"Everybody loves a bargain．" One person’s useless, ugly, or broken object can be another person's bargain．That is why so many Americans do not throw things away．They put them outside their houses．They put on a "For Sale" sign．And, as simple as that, they have a yard sale.
The sellers put a paid announcement in a local newspaper．It tells, when and where the yard sale will take place．These sales are very popular during weekends in spring, summer, and autumn．Early in the morning, all the things to be sold are carried out of the house．Then they sit all day in the sunlight—like tired guests at a party—waiting for someone to take them home．
Just about anything can be sold at a yard sale．Sometimes, there are more clothes than anything else．Cooking equipment is also popular．So are old toys, tools, books, tables and chairs．
Then there are objects called "white elephants"．A white elephant is something you think is extremely ugly or useless．It may be an electric light shaped like a fish．You feel a sharp pain whenever you look at it．To someone else, however, it might be a thing of beauty and joy．
Some people go to yard sales to find a special thing that they collect．It may be old toy trains, for example, or paintings of dogs．Experts say more Americans are collecting old things now than ever before．Most people who go to yard sales, however, are not looking for anything special．They might buy an object simply because it costs so little. They enjoy negotiating（谈判）over prices, even if they really do not need the object．Later, they may hold their own yard to sell all the things they have bought．What kind of things will go to a yard sale?
| A．Things people no longer use． | B．Things of great, value． |
| C．Things out of season． | D．Things of beauty and joy． |
A white elephant refers to something _____．
| A．that can cause a feeling of pain |
| B．disliked by the owners while appreciated by others |
| C．that looks like a golden fish |
| D．sold at the lowest prices in the old newspaper |
Which of the following is NOT true about a yard sale?
| A．It is held outdoors． | B．It may not be held on a cold day. |
| C．It can last for a whole day． | D．It is usually held with a party． |
This is time of year when we think about giving and receiving presents. Can you find a little extra to give? On this page we suggest a few organizations you might like to help.
Littleton Children’s Home
We don’t want your money, but children’s toys, books and clothes in good condition would be very welcome.
Also—we are looking for friendly families who would take our children into their homes for a few hours or days as guests. You have so much—will you share it?
Phone Sister Thomas on 55671.
Children’s Hospice
We look after a small number of very sick children. This important work needs skill and love. We cannot continue without gifts of money to pay for more nursing staff. We also need story books and toys suitable for quiet games.
Please contact The Secretary, Little Children’s Hospice, Newby Road.
Street Food
In the winter weather, it’s no fun being homeless. It’s even worse if you’re hungry. We give hot food to at least fifty people every night. It’s hard work, but necessary. Can you come and help? If not, can you find a little money? We use a very old kitchen, and we urgently need some new saucepans. Money for new ones would be most welcome indeed.
Contact Street Food, c/o Mary’s House, Elming Way, Littleton. Phone 27713.
Littleton Youth Club
Have you got an unwanted chair?—a record player?—a pot of paint?
Because we can use them!
We want to get to work on our meeting room!
Please phone 66231 and we’ll be happy to collect anything you can give us.
Thank you!
The Night Shelter
We offer a warm bed for the night to anyone who has nowhere to go. We rent the former Commercial Hotel on Green Street. Although it is not expensive, we never seem to have quite enough money. Can you let us have a few pounds? Any amount, however small, will be such a help.
Send it to us at 15, Green St, Littleton. Please make check payable to Night Shelter.Reading the passage, you might like to help these organizations which work for
| A．homeless and sick children |
| B．less fortunate members of our society |
| C．hungry people who have no beds to sleep in |
| D．friendly members of our society to help others |
If you like children and can offer a happy family to a homeless child, you may go to.
| A．Street Food | B．Night Shelter | C．Children’s Home | D．Children’s Hospice |
We can infer that.
| A．there are too many social problems in this country |
| B．people are very poor during the time for giving presents |
| C．warm-hearted people like to give away money |
| D．this passage is taken from a local newspaper |
If your child has grown up, you may take the child’s things to.
