balloon n. 气球 scissors n. 剪刀 clay n. 黏土；陶土 fairy tale 童话故事 paper cutting 剪纸

Do you like flying kites? What kind of kites do you have? a butterfly kite a dragon kite a goldfish kite

Do you know about any folk or traditional arts in your hometown? shadow figures Beijing Opera Face-Changing in Sichuan Opera sky lantern

— Do you know what they are? — Yeah. They are Chinese paper cuttings. It’s one of the Chinese traditional arts. 2a What do you know about folk or traditional art, like paper cutting? Tell your partner about it.

Paper cutting is one of the most popular traditional folk arts in China. During the Spring Festival and wedding celebrations, they are used to decorate doors, rooms and windows. The color most frequently used is red. Chinese paper cutting is very popular around the world, which is often used as be the gift for foreign friends.

Traditional art formMaterials used Read the passage and complete the chart below. 2b sky lanterns Chinese clay art bamboo and paper paper cutting paper, scissors clay

Read the passage again and answer the questions. 1. What do traditional Chinese art forms try to show? 2c These usually try to show the things that are important in life, such as love, beauty and family. 2. What were sky lanterns used for before and what are they used for now? They were used for asking for help when in trouble in the past. Today sky lanterns are used at festivals and other celebrations.

3. What kinds of pictures are usually found on paper cuttings? The most common pictures are flowers, animals, and things about Chinese history. 4. How do people use paper cuttings during the Spring Festival? Paper cuttings are put on windows, doors and walls as symbols of wishes for good luck and a happy new year. 5. What are the steps for making clay art pieces? First, the pieces are carefully shaped by hand from a very special kind of clay and then allowed to air-dry. Second, after drying, they are fired at a very high heat. At last, they are polished and painted.

6. Which art form do you think is the most interesting? Why? I think the sky lantern is the most interesting. Because it’s not too difficult for me to make one by myself. And it’s exciting to see the lantern flying away in the sky.

1.People used to ________ sky lanterns when they were in trouble. But today, people light the lanterns and watch them ________ the sky with their wishes. send out rise into such as turn…into send out cover with rise into put…on 2d 2. The art of paper cutting ________ a simple thing like a piece of paper ______ a beautiful piece of art. People often _____ these art pieces ______the doors, windows and walls of their homes to celebrate the Spring Festival. turns into put on 3. To make Chinese clay art, the clay is shaped by hand into things _________ cute children or characters from Chinese fairy tales and stories. They are then ____________ paint. such as covered with

1. These usually try to show the things that are important in life, such as love, beauty and family. such as 和 for example 都有 “ 例如 ” 的意思，但是它们的用法有所不同 ★ such as 常用来列举同类人或事物中的多个例子。 e.g. I like animals, such as dogs, bears and pandas. ★ for example 一般只以同类人或事物中的 “ 一个 ” 为例 。 e.g. He has ever been to many countries, for example, Australia.

2. The most common things, from paper to clay to bamboo, are turned into objects of beauty. 1) turn…into… 表示 “ 把 …… 变成 …… ；使 …… 变 成 ……” ，而 turn into 表示 “ 转变；变成 ” 等意思。 e.g. Can you turn an egg into a flower? 你能把鸡蛋变成花朵吗？ The sunny morning turned into a rainy day. 晴朗的早晨变成了雨天。 3. According to Chinese history, sky Lanterns were first used by Zhuge Kongming. according to 根据，按照 ; 据 …… 所说 e.g. According to the radio, it will rain tomorrow. 据电台广播，明天有雨。

4. The pieces are carefully shaped by hand from a very special kind of clay and then allowed to air-dry. 1) 此句中名词 piece 意为 “ 作品 ” ，指由 艺人、作家等创作 出来的艺术品或文学作品。如： Just take a look at this lovely clay piece. Doesn’t this boy look real! 看看这个可爱的小陶人，这男孩看上去多么逼真啊！ Did you read that piece in today’s newspaper? 你看过今天报纸上的那片文章了吗？ 2 ) air-dry 是由 air 和 dry 复合而成的一个合成动词，意 为 “ 晾干 ” ，类似的词还有 blow-dry 吹干。

2e Discuss the questions in your group. 1.Which art form do you think is the easiest? Which is the most difficult? Why? I think paper cutting is the easiest, because we just cut a a piece of paper into what we want with scissors. I think Chinese clay art is the most difficult, because there are too many steps to make a clay piece. 2.Which art form would you like to learn? Why? I want to learn paper cutting, not only because it is easy to learn, but also because we can do it at any time. 2e

A: Which art form do you think is the easiest? B: In my opinion, paper cutting is the easiest. Because I’m good at drawing and using scissors. A: Which is the most difficult? Why? B: I think the sky lantern is the most difficult. Because the sky lantern must be light enough and it’s difficult to keep its balance. A: Which art form would you like to learn? Why? B: I’d like to learn the Chinese clay art.Because I can have fun making some cute characters by myself.

1. Read the passage again after school. 2. Try to write a short introduction on how to make a Chinese clay piece.