全文 The whole set, with pinyin and English
看图 The pictures
图①：星期天下午，我和爷爷在客厅里下象棋。
xīng qī tiān xià wǔ wǒ hé yé ye zài kè tīng lǐ xià xiàng qí
On Sunday afternoon, Grandpa and I play Chinese chess in the living room.
图②：爷爷走了一步，大喊：“将军！”我气得皱起了眉头。
yé ye zǒu le yí bù dà hǎn jiāng jūn wǒ qì de zhòu qǐ le méi tóu
Grandpa makes a move and calls out, "Check!" I frown in annoyance.
图③：爷爷笑着说：“先想一想！”我托着下巴，认真地思考。
yé ye xiào zhe shuō xiān xiǎng yi xiǎng wǒ tuō zhe xià ba rèn zhēn de sī kǎo
Grandpa smiles and says, "Think first!" I rest my chin on my hand and think hard.
图④：我越下越好，爷爷竖起大拇指说：“你进步了！”
wǒ yuè xià yuè hǎo yé ye shù qǐ dà mǔ zhǐ shuō nǐ jìn bù le
I play better and better. Grandpa gives me a thumbs-up and says, "You have improved!"
想一想 Guiding questions
问：你和爷爷在什么时候、什么地方下棋？
nǐ hé yé ye zài shén me shí hou shén me dì fang xià qí
When and where did you play chess with Grandpa?
答：星期天下午，我和爷爷在客厅里下象棋。
xīng qī tiān xià wǔ wǒ hé yé ye zài kè tīng lǐ xià xiàng qí
On Sunday afternoon, Grandpa and I played Chinese chess in the living room.
问：爷爷喊“将军”的时候，你的反应怎样？
yé ye hǎn jiāng jūn de shí hou nǐ de fǎn yìng zěn yàng
How did you react when Grandpa called "Check"?
答：我连输了几盘，气得皱起眉头，不想再下了。
wǒ lián shū le jǐ pán qì de zhòu qǐ méi tóu bù xiǎng zài xià le
I had lost several games in a row. I frowned angrily and did not want to play any more.
问：爷爷是怎样教你的？
yé ye shì zěn yàng jiāo nǐ de
How did Grandpa teach you?
答：爷爷叫我先想一想，每走一步之前都要看清楚整个棋盘。
yé ye jiào wǒ xiān xiǎng yi xiǎng měi zǒu yí bù zhī qián dōu yào kàn qīng chu zhěng gè qí pán
Grandpa told me to think first and look carefully at the whole board before every move.
问：后来结果怎样？
hòu lái jié guǒ zěn yàng
How did it turn out in the end?
答：我下得越来越好，爷爷竖起大拇指，称赞我进步了。
wǒ xià de yuè lái yuè hǎo yé ye shù qǐ dà mǔ zhǐ chēng zàn wǒ jìn bù le
I played better and better, and Grandpa gave me a thumbs-up and praised my progress.
问：你从这件事学到了什么？
nǐ cóng zhè jiàn shì xué dào le shén me
What did you learn from this?
答：我学到了做事不能急躁，要先想清楚再行动。
wǒ xué dào le zuò shì bù néng jí zào yào xiān xiǎng qīng chu zài xíng dòng
I learnt not to be hasty, and to think things through before I act.
好词好句 Good words and sentences
聚精会神 皱起眉头 垂头丧气 慈祥 耐心 深思熟虑 胸有成竹 恍然大悟 竖起大拇指 急躁
聚精会神 jù jīng huì shén: to concentrate fully; 皱起眉头 zhòu qǐ méi tóu: to frown; 垂头丧气 chuí tóu sàng qì: downcast, crestfallen; 慈祥 cí xiáng: kindly (of an old person); 耐心 nài xīn: patient; patience; 深思熟虑 shēn sī shú lǜ: to think something over carefully; 胸有成竹 xiōng yǒu chéng zhú: to have a plan ready, to be confident; 恍然大悟 huǎng rán dà wù: to suddenly understand; 竖起大拇指 shù qǐ dà mǔ zhǐ: to give a thumbs-up; 急躁 jí zào: hasty, impatient
我盯着棋盘，好像要把每一颗棋子都看穿。
wǒ dīng zhe qí pán hǎo xiàng yào bǎ měi yì kē qí zǐ dōu kàn chuān
I stared at the board as if I wanted to see right through every piece.
爷爷的眼睛笑成了一条线。
yé ye de yǎn jing xiào chéng le yì tiáo xiàn
Grandpa smiled so much that his eyes became thin lines.
