Once upon a time there lived a poor farmer called Smith. He didn't like to share things with others. Smith had a friend who was famous for the wonderful apples he grew.
One day, his friend gave Smith a young apple tree and told him to take it home and planted. The farmer was pleased with the gift, but when he got home, he did not know where to plant
He thought and thought. Finally at night he planted the tree in his wood where no one could see it. But without sunlight and good soil, the tree soon died.
Later the friend asked the farmer why he had planted the tree in such a poor place.
"What's the difference?" the farmer said angrily. "If I had planted it near the road, strangers would have stolen the fruit. If I had planted it in one of my fields, my neighbors would have come at night and stolen some of the apples. If I had planted it near my house, my own children would have taken the fruit,"
"Yes," said the friend, "but at least someone could have enjoyed the fruit. Now you not only have got nothing, but also you have destroyed a good apple tree."Was Smith happy about the gift?
When did he plant the apple tree?
Where did Smith plant the apple tree in the end?
Why did the apple tree soon die?
What would probably happen if the farmer had planted the tree near his house?
It’s 10:00 pm. A man leaves a restaurant, gets into his car and drives away. 200 meters further he’s stopped by a police officer.
Officer: Good evening, sir. We’re testing drivers for drunk driving. Would you please blow(吹)into this machine?
Man: I’m sorry, I can’t do that. If I blow into that machine, I will get out of air.
Officer: Please come along to the office and we can give you a blood test.
Man: I can’t do that. If you give me a blood test, I will bleed(流血)to death.
Officer: Then you’ll have to get out and walk five metres along this white line.
Man: I can’t do that, either.
Officer: Why not?
Man: Because I’m dead drunk! I can’t open the door.The man is stopped ______ metres away from the restaurant.
A.5 | B.10 | C.200 | D.205 |
The conversation probably happens in a (an) ______.
A.office | B.street | C.hospital | D.restaurant |
The man wouldn’t have the test for drunk driving because ______.
A.he is badly ill | B.he will get out of air |
C.he is dead drunk | D.he will bleed to death |
阅读下面短文,根据短文内容,补全表格中所缺的信息。每空最多填写三个单词。
The idea of Mother’s Day is a very old idea. It was started by the ancient Egyptians (埃及人),who celebrated(庆祝) a day to honor (向……表示敬意) Isis, the mother of the pharaohs. The early Christians(基督教徒) celebrated a day to honor Mary, the mother of Jesus.
Later, English Christians celebrated to honor all mothers. This English holiday was called “Mothering Sunday”. When the English came to America, they did not have time for Mothering Sunday, so the holiday was not celebrated in America. In 1914,the U.S passed a law which designated(规定) the second Sunday in May as Mother’s Day to honor the mothers who had lost sons in war.
Today, Mother’s Day is celebrated in many other countries for all mothers. In Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Mother’s Day is celebrated on the same day as in the United States—the second Sunday in May. Children give their mothers cards, gifts, and flowers. Schools plan Mother’s Day’s special activities.
In China, the holiday is celebrated to show the respect(尊重) the Chinese have for the old people, and the love they have for their parents. Ten top mothers are chosen by the government. People all over the country try different ways to help mothers who are poor._______________________
People/County |
Who to Honor |
Activities |
|
in ancient times |
Egyptians |
Isis |
|
early Christians |
Mary |
||
later |
the English |
all mothers |
|
the U.S |
mothers who had lost sons in war |
||
now |
Canada, Australia, etc |
all mothers |
give mothers cards, gifts, and flowers; |
China |
parents |
choose ten top mothers; |
Is the world too crowded? Well, that’s a hard question to answer. It’s all a matter of perspective(视角).In Montana, you might drive for a mile in any direction and not see another human being. In Macao, 60,000 people live in every square mile!
What is true is that the world’s population doesn’t stay the same. It has been increasing at a very fast rate(比例).That’s in part because in each generation(代) these are more people who then have children than in the last generation.
Five hundred years ago, the population of the world was about 460 million. In 1900,the world’s population was under 2 billion(十亿).Right now it is doubling every 40 years. That means, if this rate of growth continues, when you are a parent, there will be twice as many people on earth as there are now. Wow! Now that’s a whole lot of people! Soon the world’s population will probably reach 7 billion. Some people worry about that! But there is a lot of disagreement about just how many people on earth equals(相当于) too many people. But everyone agrees that the more people there are, the more resources(资源) the world needs to feed, house and take care of all of them, and the more need there is to think carefully about how we live and use the earth’s resources.From the first paragraph we can know that ________.
