In 2009, the Taiwu Elementary School Folk Singers were invited to perform in Belgium, France, Germany, and Luxemburg. In 2011, they were voted as one of the world’s top five performance groups by audiences of Japan Broadcasting Corporation’s Amazing Voice program.
Thinking back the group’s first tour in Europe, Camake Valaule, a physical education teacher and the founder of the Taiwu Elementary School Folk Singers, admitted that he felt very nervous. He was worried that the audience would fall asleep since most of the 75-minute performance was a cappella, that is, singing without instrumental sound. Surprisingly, the audience listened with full focus and high spirits. Camake said, “They told me afterward that through our performance, they had a vision of our country, our village, without having to visit it. This experience greatly increased our confidence.”
According to Camake Valaule, singing traditional ballads has helped students and their parents to re-understand their culture. “It used to be that the only ones who could sing these songs were tribal elders aged between 50 and 60. Now with the children performing the pieces, parents are beginning to ask, ‘Why do we not know how to sing these ballads?’ Many times nowadays, it is the children who teach the songs to their parents, putting back the pieces of a blurred memory.”
Winning international fame, however, was neither the original intention nor the main reason why Camake founded the group in 2006. The most important thing was to make children understand why they sing these songs and to preserve and pass on their culture. Referring to the relocation of Taiwu Elementary School and Taiwu Village following Typhoon Morakot in August 2009, Camake said, “We could not take the forest or our houses in the mountains with us; but we were able to bring our culture along. As long as the children are willing to sing, I will always be there for them, singing with them and leading them to experience the meaning of the ballads.”Which of the following is true about Taiwu Elementary School Folk Singers?
| A．The group was first established in 2009. |
| B．The group was founded by a PE teacher. |
| C．The singers usually sing popular folk songs. |
| D．The singers learn to sing from their parents. |
On his first trip to Europe, why did Camake think the audience might fall asleep?
| A．The average age of the audience was between fifty and sixty. |
| B．Most of the performance was not accompanied by any instrument. |
| C．Nobody could understand the language and the meaning of the songs. |
| D．The audience could not visualize the theme sung by the school children. |
What does the underlined part “the pieces of a blurred memory” in the third paragraph most likely refer to?
| A．The fading memories about old tribal people. |
| B．The children’s ignorance of their own tradition. |
| C．The broken pieces of knowledge taught at school. |
| D．The parents’ vague understanding of their own culture. |
What did Camake realize after the incident of Typhoon Morakot?
| A．The significance of the relocation of Taiwu Elementary School. |
| B．The need to respect nature to avoid being destroyed by it. |
| C．The importance of passing on the traditional culture. |
| D．The consequence of building houses in the forest. |
I know what you’re thinking : pizza （比萨饼）? For breakfast? But the truth is that you can have last night’s leftovers in the a. m. if you want to.
I know lots of women who skip（跳过） breakfast , and they have a ton of different excuses for doing it . Some say they don’t have time. others think they’re “saving” calories （卡路里）, still others just don’t like breakfast food .
But the bottom line is that eating in the morning is very important when you’re trying to lose weight.
“Eating just about anything from 300 to 400 calories would be better than nothing at all,” says Katherine Brooking , R , D , who developed the super-easy eating plan for this year’s “SELF CHALLENGE”. And even pizza can be healthy if it’s loaded with vegetables, and you stick to 
one small piece.
Breakfast is one meal I never miss, and the same goes for most weight loss success stories. Research shows that eating breakfast keeps you from overeating later in the day. Researchers at the University of Southern California found that breakfast skippers have a bigger chance of gaining weight than those 
who regularly have a morning meal.
So eat somet
hing in the morning, anything. I know plenty of friends who end up having no breakfast altogether, and have just coffee or orange juice. I say, try heating up last night’s leftovers-it may sound crazy, but if it works for you, do it! I find if I tell myself, “You can always eat it tomorrow,”
I put away the leftovers instead of eating more that night. Try it…you may save yourself some pre-bedtime calories. And watch your body gain the fat-burning effects.The word “leftovers” in Paragraph 1 probably means__________.
| A．food remaining after a meal | B．things left undone |
| C．meals made of vegetables | D．pizza topped with fruit |
What can we infer from the text?