原来，下棋就像做事，每走一步都要先想一想。
yuán lái xià qí jiù xiàng zuò shì měi zǒu yí bù dōu yào xiān xiǎng yi xiǎng
So playing chess is like doing anything else: think before every step.
我的脸一下子红到了耳根。
wǒ de liǎn yí xià zi hóng dào le ěr gēn
My face went red right up to my ears.
范文 Sample composition: 爷爷教我下象棋
爷爷是个象棋高手，每个星期天下午，他都会在客厅里摆好棋盘，等我陪他下棋。
yé ye shì gè xiàng qí gāo shǒu měi gè xīng qī tiān xià wǔ tā dōu huì zài kè tīng lǐ bǎi hǎo qí pán děng wǒ péi tā xià qí
Grandpa is a Chinese chess expert. Every Sunday afternoon he sets up the board in the living room and waits for me to play with him.
客厅的墙上贴着一个红红的“福”字，爷爷常说，下棋最需要的是耐心。
kè tīng de qiáng shang tiē zhe yí gè hóng hóng de fú zì yé ye cháng shuō xià qí zuì xū yào de shì nài xīn
A bright red "福" hangs on the living room wall, and Grandpa often says that what chess needs most is patience.
那天，我们又面对面坐了下来。
nà tiān wǒ men yòu miàn duì miàn zuò le xià lái
That day we sat down facing each other again.
我一心想赢，拿起棋子就走，根本没有多想。
wǒ yì xīn xiǎng yíng ná qǐ qí zǐ jiù zǒu gēn běn méi yǒu duō xiǎng
I only wanted to win, so I moved my pieces as soon as I picked them up, without thinking at all.
很快，爷爷轻轻地移动了一颗棋子，大喊一声：“将军！”
hěn kuài yé ye qīng qīng de yí dòng le yì kē qí zǐ dà hǎn yì shēng jiāng jūn
Very soon Grandpa gently moved a piece and called out, "Check!"
我低头一看，才发现自己已经无路可走了。
wǒ dī tóu yí kàn cái fā xiàn zì jǐ yǐ jīng wú lù kě zǒu le
I looked down and only then saw that I had nowhere left to go.
我连输了三盘，气得皱起眉头，把手一摊，说：“不玩了！”
wǒ lián shū le sān pán qì de zhòu qǐ méi tóu bǎ shǒu yì tān shuō bù wán le
I lost three games in a row. I frowned, threw up my hands and said, "I'm not playing any more!"
爷爷没有生气，反而慈祥地笑了。
yé ye méi yǒu shēng qì fǎn ér cí xiáng de xiào le
Grandpa was not angry; instead he gave a kindly smile.
他说：“下棋不能急躁。每走一步之前，先想一想对方会怎么走。”
tā shuō xià qí bù néng jí zào měi zǒu yí bù zhī qián xiān xiǎng yi xiǎng duì fāng huì zěn me zǒu
He said, "You can't be hasty in chess. Before every move, think first about how the other side will move."
说完，他把棋子重新摆好，陪我再下一盘。
shuō wán tā bǎ qí zǐ chóng xīn bǎi hǎo péi wǒ zài xià yì pán
Then he set the pieces out again and played another game with me.
这一次，我聚精会神地盯着棋盘，好像要把每一颗棋子都看穿。
zhè yí cì wǒ jù jīng huì shén de dīng zhe qí pán hǎo xiàng yào bǎ měi yì kē qí zǐ dōu kàn chuān
This time I concentrated hard on the board, as if I wanted to see right through every piece.
每次轮到我，我都托着下巴，深思熟虑一番。
měi cì lún dào wǒ wǒ dōu tuō zhe xià ba shēn sī shú lǜ yì fān
Each time it was my turn, I rested my chin on my hand and thought it over carefully.
遇到看不懂的地方，爷爷会耐心地提醒我。
yù dào kàn bù dǒng de dì fang yé ye huì nài xīn de tí xǐng wǒ
When I did not understand something, Grandpa patiently gave me a hint.
我渐渐恍然大悟：原来下棋要看的不只是一步，而是好几步。
wǒ jiàn jiàn huǎng rán dà wù yuán lái xià qí yào kàn de bù zhǐ shì yí bù ér shì hǎo jǐ bù
Gradually it dawned on me: in chess you have to look not just one move ahead, but several.
一个多月过去了，我下得越来越好，有时还能让爷爷想很久。
yí gè duō yuè guò qù le wǒ xià de yuè lái yuè hǎo yǒu shí hái néng ràng yé ye xiǎng hěn jiǔ
More than a month went by. I played better and better, and sometimes I even made Grandpa think for a long time.
