The following are letters to the editor of a school newspaper
Dear editor,
I’d like to express my opinion about grades. Students should be allowed to study without worrying about grades. Fortunately, most educators are becoming aware of the fact that students have different interests and abilities. I understand that grades are useful, but grades often limit creativity. Competing for better grades causes many students to turn down opportunities to pursue music, dramatics and sports. Grades force an arbitrary(武断的) standard of success on everyone. I do not demand as some extremists do, that grades be removed immediately. However, I do believe that less emphasis should be placed on grades. I hope that someday grades will become optional at Village High School.
Magdalena Smith
Drama Club
Dear editor,
I’d like to say something about grades. Let’s face the facts about grades. Grades perform three basic functions. First, grades motivate students to work at their highest level of competence. Second, they act as a reward for hardworking students and as a punishment to students who do not work hard. Finally, grades are used as an effective standard by which to measure student achievement. Good grades help students to get jobs and to get into university. I've spoken with a number of students who have jobs, and most of them say that they were hired primarily on the basis of their grades. My grades helped me land a part-time job and will help me get into university next year. I think grades are extremely important at Village High School.
Simon Harper
Science ClubWhich of the following is not Magdalena Smith’s opinion?
| A．Students may give up the chance to learn music and sports for grades. |
| B．Students’ creativity may not be developed for grades. |
| C．Grades should not be used to measure a person’s success. |
| D．Grades should be taken away at once. |
We can learn Simon Harper _____.
| A．believes in the benefits of good grades |
| B．is concerned about students' creativity |
| C．doesn't work too hard at his studies |
| D．supports students' interests and abilities |
From the second letter, we can infer that Simon Harper is a/an_____.
| A．teacher | B．headmaster | C．student | D．advertiser |
A
| Populations and Land (1987) |
||||
| Area in |
Percent |
Population |
Percent |
|
| Square miles |
Cultivated |
In millions |
forested |
|
| United States |
3615104 |
20 |
243.8 |
28 |
| Canada |
3851792 |
5 |
25.9 |
33 |
| United Kingdom |
94525 |
29 |
56.8 |
9 |
| Australia |
2967896 |
6 |
16.2 |
14 |
| India |
1269340 |
51 |
800.3 |
21 |
| China |
3705390 |
11 |
1062.0 |
14 |
Which two countries are the closest to each other in area?
| A．The US and Canada | B．China and Canada |
| C．The US and China | D．India and China |
_____ has the highest population density(密度), and _____ has the second highest.
| A．China, India | B．India, China |
| C．India , the US | D．China, the US |
Which two countries have the closest percentage of cultivated land?
| A．The US and the United Kingdom. |
| B．The US and China |
| C．Australia and Canada． |
| D．Australia and China |
There are _____ countries whose cultivated land percentage is larger than the forest percentage.
| A．2 | B．3 | C．4 | D．5 |
One day while walking along the bank of a river, a rabbit couple saw a wounded(受伤的) ant lying unconsciously(没有直觉地) on the grass. The rabbit couple gently put the ant on the leaf of a nearby plant. She soon recovered(恢复) and saw the rabbit couple sitting beside her.
The ant remembered that she had found herself under the foot of a cat by chance and fainted(晕倒). She asked how she reached the leaf top. The rabbit couple told her what had happened. The ant thanked them and said she would help them when they needed help.
The rabbit couple went further up the river to enjoy the bright sun. They had been there many times and would spend many hours playing and relaxing in the sun.
One fine day, the couple were again on their way to the river while the ant was playing on the leaf of a tree. She saw the rabbit couple walking towards the river. A few hours later she saw them sleeping peacefully on the soft grass by the river. Suddenly she saw a lion moving towards the grass where the rabbit couple were sleeping. The loin saw the rabbits sleeping, and started walking quietly to attack them.
Realizing the hazard getting close to the rabbits, the ant jumped from the leaf to the lion’s shoulder and bit(咬) the lion’s back. The lion cried out in pain, waking the rabbit couple. The rabbits ran away quickly and the ant jumped off the lion’s back into the grass.
A white pigeon(鸽子) who watched this event cheered at the courage(勇气) of the ant and told the whole story to the rabbits. The rabbit couple were moved and thanked the ant. They became best friends.The underlined word “hazard” in the fifth paragraph probably means “_____”.
| A．reality | B．warning |
| C．experience | D．danger |
According to the passage, which of the following is TRUE?
| A．The ant was hurt by the lion. |
| B．The ant was small but clever. |
| C．The white pigeon was as brave as the ant. |
| D．The lion wanted to play a joke on the rabbit couple. |
According to the passage, which is the correct order of the following events?
a. The ant jumped into the grass to hide.
b. The ant bit the lion’s back.
c. The lion moved towards the rabbit couple.
d. The rabbit couple saved the ant.
e .The ant saw the rabbit couple sleeping on the grass.
| A．d ,c, e ,a, b | B． d, e, c, b, a |
| C．e, c, b, a ,d | D．c, d, e, b, a |
From the first three paragraphs, we can learn that _____.
| A．the rabbit couple put the ant on the leaf of a plant to hide her |
| B．the ant was wounded after fighting with a cat |
| C．the rabbit couple and the ant knew each other very well before |
| D．the rabbit couple often went to the river |
The word “sport” first meant something that people did in their free time. Later it often meant hunting wild animals and birds. About a hundred years ago the word was first used for organized games. This is the usual meaning of the word today. People spend a lot of their spare time playing football, basketball, tennis and many other sports. Such people play because they want to. A few people are paid for the sport they play. These people are called professional sportsmen. They may be sportsmen for only a few years, but during that time the best ones can earn a lot of money. For example, a professional footballer in England earns more than 30,000 dollars a year. The stars earn a lot more. International golf and tennis champions can make more than 500,000 dollars a year. Of course, only a few sportsmen can earn as much money as that.
