Thomas Brodie-Sangster’s cars and action figures weren’t just toys. “They would always be characters, and I would always put on stupid voices,” says Thomas (Born on 16 May 1990). For him, acting was just a matter of moving childhood games to a set.
Maturity and independence came to Thomas early as he started work at ten. After his first audition (试镜), he learned about rejection. Though hurt and disappointed, he took a part in a tiny, unknown TV film in 2001. No one noticed his performance – no one except screenwriter Richard Curtis. Two years later, he played Sam, a twelve-year-old in love in Curtis’s Love Actually. After that hit film, he played actor Colin Firth’s son in Nanny McPhee. Firth then joined a film called The Last Legion and supported Thomas for its lead role. As a result, the boy played Rome’s final ruler in the action-adventure.
At about 16, Thomas had to make a decision. Did he really want to devote his life to acting? Many people in the public “aren’t letting you be you because they see you as something special”, he says. Also, friendship made during filming was often broken soon after the project finished. Despite these things, he found enough joy and satisfaction in the work to continue. Actually, Thomas seems to find joy in difficulty itself. He played 10-year-old Adolf Hitler in a TV movie and a teenage Paul McCartney in Nowhere Boy. The subject of his film Death of a Superhero made it his most challenging film. Still, he found a positive message in its story of a schoolboy with cancer.
Thomas now enjoys roles in Game of Thrones and the upcoming Maze Runner films. Popular as those projects may be, most still recognize him as Sam in Love Actually. Sam seems to run after Thomas, just as he ran through Heathrow airport to his sweetheart.Thomas Brodie-Sangster reached maturity early probably because of ________.
| A．his failure in the first audition |
| B．his starting acting as early as ten |
| C．his being supported by adult actors |
| D．his acting in a tiny unknown TV film |
The underlined word “rejection” in the second paragraph is closest in meaning to ________.
| A．recovery | B．respect |
| C．response | D．refusal |
What can be considered as one of the negative aspects of acting according to Thomas?
| A．Pressure from the public. |
| B．Long-term working friendship. |
| C．Finding joy in difficulty itself. |
| D．Reading scripts and memorizing lines. |
Thomas played the lead role in ________.
| A．Love Actually | B．Games of Thrones |
| C．The Last Region | D．Nanny McPhee |
One is not born able to speak a language．One is born able to make a noise．I have heard babies cry in America and in China．I can’t tell any difference．But when I hear someone from America speak English and hear someone speak Chinese, I can tell you there are a lot of differences.
I believe a common(普遍的) problem with Chinese students’ learning English is that they were not taught to think in English．They have an idea spoken in English and want to translate the idea into Chinese, then they think in Chinese of the proper reply and translate it into English．After a long period of speaking the language, one begins to think in the foreign language naturally．You will learn faster if you begin to think in English at the very beginning of your study．Many students ask me: What can I do to improve my spoken English?
My reply is: The more English you speak, the better English you will speak．There are many things you can do to improve your spoken English．Of course, the best way is to live where English is spoken as a language of the country.The cries of American and Chinese babies are _______.
| A．different | B．the same |
| C．not like each other | D．like each other |
The underlined sentence (in Paragraph 2) means that______.
| A．some teachers didn’t teach students to think in English |
| B．teachers never gave the students the way of learning English |
| C．students didn’t remember the way teachers taught them |
| D．teachers didn’t want their students to think in English |
The underlined word “they” (in Paragraph 2) refers to “_____”.
| A．Chinese students | B．English students |
| C．Chinese teachers | D．English teachers |
According to the article, which of the following is TRUE?
| A．You must think in English all the time. |
| B．You should always translate English into Chinese. |
| C．After speaking English for a long time, you may probably think in English naturally(自然地). |
| D．The best way of learning English is to live in America. |
Before you make friends, you have to decide who you want to be your friends．Most people like to have friends who like to do the same kind of things they do.
The quickest way to make a friend is to smile．When you smile, people think you are friendly and easy to talk to．It may not be easy at first to smile, but remember most people will stay away from a scared or angry looking face.
One easy way to start a conversation with someone is to say something nice about him．Think about how great you feel when someone says something nice to you．Doesn’t it make you want to keep talking to that person?
Ask your new friends questions about themselves．Who’s their favorite singer, where do they live, what do they do after school are all good questions to start a conversation．Make sure you have something to add to the conversation, too．When someone asks you a question, do have an answer for them．There’s nothing that will stop a conversation quicker than a shrug (耸肩) for an answer.
Kids who show an interest in other kids and who are kind and friendly make good friends．Remember, everyone wants to be around people who like to do similar things and people who are nice to them.This passage gives us some advice on _________.
| A．how to make friends |
| B．what kind of person you can make friends with |
| C．how to start a conversation |
| D．the importance of smile |
Most people like to make friends with those______.
| A．who are sad every day. |
| B．who share the same interest |
| C．who are fond of talking |
| D．who say bad things to them |
According to the third paragraph, most people enjoy talking to one _______.
| A．who is always smiling |
| B．who seems to be friendly |
| C．who praises them |
| D．who points out their shortcomings. |
The underlined (划线的)part in this passage means “_______”.
| A．being very proud | B．making no answer |
| C．knowing nothing | D．not hoping to answer |
With the development of society, the choice of food and drinks for children is more diversified(多样化) than ever before．However, every coin has two sides．Many facts suggest that children are overweight and the situation is getting worse, according to the statistics(数据统计)．I feel there are a number of reasons for this.
Some people blame（责怪）the fact that we are surrounded by shops selling unhealthy, fatty foods, such as fried chicken and ice cream, at low prices．This has turned out a whole generation of grown-ups who seldom cook a meal for themselves．If there were fewer of these restaurants then probably children would buy less take-away food.
