A “Gap Year” is a period of time when a student takes a break before going to university. It is often spent travelling or working. It can give young people useful learning experiences and new skills.
Gap years are popular with European and Australian students, but remain less popular in America. However, in recent years, more and more American students are preparing for college by taking a gap year. The advantages of taking a gap year are as follows：
Learn about the World and Yourself
Although you don’t have to go abroad to experience gap years, most gap year students catch the chance to travel abroad. You are able to work out who you are and what you are for. The experiences of different cultures offer you interesting lessons. You can learn more about the world and get to know yourself better.
Face Challenges and Have Fun
A gap year is not only a time to take a vacation, but also a time to face challenges. Gap year students usually work, volunteer or take service projects. You have to learn how to get along in the real world. This process isn’t always easy, but it is an important part of growing up. Only in this way can you enjoy life and have fun.
Save Money and Improve Your College Admission Chances
There’s a common thought that gap years are only for rich students, but it’ s not true. Actually, taking a gap year can save your money. Gap year students often take a part-time job. Besides, at the end of a gap year, students are much more likely to know what to study in college. Clear learning goals ran keep the students working hard instead of wasting time and money playing.
Imagine an admission officer trying to admit (录取) only one between two students. Both of them are excellent and have high grades. However, one student has much practical experience or has volunteered in his vacation. Who do you think the admission officer will choose?A “Gap Year” means ___ in the passage.
| A．going abroad in a year for further education |
| B．travelling around the world in a year |
| C．taking a break before going to a university |
| D．doing a part-time job to make money during a vacation |
Besides having fun, gap year students have to face the .
| A．money | B．information |
| C．vacations | D．challenges |
Having a gap year may make you .
| A．become very rich |
| B．remain less popular |
| C．experience foreign cultures |
| D．have no chance to break |
The last sentence implies(暗含) that will probably be admitted by the admission officer.
| A．either of the two students |
| B．the student with high grades |
| C．neither of the two students |
| D．the student with a gap year experience |
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GONE WITH THE WIND Author: Margaret Mitchell ￥25 (in bookstores) ￥18 (online) Gone With the Wind is a best-seller, which tells a story that happened in the American Civil War(美国内战). Scarlett O’Hara is a woman in the story who is full of energy. She is strong and saves her family but is very selfish at the same time. |
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| A LITTLE PRINCESS Author: Frances Hodgson Burnett ￥18.3 (online) Motherless Sara Crewe was sent home from India to school at Miss Minchin’s. Her father was very rich and she lived a rich and comfortable life. Then her father died and Sara lost everything. She had to learn to do with her changed life. Her strong character made her able to fight successfully against her poverty(贫穷) and the scorn(嘲笑) of her fellows(伙伴). It’s an excellent book with 4 tapes(磁带) for children. |
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PETER PAN Author: J.M Barrie ￥15 (in bookstores) ￥12 (online) It is a children’s story full of imagination and adventures(冒险), which is about Wendy, John, and Michael Darling’s adventures in Never-Never Land with Peter Pan, the boy who would not grow up. The children are happy and lovely. (with 2 tapes) |
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| UNCLE TOM’S CABIN Author: Harriet Beecher Stowe ￥20 (in bookstores) The most famous novel in American history, Uncle Tom’s Cabin talked about the struggle between free states and slave(奴隶) states during the American Civil War and is as powerful today as when it first came out 150 years ago. |
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THE SECRET GARDEN Author: Frances Hodgson Burnett ￥35 (in bookstores)￥30 (online) Mary Lennox, a sickly orphan(孤儿), finds herself in her uncle’s dark house. Why are so many rooms locked? Why is one of the gardens locked? And what is that crying she hears at night? Through the power of hope, friendship, and the magic of nature, the brave girl brings the house and a long-lost garden back to life. |
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All of the following books have children as their main characters except _________.
A. GONE WITH THE WIND
B. A LITTLE PRINCESS
C. PETER PANWe can know from the passage that _________.
A. there are three books with tapes
B. we can buy all of the above books in bookstores
C. two of the above books are written by Frances Hodgson BurnettIf you buy THE SECRET GARDEN and PETER PAN online, you have to pay ______.
A. ￥50 B. ￥42 C. ￥30Mary brings the house and a long-lost garden back to life with the help of ________.
a. the power of hope b. friendship
c. her uncled. nature’s magic
A. b, c, d B. a, c, d C. a, b, dThe passage may be ______.
A. a report B. an advertisement C. a piece of news
Even if you are a good high-jumper, you can jump only about seven feet off the ground. You cannot jump any higher because the earth pulls you hard. The pull of the earth is called gravity.
