When it comes to the letter grade on your test or homework， you might notice that there is no letter E． Have you ever thought about why that is so？
In the A， B， C， D and F grading system， the first four letters are typically considered passing grades． An F in this system simply stands for"fail"．The word"fail"happens to start with the letter F， which seems to leave out the letter E． The fact of the matter is that any letter can mean "not﹣passing" or "fail"．Some schools have U grade for"unsatisfactory"，or I grade for "incomplete"．
Even with all this said， we should also point out that E grade actually has been used pretty commonly throughout the history of letter grades in the US．
The first college in the US to use a letter grading system like the ones we use today is Mount Holyoke College． In 1897，they began to use the following grading scale：
A： 95﹣100%（excellent）
B： 85﹣94%（good）
C： 76﹣84%（fair）
D： 75%（barely passed）
E： below 75%（failed）
We can see the inclusion of E instead of F．
Gradually，the letter grading system became more popular throughout the US． However， many schools decided to drop the E grade and go straight to F．There is no evidence（证据） to really support this，but one possible explanation is that teachers were worried that some students and parents might mistake E for "excellent"．
Why do we have letter grades？ Well，part of the reason is that they made grading simpler during a time of great change for schools． As the 20th century began，growing cities and an increase in immigration led to larger school classrooms． Most teachers at that time thought this new letter grading system was an easy，fair and clear way to grade students．
Today，more and more people argue that letter grades don't fully reflect（反映） student learning．However，as teachers try to improve grading methods，many parents continue to favor the letter grades they got as kids．They are familiar（熟悉） and easy for parents to understand． So while they might not be perfect， the letter grades probably aren't going away any time soon．
（1）what does an F stand for in the A、B、C、D and F grading system？
（2）when was the letter grading system first used in the US college？
（3）what is one possible explanation for dropping the E grade？
（4）what did most teachers think of the letter grading system in the 20th century？
（5）why do many parents still prefer the letter grades today？
This is a world filled with all kinds of products. Though they belong to different kinds of brands (商标), they are usually thought to be symbols of an easy and convenient life. We can hardly imagine what our life will be like without any of them. So how much do you know about these excellent products?
| Brands |
Prices (yuan) |
Materials |
Used for |
Places of production |
 iPhone6 |
5,023-7,590 |
steel and plastic |
communicating and having much fun |
America |
 LV handbag |
25, 999 |
cloth, steel and leather |
filling with some small objects （物体） |
France |
 Longines watch |
12,750 |
steel, silver and leather |
showing the correct time |
Switzerland |
 HAVALH6 (car) |
119, 800 |
steel, plastic and leather |
travelling far and fast |
China |
| A．iPhone 6 | B．LV handbag. |
| C．Longines. | D．HAVAL H6. |
| A．Plastic. | B．Steel. |
| C．Leather. | D．Silver. |
| A．The mobile phone | B．The handbag. |
| C．The watch. | D．The car. |
| A．China. | B．Germany. |
| C．France. | D．America. |
| A．Switzerland is famous for nice LV handbags. |
| B．HAVAL H6 is made in both France and China. |
| C．Longines can help you know what time it is now |
| D．An iPhone 6 can be used for filling with your school things. |
I come from a large family. My parents both have many brothers and sisters. When I was a boy, during late July, my family would hold a reunion (聚会) every year. Usually more than 50 family members would attend the party.
The reunion would take place in a large public park in the late afternoon because it wasn't too hot at that time. Each family would bring their own food to eat. Usually each family had a special dish that would be shared. Some families would bring potato salad while others would bring a dessert or self-made special drinks. There was always more than enough food.
Almost everyone would play games. Younger people played softball, football, volleyball and so on. However, Uncle Sam always taught Cousin Chris and me to play badminton. CMs and I went to the same school and we kept beating other players and won several state games. The older family members would sit under a tree and watch the games or just sit around and talk. Everyone enjoyed himself / herself because it was a good chance to catch up on what his / her relatives were doing that year.
