CaféHubNexttotheCastleliesTheH-优题课

One of the qualities that most people admire in others is the willingness to admit one's mistakes. It is extremely hard sometimes to say a simple thing like "I was wrong about that," and it is even harder to say, "I was wrong, and you were right about that."
I had an experience recently with someone admitting to me that he had made a mistake fifteen years ago. He told me he had been the manager of a certain grocery store in the neighbourhood where I grew up, and he asked me if I remembered the egg boxes. Then he related an incident and I began to remember vaguely the incident he was describing.
I was about eight years old at the time, and I had gone into the store with my mother to do the weekly grocery shopping. On that particular day, I must have found my way to the dairy food department where the incident took place.
There must have been a special sale on eggs that day because there was an impressive display of eggs in dozen and half-dozen boxes. The boxes were stacked three or four feet high. I must have stopped in front of a display to admire the stacks. Just then a woman came by pushing her grocery cart and knocked off the stacks of boxes. For some reason, I decided it was up to me to put the display back together, so I went to work.
The manager heard the noise and came rushing over to see what had happened. When he appeared, I was on my knees inspecting some of the boxes to see if any of the eggs were broken, but to him it looked as if I was the culprit (做错事的人). He severely scolded me and wanted me to pay for any broken eggs. I tried to explain it wasn’t me who had broken them, but it did no good. Even though I quickly forgot all about the incident, obviously the manager did not.
.
. How old was the author when he wrote this article?

A．About 8.

B．About 18.

C．About 23.

D．About 15.

.
Who was to blame for knocking off the stacks of boxes?

A．The author.

B．The man

ager.

C．A woman.

D．The author's mother.

.
. Which of the following statements is not true?

A．The woman who knocked off the stacks of boxes was seriously criticized by the manager.

B．The author was severely criticized by the manager.

C．A woman carelessly knocked off the stacks of boxes.

D．It was the author who put the display back together.

.
. The tone of the article expresses the author's .

A．regret for the mistake he made in th

e store

B．admiration for the manager's willingness to admit mistakes

C．anger against the woman who knocked off the stacks of boxes

D．anger to the manager for his wrong accusation

Word Power
Author(s): Kaplan $13.95
You’ll never be at a loss for words again. Energize your vocabulary with must-know everyday words that are the essentials of a good vocabulary, engaging lessons to help you use words in text, hot words often found on tests, tips to help you figure out new words, roots, and more.
Grades: 8 & upAges: 13 & up
Word Smart Junior
Author(s): Russell Stauffer $ 17.95
Now this is the way to add new words to your vocabulary! Word Smart Junior will make you laugh so much. You’ll be amazed that you’ve just learned more than 120 fascinating and very useful words! Parents, teachers, and friends will marvel at your eloquence (口才)!
Grades: 3-5 Ages: 8-10
Grammar Smart Junior
Author(s): Marcia Reynolds $ 16.85
Do you quake when your teacher says, “Now it’s time for grammar”? Do your verbs agree with your subjects?
Fear no more! A big Hollywood producer and a famous movie star will help you learn all those nasty (讨厌的) elements of grammar. You’ll be amazed at how quickly you learn, and how much fun it can be. You’ll finally know your grammar backwards and forwards, and you’ll never have to worry about it again.
Grades: 7-9Ages: 12-14
Grammar Smart: An Audio Guide to Perfect Usage
Author(s): Julian Fleisher $ 12.68
The words you use say a lot about you … but the way you put them together says even more. Your grammar makes an immediate and lasting impression on your teachers, and even your friends. So don’t make the mistake of thinking that grammar is too complicated. We’ve created Grammar Smart to help you write and speak with clarity and confidence.
Grades: 6-8Ages: 11-13
.
If a ten-year-old boy wants himself to be admired because of his speech ability, he may buy .

A．Word Power	B．Word Smart Junior
C．Grammar Smart Junior	D．Grammar Smart: An Audio Guide to Perfect Usage

.
By saying “You’ll finally know your grammar backwards and forwards”, the writer means “”.

A．You will be clearly familiar with grammar

B．You will know the history of grammar

C．You will know the make-up of grammar

D．You will learn about the future of grammar

.
The four books are all about .

A．fiction and mysteries	B．parenting and teaching
C．literature and arts	D．language study

Environmental protection is frequently talked about nowadays. The authorities are doing their best to arise the public awareness of the vital importance of the environmental protection. This issue is, indeed, worth following up.
Environmental protection is closely related not only to our personal life, but also to the entire human race and the world’s further development. For one thing, the environment, in a narrow sense, determines the quality of our individual life. The air we breathe, the water we drink, the food we eat, etc. , all come directly from the environment. If they continue to be contaminated, we may have neither clean water, nor healthy food. For another thing, in a broader sense, the environment plays a decisive role in fate of mankind. As is known to all, the earth, up to now, is human being’s only dwelling place. We can expect that some day we will live on another planet, but I doubt that this day will come earlier than the day when the earth becomes a globe of waste, if we keep damaging the environment. Finally, the environment is essential to the further development of the world. Extensive industrialization, which has brought about all the convenience and facilities we enjoy today, has been depending on the comprehensive exploitation of the earth’s natural resources found in the environment. If we do not protect the environment properly, further development cannot be guaranteed. In a word, to protect the environment is an urgent task.
Nevertheless, environmental protection is indeed a demanding task. Many people are still, either unconscious of the urgency of the task or deliberately damaging the environment for the interests of their own. Hence, we should adopt severe measures to prohibit people from doing more harms to the environment. Meanwhile, we need to make the gravity of the present situation known to all. In other words, punishment and instruction should be equally emphasized. Only in this way can we look forward to a cleaner and greener world.
.
. What does the underlined word contaminated（in paragraph 2）probably refer to?

