Yesterday I went to buy a little tree for my father． When I was talking with the cashier（收银员），he asked what I would be doing with this little tree． I explained that it was for my Dad， because he no longer lived at home．
The cashier just stopped and looked at me with the kindest look． He shared with me that his grandfather couldn't live in their home any longer either because he had Alzheimer's disease（阿尔茨海默症）． So I shared with him that my Dad was on the same journey． We talked about the difficulties because of the illness， not only for those who are ill， but also for their families．
When I was paying for the tree， he said， "Because this is for your Dad， let me see what I can do for you．" He took some coupons（优惠券） from a drawer and reducedmy cost by over 60%．
I thanked him for his kindness． We wished each other Merry Christmas and the best hopes for our loved family members．
On the way home I kept thinking of the kindness the offered me． It was truly a moment of "kindness given， kindness received"． I made Dad's tree more beautiful as soon as I got home． So thankful． So blessed．
（1）What's wrong with the writer's father？
| A． |
He had a bad cold． |
| B． |
He had a backache． |
| C． |
He had Alzheimer's disease． |
| D． |
He had a heart problem． |
（2）When did the story probably happen？
| A． |
Before Christmas． |
| B． |
After Christmas． |
| C． |
On the writer's father's birthday． |
| D． |
On the cashier's grandfather's birthday． |
（3）The writer felt when the cashier offered him his kindness．
| A． |
relaxed |
| B． |
angry |
| C． |
nervous |
| D． |
thankful |
（4）The underlined word "reduced" in Paragraph 3 means" " in Chinese．
| A． |
增加 |
| B． |
减少 |
| C． |
支付 |
| D． |
给予 |
（5）What is the best title for the passage？
| A． |
My great Dad |
| B． |
A Christmas gift for Dad |
| C． |
Sharing is important |
| D． |
Face difficulties bravely |
People enjoy taking trips. But what are the reasons they leave home? One reason is for education. People travel because they want to learn more about other people and other places. They are curious about other cultures. When people are tourists, they get a quick look at different ways of living. Even a short look at another kind of lifestyle is an important lesson. On a trip, a person can learn directly by visiting museums and historic spots. What does a tourist learn who sees the art museums, visits the historical palaces and other scenic spots in Paris and shops along the River Seine? He gets a vivid picture, a real life of one of the French people. He learns about their attitudes（态度）, how they feel about business, beauty and history.
What about the tourist who goes to Hong Kong? Does he get the same information that he could get from a book? He might read that Hong Kong is crowded, that there is less than 200 square meters of space for each person. But seeing and feeling the lack of space will impress him much more. He might read that there are nearly 200 vehicles for every kilometer of roadway. But the sight of so many vehicles parked along the roadside would be a much more vivid lesson. The tourist to Hong Kong will never forget the contrasts(对比，对照): the straight vertical lines of tall modern buildings and the moving lines of boats that people live in.Why do people leave home to travel according to the passage?
| A．For education. |
| B．For adventure. |
| C．To enjoy themselves. |
| D．To look for a different lifestyle. |
What do we learn from the passage about Paris?
| A．It has a large population. |
| B．It has many tall buildings. |
| C．There are 200 vehicles for every kilometer of roadway. |
| D．There are many museums and palaces. |
What impression will a tourist get of Hong Kong?
| A．It has many big and beautiful parks. |
| B．It is very crowded. |
| C．It has many historical spots. |
| D．It is an important industrial center. |
What does the passage tell us about traveling?
| A．It makes our life more interesting. |
| B．It enables us to get first-hand knowledge. |
| C．It helps develop our personalities. |
| D．It brings about changes in our lifestyle. |
Six people are talking about two pie shops in a TV program.
Lily: I’ve been going to Pie House for twenty years. Now Marie’s son is taking care of the business, and he makes pies as good as his mother’s. I enjoy my stay there as before. My family also like the pies. We feel relaxed while staying there.
◇◇◇
Olive: I went to Pie Corner once. Their pies were great, too. But I feel more comfortable at Pie House. I am used to the taste there, which makes me feel happy. I’m really a fan of Pie House.
◇◇◇
Ned: Uncle Roy used to work for my mom. Later he opened Pie Corner on the next block after he got married. At the beginning, it’s not easy for him, but it is becoming more and more popular especially among young people. They think Pie Corner can often give them a surprise.
◇◇◇
Marie: Roy was already quite avant-garde when working with me. I mean he had different, sometimes even strange, ideas about pies. There were times I thought his pies wouldn’t taste good, but they turned out magically delicious. He is really creative and can always make new pies, which attract many people.
◇◇◇
Lee: Ned has done quite well with Pie House. His pies make you feel warm. But if you want to try something interesting, you should go to Pie Corner.
◇◇◇
Chuck: The two pie shops are really different from each other. If eating Roy’s pies is like taking an exciting trip, then Ned’s pies are just like a sweet home you go back to after a long trip. Which one to go to depends on what you like.What do we know about the six people?
| A．They all have been to both pie shops. |
| B．They all talked about what the pies taste like. |
| C．Some of them are the shopkeepers of the pie shops. |
| D．Some of them talked about how the shopkeepers treated their workers. |
Which is true about the pie shops?
| A．Pie House is a family business. |
| B．Pie Corner is next to Pie House. |
| C．Pie Corner has a longer history than Pie House. |
| D．Pie House gives people a place to stay for the night. |
What does ‘avant-garde’ mean in the reading?
| A．Having a new and surprising way of thinking. |
| B．Trying to find out where the problems come from. |
| C．Trying to act like someone who knows everything. |
| D．Having many exciting life experiences. |
阅读短文，完成表格。
We all dream about things that we would like to do we hope to achieve in the future. But are everybody’s dreams the same? Here are some of the findings of a survey about hopes and dreams, in which thousands of students across China took part in it.
