I always experienced guilt when I passed by without giving a coin or two to a beggar.
My conscience was pricked again on a tour of Venice in 2010. I had taken refuge from the crowds in a quiet canal-side café. Outside the café was an old woman kneeling on the ancient cobbled stones, begging. Steady streams of tourists were walking past her. A lone young back-packer stood away from the crowds drinking something, but I noticed he was also observing the woman.
A tourist group glanced at the woman and walked on. Another group of tourists arrived and, again, walked past her. The backpacker watched. Then, as I prepared to leave, I stopped at the sight of the backpacker stepping forward and placing some money in the woman’s cup. He did this rather ostentatiously（炫耀地）, just before the arrival of another tourist group. I watched as the leader of the group stopped and put some money in the cup. Having been shown the way, other tourists followed suit and added more coins to the woman’s cup.
The young backpacker repeated this process in front of the next tour party going past. Once again, the subtle peer （同伴）pressure worked on the tourists, who all added coins to the cup. His work done, the young man walked over to the old beggar woman, patted her shoulder and said, “I hope that helps a bit.”
I don’t know if the woman understood his English or realized what had just happened, but I did. I placed some money in the woman’s cup and continued my travels, light-hearted after witnessing such an act of caring.The backpacker placed some money in the woman’s cup rather ostentatiously because______.
| A．he wanted to stop the tourists by doing this |
| B．he wanted people to know that he was rich and kind |
| C．he wanted to help the woman by himself |
| D．he wanted the tourist group to follow him |
The author went to a quiet canal-side cafe to_______ .
| A．avoid meeting the beggar |
| B．get away from the crowds |
| C．take a rest |
| D．watch the woman beggar |
We can infer from the passage that ________ .
| A．tourists can be cheated by beggars |
| B．people usually have pity on an old beggar |
| C．tourists are willing to help beggars |
| D．people can do kind acts due to peer pressure |
Before the backpacker dropped some money in the woman’s cup, the tourists ______ .
| A．all showed pity for the woman |
| B．didn’t notice the woman |
| C．walked by without giving any money |
| D．gave a little money to the woman |
Dear Aunty,
After years of her crying. I finally gave in and allowed my daughter to have a cat. I now regret my decision. As someone needs to have a clean, tidy house, I no longer feel relaxed in my own home. If I tell her, “sorry, the cat has to go.” She will be heartbroken. What can I do?
-Feline Phobic
Dear Phobic,
I’m an animal lover and on your kid’s and cat’s side. Tell your daughter your problem. Ask her to help you come up with a plan. Perhaps you can agree to allow the cat only in certain areas of the house. This is a chance for your daughter to develop the sense of responsibility owning a pet requires.
Dear Aunty,
I got the highest grade on a biology test. Now the popular kids think I’m brainy, and want me in their lab group. I knew I was being used. Now, they want my homework. What should I do?
-Lily
Dear Lily.
Popularity can come at a price, but it’s no excuse to cheat. Offer to help new friends with their homework, but don’t give them yours.
Dear Aunty,
I’m one of six assistants in a dental(牙科的) office. But I’m new-there just four months. I’ve tried to join conversations, but they just ignore me. They go shopping together. No one invites me. How can I break into the circle?
-Crystal
Dear Crystal,
Humans run in packs like dogs. When a new dog enters the pack, a lot of discovery goes on. So bring cookies for everyone! Then try making friends with one co-worker. Invite her to lunch. When you get familiar with each other, tell her how hard you’re finding the situation at work. chances are, she’ll take you under her wing.Aunty thinks that Phobic should .
| A．try to persuade her daughter to give in. |
| B．spend more time cleaning the house. |
| C．ask her daughter to help tidy up |
| D．find a better way to keep the cat. |
The underlined word “brainy” in the passage means .
| A．excited | B．friendly | C．intelligent | D．hard-working |
According to the passage, .
| A．Phobic can’t get along well with her daughter. |
| B．Aunty is fond of animals like cats. |
| C．Crystal’s coworkers are cheating her. |
| D．Lily has no interest in lab experiments. |
Become a confident speaker. How to improve your English speaking skills and make you able to communicate more easily and effectively? The following tips will help you to become a more confident speaker.