A．Working women usually have brea kfast in a hurry. |
| B．Many people have wrong ideas about breakfast. |
| C．There are some easy ways of cooking a meal. |
| D．Eating vegetables helps save energy. |
According to the last paragraph, it is important to____________.
| A．eat something for breakfast | B．be careful about what you eat |
| C．heat up food before eating it | D．eat calorie-controlled food |
The text is written mainly for those_____________.
| A．who go to work early | B．who want to lose weight |
| C．who stay up late | D．who eat before sleep |
Extraordinary Teens
The book will inspire young adults with its tales of teenagers achieving great success. It includes personal stories from many well-known 
young athletes, businessmen, actors, writers and filmmakers. Every person shares his or her story along with valuable advice that will show you how you can also achieve success. Learn from these people who are walking examples of possibil
ity.
Teens Talk High School
This book is written for high school kids, aged 14-18. Teens in high school have mainly moved past worrying about puberty(青春期), s
o the stories in this book cover topics of interest to older teens, such as sports and clubs, driving, faming relationships, friends, and preparing for life after high school. High school students 
will find comfort and inspiration in the words of this book, refe
rring to it through all the four years of their high school experience.
Getting into College
Every year colleges receive a lot of applications, and the application process has become something hard that students and parents experience together. This book isn’t about how to get into college. It’s about providing emotional support. The stories in this book are written by kids who have been there and want to pass on their words of support to others. Parents and students will find th
is book a great source of inspiration.
Campus Stories
College life can be fun, exciting, and educational in more ways than one. Campus Stores is a book for any current(现在) or future college student who wants to know what really goes on the campus. Campus Stores is about growing up, making choices, learning lessons, and making the best of your last as a student.The writer’s purpose of writing the book Extraordinary Teens is to _____.
| A．help students with study problems |
| B．persuade teenagers to do volunteering |
| C．encouraging young people to achieving success |
| D．teach people how to apply for a college |
Which of the following topics does Teen Talk High School cover?
| A．Clubs, puberty, friends | B．Driving, sports, family relationships |
C．Sports, drinking, growing up |
D．Puberty, clubs, family relationships |
What does Getting into College mainly talk about?
| A．How to form a good habit in college. | B．What the top 10 American colleges are. |
| C．How to get used to the college life quickly. | D．How to get through the application process. |
What do all the four books have in common?
| A．They are all written by kids. | B．Teens are likely to be the readers. |
| C．They are all best-sellers of this year. | D．Both kids and parents enjoy them. |
Rome had the forum. London has Speaker’s Corner. Now always-on-the-go New Yorker has Liz and Bill.
Liz and Bill, two college graduates in their early 20s, have spent a whole year trying to have thousands of people talk to them in the subway station and on busy street corners. Just talk.
Using a 2-feet-high sign that says, “Talk to Me,” they attract conversationalists, who one evening included a mental patient, and men in business suits.
They don’t collect money. They don’t push the religion. So what is the point?
“To see what happens,” said Liz. “We simply enjoy life with open conversation（交流）.”
Shortly after the September 11, 2001 attacks, they decided to walk from New York city to Washington, a 270-mile trip. They found they loved talking to people along the way and wanted to talk with the strangers after their return.
“It started as a crazy idea,” Liz said. “We were so curious about all the strangers walking by with their stories. People
will talk to us about anything: their jobs, their clothes, their childhood, anything.”
Denise wanted to talk about an exam she was going to take. She had stopped for the second time in two days, to let two listeners know how it went.
Marcia had lost her husband to a serious disease. “That was very heavy on my mind,” Marcia said. “To be able to talk about it to totally strangers was very good,” she 
explained.
To celebrate a year of talking, the two held a get-together in a city park for all the people they had met in the past year. A few hundred people showed up, as well as some television cam
eramen and reporters.
They may plan more parties or tried to attract more people to join their informal talks. Some publishers have expressed their interest in the book, something they say they’ll consider.What did Liz and Bill start
doing after September 200
1?
| A．Chatting with people | B．Setting up street signs |
| C．Telling stories to strangers | D．Organizing a speaker’s corner |
What they have been doing can be described as ______.
| A．pointless | B．normal | C．crazy | D．successful |
Why are Denise and Marcia mentioned in the text?
| A．They knew Liz and Bill very well. |
B．They happened to meet the writer of the tex t. |
| C．They organized the get-together in the city park. |
| D．They are example of those who talked to Liz and Bill. |
What will Liz and Bill do in the future?
