I am walking through the winter park where the trees stand cold and bare (光秃秃的). The yellow leaves have fallen to the ground. Now, a group of women gather at the sides of a path. In the cold winter, they're moving their arms and legs to a rhythm (节奏). They are, of course, the dancing aunties.

    It seems that if you go to any public space around China, you're likely to see these dancing aunties. When I first came to China, it was one of the first things that annoyed me. That's because in Britain dancing in public is not a cultural habit. You won't see any age group swinging their arms and tapping their feet in a park. Usually, they just take a walk for exercise.

    Now and again the dancing aunties have hit the headlines (头条新闻). Some people find them annoying. But others respect their right to dance in public. Most of them are middle-aged. They finally have some free time to do whatever they like. There is no more work, and their kids have left.

    All in all, I like seeing these women enjoying themselves. They remind us of the importance of exercise as we get older. Besides, most of them have raised the whole families. Now it is their time to have fun and enjoy some peace.

⑴I am 73 years old. I often watch TV in my free time. Of all the programs, I like the news best. Through the TV, I can learn what is happening in our country and in the world. At seven every evening, I always sit in front of the TV on time.  {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

⑵I am a grandma. I like Chinese traditional opera. From Monday to Thursday, I usually turn on the TV at half past seven. The programs from CCTV7 are my favorite.{#blank#}2{#/blank#}

⑶I am a basketball fan. I like playing basketball very much. But I am too busy. So I have to watch it on TV. Every night, I watch the match till midnight. I am crazy about it, especially NBA.{#blank#}3{#/blank#}

⑷I am a housewife. I do the housework all day, I'd like to watch TV at night. I prefer to see soap operas like "Palace", "Meteoric Garden" and so on. Because they can make me feel relaxed.{#blank#}4{#/blank#}

⑸I am the only son in the family. I am in Grade Five. I like cartoons best. I often watch cartoons on TV after doing the homework.{#blank#}5{#/blank#}

A.       B.       C.       D.      E.

    There are some skills for students to listen to the teacher in class, which means you're going to have to practice it. Just as you would have to practice basketball to be a better player, you also have to practice listening. How to listen in school?  {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    One of the things you need to do is to make sure that your mind doesn't wander (漫游). It's easy to start thinking about other things, especially when you're not interested in the subject. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}

    Next, listen for the main ideas. If you want to catch every little piece of information, you'll feel tired and bored.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}Not only does this show respect(尊敬) to the teacher, it also helps prevent your mind from wandering. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}Or it could just be someone talking to their neighbors who shouldn't be. It can even be some birds outside the classroom window, or a group of kids who are talking loudly as they pass the door to your room.

    Finally, you need to take notes because you will not remember everything the teacher said. You'll have to take down the notes so that you can study it after class. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}

    Listening isn't always easy, but if you follow these simple steps, you'll be much more successful in your classes.

A. Here are some suggestions.

B. You'll also need to look at the teacher.

C. So make yourself pay attention to what the teacher is saying.

D. Taking notes also makes you pay attention to the class.

E. It might be a friend who is trying to pass you a note.

    There is an old Spanish saying which goes, “Tomorrow is often the busiest day of the week.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}I would say, too many. We have to go for them now!

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#}Nobody likes to talk about death, but everybody is going to die at one point. None of us knows the hour, or the day. Therefore, today is all we have. Don^'t go to your tomb with unrealized dreams. Make the decision to go after every dream, big or small right now.

You will be much happier if you go for it. Imagine how happy you will be if you^'re living the life you always dreamed about.{#blank#}3{#/blank#}Take control of your own happiness. Don't keep your dreams waiting. Go after them today!

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#}When I was nine, I found an ad for selling greeting cards in a children's magazine. I asked my mother to let me send for the cards. Two weeks later when the cards arrived, I rushed from the house. Three hours later, returned home with no card but a lot of money. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}

A. Take me for example.

B. Tomorrow is not promised.

C. How many times have we put off our dreams until tomorrow?

D. A salesperson was born.

E. The only thing that is stopping you is yourself.

    Robert is a middle school boy from Australia. He is in Grade Seven. This term, he learns Chinese and he likes it very much. He wants to learn it well, so he finds a pen pal from Guangdong, China. His name is Yang Guang and he is a clever boy. He and Robert are in the same Grade. They both love playing football. They often chat with each other on the Internet. They have different school lives. Yang Guang is very busy every day. He gets up early and he has to stay at school for 8 hours every day and he has much homework to do after school. But Robert only stays at school for 5 hours and he often finishes his homework in just half an hour.

Information Card

    On the morning of August 2^nd, I was careless and lost my school bag in the reading-room of our school. There were three English books and a pencil-case inside. Will the finder please send it either to the assistant or to myself? Many thanks to the finder. My bedroom is in Room 403, on the fourth floor of our school.

Wei Hua

Information Card