FU Yuan has been left at home with his grandparents since he was one month old. His mom and dad left to work in Fujian Province. For the past eight years, Fu has only seen his parents three times although they send home 500 yuan every two or three months.
Fu Xiaoyu, 16, has had to live alone since her grandmother passed away three years ago. Her parents do not want to renounce their jobs at a clothing factory in Guangdong Province. Nor can they afford the cost of sending her to a school in the city where they work.
These are just two of the 29 kids that 16-year-olds Huang Ruoqing and Zhang Linna at Beijing No 4 High School talked with this summer in Guixiang Village in Sichuan Province.
What Huang and Zhang learned from their three-day visit shocked them. They wrote down all the kids’ stories in a moving 40-page essay filled with statistical charts.(统计表)
In the poor village with a population of 2,118 people, 582 adults have left to find work, leaving 156 children without parents. Among these so-called left-behind kids, 88 percent of them live with their grandparents, five percent live with uncles or aunts and seven percent have to live on their own.
To Huang and Zhang’s surprise, 80 percent of the children said they love going to school. Even
though, some children have to walk along the hilly roads for two hours to get there.
However, for this village’s students studying is not their first task. Housework, such as helping feed pigs or buffalos(水牛) and taking care of old grandparents, younger sisters or brothers, takes up a considerable amount of their time.
Despite having to work hard at home, over 65 percent of the young interviewees would prefer their parents’ stay away working rather than returning to live with them.
“These kids are understanding and considerate and know how important money is for their families. Their little wishes like having dinner with their parents inspire us never to take what we have had for granted,” Zhang said.
Which of the following statements is NOT TRUE according to the passage?
| A．Fu Xiaoyu’s parents can’t earn enough money to send her to school. |
| B．Huang Ruoqing and Zhang Linna talked with 29 children this summer during their research. |
| C．Some left-behind kids live with uncles, aunts, or grandparents and others live by themselves. |
| D．More than half of the left-behind kids prefer their parents’ staying away working. |
It is implied but not directly stated that
| A．Fu Yuan’s parents send him 500 yuan every 2 or 3 months |
| B．Huang Ruoqing and Zhang Linna wrote an essay according to the left-behind kids’ stories |
| C．Many left-behind kids love studying and going to school in spite of many hardships |
| D．The time that the left-behind kids spend on housework is more than that on study |
What’s the exact meaning of the underlined word “renounce”in the second paragraph?
| A．Keep | B．continue | C．give up | D．get |
Which of the following is the best title of the passage?
| A．Kids Are Left Alone | B．The True Story of Home Alone |
| C．Kids Miss Parents | D．Parents and Kids |
What’s On?
Macau Neighborhood Festival 2008
Various celebratory activities will be hosted by the General Union of Neighbors Association of Macau from July 9 to 31 in celebration of the “Macau Neighborhood Festival”. A live performance and picture exhibition will be mounted (组织开展) on July 9. Visitors and local residents are welcome.
Time: 4:00 pm to 6:00 pm Free admission
Venue: Courtyard of Lok Yeung Garden, Fai Chi Kei
Telephone enquiries: (853) 333 614
Lao Man Chau Photography Exhibition 2 to 9 Jul.
Throughout his travels to various natural beauty cities, Lao Man Chau had plenty of opportunities to indulge（满足） his passion for painting, music, calligraphy (书法) and philosophy. He is to share the delights of photography in his seminar on July 2 at 3:30 pm. All are welcome to come and share the experience.
Opening hours: 11:00 am to 7:00 pm Free admission
Venue: Millennium Gallery, Av. da Praia Grande, No. 599
Telephone enquires: (853) 557 672 www.mdpa.org.mo
Permanent Activity — San Kio Fair
San Kio Fair is specially designed to offer entertainment, culture and shopping to visitors. Different stalls (摊位) will be set up outside the Lin Kai Temple to provide visitors with toys, garments and food. Cantonese Operas are held on Saturday and Sunday nights.
