Sarah ran in, shouting, “Look at what I found!” Over the top of the paper I was reading came a terrible thing that caused me to jump. It was a snake skin found in our garden.
“Isn’t it beautiful?” said my seven-year-old daughter.
I opened my eyes widely and looked at the snake skin in fear. I didn’t think it was beautiful, but I learned never to appear nonchalant(冷漠的) with children. Everything they see for the first time is important to their sense of beauty; they see only excellence in the world.
“Why does it do this?” Sarah asked.
“Snakes shed(蜕) their skins because they need to renew themselves,” I explained. “Why do they need torenew themselves?” Sarah asked.
“We often need to shed our skins, those coatings that we cover ourselves with,” I said to my daughter. “We leave some things and find other things unwanted or unnecessary. This snake no longer needs this skin. It is probably too little for him, and he probably doesn’t think he looks as smart in it as he once did.”
As we talked, I knew that she began to understand. Although she couldn’t understand clearly, she would know that renewal is kind of progress; that we need to take a good look at ourselves, our rooms, schoolwork and spirit, and see what we need to keep and what we need to leave. I was careful to tell that this is a natural way, not one to be made to do.
“Snakes don’t peel off their skins when they like them.” I explained. “It happens as a natural thing of their growth.”
“I see, Dad,” said Sarah as she held the snake skin, and then ran off.
I hoped she would remember this; we need to throw some away because they are worthless or unnecessary. Then we can store them as memories in our deep hearts. Father jumped up when her daughter came to him with a snake skin because ＿＿＿＿.
| A．he didn’t want to read any more | B．he was very afraid of it |
| C．he wanted to praised her daughter | D．he hated snakes |
Father’s patient explanation shows that ＿＿＿＿.
| A．his daughter didn’t want to listen to him at all |
| B．he knew children saw only excellence in the world |
| C．his daughter couldn’t follow him at all |
| D．he wanted to teach everything to her |
We learn from the reading that＿＿＿＿.
| A．the girl seemed to understand what her father said |
| B．the girl wasn’t interested in the explanation |
| C．the father was good at keeping snakes |
| D．the father liked the snake skin better |
For most people, the word “fashion” means “clothes”. But people may ask the question, “What clothes are in fashion?” And they use the adjective “fashionable” in the same way: “She was wearing a fashionable coat. His shirt was really a fashionable colour.”
But of course there are fashions in many things, not only in clothes. There are fashions in holidays, in restaurants, in films and books. There are even fashions in school subjects, jobs…and in languages. Fashions change as time goes. If you look at pictures of people or things from the past, you will see that fashions have always changed. An English house of 1750 was different from one of 1650. A fashionable man in 1780 looked very different from his grandson in 1860.
Today fashions change very quickly. Some of this is natural. We hear about things much more quickly than in the past. Newspaper, radios, telephones and television send information from one country to another in a few hours.
New fashions mean that people will buy new things, so you see there is money in fashion.From this passage we know that “fashion” means ______.
| A．clothes |
| B．many things |
| C．most of the popular things |
| D．everything |
Which of the following things is fashionable today?
| A．Surfing on the Internet. |
| B．Having a family dinner on New Year’s Day. |
| C．Learning to sing songs on the radio. |
| D．Doing morning exercises at school. |
Today fashions change very quickly because _______.
| A．people read newspaper every day |
| B．radios send information from one country to another |
| C．new things that people like are often shown on TV |
| D．people quickly learn what is happening in the world |
There is money in fashion” means ______
| A．clothes are expensive |
| B．money comes from fashion |
| C．people will buy new things |
| D．fashions make big money |
The best title for the passage is ______.
| A．Fashions |
| B．Fashion mean clothes |
| C．Fashion means money |
| D．A fashionable colour |
Malls are popular places for Americans to go. Some people spend so much time at malls that they are called "mall rats(老鼠)". Mall rats shop until they drop in the hundreds of stores.
People like malls for many reasons. They feel safe because malls have police stations. Parking is usually free, and the weather inside is always fine. The newest malls have beautiful rest places with waterfalls(瀑布) and large green trees.
