It is April 3. People are preparing qingtuan—"green cake". This snack is popular at this time of the 1, especially in Shanghai and some other places in the lower parts of the Yangtze River. Though2 can think of a forgotten festival—the Cold Food Festival(Hanshi Jie).
According to tradition, the Cold Food Festival3one day before the Pure Brightness (Qingming) Festival. It lasts for three 4, during these days people don't make a fire and instead eat 5 food prepared before the festival.
Few places still have the custom(习俗)and city people are no longer strict about6 the custom, but in the countryside many people still eat only cold food on these days.
The beginning of the custom goes back to the Spring and Autumn period (770 — 476 BC). It is a story about Chong Er, the king of the Jin State. Later, the Cold Food Festival became 7 all over China and it had been an important festival before the Tang Dynasty (AD 618— 907). Then it became8 important, until it disappeared in the Yuan Dynasty (1271 — 1368).
A professor said that the Cold Food Festival did not disappear, but 9 the Pure Brightness Festival. In some parts of China, the Pure Brightness Festival is 10 called the Cold Food Festival.
There is one language that people use 1 every country in the world. People who use it are young and old, short and tall, thin and fat. It's almost everybody's 2 language. It s easy to understand, but you can't hear it. It's 3 language.
Babies who can't talk can point at4 . They're using sign language. Sign language can be 5 in places that are very noisy 6 in places that are very quiet. You can talk to the people who are behind windows. And when you 7 with your friends, you can have a "talk" under water!
Many years ago, a Frenchman wanted to help 8 people. He 9 the first school for deaf people in Paris in 1760. And they learned sign language there. Teachers and doctors who wanted to help deaf people also went to Paris and had lessons. Then they taught sign language to their students. Soon there were schools for deaf people in other countries.
Today, in the United States, there are 10TV news programs for deaf people. The news reporter tells the news in sign language and the words appear on TV, too.
Hao Jun: Lucy, how long have you been in China?
Lucy:
Hao Jun: Wow! That's a long time.
Lucy: Yes, and I'm going to stay longer to see how the Mid—Autumn Festival is celebrated here.
Hao Jun:
Lucy: Really? Can I? That's very kind of you!
Hao Jun: We'll celebrate it in the countryside.
Lucy:
Hao Jun: Yes, I'm sure you'll learn a lot about Chinese traditions there.
Lucy: Sounds great!
Hao Jun: Looking forward to your coming.
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A. That's not true. B. For about three months. C. How do you celebrate it? D. If so，you can come to celebrate it with my family. E. You mean in your hometown? F. I can't wait for the coming of that day. G. I believe you will love it. |
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A Special Chinese festival |
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Name China is a country with many colorful days and festivals. The Dragon Head Raising Day—Longtaitou is one of them. |
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Date of the festival This special day is on the second day of the second month in the Chinese lunar calendar(阴历). It stands for(代表)the start of spring and farming. In 2022，the day fell on March 4th. |
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Meaning of the festival The dragon is important in Chinese culture. We Chinese people call ourselves the "descendants(传人)of the dragon". Therefore people celebrate the Dragon Head Raising Day with many customs about dragons. |
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Customs On the day in ancient times people put ashes (灰)in the kitchen. This was to "lead the dragon into the house". People believed that with the help of the dragon they could have a good harvest(收成)in autumn. Also people eat special foods on that day. The foods are usually named after dragons. For example people eat "dragon whisker(细须)" noodles and dumplings called "dragon teeth". Today many customs have faded away (消退). But one that has remained is the cutting of hair. It was said that a haircut during the first lunar month may bring bad luck to the mother's brothers. So many people have their hair cut on the Dragon Head Raising Day. |
Hui—style Architecture (建筑) is one of the most famous architecture in China. It is an important part of the culture of Han nationality. It is unique in the history of Chinese architecture, and also enjoys high fame in world architecture. It is successfully selected into the World Heritage List (世界遗产名录) .
The traditional architecture of Huizhou style has its special regional (地 区的) cultural features. This makes it a well—developed style of architecture in late ancient China. During the middle period of the Ming Dynasty, gardens and houses built with Hui—style developed very quickly along with the development of Huizhou business and its social economy.
Hui—style Architecture is really outstanding in the rural architecture. On the one hand, people pay much attention to the places they build their houses, where there are mountains and water. And on the other hand, they carefully put their hearts in the details of every wall, door and window, or even every brick (砖) .
