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Ballet dancers make dancing on their toes look easy. They do this by training for many hours each day. They must constantly practice to learn the difficult moves they make, and exercise to keep themselves in shape. While many dancers are good, only the most disciplined and talented dancers perform onstage as professionals.

• Ballet dancers are in good physical shape.

• Ballet dancers train very hard every day.

• Most ballet dancers are processionals.

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An orchestra is a group of musicians organized to perform music. The group is lead by a conductor, who makes sure the musicians keep the beat of the music. Instruments in an orchestra include the cello, violin, flute, clarinet, drums, trombone, and trumpet. When played together, the sounds of these instruments blend to make beautiful music!

• Conductors use a baton to help musicians keep the beat of the music.

• Orchestras include mostly brass and woodwind instruments.

• An orchestra is a group of musicians playing together.

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All clouds are made as a result of water vapor rising from rivers, oceans, and lakes. Although all clouds are formed in the same way, scientists have classified and named them according to their appearance. For example, stratus clouds look like long, flat sheets in the sky, and cirrus clouds appear curly and wispy. Another type of cloud is the cumulus cloud, which looks like a mass of puffy, white cotton balls.

• All clouds are made from rising water vapor.

• Clouds have different names depending on their shape.

• Scientists have discovered many different types of clouds.

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ASL stands for American Sign Language, and it was developed to help deaf and hearing-impaired people speak with their hands. There is a sign for each of the 26 letters in the alphabet, but most signing is based on ideas and concepts, rather than actual words. ASL has helped many hearing-impaired people learn how to communicate.

• American Sign Language is based on signing individual letters.

• ASL stands for American Sign Language.

• American Sign Language was developed to help the hearing-impaired communicate.

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Maps have been around for a very long time! Very early maps were created over 4,000 years ago but the Egyptians and Babylonians. The maps were made with twigs and seashells or were scratched in the sand. Then in 150 AD, a Greek astronomer and geographer named Claudius Ptolemy created the first known books of maps. This eight-book series included maps pointing out the locations of over 8,000 places!

• Maps have been around for a very long time.

• The Greeks were the first people to make maps.

• All early maps were made with sand, twigs, and seashells.

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Muslims all over the world celebrate many special holidays. One important Muslim holiday is called Ramadan, and it's celebrated for an entire month. During this time, Muslims don't eat or drink during the day, but they have wonderful feasts each night! During the last three days of Ramadan, people exchange gifts, wear new clothes, and have fairs and family get-togethers, It's a very happy time!

• Celebrations are an important part of Muslim life.

• Ramadan is an important holiday celebrated by Muslims.

• Everyone all over the world celebrates holidays.

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Totem poles are important to the Native Americans of the Northwest Coast. Most totem poles are made from red cedar and are carved with symbols. Animal and human figures are carved into the poles to represent a family, clan, or tribe's ancestry. For example, if a person's image is carved upside -down, it means he or she has done something foolish. This type of pole is called a "ridicule pole". Other poles are named based on the symbols they possess.

• Totem poles are carved from many different kinds of wood.

• Native Americans use totem poles to tell funny stories.

• Totem poles have symbols that tell about a family's ancestry.

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The president holds the highest office in the United States. In order to have this job, there are certain qualifications one must have. To be president of the United States, you must be an American citizen from birth. You also must be at least 35 years old and have lived in the U.S. for at least 14 years. In addition, most presidents have held other political offices. All presidents must have an excellent education.

• There are many qualifications one must have to become president.

• Most presidents have been in the military.

• The president of the United States is a very important job.

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As a little boy, Brandon enjoyed playing with toy fire trucks. Now that he's a little older, he is constantly reading books about firefighters and the heroic work they do. In order to learn more about daily life on the job, he asks his Uncle Jake lots of questions, because his Uncle Jake has been a firefighter for 10 years. I'll bet you can quess what Brandon wants to be when he grows up!

• Brandon is fascinated bu the job of a firefighter.

• Brandon's Uncle Jake is a firefighter.

• Firefighters are heroes in their communities.

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Considered one of the greatest athletes of all time, Jackie Joyner-Kersee has won many Olympic medals in track and field events. You would never imagine that she has asthma! As a child, she couldn't even run and play with the other children without finding herself out of breath and very tired. But Jackie has always been determined to succeed. Even though she struggles with asthma, she never lets it get in the way of her dreams.

• Jackie Joyner-Kersee had asthma as a child.

• Asthma affects children at a very young age.

• Jackie Joyner-Kersee is an amazing athlete who has had asthma since childhood.

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