Susan had long blonde hair and big blue eyes. So did most of the other1in her school class, which troubled her a lot. "I look like everyone else! I'm not special! I'm boring!" Susan2to her mother.
She decided to try to make herself look3. She painted big pink spots on her neck and when she didn't get attention, she stuck a long plastic nose on top of her real nose. Nobody noticed that4. She took ink and poured it all over her5. She wore clown (小丑) clothes to school and stuck leaves in her ears.6no matter what she did, she still didn't get any7and nobody thought she was special.
One morning her8went to wake her up and told her to get ready for school. She made Susan9the ink out of her hair and clean her neck. "I'm not going to school10! I'm boring!" She buried (埋藏) her head11the quilt and cried.
"Susan," her mother said, "you are different. You are unique (独一无二的) and special.12in the world looks just like you. Some people have blonde hair like you and some have blue eyes like you, but none of them has your smile or the twinkle in your eyes or your pink face. Nobody laughs like you either. Now13and get ready for school."
Susan went to school that day and looked at all the other kids in her class. "Mum was14. Nobody looks just like me," Susan smiled. "I am special. I am unique and I am not15."
China has a very long history. It has many great traditional skills that have a wide influence (影响). Here we mainly talk about kites.
The earliest mention of a kite in ancient China dates back to the 5th century BC. It was made of wood and used as a rescue signal (求救信号).
At the time between 770 and 221 BC, Chinese kites were actually called "muyuan". They were first invented in Shandong Province for military purposes (军事目的). The kites were used to send important messages during the Chu-Han War. During the Tang Dynasty, kites were made of lighter materials, such as bamboo, silk and paper. At that time, people began to fly kites for other purposes. It was believed that letting go of the kite could remove bad luck and illness.
Today, kite-flying is an interesting and healthy activity in China. There are large kite-flying festivals held throughout the country, and kite makers can show off their skills during the festivals.
Long ago, people did not need money.
As time passed, people learned to raise animals and crops. Sometimes, families produced more than they needed, so they started to trade (交易) with other families. Later, people began to use money as a means of exchange. They used shells, rice, salt, large stones, etc.
During the 600s BC, people began using coins as money. They soon found that coins were easier to carry than goods (货物) and lasted a long time.
The Chinese were the first to use paper money, probably as early as the eleventh century. The Italian traveller Marco Polo saw the Chinese using paper money when he visited China in the 1200s.
Today, we have many ways to pay for things. Often, people prefer to pay for things by card. Paying with a card is easier and safer than carrying around a lot of "real" money.
A. Later, countries began to make their own coins. B. However, it was not the kind of money we use today. C. They lived on wild animals, fruits and other plants. D. However, European countries did not start using paper money until the 1600s. E. We do not use only coins or paper money. |