You can easily find out the pull of the earth. If you weigh yourself, you will know how much gravity is pulling you.
Since there is gravity, water runs down hill. When you throw a ball into the air, it falls back down. Because of gravity, you do not fall off the earth as it whirls (旋转) around.
Then, can we get away from the earth and go far out into space? Now you can do it, because spaceships have been invented. Then spaceship will go so fast that it can escape (逃出) the earth’s gravity and carry you into space.The word “gravity” in the passage means “______”.
A. the pull of everything
B. the pull of the earth
C. the pull of the sunWhich of the following is not because of gravity?
A. Water runs down hill.
B. We can jump high.
C. A ball falls back down to the ground.We can get away from the earth by spaceship because_______.
A. the spaceship goes very fast
B. the earth is far from the space
C. the spaceship is very light
There is a Chinese proverb（谚语）, “I hear and I forget; I see and I remember; I do and I understand.” Do you know it? Maybe you will say, “Sorry, I don’t.” But you will see this proverb on the walls of classroom in an American middle school. Many Americans think it is the truth of learning.
What does this proverb tell us? Practice! When you are learning a text, if you just listen to your teacher and do nothing, you will forget it quickly; if you read it several times, you will remember it; but if you preview the text before class and solve some problems yourself, you will understand it.
When we have formed good study habits, we learn things quickly and remember things easily. Do you sometimes copy other’s homework? It is not good. No matter how difficult the homework is, you must try to do it by yourself and finish it on time. If you practice again and again, nothing will be difficult.
When you are having classes, don’t forget to take notes. Every evening you must take out the notes and review what you have learned today. Before doing homework, do not forget to clean your desks. A clean desk will make you feel comfortable.
A good study habit is the key to success.What does this proverb tell us?
A. Learning is very important.
B. Practice is very important.
C. Previewing is very important.If we form the good study habits, we will______.
A. learn things quickly
B. finish the homework on time
C. feel comfortableThe underlined word “copy” in the third paragraph probably means “______”.
A. 批改 B. 检查 C. 抄袭The author mainly wants to tell us ______.
A. we should learn many Chinese proverbs
B. we should form a good study habit to succeed
C. we should listen to the teacher and do nothing
阅读理解（共20小题；每小题2分，满分40分）
阅读下面短文，从短文后各题所给的A、B、C三个选项中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
A
Elizabeth Blackwell was born in England in 1821, and moved to New York City when she was ten years old. One day she decided that she wanted to become a doctor. That was nearly impossible for a woman in the middle of the nineteenth century. After writing many letters asking for admission(录取) to medical schools, she was finally accepted by a doctor in Philadelphia. She was so determined that she taught school and gave music lessons to get money for the cost of schooling.
In 1849, after graduation from medical school, she decided to further her education in Paris. She wanted to be a surgeon(外科医师) , but a serious eye problem forced her to give up the idea.
Upon returning to the United States, she found it difficult to start her own practice because she was a woman. By 1857 Elizabeth and her sister, also a doctor, along with another woman doctor, managed to open a new hospital, the first for women and children. Besides being the first woman physician and founding her own hospital, she also set up the first medical school for women.When did Elizabeth move to the United States?
A. In 1849. B. In 1821. C. In 1831.What almost destroyed Elizabeth’s chances of becoming a doctor?
A. She was a woman.
B. She couldn’t set up her hospital.
C. She couldn’t graduate from medical school.Elizabeth couldn’t become a surgeon because _______.
A. she didn’t get admitted to medical school
B. she decided to further her education in Paris
C. she had a serious eye problemWhen did Elizabeth move to the United States?
A. In 1849. B. In 1831. C. In 1821.Which of the following is true according to the passage?
A. Elizabeth was the first woman doctor.
B. Elizabeth became the first woman physician.
C. Elizabeth set up the first hospital.
阅读短文，回答问题。（（共5小题，计10分））
Dear Wang Hao,
I want to go to China very much. I think I know something about China, but I know little (少) about Chinese food. I like hamburgers and tomatoes very much. I like noodles and chicken ,too. My parents tell me you eat rice, vegetables and meat every day. Is that right? I don’t like rice. What food can I have in China? Please write to me?
Yours,
PaulWho(write)the letter(信)？_______________________________
What does Paul like?______________________________________
Does Paul like rice?____________________________________
Does he know much about Chinese food?
_______________________________________What does WangHao eat every day? __________________________