Most Americans don’t like to get advice from their family. When they need advice, they don’t usually ask people they know. They often write letters to newspapers and magazines. And these newspapers and magazines can give advice on many different subjects such as family problems, language learning and how to buy a house and so on.
Most newspapers publish (刊登) letters from readers with problems. And they would also publish the answers to the letters. There are many writers giving advice to newspapers. Some of these writers are doctors, and some are teachers or lawyers (律师). One of the best writers is a woman. Although she doesn’t have special learning for this kind of work, experience helps her a lot to give advice. She is named Angel. She started writing advice for newspapers at the age of ten. Her advice to young readers now is in a column (栏目) called DEAR ANGEL in the Philadelphia Bulletin.
What do most Americans like to do when they have problems?
| A．They like to ask their friends. |
| B．They like to write to newspapers and magazines. |
| C．They like to ask their parents. |
| D．They like to write to the people they know. |
Which of the following is not mentioned (提到) to give advice to newspapers?
| A．Teachers. | B．Doctors. |
| C．Captains. | D．Lawyers. |
What helps Angel a lot to give advice?
| A．Family. | B．Age. |
| C．Money. | D．Experience. |
Angel often gives advice to .
| A．old readers | B．young readers |
| C．her parents | D．her students |
The passage mainly tells us .
| A．how Americans get advice |
| B．how to get advice from teachers |
| C．Americans have too many family problems |
| D．how to write advice to reader |
People often said Thomas Edison was the greatest genius(天才) of his age. There are only a few men in all of history, who have changed the lives of other men as much as the inventor of the first useful electric light. But Edison could never be pleased only because someone said he was a genius. “There is no such a thing as genius,” Edison said. He thought what people called genius was mostly hard work.
But Edison was a thinker as well as a worker. From his earliest days as a child he wondered about the secrets of nature. He tried to understand them, and then he tried to learn what he could usefully do with them.
Edison enjoyed thinking. He knew that most people would do almost anything instead of the difficult work of thinking, especially if they do not think very often. But he knew, too, that thinking could give men enjoyment and pleasure.
Edison could not understand why anyone could not be interested in life. As he loved to think, he also loved to work. On the day he became 75 years old, someone asked him what idea he had about life. “Work,” he answered, “Discovering the secrets of nature and using them to make men happier.” He said he had enough inventions in his mind to give him another 100 years of work. What is genius according to Thomas Edison?
| A．Hard thinking. | B．Hard work. |
| C．Useful ideas. | D．Useful inventions. |
How did Edison always deal with the secrets of nature after exploring them?
| A．To write down what he had learned. |
| B．To carry out a new experiment. |
| C．To make them useful in life. |
| D．To share them with others. |
What does the last sentence in the passage mean?
| A．Edison was born to be a great inventor. |
| B．Edison was able to live another 100 years. |
| C．Edison was ready to make his 100th invention. |
| D．Life was too short for Edison to work for human beings. |
More and more people think it necessary to study in an English-speaking country and it didn’t take long at all for me to decide to come and study in UK.
I have been used to school life since I came here two months ago, and I am starting to enjoy most of my time in here. School starts at 9 o’clock every morning, and every Monday, Wednesday and Friday we have long days, in which we have 9 lessons and school finishes at 4 o’clock. Every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday we have short days, in which we have only 6 lessons and finish at 1 o’clock. After lessons, we have 2 hours of activity time, when you can choose from a number of activities, including many sports, such as rugby(英式橄榄球) , football, basketball and tennis.
As a boarder(寄宿者), the quality of food is something I consider very important, and Merchiston has not let me down. The school kitchens are run by a professional company, and the quality of food is excellent, and they are always trying to make the diet healthy. One of the obvious advantages of being a boarder is that we can have breakfast in the school, which means we don’t have to pull ourselves out of bed as early as the day pupils!How many lessons do the students have every week in this school?
| A．15 | B．45 | C．27 | D．18 |
The passage mainly tells us about __________________.
| A．the writer’s school life in the UK as a boarder |
| B．the writer’s opinion of the school life in the UK |
| C．the differences in school life between China and the UK |
| D．the boarder life in a British middle school |
Which of the following has the closest meaning to the underlined phrase “ let me down” in the passage?
| A．made me blue | B．cheered me up |
| C．encouraged me | D．made me surprised |
Celebrating New Year’s Day is one of the oldest and most exciting traditions around the world. Since this festival marks the beginning of the year， New Year’s Day is thought of as a perfect time for a “clean start”. People in the world decide to act better in the year just beginning than the year just ended.
No day has ever been celebrated in so many different ways. All over the world， countries have their own special beliefs about what the New Year means to them.
In Scotland， the New Year is called Hogmanay. In the villages of Scotland， barrels of tar (沥青) are set on fire. It represents that the old year is burned up and the new one is allowed to enter.
New Year’s Day is also the Festival of Saint Basil in Canada. Children leave their shoes by the fireside on New Year’s Day with the hope that Saint Basil， who is famous for his kindness， will come and fill their shoes with gifts.
