How do you like your school? Have you ever written to your headmaster to express your idea? Here are some letters written by students from different schools.
Luke, 14, from Jiangsu
I will give some suggestions about our school uniform. In our school, we students have to wear uniform every day. But the yellow and green sports kit（服装）looks really dark and old. It can’t stand for young and lively spirit. We can add some red or orange colors and make a new type of uniform. I hope our headmaster will think about it.
Danny, 14, from Zhejiang
I have two suggestions for my headmaster. First of all, I think we should have more hobby classes in science , such as plane model making class and computer programming class. It is really boring to study basic subjects all the time. And second, I hope we can have more PE lessons or more time for physical exercise. Lots of students now don’t have a strong enough body.
Sam, 15, from Shanxi
I’d like to say thank you to my headmaster. About one week ago, I got a bad cold after playing basketball. Our headmaster came to me after he knew about it. He took care of me until my parents came. I really want to thank him for that.
Helen, 14, from Shandong
In the letter I wrote, I want to talk about the possibility of personal（个性化的）classes. Now many middle schools are trying the “personal class” system. Students don’t have regular classes. They can choose lessons they want to take. I think it is more effective. And it is also good for exercise. We don’t have to stay in one classroom all the time.
Luke gives some suggestions about ______ in his letter.
| A．hobby classes | B．personal classes |
| C．school uniform | D．basketball playing |
The reasons why Danny gives two suggestions are that ______.
| A．students have too few classes every day and they love sports |
| B．studying basic subjects only is boring and students are too weak |
| C．hobby classes are interesting and students have no PE lessons at all |
| D．students want to cancel the basic subjects and they want to have more sports lessons |
All the students except __ write to the headmaster to complain about something.
| A．Luke | B．Danny | C．Sam | D．Helen |
The underlined sentence “I think it is more effective” means “______”
| A．Regular classes will be more vivid and lively. |
| B．Regular classes will help students learn better. |
| C．Personal classes will be more vivid and lively. |
| D．Personal classes will help students learn better. |
According to the passage, most students write to their headmasters about ______.
| A．personal experiences |
| B．how to make schools better |
| C．spare time activities |
| D．how to deal with other students |
Cats are the most popular pets among Americans. So it is not surprising that there are a lot of expressions about cats. Some cats like to catch small birds, like canaries (金丝雀). If someone looks very proud and satisfied with himself, we say “he looks like the cat that ate the canary.”
Sometimes, a cat likes to play with a small animal it catches. So if you “play cat and mouse” with someone, it means that you change between different kinds of behavior when dealing with another person. For example, a girl might offer something sweet to her little brother and then take it away when he reaches for it.
Americans might say that something is “the cat’s miaow” or “the cat’s pajamas(睡衣)” to describe something that is the best or finest. “A copycat” is someone who acts just like someone else or copies another person’s work. “A fat cat” is a person with a lot of money.
If you tell about something that is supposed to be a secret, we say you “let the cat out of the bag”. If you are not able to speak or answer a question, someone might ask you if “the cat has got your tongue(舌头)”
Have you ever watched children in a classroom when their teacher leaves for a few minutes? “When the cat’s away, the mice will play” means people sometimes act badly when there is no supervision (监管).
You may have heard the expression “curiosity killed the cat”. This means caring too much about things that are not your business might cause problems.
If you have ever had cats as pets, you know it is difficult to train them or to get them to do something. Cats are not like Sheep or cows that can be moved in a group. So we say a difficult or impossible job is like “herding (放牧) cats “What can we learn from the passage?
| A．The expression “a fat cat” is used to describe someone who is very fat. |
| B．The expression “play cat and mouse” usually means “play tricks on others”. |
| C．It is more difficult to keep sheep or cows than cats. |
| D．There are more expressions about cats than those about dogs. |
In which of the following situations do we most probably use the expression “curiosity killed the cat”?
| A．Someone always asked a lady her age or weight and it made her angry. |
| B．Someone promised to keep a secret but he failed to do so. |
| C．Someone won the first prize in an English singing competition and he felt very excited. |
| D．Someone tried to swim across the Yangtze River with his newly broken legs. |
Where can you most probably find the passage?
| A．In a scientific research paper about cats. |
| B．On a website telling people how to keep cats. |
| C．In a magazine telling various jokes and funny stories. |
| D．In a language book that teaches students how to use American slang. |
A group of swans flew down to a beach where a crow (乌鸦) was jumping around. The crow watched them with disdain (笔试).
