英语课程计划-National Yo-Yo Day

June 6 is National Yo-Yo Day. This is the date of birth of the man who popularized yo-yos in the USA. His name was Donald Duncan and he got into the yo-yo business in 1930. Of course there were ups and downs before yo-yoing became an American pastime¹. Any story about yo-yos would not be complete without a little up-and-down joke. Donald Duncan saw a yo-yo for the first time in the 1920s. A Filipino-American, Pedro Flores, mass-produced the toys in California. Duncan saw the potential to make money and bought Flores’ yo-yo factory. He hired Flores to take the yo-yo all around America. Flores held competitions in all the states he visited. Children loved the yo-yo and Duncan’s business went from strength to strength.

The true history of the yo-yo goes back several thousand years. It is thought to have originated² in China. From there, it travelled to Greece. Records from the ancient Greek empire, around 500BC, describe a circular toy made out of wood. The world’s oldest yo-yo dates to this period. Not all yo-yos were toys. There are reports that the yo-yo was a weapon for over 400 years in the Philippines. Today, the yo-yo is a part of every child’s toy cupboard. Young and old love playing with it and demonstrating their skills. It is perhaps one of the most successful toys ever. All around America, there are yo-yo competitions on June 6. Many yo-yo enthusiasts³ believe it should be an Olympic sport. There is definitely an art and a skill to good yo-yoing.

1 pastime   

n.消遣，娱乐

参考例句：

• Playing chess is his favourite pastime.下棋是他最喜爱的消遣。
• Baseball is the national pastime.棒球是全民性的休闲运动。

2 originated   

v.起源于，来自，产生( originate的过去式和过去分词 )；创造；创始；开创

参考例句：

• The disease is thought to have originated in the tropics. 这种疾病据说起源于热带地区。
• The art of portrait miniatures was originated in England. 微型画像艺术创始于英国。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 enthusiasts   

n.热心人，热衷者( enthusiast的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• A group of enthusiasts have undertaken the reconstruction of a steam locomotive. 一群火车迷已担负起重造蒸汽机车的任务。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Now a group of enthusiasts are going to have the plane restored. 一群热心人计划修复这架飞机。 来自新概念英语第二册