Today, roller skating is easy and fun. But many years ago, it wasn’t easy at all. Before 1750, people never tried skating on wheels. That changed because of a man named Joseph Merlin. Merlin’s work was making instruments. In his free time he liked to play the violin. Merlin was a man with many ideas and many dreams. People called him a dreamer.
One day Merlin received an invitation to go to an important party. He was very pleased and a little excited. As the day of the party came near, Merlin began to think. He wanted to find a way to make a wonderful entrance at the party. Merlin had an idea. He thought that he would attract a lot of attention if he could skate into the room.
Merlin tried different ways to make himself roll. Finally, he decided to put two wheels under each shoe. These were the first roller skate shoes. Merlin was very proud of them. He dreamed of arriving at the party and skating into the room while playing the violin. He was sure that everyone would be very surprised.
On the night of the party Merlin rolled into the room, playing his violin. Everyone was really surprised to see him. There was just one problem. Merlin had no way to stop his roller skating. He rolled on, playing the violin. Then, with all eyes on him, Merlin hit into a huge mirror on the wall. The mirror broke into many pieces with a very loud noise.
Nobody forgot Merlin’s wonderful entrance after that. The story tells us that people began to enjoy roller-skating _______. .
| A．before the year 1750 | B．before the invitation |
| C．because of Joseph Merlin | D．because it was dangerous |
People called Merlin a dreamer because ___________. .
| A．he slept and dreamed a lot |
| B．he was full of different ideas |
| C．he invented the first roller skates |
| D．he always made people’s dreams come true |
What was Merlin’s problem after he rolled into the room?
| A．He couldn’t stop his roller-skating. |
| B．He couldn’t attract a lot of attention. |
| C．Everyone was surprised at him. |
| D．He couldn’t play the violin while rolling. |
What’s the best title for the passage?
| A．Joseph Merlin’s Story | B．How Roller Skating Was Invented |
| C．A Surprising Entrance to the Party | D．Roller Skating |
About seven years ago, whenever I notice someone looked nice, I started telling them they looked nice. Shortly afterwards, I came up with an observation: If you tell five people during the day that they look nice, at the end of the day, six people feel great. Here are some fruitful experiences I have with this.
One day, I was riding with a friend when we rolled to a stop at the traffic light. As we waited for the light to turn green, a man walked across the crosswalk. He looked very together, so I called out, “Hey, you look sharp today!” Pointing towards a building, he said, “Thanks, but I was sharper there.” His comment puzzled me. But before I could ask about it, the light turned green, and we drove on. I asked my friend what he meant. My friend informed me that we were at the corner of a radio station and the man was the voice on the radio. Then I understood. But no matter who he was the biggest thing for me was that he was smiling when he accepted my compliment (赞扬).
Later that day, there was a woman standing on the corner where we were turning, and I yelled (大喊) the compliment again, “You look nice!” She was just taking a sip of a bottle of water and started to laugh. I felt good to get a laugh.
Another day, while seated in a restaurant, there was a lady sitting near me. I really did not care for her skirt, but she did look nice in it, so I told her, “You look nice today.” She looked at me and rolled her eyes a little. Well, her friend sitting next to her told her, “He just gave you a compliment. Say thank you.” I don’t remember whether she said “thank you” or not, but what I did notice was that her friend was smiling at my “You look nice today” compliment.The underlined word “sharp” in Paragraph 2 probably means_________.
| A．attractive | B．sudden |
| C．strict | D．mild |
Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?
| A．The first man the author praised accepted his compliment. |
| B．The first man the author praised worked at a radio station. |
| C．The woman standing on the corner didn’t like the compliment |
| D．The friend of the lady in the restaurant felt happy about the compliment. |
What would be the best title of the passage?
| A．Fruitful Experiences |
| B．Help Others, Help Yourself |
| C．Learn to compliment. |
| D．“You Look Nice Today” |
Does your child struggle in school? Is he or she afraid of reading out loud, writing an essay, or working out a math problem? While every kid has trouble with homework from time to time, if a certain area of learning keeps going wrong, it might show a learning disorder. Learning disorders, or learning disabilities, are a general term for a wide variety of learning problems.
A learning disability is not a problem with IQ or motivation (动机). Kids with learning disabilities aren’t lazy or slow. In fact, most are just as smart as everyone else. Their brains are just wired (装电线) differently. Simply put, children and adults with learning disabilities see, hear, and understand things differently. This difference affects how they receive and process (处理) information. This can lead to trouble in learning new information and skills, and putting them to use.
It can be tough to face the possibility that your child has a learning disorder. No parents want to see their children suffer. You may wonder what it could mean for your child’s future, or worry about how your kid will make it through school. But the important thing to remember is that most kids with learning disabilities are just as smart as everyone else. They just need to be taught in ways that suit their unique learning styles.
It’s not always easy to tell whether a child has learning disabilities, for learning disabilities look very different from one child to another. One child may struggle with reading and spelling, while another loves books but can’t understand math. Still another child may have difficulty understanding what others are saying or communicating loud. However, some warning signs are more common than others at different ages. If you’re aware of what they are, you’ll be able to catch a learning disorder early and quickly and take steps to help your child as quickly as possible.From the passage, we can infer that_______.
| A．students with learning disabilities look quite different from normal students |
| B．students with learning disabilities can’t do well in their studies |
| C．only few students with learning disabilities are as clever as normal students |
| D．it is quite possible for a students with learning disabilities to succeed in their studies |
What is the main idea of the passage?
| A．Learning about learning disabilities. |
| B．How to prevent learning disabilities. |
| C．Ways to identify learning disabilities. |
| D．Different learning disabilities. |
What will be most probably discussed following the Paragraph 4?
| A．Some ways which help parents teach their children with learning disabilities better. |
| B．Some suggestions on how to get along with their children with learning disabilities. |
| C．Some parents may have difficulties in helping their children with learning disabilities. |
| D．Some warning signs which show that a child may have learning disabilities. |
They are the sort of friends who are so close they trust each other with their lives. If one falls, the other is there to catch him.
