Five boys are suspected of starting a fire that destroyed their school on the eve of the new term. Police said yesterday that five boys — one aged 11, two 12-year-olds, one aged 13 and one 15 — arrested on suspicion of starting the fire had been released until later this month. Parents said the five pupils all attended St Mary’s.
Pupils witnessed their schoolwork being destroyed in the fire at Leyland St Mary’s Catholic Technology College in Lancashire. The 1950s science block was reduced to the ground in Sunday’s fire, which created clouds of smoke visible for miles. It is reported that the library and sports hall were also destroyed beyond repair. Strong winds and a shortage of water prevented 125 firemen trying to bring it under control. Firefighters were expected to remain at the scene until late this afternoon. Staffs were due to attend the school yesterday for an inset(培训)day, and pupils pupils were to return for lessons after the holidays today.
St Mary’s head teacher Kathy McNicholas fought back the tears as she watched her school go up in flames last night. She said, “This is so upsetting to watch. It’s heartbreaking. It’s very distressing for the staff and the children. Everyone had been looking forward to coming back for the new school year.” Finding somewhere around 730 children won’t be easy. A few of the staff have turned up to see if there is anything they can do and they have all been shocked and saddened by what has happened. “It’s tragic because we have only just had a lot of refreshment work done to the school during the summer break. It was a big investment. The community around here very much looks after its school.”
Plans were being drawn up to provide alternative classrooms for 730 children, with parents warned to keep them at home for at least the rest of the week. Which part of St Mary’s Catholic Technology College was burned to the ground in the fire?
| A．The library. | B．Sports hall. |
| C．The science block. | D．The passage doesn’t tell us. |
The underlined word “distressing” in the third paragraph can be replaced by “ ”.
| A．excited | B．surprised |
| C．annoyed | D．embarrassed |
From the whole passage, we can know that .
| A．the education of England is worse |
| B．St Mary’s Catholic Technology College had no trouble finding enough classrooms |
| C．a shortage of money prevented more than 100 firemen controlling the big fire |
| D．the pupils had to stay at home before the alternative classrooms were found |
What’s the main idea of the passage?
| A．Five boys started a fire that destroyed their school. |
| B．The firemen failed in controlling the fire. |
| C．The staff and the children were upset. |
| D．The school planned to take measures to solve the problem. |
Astronauts on shorter shuttle missions often work very long days. Tasks are scheduled so tightly that break times are often used to finish the day's work. This type of schedule is far too demanding for long missions on the International Space Station (ISS). ISS crewmembers usually live in space for at least a quarter of a year. They work five days on and two days off to mimic the normal way they do things on Earth as much as possible. Weekends give the crew valuable time to rest and do a few hours of housework. They can communicate with family and friends by email, internet phone and through private video conferences.
While astronauts cannot go to a baseball game or a movie in orbit, there are many familiar activities that they can still enjoy. Before a mission, the family and friends of each ISS crewmember put together a collection of family photos, messages, videos and reading material for the astronauts to look at when they will be floating 370 kilometers above the Earth. During their mission, the crew also receives care packages with CDs, books, magazines, photos and letters. And as from early 2010, the internet became available on the ISS, giving astronauts the chance to do some "web surfing" in their personal time. Besides relaxing with these more common entertainments, astronauts can simply enjoy the experience of living in space.
Many astronauts say that one of the most relaxing things to do in space is to look out the window and stare at the universe and the Earth. Both the shuttle and the ISS circle the planet several times each day, and every moment offers a new view of the Earth's vast land mass and oceans.What does the word "mimic" in Paragraph 1 probably mean?
| A．copy | B．find | C．change | D．lose |
Which of the following best describes the families of the astronauts on the ISS?
| A．They are impatient and annoyed. | B．They are worried and upset. |
| C．They are caring and thoughtful. | D．They are excited and curious. |
In the final paragraph, the author shows that astronauts ________.
| A．love to see the Earth from space | B．find living in space a bit boring and tiring |
| C．regard space life as common | D．get more pleasure in space than on the Earth |
The passage mainly discusses how astronauts ________.
| A．work for longer missions in space | B．spend their free time in space |
| C．observe the Earth from space | D．connect with people on the Earth |
If you do not use your arms or your legs for some time, they become weak; when you start using them again, they slowly become strong again. Everybody knows that. Yet many people do not seem to know that memory works in the same way.
