For thousands of years, the most important two buildings in any British village have been the church and the pub. Traditionally, the church and the pub are at the heart of any village or town, where the people gather together to socialize and exchange news.
As a result, British pubs are often old and well preserved. Many of them have become historic sites. The most famous example is the pub in the city of Nottingham called “The Old Trip to Jerusalem”, which dates back to the year 1189 AD and is probably the oldest pub in England.
However, British pubs are not just for kings and queens; they welcome people from all classes and parts of society. On a cold night, the pub’s landlord or landlady can always find a warm place for you by the fire. There is always honest and hearty food and plenty of drink available at an affordable price.
That’s how things used to be. Things are beginning to change. It is said that the credit crunch(信贷紧缩) is causing 39 British pubs a week to go out of business. People do not have enough spare money to spend on beer. Recently, the UK government banned smoking in all pubs, and that may also have affected the number of customers going to pubs.
This decline is happening despite the fact that in 2005 the UK government started to allow pubs to stay open after 1l pm. Previously, with 1l pm as closing time, customers would have to drink quite quickly, meaning they sometimes got more drunk than they would if allowed to drink slowly. The British habit of drinking a lot very quickly is known as “binge drinking”, and it causes long-term health problems for people and problems with violent crime for communities.
In order to save their businesses, pubs are trying to change with the market. British pubs now offer something for everyone. A lot of pubs used to be “Working Men's Clubs”, meaning that women could not usually enter. Today, however, women can freely enter 99% of pubs without experiencing any problems. Perhaps things are changing for the better after all.The passage mainly tells us something about ______.
| A．the past and present of British pubs |
| B．the decline of British pubs |
| C．the long history of British pubs |
| D．the importance of British pubs |
Which may not be the cause of the decline of British pubs?
| A．The credit crunch. |
| B．The present closing time. |
| C．The ban of smoking. |
| D．Having no spare money. |
We can infer from the passage that ______.
| A．British people used to like drinking slowly |
| B．closing the pubs early will reduce social problems |
| C．binge drinking means drinking less beer |
| D．British government aims to discourage people from binge drinking |
We can see from the last paragraph that the author _______.
| A．is against the admission of too many women to the pubs |
| B．holds an optimistic attitude towards the British pubs |
| C．thinks that women in the pubs will cause less social problems |
| D．thinks that British pubs should offer everything you need |
A year ago, I paid no attention to English idioms, though my teacher emphasized the importance ag
ain and again. But soon, the importance of English idioms was shown in an amusing experience.
One day, I happened to meet an Englishman on the road, and soon we began to talk. As I was talking about how I was studying English, the foreigner seemed to be astonished gently shaking his head, shrugging his shoulders, saying, “You don’t say!” “You don’t say!” I was puzzled. I thought, perhaps this is not an appropriate topic. “Well, I’d better change the topic.” So I said to him, “Well, shall we talk about the Great Wall By the way, have you ever been there. “Certainly, everyone back home will laugh at me if I leave China without seeing it. It is magnificent.” He was deep in thought when I began to talk like a tourist guide, “The Great Wall is one of the wonders in the world. We are very proud of it.” Soon I was interrupted again by his order, “You don’t say!” I couldn’t help asking. I said, “Didn’t you say you don’t say” Hearing this, the Englishman laughed to tears. He began to explain, “You don’t say actually means really It is an expression of surprise. Perhaps you don’t pay attention to English idioms.” Only then did I realize I had made a fool of myself. Since then, I have been more careful with idiomatic expressions.A year ago, I paid no attention to English idioms because .
| A．English idioms were too difficult to master |
| B．I did not realize the importance of them |
| C．My teacher didn’t emphasize the importance |
| D．I had no interest in English learning |
When I first heard “You don’t say!”, I thought .
| A．the Englishman was not interested in the topic |
| B．the Englishman was only interested in the Great Wall |
| C．I had talked too much |
| D．I had to stop talking at once |
We can learn from the second paragraph that .
