I started learning English when I was 6 years old. For 8 years I have learned English in the way everybody else did—by going to English classes. It was useless. I did everything that the teachers told me to do. But I didn’t get any results. I mean, I was always one of the best students in class. However, it took me a long time to read English texts. I made lots of mistakes when writing, and my pronunciation was bad, and I could only speak English very slowly. After my eight years of studying hard, these were the results.
In 2003, I went to the best high school in Wroclaw. It was a special school with a lot of English classes. I owe(感激) a lot to the people I met there, both students and teachers. My first two years in high school were very important for my English. My English teacher, Mr Janusz Laskosz, gave me a lot of good advice, especially on pronunciation and vocabulary. My talented friends, Wojtek and Michael Ryszard, who are my partners now, were both fantastic English learners. What’s more, every time I heard them speak, they seemed to have a bigger vocabulary（词汇）. I wanted to be as good as them, so I studied harder. And my English improved. Wojtek and Michael also introduced me to SuperMemo, which has been very important in my life. And, of course, I could discuss the English language with them, which was a great thing.The writer studied hard at English in the first eight years, _________.
| A．but he was still not good at it |
| B．and then he could read English articles very quickly |
| C．so his pronunciation was quite good |
| D．and then he invented an effective way to learn it |
The writer made great progress in learning English _________.
| A．after he read many English texts |
| B．because he spoke English very slowly |
| C．even before he went to the high school in Wroclaw |
| D．because of his English teacher, his friends Wojtek and Michael |
We can learn from the passage that _________ could help people learn English better.
| A．good texts |
| B．beautiful environment |
| C．studying harder alone |
| D．good teachers and friends |
The best title for the passage is “_________”.
| A．How to make friends | B．How I learn English |
| C．My good English teacher | D．My high school |
【2012年上海】
Dear Disney,
Last weekend, the four members of my family spent an enjoyable holiday at the Magic Kingdom - Disneyland. And one event made our visit seem truly magical. We got to the front of the line at Space Mountain, only to find out that our little daughter Gloria couldn't take her ice-cream on the ride. We were so excited that we all forgot ice-cream was not allowed on the ride.
Gloria broke into tears and we all had no idea what to do. Then Murphy, one of the staff(员工) members, came over. She bent down and told Gloria that she would hold the ice-cream for her and give it to her when she finished the ride. Gloria said, "Promise?" Then she gave Murphy her ice-cream, and she completely enjoyed the ride.
Sure enough, as we walked out the exit, there was Gloria's new friend with "her" ice-cream. Now you and I both know what happened, because we know that an ice-cream won't last twenty minutes on a summer afternoon in Florida. Murphy knew' what time we would get off the ride; she went to the nearest shop and bought a brand-new ice-cream thirty seconds before we walked out the exit. Gloria said, "Thank you," but I'm sure she thought it was the same ice-cream.
We know that someone tried hard to make our visit special. Thanks so much for going above and beyond!
Your fan,
Carmen RiveraThe family's visit to the Magic Kingdom was ________.
| A．helpful | B．awful |
| C．frightening | D．amazing |
Before the ride, Gloria cried because _________.
| A．she couldn't find her parents in the line |
| B．she was too little to take the ride |
| C．she couldn't take her ice-cream on the ride |
| D．she had to wait for twenty minutes |
Murphy was waiting for Gloria ___________ after the ride.
| A．in the ice-cream shop |
| B．at the exit |
| C．in the front of the line |
| D．at the entrance |
In order to keep the promise, Murphy __________.
| A．took Gloria to the nearest shop |
| B．asked her new friend to help Gloria |
| C．helped Gloria get off the ride |
| D．bought a new ice-cream for Gloria |
The underlined word "someone" in the last paragraph refers to (指的是) _________.
| A．Murphy | B．Disney |
| C．Gloria | D．Carmen |
Carmen Rivera wrote the letter to __________.
| A．order ice-creams | B．promise to visit again |
| C．express her thanks | D．give some suggestions |
【2012年重庆】Apunctualperson is in the habit of doing a thing at the correct time and is never late for anything.
An unpunctual man never does what he has to do at the right time. He is always in a hurry and in the end loses both time and his good name. A lost thing may be found again, but lost time can never be got back. Time is more useful than material things. In fact, time is life itself. An unpunctual man is always wasting his most important things as well as others'. An unpunctual person is always saying unhappily that he finds no time to answer letters or return calls. But the man who really has much to do is very careful of his time. He knows that he can not finish all his work unless he carefully does every piece of work.
Being unpunctual is the sign of disrespect (不尊重_) towards others. If a person is invited to
dinner and arrives later than the time when he should be there, he keeps all the other guests (客人)
waiting for him. Usually this will be thought as a great disrespect to the host and all the other guests.