When someone says that he has a good memory, he really means that he keeps his memory in practice by using it. When someone else says that his memory is poor, he really means that he does not give it enough chance to become strong.
If a friend says that his arms and legs are weak, we know that it is his fault. But if he tells us that he has a poor memory, many of us think that his parents are to blame, and few of us know that it is just his own fault.
Have you ever found that some people can't read or write but they have better memories? This is because they cannot read or write and they have to remember things; they cannot write them down in a little notebook. They have to remember days, names, songs and stories; so their memory is the whole time being exercised.
So if you want to have a good memory, learn from the people: practise remembering.If you do not use your arms or legs for some time, ______.
| A．you can't use them any more |
| B．they will become stronger |
| C．they become weak but they slowly become strong again |
| D．they become weak and won't become strong until you use them again |
Some people can't read or write, but they usually have better memories, because ______.
| A．they can't write everything in a little notebook |
| B．they have to use their memories all the time |
| C．they have saved much trouble |
| D．they have saved much time to remember things |
The main reason for one's poor memory is that ______
| A．he does not use his arms or legs for some time | B．he can't read or write |
| C．his father or mother may have a poor memory | D．his memory is not often used |
Give the best title for this passage.
| A．How To Have A Good Memory | B．Don't Stop Using Your Arms Or Legs |
| C．Strong Arms And Good Memories | D．Learn From The People |
It was a winter morning, just a couple of weeks before Christmas 2005. While most people were warming up their cars, Trevor, my husband， had to get up early to ride his bike four kilometers away from home to work. On arrival, he parked his bike outside the back door as he usually does. After putting in 10 hours of labor, he returned to find his bike gone.
The bike， a black Kona 18 speed， was our only transport. Trevor used it to get to work， putting in 60-hour weeks to support his young family. And the bike was also used to get groceries(食品杂货)， saving us from having to walk along long distances from where we live.
I was so sad that someone would steal our bike that I wrote to the newspaper and told them our story. Shortly after that, several people in our area offered to help. One wonderful stranger even bought a bike, then called my husband to pick it up. Once again my husband had a way to get to and from his job. It really is an honor that a complete stranger would go out of their way for someone they have never met before.
People say that a smile can be passed from one person to another, but acts of kindness from strangers are even more so. This experience has had a spreading effect in our lives because it strengthened our faith in humanity(人性) as a whole. And it has influenced us to be more mindful of ways we, too, can share with others. No matter how big or how small, an act of kindness shows that someone cares. And the results can be everlasting.Why was the bike so important to the couple？
| A．They used it for work and daily life. |
| B．It was their only possession(财产). |
| C．It was a nice Kona 18 speed. |
| D．The man‘s job was bike racing. |
We can infer from the passage that __________.
| A．the couple worked 60 hours a week |
| B．people were busy before Christmas |
| C．the stranger brought over the bike |
| D．life was hard for the young family |
How did people get to know the couple’s problem？
| A．From a stranger. |
| B．From a newspaper. |
| C．From TV news |
| D．From radio broadcasts. |
What do the couple learn from their experience？
| A．Strangers are usually of little help. |
| B．One should take care of their bike. |
| C．News reports make people famous. |
| D．An act of kindness can mean a lot. |
From this story, we can see humanity is __________.
| A．selfish |
| B．commercial |
| C．kind |
| D．cold-hearted |
The evidence for harmony(和谐) may not be obvious in some families. But it seems that four out of five young people now get on with their parents, which is the opposite of the popularly-held image （形象）of unhappy teenagers locked in their room after endless family quarrels.
An important new study into teenage attitudes surprisingly shows that their family life is more harmonious than it had ever been in the past.“We were surprised by just how positive(肯定的) today’s young people seem to be about their families,” said one number of the research team.“They’re expected to be rebellious(叛逆的) and selfish but actually they have other things on their minds：they want a car and material goods，and they worry about whether school is serving them well. There’s more negotiation(商议) and discussion between parents and children，and children expect to take part in the family decision-making process. They don’t want to rock the boat(捣乱).”
