China's Grand Canal
Most people have heard of the Great Wall of China，but not many people outside of China know about the Grand Canal.This man﹣made waterway﹣known in China as Da Yun he ﹣ is 1，700 kilometers long and some parts of it are more than 2，000 years old.It linksthe north of China with Hangzhou，a city in the southern part of the country.It's the longest man﹣ made waterway in the world.
It was built as a way to transport grain （谷物） from the rich agricultural land in China's south to cities in the north.In fact，it's not one canal，but a system of canals and rivers linked together.It's still an important part of the transport system in China.Thousands of boats use it every day to transport grain and many other types of cargo.
Now the Chinese government is doing new work on the Grand Canal，It is making parts of it deeper，so bigger ships can use it.The canal will also help to move water.There is a lot of rain in the south of China，but not as much in the north.The canal will carry millions of liters of water from the south to the north.
The Grand Canal is much less famous than the Great Wall，and not very many tourists visit it.But its possible to go on a cruise （乘船游览） along some of the oldest parts of the canal.Passengers on these cruises see beautiful parts of China that other visitors don't see.
（1）From the passage，we know that the Grand Canal is .
| A． |
more than two thousand years old |
| B． |
more famous than the Great Wall |
| C． |
the longest man﹣made waterway |
（2）What does the underlined word"'links" mean in paragraph 1？
| A． |
Connects. |
| B． |
Compares. |
| C． |
Competes. |
（3）What is the main idea of paragraph 2？
| A． |
The Grand Canal is helping to move water. |
| B． |
Why the canal was built and how it is used now. |
| C． |
The Grand Canal was used for transporting grain. |
（4）The writer wrote this passage to .
| A． |
describe how beautiful the Grand Canal is |
| B． |
introduce how important the Grand Canal is |
| C． |
explain why few people visit the Grand Canal |
（5）This passage is probably taken from a magazine.
| A． |
history |
| B． |
fashion |
| C． |
science |
How would you feel if someone decided to take away your park？ Well that's what's happening in my community． There's a park that some people want to turn into a golf course（高尔夫球场）．Let me tell you why I think it's a bad idea．
First， a park is meant to be for the whole community． Not everyone likes golf， so not everyone will get to use the park． This isn't fair． A community park should have open spaces for everyone to use．
Second， to make way for the golf course，lots of playground equipment（设施）will have to be moved or knocked down， which is a waste of time and money．It's also a waste of perfectly good equipment，The swings， for example， will probably just end up as litter．
Third， what about giving young people something to do？Not all kids are crazy about golf．At the moment， the park has a skating place and a playground． These attract lots of kids from the community． If you turn the park into a golf course， these kids won't have anywhere to go and they won't have anything to do．This means that they will stay at home and turn on a video game rather than get some exercise． It also means that they might be out on the street causing trouble．Wouldn't it be better to give them something to do at the park？
Finally，golf is expensive．Building a golf course and maintaining（维护） it costs a lot of money．Who is going to pay to maintain the golf course？ What about those people who can't afford to join a golf club？That means that the golf course will only be available to people with lots of money．
Turning our park into a golf course is a bad idea．I suggest we have a community meeting before plans go any further．
（1）Some people want to change the park into ．
A． a golf club
B． a golf course
C． a parking place
D． a skating place
（2）According to Paragraph 4， having nowhere to go will make some children ．
A． go to get some exercise
B． fall in love with golf
C． play video games at home
D． go to the street and make friends
（3）Which of the following shows the structure of the passage？
（P＝ Paragraph）
（4）What is the writer's purpose in writing this passage？
A． To help carry out further plans．
B． To make the park more beautiful．
C． To encourage children to go skating．
D． To stop the golf course from being built．
A lot of animals travel from one place to another． We call this migration．
In Africa， large animals， like elephants and zebras， migrate to find food and water． They usually follow the same ways every year．
A lot of birds migrate to find food and better weather， too． They are usually birds that eat insects．They spend the summer in northern Europe， because there are lots of insects there．In the winter there aren't any insects， so the birds fly south to southern Europe and Africa，
Some insects migrate， too． In North America， millions of monarch butterflies fly south to spend the winter in Mexico， California and Florida， where it's warmer． They travel 50﹣65 km each day and they travel about 1，125 km，
Some fish migrate to breed（繁殖）．Salmon（鲑鱼） can swim over 20，000 km in their life．They are born in rivers in Ireland， Scotland and other places in northern Europe． The young fish swim down the river to the sea and into the Atlantic Ocean．They live in the ocean until they are adults．Then they return to the river where they were born， They lay their eggs in the river and then they usually die． Salmon do this， because their eggs are safer in the river， Other fish can't eat them．
Arctic terns （北极燕鸥） travel the furthest when they migrate． They spend the summer in the Arctic，but when winter comes they fly to the Antarctic， because it's summer there． The next year they fly back to the Arctic again．In one year these small birds travel 36 ，000km from one end of the earth to the other and back again． Nobody knows how they do it．
（1）According to the passage， monarch butterflies in North America migrate to ．
A． find insects
B． look for water
C． find better weather
D． produce young
（2）Adult salmon swim back to the river because ．
A． they won't be eaten by other big fish
B． they want to lay eggs in a safer place
C． they are getting ready to die there