有一次，爷爷看着棋盘，竖起大拇指说：“你进步了！”
yǒu yí cì yé ye kàn zhe qí pán shù qǐ dà mǔ zhǐ shuō nǐ jìn bù le
Once Grandpa looked at the board, gave me a thumbs-up and said, "You have improved!"
他的眼睛笑成了一条线，我的心里也像开了花一样。
tā de yǎn jing xiào chéng le yì tiáo xiàn wǒ de xīn li yě xiàng kāi le huā yí yàng
His eyes became thin lines as he smiled, and my heart felt as if flowers were blooming in it.
现在，我遇到难题时，不再垂头丧气，而是先静下心来想一想。
xiàn zài wǒ yù dào nán tí shí bú zài chuí tóu sàng qì ér shì xiān jìng xià xīn lái xiǎng yi xiǎng
Now, when I meet a hard problem, I no longer lose heart; I calm down and think first.
我觉得下棋和做事一样，每一步都要想清楚。
wǒ jué de xià qí hé zuò shì yí yàng měi yí bù dōu yào xiǎng qīng chu
I feel that chess is like anything else you do: every step must be thought through.
想清楚了，心里自然胸有成竹。
xiǎng qīng chu le xīn li zì rán xiōng yǒu chéng zhú
Once you have thought it through, you naturally feel confident.
范文二 简单一点 A simpler version
星期天下午，我和爷爷在客厅里下象棋。
xīng qī tiān xià wǔ wǒ hé yé ye zài kè tīng lǐ xià xiàng qí
On Sunday afternoon, Grandpa and I played Chinese chess in the living room.
爷爷下棋很厉害，邻居们都叫他“棋王”。
yé ye xià qí hěn lì hai lín jū men dōu jiào tā qí wáng
Grandpa is very good at chess; the neighbours call him "the Chess King".
他每天都要下几盘棋。
tā měi tiān dōu yào xià jǐ pán qí
He plays a few games every day.
我想快点赢，每一步都下得很快。
wǒ xiǎng kuài diǎn yíng měi yí bù dōu xià de hěn kuài
I wanted to win fast, so I made every move quickly.
不到十分钟，爷爷就大声说：“将军！”
bú dào shí fēn zhōng yé ye jiù dà shēng shuō jiāng jūn
In less than ten minutes, Grandpa said loudly, "Check!"
我输了，皱着眉头说：“一点儿也不好玩！”
wǒ shū le zhòu zhe méi tóu shuō yì diǎn er yě bù hǎo wán
I lost, and said with a frown, "This isn't fun at all!"
我觉得自己真笨，差点儿哭了出来。
wǒ jué de zì jǐ zhēn bèn chà diǎn er kū le chū lái
I felt really stupid and nearly burst into tears.
爷爷摸摸我的头，笑着说：“别急，先想一想！你要看看我下一步会怎么走。”
yé ye mō mo wǒ de tóu xiào zhe shuō bié jí xiān xiǎng yi xiǎng nǐ yào kàn kan wǒ xià yí bù huì zěn me zǒu
Grandpa patted my head and said with a smile, "Don't rush, think first! Look at how I might move next."
于是，我坐好，托着下巴，慢慢地想。
yú shì wǒ zuò hǎo tuō zhe xià ba màn màn de xiǎng
So I sat up properly, rested my chin on my hand and thought slowly.
从那天起，我每个星期天都和爷爷下棋。
cóng nà tiān qǐ wǒ měi gè xīng qī tiān dōu hé yé ye xià qí
From that day on, I played chess with Grandpa every Sunday.
一个月以后，我进步了很多，爷爷有时也要想很久。
yí gè yuè yǐ hòu wǒ jìn bù le hěn duō yé ye yǒu shí yě yào xiǎng hěn jiǔ
A month later I had improved a lot, and sometimes even Grandpa had to think for a long time.
爷爷竖起大拇指说：“你进步了！”我开心极了。
yé ye shù qǐ dà mǔ zhǐ shuō nǐ jìn bù le wǒ kāi xīn jí le
Grandpa gave me a thumbs-up and said, "You have improved!" I was overjoyed.
我明白了，做事不能太急，要先想清楚再动手。
wǒ míng bái le zuò shì bù néng tài jí yào xiān xiǎng qīng chu zài dòng shǒu
I understood that you must not rush; think it through before you start.
爷爷说得对，耐心比聪明更重要。
yé ye shuō de duì nài xīn bǐ cōng ming gèng zhòng yào
Grandpa was right: patience matters more than cleverness.
下次遇到难题，我也会提醒自己想一想。
xià cì yù dào nán tí wǒ yě huì tí xǐng zì jǐ xiǎng yi xiǎng
Next time I meet a hard problem, I will remind myself to think it over too.