Not like a punctual person, an unpunctual one can't do his duty wonderfully, whether it is public or personal. Imagine how it would be if those who should do important tasks failed to be on time. A man who is known to be often unpunctual is never believed by his friends or fellow men.The Chinese meaning of the word "punctual" in this passage is probably “ ”.
| A．听话的 | B．守时的 | C．守纪律的 | D．能干的 |
Which of the following isTRUEaccording to the passage?
| A．An unpunctual person often has more time. |
| B．An unpunctual person has more work to do. |
| C．A punctual person often has a busy life. |
| D．A punctual person often does his work wonderfully. |
When you are invited to dinner, you'd better arrive there .
| A．in a hurry | B．after the host |
| C．at the decided time | D．before other guests |
From the passage, we learn that an unpunctual man usually in the end.
| A．saves time for others |
| B．leaves his family and friends |
| C．gets his chances and knowledge |
| D．loses his time and good name |
【2012年重庆】阅读下文并回答问题。
Dave is my friend. His family is rich. His parents always give him lots of pocket money. But Dave thinks his parents work very hard and it's not easy for them, so he always tries his best to save money. He has some good ways to do it.
Dave likes reading. He has lots of books. He tells me he often buys books online, because they're cheaper. And when he has free time, he often goes to bookstores or libraries to do some reading.
Dave has a bike. He usually goes to school by bike instead of taking a bus. Sometimes when it rains or snows, he walks. These two ways help Dave keep healthy and save some money.
Dave brings a bottle of water to school every day. When other students drink juice, he enjoys his water. He thinks water is the cheapest but the best drink.
Some students think Dave is mean. But I don't think so. I think he is right. What do you think of him?Does Dave try his best to save money?
How does Dave usually go to school?
What does Dave bring to school every day?
【2012年山东泰安】Last Friday a storm swept through two villages in the New Territories, destroying fourteen homes. Seven others were so badly damaged (破坏) that their owners had to leave them, and fifteen others had broken windows or broken roofs. One person was killed, several were badly hurt and taken to hospital, and a number of other people received smaller hurt. Altogether (总共) over two hundred people were homeless after the storm.
A farmer, Mr. Tan, said that the storm began early in the morning and lasted for over an hour.
“I was eating with my wife and children,” he said, “when we heard a loud noise. A few minutes later our house fell down on top of us. We tried our best to climb out but then I saw that one of my children was missing. I went back inside and found him, safe but very frightened.”
Mrs. Woo Mei Fong said that her husband had just left for work when she felt that her house was moving. She ran outside at once with her children.
“There was no time to take anything,” she said, “A few minutes later, the roof came down.”
Soldiers helped to take people out of the flooded (水淹的) area and the welfare department (福利机构) brought them food, clothes and shelter.How many homes altogether were damaged in the storm?
| A．Fourteen. | B．Twenty-one. |
| C．Twenty-nine. | D．Thirty-six. |
Where was Mr. Tan when the storm first began?
| A．He was in bed. |
| B．He was inside the house. |
| C．He was outside the house. |
| D．He was on the roof. |
Mrs. Woo and her family didn’t get hurt because ________.
| A．her husband knew there would be a storm |
| B．they were all outside the house when the storm became worse |
| C．she felt the house moving and they ran out immediately |
| D．the welfare department helped her |
The underlined word “shelter” in the last paragraph means ________.
| A．something to eat | B．something to wear |
| C．somewhere to study | D．somewhere to stay |
Which of the following may be the best title for this passage?
| A．A Terrible Storm | B．A Lucky Woman |
| C．Good Soldiers | D．Clever People |
【2013北京】Assertiveness is the ability to confidently express your opinions, feelings,attitudes, and rights, in a way that doesn't infringe（侵犯） the rights of others.
Many of us are taught that it is not nice to consider our own needs above those of others. If someone says or does something that we don't like, we should just be quiet and try to stay away from that person in the future.
Why is Assertiveness important?
If you don't know how to be assertive, you might experience:
•Depression - Anger, a sense of being helpless, hopeless, or of having no control over your life.
•Resentment - Anger at others for taking advantage of you.
•Frustration - Why did I allow that to happen?
Most people find it easier to be assertive in some situations than in others. This makes perfect sense. It's a lot easier to hold your ground with a stranger than with someone you love. But the more important the relationship is to you, the more ｉｍｐｏｒｔａｎｔ it is to be assertive. Assertive behavior leads to increased respect from others！
But before you decide to act assertively, you have to decide if you can live
with the results. Although assertive behavior usually will result in a positive
response (积极的回应)，some people might react differently.
How to be effectively（有效地） assertive:
•Use "I" statements. Keep the focus on the problem you're having. "I'd like to be able to tell my stories without interruption." instead of "You're always interrupting my stories ! "
•Use facts, not opinions. "Did you know that shirt has a hole?" instead of "You're not going out looking like THAT, are you?"
•Express ownership of your thoughts, feelings, and opinions. "I get angry when he breaks his promises. " instead of "He makes me angry. "
• Make clear and direct requirements. Don't invite the person to say no. "Will you please?" instead of 'Would you mind．．．?" or "Why don't you．．．?"
•Keep repeating your point. Use a low level and pleasant voice. Don't try to explain yourself.The writer probably agrees that____________.
| A．you should consider others' response before you act assertively |
| B．you should be assertive if you want to get good marks |
| C．assertiveness is the ability to infringe others' rights. |
| D．assertive behavior will bring you bad feelings |
The expression "hold yourｇround" probably means “_________________”
| A．reach an agreement |
| B．insist on your point |
| C．keep your word |
| D．keep on fighting |
Which of the following helps you to be effectively assertive?
| A．Explaining yourself in a soft and sweet voice. |
| B．Expressing ownership of others' thoughts. |
| C．Making requirements directly and clearly. |
| D．Using your opinions instead of facts. |