When Ben Franklin was only a boy, he always wanted to know about things. He was always asking his father and brothers “What?” and “How?” and “Why?”
They couldn’t always tell him what he wanted to know.
When they couldn’t tell him, Ben tried to find out for himself.
Many times Ben did find out things that no one knew before. The other boys would say, “That Ben Franklin! He’s always finding out something new!”
Ben lived close to the water. He liked to go there to see the boats. He saw how the wind blew them across the water.
One day Ben said to himself, “Why can’t the wind help me float across the water? And I’m going to try.” Ben got his big kite. He took hold of the kite string and ran with it. The wind took the kite up into the air. Then Ben jumped into the water.
The wind blew the kite high into the air. Ben began to float across the water. Soon he was on the other side, and he had not worked at all.
One boy shouted, “Look at Ben floating across the water! His kite takes him to the other side without any work!”
“Yes,” said another. “He’s always finding new ways to do things.”When he was only a child, Ben .
A.liked to fly a kite by himself | B.always asked easy questions |
C.always liked to play with water | D.always liked to find out how things worked |
His father and brothers .
A.couldn’t answer all his questions | B.could answer all his questions |
C.tried hard to find out something new for him | |
D.were too busy to answer his questions |
How did Ben Franklin float across the water?
A.The other boy took him across it. | B.The water carried him across it. |
C.The flying kite took him across it. | D.A boat took him across it. |
He found out many things that .
A.children didn’t know | B.his father and brothers knew |
C.people didn’t know | D.most people knew |
Too many people put off things that could bring them joy just because they haven’t thought about them, don’t have them on their schedules or are too stubborn to leave from their regular daily things.
One day I thought about all those women on the Titanic who refused sweet foods at dinner that fateful(命中注定的)night to cut out fatty foods. From then on, I’ve tried to be a little more changeable.
I cannot count the times I called my sister and said, “How about going to lunch in half an hour?” She would stammer (结巴地说),“I can’t , I have clothes to wash. My hair is dirty. I wish I had known yesterday. I had a late breakfast. It looks like rain.” She died a few years ago. We never did have lunch together.
We live on promises we make to ourselves when all the conditions are perfect. We’ll go back and visit the grandparents when we get our baby, Stevie, toilet-trained. We’ll enjoy when we replace the living room carpet. We’ll go on a second honeymoon when we get two more kids out of college.
Life has a way accelerating as we get older. The days get shorter, and the list of promises to ourselves gets longer. One morning, we wake up, and all we have to show for our lives is a long list of “I’m going to”, “I plan on” and “Someday, when things settle down a bit”.
I love ice cream. But my lips had not touched ice cream in 10 years. The other day I stopped the car and bought an ice cream. If my car had hit an iceberg on the way home, I would have died happy.
Now, go have a nice day. Do something you want to. If you were going to die soon and had only one phone call you could make, who would you say? And why are you waiting?The author mentioned(提到)the women on the Titanic to ________.
A.prove that cutting out fatty foods is difficult |
B.tell people to enjoy themselves sometimes |
C.encourage people to stick to regular daily things |
D.tell us the importance of refusing unhealthy foods like sweet foods |
What’s the author’s feeling in Paragraph3?
A.Angry. | B.Happy. | C.Humorous. | D.Regretful. |
The underlined word “accelerating” in Paragraph 5 probably means “________”.
A.moving more quickly |
B.going slower |
C.becoming more difficult |
D.getting more disappointing |
In the author’s opinion, which of the following is the most likely to bring people true happiness?
A.Getting an ice cream every day. |
B.Knowing what one wants completely. |
C.Visiting loved ones as long as one has time. |
D.Putting off the things that could bring us joy. |
“One thousand readers lead to one thousand Hamlets.” It is also true to English learners. English learners do have learning methods different from each other. Some are reasonable, some negative(否定的), and some hard to judge.
Some learners hold the view that “I don’t have any gift for learning English, it’s difficult for me”. Of course, I don’t agree with the idea. It’s indeed a fact that some people are more gifted(有天赋的) than others, but everyone can learn, as long as you find a suitable learning method and work harder.
