Americans with small families own a small car or a large one. If both parents are working, they usually have two cars. When the family is large, one of the cars is sold and they will buy a van (住房汽车).  

A small car can hold(容纳)four persons and a large car can hold six persons but it is very crowded (拥挤). A van hold seven persons easily, so a family with three children could ask their grandparents to go on a holiday travel They could all travel together.  

Mr. Hagen and his wife had a third child last year. This made them sell a second car and bus a van. The sixth and seventh seat are used to put other things, for a family of five must carry many suitcases (衣箱)when they travel. When they arrive at their grandparents’ home, the suitcases are brought into the two seats can then carry the grandparents.  

Americans call vans motor homes. A motor home is always used for holidays. When a family are traveling to the mountains or to the seaside, they can live in their motor home for a few days or to the seaside, they can live in their motor home for a few days or weeks. All the members of a big family can enjoy a happier life when they are traveling together. That is why motor homes have become very popular. In America there are many parks for motor homes.

   Do you remember when your grandma told the story of Snow White? Ah, the happy days of childhood!

But did you know that Snow White comes from Germany? It’s just one story from the 209 stories in Grimm’s Fairy Tales (格林童话). The Grimm brothers started to collect fairy tales in 1806. And their fist book came out in 1812. 

Why are German fairy tales so interesting? Maybe it’s because they come from a great place famous for its stories-the Black Forest.

The Black Forest is in the southwest of Germany. It’s the largest forest in the country-and one of the most beautiful. It’s famous for its trees and lovely view. There are valleys and waterfalls (瀑布) there. It’s a good place to start a story. 

Don’t forget to bring something back if you visit it. People there are good at making clocks, musical instrument and watches.

   Mr. Ken is a clever and brave man. He works _______ a detective. He hopes _______ the innocent _________ find the guilty. One day, he invited his friend Jill _________ a film. They arranged to meet outside the cinema. After work, Ken went to the cinema _______ underground. But he was still late. Jill was angry with him and refused _________ to him. So Ken went to buy some chocolate to make her happy. On their way home from the cinema, _______ happened to them. A young man was walking after a woman. A moment later, Ken noticed the man _________ the woman’s money from her handbag. So he went up and caught the man, but the man denied _________ that. He said the money was his but not __________. The woman told Ken that there was some ink on several one-hundred notes. At last, the police came and took the man away.