D． they want to go where they grew up
（3）Which of the following is true about animals' migration？
A． Elephants in Africa usually travel the same way each year．
B． Most birds fly to southern Europe and Africa in summer．
C． Some insects travel 1，125 km each day．
D． Salmon swim 20 ，000 km each year．
（4）The example of Arctic terns in the last paragraph is used mainly to show ．
A． the distance of migration
B． the purpose of migration
C． the direction of migration
D． the time of migration
Traffic lights are red， yellow and green． They are very important signals（信号）． Traffic lights are usually placed at busy street corners to help control traffic． Sometimes， they are on streets near schools and shops，too． Most young children are taught what each of the colored lights means， so everybody can stay safe．
The first traffic signals were used for trains． The signals were put alongside railway tracks（轨道）．The color red was used to mean "stop" because it warned people of danger． A red light was also the easiest color to see from a distance． Train drivers could see the red "stop" light ahead and had enough time to slow down and stop their trains． A green light was used to mean "take care" and a white light meant "go"．
However， there were many dangerous accidents on the train tracks． Some train drivers thought a star shining in the night sky was a white light that meant"go"． So the signals were swapped． The "go" light was changed to green and the "take care" light was changed to white．
During these times， people travelled by train or in carts pulled by horses．Years later，when cars were built， people began to drive them because they could travel much faster than horses． However， the road rules for drivers were not very clear and many people were hurt crossing the roads．Yellow warning signs had to be placed beside the roads to remind drivers to take care and allow people to cross safely．
Today， towns and cities all over the world have traffic lights． Red and green lights match the signals used on the railways． Yellow lights are easy to see， so they are used to warn drivers that they should slow down and prepare to stop．
（1）Why was the color red used to mean"stop"？
A． It reminded people of traffic rules．
B． It helped trains run smoothly．
C． It gave people a warning of danger．
D． It was the first color people thought of．
（2）What does the underlined word "swapped" in Paragraph 3 mean？
A． Designed．
B． Exchanged．
C． Suggested．
D． Compared．
（3）In which order did the "take care" light develop？
a． A white light
b． A green light．
c． A yellow light．
A． a﹣b﹣c
B． b﹣c﹣a
C． a﹣c﹣b
D． b﹣a﹣c
（4）What is the passage mainly about？
A． The advantages of traffic lights．
B． The history of traffic lights．
C． The importance of traffic lights．
D． The meanings of traffic lights．
|
Posted by Gina at 8：32 a． m． on 11th February 2018
New uses for old clothing Nowadays， we're more wasteful than ever﹣buying， using and throwing things away without thinking about the costs． We need to start living more responsibly﹣ but how？ One answer is to upcycle （再生利用）． If you're like me，you might already make soil for gardening from food waste and use empty paper boxes as storage space． Did you know you can apply （应用） the same way to old clothing？ You just need imagination! I started upcycling clothing． Making new things out of old clothes is the best way to mix my talent and my interest． Do you upcycle？ If so， what new things have you made？ If not， why not give it a try？ |
|
|
Reply Terry B Posted at 9：08 a． m． on 11th February 2018 Why don't you give your old clothes to people in need？ I even give away the most expensive things I don't wear anymore． So I can help the environment while giving something useful to people in need．
Reply Gina Posted at 9：28 a． m． on 1lth February 2018 earl Good point! I'm talking about only the oldest clothing in your room ﹣ the clothes that are too old to be worn by others． The same idea goes for food waste at restaurants and supermarkets． Before upcycling food that can still be eaten， for example， using it to make soil， we should give it to those in need． |
|
|
Reply Betty99 Posted at 10：18 a． m． on llth February 2018 I've made shopping bags out of T﹣shirts and dog toys out of socks． Upcycling clothing is a fun hobby， but the most important thing is that it makes me feel like I'm living less wastefully． |
（1）What is special about the hat？
A． It came from an old sweater．
B． It was given by Gina's mum．
C． It was new and expensive．
D． It was a gift from Gina's sister．
（2）Why did Gina give a reply to TerryB？
A． To draw TerryB's attention．
B． To introduce a new method．
C． To further explain her idea．
D． To express her deep regret．
（3）What did Betty99 upcycle to make dog toys？
A． Paper boxes．
B． Shopping bags．
C． T﹣shirts．
D． Socks．
It was a summer day． An old man walked on a hill cheerfully．
He wiped the swear off his face with his left hand and kept singing songs．
Suddenly he heard someone talking to him．
"Hello． sir．"
The old man turned around but saw no one．
"I'm here．"
The voice came from beside the old man's feet， He looked down and saw a beautiful flower．
"Sir， can I ask you a question？" asked the flower．
"Of course， my child． What do you want to know？" said the old man．
The flower kept silent for a second and then said："Why are you so happy？ You don't seem to have many days left to live．"
The flower didn't wait for the old man to answer． She just kept saying， "My days have passed and I'm going to die very soon． That makes me so sad．" At this time， she began to cry．
The old man smiled．
"Yes， I don't have many days left． But， so what？"
"Why ruin（破坏） such a lovely day for something that hasn't happened？"
"What's gone is gone． What's to come is to come． You can't change them． but you can decide to enjoy this very moment that you truly have．
He didn't wait for the flower to answer．He just walked away，continuing the song he had been singing．
Slowly the flower stopped crying． As the wind was blowing softly． she swung happily．
（1）When did the story happen？
（2）Where did the voice come form？
（3）Why was the flower so sad？
（4）How did the flower felt after the old man walked away？
（5）What do you learn from the story？