Some think that the key to learning English well is to remember a rich vocabulary. As far as I’m concerned, that is far from being a successful English learner. Vocabulary is vital, but knowing how to use the exact words and expressions in certain situations is more important.
I disagree that in order to speak English well you have to live in an English-speaking country. I know many people who speak excellent English but they have never been abroad. But it doesn’t mean environment is not important. Being in an English-speaking country, you can not only be exposed(暴露) to the language but also learn the culture of the country, which is helpful to you. However, not everyone has a chance to go abroad. So, we are learning English, we should speak more. As what I believe, “Don’t be shy! Just try!” No matter what we do, mistakes will happen. All we should do is learning from the mistakes, and trying to correct them in the next.
There is a saying goes, silence is gold. However, when it comes to English learning, silence means nothing. If we are always being afraid of making mistakes, we will get nothing in the end.
Finally, confidence is important to our English learners. Being given a chance to speak, you should seize it and speak out. Only after you speak out can others know your opinions. All you should do is not worry about making mistakes, but try to express your opinion clearly. Besides, speaking itself is so good a chance to test and improve your spoken English.The writer thinks that the least important in learning English is ________.
A.environment | B.confidence | C.gift | D.vocabulary |
The word “vital” in Paragraph 3 probably means “________”.
A.useless | B.different | C.difficult | D.important |
According the passage, we can learn that ________.
A.we can not avoid making mistakes when learning a foreign language. |
B.it’s true that some people don’t have any gift for learning English. |
C.we can’t speak English well unless living in a foreign country for some time. |
D.words and expressions are more important than grammar rules in learning English. |
What could be the best title for the passage?
A.Hamlet and English learners. |
B.Tips about English Learning. |
C.How to learn spoken English. |
D.Different learners learn different English. |
Christmas is the biggest holiday in many countries including the US and the UK. Decorating Christmas trees, giving gifts and singing Christmas songs are just a few of the traditions that the two nations share. However, just as there are many cultural differences between the two, Christmas is not the same on both sides of the Atlantic. BBC has pointed out some differences.
According to BBC, the language of Christmas is not completely the same in the US and UK. “Americans will appear confused or chuckle(暗自笑) to themselves if you wish them ‘Happy Christmas’ instead of ‘Merry Christmas’,” BBC said. In addition, the shortening of Christmas to “Chrimbo” is almost unknown in the US. Another difference is the name of the white-bearded man. British people usually call him “Father Christmas” while Americans refer to him only as “Santa Claus” or simply “Santa”.
A good, old US Christmas dinner doesn’t necessarily(必然地)have turkey. BBC explained that Americans prepare special food for Thanksgiving, and they often go for ham or roast beef on Christmas Day. Christmas cake, and Christmas pudding are popular desserts(餐后甜点)in the UK. In the US, however, your post-meal treat will probably be one of the following: pumpkin pie, fruit cake, apple pie, or sweet potato pie.
In the US, but not in the UK, the beautiful Christmas decorations you see in films are real, and some people even turn their houses into light shows, according to BBC. “Driving through American suburbia (郊区) at Christmas can sometimes feel like a tour of Disney World,” the news network described.What might be the best title for the passage?
A.Christmas in the world |
B.Christmas and traditions |
C.The importance of Christmas |
D.Christmas on both sides of the Atlantic |
What can we learn from the second paragraph?
A.“Chrimbo” is more widely used in the UK. |
B.We’d better say “Happy Christmas” to Americans. |
C.White-bearded man is usually called “Father Christmas” in the US. |
D.The language of Christmas is almost the same in the US and UK. |
Which one is TRUE according to the passage?
A.Christmas is not exactly the same in the US and UK. |
B.You can see the beautiful Christmas decorations in the UK. |
C.Christmas cake, pudding are popular with American people. |
D.You may have apple pie or fruit cake in your post-meal in the UK. |
Where does the passage probably come from?
A.A science magazine. | B.A culture magazine. |
C.A guide book. | D.A business report. |
Here is some information about some of the restaurants, museums, shopping centers and
hotels in New York.
