As computers become more and more popular in China, Chinese are increasingly relying on computer keyboards to input Chinese characters. But if they use the computer too much, they may end up forgetting the exact strokes(笔画) of each Chinese character when writing on paper. Experts suggest people, especially students, write by hand more.
Do you write by hand more or type more? In Beijing, students start using a computer as early as primary school. And computer dependence is more widespread among university students. Almost all their assignments and essays are typed on a computer. All the students interviewed say they usually use computers.
It's faster and easier to correct the mistakes if using a computer. And that’s why computers are being used more and more often in modern education. But when people are taking stock in computers increasingly, problems appear.
“When I'm writing with a pen, I find I often can’t remember how to write a character, though I feel I'm familiar with it.”
“I'm not in the mood to write when faced with a pen and paper.”
Many students don’t feel this is something to worry about. Now that it's more convenient and efficient to type on a computer, why bother to write by hand?
Many educators think differently. Shi Liwei , the headmaster of a famous primary school in the capital said, “Chinese characters enjoy both practical and aesthetic (审美的) value. But those characters typed with computer keyboards only maintain their practical value. All the artistic beauty of the characters is lost. Besides, handwriting contains the writer's emotion. Through one's handwriting, people can learn one's thinking and personality. Beautiful writing will give people a better first impression.”
To encourage students to write more, many primary schools in Beijing have made writing classes compulsory and in universities, some professors are asking students to turn in their homework and essays written by hand. Which of the following can be the best title for the passage?
| A．The Importance of Typing |
| B．Practical and Aesthetic Value of Chinese Characters |
| C．Writing by Computer Will Replace Writing by Hand |
| D．To Type or to Write by Hand |
The students interviewed prefer to type on a computer mainly because_______.
| A．they can correct the mistakes quickly and conveniently |
| B．they are usually asked to e-mail their homework and essays |
| C．they find it hard to remember how to write a character |
| D．computers have become a trend and fashion in China |
Which of the following statements is NOT true about advantages of handwriting?
| A．Handwriting contains the writer's emotion. |
| B．Handwriting can impress people well and build their self-confidence. |
| C．The writer's thinking and personality are shown in his or her handwriting. |
| D．Chinese characters enjoy both practical and aesthetic value. |
The underlined phrase in Paragraph 3 probably means________.
| A．getting bored with | B．becoming crazy about |
| C．becoming dependent on | D．getting curious about |
House buyers have three main choices: building from the ground up, moving into an old house or buying a new one. All the three are very different and should be considered carefully. Your budget will probably have the biggest effect on your choice. Comparing the three will help you make a good decision.
New houses are untouched and fresh, which means they can suit your personality and you know exactly where all of the materials come from. New houses won’t hold many unpleasant surprises, such as weak foundations, or other damaged areas. Most of these modern houses are also far more eco-friendly, with future decoration being just as easy to make and do as you like. Buying new houses is also a great way to save money, and you may find its benefit with the price going up in the future.
Some buildings, such as those that are rare or in certain areas, are of value over the years. Sometimes it is the history that draws more buyers into older houses. A famous person may have lived there, or an important event may have taken place in the house. This may not add any value to the house, but it can add to the attraction. There may be more repairs which will need to be done in the old houses,so before you think you’ve found a great bargain, be sure to get a careful inspection.
There are those who prefer building from the ground up. Building your own house can be a very rewarding, tiring, and expensive experience. While people have many expectations of planning and building their own houses, one thing is sure: it will take a while. There are always difficulties during construction, so you always find the construction time will be longer than your plan, not to mention the budget. Time can add up as well as materials and costs. Building is a good choice for those who are able and qualified.In Paragraph 2, the writer mainly tells readers _____.
| A．How to choose a good new house. |
| B．The benefits of buying a new house |
| C．Things to consider when they buy a house. |
| D．How to save money when they buy a new house. |
What does the writer suggest people do when they are buying an old house?
| A．Check whether the price is low |
| B．Check whether it is a rare house |
| C．Check carefully whether lots of repairs are needed |
| D．Check whether a famous person has lived in it |
The writer seems to believe that building a house of one’s own is ____.
| A．easy | B．costly |
| C．interesting | D．impossible |
What is the writer’s purpose in writing this passage?
| A．To encourage readers to build a house of their own |
| B．To explain why it is hard to decide what house to buy |
| C．To tell readers how to find a great bargain when they are buying a house |
| D．To help readers make a better decision when they are buying a house |
I can’t count how many times people have complained, while shaking their heads in obvious disappointment,“just don’t know what is with teenagers today.”
