We have always been interested in the moon. 2, 000 years ago, people already knew it moves around the earth and where it would be in the sky at different times of the year. At that time, everything about the moon was learned by watching it carefully in the sky.
When scientists could use telescopes to study the moon more closely, their ideas began to change. They could see the moon was made of rocks. Most scientists thought moon rocks would be different from those on the earth. This was because they believed the moon had once been a planet that had been caught in the earth’s gravity millions of years earlier.
In 1969, moon rocks were finally brought to the earth and studied. Much to their surprise, scientists found that, except for water, the moon and the earth were made of the same things. Once again new ideas were needed for this new information.
After years of study, most scientists now think that the moon was once part of the earth. They believe very early in its history, maybe 4 billion years ago, something about the size of Mars hit the earth. This sent billions of rocks into space around our planet. These rocks slowly joined together and after many years became the moon.
In the future, even though our ideas about the moon may change again, we will still be interested in it.Before 1969 most scientists thought the moon was _____.
| A．part of the earth billions of years earlier |
| B．older than the earth |
| C．a planet caught by the earth’s gravity |
| D．made of the same things as the earth |
After years of study, most scientists now think _____.
| A．the earth was once part of the moon |
| B．the moon was once part of the earth |
| C．something about the size of Mars will hit earth in the near future |
| D．a lot of rocks will slowly join together to become the other moon |
From this passage we can learn that _____.
| A．scientists in the past were not clever |
| B．scientists are so clever that they know everything |
| C．new information brings new ideas |
| D．we now know everything about the moon |
Saturday was going to be a special day for Sara. It was her birthday. No one had mentioned her birthday so far, and it was already Wednesday. “”, Sara thought to herself.
Sara went to school and told her friend, Jenny, that Saturday was her birthday.
“I know,” said Jenny. “Lynn told all the girls about your birthday.”
“Wow, I didn’t realize everyone knew,” said Sara. Saturday finally came and Sara got up early.
“Good morning, Sara,” said Mum.
“Hi,” said Sara. She looked around, but didn’t see anyone making a fuss over her birthday.
“What are you doing today?” asked Mum.
“Just stay at home,” said Sara, feeling a bit sad. She didn’t want to tell Mum it was her birthday.
“Why don’t you come with me to the Recreation Centre?” asked Mum.
“What will I do there?” asked Sara.
Mum said they needed help with a community project.
That afternoon Sara and her mum went to the Recreation Centre. When they opened the door, people shouted, “SURPRISE!” Sara couldn’t believe it. There were friends from school and her family. She saw Uncle Rick, Aunt Claire, and many cousins along with Grandma Joan. The walls were decorated with colourful balloons. There was a big cake sitting on the table along with many presents. A small band played the songs Sara and her friends liked to dance to.
Sara was called to cut the first piece of her birthday cake. She felt so special. “This is the best birthday I’ve ever had!” said Sara. “Thank you to everyone.”Which of the following can be put in the blank(空白处)?
| A．I won’t want others to know about it |
| B．I don’t want to have a birthday party |
| C．This is the best birthday I’ve ever had |
| D．I guess no one remembers it’s my birthday |
The underlined part “making a fuss over” in Paragraph 7 probably means “”.
| A．caring about | B．giving ups |
| C．joining in | D．paying for |
Sara had her birthday party at .
| A．home | B．school |
| C．the Recreation Centre | D．a music club |
Many people went to Sara’s birthday party EXCEPT .
| A．her friends | B．her mother |
| C．her grandfather | D．her uncle and aunt |
Which is the best title for the passage?
| A．A wonderful childhood memory |
| B．A wonderful birthday present |
| C．A special community project |
| D．A special birthday party |
Captain James Cook was a great explorer. Before he started exploring, maps of the Pacific Ocean were almost empty. He visited hundreds of islands across the Pacific Ocean and put them in the correct places on the map. He made maps of the coastlines of Australia and New Zealand. James Cook was born in England in 1728. His parents were poor farm workers. When James was 18, he found a job on a coastal ship. He worked on the ship until he was 27 years old, and then he joined the navy. He fought in Canada in a war against France, and he mapped some of the eastern coasts of Canada. In 1768, King George made him Captain(船长) of a ship and sent him to the Pacific. He was gone for nearly three years. When he returned, he was regarded as a national hero.
He started his third journey in 1776. On this trip he visited Hawaii. He was the first European to set foot on this beautiful island. Then he mapped the western coast of North America. After that he returned to Hawaii. Unluckily, there was some trouble between the Hawaiians and the white men and they started fighting. In the end, Captain was killed in a fight against the local.In which order did James Cook do the following things?
a. Fought against France.
b. Mapped the western coast of North America.
c. Was made Captain of a ship.
d. Worked on a coastal ship.
| A．a c d b | B．d a c b |
| C．b a d c | D．d c a b |
He started exploring when _______.
| A．he worked on a coastal ship |
| B．he was 18 years old |
| C．he was sent to the Pacific |
| D．he served in the navy |
He was considered a national hero because of _______.
| A．his experience in Canada |
| B．his being the first European to visit Hawaii |
| C．his heroic death |
| D．his devotion to exploration on the Pacific Ocean |
Captain Cook was killed by _______.
| A．his sailors | B．the Hawaiians |
| C．the Canadians | D．the French |
Have you ever wondered why birds sing? Maybe you thought that they were just happy. After all, you probably sing when you are happy.
Some scientists believe that birds do sing some of the time just because they are happy. However, they sing most of the time for a very different reason. Their singing is actually a warning to other birds to stay out of their territory.
