As prices and building costs keep rising, “the do-it-yourself”（DIY）trend（趋势） in the US continues to grow.
“We needed furniture for our living room,” says John Kose, “and we didn’t have enough money to buy it.” So we decided to try making a few tables and chairs. John got married six months ago, and like many young people these days, they are struggling （努力）to make a home when the cost of living is very high. The Koses took a 2-week course for $ 280 at a night school. Now they build all their furniture and make repairs around the house.
Jim Hatfield has three boys and his wife died. He has a full-time job at home as well as in a shoe-making factory. Last month, he received a car repair bill for $420. “I was very upset about it. Now I’ve finished a car repair course. I should be able to fix the car myself. ”
John and Jim are not unusual people. Most families in the country are doing everything they can save money so they can fight the high cost of living. If you want to become a “do-it-yourself”, you can go to DIY classes. And for those who don’t have time to take a course, there are books that tell you how to do things yourself. We know from the passage that many people ________ .
| A．seldom go to a department store to buy things |
| B．take DIY courses run by the government |
| C．like to learn to make their own furniture |
| D．find it hard to pay for what they need |
John and his wife went to evening classes to learn how to _______ .
| A．improve the quality of life |
| B．save time and money |
| C．make or repair things |
| D．run a DIY shop |
When the writer says that Jim has a full-time job at home, he means Jim ______.
| A．keeps house and looks after his children |
| B．does his own car and home repairs |
| C．does extra work at night |
| D．make shoes in his home |
Jim Hatfield decided to become a do-it-yourself when ______ .
| A．he had to raise the children all by himself |
| B．he could not possibly do two jobs |
| C．the car repair class was not helpful |
| D．his car repairs cost too much |
How can people learn DIY?
| A．Go to classes. |
| B．Read books. |
| C．Go to classes and read books. |
| D．The passage doesn’t tell us. |
We can see _______ in the butterfly exhibition .
| A． some paintings . |
| B． some pictures of butterflies only . |
| C． some beautiful butterflies . |
| D． some pictures of the towns from all over the world . |
You are going to see the exhibition with your 14 –year –old daughter , you will have to pay __________ .
| A． 15 yuan | B． 20 yuan |
| C． 25 yuan | D． 35 yuan |
. We can book group tickets ____________ .
| A． by making a phone call |
| B． by sending an e –mail |
| C． by writing a letter |
| D． by filling in an application form |
There are 45 students in our class . How much will they pay if they visit the exhibition ?
| A．￥ 675 | B．￥ 450 | C．￥900 | D．￥400 |
If you go to the exhibition on 1 st , May , you can get ___________ .
| A． a book | B．a ticket |
| C． a butterfly | D．a present |
Although 19-year-old George Dennehy is armless, he isn’t letting that stop him from pursuing (追求)his dreams and sharing his passion(激情) with the world.
Born without arms, the young boy’s birth parents left him. Luckily, a warm-hearted couple adopted him and took good care of him. However, his new parents never allowed him to use his disability as an excuse to be lazy. When George turned eight, they asked him to sign up（报名） for cello（大提琴） lessons. The instrument (乐器)is tough even for people who have the use of both their hands, so it was even more challenging for George, who had to learn to play it with his feet.
Thanks to his music teacher, the young boy not only mastered the cello, but also realized that he had a passion and talent for music. During middle school years, he also mastered the piano and guitar.
His music talent caught the eye of an American rock band who invited him to perform alongside them at a ten-day-long music festival.
The experience has inspired（激励） this once shy boy to pursue a career（事业） in music. He has also become a motivational（励志的） speaker who encourages both able and disabled people to pursue their dreams, no matter how impossible these dreams may sound.
Geoge Dennehy is armless, he isn’t letting that stop him from pursuing his dreams and sharing his passion with the world.When did George Dennehy begin to learn play the cello?
| A．at the age of 19 | B．at the age of 8 |
| C．when he began to go to school. | D．We don’t know |
With whose help , George Dennehy realized that he had a passion and talent for music?
| A．His adoptive parents | B．His birth parents |
| C．His teacher | D．An American rock band |
What’s the meaning of the underlined word ?
| A．接受 | B．照顾 | C．发现 | D．收养 |
How many instruments did George Dennehy master according the passage?
| A．1 | B．2 . | C．3 | D．4 |
What’s the best title ?
| A．Follow your dreams | B．A poor boy |
| C．An armless boy | D．Challenge |
Different countries have different customs. When you travel to another country, please follow their customs, just as the saying goes, “.”