They are Wellman, whose legs were permanently injured nine years ago in a rock-climbing accident, and Corbett, an experienced rock climber. Together, they climbed up Half Dome, the famous 2,000-foot rock in the Yosemite National Park, through one of the most difficult routes(路线).
During the climb, Corbett took the lead, hit in the metal spikes（尖状物）that guided the ropes and climbed up. Then, after Wellman pulled himself up the rope, Corbett went down to remove the spikes and climbed up again. This process was repeated time and again, inch by inch, for 13 days. Wellman’s job was not easy either. He got himself up the rope through upper body strength alone. In all, Wellman figured that he had done 5,000 pull-ups up the rope on the climb.
However, when the two men first met, they never talked about climbing. “He knew that was how I got injured.” Wellman said. Until one day Wellman decided that he wanted to climb again and they started training.
Their climb of Half Dome was not all smooth. At one point, pieces of rock gave way, and Corbett dropped down quickly. Wellman locked their rope in place, stopping the fall at 20 feet. His quick action probably saved his friend’s life.
“Your partner can save your life — you can save your partner’s life,” Wellman said as the pair received congratulations from friends. “There are real close ties.”Why did the two men never talk about climbing when they first met?
| A．Corbett was poorly trained. |
| B．Wellman had lost interest in climbing. |
| C．Corbett didn’t want to hurt Wellman. |
| D．Wellman hadn’t decided whether to climb again. |
What do we know about Wellman?
| A．He climbed Half Dome by himself. |
| B．He was disabled in a traffic accident. |
| C．He stopped rock-climbing for some time. |
| D．He was saved by Corbett during the climb. |
Which of the following was a challenge for Corbett in climbing Half Dome?
| A．To climb up to remove the spikes. |
| B．To climb it again after falling down |
| C．To do 5,000 pull-ups up the rope. |
| D．To lock the rope in place. |
The main idea of the text is that _______ .
| A．two heads are better than one |
| B．friendship is precious in life |
| C．the disabled should never give up |
| D．a man can be destroyed but cannot be defeated |
A study of English learning problems was carried out among a total of 106 foreign students. It shows that most students considered understanding spoken English to be their biggest problem on arrival. This was followed by speaking. Writing increased as a problem as students discovered difficulties in writing papers that they were now expected to hand in. Reading remained as a significant problem.
Information gained helped us in determining where special attention should be paid in our course. Although many students have chosen to join the course with a reasonable motivation, we considered it important to note what seemed to encourage interest. Nearly all the students have experienced some kind of grammar-based English teaching in their own country. To use the same method would be self-defeating because it might reduce motivation, especially if it has failed in the past. Therefore a different method may help because it is different.
Variety of activity was also seen as a way of maintaining or increasing motivation. Several years ago we had one timetable that operated throughout, but we soon found that both the students and the teachers lost interest about halfway through the ten weeks. This led us to a major re-think, so in the end we brought it into line with the expressed language needs of the students.What is the test mainly about?
| A．Foreign students have more problems. |
| B．There are many ways to improve English. |
| C．Teaching should meet students’ needs. |
| D．English learning problems should be studied again. |
Writing became a bigger problem when foreign students __________.
| A．had to write their papers |
| B．became better at speaking |
| C．became less interested in reading |
| D．had fewer problems with listening |
We may infer from the last two paragraphs that_________.
| A．different teaching methods should be used |
| B．grammar-based teaching seems to be encouraging |
| C．English courses are necessary for foreign students |
| D．teaching content should be changed halfway |
In all the world's cultures, people sing, play instruments, and celebrate with music． It plays such an important role in our lives that all fields focus on its study, including one looking at the biology of music． Experts are finding that because of the way our brains process music, learning to play an instrument or just listening to music can have a wide range of benefits．
Music education has received a lot of attention． Learning to play an instrument can help children improve math, science, and language skills． One study in Canada tracked children's IQ scores for nine months, discovering that children who studied music had the biggest test score improvements． The secret may lie in the way reading music and playing notes uses several areas of the brain, increasing our ability to learn school subjects． For example, reading notes improves spatial （空间的） reasoning skills, which are helpful in solving math problems like fractions（分数）．
Music is also used for medical purposes, such as the treatment of diseases which affect memory． The secret lies in the way the brain processes music． One area near the forehead, the medial prefrontal cortex, connects music with memories stored in two other areas: the amygdale and hippocampus． That's why an old song can remind you of something that happened years ago． For patients suffering from diseases like Alzheimer's, listening to music can help unlock buried memories by strengthening musical pathways to memories．
With the evidence of music's benefits pouring in, it's no wonder some countries make music study a part of their education systems． People are recognizing that more than just a form of entertainment, music is also great for the brain．Scientists are studying music because _______．
| A．music can be used for medical treatments |
| B．music plays a very important role in our lives |
| C．our brains can possess music in different ways |
| D．music education has received a lot of attention |
According to the Canadian study, which children had increased IQ scores?
| A．Those who already had high IQs． |
| B．Those who had always played music． |
| C．Those who could not play any instrument． |
| D．Those who studied music for a period of time． |
Which of the following is a kind of disease?
| A．Spatial reasoning． | B．Alzheimer's． |
| C．The amygdale and hippocampus． | D．The medial prefrontal cortex． |
What can be the best title for the text?
| A．Music and health | B．Music and the mind |
| C．Music and education | D．Music and instruments |