Many people believe that classical music has nothing to do with young people today. However, this issue(问题) frequently causes heated debate.
Some people say that classical music is associated only with old people. For example, if you look at the audience at a classical concert, the majority is over the age of fifty.
Others say it is more popular than we first imagine. Many young people listen to classical music without realizing it. It is often used in films and advertisements. For example, a famous piece of classical music was used as the theme music for the 1990 World Cup. Not many people could have given its name, but millions enjoyed it.
Also, some people point out that young people produce new music based on classical ideas: for example, it is said that rap(说唱) music was invented by a classical musician in 1912, but it is now used by young people in pop music.
However, young people point to the fact that classical music has been outstripped(超越) by technology. To play a classical instrument, such as a violin, you need to study hard and practice for hours. Nowadays, you don’t need to get aching arms from practicing. A teenager can write and make music using a computer program in the comfort of their own bedroom.
A final point to bear in mind is that the term "classical music" is used to refer to a great variety of music, from jazz to pieces for large orchestras. This makes it even more difficult to say whether classical music is relevant（与…相关） to young people.
So, it may be only a minority of young people who play classical instruments, but when it comes to enjoying classical music, it depends on the piece of music. It may be more relevant to young people in the modern world than they realize!
| Title |
Classical Music |
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| Introduction |
The issue of whether classical music is |
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| Opinions |
Evidence |
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| ★ Classical music is associated only with old people. |
☆ |
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| ★ Many young people don’t |
☆ Classical music is often found in films and advertisements. |
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| ★ Classical ideas provide a |
☆ Young people now |
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| ★Technology has put classical music at a |
☆ A young man can write and make music on a computer |
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| ★ “Classical music” can refer to various |
☆ Classical music |
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| Conclusion |
Classical music may still be |
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Directions: Complete the following passage by using ONE word that fits the context.
Because neither she nor her husband smoked, Mrs. Trench was surprised to see cigarette ash on her doorstep as she entered the house. When she opened the living-room door, she was astonished to see a strange man fast 48in an armchair! Taking care not to disturb him, Mrs. Trench left the house at once. She called a taxi and went 49to the police station. When she got there, she lost no time to explain _____50had happened and added that the man 51have got into the house 52an open window. Mrs. Trench returned home 53a police car together with two policemen. But it was too late: the man had disappeared. Hurrying upstairs, she went to her dressing-table. She smiled 54relief when she saw the only thing that man had taken was an imitation diamond necklace that was almost 55!
Many years ago my student asked me the question, "Mrs. Kindred, why do you teach?" Without taking time to reflect, I answered, "Because someday I might say something that might make a difference in someone's life." Even though I was sincere, that wasn't a very good answer and my student didn't let it slide.
"Let me get this straight," he said, "You went to college for four years so you could come here every day because you have the hope that someday you might say something that will influence someone?" He shook his head as if I were crazy and walked away looking confused. I'm one of those people who look back and wish they had said something smart or witty, or swift.
Even though that particular student might no longer wonder why I teach, there are days when I wonder. On those days, I remind myself of the real reasons I teach:
It's in my blood. My mother was my most influential teacher, and she was a 6th grade reading teacher until her death in 1990. She instilled(逐渐灌输) in me a love of reading and the knowledge that education opens doors.
Teaching is a way to make a difference. If you throw a stone in a pond the ripples go on and on until they reach the shore. You can't have ripples without a "stone." Good teachers throw stones that make a positive difference, and that's what I strive to do.
I genuinely love teenagers. I want to share with others what I know and what I have learned through the years. Life is full of ups and downs, and if I can help students avoid some potholes on the road of life, I want to do so. If they'll allow me to celebrate their victories with them, I want to do too.
Teaching isn't for everyone, but I know I made the right career choice.Why did the student continue to ask the question about the writer’s being a teacher?
| A．Because he thought her answer was unbelievable. |
| B．Because the writer was insincere. |
| C．Because the student was naughty. |
| D．Because the answer was difficult to understand. |
What do you think of the writer?
| A．Stupid. | B．Honest. | C．Conservative. | D．Polite. |
According to the text, which of the following is NOT true?
| A．The writer’s mother has the greatest influence on her. |
| B．The writer’s answer made the student confused. |
| C．In the writer’s opinion, some people in the world are unfit to teach. |
| D．The writer annoyed the student who asked the question. |
We can infer from the text that _________.
| A．the writer was also a good teacher in school |
| B．the writer often plays with her students beside a pond |
| C．the writer devotes herself to teaching and her students |
| D．the writer often accompanies the students on their way home |
What’s the main idea of the text?
| A．A student’s silly question. | B．A good teacher who likes students. |
| C．A confused student. | D．The reason why I teach. |
阅读下面短文，按照句子结构的语法性和上下文连贯的要求，在空格处填入一个适当的词或使用括号中词语的正确形式填空，并将答案填写相应位置上。
The most influential book in my life
The Story of My Life by Helen Keller is the most influential book in my life. It __1__ (fill) with courage, struggle and faith throughout. Helen Keller was once in deep despair in her __2__ (child), but finally she decided to overcome her physical defects and live happily. Furthermore, she showed great patience, ___3___ (do) well in her long and hard learning period.
