To us， it seems so natural to put up an umbrella to keep the water off when it rains. But in fact the umbrella was not invented as protection against the rain. Its first use was as a shade (遮蔽) against the sun.
Nobody knows who first invented it， but the umbrella was used in very ancient times. Probably the first to use it were the Chinese， back in the eleventh century BC.
We know that the umbrella was used in ancient Egypt and Babylon as a sunshade. And there
was a strange thing connected with its use : it became a symbol of honor and power(权力). In the
Far East in ancient times， the umbrella was allowed to be used only by those in high office or by
royal people such as the kings or queens.
In Europe， the Greeks were the first to use the umbrella as a sunshade. The umbrella was in
common use in ancient Greece， but it is believed that the first people in Europe to use the umbrella as protection against the rain were the ancient Romans. During the middle ages in Europe， the use of the umbrella almost disappeared. Then it appeared again in Italy in the late sixteenth century. And again it became a symbol of power.
Umbrellas have not changed much in style during all this time， though they have become much lighter in weight. It wasn't until the twentieth century that the umbrellas for women began to be made in all kinds of colors.Ancient people first used umbrellas as ____.
| A．a symbol of honor |
| B．protection against the sun |
| C．a symbol of power |
| D．protection against the rain |
According to the passage， the umbrella was probably first used in ancient ______.
| A．Egypt . | B．Babylon | C．Rome | D．China |
The underlined word royal might mean _ in Chinese.
| A．王室的 | B．富有的 |
| C．中产阶级的 | D．贫穷的 |
According to the passage， which of the following is NOT true？
| A．The ancient Greeks used the umbrella in their daily life. |
| B．Europeans hardly used the umbrella during the middle ages. |
| C．The umbrellas for women were made colorful in ancient times. |
| D．The style of the umbrella hasn't changed a lot since it was invented |
This passage is mainly about ___________.
| A．the sales of the umbrella |
| B．the differences among umbrellas |
| C．the invention of the umbrella |
| D．the history and the use of the umbrella |
I have a friend. His name is Eric. He is English. But now he is in China. He is a student. Look! This is his classroom. Thirteen small desks and thirty chairs are in the classroom. They are for his classmates(同班同学) and him. A big desk is in the classroom, too. It’s for their teacher. A big clock is on the left(左边) wall of the classroom. Next to the clock is a map. It’s a map of China.
His classroom is very nice and clean. He likes it very much.What’s on the left wall of the classroom?
A A clock B A map C a picture D A map and a clockHow many small desks are there in the classroom?
A Fifteen B Thirteen C Thirty D FourteenWho is Eric?
A A school girl B a school boy C An American student D AmericanWhat does the underlined word (划线部分) it mean in the passage (文章)？
A The classroom B The map of China C The big desk D The schoolWhat is the passage about?
A The family B The school C The classroom D The library
根据短文内容，判断对（T）错（F）
Look! I’m Mona. That is a schoolbag. It’s red. It’s not mine. It’s my sister’s. What’s in the schoolbag? A ruler is in the schoolbag. But it’s my ruler. The ruler is blue. This is a pencil. It’s black and white. It’s not my pencil. It is my sister’s. A photo is in the schoolbag, too. Lucy Brown is in the photo. She is my sister’s friend. She is in red. 13858987860 is her telephone number.Mona’s schoolbag is red.
A ruler is in Mona’s sister’s schoolbag and it is black and white.
Mona’s sister’s pencil is blue.
Brown is Lucy’s family name.
Mona’s sister and Mona can call Lucy at 13858987860.
Nothing beats sitting down in front of the TV with some delicious candy or tasty French fries.
Recently, an online list of favorite snacks in China became popular. It says that peanuts (花生), walnuts (核桃) and chocolate are good for our health, but jelly (果冻), potato chips and lollipops (棒棒糖) are “bad” for us.
Kids, though, hardly care if the snacks are good or bad for their health. They love them either way. Some snacks often have special importance in a certain country or culture.
Potato chips and French fries are very popular in the US. They are cheap and tasty. People don’t need to wait for a long time to eat it. Popcorn is another common snack. People love eating it when they are watching sports games or visiting the amusement park. Most cinemas sell it to attract customers.
In the UK, kids often sit down for snacks after school. They call this “afternoon tea”. A traditional afternoon tea includes biscuits (饼干) and tea. People also have scones (烤饼) with jam and cream, which is probably the most classic English snack.