Do you know what a “territory” is? A territory is an area that an animal, usually the male animal, considers as its own. Only he and his family are welcome there. No other families of the same species(物种) are welcome. Your yard and house are your territory where only your family and friends are welcome. If a stranger should enter your territory and frighten you, you might shout. Probably this would be enough to frighten him away.
If so, you have actually scared the stranger away without having to fight him. A bird does the same thing. But he expects an outsider almost any time, especially at nesting(筑巢) season. So he is screaming all the time, whether he can see an outsider or not. This screaming is what we call a bird’s song, and it is usually enough to keep an outsider away.
Birds sing loudest in spring when they are trying to attract a mate and warn others not to enter the territory of theirs.
You can see that birds have a language of their own. Most of it has to do with attracting mates and setting up territories.Some scientists believe that most of the time bird’s singing is actually _____________.
| A．an expression of happiness | B．a way of warning |
| C．an expression of anger | D．a way of greeting |
What does the underlined word “territory” mean?
| A．An area which a bird considers to be its own. |
| B．An area for which birds fight against each other. |
| C．A place where a bird may shout at the top of its voice. |
| D．A place where families of other species are not welcome. |
Why do birds keep on singing at nesting season?
| A．Because they want to invite more friends. |
| B．Because they want to find outsiders around. |
| C．Because they want to express their happiness. |
| D．Because their singing helps frighten outsiders away. |
How does the writer explain birds’ singing?
| A．By telling a bird’s story. |
| B．By describing birds’ daily life. |
| C．By reporting experiment results. |
| D．By comparing birds with human beings. |
Lucy and her classmates are discussing about creating a homepage for their class.
Lucy: What should we put on our class homepage?
Jane: I think our class homepage should have daily or weekly news of class activities.
Mathew: What kind of class activities?
Jane: Something like spring outings, class meetings, a school singing competition, etc.
Mathew: We will go for a spring outing next week, won’t we? I can write something about it.
Lucy: Great! What else should our class homepage have?
Mathew: Um… How about photos of students’ artwork, presentations, and outdoor activities?
Lucy: Good idea! But who will take the photos?
Mathew: As I am a fan of photography, I can take the photos.
Jane: I’ve got an idea. As parents always want to know what assignments their kids do in
and after class, we can also post our weekly agenda(计划表), including in-class assignments and homework assignments, on the homepage.
Lucy: And I think I can create a “reading corner” on the class homepage, too. As I am
a bookworm, I can recommend good books to our classmates.
Jane: Great! Let’s get down to work! _____ is interested in taking photos.
| A．Jane | B．Lucy | C．Mathew | D．No one |
_____ can recommend good books to the classmates.
| A．Lucy | B．Mathew |
| C．Jane | D．No one |
A 90-year-old tortoise (乌龟) is going twice its usual speed after being equipped (装备) with a set of wheels. The animal, called Mrs T, was facing a terrible future after losing her two front legs in a mouse attack while she was sleeping in winter, but her owners glued the wheels onto her shell (外壳).
“She’s going double the speed she used to,” said the owner Jude Ryder, “She uses her back legs to push herself along and seems quite happy.”
The 58-year-old owner was surprised when she went to check on her loved pet last month and found her front legs had been eaten in the mouse attack. The local animal doctor tried his best to save Mrs T. But he was afraid that the tortoise would not survive without being mobile. After paying £1,000 for the treatment, Mrs Ryder turned to her son Dale for help. Dale designed the front wheels and used resin (树脂) to add them to the front of the shell. Mrs Ryder said: “She liked them immediately, but she must learn how to turn and stop. She can get a good speed up, much faster than before. Mrs T is still quite young for a tortoise. She could go on for another 50 years. All she needs is a new set of tyres (轮胎) sometimes.”
When Mrs T was sixty years old, she was bought as a pet for Dale, an 8-year-old boy. It liked running happily in Mrs Ryder’s garden in spring and summer. When winter came, Mrs T slept in the garden shelter. A mouse got in last month and chewed (咬) off both her front legs. Mrs Ryder said: “We were afraid she would be sure to die, but her new set of wheels have saved her life. She can run in the garden again and we can always find her because she leaves very strange footprints behind wherever she goes.”
Mice attacking tortoises is not uncommon around us—in 2013 Britain’s oldest tortoise died after a mouse attack. The tortoise called Thomas was 130 when he was bitten at his home in Guernsey. He spent five days on strong antibiotics (抗生素), but the wound became so infected (被感染的) that his owner had no choice but to have him put to sleep. After being equipped with a set of wheels, Mrs T can move by using .
| A．her back legs to push herself |
| B．her front legs to pull herself |
| C．her back wheels to pull herself |
| D．her front wheels to push herself |
According to the passage, Mrs Ryder’s son is about .
| A．8 years old | B．28 years old |
| C．38 years old | D．58 years old |
Which of the following shows the right order of the story?
a. A mouse chewed off Mrs T’s two front legs.
b. Mrs T’s owners glued the wheels onto her shell.
c. Mrs T learned how to turn and stop with equipped wheels.
d. The local animal doctor tried his best to treat Mrs T.
e. Mrs T was bought as a pet for Dale when she was sixty.
| A．e-a-b-c-d | B．a-b-c-d-e |
| C．a-e-b-c-d | D．e-a-d-b-c |
What can we learn from the passage?
| A．Mrs Ryder is able to move much faster than before. |
| B．Tortoises attacking mice is not uncommon around us. |
| C．The animal doctor added the front wheels to the shell. |
| D．Mrs T can go faster after being equipped with wheels. |