Nine-year-old Kenyan boy builds hand washing machine

河北樂亭第一中學 胡金瑩

?

難詞探意

1. scrap /skr?p/ n. 碎片

2. curriculum /k?'r?kj?l?m/ n. 課程

3. civilian /s?'v?li?n/ n. 平民；老百姓

Stephen Wamukota, a nine-year-old from a small village in Western Kenya, is making the headlines worldwide for his creative hand washing machine.The young boy came up with the idea after watching villagers, who do not have easy access to running water, struggle to find an effective way to wash their hands to avoid spreading COVID-19.

Using the few resources such as woodscraps, nails,and a bucket, Stephen designed and built a simple, but functional, cleansing station.The clever creation, which contains two pedals—one to release soap and the other to release water—enables villagers to wash their hands contact-free, thus reducing the possibility of catching the terrible infectious disease.

“I had bought some pieces of wood to make a window frame, but when I came back home after work one day, I found that Stephen had made the machine,” said his father James. “The concept was his, and I helped tighten the machine. I'm very proud.” James credits Stephen's building skills to the village school'scurriculum,which teaches children to construct items from a very young age.

The invention, which went viral after James posted a photo on Facebook, has made Stephen an instant celebrity in Kenya. In early June 2020, the country's leader, President Uhuru Kenyatta, awarded the nine-year-old the Uzalendo Award. The newly-created presidential honor is designed to acknowledgecivilianswho are making significant contributions towards the nation's fight against COVID-19.

Stephen has also been promised a full scholarship to a school that can develop his creative talent.“We are waiting for schools to open to contact him about his promise. The governor told me that once schools open, he will give him a scholarship to a school that can match his talents,” said James.

Though thrilled at the unexpected fame and success, Stephen is not resting on his honor. The young boy has already built another hand washing machine and plans on adding several more, so that the village, which has no reported cases of the infectious disease, can remain COVID-19 free!

Reading

Check

1. What drove Stephen to invent the hand washing machine?

A. His will to defeat COVID-19.

B. Watching a photo on Facebook.

C. Villagers' lacking running water.

D. Villagers' bad habits of washing hands.

2. Which of the following can replace the underlined phrase “went viral” in paragraph 4?

A. Became popular. B. Came into use.

C. Got designed. D. Achieved the goal.

3. How can we describe Stephen?

A. Generous and patient. B. Creative and responsible.

C. Thoughtful but lazy. D. Aggressive but indifferent.

4. Where is the text probably taken from?

A. A science fiction. B. A research report.

C. A physics textbook. D. A news website.

Language

Study

Sentence for writing

The clever creation, which contains two pedals—one to release soap and the other to release water—enables villagers to wash their hands contact-free, thus reducing the possibility of catching the terrible infectious disease.

【信息提取】thus + V-ing在句中作結果狀語。

【句式仿寫】這個年輕人每天努力練習說英語，結果在口語大賽中榮獲第一名。