Living in a foreign culture can be exciting, but it can also be confusing(令人迷惑的). Some Americans who taught English in other countries recently talked about their experiences.
On her first day in Micronesia(密克罗尼西亚), an island in the Pacific, Lisa thought people weren’t paying any attention to her. It was hot. She went into a store and asked, “Do you have cold drinks? ” The woman there said nothing. Lisa repeated the question. Still the woman said nothing. She later learned that the woman had answered her: She had raised her eyebrows(眉毛), which in Micronesia means “yes”.
Jane remembered an experience she had in Bulgaria(保加利亚), a country in Europe. She went to a restaurant. She asked the waiter, “Do you have cabbage today?” He nodded his head. Jane waited, but the cabbage never came. In that country, a nod means “no”.
Tom had a similar problem when he arrived in India. After explaining something in class, he asked his students if they understood. Some nod and others shake. He thought some students had not understood, so he explained again. When he asked again, they did the same thing. He soon knew that his students did understand. In India, people nod and shake their heads in different ways depending on where they come from. You have to know where a person is from to understand whether they mean “yes” or “no”.These Americans in the passage found that they__________ .
A.should go abroad for vacations |
B.needed to learn foreign languages |
C.should often discuss their experiences |
D.had problems with communication in other countries |
People in Micronesia show “yes” by ________ .
A.nodding heads | B.raising eyebrows | C.shaking heads | D.saying “no” |
Tom misunderstood(误解)his class at first because_______ .
A.he didn’t know much about Indian culture |
B.he didn’t explain everything clearly enough |
C.some students didn’t speak English |
D.he didn’t know where the students came from |
Which of the following is TRUE?
A.In Bulgaria, nodding heads means “no”. |
B.Jane taught English on a Pacific island. |
C.Lisa was trying to buy some cabbage. |
D.In India, only shaking heads means “yes”. |
The passage is mainly about_________ .
A.body language in foreign restaurants |
B.class discussion in Indian schools |
C.different language cultures in different countries |
D.English teaching in other countries |
阅读下面三则广告,回答问题。
Come to Austria(奥地利)! Soll is a village in the mountains in western Austria. And the Post Hotel is clean and not expensive. It is opened by a local family. From the hotel you can see the whole village, the forests and the mountains. Temperatures in summer are usually 20 to 25 in the daytime, but much cooler by evening. |
Enjoy Thailand(泰国)! When you visit Bangkok in Thailand, don’t miss the early morning river boat trip to the Floating(漂浮) just outside the city. There you will find many kinds of fruits and vegetables. And you can pay for them when you sit in your boat. Don’t forget your hat: the sun can be strong and it may be as hot as 40 at noon. |
Visit Hawaii! Maybe the most beautiful place in Hawaii is Kauai. You can visit its long, sandy beaches in the south and west of the island, and mountains and forests in the north, but don’t be surprised if it rains in the centre of the island. Daytime temperatures there are usually around 24 to 26 by the sea, and only a little cooler by late evening. |
The advertisements above are about ______.
A.shopping | B.food | C.travel | D.hotels |
If you go to Bangkok, you can.
A.Climb Mountains |
B.enjoy the scenery of the forests |
C.live in the Post Hotel |
D.buy fruits while sitting in your boat |
_____ is one better way to prevent the strong sunshine in Bangkok
A.Going to the sandy beaches |
B.wearing a hat |
C.Climbing up the mountains |
D.staying in the forests |
Which place will you choose if you want to visit both mountains and beaches?
A.Soll in Austria. | B.Bangkok in Thailand. |
C.the Floating Market. | D.Kauai in Hawaii. |
According to(根据) the advertisements, we know that _______.
A.the hottest travel place is Soll |
B.maybe it often rains in the centre of Kauai |
C.the Floating Market is in the middle of Bangkok |
D.the Post Hotel in Austria is clean but the price is high |
配对阅读。左栏的五位母亲打算为各自的孩子选择一所学校,请在右栏信息中选出符合个人要求的最佳选项。
E. Kip McGrath Do you want your child to succeed at school? We have very good Math and English teachers. We are for children aged 6—16. |
Trains have long been an important form of transportation. Yet they have changed a lot since 1804, when the first train moved at 8 km/hr. Today’s high speed trains can go 300 km/hr or faster. Besides their speed, they have many advantages over other transportation types.
Japan built the world’s first high speed railway. In 1964, Japan’s “Shinkansen” trains started traveling between Osaka and Tokyo at 200 km/hr. Over time, more lines, as well as faster trains, were built.
Korea, England, and the USA, now have their own high speed systems. Taiwan Province’s started running in 2007. Its trains are based on two types of Shinkansen trains. They can carry 989 people and travel from Taipei to Kaohsiung in less than two hours.
