Six-year-old boy seeks smiles

四川双流中学 蒋建平（特级教师）

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海词积累

1. nightmare /΄naɪtmeə（r）/ n. 噩梦

It is every kid’s worstnightmareand sixyear-old Jaden Hayes has lived it twice. First he lost his dad when he was four and then last month his mom died unexpectedly in her sleep.

“I tried and I tried and I tried to get her awake， but I couldn't，” said Jaden.

Jaden is understandably heartbroken.

But there's another side to his grief. A side he first made public a few weeks ago when he told his aunt that he was sick and tired of seeing everyone sad all the time. And he had a plan to fix it.

“And that was the beginning of it，” said Barbara. “That's where the adventure began.”

Jaden asked his aunt Barbara to buy a bunch of little toys and bring him to downtown Savannah， Georgia near where he lives， so he could give them away.

“I'm trying to make people smile，” said Jaden.

Jaden targets people who aren't smiling and then turns their day around. He's gone out on four different occasions now and he is always successful. Even if sometimes he doesn't get exactly the reaction he was hoping for.

It is just sooverwhelmingto some people that a six-year-old orphan would give away a toy—expecting nothing in return except a smile.

“I'm counting on it to be 33，000，” said Jaden. When asked if he thought he could make that goal， he answered， “I think I can.”

Reading Check

Answer the following questions according to the text.

1. What made Jaden decide to seek smiles? （no more than 15 words）

2. How does Jaden seek simles? (no more than 15 words)___

3. Who does Jaden target when he seeks smiles? （no more than 8 words）