| A．the Englishman was leaving China without seeing the Great Wall |
| B．the Englishman wanted to see the Great Wall after I talked about it |
| C．the Englishman wanted me to act as his guide |
| D．the Englishman visited the Great Wall and thought it worth visiting |
After the Englishman explained the idiom,
| A．the Englishman made me a fool |
| B．the Englishman made a fool of himself |
| C．I felt very silly |
| D．I felt proud of my understanding |
One is not born able to speak a language．One is born able to make a noise．I have heard babies cry in America and in China．I can’t tell any difference．But when I hear someone from America speak English and hear someone speak Chinese, I can tell you there are a lot of differences.
I believe a common(普遍的) problem with Chinese students’ learning English is that they were not taught to think in English．They have an idea spoken in English and want to translate the idea into Chinese, then they think in Chinese of the proper reply and translate it into English．After a long period of speaking the language, one begins to think in the foreign language naturally．You will learn faster if you begin to think in English at the very beginning of your study．Many students ask me: What can I do to improve my spoken English?
My reply is: The more English you speak, the better English you will speak．There are many things you can do to improve your spoken English．Of course, the best way is to live where English is spoken as a language of the country.The cries of American and Chinese babies are _______.
| A．different | B．the same |
| C．not like each other | D．like each other |
The underlined sentence (in Paragraph 2) means that______.
| A．some teachers didn’t teach students to think in English |
| B．teachers never gave the students the way of learning English |
| C．students didn’t remember the way teachers taught them |
| D．teachers didn’t want their students to think in English |
The underlined word “they” (in Paragraph 2) refers to “_____”.
| A．Chinese students | B．English students |
| C．Chinese teachers | D．English teachers |
According to the article, which of the following is TRUE?
| A．You must think in English all the time. |
| B．You should always translate English into Chinese. |
| C．After speaking English for a long time, you may probably think in English naturally(自然地). |
| D．The best way of learning English is to live in America. |
Before you make friends, you have to decide who you want to be your friends．Most people like to have friends who like to do the same kind of things they do.
The quickest way to make a friend is to smile．When you smile, people think you are friendly and easy to talk to．It may not be easy at first to smile, but remember most people will stay away from a scared or angry looking face.
One easy way to start a conversation with someone is to say something nice about him．Think about how great you feel when someone says something nice to you．Doesn’t it make you want to keep talking to that person?
Ask your new friends questions about themselves．Who’s their favorite singer, where do they live, what do they do after school are all good questions to start a conversation．Make sure you have something to add to the conversation, too．When someone asks you a question, do have an answer for them．There’s nothing that will stop a conversation quicker than a shrug (耸肩) for an answer.
Kids who show an interest in other kids and who are kind and friendly make good friends．Remember, everyone wants to be around people who like to do similar things and people who are nice to them.This passage gives us some advice on _________.
| A．how to make friends |
| B．what kind of person you can make friends with |
| C．how to start a conversation |
| D．the importance of smile |
Most people like to make friends with those______.
| A．who are sad every day. |
| B．who share the same interest |
| C．who are fond of talking |
| D．who say bad things to them |
According to the third paragraph, most people enjoy talking to one _______.
| A．who is always smiling |
| B．who seems to be friendly |
| C．who praises them |
| D．who points out their shortcomings. |
The underlined (划线的)part in this passage means “_______”.
| A．being very proud | B．making no answer |
| C．knowing nothing | D．not hoping to answer |
With the development of society, the choice of food and drinks for children is more diversified(多样化) than ever before．However, every coin has two sides．Many facts suggest that children are overweight and the situation is getting worse, according to the statistics(数据统计)．I feel there are a number of reasons for this.
Some people blame（责怪）the fact that we are surrounded by shops selling unhealthy, fatty foods, such as fried chicken and ice cream, at low prices．This has turned out a whole generation of grown-ups who seldom cook a meal for themselves．If there were fewer of these restaurants then probably children would buy less take-away food.