The largest mall in the United States is the Mall of America in Minnesota. It covers 4. 2 million square feet(英尺). It has 350 stores, eight nightclubs, and a large park! There are parking spaces for 12,750 cars. About 750,000 people shop there every week.
The first indoor mall in the United States was built in 1965 in Edina Minnesota. People love doing all their shopping in one place. More malls are built around the country. Now malls are like town centers where people come to do many things. They shop, of course, they also eat in food courts(广场) that have food from all over the world. They see films at theaters. Some people even get their exercise by doing the new sport of "mall walking". Others go to malls to meet friends.
In some malls, people can see a doctor and even go to the church. In other words, people can do just about everything in malls. Now people can live in their favorite shopping center in fact.Here "mall" means"__________"
| A．a large park |
| B．a big church |
| C．a square |
| D．a shopping center |
Why do people like malls?
| A．Because they can plant green trees there. |
| B．Because they enjoy the waterfalls there. |
| C．Because they feel safe and comfortable there. |
| D．Because they can do exercise there. |
The largest mall in the United States__________
| A．was built in 1965 |
| B．has 12,750 cars in it |
| C．has 350 shops in it |
| D．can hold 750,000 people |
People can do many things in malls except__________
| A．eating food |
| B．seeing a film |
| C．seeing a doctor |
| D．playing golf |
The writer__________
| A．thinks malls make people's life easier |
| B．likes to live in his favorite malls |
| C．is called "mall rates" by others |
| D．often goes to the church in malls. |
The average American child spends three to five hours a day watching TV. In 1961, the average child began to watch television at age three; however, today it is nine months. Yet, most parents think that television has bad influence on their children. For example, in the early 1970s, my parents believed that my bad eyesight was the result of sitting too close to the screen, and they therefore made my stay at least six feet from it. Today, most people have no such worry, but many new ridiculous (荒谬的) sayings have appeared:
*TV makes kids stupid. Many children watch more educational programs when they are pre-schoolers. When they grow up, they can read more books and have much better ideas to solve difficult problems than other children.
*TV makes kids violent. The real story is not so simple. Hundreds of studies show that watching violence on TV makes children more aggressive (好斗的). But a study of over 5,000 children also finds that some positive programs make children kinder. The problem is that kids are increasingly watching shows with violence（暴力）instead of those suitable for their age.
*Sitting around watching TV makes kids overweight. An experiment finds that when children watch less television, they do lose extra weight; however, reducing their television time does not make them more active. The real problem lies in snacking (吃零食). A widespread habit for kids, and junk-food advertisements.
*TV helps kids get to sleep. The opposite is true. The more television children watch, the more likely they are to have bad sleep habits. Allowing kids to watch television is part of the problem, not the solution.Which one is the advantage（好处） of educational TV programs?
| A．They will make children solve difficult problems better than others. |
| B．they will improve children’s ability to get along with others. |
| C．They are likely to make children more aggressive. |
| D．They will make sure of children’s success in the future. |
Why are children spending much time watching TV likely(可能) to be fat?
| A．Watching TV makes children lazy and inactive. |
| B．Children are attracted by the food advertisement on TV. |
| C．Watching TV doesn’t burn up as much fat as doing sports. |
| D．Children like to snack while watching TV. |
What influence does watching TV have on a child’s sleep?
| A．Children are likely to sleep deeper after watching TV. |
| B．Children’s sleep time will be greatly reduced. |
| C．It will make children form a bad habit of sleeping. |
| D．It will make children sleep easier. |
According to the passage, teenagers often fight because they __________.
| A．might snack too much. |
| B．don’t watch enough educational programs. |
| C．have bad sleep habits. |
| D．often watch shows with violence. |
What is the purpose of this text?