Practice where you can and when you can. And practice is good — whether you speak to someone who is a native English speaker or not.
It’s important to build up your confidence. If possible, use the simple sentence structure that you know is correct, so that you can concentrate on getting your message across.
Try to experiment with the English you know. Apply (应用) words and phrases you know to new situations. Native English speakers are likely to correct you if you use the wrong word. They usually don’t mind if you use wrong grammar.
Try to respond to what people say to you. You can often get clues to what people think by looking at their body language. Respond to them in a natural way.
Never translate everything into your own language. It takes you much time and you’ll find it difficult to find an English answer right away. You don’t know how to do well. The more you want to act well, the more slowly you act. This will make you hesitant.
If you forget a word, do what native English speakers do all the time, and say things that ‘fill’ the conversation. This is better than remaining completely silent. Try using ‘um’, ‘er’, if you forget the word.
Don’t speak too fast! It’s important to use a natural rhythm (节奏) in speaking English, but if you speak too fast it will be difficult for people to understand you.
Try to relax when you speak, and you’ll find that your mouth does most of the pronunciation work for you. Speak English at a normal speed.
Final tips: Try to become less hesitant. Don’t be shy to speak — the more you do it, the more confident you’ll become. Remember to be polite — use “please” and “thank you” if you ask someone to do something for you.What is the text mainly about?
| A．Good ways of studying English well. |
| B．Suggestions on becoming a confident speaker. |
| C．Things to pay attention to when speaking English. |
| D．How to correct your mistakes as you speak English. |
How many tips does the author offer in this text?
| A．9. | B．10. | C．11. | D．12. |
In this passage, the underlined word “hesitant” in the sixth paragraph means “________”.
| A．sure about what to do |
| B．fast to make a good decision |
| C．successful in answering questions |
| D．uncertain about how to express yourself |
This text is most probably written for ________.
| A．English beginners | B．native English speakers |
| C．English teachers | D．language experts |
Young Jack moved to a new house. When entering his new bedroom, he saw that it was full of toys but it was tidy. That day he played all he liked, but went to bed without tidying up.
The next morning, when Jack got up, he found all the toys had been put back in their proper places. He was sure that no one had entered his bedroom, but the boy didn’t pay much attention to it. The exact same thing happened that day, and the next day. But on the fourth day when he went to get his favourite toy, the toy jumped out of his hands and said, “I don’t want to play with you!”
Jack felt surprised, but the same happened with every toy he touched. Finally, one toy said to him:
“We don’t want to play with you. You always leave us so far away from our proper places. You don’t know how arduous it is for us to climb back up onto the shelves, or jump into the box. We feel most uncomfortable and unhappy. You don’t know how uncomfortable and cold the floor is! We don’t play with you any more if you don’t promise to leave us in our proper places before you go to bed.”
Jack remembered how comfortable he felt in his bed and how bad he felt when he had once slept in a chair. He realized how badly he had treated his friends, the toys. He asked for their forgiveness(原谅)， and from that day on he always put his toys nicely in their proper places before he got into bed.when Jack moved into his bedroom, .
| A．it needed to be cleaned | B．he found lots of toys |
| C．he brought lots of toys | D．he put away his toys |
Why did all the toys refuse to play with Jack?
| A．because he always broke them. |
| B．because he didn’t like them any more. |
| C．because he only played with his favourite one. |
| D．because he did’t put them in their proper places. |
The underlined word “arduous” in Para.4 probably means .
| A．difficult | B．easy | C．regular | D．useful |
The purpose of the text is to tell us that .
| A．we should have a good sleep |
| B．we should be fair to every friend |
| C．we should treat our friends well |
| D．we should always keep our rooms tidy |
He says the problem with teachers is, “What will a kid learn from someone who chose to become a teacher?” He reminds the other dinner guests that it’s true what they say about teachers: Those who can, do; those who can’t, teach.
I decide to bite my tongue instead of biting his and stop myself from reminding the other dinner guests that it’s also true what they say about lawyers－that they make money from the misfortune of others.
“I mean, you’re a teacher, Taylor,” he says to me.” Be honest. What do you make?”
I wish he hadn’t asked me to be honest, because now I have to teach him a lesson.
