Today, nearly 400 animals are listed as threatened or endangered animals in the United States. Many are at risk of becoming extinct or disappearing permanently. Unless efforts to save these vulnerable(易受攻击的) animals succeed, many of the country's greatest creatures will be lost forever. From the facts listed, guess which animals are endangered. Click on the picture to find out more about each of these animals in trouble.
American Crocodile
●American crocodiles are about 12 feet long. They live on land and in shallow water, swamps and marshes.
●American crocodiles like to float in the water with only their eyes and noses above the water surface.
●American crocodiles eat mostly small animals, which they grab with their strong jaws and sharp teeth.
●American crocodiles lay eggs. They hide their eggs under twigs and leaves, or bury them in the sand.
●Some crocodiles help their young hatch, and then carry them to the water in their mouth.
Habitat
Southern Florida, Mexico, Central and South American, Caribbean islands.
Why It's Endangered
Overhunted for its skin and habitat destruction.
Peninsular Bighorn Sheep
●Bighorn sheep can weigh as much as 280 pounds and stand about 3 feet tall.
●They live in dry, desert mountain ranges, near rocky cliffs.
●Bighorn sheep eat grass, twigs and leaves.
●Male sheep are called rams and can be recognized by their huge, brown horns. The horns curl back over the ears, down，and up past the cheeks.
●They live in herds or groups. The male sheep with the biggest horns are usually in charge. Male horns can weigh as much as 30 pounds.
●Males will use their massive horns to fight. The fights can last as long as 24 hours.
●Females are called ewes. They are smaller than rams and have shorter, smaller horns.
Habitat
Nevada and California to west Texas and south into Mexico.
Why It's Endangered
Loss of habitat, hunting illegally, drought and disease.Where can the article be found according to the passage?
| A．Newspaper. | B．Website. |
| C．Student book. | D．Magazine. |
Which of the following is NOT true according to the description about American crocodiles?
| A．American crocodiles live on land and in swamps and marshes. |
| B．American crocodiles hide their eggs under leaves, or bury them in the sand. |
| C．American crocodiles grab small animals with their strong jaws and sharp teeth. |
| D．American crocodiles like to float with their eyes and nose below the water surface. |
Where can we find both American crocodiles and Bighorn sheep according to the passage?
| A．Southern Florida. | B．California. |
| C．Mexico. | D．West Texas. |
Rams make use of their massive horns to ________.
| A．master the herds | B．show their beauty |
| C．fight with others | D．hunt for food |
What can be the best title?
| A．Animals in Danger |
| B．American Crocodile |
| C．Peninsular Bighorn Sheep |
| D．How to Save Animals in Danger |
What is the hottest topic at your school recently? In Hangzhou Yongjin Middle School, it’s money. The school held an activity called “making money” last weekend. About 200 students of Senior 1 and Senior 2 were divided into 30 teams. They went out to make money by selling things. What did they choose to sell? Some sold newspapers; some chose bottled water; some sold environmentally friendly shopping bags and bamboo(竹子) baskets.
Hu Qing’s team decided to sell some useful books in front of the Children Activity Center. They thought parents would like to buy the books for their children. But unfortunately, they met urban management officers (城管). The officers asked them to leave. “We played hide-and-seek (捉迷藏) with the officers for the whole morning” said Hu. “Finally we had to give up.”
Wang Bing and her team sold ice cream in a square. They didn’t meet any officers. But few people were interested in what they were selling. The team then put up a board saying “For Country Kids”. It worked. More people came to their stall (小摊). A foreigner even gave them 100 yuan. “He didn’t want any change. He said he wanted to help the children,” said Wang. “We were touched.” Later that day they gave the 100 yuan and more to the “Project Hope” office.
Meng Zhaoxiang and his team were luckier. They sold all their cakes in four hours, spending 39.5 yuan and getting back 80 yuan. They made 40.5 yuan. “It was not easy to make the money,” said Meng. “Some people just looked. Others just tasted but didn’t buy. Now I know how hard it is for our parents to make money.”
