1 . Straw Weaving(草编)
What’s the first thing that pops into your mind when you think of wheat straw?
The Origin of Straw Weaving
The Process of Straw Weaving
Straw weaving is a method of manufacturing daily items or artworks. Wu explains the process of straw weaving: selection of materials is the first step of a complicated, time-consuming and labor-intensive process that can take weeks, or even months, to complete. You need to sketch (素描)the piece on paper, which requires drawing skills.
In the past, woven straw items could be found almost in every household in the countryside. But due to the impact of industrialization. manufactured goods have replaced such products, which yield low profits, and there are only about 100 individuals engaging in the work across the country. “The world has changed, and craftsmen need to pursue the beauty and artistry of straw culture to help the craft survive and thrive,” Wu says.
The Future of Straw Weaving
From her perspective, straw weaving should respond to people’s needs and preferences, while still drawing inspiration from traditional culture. “
| A．The Current Situation of Straw Weaving |
| B．Next comes weaving, shaping and preserving of the work |
| C．Craftspeople should try their best efforts to promote products |
| D．It was listed as a national intangible cultural heritage in 2008 |
| E．Most people would probably just see it as a pile of waste in a farmer’s field |
| F．The earliest straw-weaving products were discovered at Hemudu Cultural Ruins |
| G．Craftspeople should be responsive and creative and constantly update their products |
The earliest Chinese kites
The method of making a kite can be divided into three parts. Firstly, use thin bamboo strips (条)
Although the basic method remains the same, styles of kite making are presented
3 . 14-year-old Harini Logan won the Scripps National Spelling Bee in the United States. She correctly spelled 22 words during 90 seconds. Most Americans, however, would find it difficult to spell any of these words!
Native English speakers know there are clear differences between how words are pronounced and spelled. But they do not know that the differences are unique to English among major languages. Languages like Italian or Finnish can be spelled more easily because each letter matches one sound. Students studying these languages can have 90 percent reading accuracy after the first year.
In English, many letters have two or more sounds. This is why even after years of learning, students of English are still far below Italian or Finnish students in reading accuracy.
English started as a Germanic language. It is most closely connected to German and Dutch, especially in grammar and basic vocabulary. During the Norman attack in the 12th century, Old English was spoken but French was used in government and formal papers. As a result, more French and Latin words entered the English language.
The printing machine was invented in the late 1400s. This helped to establish English spelling and strengthen the connection between how English is spoken and how it is written. The English of today is how the language was written at the time.
However, the spoken language started to change in the 1500s with the pronunciation of all long vowels, especially in southern England. For example, the word “bite” was pronounced closer to “beet” in the 1400s, before changing through the years to its present sound. The effect was that the English language had old spellings but new sounds.
English has 26 letters, but over 44 different sounds depend on the difference of spoken English. There are several sounds from only one letter. For example, the letter “C” can sound like an “S” as in “city”, and it also sounds like a “K” as in “cat”.
1. Why is English harder to spell than Italian and Finnish?| A．English has more letters. | B．English is used more widely. |
| C．Some English letters have more sounds. | D．English words are made up of more letters. |
| A．Grammar. | B．Writing. | C．Spelling. | D．Pronunciation. |
| A．Words were simpler to spell. | B．Words were easier to pronounce. |
| C．Words had old spellings but new sounds. | D．Words spellings matched with their sounds. |
| A．How English Developed | B．Why English Is Hard to Spell |
| C．How to Spell English Correctly | D．Why English Letters Have More Sounds |
4 . In ancient times, people didn’t have smartphones or computers to use for fun. Still, they had interesting games to play.
Kites
Kites have a very long history. People first used kites to send messages. In the Song Dynasty, kites got very popular with people. Now, Beijing, Tianjin, Nantong and Weifang are the four most important places of kite making.
Cuju
It is an ancient Chinese football game. At first, soldiers played the game as training. In the Tang Dynasty and Song Dynasty, the game was popular. People across the country loved playing it. Women also played the game.
Chuiwan
Chuiwan is a ball game. It’s a little like golf. The game got popular in the Song Dynasty. It was still popular in the Yuan Dynasty and Ming Dynasty. But the game got less popular in the Qing Dynasty.
Go
Go, or Weiqi, is a game for two players. It has a history of over 4,000 years and is still popular nowadays. People in ancient times thought it was a game for gentlemen.
1. What were kites first used to do in ancient times?| A．To have fun. | B．To do exercise. |
| C．To train soldiers. | D．To send messages. |
| A．In the Song Dynasty. | B．In the Qing Dynasty. |
| C．In the Ming Dynasty. | D．In the Yuan Dynasty. |
| A．They are all ball games. |
| B．They are all still played today. |
| C．They were all played for fun in ancient times. |
| D．They were all games only for men in ancient times. |
5 . Although English is not as old as Chinese, it is spoken by many people around the world every day. English speakers are always creating new words, and we are often able to know where most words come from.
Sometimes, however, no one may really know where a word comes from. Did you ever think about why hamburgers (汉堡包) are called hamburgers, especially when they are not made with ham (火腿)? About a hundred years ago, some men went to America from Europe. They came from a big city in Germany called Hamburg. They did not speak good English, but they ate good food. When some Americans saw them eating round pieces of beef, they asked the Germans what it was. The Germans did not understand the question and answered, “We come from Hamburg.” One of these Americans owned a restaurant, and had an idea. He cooked some round pieces of beef like those which the men from Hamburg ate. Then he put each between two pieces of bread and started selling them. Such bread came to be called “hamburgers”. Today “hamburgers” are sold in many countries around the world.
Whether this story is true or not, it certainly is interesting. Knowing why any word has a certain meaning is interesting, too. This reason, for most English words, can be found in any large English dictionary.
1. About a hundred years ago, Hamburg was .| A．An American city | B．a Chinese city |
| C．the name of a village | D．a city in Germany |
| A．beef, bread | B．only made with beef |
| C．bread, potato | D．only made with bread |
| A．Where all the new words come from |
| B．Where those Germans came from |
| C．The reason why an English word has a certain meaning |
| D．The reason why English is spoken around the world |
| A．China because it has a long history |
| B．England because Germans don’t speak good English |
| C．the round pieces of beef which those people from Hamburg were eating |
| D．English speakers because they always create new words |
The story of coffee often begins with a shepherd
Coffee reached Europe in the late 16th century through trade. Coffee was introduced into Italy first. Coffee really became popular in Europe in the 17th century, and the coffee houses opened across Europe.
In the Americas, coffee was introduced during colonization, first as an imported good, then as a cultivated crop throughout Central America. The cultivation of coffee in Americas, like other cash crops, resulted
