On the morning of September 9, a primary school in Luonan County, Shaanxi Province, saw a small but warm moment. Wang Jianfeng, an English teacher, had just finished his morning reading class and returned to the office. Then a student, Wang Xudong, walked in carefully, holding a bowl of shredded potatoes. It was a gift for Teachers’ Day.
The potatoes were cut into pieces of different sizes, and they did not look neat at all. But the teacher was deeply moved. The boy explained that it was the first time he had ever cooked this dish, and that he wanted to make something by hand for his teacher. While cooking, he was choked by the smoke, and he was not sure how much salt to add. In the end, with his grandmother’s help, he finished it.
Instead of laughing at the dish, the teacher gave the boy a certificate that read Young Cook. He said it was the most special Teachers’ Day gift he had ever received. The potatoes might not look perfect, he explained, but the courage to try and the wish to do something for others were what really mattered. The boy was very happy, and he said he would help with housework more often from now on.
A short video of the moment soon spread online and received hundreds of thousands of likes. Many people wrote that such a small prize could stay in a child’s heart for many years. Some said that a kind word or a simple encouragement can light a fire of confidence in a young person, and that doing real work teaches children to be thankful.
Education is often described as one tree moving another tree, and one cloud pushing another cloud. The story of the potatoes shows what that means. Between a teacher and a student, the warmest moments are often the simplest ones: a bowl of food, a piece of paper, and two people who understand each other.
Words to know:
- shredded (切成丝的)
- certificate (证书)
- encouragement (鼓励)
- confidence (自信)
- courage (勇气)
- thankful (感激的)
- spread (传播)
- housework (家务)
长难句拆解 · 并列句与宾语从句
原句：The boy explained that it was the first time he had ever cooked this dish, and that he wanted to make something by hand for his teacher. 主干是 The boy explained（主谓），后面跟着两个由 that 引导的宾语从句，用 and 并列。 第一个从句里，he had ever cooked this dish 是定语从句，修饰 the first time；因为主句是过去时，这里用过去完成时 had cooked，表示「在那之前从未做过」。 直译：男孩解释说，这是他第一次做这道菜，他想亲手为老师做点什么。
原句：The potatoes might not look perfect, but the courage to try and the wish to do something for others were what really mattered. but 连接两个并列分句；谓语用 were 是复数，因为主语是 the courage 和 the wish 两件事；what really mattered 是表语从句，作 were 的表语。 直译：土豆也许看起来不完美，但敢于尝试的勇气，以及为别人做点什么的心意，才是真正重要的。
同义替换 · 雅思阅读利器
下面的表达在原文和改写题里经常互换，点一下右边就能自查。
- be moved → be touched / be affected（被感动）
- by hand → manually / with one’s own hands（亲手）
- in the end → finally / eventually（最终）
- laugh at → make fun of / mock（嘲笑）
- matter → be important / count（重要）
- spread → go viral / circulate（传播、走红）
- encouragement → support / praise（鼓励、肯定）
阅读自测 · 3 题
- True / False / Not Given: Wang Xudong cooked the dish completely by himself without any help.
- 简答：Why did the teacher give the boy a certificate?
- 选词填空：The teacher said the boy’s courage to try was what really ________.（mattered / laughed / spread）
参考答案与解析
- False。原文说 In the end, with his grandmother’s help, he finished it，说明奶奶帮了忙。干扰项套路是「偷换条件」：把「在奶奶帮助下完成」换成「完全独立完成」。
- Because he wanted to praise the boy’s courage to try and his wish to do something for his teacher.
- mattered。原文 the courage to try … were what really mattered，matter 在这里作动词，意为「重要」。
常见干扰项：把文中的 hundreds of thousands of likes（数十万点赞）说成 the video was watched by millions of teachers，用「偷换数字和主语」制造看似合理的假信息。
中文译文
9 月 9 日早上，陕西省洛南县的一所小学里出现了小而温暖的一幕。英语老师王建锋刚上完早读课回到办公室。这时，学生王旭栋小心翼翼地走了进来，手里端着一碗土豆丝。这是他送给老师的教师节礼物。
这碗土豆丝切得粗细不一，看上去一点也不整齐。但老师深受感动。男孩解释说，这是他第一次做这道菜，他想亲手为老师做点什么。做菜时他被油烟呛到，也拿不准该放多少盐。最后，在奶奶的帮助下，他把它做了出来。
老师没有嘲笑这道菜，而是给男孩颁发了一张写着「厨香少年」的奖状。他说，这是他收到过的最特别的教师节礼物。他解释说，土豆丝也许看起来不完美，但敢于尝试的勇气，以及为别人做点什么的心意，才是真正重要的。男孩非常开心，他说今后会更多地帮忙做家务。
这段小故事被拍成短视频，很快在网上传播开来，收获了数十万点赞。许多人写道，这样一张小小的奖状，可能会在孩子心里留很多年。也有人说，一句好话或一次简单的鼓励，就能点燃一个年轻人的自信之火，而真正动手做事能教会孩子懂得感恩。
人们常说，教育是一棵树摇动另一棵树，一朵云推动另一朵云。这碗土豆丝的故事正说明了这一点。在老师与学生之间，最温暖的时刻往往最简单：一碗食物、一张纸，以及两个互相理解的人。