【2013年江苏盐城】Every year many young people leave school for a few weeks or months and enjoy an unusual type of educational program. They learn new skills by living in a different country and doing unusual jobs. There are several organizations. They help students to find the experience they are looking for. The table below shows a few possibilities for students.
One interesting possibility is helping elephants in Thailand. Most people think o elephants as animals in zoos. In fact, many elephants in Thailand are no longer kept in cages. Now, hundreds of them are homeless. They don’t have owners to care for them. Although they may look well, they are often in poor health and don’t have enough to eat.
One centre in Thailand cares for these elephants. It gives them a safe and natural living space. When they are at the centre, they stay in a building but are free to walk around. Students come from all over the world to help here. The student helpers work with the elephant keepers. These keepers train the students in caring for the elephants. In the morning, they go to the forest together and lead the elephants to the centre. They clean them and give them food. In the afternoon, they take the animals back into the forest for the night. Helping at the center is interesting and the young people learn a lot.Which country can you choose if you want to prepare yourself for a medical career?
| A．India | B．Ghana |
| C．Thailand | D．New Zealand |
Which job might be suitable for the students who love children and arts?
| A．Teaching young children | B．Health care work |
| C．Saving elephants | D．Teaching Chinese |
What does the underlined word “they” in the last paragraph probably refer to?
| A．The keepers | B．The doctors |
| C．The students | D．The elephants |
What does the writer think of the unusual educational program?
| A．It is amazing | B．It is boring |
| C．It is helpful | D．It is expensive |
Monty Robert’s father was a horse trainer. As a child, Monty often went from one farm to another with his father. Sometimes they didn’t have money to pay for food, but Monty still kept hoping to own a horse farm.
When he was in school, his teacher asked him to write a paper about his dream. He wrote a seven-page（页）paper. He wanted to have a horse farm one day. He even drew a picture of a horse farm in the paper.
The next day he handed it in to his teacher. Two days later, he got his paper back. On the front page was a large red “F” with the words “See me after class”. So the boy did and asked his teacher, “Why did I get an F?” The teacher said, “This dream will not come true for a young boy like you. You need a lot of money to own a horse farm. You have to buy the land. You have to pay for a lot of things. There is no way you could ever do it.” Then the teacher added, “If you write this paper again with a simpler dream, I will give you a good grade.”
After school he thought hard about it. At last, he decided to hand in the same paper, making no changes at all. He said to the teacher, “You can keep the F and I’ll keep my dream.”
Many years later, Monty had his own large horse farm. His dream came true.
So don’t let anyone take away your dreams. Follow your dreams, no matter what they are. From Paragraph 1, we learn that _________.
| A．Monty’s family was poor |
| B．Monty’s father didn’t support him |
| C．Monty hoped to be a horse trainer |
| D．Monty changed his mind all the time |
What was Monty’s attitude towards his paper?
| A．Careless. | B．Serious. |
| C．Joking. | D．Funny. |
Monty’s teacher gave him a red “F” because he thought _________.
| A．Monty’s handwriting was too bad |
| B．Monty copied from another student |
| C．Monty’s dream was too hard for him to achieve |
| D．Monty was not working hard to realize his dream |
What does the story want to tell us?
| A．Don’t take away others’ dreams. |
| B．Follow a realistic dream. |
| C．Never give up your dream. |
| D．Anyone with a dream will succeed. |
School Activities in May
| an Open-air Craft（工艺）Show in Front of the Gym Square May Day from 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Need to buy a present? Find bamboo toys, paper flowers, paper umbrellas, model cars and more! Come and have fun here! |
Clean &Green Week: War on Graffiti（涂鸦） Monday, May16, from 2:00pm to 4:00pm Is graffiti cool? Well, it is not! We are repainting the school walls. You don’t have to bring any tools, just remember to wear some old clothes! Follow Ms Jin and meet at the school gate. |
| Movie Time at the Media Hall Saturday, May14, from 7:00 p.m. to 10:30p.m. Dragon（龙）is back! You can enjoy the magic training of dragons again, much more thrilling and amazing! Get the ticket from your head teacher. Don’t miss it! |
Latin Dance in the Music Club Tuesday& Thursday in May, at 3:00 p.m. Latin dance classes are hold at the music room twice a week in May. Our foreign teacher Maria introduces Latin to you in a way you can easily understand and learn. |
There are activities that students can do indoors in May.
| A．two | B．three |
| C．four | D．five |
If you are interested in handwork, you can go to ____________.
| A．the Media Hall | B．the Gym Square |
| C．the music room | D．the school gate |
If Jim wants to learn Latin dance, he can ask ________ for help.
| A．Maria | B．Ms Jin |
| C．his friend | D．his head teacher |
Have you ever heard someone use the phrase “once in a blue moon”？ People use this expression to describe something that they do not do very often. For example, someone might say that he tries to avoid eating sweets because they are unhealthy, but will eat chocolate “once in a blue moon”. Or someone who does not usually like to go to the beach might say “I visit the shore once in a moon.” While many people use this phrase, not everyone knows the meaning behind it.
The first thing to know is that the moon itself is never really blue. This is just an expression. In fact, the phrase “blue moon” has to do with the shape of the moon, not the color.
