A taboo(忌讳，禁忌) is a social action that is not allowed. Every culture in the world has its own taboos. The breaking of a taboo sometimes makes people feel uncomfortable. I learned this through my own experience.
Last weekend, Wang Lin and I showed two foreigners around our city. Mr Singh was from India and Mr. White from USA. When I held out my left hand to shake hands with him, Mr. Singh seemed to be unhappy. Mr. White, however, was quite casual. He said hello to me with a big smile and a wave of his hand.
In the evening, we stopped at a restaurant for dinner. I noticed that Mr. Singh didn’t touch the beef and Mr. White seemed not to like chickens’ claws. During the meal, Wang Lin said sorry to Mr. Singh and continued to explain that we didn’t know it was a taboo in India to shake one’s left hand. Mr. Singh explained that since oxen are sacred(神圣的) in India, people don’t eat beef there. Mr. White joined in and said that it was not usual in the states for people to eat chickens’ claws. He went on to say that Americans don’ t usually get into each other’ s personal space. Marriage, job and age are their taboos. Isn’ t it a good lesson to remember?
| Main idea |
The taboos in every country are ____ |
|
| Facts |
In India |
Indians don’ t eat ____ It’ s |
| In the USA |
Although it’ s not a taboo, Americans |
|
| Americans don’ t usually get into each other’ s personal space. For example, they usually don’t ask someone else’s |
||
| Conclusion |
If you pay |
I’m Bob and I’m a student of No.2 Middle School. We have many rules at our school. I think some of them are good for us, but others are not so good.
We have to wear our school uniforms. I think it’s good. If we don’t have this rule, some students will wear expensive clothes. They will think more about clothes, but not study. We can’t be late for school and we have to listen to the teacher in class. All of these rules are good for our study and I like them.
We can’t take mobile phones (手机) to school. I don’t think it’s a good idea. Sometimes our parents are busy and can’t get home on time. They need to tell us about that. If we don’t take phones, how can they tell us? Also, we can’t go to the movies on weekends. I know we should study hard, but we need to relax a little, too.What does Bob think of his school rules?
A. He can’t stand most of the rules
B. He thinks the rules are strict.
C. He thinks some of the rules are good.Which rule does Bob like?
A. Listen to the teacher in class.
B. Can’t eat outside.
C. Wear sports shoes to school.Why doesn’t Bob like the rule of no mobile phone at school?
A. Because he can’t play games or listen to music on it.
B. Because his parents can’t call him when they are busy.
C. Because he can’t call his friends when he wants to see them.Which of the following is TRUE?
A. Bob studies in No. 12 Middle School. B. Bob has to wear sports clothes at school.
C. Bob thinks students shouldn’t spend all their time on their study.How many rules are there in this passage?
A. Two. B. Three. C. Five.
People have different ways of greeting each other. They might shake hands (握手), kiss or hug (拥抱). But do you ever wonder how dogs say hello?
If you are a dog lover, you already know the answer to this question. When you arrive home, your dog jumps up into your lap (大腿前部). It wags (摇摆) its tail, and sometimes gives you wet kisses.
Like humans, dogs have five senses (感觉): smell, touch, sight, hearing and taste. Humans use sight as the main sense for recognizing (认出) one another. But dogs have poor eyesight. They use smell to recognize others. A dog’s sense of smell is much better than a human’s. It is through its sense of smell that tells the differences between different people.
Dogs use smell to recognize other dogs, too. They tell the differences by the smell of pee (小便) and pooh (大便). When two dogs meet, they smell each other’s noses. Then they go side to side, and smell each other’s butts (屁股). By smelling its friend’s behind, a dog knows who it is with.
That is also why dogs smell everything they can on the road. By smelling grass, trees and signposts (路标), dogs know which other neighborhood dogs have been around.People have different ways of greeting each other except ______.
| A．hug | B．shaking hands | C．jump | D．kiss |
How does a dog greet you?