Look at the folk houses, ancestral temples (宗祠) , archways (拱门, 牌坊) and Hui—style gardens. They have black tiles (瓦) and white horse head walls. Brick carving (砖雕) and wood carving are so much used to decorate the walls, doors and windows that they come into your eyes differently from what you have ever seen.
The dooryard, or skylight (天窗) is another wonder. It is a place where there is less heat of sunshine and the family can enjoy the flowing air. And further more, this is a place where human can join in nature and brings fortune to the family.
I often dreamed about Pisa when I was a boy. I read about the famous building called the Leaning Tower of Pisa. But when I read the word Pisa, I was thinking of pizza. I thought this tower was a place to buy pizza. It must be the best place to buy pizza in the world, I thought.
Many years later I finally saw the Leaning Tower of Pisa. I then knew that it was Pisa and not pizza. But there was still something special about it for me. The tower got its name because it really did lean to one side. Some people want to try to fix it. They are afraid it may fall down and they don't want it to lean over the city.
I do not think it's a good idea to try to fix it. The tower probably will not fall down. It is 650 years old. Why should anything happen to it now? And, if you ask me, I like what it looks like. It seems to say nothing is perfect. And who cares? Why do people want things to be perfect? Imperfect things may be more interesting. Let's take the tower in Pisa. Why is it so famous? There are many other older, more beautiful towers in lately. But the Leaning Tower of Pisa is the most famous. People come from all over the world to see it.
Communing with nature (亲近自然) doesn't have to be about birdcalls and filling your ears. It can also be about filling your stomach.
Out of her love for nature9 Alexis Nikole Nelson is keen on outdoor activities. The young American woman enjoys searching for natural food ingredients in the wild, including mushrooms (蘑菇) , seaweed (海藻) , berries, nuts, roots, flowers and leaves, often just in her neighborhood. And then she can turn these easy—found and common plants into delicious tastes.
Nelson made the process into videos and shared them on the internet, where it has become a huge hit. She also uses her videos to talk about how searching for food used to be a part of the lives of Black and Indigenous folks (土著居民) , and she wants to look back for their life with the practice. Nelson said, "If you can't hunt and look for food on public places, that is not a complete part of your life."
Because of her videos, she has nearly 4 million followers on TikTok. Nelson received the James Beard Award (詹姆斯•比尔德奖) in June for her social media account. They believed that Nelson had pushed American food culture forward and spread a good food standard.
While many parents worry their children spend too much time playing computer games, Kelcey Sihanourath is pleased to see her son pick up his notebook computer.
A new study finds that the number of children in Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, or ADHD (多动症) is rising. It is not only seen in America. It is one of the most common in children.
Owain, now aged 13, was diagnosed (诊断) with ADHD in pre—school. Kelcey took him to hospitals and it seemed that drugs did not work well. Then help came in but it seemed very unsuitable at this age—a computer game called Endeavor Rx.
Kelcey says she was "a little distrustful" at first but soon she started to see small, positive changes in his behavior after a period of time. And now, after failing fifth grade9 Owain started getting "A"s and "B"s for his work.
In 2020 it became the first such game to be allowed by the U. S. government for use in the treatment of ADHD in children. And someone plans to launch (将……投放市场) the game in Europe in the next few years.
Can you imagine traveling without maps? If there wasn't a map of the London Underground at each station, it would be hard for you to set off from Oxford University to London Bridge. And you would even lose your way. In fact, a lot of early mapmakers were adventurers and explorers, especially in the 15th and 16th centuries.
So how did people know the directions and distances (距离) before maps were invented? Many years ago, it was quite common for people to use natural signs like mountains, rivers and coastlines. And it was also common to use time to measure (测量) journeys. For example, people just needed to remember it took 3 hours to reach the next village.
In fact, people didn't draw buildings and roads in the earliest maps. They drew the stars instead because it was very easy to see them in the sky at night. After people built towns and cities, they drew road maps which could give them correct distances and directions.
Nowadays, of course, you are able to ride a bike, drive a car or go through a forest and know where you are exactly by using a GPS. It will show clearly what your exact location is. People don't worry about getting lost any more!
1）你的阅读习惯（喜欢的书籍、阅读的时间、地点、购书方式等）;
2）阅读带给你什么益处（至少两点）;
3）号召大家都养成读书的好习惯。
要求:
1）必须用上所有的内容提示，语句通顺，书写规范;
2）内容可以适当发挥，以保证内容的完整、丰富与流畅;
3）词数: 80～100左右，开头和结尾已经给出，不计入总词数。
Reading—A Good Habit
Reading is a very good habit. I like reading very much. In my eyes,
……
Since reading can help us so much，it's time for us to have our good reading habit now!
