In English, the spelling of words does not always represent(代表)the sound. And some words seem to have too many letters. An American called Noah Webster wanted to do something for the development of English, so he began his work on it. His first book,  The Elementary(基础的)Spelling Book, suggested making the spelling of English words easy. The book was very popular. In fact, Webster is famous for his American Dictionary of the English Language. This dictionary came out in 1828 after it was completed. It introduced lots of new American words, with information about their pronunciation, use and the new spelling. Today,  Webster's dictionary is still widely used in English-speaking countries.

    Students learn their lessons in class．{#blank#}1{#/blank#} Students sit in the classrooms listening．This is a way of learning．Is this the only way for students to learn something？Of course not．There is another way to learn．{#blank#}2{#/blank#} For example，if you cannot remember something when you are doing your homework，you can look at your book to find the answer．This is a way to teach yourself．{#blank#}3{#/blank#} We can do this at any place and at any time．

    How do you teach yourself？The first thing you must do is reading．Read something you are interested in．{#blank#}4{#/blank#} If there is something you don't understand or you want to know more about，you can write down questions．The third is to answer the question yourself by thinking hard，by reading the text or other books，and something by asking other people．This is the way of teaching yourself{#blank#}5{#/blank#} If you keep doing like this，you are sure to succeed in your study．

A．In class，teachers teach them．

B．And you must do this all by yourself．

C．The second is that you must ask yourself questions．

D．And it is not a difficult thing．

E．That is students can teach themselves．

Stories and Art of Chinese Fans

    You may think you cannot live through summer without air conditioners. But in ancient China, hand fans were almost the only ones to help people keep cool.

    Chinese people started to use hand fans over 2,000 years ago. The fans came in different shapes, such as round and square. They were also made from a11 kinds of materials. Palm leaf fans were cheap and easy to make. Feather fans(羽毛扇) showed the owner's high status. Sandalwood(檀香)fans could send out a sweet smell.

    Later, hand fans became far more than just something that could cool you down. They developed into art works, in which tuanshan (round fans)and zheshan(folded fans)were the most common.

    In the shape of a full moon, tuanshan was usually made of silk. They had beautiful birds and flowers on them. Women especially those in the imperial palace(皇宫),liked to use them. Meanwhile, men, especially the literati(文人), used zheshan. The literati liked them because zheshan were usually made of paper and they could paint and write poems on them. It was a way for them to show off their ability in literature, painting and handwriting. Almost anything can be painted on zheshan.

    Today, Chinese people still use these fans, only not many people write or paint on them any more. Next time when you are waving a fan, you may think of the stories behind it.

Reporter: {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

Michael: I perform in the evenings, but luckily I don't have to get up early. So in the mornings I sleep in, and then practise on stage for 45 minutes. I have to do a lot of exercise before each show.

Reporter: {#blank#}2{#/blank#}

Michael: Because it's like a dream of flying. When you do a great performance on the trapeze, it's an unbelievable feeling.

Reporter: {#blank#}3{#/blank#}

Michael: Working at such a high level every day.

Sometimes you wake up with a stomachache, but you have to perform.

Reporter: {#blank#}4{#/blank#}

Michael: You need to be strong to deal with physical training. You mustn't be heavy, or your partner can't catch you easily. You can't be at all nervous when there are 5，000 people watching you.

Reporter:  {#blank#}5{#/blank#}

Michael: We get paid per show and the amount depends on your contract（合同）. Of course，we can set extra money for extra performances.

    Around the world, people live in homes of many shapes and sizes. In some countryside, people live together with their family in a huge house with gardens or backyards. On the other hand, the buildings in cities are usually very close together.

    A home can be any kind of building—large or small. Some people even have homes on boats, in tents or in caravans that can be moved around. Caravans are mobile homes. They are towed(拖，拉) by either a car or a huge truck. Some of them are holiday homes. We can see many families staying together in these caravans.

    In the past, rich and important people built strong castles to keep their families safe. The castles(城堡) were built on hill tops with high walls and some even had moats. Moats were deep and wide ditches(壕沟) filled with water. They made it difficult for enemies to attack.

    Today, we have different ways of protecting our homes. Some homes are installed(安装) with video cameras and an alarm system. These will help to alert(向……报警) home owners if someone tries to break in.

    Homes are important to all the people. Everyone needs a home where they feel sheltered and safe.