“You have no flying skills at all!” he said to the swans. “All you can do is to move your wings. Can you turn over in the air? No, that’s beyond you. Let’s have a flying competition. I’ll show you what real flying is!”
One of the swans, a strong young male, took up the challenge (挑战). The crow flew up and began to show his skills. He flew in circles, performed other flying tricks, and then came down and looked proudly at the swan.
Now it was the swan’s turn. He flew up, and began flying over the sea. The crow flew after him, making all kinds of comments (评价) about his flying. They flew on and on till they couldn’t see the land and there was nothing but water on all sides. The crow was making fewer and fewer comments. He was now so exhausted that he found it hard to stay in the air, and had to struggle to keep himself from falling into the water.
The swan pretended (假装) not to notice, and said, “Why do you keep touching the water, brother? Is that another trick? “
“No,” said the crow. He knew he had lost the competition. “I’m in trouble because of my pride (自大) ! If you don’t help me, I’ll lose my life...”
The swan took pity on him, and took him on his shoulders and flew back to the beach.What’s the correct order of the following events?
a. The crow followed the swan and got into trouble.
b. The swan felt pity for the crow and saved it.
c. The crow had to ask the swan for help.
d. The swan accepted a challenge of performing flying tricks.
| A．a, d, b, c | B．a, b, d, c | C．d, a, c, b | D．d, c, a, b |
What does the underlined word “exhausted” in Paragraph 4 mean?
| A．Tired. | B．Bored. | C．Nervous. | D．Frightened. |
What do we learn from the passage?
| A．Practice makes perfect. | B．The early bird catches the worm. |
| C．No pains, no gains. | D．Pride goes before a fall. |
1990 was a significant year in world enents. In Febbruary, Nelson Mandela was set free after 27 years in prison. In October, East and West Germany became one country again. Then at the end of 1990, the World Wide Web was born. For this final event we have one man to thank, Tim Berners-Lee, the father of the Web.
Berners-Lee was born on June 8, 1955 in London, England. His parents, both computer designers, encouraged him to think and work creativelhy as he grew up. He was an excellent student and naturally took an interest in computers and science.
After graduating from Oxford University, Tim went to work at a science research centre in Sfwitzerland. There be developed some of the different systems that would later become the Web. The first was HTML, the computer language used to make web pages. The second was an address system that let computers anhywhere find each other and send and receive information. In 1990, while still at the science centre in Switzerland, he put them together to make the first Internet browser. It could run on any computer and allowed people to create share their information with the rest of the world.
Tim knew that the more people used the Web, the more useful it would be. He wasn’t interested in money but knowledge, so he gave out his invention for free to anyone who was interested. Many were interested and the growth of the Internet began.
Today Tim works as a professor at the MIT in America, researching new and interesting ways to use the Web. He has received many awards from governments and organizations for his efforts. He is still not very interested in money. That is why he is so admired by his students and workmates. It may also be one of the reasons that few people outside the world of technology know his name. The underlined word “significant” (in Paragraph 1) most probably means “” .
| A．strange |
| B．terrible |
| C．important |
| D．difficult |
Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?
| A．The address system was used to make make web pages. |
| B．The World Wide Web was created in Swizerland. |
| C．The fist web browser was very expensive to buy |
| D．Many people could use the Internet before 1990 |
What can we learn about Berners-Lee from the passage?
| A．He was encouraged to be creative. |
| B．He didn’t do well at school. |
| C．He is a very poor businessman. |
| D．He is well-known all over the world. |
Where does Berners-Lee live today?
| A．England. |
| B．Switzerland. |
| C．America. |
| D．Canada. |
What is the passage mainly about?
| A．The events that took place in 1990. |
| B．The history of the Internet. |
| C．The invention of the Internet browser. |
| D．The man who created the World Wide Web. |
Want to stay away from colds? Put on a happy face.