A．polluted

B．protected

C．wasted

D．guaranteed

.
The author’s purpose in writing the passage is to ________.

A．stress the importance of protecting environment

B．enjoy beautiful environment happily

C．try to develop our industrialization fast

D．take severe measures to the environmental destroyers

.
. From the passage we can know that ________.

A．environmental protection is indeed a demanding task to our government

B．not all the people in the world realize the urgency of the task

C．only a few people are damaging the environment on purpose

D．some day we will live on another planet before the earth is damaged

Dear editor,
I am Paul , a senior English teacher in Linchuan No. 1 Middle School in Jiangxi Province , China. This letter is written to ask for your opinion.
The other day, I met with a multiple - choice exercise. We teachers argued heatedly with each other over its answer. Unfortunately, neither side could convince the other. The sentence is to be attached at the end of the letter. There is no doubt that the reference answer C is correct. But I don’t think it is the only answer. Personally, I do think A is also a reasonable choice in sense as well as in grammar, if the case is treated from another aspect.
What puzzles me is why we should deal with so many multiple - choice exercises with not rigorous（严谨的）enough reference keys. But being a teacher, it’s very important and necessary to make it clear to students which answer is correct, which is more appropriate, and which is the best one. Regrettably, Multiple - choice test, which is a bit old - fashioned in western countries, seems to be quite popular and covers a rather high percentage in all sorts of English tests in China, especially in NMET.
Personally speaking, I don’t think multiple - choice test form making up more than 75 percent of the total scores in college entrance examination is a very good and effective testing method. Instead, more subjective testing forms depending on one’s own thinking and his ability to use the language like key words falling, question answering, paragraph or passage summarizing, English - Chinese or Chinese - English inter - translation, etc. should be applied to English proficiency tests. Through the test forms mentioned above, students’ ability to use the language will be better developed. Consequently, more advanced and outstanding English learners could be picked out. In fact, a test paper focusing on multiple - choice test influences, in a sense, students to form their own language thinking, which hinders（阻碍）the development of their language ability as well. Do you think so?
I am looking forward to your authoritative opinion. Thanks.
Yours sincerely,
Paul Liao
.
. What can be learnt from the letter is that the writer ________.

A．writes to argue with the editor over China’s present test system

B．thinks the reference answer to the sentence is completely wrong

C．thinks subjective test forms constitute a rather high percentage in NMET

D．doesn’t think highly of China’s present English proficiency test forms

.
. In order to better develop students’ ability to use English, the writer suggests ________.

A．dealing with more multiple - choice exercises

B．laying stress on the practice of subjective exercises

C．arguing hotly with teachers over reference answers

D．considering a problem from different aspects

.
Which of the following does NOT belong to subjective exercises in English learning?

A．Keeping a diary.	B．Summarizing a paragraph.
C．Copying a test.	D．Translating a passage.

.
The writer seems to feel ________ as to the future development of students’ language ability.

A．concerned

B．curious

C．confused

D．satisfied

A. You and Me, Baby
Reading level: Baby - Grade 1
Hardcover: 40 pages
Language: English
List Price: $15.95
Price: $12.44 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25.
You Save: $3.51 （22%）
Availability: In Stock. Ships from and sold by Amazon. com. Gift - wrap available.
Only 4 left in stock-order soon（more on the way）. Want it delivered Thursday, September 27.
B. Ruff! Ruff! Where’s Scruff?
Reading level: Baby - Preschool
Hardcover: 16 pages
Language: English
Price: $11.16 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25.
Availability: In Stock. Sold by Amazon. com. Gift - wrap available.
Want it delivered Thursday, September 2.
Book Description: It’s bath time for Scruff. But does anyone know where he’s hiding? Have the cows seen him? Moo - no ！How about the pigs? Oink - no ! Looking for that dog is just too tough! But not for toddlers. If they look carefully, they’ll find Scruff hiding on every pop – up page !
C. The Giving Tree
Reading level: Ages 4 - 8
Hardcover: 64 pages
Language: English
Price: $11.55
Availability: Sold all year round and choose One - Day Shipping at checkout.
Book Description: Once there was a tree… and she loved a little boy. Every day the boy would come to the tree to eat her apples, swing from her branches, or slide down her think… and the tree was happy.
D. Where the Wild Things Are
Reading level: Ages 6 - 10
Hardcover comic: 62 pages
Language: English
List Price: $16.95
Price: $11.53 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $ 25.
You Save: $5.42（32%）
Availability: In Stock. Ships from and sold by Amazon. com. Gift - wrap available. Want it delivered Thursday, September 12. Order it at once, and choose One - Day Shipping at checkout.
.
. Little Tom who likes to read picture books with a hide - and - seek adventure, will be likely to buy ________.

A．You and Me, Baby	B．Ruff! Ruff! Where’s Scruff?
C．The Giving Tree	D．Where the Wild Things Are

.
. How much will you pay if you order three books named “Where the Wild Things Are?”

A．$16.26

B．$34.59

C．$50.58

D．$75

.
Which of the following is Not true according to the passage?

A．The language of four kinds of books is English.

B．Four kinds of books are available at present.

C．The cover of four kinds of books is hardcover.

D．The reading level of four kinds of books are the same.

.
. Where would this advertisement probably appear?

A．In a popular magazine.

B．On the front - page of a newspaper.

C．In a children’s story - book.

D．On the Internet.

A．on Monday in May	B．any day in October
C．at 2 p. m. at Christmas	D．at 10 : 30 a. m. during school holidays