A.Montana is too crowded |
B.Macao is too crowded |
C.the world is too crowded |
D.the world is not too crowded |
The population is increasing fast partly because ________.
A.people live longer than before |
B.there are less wars than before |
C.medicine is developing faster than before |
D.more couples now would like to have children than before |
What was the world’s population 100 years ago?
A.450 million. | B.about 2 billion. |
C.40 billion. | D.7 billion. |
The writer thinks that with the population increasing, we should ________.
A.find more resources |
B.use more resources |
C.think about our ways of living |
D.move to other places |
From the passage we can learn that the writer ________.
A.thinks the world already has too many people |
B.thinks the world can feed no more than 7 billion people |
C.is not sure when the world’s population will reach 7 billion |
D.is not sure what the largest population that the world can feed is |
Read the suggestions for making an English speech.
a. Looking at and talking to one person in the audience (观众) helps keep you natural, but it feels foolish talking to only one person. Speak to that person as long as 15 seconds and then change another one.
b. The audience have a hard time understanding what they hear. They need your help. Slow down, pause(停顿) and guide the audience through your talk. Remember that you should help the audience understand what you are saying.
c. Make your voice a little lower than normal. Listeners like to listen to a relatively(相对) deep voice.
d. When you talk, try to be as natural as possible. Don’t try to memorize your words and read or recite(背诵) them to your audience. You can use short notes to help you remember the important points.
e. You should know you and most of the people you talk to are different in many ways. Some of them may not know what you are talking about. Then speak to them on their terms and in their languages.
f. Concentrate on what you want to say. If you are always paying attention to gestures(手势),you will feel uncomfortable.
g. It’s true that there are some differences between American English and British English, but they’ll not cause much difficulty for listeners, so just speak the way you’re used to.
Choose a suggestion for each of the following students according to their problems.Paul: I don’t think I can talk fluently(流利) because it’s difficult for me to remember all the words.
A.a | B.b | C.c | D.d |
Billy: When I come face to face with the audience, where should my eyes fall upon? Do I have to look front, or look around from time to time?
A.a | B.c | C.e | D.f |
Amy: When I am talking, I can’t help waving(挥动)my hands, for I think it can help me express what I want to say better. But my classmates say I look funny and foolish by doing this.
A.d | B.e | C.f | D.g |
Betty: I know that it’s not right to speak fast. But I am afraid that I can’t finish my talk in the given time if I speak slowly.
A.b | B.d | C.f | D.g |
Tony: Should I talk in American English or British English?
A.a | B.b | C.c | D.g |
Like hundreds of other young people of all countries who take part in our language courses, you can make the most of your holidays by studying French in an interesting way and, at the same time, discover one of France’s most beautiful areas—Nice!
Our summer course lasts 3 weeks in July and August. You’re welcome to come at any time between July and August 6.You can choose to stay at a host family, but we suggest you stay at our international summer camp. It makes it easy to meet other people and make new friends. What’s more, you can have your classes in the same building which is close to the beach! A free bus service brings you to and from classes if you are living in a French host family or enables you to get into the centre of town if you are living at the summer camp.
Whenever you choose to come, we’ll organize short trips, parties, sports and other activities and motivate you to speak French.
Your stay in Nice will therefore not only be an educational one, but also an enjoyable experience. Besides offering you many opportunities to meet other people from different cultures, we will do everything to make sure your stay will be unforgettable!How long is the summer course?
A.Two months. | B.Three weeks. | C.One month. | D.Eight weeks. |
According to the passage, they suggest the students stay ____ during the study.
A.at the summer camp | B.in the hotel |
C.at their friends’ homes | D.in the centre of town |
During the course, students can ________.
A.travel all over France | B.never leave the camp |
C.learn French and make friends | D.swim alone in the sea |
What does the underlined word “motivate” in the third paragraph mean?
A.激发 | B.感谢 | C.阻止 | D.妨碍 |
What you’ve read above is ________.
A.A travel diary | B.An advertisement |
C.An introduction to France | D.A piece of news |