Deserts are found where there is little rainfall or where rain for a whole year falls in only a few weeks' time. Ten inches of rain may be enough for many plants to survive (存活) if the rain is spread throughout the year, If it falls within one or two months and the rest of the year is dry, those plants may die and a desert may form.

    Sand begins as tiny pieces of rock that get smaller and smaller as wind and weather wear them down. Sand dunes (沙丘) are formed as winds move the sand across the desert. Bit by bit, the dunes grow over the years, always moving with the winds and changing the shape. Most of them are only a few feet tall, but they can grow to be several hundred feet high.

    There is, however, much more to a desert than sand. In the deserts of the southwestern United States, cliffs (悬崖) and deep valleys were formed from thick mud that once lay beneath (在……之下) a sea more than millions of years ago. Over the centuries, the water dried up. Wind, sand, rain, heat and cold all wore away at the remaining rocks. The faces of the desert mountains are always changing--very, very slowly--as these forces of nature continue to work on the rock.

    Most deserts have a surprising variety of life. There are plants, animals and insects that have adapted (适应) to life in the desert. During the heat of the day a visitor may see very few signs of living things, but as the air begins to cool in the evening, the desert comes to life. As the sun begins to rise again in the sky, the desert once again becomes quiet and lonely.

Where would you like to stay when you go on a vacation? What kind of hotel would you like to choose? Different people have different ideas. In fact, there are all kinds of special places to stay when you go on a vacation. There are hotels, motels, youth hostels, B&Bs (bed-and-breakfast), home stays, and more. Each is for a different kind of people. If you travel by car, a motel is good for you. You can park your car outside your room. A youth hostel is good for young backpackers (背包客). A B&Bs might be best for couples (夫妻) or anybody who doesn't like being noisy.

    For people who like reading, the library hotel in New York is a must-see. Each of the hotel's 60 rooms is full of books. In fact the hotel has over 6, 000 books in all. If history is your thing, the 9th floor is for you. If you are interested in math and science, you can stay on the 5th floor. Artists will feel at home on the 7th floor. The Poetry Garden is on the 14th floor, and there is a cozy sofa in it. You can sit on the sofa and enjoy reading a good book or relax outside in the Poetry Garden.

Now students' English handwriting（书法）gets worse and worse. That makes their teachers feel worried. Is your English handwriting beautiful? If not, here are four steps that really work!

u  Using paper with lines (线条)

Using paper with lines can keep you writing straight when you write English words or sentences. Those lines on the paper can help you to write words in the right size.

u  Slow down

If your writing is hard to read, try slowing down a little. For some kids, going slower makes the handwriting clear. If you write too fast, it's hard for you to stop where you should, and even worse, you may make more mistakes.

u  Hold your pencil right

When you hold your pencil the correct way, writing is much easier. Try to be relaxed and don't hold the pencil so hard while writing, and then it makes your handwriting nice and clean. If you do so, people will think you are a student with a good habit.

u  Draw more pictures

Drawing can improve your handwriting. You need to use the skills to control(控制) your pencil better when you are drawing pictures. If you have no time for drawing at school, you can practice it at home.

Some have good handwriting and some don't. Anyway, handwriting is very important. You need to take time to improve it.

    Do you know Singles Day (November 11) in China? Many people, even your parents, go to bed late that night. They were shopping online to get big savings (省钱). Well, the US has something like it called Black Friday.

Black Friday is the Friday after Thanksgiving. It is on November 27 this year. It is one of the biggest shopping days in the US. People want to start shopping for Christmas gifts, so they go shopping on this day to save money.

It's called Black Friday because shops used to record (记录) sales with black ink (墨水). So when there was a lot of black ink on a page, the shop sold a lot.

On Black Friday, people go shopping at actual stores (实体店). It is different from Singles Day. People stand in line (排队) for hours. Sometimes they fight over things because there are only a few left. TVs, computers and video game systems are some of people's favourite things to buy.

Boys and girls, attention, please! 

Do you know 1 to keep safe in our daily（日常的）life? Today I'd like2 you some ways to keep safe. Always play in a 3 place. A park is a safe place4 there are no cars or buses in it. 

5 the traffic rules, please! Before crossing a road, 6 and look both ways ——look left, look right and look left 7 . 

Never put your head or hands 8 a car, a bus or a train. Many people get 9 or lose their lives by doing so. 

Don't 10 a stranger（陌生人）or go with him/her. 

That's all. All the students should obey the rules anytime(任何时候). 

Hi, everybody. Here we're in front of the South Gate. Go straight on, and you'll find the Panda House. Pandas are cute. They like to eat bamboo and lie down all day long. Every year, lots of visitors come here to see them. 

Walk along the road. To the north of the Panda House, you'll find the lions. Lions are the kings of the animal world. Remember that they're dangerous. Never go near them. 

Turn left, and to the west of the Lions' Area, you'll find the World of Birds. Birds make beautiful sounds when they sing. To the north of the World of Birds is the Monkeys' Forest. Monkeys are clever and funny. They jump around and make people laugh. 

Then turn right, and to the east of the Monkeys' Forest, you'll see the giraffes(长颈鹿). They're quite tall. Their long necks help them eat the leaves from trees. 

Northeast of the giraffes there's a bridge. Cross the bridge, and you'll see the elephants. Their large ears are like open fans. 

Here you can see all kinds of animals. Have a nice trip!