The lion dance, a form of traditional dance in China, can date back to the Three Kingdom Period (220—280). It was very popular during the Tang Dynasty (618—907). The lions looked powerful and a little scary. Chinese people believe that lions can drive away bad luck and bring good luck. Many also think that the animal is a symbol (象征) of China. That’s why lots of people, including overseas Chinese, love this dance so much.

There are different lion dances in different places. It’s called Xingshi in Guangdong. In 2006, Xingshi was added to China’s list of national intangible cultural heritage (国家级非物质文化遗产).

Wang Rentao has been performing the lion dance for 28 years. He is now head of a lion dance team in Guangdong. Last year, the team took part in the celebration of the 74th birthday of New China at Tian’anmen Square. It is famous for dancing on quincuncial piles (梅花桩), one of the most difficult lion dance skills. Dancers jump from one pile to another at a height of about 2.5 meters. The piles are l.8 meters away from each other. “The training is really hard. All dancers can play Kung Fu. Even with that, they may fall from the pile and get hurt,” Wang said. “It can take many years to learn the skill. But that’s also the amazing part of lion dance, the part that makes it valuable heritage.”

Now students can learn lion dance in school. This helps students know more about the rich cultural traditions of China and feel proud of their heritage.

【小题1】How long is the history of the lion dance?

A．About 1,800 years old.	B．About 1,200 years old.
C．About 200 years old.	D．About 600 years old.

【小题2】What does the underlined word “It” refer to?

A．Tian’anmen Square.

B．Lion dance.

C．Wang’s team.

D．Celebration.

【小题3】What does Wang mean by saying the underlined sentence in the third paragraph?

A．The dancers are not skilled enough.	B．The skill is very difficult to learn.
C．The piles are far away from each other.	D．The Lion dance is very dangerous.

【小题4】What can we infer (推断) from the last paragraph?

A．Students can learn lion dance in school.

B．Few students will be interested in lion dance.

C．It is hopeful that we can keep lion dance alive.

D．It is difficult for students to learn lion dance.