How do you feel about your Chinese? Is it good or bad? If you think youare good at Chinese, you can take part in the competition named the “Chinese Characters Dictation Competition (中国汉字听写大会)”. The competition became popular among teenagers. Let's know something about it.

    More and more computers and smart phones are used by teenagers. They spend too much time onthe Internet in playing or chatting. They are used to sending messages by computers and smart phones. As a result, some teenagers forget how to writethe Chinese Characters by hand. The teachers and parents are very worried about it. What can they do?

    Not long ago, they found an interesting game called the Chinese Characters Dictation Competition. The program was similar to the American show “National Spelling Bee”. In this program, middle school students competed among themselves and wrote down the Chinese Characters by dictation. Over two hundred competitors were from forty-six middle schools. The audiences(观众) loved this new kind of competition, too. They tried to write down the Chinese Characters while the competitors were writing them. Butthey found it was also difficult for them to write down all the Chinese Characters.

    Is it an interesting competition? Can you be the winner?

  Camping in your backyard is full of fun，whatever your age.It's great for keeping us relaxed.It offers chances to check the night sky and to be noisier than usual.It lets us have friends over to stay who might not fit inside the house! Follow these instructions and you'll have a night you'll never forget! 

  Put up your tent.

Depending on the number of family members and guests，you may need

 more than one tent.Tell your friends to bring their tents if needed.Follow the instructions or check out the articles on how to put up a tent on the Internet.

    Prepare your bedding.

    You'll want your guests to be able to relax in comfort.Put something soft to lie on on the floor：A blow-up air mattress or thick comforters may work well.Fill the tent with soft toys and blankets(毯子).Have lightweight sleeping bags or cotton blankets.They are especially important if you live where the night temperatures drop greatly.

    Prepare a seating area.

    If you have a picnic table，that would work best.If not，set up a few chairs and a small table to set out drinks and food.A simple choice is to lay out a blanket in the sun，so that your friends can eat and talk.Be sure the grass isn't wet!

    Make memories.

    Plan some activities.You're camping in the backyard，so it's time to make the most of being outdoors.

    Have a camera nearby to take silly photos of you，your family members，and your friends.Take one large group shot with everyone smiling and laughing.Be sure to make copies for everyone !

    "I first saw Beijing Opera in London in 1993, and it just shocked me. It was really amazing," says Ghaffar Pounazar.

    The 32-year-old British gave up his work in London and came to a Beijing Opera school. Since then, Ghaffar Pourazar has worked hard on this art.

    On stage, the Beijing Opera actors not only act, they also sing and dance while performing some difficult movements(动作).       ①         When Pourazar first got to China. He couldn't speak any Chinese, and he knew nothing about Beijing Opera. As the oldest student in the Beijing Opera school, he learned more slowly than his classmates, but he didn't give up. Now, he can perform Beijing Opera like a professional(专业人士).

    But Beijing Opera is not as popular as it was before. The young Chinese now spend more time on the Internet. This makes Pourazar very sad. "I used to get really angry at what was happening to Beijing Opera and at the Chinese people. This is part of your culture. You created this amazing thing. but now you are forgetting it, throwing it away."

Pourazar has decided what to do.        ②     Now he is performing a Beijing Opera that is about the Monkey King in two languages, Chinese and English. The Monkey King is a hero in a Chinese story. Chinese people love him very much. In the Beijing Opera, Pourazar acts the Monkey King.

    Many people were really surprised last Wednesday when money started falling from the sky. The accident happened on Green Street. A company clerk（职员） was crossing the busy street with a bag. In the bag, there was 50,000 dollars. She was going to put the money in the bank. Suddenly, a strong wind blew her skirt up. The clerk put her hands on her skirt right away. But she dropped the bag at the same time. The wind blew the money into the air and it fell all over the street. She rushed to pick up all the money she could find at once, and a lot of people came to help her as well. But she could only get back 44,500 dollars.

    When the clerk went back to the company, she felt really worried. She thought she had to pay off （偿清） the lost money. However, after she told her boss what had happened, to her surprise, the boss didn't ask her to pay back the money. Instead, he told her to wear trousers to work from then on.

    Popular music in America is what every student likes. Students carry small radios with earphones and listen to music before class, after class and at lunchtime. Students with cars buy the large speaker and play the music loudly as they drive in the street.

    Adult(成年的) drivers listen to music on the car radio as they drive to work. They also listen to the news about sports, the weather and the life of American people. Most of the radio programs are music.

    Pop or popular music singers make much money. They make a CD or tape and radio stations use them in many places. Once the popular singer is heard all over the country, young people will buy his or her tape. Some of the money from these tapes comes to the singer. Wherever the singer goes, all the young people want to meet him or her. Now the singer has become a national star.

    There are other kinds of music that is important to Americans. One is called folk music. It tells stories about the common (普通的) life of Americans. Another is called Western or country music. It is about country life and the love between a country boy and his girlfriend. They are very popular among young people.