The other day I was in my car on my way to the farmers market when I passed two teens standing by the side of the road with a car washing sign. My car was filthy and my heart was full, so I pulled over. There was a group directing the cars and another group spraying them down. As sponges(海绵) were wiped over every square inch of my dirty car, I sat enjoying the little water bottles. I was amazed at why forty to fifty teenagers had devoted their Saturday to washing cars.
After I handed them a twenty-dollar bill I asked what they were raising money for. They explained to me that a friend of theirs, C.T.Schmitz, had recently died of cancer. He was only fifteen years old. He had gone to school with a lot of the teenagers who were there that day and each of them had memories of a boy sweeter than any they had known. His friend Kevin had decided to put this car wash together because he wanted to honor his friend and also bring together his classmates with his boy scout troop(童子军). He told me that they wanted to plant a tree in front of their school and if they raised enough money they would put a plaque(纪念匾) there also. Both would be in memory of their friend C.T.
They handed me a bag of homemade cookies with my receipt(收据) saying“Thanks for helping us plant a tree of C.T.”
Yeah! I don’t know what is with teenagers today!From the passage we can know that the boys were raising money to ______.
| A．buy a plaque for their school . |
| B．help those who suffered from cancer. |
| C．first plant a tree in memory of their friend. |
| D．put a plaque near their friend’s home |
From the passage, we can infer that C.T.Schmitz was _____.
A. kind-hearted but lonely B. brave and popular with his classmates
C. shy and sensitive D. a boy you can get a good impression ofWhat does the underlined word “ filthy”mean?
| A．new | B．dirty | C．good-looking | D．ordinary |
What would be the best title for the passage?
| A．Teenagers Today | B．A Special Day |
| C．My view on Teenagers | D．An Exciting Experience |
After her husband had gone to work, Mrs Richards send her children to school and went upstairs to her bedroom. She was too excited to do any housework that morning. In the evening she would go to a fancy dress party with her husband. She wanted to dress up as a ghost and as she had made her costume the night before, she was impatient to try it on. Though the costume consisted only of a sheet, it was really splendid. After putting it on, She went downstairs to find out whether it would be comfortable to wear.
Just as Mrs Richards was entering the dining-room, there was a knock on the front door. She knew it must be the baker. She had told him to come straight in if ever she failed to open the door and to leave the bread on the table. Not wanting to frighten the poor man, she quickly hid in the small store-room under the stair. She heard the front door opened and heavy footsteps in the hall. Suddenly the door of the store-room was opened and in came a man. Mrs Richards realized it must be the man from the Electricity Board who had come to read the meter. She tried to explain the situation, saying “It’s only me. ”but it was too late, the man let out a cry and jumped back several paces. When Mrs Richards walked towards him, he fled, losing the door heavily behind him.The reason for Mrs Richards’ excitement that day was that____.
| A．she had sent her children to school |
| B．she was to attend an evening party |
| C．she wouldn’t do any housework that morning |
| D．she had made a special costume the night before |
Mrs Richards went downstairs with the costume on so as to____.
| A．made sure that the costume fitted her well |
| B．frighten the person who was knocking on the door |
| C．find out if she had finished the costume |
| D．receive the bread and do some cooking |
The man who was knocking at the door was____.
| A．a baker | B．a thief | C．her husband | D．an electricity man |
What did the man do after he knocked on the front door?
| A．He entered just as Mrs Richards had told him to. |
| B．He did not do anything as Mrs Richards had expected him to. |
| C．He stepped directly towards the meter. |
| D．He went straight in so as to find Mrs Richards. |
The man ____ and that made him cry out and run away.