Very often people who travel to the United States forget to tip （付小费）. It is usual to tip porters who help carry your bags, taxi drivers and waiters. Waiters expect to get a 15% tip on the cost of your meal. Taxi drivers expect about the same amount.
In England, make sure to stand in line even if there are only two of you. It’s important to respect lines there. It’s a good idea to talk about the weather. It’s a favourite subject of conversation with the British.
In Spain, it’s a good idea to have a light meal in the afternoon if someone invites you for dinner. People have dinner very late, and restaurants do not generally open until after 9 pm.
In Arab countries, men kiss one another on the cheek（脸颊）. Your host may welcome you with a kiss on both cheeks. It is polite for you to do the same.
In Japan, people usually give personal or business cards to each other when they meet for the first time. When a person gives you a card, don’t put it into your pocket right away. The person expects you to read it.
Don’t forget to be careful of your body language to express something in a conversation. A kind of body language that is used in one culture may be impolite in another.
| A．Love me, love my dog. |
| B．He who laughs last laughs best. |
| C．When in Rome, do as the Romans do. |
| D．Where there is a will, there is a way. |
| A．porters | B．waiters |
| C．actors | D．taxi drivers |
| A．搬运工 | B．清洁工 |
| C．接线员 | D．售票员 |
| A．In Spain, people usually have dinner very early. |
| B．In England, it’s not polite to talk about the weather. |
| C．In Arab countries, men kiss one another on the cheek. |
| D．In Japan you should not read the business card as soon as you get it. |
| A．How to tip. |
| B．Body Language. |
| C．When to Have Dinner. |
| D．Advice to International Travellers. |
London used to be “foggy”（有雾的） for the same reason that cities like Beijing or Chongqing are “foggy” today. The “fog” was in fact smog（烟雾）, a mixture of smoke and fog．In other words, it was made by air pollution. In London, some of this pollution came from factories, but much of it came from the coal（煤）that people burnt in their houses to keep warm during the winter. By the 1950s, London’s smog problem had become so bad that the government decided to do something to clean the air. A new law was made and nobody could burn coal in any British city. Within a few years, the air became much cleaner. There were no more “pea-soupers”.
Many Chinese cities now face the same sort of problem with air pollution that London faced 40 or 50 years ago. However, this problem is more difficult for Chinese cities to solve. One reason is that more of the pollution comes from the factories, rather than from coal burnt in people’s houses. If these factories were closed, this would harm the economy and lots of people would lose their jobs. Another reason is that changing from coal to cleaner fuel（燃料）, like gas, is quite expensive.
However, the air in many Chinese cities is becoming cleaner and cleaner, as the government and people pay more and more attention to cutting down pollution. As a result, there are fewer “pea-soupers” in Beijing than there used to be.
A．There was too much smoke in the sky．
B．There were too many factories in the city．
C．People burnt too much coal in the houses．
A．There was not so much fog in the winter later．
B．A law was made to keep people from burning coal in their houses．
C．Many factories in the city were closed．
A．Smog. B．Smoke. C．Gas.
A．one B．two C．three
A．Using coal is much more expensive than using gas.
B．Factories made much more pollution in China.
C．The reasons of air pollution in London and Beijing are different.
No Car Day was first started by 34 cities in France on September 22, 1998．It was started to protect the environment. By now, more than 1,000 cities around the world have had a No Car Day.
The first No Car Day in China was in Chengdu in 2001．Other cities, including Taipai, Shanghai and Wuhan, also support the day.
In Beijing, more and more people are joining the campaign（运动）. It asks drivers to leave their cars at home for one day each month and walk or ride a bike to work. It also calls on Beijingers not to use cars on June 5 （World Environment Day）. The slogan for the day is, “If we drive for one less day, we can have one more nice day.”
So far, more than 200,000 drivers have shown their support. “We can’t control the weather, but we can choose not to drive,” said Wu Zonghua, a car club chairman. Beijing is trying to have 238 blue sky days this year. In the first quarter of 2012, Beijing only had 52 blue sky days. This was 11 days less than the number for the same period the year before. Much of the dust（灰尘） comes from the desert, but cars cause most of the air pollution. We must do more for No Car Day.
| A．three | B．four | C．five | D．six |
| A．not to work on No Car Day |
| B．to enjoy having a day off |
| C．to leave their cars at home for repair |
| D．to ride a bike or walk instead of driving to work |
| A．52 | B．63 | C．41 | D．238 |
| A．cars | B．dust | C．weather | D．rubbish |
| A．more and more people in Beijing are joining car clubs |
| B．people will have one more World Environment Day each month |
| C．more and more people won’t drive on No Car Day in Beijing |
| D．more people in the world won’t drive any more |