Do you like drinking coke, coffee, juice or milk? Do you often drink them instead of water? However, of all the things we eat and drink, water is the most important. Not all of us understand this but it is quite true. Human body can go without food for a long time, but two or three days without water usually makes people die.

    Many people do not understand how much water the human body needs to work well. What is true is that many people do not drink enough, especially in hot weather. Most people drink only when they are thirsty but often need more water after they take exercise.

    Does anyone know what is the 65%-75% of human body? It is water. If we do not have enough water, we will feel tired and become ill. So, do you know what the best drink is? It's water.

    On May 12, a big earthquake in China hit Wenchuan, Sichuan. Buildings fell down and the city was destroyed. A lot of people lost their lives.

    Premier Wen Jiabao got on a plane to Chengdu 尽快地. He was leading rescue (救援) work there.

    During the earthquake, many school buildings fell down. Students were buried. But they didn't give up hope. Many got out with help. Here are some stories about the brave students.

    Jiang Dejia and Liao Li are both students from Shifang Yinghua Middle School in Deyang. They were buried in the school rubble(碎砖) for two days. Jiang and Liao didn't know each other before the earthquake. But they kept each other going during the two scary days. They were both rescued later.

    A Junior 1 girl called Deng Qingqing from Shifang Yinghua Middle School was buried under the rubble. She was cold and hungry. But the brave girl had a flashlight (手电筒). She used it to help her read books.

    Li Anning, 16, is from Beichuan Middle School. She and her classmates sang songs under the rubble to comfort each other. The PLA soldiers and policemen were trying to find people alive in the rubble.Helicopters (直升机) airdropped food, water and medicine. Medical teams went to the quake­ hit areas. People outside Sichuan were also offering money, blood and other things to help.

    Mr Smith works in a big city. Mrs Smith lives in a small town（镇）。Bill 是他们的儿子。 He is with his mother.

    It's a Monday morning.Mrs Smith writes a litter（信） to Mr Smith.She says to Bill,"Go to the post office(邮局)with the letter and your father can get it on Friday. "Then Bill comes back  late(回来晚).

    "Why do you come back late?"

    "There is a new post office in South Street（南街）.Do you know that?"

    "Of course. It's far from our home. Why?"

    "The letter is in the post office. "

    "But there is a post office near our home. "

    "I know,but the post office in South Street is near Dad.  He can get the letter earlier(更早地). "

Stories and Art of Chinese Fans

    You may think you cannot live through summer without air conditioners. But in ancient China, hand fans were almost the only ones to help people keep cool.

    Chinese people started to use hand fans over 2,000 years ago. The fans came in different shapes, such as round and square. They were also made from a11 kinds of materials. Palm leaf fans were cheap and easy to make. Feather fans(羽毛扇) showed the owner's high status. Sandalwood(檀香)fans could send out a sweet smell.

    Later, hand fans became far more than just something that could cool you down. They developed into art works, in which tuanshan (round fans)and zheshan(folded fans)were the most common.

    In the shape of a full moon, tuanshan was usually made of silk. They had beautiful birds and flowers on them. Women especially those in the imperial palace(皇宫),liked to use them. Meanwhile, men, especially the literati(文人), used zheshan. The literati liked them because zheshan were usually made of paper and they could paint and write poems on them. It was a way for them to show off their ability in literature, painting and handwriting. Almost anything can be painted on zheshan.

    Today, Chinese people still use these fans, only not many people write or paint on them any more. Next time when you are waving a fan, you may think of the stories behind it.

Hello! I am Liu Tian. I am 13 years old. I live {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Baoding now. My favourite animals are cats {#blank#}2{#/blank#} dogs. I also like eating chicken and {#blank#}3{#/blank#} (potato) very much. Black is my favourite colour.

This is my new friend. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} (she) full name is Sally White. Sally is her {#blank#}5{#/blank#} (one) name, and White is her family name. We are in{#blank#}6{#/blank#} same school. But we are in different {#blank#}7{#/blank#} (class). She is also 13 years old. She is from London, the UK. Now she {#blank#}8{#/blank#} (live) in Baoding with her parents. She likes{#blank#}9{#/blank#} (China) food a lot. Her favourite food is Mapo tofu. Sally and I {#blank#}10{#/blank#} (be) good friends.