This week is National Volunteer Week, a time for the Canadian Red Cross to recognize our dedicated (有奉献精神的) volunteers who devote their time and talents from coast to coast. Over the course of the week we will use this blog to share stories about our volunteers and the amazing work they do --- a small part of the outstanding individuals across the country.
Take Saskatchewan for example. Last year that province was hit by wide-spread flooding, a hurricane and forest fires. Canadian Red Cross staff and volunteers went to work right away and helped more than 2,100 adults and 775 children recover the basic necessities of life.
It’s important to share stories from volunteers to truly appreciate what they do. Christine Hoffman is a Disaster Response Volunteer in Canadian Red Cross in Saskatchewan. She’s a veteran Red Crosser for about 16 years. Still nothing could have prepared her for the call she took in the Recovery Center last year in response to flooding in Maple Greek. This story is best told in her own words. This is what she said:
“I will never forget the first phone call I took in the Recovery Centre. A young man called asking what services Red Cross was offering in town. As we were talking, he told me he had a rope in his backyard but he thought he would be using it for other reasons. My heart stopped. I told him to come to see us so we could work together on a plan to improve his situation. He came in a little while later. Nearly two hours later he left standing straight up with tear- filled eyes. He thanked me for convincing him to come in. His home had been destroyed, but together we put together a plan and he was eventually able to move back into his own home.”
During National Volunteer Week 2011, let’s thank Christine, and the many other volunteers like her. Thanks for making us proud!According to the second paragraph, Canadian Red Cross’ action is ______
| A．slow | B．quick | C．helpless | D．disappointing |
Which of the following is closet in meaning to the underlined word “veteran” in the third paragraph?
| A．Careless | B．Experienced | C．Unskillful | D．Optimistic |
The underlined words in the forth paragraph expressed Christine Hoffman’s feeling of ____
| A．excitement | B．anger | C．happiness | D．nervousness |
What can we infer from what Christine Hoffman said?
| A．The young man felt sad for Christine Hoffman because of her poor experience |
| B．The young man was persuaded by Christine Hoffman and decided to live on |
| C．Christine Hoffman made the young man sad and he cried |
| D．Christine Hoffman offered to give the young man a little money to help him |
What is the text mainly about?
| A．How to become a volunteer |
| B．An excellent volunteer and her family |
| C．Volunteers and their amazing work |
| D．What the Canadian Red Cross does |
People smile at times. However, the meaning of a smile in different cultures may be different. Depending on different cultures, smiling can express joy and amusement, but it can also show embarrassment(尴尬).
People in the United States smile a lot. Every one smiles at each other in order to show they are open and friendly. However, in China, smiling is not only an expression of happiness, but also a way to avoid being embarrassed. Chinese people like smiling when they are embarrassed in order to avoid embarrassment. Smiling is a kind of good will but not sneer（嘲笑）. For example: When a child falls down from a bike, the adults in China may smile, which is a kind of gentle encouragement and not a kind of impolite laugh.
When a person from the United States might blush（脸红）with embarrassment or become offensive(冒犯的), a Chinese might blush with smile. To avoid serious misunderstanding, people who engage in intercultural (跨文化的) communication should be able to understand the meaning of smiling properly.We can use smile to express all of the following feelings except _________,
| A．joy and happiness | B．amusement |
| C．embarrassment | D．fear |
People often smile at each other in the United States because _________.
| A．they are very happy |
| B．they want to show they are friendly |
| C．they want to hide their true feelings |
| D．they want to avoid embarrassment |
In China, seeing a child falls off a bike, an adult will smile in order to _______.
| A．laugh at him |
| B．avoid his own embarrassment |
| C．avoid embarrassment and encourage the boy |
| D．show his politeness |
What is mainly talked about in the passage?
| A．People smile at times. |
| B．Smiling can express different feelings depending on different cultures. |
| C．Americans are more open and friendly than Chinese people. |
| D．The Chinese people often hide their true feelings. |
In the past ten years, many scientists have studied the differences between men and women. And they all got the same answer: The sexes(性别) are different, because their brains are different. And this, the scientists say, makes men and women see the world in different ways.
Boys, for example, generally are better than girls at mathematical ideas. Boys also generally are better than girls at the kind of hand and eye movements necessary for ball sports. Girls, on the other hand generally start speaking earlier than boys. And they generally see better in the dark than boys and are better at learning foreign languages.
What makes men and women better at one thing or another? The answer is the brain. The brain has two sides connected by nerve(神经) tracks. The left side generally is used for mathematics, speech and writing. The right side is used for artistic creation(创造) and the expression for emotions(情感). In men and women, different areas in each side of the brain develop differently. In boys, for example, it’s the area used for mathematics. In girls, it is the area used for language skills. Another interesting difference is that the two sides of a man’s brain are connected by a smaller number of nerves than the two sides of a woman’s brain are.Which of the following is the best title of the article?
| A．Research on the Brain |
| B．Men and Women are Different in Brain |
| C．People’s Different Brains |
| D．Who Are Better, Boys or Girls |
__________ men and women think differently.
| A．The different brains make |
| B．Sex makes |
| C．The different experiences make |
| D．The influences(影响) of society make |
According to the article, girls are generally better than boys at __________ in your school.
| A．mathematics | B．physics |
| C．English | D．chemistry |
Which of the following is true?
| A．The left side of brain in boys generally develops better than that in girls. |
| B．The left side of brain in girls generally develops better than that in boys. |
| C．Men are better than women in all things. |
| D．The area in girls used for language skills develops better. |
It would be very exciting to be a reporter on a newspaper. As soon as a reporter’s boss gives him a story to write, the reporter is on the job. He keeps his mind on what he is going to do. He does not begin writing the story until he knows what he should find out. He must know why he should write the story.