Compared to unhappy people, those who are cheerful and relaxed are less likely to suffer from colds, according to a new study. It’s possible that being happy helps the body fight illnesses, say the researchers from New York University.
“It seems that positive feelings may reduce the danger of illness,” said the study’s chief researcher Sheldon Cohen.
In an earlier study, Cohen found that people who were cheerful and lively caught coughs and colds less often. People who showed feelings were also less likely to tell their doctors that they felt ill.
In this study, Cohen’s interviewed 193 adults every day for two weeks. During the interviews, the people told researchers about were given colds by doctors and had to stay alone in a room for six days.
The results showed that everyone in the study was equally likely to get ill. Buy for people who said they felt happy during the research period, their illness are less serious and lasted for a shorter time.
Cohen believes that when people experience positive feelings, their body may produce a chemical that helps fight illness and disease. So if you are worried abut your health, look on the bright side more often. Which of the following was NOT a part of the study?
| A．People talked about their feelings every day. |
| B．People were kept alone for six days. |
| C．People were given colds by doctors. |
| D．People were made to feel unhappy. |
What did the study find?
| A．People who felt happy never got ill. |
| B．People’s feelings didn’t influence their health. |
| C．People with good feelings became ill more easily. |
| D．People with positive feelings had less serious illnesses.. |
According to Cohen, which of the following may help fight illness?
| A．Eating. |
| B．Crying. |
| C．Laughing. |
| D．Sleeping. |
This passage is a/an .
| A．advertisement |
| B．newspaper report |
| C．story |
| D．scientist’s diary |
What is the best title for this passage?
| A．Smiles can fight colds |
| B．Cause of colds found |
| C．The danger of colds |
| D．How people get sick |
I heard the bees long before I saw them.
It was a very hot afternoon, and we decided to cool off in the river near my home. As we climbed down a small rocky hill toward the water, my boyfriend John suddenly started to shout then jumped into the water below. Peter and Mary quickly followed but I was too far away to jump. I was trapped.
I heard a low hum(嗡嗡声)，which was growing louder. From a distance, the group of bees looked almost like a cloud of smoke. As it got closer, I realized it was actually thousands of bees flying towards me.
All I could do was cover my face with hands. Crazily, I thought that if I sat very still, the bees would think I was just another rock.
After a few minutes, I knew my plan hadn’t worked. The bees were attacking me. I could hear my friends shouting at me to get down to the pool fast.
But it wasn’t so easy. I was in great pain and the only way I could get away was to use my hands to climb down the rocks. However, I was afraid to do that at first because my face would be unprotected. The noise the bees made was so loud and frightening, but I had no choice.
I rushed down the rocks and jumped into the pool, but I don’t remember doing it. I was just so happy to be free from the pain. I was safe, and the water felt wonderful.
But we still weren’t out of danger. Every time we tried to climb out of the pool, the bees flew back over our heads. We spent the next three hours in the water, putting our heads under the water from time to time to avoid the bees until they finally lost interest. How many people went swimming that day?
| A．Two. | B．Three | C．Four | D．Five |
The underlined word “it” (in Paragraph 3) refers to .
| A．a rock | B．the group of bees | C．a hill | D．the river |
At first why didn’t the writer want to climb down the rocks?
| A．She was afraid she would fall. |
| B．She was too far away from pool. |
| C．She thought the bees would follow her. |
| D．She didn’t want her face to be unprotected. |
How did the writer escape the bees?
| A．She covered her face with her hands. |
| B．She hid behind the rocks. |
| C．She jumped into a water pool. |
| D．She pretended to be a rock. |
In what order are the following mentioned in the story?
a. The writer rushed down the rocks.
b. John jumped into the water.
c. The low hum grew louder.
d. The bees flew back over their heads.
e. The bees were attacking the writer.
| A．b c e a d | B．b a e c d | C．c d e a b | D．c b d e a |