| A．Children’s Home and Children’s Hospice | B．Youth Club and Children’s Home |
| C．Children’s Hospice and Night Shelter | D．Youth Club and Night Shelter |
Thousands of people began pouring into Pennsylvania from other states．They wanted to buy lottery tickets．The tickets cost only ﹩0．9 each．But that small spending could bring them a reward of ﹩90 million．That was the second largest lottery jackpot（积累奖金）in history．
More than 87 million tickets were bought for the Pennsylvania lottery drawing．Those who bought tickets had to choose seven numbers from 1 to 80．The chance of winning was one in 9．6 million．But that little chance certainly didn’t affect ticket sales．In the last few days before the drawing, tickets were selling at the unbelievable rate of 500 per second．
Experts say many people buy lottery tickets because they just want to have a piece of the action．Others say the lottery is a stock market for poor people．It allows them to dream about wealth they’ll probably never have．
But many people believe lotteries are no better than legalized（合法化的） gambling．Some critics note that most people who play are poor and may not be able to afford the tickets．There are also many addicts who take the game seriously．They may pour their life savings into lottery tickets．Some clubs have been formed to help them kick the habit．
Politicians like lotteries because they provide money that would otherwise have to come from new taxes．The profits from lotteries are usually used to pay for education or programs for senior citizens．But critics say this arrangement just allows states to legalize vice（恶习）, under the name of social progress．No matter whether you regard state lotteries right or not, you cannot refuse to accept their extreme popularity with many Americans．The main idea of the passage is that．
| A．lotteries are of great benefit to everyone who buys them |
| B．playing a lottery is just like investing in the stock market |
| C．a lot of people buy lottery tickets, but lotteries cause disagreement |
| D．lotteries are just legalized vice |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．Politicians like lotteries because they don’t have to pay extra tax． |
| B．The popularity of lotteries in America actually is social progress． |
| C．Some critics don’t like lotteries because many poor people waste their money on them． |
| D．People love the lottery because it is a stock market． |
In just one hour in the last few days, the Pennsylvania lottery sold tickets totaling．
| A．$1.62million | B．﹩90million | C．﹩9.6million | D．﹩87million |
People who are addicted to playing lotteries should．
| A．join a club | B．kick the habitw. |
| C．win the Pennsylvania | D．save every cent |
Think of some of your favorite singers. When you listen, they can make you happy or sad, peaceful or angry. They can make you relax or want to get up and dance. Gifted singers have the power to affect us in many ways—emotionally, physically and mentally.
But becoming a great singer isn’t as easy as listening to one. It takes practice, devotion and strong lungs! Just ask the well-known American opera（歌剧）star Carol Vaness.
At the Metropolitan Opera in New York City where she often sings, Carol’s voice must be loud enough to be heard by four thousand people. It must reach every person in the theater, without a microphone, even when she’s singing softly. The reason Carol can project her voice that far is the way she breathes.
“When you breathe, it’s like a swimmer taking a deep breath before going underwater,” Carol explains. “You have to take a lot of air into your lungs.”
According to Carol, the main difference between pop singing and opera is “how you breathe, how much air you take in, and how you control it coming out. Regular singing is more like speaking, and it’s lot softer. When I sing for children, they’re often surprised by how the vibrations strike their ears—like waves on a beach, ”Carol says. “In opera, the air doesn’t just go out of your mouth—it vibrates in your chest，the way a guitar vibrates when it’s played.”
Ever since she started piano lessons at the age of ten, Carol has loved music. As she got older, she decided to become a music teacher. When she went to college, she took singing lessons as part of her studies. Her voice teacher discovered that nineteen-year-old Carol had an exceptionally beautiful soprano voice-the highest singing voice for women.
Carol decided to make opera her goal, not only because she loved to sing but also because she loved the drama. Opera is a play in which the characters sing the words instead of speaking them. The stories of opera can be tragic or comical. They can be personal stories about two people falling in love or grand stories about kings and queens who lived long ago. As the characters in an opera sing, the emotions（情感）expressed by words and music come to life.
