【推荐2】Before we came to Canada in 1951, when I was three, my parents and I spent a year at refugee camp (难民营) in Austria. We had escaped from what was then called Czechoslovakia. My parents had already lost their livelihood once to the Nazi. Mummy was freed from the Nazi concentration camp Bergen-Belsen and spent the years after the war trying to find her family, only to discover she was the only survivor. She met my father in a small town outside Prague. They married and had me in 1948. When we arrived in Montreal, everything we owned was contained in an army trunk and a couple of army blankets. Mummy bought an old sewing machine and some inexpensive materials and using patterns in magazines, taught herself to sew. Her hands were always going, making something. She learned English by singing along to the hit song as she worked.

For me, high school was a lonely time. My mother worried that I’d never come out of my shell so she signed me up for classes at the Montreal Children’s Theatre. That’s where I found my voice With her strong faith in me, Mummy had opened a door. Although she was an educated woman, I never heard my mother said “This is what I gave up for you.” She was always there for my younger brother and me. When I sat in the kitchen with her, I felt safe. When she made soup or sewed a ballet costume for me, it was all a gift, a labor of love. She wanted to make us happy. For a long time, I had a picture hanging in the kitchen saying “Put your heart into it.” I grew up with that phrase. Mummy taught that lesson by example, and it has become my own work ethic(职业道德).

1. What happened to the author’s mother before they went to Canada?

A．Her family didn’t survive from the Nazi.

B．She worked in the army during the war.

C．She married the author’s dad in Prague.

D．Her family stayed in a refugee camp in Austria.

2. Why did the mother sign the author up for classes at Montreal Children’s Theatre?

A．To satisfy the author’s demand.

B．To rid the author of her loneliness.

C．To enable the author to learn to sing.

D．To develop the author’s talent for ballet.

3. Which can best describe the author’s mother?

A．Traditional.	B．Easy-going.
C．Devoted.	D．Proud.

4. What would be the best title for the text?

A．Mum’s Inspiration

B．A Special Ballet Costume

C．The Cruelty of the Nazi

D．Mum’s Work Ethic

【推荐2】On a flight from Dallas, Texas, to Cincinnati, Ohio, to visit a friend in 2008, event planner Paige Chenault daydreamed about the elaborate birthday parties she’d throw for her daughter one day. Then, flipping through a magazine, she saw a photo of an impoverished Haitian boy, his belly bloated. “I thought, this kid has nothing,” Paige says.

The image stayed with her, and she resolved to do something to help. “I decided I would use my talents to throw birthday parties for homeless kids,” Paige says.

Finally, in January 2012, Paige launched the Birthday Party Project, a nonprofit organization, and recruited friends and family to help decorate Dallas’s 75-occupant Family Gateway Shelter with balloons and streamers, celebrating the birthdays of 11 boys and girls, with 60 more homeless kids in attendance. “That first party was better than I could have ever imagined,” says Paige.

Now Paige and her staff of three paid employees work with regional volunteers to plan monthly themed parties at 15 shelters across the country, some of which house abused or abandoned kids. Each child celebrating a birthday that month gets a $30 gift, a decorative place mat, and an individual cake or cupcake.

One of Paige’s favorite parts of each party is when the kids make a wish and blow out the candles. “They rarely get a chance to dream big,” says Paige. Her daughter, Lizzie, now seven, often helps out at the parties. Paige says, “The one thing I’ve always wanted is for my kid to be generous.”

1. What did Paige want to do for her daughter?

A．Daydream about her.	B．Throw her away.
C．Hold a birthday party.	D．Take her to visit a friend.

2. Why did Paige launch the Birthday Party Project?

A．To show her interest in throwing parties.

B．To found a nonprofit organization.

C．To reunite friends and family.

D．To resolve to help the homeless children.

3. What can we learn from the passage?

A．Dallas’s 75-occupant Family Gateway Shelter was decorated with balloons and streamers.

B．The organization celebrated the birthdays of 11 kids.

C．All the shelters house abused or abandoned kids.

D．Kids can spend $30 to celebrate their birthday.

4. Which word is best to describe Paige?

A．Sensitive.

B．Disciplined.

C．Generous.

D．Loyal.