Perhaps the most surprising thing about sportsmen and money is that the stars can earn more money from advertising than from sports. An advertisement for sports equipment does not simply say “Buy our things”. It says “Buy the same shirt and shoes as …”. Famous sportsmen can even advertise things like watches and food. They allow the companies to use their names or a photograph of them and they are paid for this. Sport is no longer just something for people’s spare time.The word “sport” now usually means ________ .
| A．organized games |
| B．hunting wild animals and birds |
| C．what people do in their spare time |
| D．something people are paid to do |
According to the passage, an international golf champion can make ________ in a year.
| A．more than 500,000 dollars |
| B．more than 30,000 dollars |
| C．500,000 dollars |
| D．30,000 dollars |
What surprises people most is that _______.
| A．the word “sport” meant hunting animals |
| B．the stars get more money from advertising than from sports |
| C．professional sportsmen are paid for what they do |
| D．only a few sportsmen can earn $ 500, 000 a year |
Too many people want others to be their friends, but they don’t give friendship back. That is why some friendships do not last very long. To have a friend, you must learn to be one. You must learn to treat your friend the way you want your friend to treat you. Learning to be a good friend means learning three rules: be honest; be generous; be understanding.
Honesty is where a good friendship starts. Friends must be able to trust one another. If you do not tell the truth, people usually find out. If a friend finds out that you haven’t been honest, you may lose your friend’s trust. Good friends always trust one another to speak and act honestly.
Generosity (大度) means sharing and sharing makes a friendship grow. You do not have to give your lunch money or your clothes of course. Instead you have to learn how to share things you enjoy, like your hobbies and your interest. Naturally you will want to share your ideas and feelings. These can be very valuable to a friend.
Sooner or later everyone needs understanding and help with a problem. Something may go wrong at school. Talking about the problem can make it easier to solve. Turning to a friend can be a first step in solving the problem. So to be a friend you must listen and understand.
No two friendships are ever exactly alike. But all true friendships have three things in common. If you plan to keep your friends, you must practice honesty, generosity, and understanding.Some friendships don’t last very long because ____.
| A．there are too many people who want to make friends |
| B．they don’t know friendship is something serious |
| C．those who give others friendship receive friendship from others |
| D．some people receive friendship but don’t give friendship back |
The best title of this passage is _____.
| A．Honesty is the Best Policy |
| B．A Friend in Need is a Friend Indeed |
| C．Three Important Points in Life |
| D．Three Important Points in Making Friends |
Which of the following isn’t mentioned in the passage?
| A．Always tell your friends the truth. |
| B．Sharing your mind with your friends is of great value. |
| C．Discussing your problems with your friend often helps to solve the problem. |
| D．A friend who gives you his lunch money is a true friend. |
Advertising is a highly developed twentieth-century industry. The development of radio, television, cinema, magazines and newspapers has gone hand in hand with the development of advertising. Why is advertising so popular? Is it a waste of money? It has been proved again and again that repeated advertising increases product sales. Since it increases production, the price can be reduced. Therefore advertising, instead of making a product more expensive, makes it cheaper.
Advertising is now a scientific business. Once managers would say jokingly,“I know thathalf of what I spend on advertising is wasted, but I don’t know which half.”Now, all parts of an advertising program are properly measured and researched.
What makes a good advertisement? There have been major changes in advertising in the pastsixty years. People read advertisements partly for information and partly for pleasure. Today’s advertisements often start with a question, or a puzzle, with the purpose of attracting the reader’s attention. Of course, most advertisements contain information. But this is usually contained in a text that is interesting and often funny. Humor is very important. Sometimes advertisements tell a story, or the story may be continued over a number of advertisements. However, there is a danger in this. It is possible that the reader or viewer will remember the advertisement but not the name ofthe product.The purpose of advertising is ________.
| A．to increase products sales |
| B．to make a product much better |
| C．to spend more money |
| D．to reduce the production |
Which of the following can be used in place of the underlined phrase“ hand in hand”?
| A．Here and there. | B．Again and again. |
| C．As usual. | D．At the same time. |
What is meant by what managers said in the second paragraph?
| A．All the money on advertising was wasted. |
| B．Not all the advertisements were well designed. |
| C．All the managers knew about advertising then. |
| D．Managers spent no money on advertising. |
What does the writer think of advertising?
| A．Useless | B．Unnecessary. |
| C．Important. | D．Wasteful. |