What are the hopes of teenagers?
We received several different answers to the question: what would you like to do after finishing your education? It seems some students would like to start work as soon as possible, so that they can help provide better lives for their parents. Other students hope to continue studying after finishing school and to go to university. Although money is important, many teenagers said they want to do jobs they enjoy. According to the survey, the most popular choice of job is computer programming.
What are the dreams of teenagers?
Teenagers have all kinds of dreams. Some are more realistic than others. For example, many students said they would like to be volunteers if Beijing could hold the World Cup, maybe working as translators or tour guides. And quite a few said they dream of going to the moon one day.
According to the survey, less realistic dreams are also common, but many students reported that they were willing to work hard to achieve their dreams. Quite a few dream of becoming famous, perhaps famous sports people or singers. Some said they’d like to go on exciting trips; one students said she’d love to sail across the Pacific Ocean. And then there are dreams that are impossible; three students said they’d like to be able to fly!
Conclusion It was clear from the survey that teenagers have similar hopes. It seems that most students hope to have a good education and find a good job. On the other hand, students dream of very different things: good things, and even crazy things. It is very important to dream, so hold on your dreams; one day they may just come true.
| A survey about some Chinese students’ ___ |
|
| Hopes of teenagers |
Some students hope to start working as soon as possible. |
| Others hope to continue studying after finishing school and to go to university |
|
| Dreams of teenagers |
Some students have more realistic dreams such as working as volunteers at the 2008 Olympics, etc. |
| Others have less realistic dreams such as becoming famous sportspeople or singer, ___ |
|
| Some students ___ |
|
| Conclusion: The survey shows that teenagers have similar hopes and different dreams |
阅读下面的短文，根据所给语境，按要求完成下列各题。
①After Pluto (冥王星) was found in 1930, people took it as the ninth planet in our solar system(太阳系). But it isn’t like other planets. It is smaller and has an strange orbit(轨道). On August 24,2006， scientists said,“Pluto is not a planet.”
About 2,500 scientists met in Prague（布拉格，捷克首都）. At first, some of them said that there would be 12 planets in our solar system. In the end, the scientists said that only Mercury（水）, Venus（金）, Earth, Mars（火）, Jupiter（木）, Saturn（土）, Uranus（天王）and Neptune（海王）are the planets in the solar system. ②Each of these planets has its own orbit, and of the planets is big enough to be a planet. Pluto’s orbit overlaps (重叠) Neptune’s and it is smaller than the other planets. ③So Pluto is classified(划归/分类) as a dwarf planet (矮行星), but no longer a planet in the solar system.
Students at school will have new schoolbooks to learn the new solar system!根据①处完成下面的句子（每空一词）
Before people _______ Pluto in 1930, there were _______ planets in our solar system.根据②出完成下面的句子（每空一词）。
Every planet not only has its own _______ , but also is ______ enough.将③处译成汉语。
—————————————————————————————
Sarah ran in, shouting, “Look what I found!” Over the top of the paper I was reading; came a terrible thing that caused me to jump. It was a snake skin found in our garden.
“Isn’t it beautiful?” said my seven-year-old daughter.
I opened my eyes widely and looked at the snake skin in fear（恐惧地）. I didn’t think it was beautiful, but I learned never to appear nonchalant(冷漠的)with children. Everything they see for the first time is important to their sense of beauty; they see only excellence in the world.
“Why does it do this?” Sarah asked.
“Snakes shed(蜕) their skins because they need to renew themselves,” I explained.
“Why do they need to renew（使更新） themselves?” Sarah asked.
“We often need to shed our skins, those coatings that we cover ourselves with,” I said to my daughter. “We leave some things and find other thing unwanted or unnecessary. This snake no longer needs this skin. It is probably too little for him, and he probably doesn’t think he looks as smart in it as he once did. ”
As we talked, I knew that she began to understand. Although she couldn’t understand clearly, she would know that renewal is part of progress; that we need to take a good look at ourselves, our rooms, schoolwork and spirit, and see what we need to keep and what we need to leave. I was careful to tell that this is a natural way, not one to be forced.
“Snakes don’t peel off their skins when they like them. “I explained. “It happens as a natural thing of their growth. ”
“I see, Dad,” said Sarah as she held the snake skin, and then ran off.
I hoped she would remember this; we need to throw some away because they are worthless or unnecessary. Then we can store them as memories in our deep hearts.Father jumped up when her daughter came to him with a snake skin because ＿＿＿＿＿＿.
| A．he didn’t want to read any more |
| B．he was in great fear of it |
| C．he wanted to praised her daughter |
| D．he hated snakes |
Father’s patient explanation shows that ＿＿＿＿＿＿.
| A．his daughter didn’t want to listen to him at all |
| B．he knew children saw only excellence in the world |
| C．his daughter couldn’t follow him at all |
| D．he wanted to teach everything to her |
We learn from the reading that＿＿＿＿＿＿.
| A．the girl seemed to understand what her father said |
| B．the girl wasn’t interested in the explanation |
| C．the father was good at raising snakes |
| D．the father liked the snake skin better |