| A．thought he must have met a ghost |
| B．recognized Mrs Richards |
| C．found out Mrs Richards was walking towards him |
| D．thought that Mrs Richards must have recognized him |
Watching some children trying to catch butterflies one hot August afternoon, I was reminded of an incident in my own childhood．When I was a boy of 12 in South Carolina, something happened to me that cured me forever of wanting to put any wild creature in a cage.We lived on the edge of a wood, and every evening at dusk the mockingbirds would come and rest in the trees and sing. There isn’t a musical instrument made by man that can produce a more beautiful sound than the song of the mockingbird.
I decided that I would catch a young bird and keep it in a cage and in that way would have my own private musician.
I finally succeeded in catching one and put it in a cage. At first, in its fright at being captured, the bird fluttered about the cage, but eventually it settled down in its new home. I felt very pleased with myself and looked forward to some beautiful singing from my tiny musician.
I had left the cage out on our back porch, and on the second day of the bird’s captivity my new pet’s mother flew to the cage with food in her mouth. The baby bird ate everything she brought to it. I was pleased to see this. Certainly the mother knew better than I how to feed her baby.
The following morning when I went to see how my captive was doing, I discovered it on the floor of the cage, dead. I was shocked! What had happened! I had taken excellent care of my little bird, or so I thought.
Arthur Wayne, the famous ornithologist, happened to be visiting my father at the time, hearing me crying over the death of my bird, explained what had occurred. “A mother mockingbird, finding her young in a cage, will sometimes bring it poison berries. She thinks it better for her young to die than to live in captivity.”
Never since then have I caught any living creature and put it in a cage. All living creatures have a right to live free.Why did the writer catch a mockingbird when he was a boy of 12?
| A．He had just got a new cage. | B．He liked its beautiful feather. |
| C．He wanted it to sing for him. | D．He wanted a pet for a companion. |
The mockingbird died because it ______.
| A．was frightened to death | B．ate the poisonous food its mother gave it |
| C．refused to eat anything | D．drank the poisonous water by mistake |
An ornithologist probably means ______.
| A．a religious person | B．a kind person |
| C．a schoolmaster | D．an expert in birds |
What is the most important lesson the writer learned from the incident?
| A．Freedom is very valuable to all creatures. |
| B．All birds put in a cage won’t live long. |
| C．You should keep the birds from their mother. |
| D．Be careful about food you give to baby birds. |
A farmer had some puppies to sell. He painted a sign advertising them on the edge of his yard.One day, a little boy came to buy one of the puppies. With a whistle(口哨), the farmer called, “Here, Dolly!” Out from the doghouse ran Dolly followed by four little balls of fur. The little boy stood against the fence. His eyes danced with delight.
As the dogs made their way to the fence, the little boy noticed something else inside the doghouse. Slowly another little ball appeared, something wrong with its legs, doing its best to catch up.“I want that one,” the little boy said.
The farmer knelt down at the boy's side and said, “Son, you don't want that puppy. He will never be able to run and play with you like these other dogs would.”
With that, the little boy stepped back from the fence, reached down and began rolling up one leg of his trousers. In doing so, he showed a steel brace(固定器) running down both sides of his leg attaching itself to a specially made shoe. Looking back up at the farmer, he said, “You see, sir, I don’t run too well myself, and he will need someone who understands.”How did the farmer advertise his puppies?
| A．Advertise them in the newspaper. |
| B．Put up a sign in his yard. |
| C．Show them to his neighbors. |
| D．Send pictures to a magazine. |
The underlined words “four little balls of fur” refer to “______”.
| A．four toy balls | B．four balls made of fur |
| C．four lovely dogs | D．four puppies with no fur |
Why did the boy choose the last dog?
| A．Because they have something in common. |
| B．Because he didn't have enough money. |
| C．Because it was the most lovely one. |
| D．Because the farmer wouldn't sell other dogs. |
According to the story, we know that the boy .
| A．didn't like dogs at all | B．needed a dog to help him |
| C．could run as fast as others | D．had an artificial(假的) leg |