These systems are expensive to build, but they have many advantages. For example, they are good for the environment. Trains on the London to Paris line create 1/10 the pollution that planes create. High speed trains are also safer and cleaner than cars.
Super fast trains can even help a country’s economy(经济). They make it easier to travel to faraway places. That helps businesses and land values in those areas. It’s no wonder so many countries are building their own high speed railways.The world’s first high speed trains started traveling at ______.
A.8 km/hr | B.200 km/hr |
C.300 km/hr | D.500 km/hr |
In Taiwan Province, the high speed trains are based on trains from ______.
A.Japan | B.Korea | C.China | D.the USA |
According to the passage, high speed trains ______ than planes.
A.are cheaper | B.are safer and cleaner |
C.make traveling easier | D.cause less pollution |
One of the disadvantages of high speed trains mentioned in this passage is that ______.
A.they are safer than some other transportation types |
B.it costs a lot to build the whole high speed systems |
C.they’re good for a country’s businesses and land values |
D.super fast trains can help a country’s economy(经济) |
The main idea of this passage is that ______.
A.trains are the most popular form of transportation in the world |
B.Japan built the world’s first high speed railway |
C.we should do everything that we can to help the environment |
D.there are a lot of good reasons to build high speed railways |
Questionaire
Read the question and answer YES or NO, then you will find out how good you are.
1. When you don’t understand something, you ask questions.
2. You like listening to older people talk about the past.
3. You think that you can learn something interesting from everyone around you.
4. You are brave enough when you have to talk to people you don’t know. You enjoy reading books about famous people.
5. You always see and talk to different people.
6. You are interested in learning new ways of doing things.
7. You enjoy sharing experiences with friends and learning from people of all ages.
8. You talk a lot about yourself.
9. Even if you are often wrong, you make your own decisions.
10. You hate teaching what you are good at: sports, technology, whatever.
11. Your parents don’ understand you, so you don’t talk to them much.
SCORE NOW: Score 2 points if you answer YES to each of the first 8 questions, and 0 if you choose NO.
Score 2 points if you answer NO to each of the last 4 questions, and 0 if you choose YES.
18-24 You are friendly and open-minded. You make people feel important by listening to what they have to say. You’ll probably succeed in learning all kinds of interesting things. Good for you!
10-16 Remember that every single person you know can teach you something. You will greatly make your life rich and colorful.
0-8 About 400 years ago, a famous writer wrote, “ No man is an island”. This is still true today. Try to be more open and interested in people around you.If you say “YES” to all these questions, you’ll get _____ points.
A.12 | B.16 | C.20 | D.24 |
When you score 22 points, you are _____.
A.shy and nervous | B.silent and serious |
C.open and friendly | D.brave and strong |
The writer thinks you should_____.
A.always see and talks to the same people |
B.make your own decision whenever you want |
C.enjoy teaching what you are good at |
D.talk much about yourselves when possible |
“No man is an island” in the text probably means that______.
A.the famous writer was very clever |
B.everything is the same as 400 years ago |
C.you will feel lonely if on an island |
D.you can not live alone in the world |
The questions are used to test whether you are willing to _____.
A.learn from others | B.help other people |
C.do all by yourself | D.depend on others |
Wu Yifang is a 21-year-old girl from Shantou, China. Now she studies in Britain. One day, when she was taking a train from London to Oxford, she heard loud noises on the train.
Before, the train had been very quiet. Some people were resting while others were reading books or listening to music. Suddenly, a group of Chinese people laughed loudly as they played a game of cards.
“I would usually be very happy to meet people from my own country. But at that moment, I wanted the ground to open up and swallow ( 吞没 ) me.” Zhang said.
As it becomes easier for Chinese people to get visas( 签证) to foreign countries, more and more of them are traveling abroad. However, their bad manners have given them a bad reputation.
A recent U.S. survey of 5,600 people five countries showed that Chinese people are the second worst tourists. The worst are American tourists.
Chinese always talk loudly in places like cafes and museums. They also spit (吐痰 ) and litter whenever they want and jump queues. Some Chinese tourists also like to write or draw pictures on famous buildings. In Singapore, Chinese tourists are fined( 罚款) because they were smoking in Non-smoking areas.
Some people may say that they can do everything that they want because they spend money in the country. In fact, this is not true. Besides enjoying ourselves, we should respect local customs and take care of the environment.
Information Card
The country which Wu Yifang studies in |
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The game that the Chinese people played on the train |
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The thing that gives Chinese tourists bad reputation |
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The worst tourist in those five countries |
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The reason why Chinese tourists were fined in Singapore |