There is another argument that blames parents for allowing their children to become overweight．I agree to this, because good eating habits begin early in life, long before children start to visit fast food shops．If children are given fried chicken and chocolate rather than healthy food, or are always allowed to choose what they eat, they will go for sweet and salty foods every time, and this will carry on throughout their lives.
There is a third reason for this situation．Children these days take very little exercise．They do not walk to school．When they get home, they sit in front of the television or their computers．Not only is this an unhealthy pastime（消遣）, it also gives them time to eat more unhealthy food．What they need is to go outside and play active games or sports.
The above are the main reasons for this problem, and therefore we have to encourage young people to be more active, as well as guiding them away from fast food shops and bad eating habits.What is suggested by the author to deal with “overweight”?
| A．Blaming the shops selling unhealthy and fatty foods. |
| B．Asking young children to walk to school every day. |
| C．Living an active life and giving up bad eating habits. |
| D．Not watching TV or playing computer games after school. |
Which of the following shows the structure of the whole text?
The author writes the passage to ______________
| A．show people a social problem |
| B．provide facts for government |
| C．advise solutions to a problem |
| D．compare opinions with people |
Finished school for the summer? It’s great to kick back and relax after the school year-and you deserve it! －but it might also be the time to start building that resume(履历) to help you impress the college of your choice．Having a great resume doesn’t just mean getting a summer job; lots of activities can help you stay active and gain valuable experience over the summer months.
| ·Work Getting a job is one of the most practical ways to build your resume and impress colleges, even if working during the school year is not an option（选择）, look out for specific holiday jobs, like residential（寄宿的）summer camps that look for help during the summer months．Any job is good, but working in a leadership position or in an academic area looks particularly good on your resume．The more a job challenges you, the more it builds the skills that colleges and future employers are interested in seeing in applicants(申请者). |
| ·Volunteer Give back to gain resume points．Community service is another great way to gain valuable work and leadership experience．Nonprofit（非利益性） organizations such as soup kitchens and animal shelters are always looking for volunteers, and it shouldn’t be difficult to find a volunteer organization near your home that could use an extra pair of hands for a few hours a week during the summer. |
| ·Travel This may not be a viable（可行的）option for everyone, but if you can afford it, summer travel can be an exciting way to enrich your mind and improve your resume．Visiting and exploring（探索） foreign places will broaden your horizons（视野）, allowing you to expand your awareness of other people and cultures．It’s also a great chance to develop your language skills. |
| ·Take Classes “School” might be the last thing you want after a hard year of studying, but summer school isn’t always a bad thing．Colleges may look kindly upon applicants who take the initiative（主动）to further their education over the summer．There are a variety of options available for high school students wishing to take summer courses, both at their own schools and at local colleges．If your high school offers summer classes, they could be a great way to advance your math or language skills, two areas that are often lacking on students’ college applications．Local community colleges also offer summer courses for high school juniors and seniors that cover a variety of introductory-level topics．They not only look great on your transcript（成绩单）,but also provide a chance to improve your preparations for college and allow you to explore possible career options. |
What is the main benefit of summer activities according to the text?
| A．To enjoy yourself to the full． |
| B．To enrich your resume. |
| C．To develop certain skills． |
| D．To improve your academic performance. |
What is the most practical activity to do during summer vacation?
| A．Getting a job． |
| B．Traveling overseas. |
| C．Doing volunteer work． |
| D．Attending classes. |
According to the text, “soup kitchens and animal shelters” .
| A．are places that you can travel to |
| B．might be included in summer courses |
| C．are recommended（推荐）as part-time jobs for the summer |
| D．can be good volunteer jobs |
Why is “taking classes” recommended in the article?
| A．It only takes a few hours a week． |
| B．It can enrich your career experience. |
| C．It can prepare you for further study． |
| D．It can raise your cultural awareness. |
As children enter their teens, they usually begin to pay more attention to their peers (同龄人) or friends．Peer pressure (压力) can be direct or indirect, but it is almost always present．Learning to deal with peer pressure makes a teen mature (成熟的), and able to get along well with others.
Bad peer pressure is when teens feel pressured to do something that they know is wrong, such as smoking, drinking, or drugs (毒品), and it can remain (保持) with them into adulthood．This is the main reason teens have to learn how to deal with it.
Some of the things you can do to deal with peer pressure include:
● Choose friends who share your values．Good friends use positive (正面的) peer pressure to help you be your best self.
● Keep away from situations where people are doing things you don’t want to do.
● Think about your reasons for doing things．Are they good reasons? Are you being true to yourself and your values?
● Practice ways of saying no, giving excuses if necessary.
● Talk to your parents, or other trusted adults, about the kinds of peer pressure you face, and listen to their advice.
● Let the adults know when you need help to get out of a bad situation, and don’t know what to do about it.
Remember that if just one teen stands up to (对抗) peer pressure, usually others will join him or her．Learning to deal with peer pressure will make you confident and mature.According to the passage, which of the following is true?
| A．Peer pressure includes direct and indirect pressure. |
| B．Peer pressure comes from smoking, drinking and using drugs. |
| C．Teens facing pressure can’t tell right from wrong. |
| D．Teens who face pressure are more mature than those who don’t |
Teens should learn to deal with peer pressure mainly because ______.
| A．it can keep them from making serious mistakes |
| B．it can influence them even when they have grown up |
| C．learning to deal with it can help them get along well with others |
| D．learning to deal with it can make them mature and confident |
According to the passage, teens should ______.
| A．stay away from people who don’t share their values |
| B．have good reasons for anything they do |
| C．say no more often than yes |
| D．ask adults they trust for help |
Which column(专栏) of a magazine may the passage be from?
| A．Social problem． | B．School news． |
| C．For teens． | D．Science. |