In South Korea, Choco Pie is one of the most popular snacks. It’s also a favorite of soldiers. The sweet snack makes them happy and helps them get through hard times.
However, it is not just about what you eat as a snack – it’s how much you eat and when. Chips and French fries are high in calories(卡路里) and eating too much may make you fat. Sweet snacks like candy and chocolate are high in sugar and eating a lot may give you bad teeth.From the passage, we can know popular snacks in different countries except_______.
| A．China | B．Canada | C．America | D．England |
The Chinese meaning of the phrase “get through” in this passage is probably________.
| A．通过 | B．完成 | C．熬过 | D．穿越 |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．The snacks including peanuts, walnuts and jelly are bad for our health. |
| B．People love to eat popcorn when they are watching movies. |
| C．A traditional afternoon tea includes pies and tea. |
| D．If you want to have good teeth, you can have more candy and chocolate. |
According to the passage, we need to care about ____________
A. why we eat snacks B. where we eat snacks
D. who we eat snacks with D. how much snacks we eat
What can you do on the Internet? Many of us like to read the news, buy things and play games. Some students now have a new use for the Internet – helping them with their homework.
Tina, 14, from Shenzhen, Guangdong, often searches online for the answers to her math problems. She said sometimes she and even her parents don’t know the answers to the problems, so she has to turn to the Internet.
“I can see how other people work out these problems and learn from them,” Tina said. “It’s easy and saves time.”
But not all the students welcome this. Leo, 15, from Hangzhou, Zhejiang, thinks it may make students stop thinking.
“We should think over the problems first. Simply copying the answers won’t improve our abilities. ” he said.
In the eyes of Wang Zhaoming, a Shanghai teacher, the success of all this is down to the students. If they use the Internet properly (适当地), it could be a good tool for study, Wang said.
“Students should first think about the problems by themselves. As for the online answers, they should choose the best among different ones. The most important thing is to know the logic (逻辑) behind the answers,” he said. “Don’t be shy to ask teachers and classmates the next day if you don’t understand the answer.”According to the passage, it’s a new use for students to ___________ on the Internet.
| A．buy things | B．play games | C．help with homework | D．read news |
The right order to use the Internet to help with our homework is ____________.
① Choose the best answers among different answers online;
② Search the answers on the Internet;
③ Think about the problems by ourselves;
④ Try to understand the logic behind the answer you’ve chosen.
| A．①②③④ | B．③②①④ | C．②③①④ | D．④③②① |
In Leo’s opinion, searching online for the answers may _______________.
| A．make students simply copy the answers instead of thinking |
| B．help solve the problems between students and their parents |
| C．be a good tool of study if students use the Internet properly |
| D．improve the students’ different abilities |
The best title of this passage is_____________.
| A．How to use the Internet | B．Think before you search online |
| C．Is Internet bad or good for students | D．Computers or teachers |
On a cold morning at a bus station, a man played six famous pieces of music for about an hour. During that time, about two thousand people went through the station, most of them were on their way to work.
3 minutes later: a middle-aged man noticed there was a musician playing. He slowed down, stopped for a few seconds and went away.
4 minutes later: the musician received his first dollar. A woman threw the money in the box and kept on walking without stopping.
6 minutes later: a young man stopped to listen to him. Then he looked at his watch and started to walk again.
10 minutes later: a 3-year-old boy stopped to look at the musician, but his mother took him away. Several other children did the same as the boy. And nearly all the parents took their children away.
45 minutes later: the musician kept on playing. Only 6 people stopped and stayed for a while. About 20 persons gave him money but left quickly.
After 1 hour, the musician finished playing. In the end, he collected $ 32. No one noticed that he had finished playing.
No one knew this, but the musician was Joshua Bell, one of the best musicians in the world. At that time, he played one of the most wonderful pieces ever written, with a very expensive violin.
If we do not have time to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world playing with the most beautiful violin, how many other things are we missing? Joshua Bell played six famous pieces of music for ________ at a bus station.
| A．half an hour | B．an hour | C．fifteen minutes | D．a day |
__________ gave the first dollar to Joshua Bell for his performance.
| A．A mid-aged man | B．A Young man | C．A woman | D．A 3-year-old boy |
Nearly all the parents ________________ while they went past the musician.
| A．took their children away | B．threw the money into the box |
| C．stayed with their children listening | D．looked at their watch |
Joshua Bell was in fact ________________.
| A．a very famous pianist | B．a very popular singer |
| C．a very poor violinist | D．a very famous violinist |