86. In Hangzhou Yongjin Middle School, what the students talk more about is ________.
| A．the officers | B．the kind foreigner |
| C．the activity called “making money” | D．the money they made last weekend |
87. ________ took part in the activity.
| A．All the students | B．Some teachers |
| C．About 200 students of the three grades | D．Part of Junior 1 and Junior 2 students |
88. Hu Qing’s team finally gave up because ________.
| A．the parents didn’t like to buy the books |
| B．the Children Activity Center was too crowded |
| C．the officers didn’t allow them to sell anything there |
| D．the team played the game of the hide-and-seek the whole morning |
89. Why did more people come to Wang Bing’s stall at last?
| A．The team put up a magic board. | B．A foreigner came up and helped them. |
| C．The people liked to help country kids. | |
| D．The people were interested in their ice cream. |
90. According to the passage the students learn ________.
| A．it’s impossible for them to make money |
| B．it’s not easy for their parents to make money |
| C．it’s very important for them to make a living |
| D．it’s necessary for school to hold more activities in the future |
You speak, write a letter, make a telephone. Your words carry a message. People communicate（交际）with words. Do you think you can communicate without words? A smile on your face shows you are happy or friendly. Tears（眼泪）in your eyes tell others that you are sad.
When you put up your hands in class, the teacher knows you want to say something or ask questions. You shake（摇）your head, and people know you are saying "No". You nod（点头）and people know you are saying "Yes". Other things can also carry messages. For example, a sign at the bus helps you to know which bus to take. A sign on the door helps you where to go in or out. Have you ever thought that there are a lot of signs around you and that you receive messages from them all the time? People can communicate in many other ways. An artist can use his drawing to tell beautiful mountains, about the blue sea and many other things. Books are written to tell about all the wonderful things in the world and also about people and their ideas. Books, magazines（杂志）, TV, radio and films all help us communicate with others. They can help us to know what is going on in the world and what other people are thinking about.
81. People communicate ________.
| A．with words only | B．in many different ways |
| C．in letters and drawings | D．with smiles, tears and hands |
82. Signs can carry as many _________ as words.
| A．questions | B．examples | C．tears and smiles | D．messages |
83. Which of the following is not talked in the passage as ways of communication?
| A．books and magazines | B．TV and films | C．newspapers | D．radio |
84. Which of the following statements is WRONG ?.
| A．Communication helps us to learn what is happening in the world. |
| B．Communication helps us to understand other people better.. |
| C．A sign is also a way of communication.. |
| D．If you can’t speak, you can’t communicate.. |
85. The best title（题目）for this short passage is _________.
| A．Signs Carry Messages | B．The important Communication |
| C．Words, Signs and Drawing. Ways of Communication. | |
| D．We can only improve our listening skills step by step. |
Learners of English, especially self-taught learners may have trouble in understanding the speeches made by native speakers. The following ways might help improve your listening skills.
First of all, do things step by step. It is not good to listen to something beyond your level. Better choose a suitable course and start with the first book. Don’t go on to the second book until you are sure you understand the first one.
Secondly, keep studying one course. Don’t change books often. Never let your attention be attracted by another course just because it seems to be more popular.
Thirdly, listen to the English news over the radio from time to time. Better look through the news stories in Chinese-language newspapers first. That will make it easier for you to understand the English news on the radio.
Fourthly, if you have time, listen to some interesting stories in Special English from the V.O.A or other listening materials of the same level as those of your textbook.
76. What does the passage mainly talk about?
| A．How to speak English correctly. | B．How to read fast. |
| C．How to improve your writing skills. | D．How to improve your listening skills. |
77. What does the underlined part “beyond your level” mean?
| A．Easy for you. | B．Too difficult for you. |
| C．Just all right for you. | D．Neither difficult nor easy for you. |
78. What should you do if you want to understand the English news on the radio?
A. Practise speaking very often.
B. Read the news stories in Chinese-language newspapers first.
C. Listen to some interesting stories in Special English from the V,O.A.
D. Ask others to explain it to you.
79. How many pieces of advice does the writer give?
| A．Four | B．Three. | C．Two. | D．Many. |
80. Which of the following is NOT right?
| A．English learners may have difficulty in understanding native English. |
| B．To improve our listening skills, we should choose popular courses from time to time. |
| C．Chinese-language newspapers are good for us to understand the English news on the radio.. |
| D．We can only improve our listening skills step by step. |
School uniforms are becoming more and more popular around the USA. That’s no surprise, because they have many benefits. They end the powerful social labeling（有力的社会标记）that comes from clothing. If all the students are dressed in the same way, they will not pay too much attention to their clothing and some of them will not be laughed at for wearing “wrong” clothes.