So it seems that this generation of parents is much more likely than parents of 30 years ago to treat their children as friends. “My parents are happy to discuss things with me and willing to listen to me,” says 17-year-old Daniel Lazall. “I always tell them when I‘m going out clubbing. As long as they know what I’m doing， they’re fine with me.” Susan Crome, who is now 21, agrees. “Looking back on the last 10 years， there was a lot of what you could call negotiation. For example, as long as I’d done all my homework, could go out on a Saturday night. But I think my grandparents were a lot stricter with my parents than that.”
Maybe this positive view of family life should not be unexpected. It is possible that the idea of teenage rebellion is not rooted in real facts. A researcher comments(评论),“Our surprise that teenagers say they get along well with their parents comes because of a brief period in our social history when teenagers were regarded as different beings. But that idea of rebelling and breaking away from their parents really only happened during that one time in the 1960s when everyone rebelled. The normal situation throughout history has been a smooth change from helping out with the family business to taking it over. ”What is the popular images of the teenager today？
| A．They worry about school. |
| B．They dislike living with their parents. |
| C．They have to be locked in to avoid troubles. |
| D．They quarrel a lot with other family members. |
The study shows that teenagers don’t want to __________.
| A．share family responsibility |
| B．cause trouble in their families |
| C．go boating with their family |
| D．make family decisions |
Compared with parents of 30 years ago, today’s parents ____________.
| A．go to clubs more often with their children |
| B．are much stricter with their children |
| C．care less about their children’s life |
| D．give their children more freedom |
According to the writer, teenage rebellion __________.
| A．may be a false belief |
| B．is common nowadays |
| C．existed only in the 1960s |
| D．resulted from changes in families |
What is the passage mainly about？
| A．Negotiation in family. |
| B．Education in family. |
| C．Harmony in family. |
| D．Teenage trouble in family. |
When I met him，I had a lot of anger inside me. I’ve lived my whole life in Spanish Harlem， but in my neighborhood，there are shoot-ups all the time. I know kids who have been shot or beaten up. I have friends who ended up in prison. I could have ended up that way，too，but Mr. Clark wouldn’t let that happen.
Mr. Clark worked long hours，making sure I did my work. My grades rose. In fact，the scores of our whole class rose. One day，he took our class to see The Phantom of the Opera，and it was the first time some kids had ever been out of Harlem. Before the show，he treated us to dinner at a restaurant and taught us not to talk with our mouths full. We did not want to let him down.
Mr. Clark was selected as Disney’s 2000 Teacher of the Year. He said he would draw three names out of a hat；those students would go with him to Los Angles to get the award. But when the time came to draw names，Mr. Clark said,“You’re all going.”
On graduation day，there were a lot of tears. We didn’t want his class to end. In 2001，he moved to Atlanta, but he always kept in touch. He started giving lectures about education，and wrote a bestsell -ing book based on his classroom rules，The Essential 55. In 2003，Mr. Clark took some of us on a trip to South Africa to deliver school supplies and visit orphanages(孤儿院). It was the most amazing experience of my life. It’s now my dream to one day start a group of women’s clubs, helping people from all backgrounds.Without Mr. Clark，the writer _________.
| A．might have put into prison |
| B．might not have won the prize |
| C．might have joined a women’s club |
| D．might not have moved to Atlanta |
The Essential 55 is ___________.
| A．a show |
| B．a speech |
| C．a classroom rule |
| D．a book |
How many students’ names were finally drawn out of a hat by Mr. Clark？
| A．None |
| B．Three |
| C．Fifty-five |
| D．All |
In the passage, the writer intends to tell us that ___________.
| A．Mr. Clark went to South Africa because he liked traveling |
| B．Mr. Clark helped to set up a group of women’s clubs |
| C．a good teacher can raise his or her students’ score |
| D．a good teacher has a good influence on his or her students |
What is the writer’s attitude towards Mr. Clark？
| A．He speaks highly of Mr. Clark. |
| B．He looks down upon Mr. Clark. |
| C．He doesn’t show his attitude towards Mr. Clark. |
| D．He takes a neutral(中立的) attitude towards Mr. Clark. |