Did you know?
Over 5,000 languages are spoken in the world today. Many linguists (language experts) believe that 90 percent of languages will disappear in the next 100 years.
Is your language safe? Will it disappear? Only 600 languages are safe. They are safe because children still learn them.
What are the most popular languages?
Mandarin Chinese is the most popular language. It is spoken by 885 million people. Spanish is second and English is third. 332 million people speak English as a first language. 350 million people speak English as a second language. Next is Arabic, followed by Bengali, Hindi, Portuguese, Russian, Japanese and German.

HALLOWEEN
What is Halloween?
Halloween is celebrated in America on 31 October. It is a time of ghosts and fun.

"Trick or treat. Smell my feet. Give me something good to eat."

Families decorate their houses with lots of small lights outdoors. They cut faces in pumpkins and put candles in side. Some neighbourhoods look like a fairyland. Children go around the neighbourhood knocking on doors and saying ‘trick or treat’. The family must give them sweets. If they don’t, the children play a trick on them!

How did Halloween begin?
Halloween began thousands of years ago in Britain and France. A group of people called the Celts used to live in Britain and Northern France. The Celts believed that every year on the last day of October, the souls of the dead visited the earth. Black cats, evil spirits and magic were part of their celebration.
Later the Romans invaded and brought Pomona Day with them. It was celebrated at the beginning of November. They celebrated the gods that brought them food. Their celebration involved nuts, apples and fresh food.
In the year 835 the Christians began celebrating November 1 as a holiday to honour the dead. It was called All Hallows Day. The customs from all these cultures mixed together. The people celebrated All Hallows Eve on October 31st. This became known as Halloween.