No Car Day was first started by 34 cities in France on September 22, 1998．It was started to protect the environment. By now, more than 1,000 cities around the world have had a No Car Day.
The first No Car Day in China was in Chengdu in 2001．Other cities, including Taipai, Shanghai and Wuhan, also support the day.
In Beijing, more and more people are joining the campaign（运动）. It asks drivers to leave their cars at home for one day each month and walk or ride a bike to work. It also calls on Beijingers not to use cars on June 5 （World Environment Day）. The slogan for the day is, “If we drive for one less day, we can have one more nice day.”
So far, more than 200,000 drivers have shown their support. “We can’t control the weather, but we can choose not to drive,” said Wu Zonghua, a car club chairman. Beijing is trying to have 238 blue sky days this year. In the first quarter of 2012, Beijing only had 52 blue sky days. This was 11 days less than the number for the same period the year before. Much of the dust（灰尘） comes from the desert, but cars cause most of the air pollution. We must do more for No Car Day.
| A．three | B．four | C．five | D．six |
| A．not to work on No Car Day |
| B．to enjoy having a day off |
| C．to leave their cars at home for repair |
| D．to ride a bike or walk instead of driving to work |
| A．52 | B．63 | C．41 | D．238 |
| A．cars | B．dust | C．weather | D．rubbish |
| A．more and more people in Beijing are joining car clubs |
| B．people will have one more World Environment Day each month |
| C．more and more people won’t drive on No Car Day in Beijing |
| D．more people in the world won’t drive any more |
When I was a kid in Minnesota, watermelon was expensive. One of my father’s friends, Bernie, was a rich businessman, who owned a large store in St. Paul.
Every summer, when the first watermelons arrived, Bernie would call. Dad and I would go to Bernie’s place. We’d sit on the edge of the dock(码头), feet dangling(摇晃), and got ready for a big meal.
Bernie would take his knife, cut our first watermelon, hand us both a big piece and sit down next to us. Then we’d bury our faces in watermelon, eating only the heart—the reddest, juiciest, firmest, sweetest, most seed-free part—and throw away the rest.
Bernie was my father’s idea of a rich man. I always thought it was because he was such a successful businessman. Years later, I realized that it was not Bernie’s wealth itself but his way of dealing with it that my father liked. Bernie knew how to stop working, get together with friends and eat only the heart of the watermelon.
What I learned from Bernie is that being rich is a state of mind. Some of us, no matter how much money we have, will never be free enough to eat only the heart of the watermelon. If you don’t take the time to dangle your feet over the dock and enjoy life’s small pleasure, your work is probably hurting your life.
For many years, I forgot that lesson I’d learned as a kid on the loading dock. I was too busy making all the money I could.
Well, I’ve relearned it. I hope I have time left to enjoy the success of others and to take pleasure in the day. That’s the heart of the watermelon. I have learned again to throw t he rest away.We learned from the second paragraph that the writer and his father were feeling ______.
| A．relaxed | B．worried | C．hungry | D．proud |
How did the writer and his father eat the watermelon?
| A．They ate it in a polite way. |
| B．They only ate its best part. |
| C．They ate every part of it. |
| D．They shared only one piece. |
In the eyes of the writer’s father, Bernie ______.
| A．was just a rich businessman |
| B．worked hard all the time |
| C．lived a rich but healthy life |
| D．knew how to make money |
The underlined part “the heart of the watermelon” in the last paragraph refers to ______.
| A．the best part of the watermelon |
| B．the writer’s busy life |
| C．the writer’s decision of making money |
| D．the writer’s hope of enjoying life |
It can be learne d from the passage that ______.
| A．one has to work hard to reach his goal |
| B．a friend in need is a friend in deed |
| C．watermelon is the healthiest fruit |
| D．one should keep work-life balance |
The Spring Festival Gala hosted by China Central Television each year has become an important part of the Chinese Lunar New Year celebration since 1983. As an important part of traditional Chinese culture, the celebration of Spring Festival is spreading around the world.
The Spring Festival Gala is combined with songs, dances, comic sketches, opera and folk arts. Harmony（和谐）and reunion（团聚）are the two themes of the gala. With a cheerful atmosphere, the gala is filled with laughter and applause from the beginning to the end. The gala usually starts at 8 on New Year’s Eve and lasts for about four hours. The program’s TV ratings have ranked first among China’s different shows over the past twenty years.
But it’s difficult to fit all audiences’ tastes. Each year the gala hopes to absorb(吸收) new ideas and surprise people. So it has become a big challenge for CCTV and its creative staff. In recent years, some people have thought the Spring Festival Gala should be canceled. But lots of people still support it. Some people local TV stations even have begun to host their own shows, which have met the growing cultural needs of audiences. One successful example is Hunan TV’s gala, which now ranks second. Another new type of show is the Shanzhai (copycat) Spring Festival Gala Show. Whether people watch CCTV’s gala or other similar shows, Chinese people will surely enjoy themselves on the Lunar New Year’s Eve.Why does the celebration of the Spring Festival spread around the world?