A. Gives you wet kisses. B. Wags its tail.
C. Jumps up into your lap. D. A, B and C.How do the dogs recognize each other?
| A．They use eyes to recognize each other. | B．They use sound to recognize each other. |
| C．They use smell to recognize each other. | D．They use touch to recognize each other. |
Which of the following isn’t mentioned in the passage?
| A．How the dogs eat things. | B．Dogs have five senses. |
| C．A dog knows who it is with by smelling. | D．Humans use sight to recognize each other. |
What is the best title of the passage?
| A．Humans and dogs. | B．My favorite animal. |
| C．How do dogs say hello? | D．Cute dogs. |
A good way to pass an exam is to work hard every day in a year. You may fail in an exam if you are lazy for most of the year and then work hard only a few days before the exam. If you want to be good at English, you have to read stories in English, and to speak English as much as possible. A few days before the exam you should go to bed early. Do not go to bed late at night. Before you start answering in the exam, read carefully over the question papers, and try to understand the meaning of each question. When you have finished your exam, read over your answers. Correct the mistakes and be sure that you don’t miss anything out.If people want to do well in an exam, they have to work hard ______.
| A．every day in a year | B．for most of the month |
| C．for a few days | D．late at night |
If people want to learn English well, they ______.
| A．read stories in English | B．should go to bed early |
| C．Both A and D | D．must often practice English |
It is important to ______ a few days before the exam
| A．study harder | B．have a good sleep |
| C．read the question papers | D．have a good drink |
When people have finished the exam, they should ______.
| A．stand up and leave at once | B．answer a few more questions |
| C．make sure that they don’t miss anything out | D．discuss with other students |
The best title for the passage is ______.
| A．An Important Exam | B．An Easy Exam |
| C．Get Ready For Exams | D．How to Pass an Exam |
Before you go to another country it is a great help if you know the language and some of the customs of the country.
When people meet each other for the first time in Britain, they say “How do you do?” and shake hands. Usually they do not shake hands when they just meet or say goodbye. But they shake hands after they haven’t met for a long time or when they will be away from each other for a long time.
Last year a group of German students went to England for a holiday. Their teacher told them that the English people hardly shake hands. So when they met their English friends at the station,
they kept their hands behind their backs. The English students had learned that the Germans shake hands as often as possible, so they put their hands in front and got ready to shake hands with them. It made both of them laugh.It is ______ if you know the language and some of the customs of the country.
| A．not useful | B．not helpful | C．very helpful | D．very bad |
English people usually shake hands when they ______.
| A．meet every time | B．meet for the first time |
| C．say goodbye to each other | D．say hello to each other |
Usually English people don’t shake hands ______.
| A．when they will be away for a long time | B．when they say “How do you do?” |
| C．when they just meet or say goodbye | D．after they haven’t met for a long time |
Which of the statements is RIGHT?
| A．German people shake hands as often as possible. |
| B．English people shake hands as often as possible |
| C．German people hardly shake hands |
| D．Neither English people nor Germans shaking hands. |
The story is about ______.
| A．shaking hands | B．languages |
| C．customs | D．languages and customs |
Cats are the most popular pets among Americans. So it is not surprising there are many expressions about cats. Do you know any of them? Now let me introduce some to you.
Some cats like to catch small birds, like canaries. If someone looks very proud or satisfied(满意) with himself, we say he looks like the cat that ate the canary.
Sometimes，a cat likes to play with a small animal it catches. So if you play cat and mouse with someone, you change between different kinds of behavior when dealing with another person. For example, a child might offer something sweet to her little brother, and then take it away when reaches for it.
A cat will often catch a small animal and present it to its owner. The saying that looks like something the cat dragged in describes something in bad condition.
A fat cat is a person with a lot of money.
There are many other expressions about cats in America. How interesting! Which kind of cat are you, or which kind would you like to be?Americans like ______ best as pets.
| A．dogs | B．pigs | C．cats | D．mice |
The canary is a kind of ______.
| A．dog | B．cat | C．bird | D．fish |
If you have much money, we can call you ______.
| A．a fat cat | B．a happy cat | C．a thin cat | D．a sad cat |
If someone always thinks highly of himself. We can say ______.
| A．he plays cat and mouse with someone |
| B．he looks like the cat that ate the canary |
| C．he is a lazy cat |
| D．he has dragged in something |
The passage introduces us ______ expressions about cat.
| A．one | B．two | C．three | D．four |