BLUE SKY RESTAURANT Telephone:4444872 Address: 8090 White Road Open : Mon. to Fri. 7:30 am-2:30 pm and5:00pm-9:00 pm Sat. 7:30 am-11:30 am and 5:00 pm-9:30 pm Sun. 11:00 am-2:00 pm and 5:00 pm-9:30 pm |
NEW YORK MUSEUM American’s largest museum specializing(专业化)in American history Telephone: 2751352 Address: Vanier Park, 1200 Chestnut St. New York Open: Mon. to Fri. 9:00 am-5:00pm(Monday free) Sat. 9:00 am-1:00 pm |
TONGCHENG SHOPPING CENTER Telephone: 5674398 Address: Furong Road Open: Mon. Wed. and Fri. 9:30 am-5:30 pm Tues. Thurs. and sat. 9:30 am-9:00 pm Sun. 11:00am-9:00 pm |
HUATIAN HOTEL Telephone: 7868432 Address: 5200 No.7 Road. The Dining Hall: Wed. to Sun. Lunch from 10:30 am Coffee Shop: Mon. to Fri. 6:00 am Sat. 6:30 am and Sun. 7:00 am Mon. to Wed. to 10:00pm Thurs. to Sun11:00 pm |
You do not have to pay on Mondays if you go to ________.
A.Blue Sky Restaurant | B.New York Museum |
C.Tongcheng Shopping Center | D.Huatian Hotel |
If you want to go out for lunch on Sunday, you can dial the number ________.
A.4444872 | B.7868432 | C.2751352 | D.5674398 |
If you are free on early Sunday mornings, you can go to ________.
A.Furong Road |
B.8090 White Road |
C.Coffee Shop on 5200 No.7 Road |
D.Vanier park, 1200 Chestnut St. New York |
Which place is still open after 10:00pm on Thursday?
A.Blue Sky Restaurant. |
B.New York Museum. |
C.Tongcheng Shopping Center. |
D.Huatian Hotel. |
Kang Heng, 16, hasn’t been sleeping well in a tent the past couple of nights. Closing his eyes only brings repeated terror from all that happened and, worse still, all that could have happened at around 2:30 pm last Monday.
The student in Dongcheng High School in Mianyang, Sichuan Province was on his way to class after an afternoon nap(小睡) when the big earthquake hit the area.
“It’s a complete shock! As soon as I heard someone screaming Earthquake! I saw our classroom building being torn apart just in front of my eyes. The next second I saw a student jumping out of the window from the second floor,”Tang recalled.
As the electricity was cut off, his teachers shouted as loud as they could to gather all the students in the school onto the playground. Although some were wounded by falling objects or injured while running out, they at least escaped death.
Thousands of people, young and old, were buried in ruins, mostly in the small cities and counties, such as Wenchuan, Beichuan, Dujiangyan, Anxian and Qingchuan, which are surrounded(包围) by hills and mountains.
By last Friday, around 19,000 people died because of the earthquake, which is the worst in China in 30 years. And the number is still rising.
More than 100,000 troops have continued to arrive at destroyed areas since the day after the quake hit. And more neighboring people were doing all they can to offer help.
Kang and his parents were among them. They drove in rain to Anxian County, an hour drive away from Mianyang, with water, instant noodles and plastic for building tents. Kang’s family finally found his terrified grandparents in Anxian on Wednesday morning.
“We first thought the worst had happened to my grandparents. But they had a narrow escape and were rescued by kind people, who were completely unknown to us. We are thankful to them and hope to do whatever we could to help others,” said Kang.The underlined word “terror” in Paragraph 1 probably means “_______ ” .
A.fear | B.peace | C.anger | D.power |
From the passage, we can learn Kang’s grandparents were rescued by ________.
A.some neighbours | B.Kang Heng and his classmates |
C.some kind people | D.Kang Heng and his parents |
What can we know from Paragraph 5?
A.Thisstrong earthquake is the worst in China in 20 years. |
B.The young and the old all died after the earthquake happened. |
C.People in hilly and mountainous areas suffered the most in this disaster. |
D.Thousands of people were buried in ruins because they live in the countryside. |
Where does the text probably come from?
A.A research plan. | B.A newspaper. |
C.An advertisement. | D.A science magazine. |