Chinese jump rope, also known as tiaopijin, is a children’s game resembling hopscotch (跳房子). One reason     1     its popularity is the fact that although the moves can be quite     2     (challenge), the game itself is very simple. There’s no need for players     3     (buy) expensive equipment since what they need is only a rope.

The game     4     (begin) in 7th-century China. In the 1960s, children in the West World adopted the game. The game is     5     (typical) played in a group of at least 3 players with a rope about 16 feet in     6     (long) tied into a circle. Two players face each other standing 9 feet apart, and position the rope around     7     (they) ankles so that it is tightly stretched. The third player stands between the two sides of the rope and tries to perform a series of moves without making     8     error or pausing.

There are many jump patterns, most of     9     are accompanied by a song. This is sometimes called the “first level”. The jumper tries to complete the chosen pattern. If the moves     10     (complete) successfully, then the rope is moved farther up and the series is repeated.

Our grandparents seems to have magic powers sometimes. Give them a Chinese lunar calendar    1    they will know what the weather will be like days or even months later.

What's the secret? They are following the 24 Solar Terms (节气),     2    were added on Nov. 30 to the list of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity (人类非物资文化遗产) by the United Nations (UN). It is a knowledge system and social practice    3    (form) through people's observations of the sun's annual movements and its influence on the climate.

The 24 Solar Terms    4    (come) into being during the Qin and Han    5     (dynasty). At that time, most Chinese people made their living on farms, so weather changes were    6    (extreme) important for them. But of course, they had no satellite, internet or weather broadcast    7    (help) them.    8    these difficulties, they managed to work out 24 Solar Terms by studying the sun's movement and also    9    (pay) attention to other natural changes such as air temperature, water and crop growth.

It is honored as China's    10    (five) great invention, after papermaking, printing, the compass and gunpowder. Now, it is still widely used in daily life even in the age of technology-based modern farming.