You want to know what I make?
I make kids work harder than they ever thought they could.
I can make a C+feel like a great achievement and an A-feel like a failure.
How dare you waste my time with anything less than your very best?
I make parents tremble in fear when I call them:
I hope I haven’t called at a bad time.
I just wanted to talk to you about something Billy said today.
Billy said, “Leave the kid alone. I still cry sometimes, don’t you?”
And it was the bravest act I have ever seen.
I make parents see their children for who they are and what they can be.
You want to know what I make?
I make kids wonder.
I make them question.
I make them criticise.
I make them think.
I make them apologise and mean it.
I make them write, write, write.
And then I make them read.
I teach them to solve math problems that they once thought impossible.
I make them understand that if you have brains then you follow your heart and if someone ever tries to judge you by what you make, you teach them a lesson.
Let me make this simple for you, so you know what I say is true:
I make a great difference! What about you?What is the tone of the passage?
| A．Upset and disappointed. | B．Cheerful and positive. |
| C．Angry and proud. | D．Humorous and light-hearted. |
What do we know about the man that the author is speaking to?
| A．He dislikes lawyers. | B．He is actually a lawyer. |
| C．He is respectful to teachers. | D．He is in the author’s home. |
What’s the best title of this passage?
| A．Requirements of a Good Teacher | B．An Argument Between Two Guests. |
| C．A Dinner Conversation | D．What Teachers Make |
The underlined phrase “bite my tongue” in Paragraph 2 is closest in meaning to .
| A．stop myself saying what I really think | B．say something that is wrong |
| C．speak out honestly but carelessly | D．keep silent about myself |
A growing number of workers at Google Inc., Facebook Inc. and other employers are trading in their sit-down desks for standing ones, saying they feel more comfortable and energized. They also are motivated by medical reports saying that sitting for too long leads to increased health risks.
A standing desk sits high off the floor so a worker can either stand at it or sit on a high stool to use it. Officials at Palo Alto-based Facebook say a number of employees asked about standing desks after news articles were published about the health risks of sitting all day.
The stories cited medical studies that tied excessive sitting to increased obesity and other health problems because of factors including a drop in physical activity. A 2010 study by the American Cancer Society found that women who sat more than six hours a day were 37% more likely to die prematurely than women who sat for less than three hours, while the early-death rate for men was 18% higher. The American College of Cardiology released a study in January that found increased mortality (死亡率) among people who sat longer at home than those who didn't.
No one seems to compile statistics on the standing-desk trend. But anecdotal reports suggest Silicon Valley is embracing the movement.
Facebook officials say they have seen an upsurge in requests for standing desks to five to eight a week with a total of between 200 and 250 deployed (配置) at the company of more than 2,000 employees. Facebook also is trying out a treadmill station ─ where a worker can walk or run on a treadmill while tapping at a computer.
Google spokesman Jordan Newman said that 'many employees at Google opt for standing desks, and we offer them as part of our wellness program' though he said he didn't know the exact number.
Greg Hoy, 39 years old, asked for a standing desk shortly after joining Facebook seven months ago as a design recruiter. 'I don't get the 3 o'clock slump anymore,' he said. 'I feel active all day long.'The underlined word “motivated” in paragraph 1 can be replaced by .
| A．frightened | B．inspired | C．missed | D．discouraged |
According to paragraph 3, we can know that .
| A．a drop in physical activity was the only reason why excessive sitting caused increased obesity. |
| B．women who sat longer were more likely to die prematurely according to a 2010 study by American College of Cardiology |
| C．according to the study, the early-death rate for men was 18% higher than that for women. |
| D．the mortality among people who didn’t sat long at home was lower than that among people who did. |
According to paragraph 5, which of the following statements is true about a treadmill station ?
| A．is a computer that a worker can take along when he walks or runs |
| B．has been tried out by Facebook and now is very popular with other companies |
| C．is a place where workers can exercise while working. |
| D．is a treadmill on which workers can run or walk only after work |
The passage mainly talks about .
| A．sitting for too long leads to increased health risks |
| B．standing desks have replaced sit-down ones in Facebook Inc. |
| C．more and more workers choose standing desks instead of sit-down ones |
| D．many employees at Google opt for standing desks |