影对白