| A．To increase people’s knowledge of watching TV. |
| B．To warn parents of the disadvantages of watching TV. |
| C．To explain the bad influences that watching TV has on children. |
| D．To correct parents’ wrong ideas of television’s effect on children. |
No Car Day was first started by 34 cities in France on September 22，1998．It was started to protect the environment．By now，more than 1,000 cities around the world have had a No Car Day．
The first No Car Day in China was in Chengdu in 2001．Other cities，including Taipei，Shanghai and Wuhan，also support the day．
In Beijing，more and more people are joining the campaign．It asks drivers to leave their cars at home for one day each month and walk or ride a bike to work．It also calls on Beijingers not to use cars on June 5（World Environment Day）．The slogan for the day is，“If we drive for one less day，we can have one more nice day．”
So far，more than 200，000 drivers have shown their support．“We can’t control the weather，but we can choose not to drive，”said Wu Zonghua，a car club chairman．Beijing is trying to have 238 blue sky days this year．In the first quarter of 2012，Beijing only had 52 blue sky days．This was 11 days less than the number for the same period the year before．Much of the dust comes from the desert，but cars cause most of the air pollution．We must do more for No Car Day．The first No Car Day fell on ．
| A．February 2nd |
| B．June 5th |
| C．July 5th |
| D．September 22nd |
was the first city to have No Car Day in China．
| A．Beijing | B．Chengdu |
| C．Shanghai | D．Wuhan |
What does the underlined word“slogan”in Paragraph 3 mean?
| A．目的 | B．原因 |
| C．意义 | D．口号 |
．How many blue sky days did Beijing have in the first quarter of 2011?
| A．63． | B．52． |
| C．41． | D．238． |
Which of the following statements is TRUE?
| A．China is the first country to start No Car Day． |
| B．No Car Day is World Environment Day． |
| C．No Car Day has been supported by over 1，000 cities around the world so far． |
| D．Much of the dust in the air comes from cars． |
Many people believe Henry Ford invented the car. But Henry Ford did not start to build his first car until 1896. That was eleven years after two Germans developed the world's first car. Many people believe Henry Ford invented the production line(生产线) that moved a car's parts(零部件) to the worker, instead of making the worker move to the parts. That is not true, either. Many factory owners used methods of this kind before Ford. What Henry Ford did was to use other people's ideas and make them better. And he made the whole factory a moving production line.
In the early days of the automobile, almost every car maker raced his cars. It was the best way of getting public notice. Henry Ford decided to build a racing car. Ford's most famous race was his first one. It was also the last race in which he drove the car himself.
The race was in 1901, at a field near Detroit. All of the most famous cars had entered, but only two were left: the Winton and Ford. The Winton was famous for its speed. Most people thought the race was over before it began.
The Winton took an early lead. But halfway through the race, it began to lose power. Ford started to gain. And near the end of the race, he took the lead. Ford won the race and defeated the Winton. His name appeared in newspapers and he became wellknown all over the United States. Within weeks of the race, Henry Ford formed a new automobile company. In 1903, a doctor in Detroit bought the first car from the company. That sale was the beginning of Henry Ford's dream. Ford said: “I will build a motor car for most of people. It will be large enough for the family, but small enough for one person to operate and care for. It will be built of the best materials. It will be built by the best men. It will be so low in price that everybody can afford”
The Model T was a car of that kind. It only cost $850. It was a simple machine that drivers could depend on. Doctors bought the Model T. So did farmers. Americans loved the Model T. They wrote stories and songs about it. Thousands of Model T's were built in the first few years.What do we know about Henry Ford from Paragraph 1 ?
| A．He knew how to improve car’s parts. |
| B．He produced the first car in the world. |
| C．He improved others’ good ideas. |
| D．He invented the first production line. |
Why did Henry Ford take part in the 1901 car race?
| A．To show off(炫耀) his driving skills. |
| B．To draw public attention. |
| C．To learn about new technology. |
| D．To raise money for his new company. |
What was Henry Ford's dream according to the text?
| A．Producing cars for common people. |
| B．Building very fast racing cars . |
| C．Designing(设计) more car models. |
| D．Starting more companies. |
Why did Henry Ford become famous all over the United States ?
| A．Because he started a new company. |
| B．Because he built the first car. |
| C．Because his car won the race. |
| D．Because he drove his car so well. |
What can we infer about the car before Model T from the passage ?
| A．The car was not invented until Model T. |
| B．The car was big enough for a whole family. |
| C．The car was very expensive. |
| D．Americans didn’t want cars. |