Leonardo da Vinci was born on April 15, 1452 in Italy. He is best known as an artist today. One of his famous paintings is called Mona Lisa. However, Leonardo had many other natural abilities. He was also a great inventor. Many of his inventions have become important in modern day life. Although Leonardo hated war, he invented many different machines used for wars. His most special invention was the machine gun, which was produced and used in war many years later.

    By watching the way birds fly, Leonardo tried to find out the secret of f lying. Among his sketches we can see several objects. We consider them as modern flying machines.Leonardo spent many hours thinking about how to make good use of time. He developed ideas for labor-saving machines like cutting machines.

    Leonardo was a strange man. He didn't eat any meat, which was unusual in those times. He never published his ideas and scientific discoveries. He usually used mirror writing, which looks like writing in a mirror, starting from the right side of the page and moving to the left.

    We have very little of his work today. Leonardo finished only a few of his paintings. He left many unfinished because he thought they were not perfect. No one in his life time knew how great Leonardo was. We now believe, however, that he was one of the cleverest men the world has ever known.

    Do you remember when your grandma told you the story of Snow White? Ah, the happy days of childhood! But did you know that Snow White comes from Germany? It's just one story from the 209 in Grimm's Fairy Tales (《格林童话》).

    The Grimm brothers started to collect fairy tales in 1806. Their first book came out (出版) in 1812. Why are German fairy tales so interesting? Maybe it's because they come from a great place famous for its stories – the Black Forest.

    The Black Forest is in southwest Germany. It's the largest forest in the country – and one of the most beautiful. It's famous for its trees and lovely views. There are valleys and waterfalls (瀑布) there. It's a good place to start a story.

    Don't forget to bring something back if you visit. People there are good at making clocks, musical instruments and watches.

    The car was invented just a century ago. You may know all kinds of cars' names, but many people don't know who was the inventor of the first car.

    The first car was invented not by an Englishman, but by an American. His name was Henry Ford.

    Henry was born in a poor family. He was the eldest of the six children. When he was a boy, he became interested in watches and machines. When he was twelve years old, his mother died. Soon he had to work in a machine shop for two dollars and fifty cents a week.

    In the evening, he repaired watches for another dollar a week. The hard life made him strong and able.

    At that time, there was another interest in the life of the young Ford. He wished of making a machine.

    It could run without horses, so named horseless carriage. He overcame a lot of difficulties and in April 1893, the "horseless carriage "was invented at last. It was the first car.

    Later Henry Ford founded the Ford Motor Company. He was really the first inventor of the car in the world.

A: Hi, Mary. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

B: I enjoy watching soap operas. Do you like them?

A: {#blank#}2{#/blank#} I don't think they are interesting. 

B: Then what do you like watching?

A: I like watching sports shows. They are very exciting.

B: {#blank#}3{#/blank#}

A: I watch them five times a week. 

B: {#blank#}4{#/blank#}

A: Yes, you are right. 

B: What's your favorite sport?

A: {#blank#}5{#/blank#} I often play basketball after school.

One day,Jack drove his new car very happily down a street. Suddenly from his car came a terrible sound. He felt1 ,so he stopped his car and looked around. A child2 beside his car with a few stones in his hand. He jumped out of the car and found a dent(凹痕) in the door. He was so angry that he caught3 child and shouted at him,"Who are you? Why did you hit my new car4 a stone?"

"Please , sir , please ... I am sorry! But I didn't know 5 else to do," said the child. "I threw the stone because I wanted you6 me. I need your help!" Tears ran down the7 face. He said,"My brother fell out of his wheelchair and was almost under it. He is hurt but I can do nothing8 he is too heavy for me. Could you give me a hand to get him back into his wheelchair?"

After hearing this,Jack hurried to help. He lifted(抬起)the child's brother gently back into his wheelchair. He looked over the boy9 to make sure that he was OK. Then he watched the child push his brother towards10 home. Suddenly the child turned around and bowed(鞠躬) to Jack. Jack felt pleased and excited. He looked at the dent in his car and smiled.

Boys and girls, this summer vacation is the time for you to take your mind off homework and prepare for the future. The following is some advice on how   {#blank#}1{#/blank#}(make) your vacation meaningful and colourful.

Take regular exercise. You  {#blank#}2{#/blank#}(work) most of the time already. So you need to join in outdoor 

{#blank#}3{#/blank#} (activity), which can bring your whole body into action. You can keep  {#blank#}4{#/blank#}(health) by doing different kinds of exercise, such as playing basketball, jogging and mountain climbing.

Learn some basic life skills. One day, you will live by  {#blank#}5{#/blank#}(you). You can't depend on your family any longer.  {#blank#}6{#/blank#}you should learn to cook, wash and other practical skills.

Go for a journey. Travel to places of interest. In this way, you'll understand cultures that are different 

{#blank#}7{#/blank#}those of your home town. Beautiful sights can also make you  {#blank#}8{#/blank#}(total) relaxed.

Enjoy family time. Don't always sit in front of  {#blank#}9{#/blank#}computer. It's great fun for family members to sit around the table, discussing sports, clothes or other common topics.

 {#blank#}10{#/blank#}you follow the advice above, your vacation will be full of joy and meaningful. We wish you a wonderful time!