The Jewish New Year is called Rosh Hashanah. It is an important time when Jews promise to do better in the future. Special services are held in the church， children are given new clothes and New Year bread is cooked to remind people of harvest time.
On New Year’s Day in Japan， everyone gets dressed in their new clothes and homes are decorated (装饰) with bamboos—symbols of long life.
In European countries such as Germany， France and Belgium， families start the New Year by first attending church services. Afterwards， they visit friends and relatives. In France， boys and girls receive gifts of money on New Year’s Day.
New Year celebrations around the
| Country/people |
Celebration activities |
Special beliefs |
Scotland |
People |
The old year is burned up and the new one is allowed to enter. |
Canada |
Children leave their |
Their shoes will be |
Jews |
It is a time for people to People |
|
Japan |
People Homes are decorated with bamboos. |
Symbols of |
| European |
People attend church services visiting friends and relatives. |
It is difficult to say exactly how the music we call “rock” or “rock and roll” began. Its roots (根源) go back to many different countries and many different kinds of music and many musicians.
Rock music developed mainly from the interaction (相互影响）of black African and white European music. The Europeans and the African slaves (奴隶）who came to America during the seventeenth century each had their own different kinds of music. Black Africans used heavy drumbeats，a rough singing voice，and the calling of a melody (旋律）and answer of a chorus. The white Europeans，mostly English and Scots，used a stronger melody，a less heavy beat，and instruments such as guitars，horns，and fiddles. The history of rock and roll is the history of how rock changed from these two traditions.
From the seventeenth to the twentieth century， musicians in the southern United States developed two new forms of music： the blues，usually played by blacks，and country music， played by whites. Black musicians sang the blues with a guitar. This music was similar to work songs：stories of troubles and pain， with lines that were repeated several times. The word “rock and roll” probably came from the black churches in the South， where people sang and danced to the strong rhythms， which they called “rocking and reeling”. At the same time， whites were playing country music， which was mostly traditional dancing music and slow songs that told sad stories. The singers played with string instruments such as fiddles and guitars.
During this time blues and country musicians had some influence on each other， but the influence grew stronger after phonograph records (留声机唱片)became popular in the late nineteenth century. The birth of the electric guitar changed country and blue music in the 1940s. The sound of the electric guitar would become the sound， of rock and roll. No one thinks of early rock and roll without thinking of Elvis Presley，the“King of Rock and Roll”.Rock music continues to develop and change， but the heart and soul of rock is the same heart and soul that Elvis expressed.What’s the best title for the passage?
| A．Different Kinds of Music |
| B．The Beginning of Rock and Roll |
| C．Elvis’s Contribution (贡献）to Music |
| D．Rock and Roll Is Developing |
Which of the following doesn’t describe black Africans’ music style?
| A．They used heavy drumbeats. |
| B．They sang in a rough voice. |
| C．They used instruments such as guitars， horns， and fiddles. |
| D．They used the calling of a melody and answer of a chorus. |
Which of the following describes country music?
| A． Country music is usually played by blacks. |
| B．People sang spiritual music and danced to the strong rhythms， which they called “country music”. |
| C．Country music was traditional dancing music and slow songs that told sad stories. |
| D．Country music was similar to work songs. |
Which of the following NOT right according to the passage?
| A．In the seventeenth century， many visitors went to America from Europe and Africa. |
| B．Rock music developed mainly from the interaction of black African and white European music. |
| C．Musicians in the southern United States developed two new forms of music： the blues and country music from the seventeenth to the twentieth century. |
| D．Blues and country musicians had some influence on each other during a time in history. |
Many children use the Internet to get useful knowledge and information， and to relax in their free time. But some of them are not using in a good way. Here are some rules to make sure you are safe and have fun on the Internet.
●Make rules for Internet use with your parents. For example， when you can go online， for how long and what activities you can go online.
●Don’t give your password(密码) to anyone else， and never leak out the following information—your real name， home address， age， school， phone number or other personal information.
●Check with your parents before giving out a credit(信用) card number.
●Never send a photo of yourself to someone in e-mail unless your parents say it’s OK.
●Check with your parents before going into a chat room. Different chat rooms have different rules and attract different kinds of people. You and your parents must make sure it’s a right place for you.
●Never agree to meet someone you met on the Internet without your parent’s permission(允许). Never meet anyone you met online alone.
●Always remember that people online may not be who they say they are. Treat everyone online as strangers.
●If something you see or read online makes you uncomfortable， leave the site. Tell a parent or teacher right away.
●Treat other people as you’d like to be treated. Never use bad language.
●Remember—not everything you read on the Internet is true. If you want a true friend on the Internet， you can ______.
| A．tell the people what your name is |
| B．meet the people online alone |
| C．write an e-mail about yourself |
| D．get your parent’s permission |
The underlined phrase “leak out” in the third paragraph may mean “______”.
| A．give in | B．leave out |
| C．give out | D．put away |
This passage is mainly about “______”.
| A．How to Use Computers |
| B．Surfing the Internet |
| C．Information on the Internet |
| D．Internet Safety Rules |