1     a Chinese student, you must know something     2     the Silk Road.

Long ago, traders (商人)     3     treasures from the East to the West. These treasures, like silk and spices (香料), were not goods to get     4    . Many people wanted     5     and it was a good way to become rich.

The Silk Road     6     not a real road. It was a route (路线) between the East and the West. It went through     7    , Turkey, and Greece. Some traders travelled over land and others sailed     8     the sea. There was danger (危险) along both routes. Traders who     9     over the land used camels and horses. First, the traders crossed the desert (沙漠). Then, they climbed over mountains. After that, the traders still had     10     of miles to go.

The Silk Road has been a bridge     1     East and West for more than 2,000 years. The Silk Road has been     2     included into the UNESCO World Heritage List(世界文化遗产名录) at the 38th session of the World Heritage Committee in Doha. But the Silk Road is not a single route(路线)! It is a series of     3     and cultural transmission(传递) routes. The trade route starts from the city of Xi’an in Shanxi Province and     4     in Eastern Europe, near today’s Turkey and the Mediterranean Sea. The Silk Road was about 6,500 kilometers     5    . It went across one-fourth of the planet.

The Silk Road got its name     6     Chinese silk used to be carried along this road. Apart from silk, jade, ceramics(瓷器) and iron went west to Rome. From the west came glass, gems(宝石) and food     7     carrots and sesame(芝麻).

The Silk Road was very     8     to both China and the rest of the world. Besides trade, knowledge about science, arts and literature, as well as crafts and technologies was shared across the Silk Road. In this way, languages and cultures developed and influenced     9     other.

Today,     10     along the Silk Road are great travel destinations(目的地), such as the Terracotta Warriors in Xi’an and Mogao Grottoes(莫高窟) in Dunhuang, Gansu.

A road is a bridge between two places. The Silk Road has been a bridge between East and West for more than 2,000 years. The Silk Road has been     1     included into the UNESCO World Heritage List (世界文化遗产名录) at the 38th session of the World Heritage Committee in Doha.

But did you know the Silk Road is not a single route (路线)? It is a series of     2     and cultural transmission (传送) routes. It began during the Western Han Dynasty. The trade route starts from the city of Xi’an in Shaanxi Province and     3     in Eastern Europe, near today’s Turkey and the Mediterranean Sea. The Silk Road was about 6,500 kilometers     4    . It went across one­ fourth of the planet.

The Silk Road got its name     5     Chinese silk used to be carried along this road. Apart from silk, jade, ceramics and iron went west to Rome. From the west came glass, gems and food     6     carrots and sesame(芝麻)．

The Silk Road was very     7     to both China and the rest of the world. Besides trade, knowledge about science, arts and literature, as well as crafts and technologies was     8     across the Silk Road. In this way, languages and cultures developed and     9     each other.

Today,     10     along the Silk Road are great travel destinations (目的地), such as the Terracotta Warriors in Xi’an and Mogao Grottoes in Dunhuang Gansu.

In ancient times, the Silk Road was very important. It     1     Europe with Asia. The Silk road got its name because businessmen     2     silk along it. Besides silk, there were many other     3     that traveled along the silk road.

The Chinese learned to make silk     4     of years ago. For a long time the Chinese were the only ones who knew how to make silk. They kept this     5     carefully. In ancient China, silk was very     6     material. Only the emperor（皇帝）， his family and his     7     were allowed to wear clothes made of silk.

The ancient Romans were the first Europeans     8     knew this wonderful material. Indians exchanged silk for wools, gold, and silver with them.

There were deserts and high mountains in the way,     9    the trip along the Silk Road could be very dangerous. For businessmen, it was never easy to travel from China to Rome. But it was     10     it. As the years went by, some cities were built along the Silk Road.

Have you     1     a group of boys dancing hip­hop together? The music beat is usually exciting and cool! And the people dancing hip­hop seem     2     what they are doing. What is the real meaning of "hip­hop"? Some people say it is the motion(动作，姿态) that people make while they     3    . They move their hips(臀部) sideways when they dance. That's very interesting. The first hip­hop music     4     to the world at the beginning of the 1970s by DJs. A Jamaican known as Kool Herc was the first person who performed hip­hop music. Whenever people     5     of hip­hop, music and dance are the first things that come into their minds. There is a certain style of fashion. They don't wear formal suits but prefer bigger­sized jeans, casual shirts, sneakers, and colorful caps. They call it "hip­hop fashion".

This is a schoolchild’s homework written on a wax tablet(蜡板) nearly 2000 years ago.

The ancient lesson reads, “You should accept advice from a     1     man only” and “You cannot trust your friends”.

The valuable homework tablet was kept     2     the British Library in 1892. And it will appear in an upcoming British Library     3     called “Writing-Making Your Mark”. The exhibition covers the history of writing     4     5000 years.

From the homework we can learn     5     about the daily life of a primary school student in ancient Egypt. One part of the homework was a writing exercise and the     6    included a multiplication table(乘法表) and reading exercises.

    7     we don’t know who did the homework, the child was probably a boy from a rich family. In ancient Egypt only the rich people’s boys could go to school.

This long-ago student was not just practicing handwriting, but he was also having moral(道德) lessons. Not only his hands and fingers but also his mind was     8     here.

Handwriting has a long and rich history. But learning the skill was once only for the rich. Today even though we live in a digital(数字式的) world, we     9     need to learn this valuable skill. Scientists say that using pen and paper improves memory.

Pay more attention to handwriting from now on and     10     your mark.

Thousands of years ago, people had to hunt(打猎)for food. They lived in caves(洞穴)and needed fire to keep     1    .Some of them drew pictures on the walls of their caves.

We don't know why they drew the pictures. They had to go     2    into the cave to do it, so they must have had a plan. They probably took a light    3    them, which was made of animal fat. Maybe they drew the pictures to    4    good luck when they hunted. Others think the spears(矛)in the pictures mean that they were    5    other people to hunt.

For paint, they mixed animal fat with some different things like dirt or berries. They used sticks to brush the paint onto the     6    of their caves. Some of the drawings are colorful and others are black from the burned end of a stick.

These people drew what they saw around them    7    such as tigers, deer, horses, and sometimes birds and fish. They also drew people, but not very    8    .

The pictures are    9    good most of the time. The tigers look strong and powerful. Many of the horses and deer look graceful.

These drawings have been     10    in more than 130 caves- mostly in England and France. Maybe there are more that we haven't found yet. It is interesting to look at such old drawings.

YOUTH DAY in China falls on May 4 every year. It is celebrated to honor the May Fourth Movement in 1919.

May Fourth Movement     1     after World War Ⅰ. China     2     the Paris Peace Conference (巴黎和会). However, China's reasonable demands (要求) were turned down at the conference. This made students in Beijing very     3    .

On May 4 in 1919, many students gathered at Tian'anmen Square. Students and working people in other     4     in China also joined the movement later.

The movement     5     influenced the development of modern Chinese culture and democracy (民主). This year marks the 100 anniversary of the May Fourth Movement. We should carry forward the spirit of the movement.