There is another argument that blames parents for allowing their children to become overweight．I agree to this, because good eating habits begin early in life, long before children start to visit fast food shops．If children are given fried chicken and chocolate rather than healthy food, or are always allowed to choose what they eat, they will go for sweet and salty foods every time, and this will carry on throughout their lives.
There is a third reason for this situation．Children these days take very little exercise．They do not walk to school．When they get home, they sit in front of the television or their computers．Not only is this an unhealthy pastime（消遣）, it also gives them time to eat more unhealthy food．What they need is to go outside and play active games or sports.
The above are the main reasons for this problem, and therefore we have to encourage young people to be more active, as well as guiding them away from fast food shops and bad eating habits.What is suggested by the author to deal with “overweight”?
| A．Blaming the shops selling unhealthy and fatty foods. |
| B．Asking young children to walk to school every day. |
| C．Living an active life and giving up bad eating habits. |
| D．Not watching TV or playing computer games after school. |
Which of the following shows the structure of the whole text?
The author writes the passage to ______________
| A．show people a social problem |
| B．provide facts for government |
| C．advise solutions to a problem |
| D．compare opinions with people |
Finished school for the summer? It’s great to kick back and relax after the school year-and you deserve it! －but it might also be the time to start building that resume(履历) to help you impress the college of your choice．Having a great resume doesn’t just mean getting a summer job; lots of activities can help you stay active and gain valuable experience over the summer months.
| ·Work Getting a job is one of the most practical ways to build your resume and impress colleges, even if working during the school year is not an option（选择）, look out for specific holiday jobs, like residential（寄宿的）summer camps that look for help during the summer months．Any job is good, but working in a leadership position or in an academic area looks particularly good on your resume．The more a job challenges you, the more it builds the skills that colleges and future employers are interested in seeing in applicants(申请者). |
| ·Volunteer Give back to gain resume points．Community service is another great way to gain valuable work and leadership experience．Nonprofit（非利益性） organizations such as soup kitchens and animal shelters are always looking for volunteers, and it shouldn’t be difficult to find a volunteer organization near your home that could use an extra pair of hands for a few hours a week during the summer. |
| ·Travel This may not be a viable（可行的）option for everyone, but if you can afford it, summer travel can be an exciting way to enrich your mind and improve your resume．Visiting and exploring（探索） foreign places will broaden your horizons（视野）, allowing you to expand your awareness of other people and cultures．It’s also a great chance to develop your language skills. |
| ·Take Classes “School” might be the last thing you want after a hard year of studying, but summer school isn’t always a bad thing．Colleges may look kindly upon applicants who take the initiative（主动）to further their education over the summer．There are a variety of options available for high school students wishing to take summer courses, both at their own schools and at local colleges．If your high school offers summer classes, they could be a great way to advance your math or language skills, two areas that are often lacking on students’ college applications．Local community colleges also offer summer courses for high school juniors and seniors that cover a variety of introductory-level topics．They not only look great on your transcript（成绩单）,but also provide a chance to improve your preparations for college and allow you to explore possible career options. |
What is the main benefit of summer activities according to the text?
| A．To enjoy yourself to the full． |
| B．To enrich your resume. |
| C．To develop certain skills． |
| D．To improve your academic performance. |
What is the most practical activity to do during summer vacation?
| A．Getting a job． |
| B．Traveling overseas. |
| C．Doing volunteer work． |
| D．Attending classes. |
According to the text, “soup kitchens and animal shelters” .
| A．are places that you can travel to |
| B．might be included in summer courses |
| C．are recommended（推荐）as part-time jobs for the summer |
| D．can be good volunteer jobs |
Why is “taking classes” recommended in the article?
| A．It only takes a few hours a week． |
| B．It can enrich your career experience. |
| C．It can prepare you for further study． |
| D．It can raise your cultural awareness. |