Today, Carol performs throughout the United States and Europe and she has song for almost twenty years. But she has never forgotten where she started singing in the first palace.
“Put your heart into your singing and enjoy it,” says Carol, “because singing is a great joy. That’s why I sing. In fact, that’s why everybody sings.”According to the passage, the Metropolitan Opera in New York City.
| A．is a five-story building | B．can seat 4,000 people |
| C．has no microphone in it | D．can project the singer’s voice |
What is the best title for this passage?
| A．Opera Singing and Pop Singing | B．The Way an Opera Star Sings |
| C．An Opera Star | D．Singing without a Microphone |
Which statement is true?
| A．A pop singer’s lungs are usually stronger than those of an opera singer’s |
| B．Opera singing is more like speaking. |
| C．A pop singer takes in much more air than an opera singer when singing. |
| D．An opera singer breathes differently from a pop singer when singing. |
From the passage you can conclude all the following EXCEPT that.
| A．Carol once learned to play the piano |
| B．Carol worked as a music teacher |
| C．Carol has been singing opera for 20 years or so |
| D．Carol is popular with Americans and Europeans |
E
Welcome to our school. You can do a lot of things here. Come and join us.
| Timetable |
|
| Sunday 8:30---11:30 Personal Inventions You can see many inventions by the students; you may also bring your own inventions. |
Monday 19:00---21:00 Space and Man Dr. Thomas West If you want to know more about the universe (宇宙). |
| Wednesday 19:30---21:00 Modern Medicine Mrs. Lucy Green Would you like to know medical science? |
Friday 18:30---21:00 Computer Science Mr. Harry Morison from Harvard University Learn to use Windows XP. |
72. You may have a chance to introduce your inventions on _________.
A. Wednesday B. Monday C. Sunday D. Friday
73. The person who teaches Computer Science is from___________.
A. CanadaB. Australia C. New Zealand D. America
74. You may learn something about a disease (疾病) called TB from __________.
A. Dr. West B. Mr. Morison C. Mrs. Green D. Mr. Thomas
75. If you want to learn something about satellites (卫星), you can go to the class from______.
A. 8:30 to 11:30 on Sunday B. 19:00 to 21:00 on Monday
C. 19:30 to 21:00 on Wednesday D. 18:30 to 21:00 on Friday
D
The Internet has become part of teenage life.
A new report on 3,375 students aged from 10 to 18 in seven Chinese cities found that 38 percent of them believe they use the Internet often.
While most of them get useful information and use the Internet to help in their studies, some are not using it in a good way.
In order to help young people use the Internet in a good way, a textbook on good Internet behaviour (行为) has started to be used in some Shanghai middle schools this term. The book uses real examples to teach students all about good ways of using the Internet. The book gives useful advice such as it’s good to read news or find helpful information to study.
Some students also make online friends. But if you are meeting a friend offline, make sure your parents know. Teachers and parents all think the book is of great help. A teacher said the book would be a guide for teens using the Internet. She believes it will keep students away from bad sites. “Many students are using the Internet without guidance from their parents,” she said. “The book will teach students how to be a good person in the online world.”
68. The textbook mainly tells us ______.
A. why we should use the Internet B. how to study using the Internet
C. how to use the Internet correctly D. how to get help from others
69. What’s the attitude of teachers and parents towards the textbook?
A. They are against it. B. They are for it.
C. They don’t care about it. D. The passage doesn’t mention.
70. According to the passage, teenagers are NOT encouraged to ______.
A. read online news B. go online
C. find helpful information online
D. meet a friend offline without letting their parents know
71. From this passage we know that _______.
A. more and more students have given up visiting bad Web sites
B. schools and teachers begin to pay attention to students’use of the Internet
C. no more homework will be given in Shanghai middle schools
D. less and less information can be found on line