At times a reporter must search hard to find all of the facts he needs for a story. The facts may not be right under his nose. To find the facts, he has to recognize important details. While gathering information for a story, he asks himself questions：Should I use this information? Is this an important fact?
A reporter writes the story as fast as he can, so it can go right away into the newspaper. The story also needs a headline, which tells very quickly what the news story is about and is printed bigger and blacker than the rest of the news story.
Every big newspaper has many reporters，because many stories are needed in the newspaper. Would you like to be one？A reporter writes the story as fast as possible because ________________.
| A．he wants it to go into the newspaper quickly |
| B．people prefer to buy today’s newspaper |
| C．he wants to have a rest |
| D．he is good at writing it |
Which statement is true according to the passage?
| A．Being a reporter is a tiring job. |
| B．It is easy for a reporter to find the facts. |
| C．The headline must tell the details of the news story. |
| D．A reporter begins to write when knowing what he should find out. |
Which is the writer’s opinion?
| A．A reporter’s boss is usually very hard to his men. |
| B．The job of a newspaper reporter is exciting but not easy. |
| C．Everyone can write a good news story. |
| D．No one likes to be a reporter. |
The passage is about ______________.
| A．the job of a news reporter |
| B．big newspapers in the world |
| C．how to write the headline of all articles |
| D．how to gather information for a news story |
Knowing about yourself not only means finding out what you’re good at and what you like, but also means discovering what you’re not good at and what you don’t like. Both help you to see your aim （目标）in life.
Although most students would be unhappy if they failed a very difficult physics examination, they have in fact learned a lot about themselves. They know that they should not become engineers or physical scientists. So failing can help a student to live a happier life if he learns something from it. They may then decide on their aims and choose the work they like and are fit for.
It is impossible to decide whether you like something until you have tried it. If you decide to play the piano, you need to take more than one lesson before knowing whether you are really interested in it or able to do well. It is not enough if you want to be a great pianist. You also have to like the hard practice and long training. If you enjoy being a great pianist but hate the work, forget it.
It’s a good plan to try as many ideas as possible when you are young. Then you will find out what your true interests are. If you say you really know yourself,_______________.
| A．you know what you don’t like |
| B．you know what you are good at |
| C．you have no interest in your work |
| D．you’ve got the whole picture of yourself |
Failing can turn into something good ______________.
| A．if you have aim in life |
| B．if your decision is fight |
| C．if you lead a happier life |
| D．if you learn something from it |
What can we learn from the second paragraph?
| A．Failure is a better mirror |
| B．Success is more helpful |
| C．No one is fit for the job of a physical scientist |
| D．Physics can help students live a better life |
There are 67 counties in the state of Alabama．Each county is rich with history and its own unique stories．Colbert County, located in the northwest corner of the state, has its share of exciting stories and claims to statewide fame．The county was created on February 6, 1867, and Tuscumbia became the county seat（the town in which the offices of the county government are located）．
One of the most famous residents of Tuscumbia was Helen Keller．Helen Keller was born on June 27, 1880．Her home was a white frame cottage built by her grandparents．Since ivy（常春藤）grew everywhere, the house was called Ivy Green．It was here, at the water pump in the backyard, that Keller learned the word “w-a-t-e-r” with the help of her teacher, Anne Sullivan．Visitors to Ivy Green can walk under boxwood trees that are 150 years old．The home has furniture that the Keller family used．It also has Keller’s Braille（盲文）books and her original Braille typewriter．
Spring Park is Tuscumbia’s most popular park and favorite tourist attraction．This park has the world’s largest manufactured waterfall called Coldwater Falls．The Spring Park Light and Water Show is an amazing sight to see．It takes place every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday at sundown．The water appears to dance to music and colored lights．The music played during the show is recorded by singers and musicians from Alabama．
Fame Recording Studios is in the city of Muscle Shoals in Colbert County．The studio is the first successful recording studio in Alabama．It is best known for creating “Southern rock,” “Southern soul,” and “county soul．” Well-known performers like Aretha Franklin and musical groups such as Alabama and Lynyrd have made recordings at this studio．
Visitors can continue to explore music in Alabama by visiting the Alabama Music Hall of Fame in Tuscumbia．Built in 1990, this site recognizes the musical talents of more than 500 Alabama residents in a wide variety of musical styles, including country and rhythm and blues．
Truly, Colbert County has a lot of wonderful locations to visit．Guests will not be disappointed in a visit to this delightful place．Which of the following is TRUE about Alabama and music?
| A．Alabama musicians have established exhibits for visitors． |
| B．There are a great many talented musicians in Alabama． |
| C．Music is the most important industry in Alabama． |
| D．Alabama residents enjoy listening to music． |
How many locations related to music in Colbert County are mentioned in the text?
| A．1． | B．2． | C．3． | D．4． |
The author writes the text mainly to persuade the reader __________．
| A．to learn from Helen Keller |
| B．to visit businesses in Alabama |
| C．to stop for a visit in Colbert County |
| D．to listen to Southern styles of music |
The text is most probably taken from __________．
| A．a story book | B．a book review |
| C．a personal diary | D．a travel magazine |