This US competition is for camping related（有关的）articles in which you share your tips, advice, experience, etc.
Closing: When we’ve received 100 articles — so you’d better be quick.
Prizes: $100,$75,$25 — all in VISA Gift Cards.
How to enter our writing competition
In your own words, write an article on a camping topic such as: how to’s, reviews, tips and advice, or any topic camping related.The best articles will include useful information about camping, in an interesting and well-written way.Remember that it should be no less than 200 words.
Other requirements
1.Fill in all the information required, including your article, on our webpage CampTrip.com and then submit（提交）it.
2.You must be 16 years old or over to take part in the competition.
3.You must be a student who is now studying in the US.
And what’s in it for you?
We are giving out a VISA Gift Card for first, second and third best articles.Simply share your experience with others and try to win a VISA cash card.The writing competition is limited to 100 articles which gives you a better chance of writing.So why don’t you take up this chance?What can we learn about the competition?
| A．Articles must be less than 200 words. |
| B．Articles on any topics will be welcome. |
| C．It will be closed when it has 100 articles. |
| D．It has only one kind of prize for the winners. |
If you want to enter for the competition,________.
| A．you should write something useful |
| B．you must be a US student who is under 16 |
| C．you’d better write a short introduction of yourself |
| D．you must send your information to an e-mail address |
It can be learned from the text that______.
| A．the place of the camp must be included in the article |
| B．the words in the article should be as easy as possible |
| C．the articles should be submitted through the given website |
| D．everyone entering for the competition will get a VISA Gift Card |
Who will most probably be interested in the competition?
| A．Teachers. | B．Students. |
| C．Writers. | D．Parents. |
Last week I did something that scared me. I stood in front of nearly 200 financial planners and I talked to them about why financial blogs are a good thing.
I’m a confident writer. I’ve been doing this long enough that I know my strength and my limitations. I’m less confident as a speaker. I don’t have time to pause to collect my thoughts. I’m not able to edit. I’m afraid of being trapped in a corner without being able to talk my way out. Basically, I’m scared to speak.
It would be easy to simply refuse the chances that come my way. When somebody asks me to speak in front of a group, I could say “no”. When radio and television stations call for an interview, I could say “no”. But for the past two years, I’ve been following my own policy to say “yes” to new chances.
To say “yes” is to live in fear. My goal is to continually improve myself to become better than I am today. One way to do that is to do the things that scare me, to take them on as challenges, and to learn from them ― even if I fail.
In mid-November, a local station asked me to appear on live television. “I realize it’s short notice,” the producer wrote, “but we’d love to have you on the show if you’re available tonight.” I was frightened. I thought about recent taped television interviews that I had hated. I was afraid of what might happen.
But I also thought about the things that had gone right. I thought of how my speaking skills had improved over the past year. And then I thought of the book I was reading, a book that I had bought for $1.29 at the local store. The Magic of Thinking Big was a huge bestseller during the 1960s. Written by Dr. David Schwartz, a professor at Georgia State University, the book contains dozens of practical tips on how to take risks to achieve big goals. Schwartz argues that nobody will believe in you until you believe in yourself.
So when the television producer asked if I wanted to appear on his show, I thought big. “Sure,” I said. “I’ll do it.” I acted confidently, but on the inside I was frightened. What I needed was techniques to build up my confidence and to overcome my fear.Why is the author afraid of speaking in public?
| A．He is aware of his potential. |
| B．He has few chances to talk. |
| C．He is not able to edit what he says. |
| D．He likes writing better. |
The underlined words “my own policy” in Paragraph 3 probably mean ________.
| A．self-improving through challenges |
| B．hesitating before chances |
| C．turning down the invitations |
| D．saying yes to fear |
The author mentioned the book The Magic of Thinking Big mainly because ______.
| A．it was inspiring |
| B．it was a bestseller |
| C．its author was famous |
| D．its price was attractive |
What is the author’s purpose to write the passage?
| A．To analyze his strength and weaknesses. |
| B．To give practical tips on speaking in public. |
| C．To persuade people to follow his example. |
| D．To share his experiences of overcoming fear. |
| Glendale City Parks Ranger Club Welcome to the Glendale City Parks Ranger Club. We are happy you have decided to volunteer to help keep Glendale City’s five parks clean and attractive. With assistance from local youth, Glendale City can continue to keep its parks beautiful all year long.
|
The Glendale City Parks can be the following EXCEPT ________.
| A．a picnic area for families to eat |
| B．a place for people to walk dogs |
| C．a place for teenagers to have classes |
| D．a playground for children to have fun |
In Sunnyside Park, the volunteer rangers’ duty is to ________.
| A．plant flowers |
| B．water the grass |
| C．paint the benches |
| D．check the equipment |
The park benches need painting in ________.
| A．Oak Hill Park and Valley Park |
| B．Valley Park and Blue Ridge Park |
| C．Sunnyside Park and Oak Hill Park |
| D．Mill Street Park and Sunnyside Park |
The purpose of the passage is to ________.
| A．attract tourists |
| B．explain park rules |
| C．find volunteer rangers |
| D．introduce park activities |
Koalas remind people of teddy bears. They have thick fur and large ears. Their broad, flat nose makes them look cute, similar to teddy bears. In fact koalas aren’t cute. They have sharp teeth and very sharp claws! Koalas are marsupials. This means the mother carries her baby in a pocket while it develops, similar to a kangaroo. The baby koala lives in its mother’s pocket for the first six months of its life.
The name “koala” comes from a native Australian word that means “no drink”. The koalas get almost all their water from the eucalyptus（桉树）leaves they eat. That’s where they get their food too. Koalas eat only eucalyptus leaves, and only the leaves of certain eucalyptus trees. The eucalyptus trees are where the koalas live. It’s also where they sleep. Koalas sleep about nineteen hours a day!
