From Asia to America and everywhere in between, Swing—an energetic form of dance that includes six-step and eight-step rhythms(节奏)—has taken the world by storm. Making a recent comeback, swing dance floors have popped up all over the world. Many clubs make fans of Swing happy by holding nights when swing music is played, and sometimes even offering classes to attract customers.

    Though Swing is now popular worldwide, it first appeared alongside the jazz movements of the 1920s and 1930s in New York City. While listening to jazz, the young black people of that time developed the movements of the Lindy Hop—a style of dance that is best known for a break away or "swing out" move and sudden improvisation(即兴表演).

    It was reportedly given this name when a reporter was interviewing a person at the dance hall who was watching other couples dance. When asked what that dance was called, the watcher looked at a newspaper next to him that had an article about Lindbergh—the first person to fly alone across the Atlantic(大西洋)—which was titled, "Lindy Hops the Atlantic". Then the watcher announced that the "Lindy Hop" was the name of the dance, and it has stuck since then.

    In 1926, the Savoy Ballroom was the first large business to offer a place for people to listen to swing music and dance. With its huge dance floor, the Savoy became a big success overnight, attracting some of the best dancers and musicians in the New York area.

    Within ten years, the Lindy Hops was sweeping through the United States and became a symbol of unity, as young people of all racial(种族的) backgrounds crowded into dance halls to swing the night away. Traditional dance teachers did not welcome it because they thought it was not even a real dance and were quite sure about its demise but Swing has proved them wrong; it continues to be one of the world's most fun dances.

Charity Cause in UK

    If you watch British television on March 15. you might be surprised to see celebrities(名人) wearing funny red noses and joking around But don't worry. They're not mad. It's all part of a money raising event called Red Nose Day. Founded in 1985 by two British actors, the aim of the event is to raise money to help poor people in the UK and Africa. Celebrities support the event by making appearances on special TV shows. For example. UK Prime Minister David Cameron once appeared in a music video by One Direction, which the band produced for the event.

    British don't just raise money for charitable(慈善的)causes on one day year, but they do it all year round. One way of doing "is by shopping in charity shops. These small shops sell clothes, books and household goods just like any other shop except that it's all secondhand.

    There are nearly 10,000 charity shops in the UK. Their business model is simple anybody who has things they don't want any more can give them to a charity shop. Where they are checked, cleaned and priced. The money that is made by selling them is used for a charitable cause.

    The idea of buying used clothes may sound unpleasant, but for shoppers who have less spending money, it has been a welcome choice. Now, shopping at charity shops is also becoming popular with young people looking for another kind of fashion. "You can find very beautiful and special clothes for a very cheap price. I don't mind wearing the clothes that other people may have worn them, I simply wash them before I wear them," said Anne Marie, a 19-year-old from UK.

    So next time you see a charity shop. Why not go inside? Who knows, you might find a lovely dress for just a few pounds. Even better, you can enjoy wearing it, it means that your money helped a good cause.

    In life, there will always be some people or things that deeply touch you, or even change some of your ideas.

    On my way to school, I always see some people w{#blank#}1{#/blank#} in orange color and sweeping the street. They are city cleaners. People always d{#blank#}2{#/blank#} them as beauticians of the city. However, their work is really hard!

    Last week, our school carried out a social practice activity. I f{#blank#}3{#/blank#} a sanitation (环卫) worker Aunt Hu to experience. As we walked, we w{#blank#}4{#/blank#}. Aunt Hu went to clean up the rubbish when she saw it. I also c{#blank#}5{#/blank#} some leaves and waste paper into a plastic bag. After five minutes, I felt a little tired. It was very hot. How I wanted to find a cool place to have a rest! But Aunt Hu didn't mean to stop even though there was much sweat (汗) p{#blank#}6{#/blank#} over her face. Just at this time, a banana peel fell on the ground. I looked up and saw that it was t{#blank#}7{#/blank#} by a fashionable girl! I was very angry, but Aunt Hu picked it up silently and put it in the dustbin. At this moment, I was touched d{#blank#}8{#/blank#}. She left the dirt and tiredness to herself and the tidiness to us, but the girl turned a blind eye to her job!

    City cleaners are worth our high regard. Thanks to them, the public environment has become clean and c{#blank#}9{#/blank#}. The news reports how the public respects the touching news of these lovely people. We are glad to see the public's a{#blank#}10{#/blank#} to the little people.

My name is Dick. I'm a student. I have breakfast at 7:00 in the morning. I go to school with my friend Li Dan at half past seven. We are in different classes. I'm in Class 4 and she is in Class 3. 

We have four classes in the morning. At 12:00, we have lunch at school. We have two classes in the afternoon. Classes begin at 8:00 and finish at 4:00. We have many subjects at school. My favorite subject is science, because I can learn many useful things in science classes. I also like English. Mr. Jin is our English teacher. He is strict (严格的) with us, and he asks us to speak English both in and after class. But we all like him because he's nice and he likes to help us. Li Dan likes music. She can play the piano well. We like our school life.

More than 50 years have passed since anyone set foot on the Moon. But soon, astronauts will return there with a new type of spacesuit (宇航服). Those old ones were really heavy and didn't fit every astronaut well, especially for women. So, NASA has to make some changes to them for the first time in 40 years. 

"The astronauts will find big improvements in these spacesuits" said NASA engineer Carly Meginnis. The new suit has more joints (关节), especially in the lower part of the body. This will offer astronauts more flexibility to perform tasks like kneeling and walking (not "rabbit jumping") on the moon. The gloves need to be protective and allow astronauts to do work as freely as possible. The new gloves have heaters (加热器) to keep fingers warm, since fingers become the coldest parts of body in space. Also, the spacesuit has a cooling system with water moving around to take away the unwanted heat. Another change is that the new helmet (头盔) provides a better view for astronauts. It even adds lights and an HD camera inside to take clearer videos. 

There are still some problems that need to be solved. For example, it still takes up to four hours to put on the spacesuit, even with the help from their partners (搭档). Moreover, scientist hope that spacesuits will be able to be designed to help astronauts work together with robots in the future.

A young man worked very hard at his lessons. He was too busy to have a rest. At last, he became ill, so he couldn't go to sleep. Every night, when he went to bed, he closed his eyes and tried to sleep. But he always stayed awake and couldn't fall asleep.

After some days, he decided to see a doctor. "I just can't go to sleep at night. What should I do? Could you please help me?"

"I have a suggestion (建议)" said the doctor. "Try counting numbers (数数). By the time you reach one thousand, you'll be asleep. I'm sure of it."

The next day the man returned to the doctor's office. "Well," said the doctor, "how are you today? Did you try my suggestion?"

The man still looked tired. "Yes," he said, "I tried counting one, two, three—up to one thousand. But when I reached five hundred and sixty-nine, I began to feel sleepy. I had to get up and drink some tea so that I could go on counting up to one thousand. But then I still couldn't fall asleep."