A．Going for p ublishing. |
B．Do more television program. |
| C．Continuing what they are doing. | D．Spending more time reading books. |
Do you know that many clowns go to school to learn how to be funny? How would you like to go to that school? You could learn how to walk and talk like a clown. Then you could make people laugh.
Clowns may go to school for a year. There they learn to move in funny ways. They learn to run and jump like different animals. They also learn how to fall down in a special way. They make sure they don’t get injured. They make every move look easy. But really it’s hard work.
In a school clowns decide how they will look. They make funny pants and tops. Then clowns have their funny long shoes made. They also learn to make up their faces. Clowns carefully put special paint on, so they look silly.
They start by making every part of their feces white. Then they use red paint around their mouths to make them look big. Clowns may paint re spots on each side of their faces, too. Big red noses are added. They put on funny hair or funny hats.
Now they look silly. They are ready to go to work! You can see clowns at the circus or parade. They do funny things to surprise people. Ten big clowns may get out of a very small car. Or they may walk on a high rope. Then they almost fall. The faces they make when they try to stand up again make people laugh.The word “clown” in this passage refers to ____.
A．a person who tries to make people laugh by th is funny looks, clothes and tricks and actions |
| B．a person who copies others in speaking, actions and way of walking |
C．a person who gives performances only to make p eople laugh. |
| D．a person whose job is very easy to do. |
Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the passage?
| A．Clowns learn to be funny at school to make people laugh |
| B．Clowns wear strange pants and tops and funny long shoes. |
| C．Clowns don’t feel frightened when they walk on a high rope. |
| D．Clowns put on funny hair and hats and make faces |
From the passage, we can learn that clowns play at ____.
| A．a parade | B．the circus | C．school | D．both A and B |
From the passage, we can infer that _______.
| A．there are quite a number of clown schools in the world |
B．people laugh when they watch clowns play at the circus |
| C．clowns like animals very much so they jump like different animals |
D．clowns make people laugh b ut they seldom laugh |
Before going outside in the morning, many of us check a window thermometer(温度计)for the temperature. This helps us decide what to wear.____. We want our food to be a certain coldness in the refrigerator. We want it a certain hotness in the oven. If we don’t feel well, we use a thermometer to see if we have a fever. We keep our rooms a certain warmth in the winter and a certain coolness in the summer.
Not all the thermometers use the same system to measure temperature. We use a system called the Fahrenheit scale. But most other countries use the Centigrade scale.
Both systems use the freezing and boiling points of water as their guide.____.
The most common kind of thermometer is made with mercury(水银)inside a clear glass tube. As mercury (or any other liquid ) becomes hot, it expands. As it gets colder, it contracts(收缩). That is why on hot days the mercury line is high in the glass tube.____.
First. Take a clear glass juice bottle that has a cap ; fill the bottle with coloured water. Tap a hole in the center of the cap using a hammer and thick nail. Put the cap on the jar. Then stick a plastic straw(吸管) through the nail hole.________.
Finally. Place a white card on the outside of the bottle and behind the straw. Now you can see the water lever easily. ________.
As the temperature goes down, the water will contract, and the lever in the straw will come down. Perhaps you will want to keep a record of the water lever in the straw each morning for a week.
| A．People use thermometers which are made by themselves when travelling around the world. |
| B．We use and depend on thermometers to measure the temperature of many other things in our daily lives. |
| C．Thermometers measure temperature, by using materials that change in the same way when they are heated or cooled. |
| D．Now that you know this rule you can make a thermometer of your own that will work. |
E．The water will rise in the straw. As the temperature of the air goes up, the water will expand and rise even higher.
F．They label these in different ways. On the Fahrenheit scale water freezes at 32 degrees and boils at 212 degrees. On the Celsius scale water freezes at 0 degrees and boils at 100degrees.
G．Take wax (you may use an old candle if you have one) and melt some of it right where the straw is struck into the cap to seal(把..粘住) them together.