Time: 5:00 pm to 11:00 pm Free admission
Venue: In front of Lin Kai Temple
Telephone enquires: (853) 324 622
4th Macau Pop Music Festival
Major local music event Macau Pop Music Festival acts as a platform for bands and singers from Hong Kong and Macau to exchange musical genres （类型）. This year, performers will stage two concerts in Sai Van Lake Square on July 16 at 7:30 pm and Macau Forum on July 23 at 8:30 pm.
Admission: MOP $80
Telephone enquires: (853) 9884 130, 9884 000If you plan to leave Macau at 8:00 pm on July 9, how many activities can you take part in at most?
| A．Four. | B．Three. | C．Two. | D．One. |
The 4th Macau Pop Music Festival is different from the other three in that ______.
| A．it requires admission charges |
| B．it lasts for more than one week |
| C．you can enjoy a performance there |
| D．you can go there in the evening |
From the passage we can know that ______.
| A．singers from different countries can take part in Macau Pop Music Festival |
| B．if you want to know more about the culture of Macau, you should go to Sai Van Lake Square |
| C．Lao Man Chau is a photographer of many talents |
| D．you can enjoy a live performance at Courtyard of Lok Yeung Garden from July 9 to 31 |
The main purpose of announcing the above is to give information about ______.
| A．some bands and singers | B．some activities for July |
| C．a famous photographer | D．celebratory activities |
Everyone likes to feel that he or she is special.
Unfortunately, many of us grow up believing that we’re not special at all. We wish that we could be better at sports or more attractive. We wish we had nicer clothes or more money. Like the Scarecrow, the Tin Man, or the Cowardly Lion from The Wizard of Oz (《绿野仙踪》), we believe we’re not good enough just as we are. In the movie, the Scarecrow wishes that he had a brain. The Tin Man wishes he had a heart, and the Lion wants courage. In the end, each of them realizes that he already has what he needs.
Most parents want us to be the best we can be. They sometimes try to encourage us to do better by comparing us to others. They mean well, but the message we often get is that we’re not good enough. We begin to believe that the only way we can be special is by being better than someone else, but we are often disappointed. There will always be someone out there who is better than we are at something. There are plenty of people around who may not be as smart as we are but who are better at sports. Or they may not be as good-looking, but they have more money. It is impossible for us to be better than everyone else all the time.
Like the Scarecrow, the Tin Man, and the Cowardly Lion, we all want what we believe will make us better people. What we don’t realize is that often we already have inside us the very things that we seek. Parents sometimes forget to tell us that we are special, that we are good enough just as we are. Maybe no one told them that when they were growing up, or maybe they just forgot. Either way, it’s up to us to remind them from time to time that each of us, in our own way, is special. What we are ... is enough.This passage is most likely written by a ______.
| A．teenager | B．parent | C．teacher | D．coach |
According to the author, it seems improper for parents to ______.
| A．compare their children with others now and then |
| B．give no pressure to their children |
| C．remind their children frequently they are special |
| D．praise their children too much |
By discussing the characters in The Wizard of Oz, the author mainly wants to show ______.
| A．we are not good enough just as we are |
| B．we already have inside us what we want |
| C．it is impossible for us to be better than others |
| D．there is always someone who is better than us |
What does the author of this passage believe?
| A．Not everyone can be special. |
| B．Smart people are more special than others. |
| C．The richer you are, the better you are. |
| D．We are all good enough just the way we are. |
English nowadays is widely used in science, business, the media and popular culture. For example, 80% of e-mails on the internet are in English. But where will English be at the end of the 21st century?
One view is that English is going to become even more important as a global language, being most widely used in trade and media while some other languages will become less important or just disappear. Another view is that English is already breaking up into several separate languages. There are already dictionaries of the “New Englishes”, such as Australian English, full of words that a British English speaker would not recognize.