As the moon travels around the earth, it appears to change shape. We associate names with certain shapes of the moon. For example, when we can see a small part of the moon, it is called a crescent moon. A crescent is a shape that looks like the tip of a fingernail. When we cannot see the moon at all, it is called a new moon. When we can see the whole moon, it is called a full moon. Usually, there is only one full moon every month. Sometimes, however, there will be two full moons in one month. When this happens, the second full moon is called a “blue moon”．
Over the next 20 years, there will only be 15 blue moons. As you can see, a blue moon is a very rare event. This_fact has led people to use the expression “once in a blue moon” to other very rare events in their lives. Which of the following would be a good example of using the phrase “once in a blue moon”？
| A．Simon often tells jokes. Simon tells jokes once in a blue moon. |
| B．Tom rarely remembers to do exercise. Tom does exercise once in a blue moon. |
| C．Mary likes to go shopping every weekend. Mary goes shopping once in a blue moon. |
| D．Cindy hates to stay up, but she stays up every day. Cindy stays up once in a blue moon. |
When does a blue moon happen in nature?
| A．When the moon has a blue moon. |
| B．When we cannot see the moon at all. |
| C．When there are two full moons in one month. |
| D．When we can only see a small part of the moon. |
Which of the following is another example of something that has a crescent shape?
| A．The letter “O”. | B．The letter “M”． |
| C．The letter “H”. | D．The letter “C”． |
How often will a blue moon happen over the next twenty years?
| A．Once a year. | B．Less than once a year. |
| C．More than once a year. | D．At least twice a year. |
What does the underlined part “This fact” in the last paragraph refer to(所指)?
| A．A blue moon is a very rare event. |
| B．The moon appears to change shape. |
| C．The moon itself is never really blue. |
| D．A blue moon has to do with the shape of the moon. |
In our lives, we may meet person with different personalities . What is your personality type? Read about the following and find out!
A Dreamer thinks there is a “right” way to do things. This person wants to live in the “perfect world”. Many are good listeners and like to help others. Many Dreamers work as teachers, and often lead others. Famous Dreamers: Mohandas Gandhi, Angelina Jolie.
A Partner wants to be in a group. For this person, rules are important. They consider tradition to be of great value. Partners are often serious, careful people. Many do well as teachers, managers and police officers. Famous Partners: Queen ElizabethⅡ，Mother Teresa.
For Thinkers, understanding things is very important. They like to deal with problems and make new things. Thinkers can also be active. They like to win. They have very strong opinions. Many Thinkers work as scientists, inventors and engineers. Famous Thinkers: Bill Gates, Stephen Hawking.
Artists want to be free. They don't want to follow the rules all the time. They also like trying new things. Like Thinkers, many Artists have strong opinions. They are creative and do well as musicians and actors. Famous Artists: Cristiano Ronaldo, Madonna. How many personality types are mentioned in the passage?
| A．Three. | B．Four. |
| C．Five. | D．Six. |
According to the passage, when you need help, ________ may give you a hand.
| A．Dreamers | B．Partners |
| C．Thinkers | D．Artists |
You may choose a job as ________， if you are careful and serious.
| A．a player | B．an actor |
| C．a police officer | D．a scientist |
If you are active and like to win, maybe you are similar to ________.
| A．Gandhi | B．Mother Teresa |
| C．Bill Gates | D．Madonna |
Which could be the best title for the passage?
| A．Famous People | B．Personality Types |
| C．Perfect World | D．Job Choices |
Ask any student which subject he or she hates most. 9 out of 10 students will answer “math”. No matter which country you visit, no matter which grade you are in, you may not learn art, geography, chemistry or Chinese, but you always learn math. Why is this so? How come so many students hate math, and yet cannot avoid learning it in school?
Jenny Sanders, a high school student in California, asks, “What good do we get from learning math? We can use computers to compute numbers, and we can use computers to store information. I think learning math at school is a waste of time.”
However, there is much more to math than just learning to add and subtract (减) numbers. In fact, math is not so much about calculation (计算) as it is about learning to think logically (逻辑地) and solving problems. Of course, Jenny was right that we can use computers to do calculations, but how would we even know how to use the computer if we can't think logically? In short, computers are only tools when solving problems.
For example, imagine you are a cook and must serve dinner to 100 guests. How should you divide your resources so that you can get the job done most efficiently (高效地)? In situations like this, the ability to think logically will get you to a reasonable answer and solve your problem.
According to the passage, which subject do students always learn in different grades at school?
| A．Chinese. | B．Math. |
| C．Geography. | D．Art. |
What does Jenny Sanders think of learning math?
| A．Interesting. | B．Boring. |
| C．Useless. | D．Difficult. |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．90% of the students hate learning math. |
| B．Students can learn math well with computers. |
| C．Math can do calculations and store information. |
| D．Math helps students learn all the other subjects well. |
What does the underlined word “resources” mean in the passage?
| A．科目 | B．效率 | C．信息 | D．资源 |
What does the writer want to tell us?
| A．Math is just learning to add and subtract numbers. |
| B．Math can be good for both our body and our mind. |
| C．Math helps us think logically and solve problems. |
| D．Math can help students find a good job in the future. |