Dear Xiao Fang，

    How time flies! It is two years since you moved to America for your study. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    How happy we are! During your staying in America, little companions(小伙伴们 ) kept complaining,"There is no one to play with." Huang Lei talked about the little woods where we

    often played together. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}Each time I saw your empty house next door, I held back tears. How much I have missed the days when we played in the woods behind our houses, where we dug up some worms, chasing the birds. I still remember we slipped down along the stream, feeling the spray(浪花) on our faces.

    After reading your letter, Huang Lei and I came up with an idea. How about our families spending a week's vacation together this summer? {#blank#}3{#/blank#} It is located between the downtown of Chunxi and Wulin Town where we used to have fun. July will be the best month for us, so we must enjoy freedom and joy for a long time. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    I can't wait to look forward to the time when we meet again

Yours

Xiao Mei

{#blank#}1{#/blank#}⑴Helen wants to go to a beautiful place. There she can enjoy beautiful natural scene.

{#blank#}2{#/blank#}⑵Lucy would like to go to a theme(主题) park and buy some souvenirs(纪念品).

{#blank#}3{#/blank#}⑶Jack wants to go fishing by boat or ship.

{#blank#}4{#/blank#}⑷Li Mei is from Zhejiang. She wants to go to the north to see the snow.

{#blank#}5{#/blank#}⑸Peter is interested in history and he likes traveling in the city.

    Whether it's one day off or a week, you don't need to be among people to have a great time. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} You can spend your holiday on your own doing something you have no time to do in your everyday life.

    Eat your favorite foods. They can bring you much pleasure for sure. You can make a healthy meal at home. Cook something you love but usually don't have time to make. Instead of having meals at home, you can also go to a local restaurant for something special. Eat it there, or bring it home. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}

    Stay away from technology. You may have a chance to find the real beauty of life. Maybe you can't help playing with your smartphones all day while you are on holiday alone. Why not create more time to go hiking, fly kites or do some other outdoor activities? {#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#} You can go shopping, see a film, or take a class. Take your time to search for something even small that you want. Going to see a movie or a show alone can be a fun experience. Use your holiday as a chance to try something new like dancing or painting.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Leave your worries behind and try to be a master of your own, but remember that nothing is more important than safety.

    XBOX 360 Kinetic, RoboSapien, WiiParty, theseare just a few of the modern toys sold in recent years. But some of the most populartoys are actually quite old.

Gameshave been around for thousands of years. In 4000 B. C, Babylonians played a boardgame that was similar to chess. Yo-yos made of stone were first used in ancientGreece around 1000 B C. And kites appeared in China around the same time.

    Another famous game is Scrabble. It was inventedby an architect in the 1930s, but it didn't get popular until 1953 And since then,more than 100 million sets have been sold worldwide.

    As you can imagine, toys and games are a multi-billion-dollarindustry. Mr. Potato Head, the first toy advertised on TV, grossed more than $4million in its first year. Play-Doh made its inventor Joseph McVicker a millionaireby his 27th birthday, while Mattel sells 1. 5 million Barbie dolls each week (that'stwo dolls each second!).

    Some toys go out of fashion, but then becomepopular again, such as Rubik's Cube. Research says parents are increasingly choosingto buy toys they remember from their own childhood.

    These days, toys are not just for fun. RoboSapienis a remote-controlled robot that was launched in 2004. He can walk, turn aroundand do other poses. RoboSapien was designed by Mark Tilden, who once created robotsfor NASA space missions. He expected the toy to be used mostly by and scientists,but almost 2 million RoboSapiens have been sold worldwide since its launch as atoy?

    Fancy a game anyone?

It was a fine day. People at the railway station were waiting for the train to arrive. The train was coming in. Everyone waited there to get into the train. A group of young men made loud noises to welcome the train. The empty seats were nearly filled and the train was ready to move. Just then，an old man with a little boy of 10 years old came running to catch the train. As soon as they entered the train，the train started to move. They had their seats just next to the young group. 

The little boy was so surprised to see everything. "Dad，the train is moving and the things are moving backwards out of the window!"he shouted to his father. A fruit seller went past selling apples. His father bought him some apples. "Oh，the apple looks much sweeter than it tastes，"the little boy said. "Is your son having any problem？Why is he so different？"one of the young men asked. Another young man made fun of him. "His son is mad，I think!"he shouted. "My son was born blind. Only a few days ago，he had an operation. It is the first time that he has seen things in his life，"the father of the little boy replied with patience（耐心地）. The young group became very quiet and said sorry to the father and the son.