I have learned, above all, three lessons from her story. First, she taught me that often the road to success is to face hardships ___4____ (brave). Maybe you are born under an ill star yet you can stand a better chance ___5___ others. It is therefore important that you screw up your courage ____6____courage is needed. Second, the impairment of part of her senses did not prevent ___7___ from learning. On the contrary, she ___8___ (make) continual efforts to go deeper into the realm of knowledge her fortitude had thus helped her overcome many handicaps. ___9___, she advised that we should make the most of our sense-organs as if we ___10___ (lose) them soon because this way we would observe the world more carefully than ever before.
阅读下面短文，根据所读内容在文后的第76至85小题的空格上填上适当的单词或短语。每空不超过3个单词。
The Gobi is one of the world’s great deserts. The desert basins of the Gobi are bounded(边界限制) by the Altai mountains and the grasslands of Mongolia on the north and by the Tibetan Plateau(青藏高原) to the southwest.
The word Gobi means “desert” in Mongolian. The Gobi is most famous in history as part of the great Mongol empire, and as the area of several important cities along the Silk Road.
The Gobi measures over 1,600 km southwest to northeast and 800 km from north to south. The desert is widest in the west. It covers 1.3 million square kilometers in area, making it one the largest deserts in the world. Much of the Gobi is not sandy but is covered with rock. The desert holds so many animals, such as Gobi bear, the wild camel and the black-tailed gazelle(羚羊), and is sometimes visited by wolves. The Kerulen River is the Gobi’s largest stream. It flows into small salt lakes or disappears into the sand. Nearly all the soil here has been removed by the north-westerly winds. The sand and wind storms are common. The Gobi has cold winters and short, hot summers. The Gobi is crossed by a high way, which links Ulaanbaata with Jining, China.
76
| 77 |
one of the world’s great deserts, the Gobi, 78by the Altai mountains and on the north and by the Tibetan Plateau to the southwest, lies in the northwest of China. |
| 79 |
the word of its name came from Mongolian. It acted 80an important part in the history of great Mongol empire, which was famous for the Silk Road. |
| size |
the west of the desert is widest. It covers1.3 million square kilometers, 81over 1,600 km southwest to northeast and 800 km from north to south. |
| animals |
many animals live on the desert, such as Gobi bear, 82and the black-tailed gazelle, and is sometimes visited by wolves. |
| 83 |
the Gobi 84rock mostly, and the soil has been moved by the north-westerly wind. The largest stream is Kerulen River, which flows into 85at last. The sandstorm, cold winters and short, hot summers are very common. |
阅读下面短文，简要回答问题。
Baloney is a kind of sausage that many Americans eat often. The word also has another meaning in English. It is used to describe something—usually something someone says—that is false or wrong or foolish.
Baloney sausage comes from the name of the Italian city, Bologna. The city is famous for its sausage, a mixture of smoked, spiced meat from cows and pigs. But, boloney sausage does not taste the same as beef or pork alone.
Some language experts think this different taste is responsible for the birth of the expression baloney. Baloney is an idea or statement that is nothing like the truth...in the same way that baloney sausage tastes nothing like the meat that is used to make it.
Baloney is a word often used by politicians to describe the ideas of their opponents.
The expression has been used for years. Fifty years ago, a former governor of New York State, Alfred Smith, criticized some claims by President Franklin Roosevelt about the successes of the Roosevelt administration. Smith said, “No matter how thin you slice it, it is still baloney.”
A similar word has almost the same meaning as baloney. It even sounds almost the same. The word is blarney. It began in Ireland about 1600.
The lord of Blarney castle, near Cork, agreed to surrender the castle to British troops. But he kept making excuses for postponing the surrender. And, he made them sound like very good excuses, “this is just more of the same blarney.”
The Irish castle now is famous for its Blarney stone. Kissing the stone is thought to give a person special powers of speech. One who has kissed the Blarney stone, so the story goes, can speak words of praise so smoothly and sweetly that you believe them, even when you know they are false.
73.Find in the passage a word closest in meaning to the underlined word “baloney”.
74.According to Americans, what does baloney refer to? (回答词数不超过8个)
75.What do you know about the lord of Blarney castle, near Cork? (回答词数不超过6个)