English is the first language of several countries. However, it has many differences. British, American, and South African English are all spoken differently. In many English language courses, the British and American differences are taught. One is not more correct than the other, but there are important differences between the two.

    Probably the biggest difference between American and British English is the vocabulary. Different words and expressions are used to talk about the same thing. For example, in the United States, people throw their garbage into the trash can. In England, people throw their rubbish into the dustbin. In Britain, people take a lift to the fifth floor. In America, people take an elevator.

    American and British grammar can be also different. For example, speakers of British English will ask "What did you do at the weekend?", but Americans usually say "on the weekend." In the United States people usually say "I've gotten a new car.", but in the UK they will say "I've just got a new car."

    The pronunciation in American and British English is also different, even when the spelling is the same. The word "tomato"—pronounced "to-mah-to" in British English—is a classic example of this.

    Vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation are three ways English is different in different parts of the world. Learning all these is not easy, so English learners should just know that they are always there.

( 1 ){#blank#}1{#/blank#} ( 2 ){#blank#}2{#/blank#} ( 3 ){#blank#}3{#/blank#} ( 4 ){#blank#}4{#/blank#} ( 5 ){#blank#}5{#/blank#}

    Being safe at school and in your everyday life needs knowledge. If you remember the following information，your life will be much safer.

    ●Always notice the environment around you. You shouldn't walk alone outside. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} If anything dangerous happens，you can find them quickly.

    ●Don't use earphones(耳机) when running in the school yard or on the street. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}    

    ●School bags should be carried towards the front of your body instead of pulling them on your back. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} 

    ●If you are followed by a stranger(陌生人)，cross the street and go in the other direction(方向)，let the stranger know that you know he or she is there. Next，go and get help from others if it is necessary. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}You are safer on the street than you are in your home or in a lift.

    ●If you have to take a bus to a place far away，try to get to the bus stop a few minutes before the buses leave. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} On buses，don't sit alone，sit behind the driver or with friends. Don't sleep.

    What has two wheels(轮子), runs on human energy and is red, pink, blue or any other color? A bicycle.

    ①In the US, the number of people who bike (骑自行车）in and around the city has increased. More people bike to work, to the store or to go to the movies. There are more bike lanes(车道)，bike signs, bike shops and there is even a popular bike idea, Capital Bikeshare, which allows people to rent(租用) bikes to get from place to place.

    • Kids also like biking to school.

    ②"In winter we walk, and in the rest of the seasons we ride our bikes, " Olivia Steckler, 8, said. She studies in a public school in Northeast Washington.

"It makes me feel happy," she said about biking. It takes her about 15 minutes to ride from home to school.

    Olivia is one of many kids in Washington, especially in the Capitol Hill area, who bike to school with an adult.

    Malia Weedon, 8, a third grader at Maury Elementary School, likes to bike because it's faster than walking. It takes her about five minutes to get to school on her bike. She's been biking to school for several years now and likes to race her little brother, William,

    Jennifer Hefferan, whose job is to make sure kids in Washington get to school safely, said that more people are calling her to ask about bike safety for kids. She also said that schools ask for more bike racks (自行车停放架）almost every day.

    There are many famous traditional Chinese doctors in China, and Li Shizhen is one of them.

    Here is the story of Li Shizhen and his great book.

    Li Shizhen was born in 1518. He became interested in Chinese medicine when he was stillyoung .His father was a popular doctor at that time, and Li Shizhen often saw that people were ill.

    ⒈He decided to study medicine so that he could help them.

    Li Shizhen read many books about medicine. He found that there were some mistakes in manyold medical books, so his hope was to write a new one. He tried his best to study medical science. He studied not only herbs(草药) in his garden, but also the wild ones. He went out to collect herbs and talk with old farmers. He learned a lot from curing (治疗) patients.

    After many years of hard work and study, Li Shizhen finished his great work Ben Cao Gangmu .At that time he was sixty. His book is one of the greatest books in the world medical field.

{#blank#}1{#/blank#}Have you ever hiccupped(打嗝)in a quiet room full of people? Have you ever hiccupped so hard that you had to stop what you were doing? The hiccup is a problem that almost everyone has experienced.

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#}People get hiccups for some reasons. Hiccups might result from eating or drinking too much or too quickly. A sudden change in the stomach's temperature, such as drinking hot water immediately after drinking cold water, may also cause hiccups. They may even happen because of being excited or being under a lot of stress.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}Ideas on how to stop hiccups have been created, shared, and tried for years. However, what works for one person may not work for everyone. Perhaps the most common method people use is to hold their breath for a few seconds. If this doesn't work, you can try swallowing(吞下)hard while holding your breath. There are also some strange-sounding ways, like drinking a lot of water.

   {#blank#}4{#/blank#}A young girl named Mallory Kievman couldn't make her hiccups go away. She knew that sweet and sour things were commonly used to cure hiccups, and she knew that swallowing hard could also help. She decided to use the two ideas to make a special lollipop(棒棒糖). After she failed many times, Mallory invented a lollipop that worked by putting water, sugar and vinegar (醋)together.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#}Mallory wanted to find out whether her lollipops would help others. She gave her lollipops to friends. Most of them were cured of their hiccups after eating the lollipops. Mallory entered a competition with her lollipop and won three awards for her creative idea. She was successful.

    "How are you?" is a nice question. It's a friendly way people in the United States greet each other. But "How are you?" is also a very unusual question that often doesn't have an answer.

    When a person meets a friend on the street and asks "How are you?", he only expects to hear the answer "Fine." even if the other person isn't! The reason is that "How are you?" isn't really a question and "Fine." isn't really an answer. They are simple ways of greeting people and saying "Hello".

    Sometimes, people also don't say directly what they mean. For example, when someone asks "Do you agree?", the other person might be thinking "No, I disagree." But it isn't very polite to answer so directly, so the other person might say. "I'm not so sure." It's a nicer way to say that you don't agree with someone.

    People also don't say directly what they are thinking when they finish conversations with others. For example, many conversations over the phone end when one person says, "I've got to go now." Often, the person who wants to hang u gives an excuse: "Someone's at the door." "Something is burning on the stove!" The excuse might be real, or it might not be. Perhaps the person who wants to hang up simply doesn't want to talk any more, but it isn't very polite to say that. The excuse is more polite, and it doesn't hurt the other person's feelings.

    Whether they are greeting each other, talking about an opinion， or ending a conversation, people often don't say directly what they are thinking. It's an important way that people try to be nice to each other, and it's all part of the game of language!