Those family reunions are the best memories I have of my childhood. Today it seems that everyone is too busy to hold or attend family reunions. Now, no matter how nostalgic I feel about those family reunions, those memories remain very clear in my mind.
| A．He has a lot of relatives. |
| B．He is a married man now. |
| C．He is excellent at playing badminton. |
| D．He misses the time he spent on those family reunions. |
| A．Feeling excited and also a little angry. |
| B．Feeling surprised and also a little sorry. |
| C．Feeling happy and also a little sad. |
| D．Feeling lucky and also a little strange. |
| A．Younger people would play sports while older people would sit and then watch or talk. |
| B．Older people would arrange (安排) games the night before the reunion. |
| C．All the young boys learnt how to play badminton. |
| D．Mothers would cook a special dish in the park together. |
| A．There was always a lot to eat in those family reunions. |
| B．It was always the writer's family that held the reunion every year. |
| C．The writer's family still practises the tradition of having a reunion once a year. |
| D．In those family reunions, everybody learnt what had happened to others. |
| A．My family reunions. |
| B．I love my parents. |
| C．How to play games? |
| D．A good park to have a party. |
任务型阅读根据短文内容填空，每空一词。（每小题2分，满分10分）
Trees are useful to man in three very important ways. The first important way is that they provide man with food, wood and other products(产品). Trees provide man and animals with food to live on the earth. It’s not easy for man to live on the earth without trees.
The second important way is that trees give us shade. On a hot summer day, people can have a rest under the shade of a tree after they have walked a long way. You can imagine how important the shade of a tree is to man and animals.
The third important way is that trees help to prevent droughts（干旱）and floods. However, in many parts of the world, man has not realized the third important way. He has cut trees down in large numbers. In the end, he finds that he has lost the best friends he had.
| Advantages |
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| ◆ |
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| ◆ |
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| Advice |
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| ◆ ____________________________________________________________ |
GIY stands for “grow it yourself” and is about a new fashion for growing your own food．
There are a lot of reasons why growing your own food is a good idea．GIY helps reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions(排放物)．Food in supermarkets travels a long way and that produces a lot of CO2．If you grow as many vegetables as you can at home，you can help save the earth．
Vegetables you grow are also good for your health because they have more nutrients than supermarket vegetables and they don’t have chemicals．
How much money can you save? First of all，seeds are a lot of cheaper than vegetables，and secondly，you can save more by planting the most expensive and the most productive(多产的)vegetables．You can give your vegetables to friends and neighbors．It can make you very popular．
Don’t worry if you don’t have much space．To GIY，you don’t even need a garden．You can use pots on your balconies(阳台)．And don’t worry if your space doesn’t get much sun．You can plant vegetables that don’t need a lot of sun to grow．
Grow your own vegetables now．You will have both a healthier body and a healthier social life．
根据短文内容，从题中所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选择最佳答案．(10分)During the course of_______，food in supermarkets produces a lot of CO2.
| A．growing | B．collection |
| C．transportation | D．producing |
The underlined word “nutrients” means“_______ ” in Chinese.
| A．抗生素 | B．营养素 |
| C．防腐素 | D．蛋白质 |
What do people mostly need if they want to grow their own vegetables?
| A．Some seeds. | B．A garden. |
| C．Some chemicals. | D．A pot. |
From the passage，we can learn that_______.
| A．all vegetables need a lot of sun to grow |
| B．we can plant vegetables on our balconies |
| C．vegetables from supermarkets must be a little cheaper |
| D．we need much space to plant vegetables |
What would be the best title for the passage?
| A．Saving Money |
| B．Saving the Earth |
| C．Helping Friends and Neighbors |
| D．Growing Vegetables Yourself |
Today, more and more people try to become a volunteer. The meaning of the word “volunteer” may be a little different in different countries, but it usually means “one who offers his or her services.” It is difficult to help others all the time, but if you insist in(坚持) that, you will be very happy. If you have much free time, you should take an active part in activities, such as taking care of sick people, working in homeless children, and picking up garbage from beaches and parks.
Jenny, a good friend of mine, came back from India with a new idea of being a volunteer. Helping others is also a kind of happiness. What’s more, when we help others, it can be a way of helping ourselves. When we learn how to give others, we can further our morals(道德规范). She worked in a home for sick people. She helped wash clothes and passed out lunch. She also fed the weak people and tried to cheer them up. She said that if all of us can give a helping hand as a volunteer, our world will be full of love and that will make our world nicer and nicer.
The word “volunteer” usually means_______.
| A．helping others |
| B．telling the way to the person who is lost |
| C．one who offers his or her services |
| D．to be polite to the elder |
What activity didn’t mention in the passage?
| A．taking care of sick people |
| B．working in homeless children |
| C．working in old people’s home |
| D．picking up garbage |
Jenny worked in ________ in India.
| A．a home for sick people |
| B．a hospital |
| C．a school |
| D．a post office |
Jenny thinks we should _________.
| A．help ourselves |
| B．give a helping hand as a volunteer |
| C．often clean our rooms |
| D．feed the homeless animals |
The passage mainly tells us __________
| A．We should do our best to be a volunteer. |
| B．The meaning of the word “volunteer” is different in different countries |
| C．Jenny is a warm-hearted volunteer. |
| D．The volunteer in India. |