Some people are against the strict rule of school uniforms, but they don’t realize that students already accept a kind of rule--- wanting to look like just their friends. For students, the school uniforms remind them that their main task in school is to get education. Some parents are unhappy with uniforms, saying that school uniforms will affect their children’s “creativity”.
However, school uniforms that students wear don’t necessarily show their individuality (个性). And also the students have the rest days of the week to be as creative as they like. While they are in school, their jobs are to learn reading, writing, math and so on. Mastery (掌握) of those skills will be good for students to build up their creativity in every way.
71. The underlined word “benefits” means “___________” in Chinese.
| A．好处 | B．信息 | C．差异 | D．特征 |
72. From the passage, we can learn that school uniforms can _______________.
| A．make students laugh at others. | B．show students’ individuality. |
| C．help students keep their task in mind. | D．reduce parents’ economy pressure. |
73. The students’ main task at school is to ____________.
| A．study with their friends. | B．get education |
| C．learn English well. | D．make friends as many as possible. |
74. Some parents are unhappy about school uniforms because they ___________.
| A．don’t like school uniforms. |
| B．wouldn’t like to pay for school uniforms. |
| C．think that uniforms will affect students’ creativity. |
| D．students’ uniforms don’t look good. |
75. We can infer that students need to wear school uniforms __________.
| A．on weekdays | B．on weekend | C．in holiday | D．everyday. |
Bernice Gallego sat down one day this summer, as she does pretty much every day,and began listing items on eBay. She dug into a box and pulled out a baseball card. She stopped for a moment and admired the picture. “Red Stocking B. B. Club of Cincinnatti,” the card read, under the reddish brown color photo of ten men with their socks pulled up to their knees.
As a collector and seller, it’s her job to spot old items that might have value today. It’s what Bernice,72, and her husband, Al Gallego, 80, have been doing since 1974 at their California antique store.
This card, she figured, was worth selling on eBay. She took a picture, wrote a description and put it up for auction.She put a $10 price tag on it, deciding against $15 because it would have cost her an extra 20 cents. Later that night she got a few odd inquiries---someone wanting to know whether the card was real, someone wanting her to end the caution and sell him the card immediately.
The card is actually 139 years old. Sports card collectors call the find “extremely rare” and estimate the card could fetch five, or perhaps, six figures at caution.
Just like that, Bernice is the least likely character ever for a rare-baseball card story. “I didn’t even know baseball existed that far back,” Gallego says, “I don’t think that I’ve ever been to a baseball game.” The theory is that the card came out of a storage space they bought a few years back. It is not uncommon in their line of work to buy the entire contents of storage units for around $200.
When she met with card trader Rick Mirigian, she found out what the card was-----an 1869 advertisement with a picture of the first professional baseball team, the Cincinnatti Red Stocking.
“When I came to meet her and she took it out of a sandwich bag and she was smoking a cigarette, I almost fainted,” Mirigian says. “ They’ve uncovered a piece of history that few people will ever be able to imagine. That card is history. It’s like unearthing a Mona Lisa or a Picasso.”
67. What can we conclude from paragraph 3?
| A．Bernice had to pay some fees for her card on eBay. |
| B．Bernice wanted to end the caution that night. |
| C．Bernice decided to sell the card for $15. |
| D．eBay charged her 20 cents for the card. |
68. The underlined word “fetch” in paragraph 4 most probably means “_______”.
| A．go and bring | B．add up to | C．go down to | D．be sold for |
69. From the passage we may learn that _______.
| A．Bernice is a baseball fan |
| B．Bernice is the last person to purchase the rare-baseball card |
| C．Bernice unexpectedly became the owner of the rare-baseball card |
| D．Bernice didn’t realize the value of the card until she put it up for auction |
70. What would be the best title for the passage?
| A．A Surprisingly Valuable Discovery |
| B．The History of the Baseball Card |
| C．Bernice Gallego---A lucky collector |
| D．Sports Card Collectors |