In English, the spelling of words does not always represent(代表)the sound. And some words seem to have too many letters. An American called Noah Webster wanted to do something for the development of English, so he began his work on it. His first book,  The Elementary(基础的)Spelling Book, suggested making the spelling of English words easy. The book was very popular. In fact, Webster is famous for his American Dictionary of the English Language. This dictionary came out in 1828 after it was completed. It introduced lots of new American words, with information about their pronunciation, use and the new spelling. Today,  Webster's dictionary is still widely used in English-speaking countries.

    Every morning my father buys a newspaper on his way to work. Every day I open my books in class and start lessons. Every evening my mother looks through magazines at home. And every night, I look at the posters with photos of David Beckham and Yao Ming on my bedroom wall before I go to sleep. Can we imagine life without paper or print?

    Paper was first created about 2,000 years ago, and has been made from silk, cotton, bamboo, and, since the 19th century, from wood. People learned to write words on paper to make a book. But in those days, books could only be produced one at a time by hand. As a result, they were expensive and rare. And because there weren't many books, few people learned to read.

    Then printing was invented in China. The first printed books were made by putting ink on a wooden block and holding the paper against it. When printing was developed greatly at the beginning of the 11th century, books could be produced more quickly and cheaply. As a result, more people learned to read. After that, knowledge and ideas spread(传播) quickly, in a way that can be compared with the introduction of the Internet in the 20th century.

    But will books be needed in the future? Today information can be received online, downloaded from the Internet rather than found in books, and information can be kept on CD-ROMs or machines such as MP4 players. These machines are smaller and lighter than books so that they can be carried very easily.

    Computers are already used in classrooms, and newspapers and magazines can already be read online. So will books be replaced by computers one day? No, I don't think the Yao Ming poster on my bedroom wall will ever be replaced by a computer two metres high!

    There are five people in my family. We all like watching TV, but we like different TV shows.

    My grandpa is a great fan of Beijing Opera. He likes watching it very much. Now he is in a Beijing Opera club. There he talks about Beijing Opera and acts with other Beijing Opera fans.

    My grandma likes cross talk, and she often watches them when she is free. Her favorite cross talker is Guo DeGang.

    My father is a reporter in a TV station. He watches all kinds of TV shows, but he likes news program best.

    My mother is a teacher. Her favorite TV shows are soap operas. She thinks they are very interesting. But I think they are boring.

    I like playing basketball, so my favorite TV shows are sports shows.

    Hans Christian Andersen, a great Danish(丹麦的) writer, is very famous for his fairy tales. He wrote a lot of best-known stories such as The Emperor's New Clothes and The Ugly Duckling. His fairy tales have brought happiness to children across the world. The tales have versions(版本) of over a hundred languages.

    Andersen was born in Denmark in 1805. When he was still a young boy, he was already very clever and imaginative(富有想象力的). He created a small toy theatre and made clothes for his puppets(木偶). He also loved reading.

    After his father died, he learned to be a tailor (裁缝). Later he worked in a factory. At the age of fourteen, Andersen moved to the capital of Denmark to become an actor and gave performances(演出) in the Royal Danish Theatre. However, his voice changed when he grew older, so the job had to stop. Then he began to write poems and fairy tales.

    In the spring of 1872, Andersen fell out of bed and didn't get well again. He lived until 1875 and died peacefully in the house of his close friend.

    Hans Christian Andersen is very famous for his {#blank#}1{#/blank#}. He created a small toy theatre and {#blank#}2{#/blank#} for his puppets. Andersen moved to {#blank#}3{#/blank#} become an actor. Andersen couldn't give performances because his {#blank#}4{#/blank#} in 1872, Andersen. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} And didn't get well again.

    It's normal for you to feel shy and nervous when you are in the new environment. It's natural to feel nervous, or shy in front of others at times. If you think you are too shy and want to be a little more active, try the following advice.

    {#blank#}1{#/blank#} There is no need to hide it. When people get to know you are a shy person, they may understand you better. It will also help you feel easier in talks.

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#} When you smile, people will think you're friendly and want to talk with you. Remember that all people have feelings and most people will stay away from an angry-looking face.

You shouldn't keep quiet at a party all the time. If you find it hard to start a talk, you can say something nice about people around you. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} It must be very helpful for you to start a talk! And after you begin to talk to someone or smile at someone for the first time, remember to say "I did it!" to yourself.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#} Think about more ways to enjoy the party and have fun. Don't waste time worrying about your look or whether all people like you or not.

    If you keep trying the advice, you may not be shy in the new environment one day. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}