Hopefully, neither of these things will happen. Although different varieties of English will continue to develop around the world, standard English will survive for international communication. However, it is impossible for one language to totally control the world. Already, other languages are fighting back against the control of English on the net. Governments around the world are also starting to protect smaller languages and recognize the importance of keeping a variety of cultures and languages. English will probably stay in control for a long time, but it certainly won’t become the only language in the world. According to the situation, how many people do you think speak English now?
| A．200 million | B．300 million | C．500 million | D．a billion |
At present, what is the most important language in the world?
| A．Chinese | B．English | C．French | D．German |
What is the best title of the passage?
| A．The Change of English | B．Different Varieties of English |
| C．The Future of English | D．The Cause of English Change |
How often one hears children wishing they were grown-ups and old people wishing they were young again. Each age has its pleasures and its pains, and the happiest person is the one who enjoys what each age gives him without wasting his time in useless regrets.
Childhood is a time when there are few responsibilities to make life difficult. If a child has good parents, he is fed, looked after and loved, whatever he may do. It is impossible that he will ever again in his life be given so much without having to do anything in return. In addition, life is always presenting new things to the child — things that have lost their interest for older people because they are too well-known. But a child has his parents. He is not so free to do what he wishes to do; he is continually being told not to do things or being punished for what he has done wrong.
When the young man starts to earn his own living, he can no longer expect others to pay for his food, his clothes, and his room, but has to work if he wants to live comfortably. If he spends most of his time playing about in the way that he used to as a child, he will go hungry. And if he breaks the laws of society as he used to break the laws of his parents, he may go to prison. If, however, he works hard, keeps out of trouble and has good health, he can have the great happiness of building up for himself his own position in society.According to the second paragraph, the writer thinks that __.
| A．life for a child is comparatively easy |
| B．a child is always loved whatever he does |
| C．if much is given to a child, he must do something in return |
| D．only children are interested in life |
After a child grows up, he __.
| A．will have little time playing |
| B．has to be successful in finding a job |
| C．can still ask for help in time of trouble |
| D．should be able to take care of himself |
The underlined word "responsibilities" in the second paragraph means__________.
| A．duties | B．jobs | C．suggestions | D．desires |
The main idea of the passage is _________ .
| A．life is not enjoyable since each age has some pains |
| B．young men can have the greatest happiness if they work hard |
| C．childhood is the most enjoyable time in one's life |
| D．one is the happiest if he can make good use of each age in his life |
Did you know that a turtle（乌龟）can lay 12 eggs in one minute? A large sea turtle lays
around 150 eggs at a time. She lays all these eggs in just a few minutes.
Large sea turtles live in the warm seas of the world. Except for when they lay their eggs,
they spend their whole lives in the water. When it is time to lay their eggs, the females swim toland. They usually return to the place where they themselves were born. How they find theirway back there is unknown.When they reach shore, the big, heavy turtles crawl slowly up to the high water mark.Using their flippers, they pull themselves along the sand. They must struggle like mountainclimbers. When they finally reach dry sand, they rest before beginning the difficult task oflaying eggs.The turtles lay the eggs in deep holes and cover them with warm sand. The sand protectsthe eggs from harm. Then the females leave them. After a few weeks, if you happened to be walking along the beach, you might see the sand begin to shake. You may see tiny black ballscoming out of the sand. The tiny heads of baby turtles!
Which sentence expresses the main idea?
| A．Sea turtles have interesting life habits. |
| B．Sea turtles swim to shore to lay their eggs. |
| C．Large sea turtles lay their eggs in special ways. |
| D．Sea turtles enjoy staying in the sand. |
Turtles bury their eggs to protect them from ____________.
| A．deep water | B．danger | C．heat | D．bad weather |
We can conclude from this passage that ___________.
| A．many turtles die while swimming to shore |
| B．female turtles protect their babies |
| C．once turtles land, they never return to the sea |
| D．the job of laying eggs takes great strength |
The writer compares turtles to climbers ___________.
| A．because they lay their eggs in mountain areas |
| B．to give you a picture of how hard they work |
| C．to tell you that they like to climb |
| D．to show that mountain climbers are as slow as turtles |