Why do they sleep so much? Some people think it’s because they’re lazy. But koalas aren’t lazy. They sleep so much because there isn’t much nutrition in eucalyptus leaves. Koalas store hardly any fat, so they must save their energy. One way to do this is to move slowly and sleep a lot.
After a day of sleeping they like to move around and eat just after sunset. They live alone most of the time. Koalas are very protective of their trees. If a koala sees another koala eating in its favorite tree, it might tell the other koala to leave by “barking” at it. Koalas do “talk” to each other. Besides barks, the males make a deep grunting sound. The mothers and babies talk in soft clicking sounds. If they get scared they may scream like a baby.According to the article, how are koalas and kangaroos alike?
| A．They both have thick fur. |
| B．They both have sharp teeth. |
| C．They both eat eucalyptus leaves. |
| D．They both carry their young in a pocket. |
The word “koala” comes from a word that means ________.
| A．no drink | B．moving slowly |
| C．large ears | D．barking loudly |
Why do koalas sleep a lot?
| A．Their babies need to get much rest. |
| B．They get tired from playing so much. |
| C．Their food does not give them much energy. |
| D．They do not like to be awake when it is warm. |
If an adult koala screams like a baby, he may get ________.
| A．worried | B．scared |
| C．hungry | D．sleepy |
What is time? Is it a thing to be saved or spent or wasted, like money? Or is it something we have no control over, like the weather? Is time the same all over the world? That's an easy question, you say. Wherever you go, a minute is 60 seconds, an hour is 60 minutes, a day is 24 hours, and so forth. Well, maybe. But in America, time is more than that. Americans see time as a valuable resource. Maybe that's why they are fond of the expression, "Time is money."
To Americans, punctuality is a way of showing respect for other people's time. Being more than 10 minutes late to an appointment usually calls for an apology, and maybe an explanation. People who are running late often call ahead to let others know of the delay. Of course, the less formal the situation, the less important it is to be exactly on time. At informal get-togethers, for example, people often arrive as much as 30 minutes past the appointed time. But they usually don't try that at work.
American lifestyles show how much people respect the time of others. When people plan an event, they often set the time days or weeks in advance. Once the time is fixed, it takes almost an emergency to change it. If people want to come to your house for a friendly visit, they will usually call first to make sure it is suitable. Only very close friends will just "drop by" unannounced. Also, people hesitate to call others late at night for fear they might be in bed. The time may vary, but most folks think twice about calling after 10:00 p.m.Why are the Americans fond of the expression “ Time is money.”?
| A．Because they can’t control time. |
| B．Because they is the same all over the world. |
| C．Because they consider time as a thing like money. |
| D．Because they consider time as a valuable resource. |
In America, if you are more than 10 minutes late to an appointment,
| A．it doesn’t matter |
| B．it is necessary for you to make an apology |
| C．you needn’t say anything about your delay |
| D．you needn’t call ahead to let others know you will be late. |
What does the last paragraph mainly discuss?
A．The reasons why Americans value time.
B．The ways to show their respect to the time of others.
C．Being on time is highly valued in the USA.
D．Never drop in on others unless you are their close friends.We can infer that .
| A．you mustn’t be on time when you attend an informal get-together. |
| B．you can’t change the time of an appointment once you fix it. |
| C．Americans never call up others after 10 p.m. |
| D．Americans think highly of punctuality at work. |
The main idea of the passage is .
| A．that Americans value punctuality |
| B．that in the USA time is limited and valuable. |
| C．the Americans attitude towards time. |
| D．the Americans’ control over time. |
It is said that a person has about 6,000 thoughts every day, Yet, of the 6,000 thoughts you have today, ninety percent of these are the same as the 6,000 you had yesterday and the day before, leaving little room for new thoughts. No wonder life can seem tedious at times. Unless you start to think differently, you are to continue to create and repeat the same old reality every day. Is it not time to change your thoughts, enliven your dreams and let reality catch up?
Most of our thoughts and actions are habits, and we go thought the same motions each day, with little change in our behaviors or outlook. What would happen if you challenged these habits or customs? What if you were to step out of your comfort zone and explore new ideas or new ways or doing things? Would your life not change as a result?
Thought is a form of energy. Does this energy keep you forward or hold you back? You have a choice about the thoughts you think. How many times in the past have you chosen to disregard your positive thoughts and focus on your negative(消极的) thoughts? At this moment, if you were to be at ease and to focus on your positive thoughts while discounting your negative thoughts, how would your life change?
To realize your dreams, pay attention to what is happening around you. Be curious. Notice how your thoughts about yourself, your thoughts about others and your thoughts about what others may be thinking of you influence and what you are able to achieve. Start to think, see and experience things, people, places and events in new ways. Recognize what happens when you begin to think differently about yourself and what you are capable of achieving.thoughts per minute you had are the same as yesterday and the day before.
| A．About 40 | B．Over 5,400 |
| C．About 4 | D．Over 100 |
The author thinks our life changes very little because
| A．we have too many new ideas |
| B．we have only a few new ideas |
| C．we never have new ideas |
| D．we change our ideas from time to time |
The best title for the passage would be
| A．The Power of Thought |
| B．Think Before You Take Actions |
| C．New world Comes From New Ideas |
| D．Never Think of Yourself Only |
The underlined word “tedious” may share the same meaning with “”.
| A．stupid | B．colorful |
| C．strange | D．boring |
What is the author’s purpose in writing the passage?
| A．To tell people some facts of our thoughts. |
| B．To encourage us to change our habit of thinking. |
| C．To tell us why we have no new ideas. |
| D．To remind us of the influence from other. |