It spreads around the world because it is __________________________.What are the themes of CCTV’s Spring Festival Gala?
The themes of the gala are ______________________.How long does CCTV’s Spring Festival Gala usually last?
It uaually lasts for ____________.Why does the Spring Festival Gala become a big challenge for CCTV and its staff?
It becomes a big challenge because it is difficult _____________.What is the best title of this passage? ____________.
It seems more and more Americans want schools to teach foreign languages to children younger than five years old.The most popular way to teach these young children another language is called immersion (沉浸式语言教学法).
Children in immersion programs hear only the new language in the classroom.The children play games, sing songs and talk to one another in the new languages, some experts (专家) say immersion programs are the most effective (有效的) way for young children to learn a language.But there can be a problem when children in the United States begin to learn another language at such an early age.Not many elementary schools continue to teach a foreign language.Only seven of the fifty states require (要求) schools to teach a foreign language to students between the ages of six and twelve.Language experts say it is easier for younger children to learn a language.Still, American schools generally do not begin to teach foreign languages until secondary schools.By then, students are about thirteen years old.
American schools face difficult choices about the cost of educational programs.The government has increased support for foreign language study in its education law called No Child Left Behind.
At the college, the Modern Language Association says more students than ever are studying foreign languages and more languages are being studied now than in the past.Spanish is the most widely (广泛地) taught in American colleges and universities.French, German, Chinese and Italian are also popular.The most popular way to teach the American children another language is called ________.
| A．task | B．speaking |
| C．immersion | D．listening |
Students in immersion programs can do the following things EXCEPT ________.
| A．talking to one another in the new language |
| B．hearing their native language |
| C．playing games in the new language |
| D．hearing the new language |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．The government doesn't support this program. |
| B．All schools will take part in the immersion program. |
| C．It's the best for children to learn a foreign language at an early age. |
| D．Not many elementary schools continue to teach a foreign language. |
What is the passage mainly about?
| A．Foreign language teaching in America. |
| B．Foreign language teaching ways in America. |
| C．Foreign language teaching in American universities. |
| D．Foreign language teaching in America high schools. |
Many people use their mobile phones as the alarm clock and are more used to checking e-mails before sleeping. However, these habits are becoming sleeping problems.
Several years ago, my boss used to stay up working on her mobile phone and got badly ill because of that. Now she always leaves her phone in another room at night. And she encourages friends to do so. “I sent each of my friends the same christmas gift – an alarm clock so that they could stop using their phones as the alarm clock,” she said.
If your mobile phone wakes you up in the morning, it may also be keeping you up at night. A study in 2008 showed that people in mobile phone radiation（辐射）mostly had sleeping problems. And according to a Swedish study, a quarter of young people in this country feel like there must be phones around them. Most of them feel sorry for not returning messages. So they even have to reply to their friends before sleeping.
So what kind of people prefer to use mobile phones in their bedrooms? A recent study has shown that three-quarter people aged between 18 and 34 prefer to sleep with their phones near them. That number falls off a little in middle age, but only people aged 65 and older are used to leaving the phone in another room while sleeping.The underlined word “that” refers to “_____”.
| A．using the mobile phone as the alarm clock |
| B．checking e-mails |
| C．staying up working on the mobile phone |
| D．leaving the mobile phone in the bedroom |
According to the Swedish study, ____ of young people in Sweden always put phones around them while sleeping.
| A．25% | B．50% | C．75% | D．100% |
According to the recent study, people _____ prefer to sleep with their phones near them.
| A．aged 12 and 18 | B．aged between 18 and 34 |
| C．in middle age | D．aged over 65 |
Love is a two-way street
A father sat at his desk and looked at his bills when his young son rushed in and announced: “ Dad, because today is your birthday and you’re 40 years old, I’m going to give you 40 kisses, one for each year!” When the boy started making good on his word（履行诺言），the father shouted: “ Andrew, don’t do it now. I’m too busy!”
The boy soon fell silent as tears fell from his big blue eyes. Feeling sorry, the father said: “ You can finish later.” The boy said nothing but walked away. That evening the father said: “ Come and finish the kisses now, Andrew!”
Unfortunately, a few days later after the father’s birthday, the boy had an accident and died. His father wrote: “ If only（要是··· ···,该多好）I could tell him how sorry I am for my thoughtless words, and how much my heart is hurting.”
Love is a two-way street. We must warmly accept any loving act, or others will take it as a “NO” and it can leave a scar（伤疤）. If we don’t receive love, our life will lose its true meaning. Nothing is more important than accepting love from those who are near and dear to us. On his father’s birthday, the boy wanted to _____.
| A．help pay the bills | B．have a talk with his father |
| C．buy his father a gift | D．give his father kisses |
A few days after the father’s birthday, the boy _____.
| A．was badly hurt in an accident |
| B．was killed in an accident |
| C．had to go back to school |
| D．became unhappy with his father |
The headline “Love is a two-way street” means _____.
| A．love keeps one busy all the time |
| B．love can make people happy and unhappy |
| C．we should learn to give and receive love |
| D．it’s important to love people around us |