【推荐3】In England, we look forward to our birthdays for 364 days a year! We invite special people to celebrate it with us.

The Presents

Presents are opened as soon as the children are awake. They can’t wait for the birthday cake later in the day!

The Cards

Friends and family send birthday cards. Sending birthday cards is a custom that began in England about 100 years ago.

The Party

The birthday child will have a party to which friends and family are invited. Visitors to the party bring presents for the birthday child. The children play games such as Musical Chairs and Pass the Parcel.

The Cake

The birthday cake is decorated on a theme(主题). A candle for each year is lit and placed on top and the child blows out the candles making a wish. We don’t put objects inside the cake as shown on many websites.

The Bumps

It used to be traditional for the birthday child to have the bumps. Friends would hold the child by the child by the legs and under the arms and lift the child up and down bumping them gently on the ground. The number of bumps given is the age of the child plus one for extra good luck. As this can be dangerous, clapping is often done instead.

The Sweets

Some children do take sweets into school to share with their classmates on their birthdays.

1. 1n England, the birthday present is opened         .

A．before the child goes to sleep	B．immediately after the child wakes up
C．as soon as the child gets up	D．when the birthday party is going on

2. What is mentioned on many websites?

A．Making a wish.	B．Lighting a candle.
C．Putting objects inside the cake.	D．Placing the candle on top.

3. What can be done to avoid the danger of bumps?

A．Bumping less.	B．Decorating cakes.
C．Clapping instead.	D．Taking sweets.

【推荐1】In the early part of the twentieth century, racism（种族歧视）was widespread in the United States. Many African Americans were not given equal opportunities in education or employment. Marian Anderson (1897-1993) was an African American woman who gained fame as a concert singer in this climate of racism. She was born in Philadelphia and sang in church choirs during her childhood. When she asked for admission to a local music school in 1917, she was refused because she was black. Unable to attend music school, she began her career as a singer for religious activities. In 1929, she went to Europe to study voice and spent several years performing there. Her voice was widely praised throughout Europe. Then she returned to the US in 1935 and became a top concert singer after performing at Town Hall in New York City.
Racism again affected Anderson in 1939. When it was arranged   to sing at Constitution Hall in Washington, DC, the Daughters of the American Revolution opposed（反对）it because of her color. She sang instead at the Lincoln Memorial for over 75 000 people. In 1955, Anderson became the first black soloist（独唱） to sing in the Metropolitan Opera of New York City. The famous conductor Toscanini praised her voice as “heard only once in a hundred years”. She was a US delegate（代表）to the United Nations in 1958 and won the UN peace prize in 1977. Anderson eventually triumphed over racism.
1. According to this passage, what did Marian Anderson do between 1917 and 1929?

A．She studied at a music school.

B．She sang for religious activities.

C．She sang at Town Hall in New York.

D．She studied voice in Europe.

2. Toscanini thought that Marian Anderson_________. .

A．had a very rare(稀有的) voice

B．sang occasionally in public

C．sang only once in many years

D．was seldom heard by people

3. Anderson’s beautiful voice was first recognized________ .

A．at the Lincoln Memorial	B．in Washington, DC.
C．in Europe	D．at the United Nations

4. This passage shows that Anderson finally defeated racism in the US by____.

A．opposing the government	B．working for the United Nations
C．singing in the streets	D．working hard to perfect her art

【推荐3】I was stopped at a red light only a mile or so from my goal of my brother’s house. We were planning to drive down together to North Carolina to be with my father who was badly ill.

As I waited at the stoplight experiencing this forced slowdown, noticed Sharper’s Florist over to the left. It was the same place where I had experienced many things- floods of memories went through my mind as the light seemed a blessing. I noticed the wine store straight ahead where my father and I had been many times before, picking out the beer of the week. We both liked German beer.

The light finally became green and I made my left turn and drove through the poor section of our hometown. I remembered how each Thanksgiving my family would be together. I also remembered how my father would take some time out of each Thanksgiving to make sure there was no one hungry in the neighborhoods surrounding where we lived. I can remember as a young boy going with him to deliver some food. I was scared. I had never been into this part of town this deeply before.

My father seemed unfazed (泰然自若的) by this and went about his business. The people we went to help seemed to know him and gratefully accepted what he came to offer. My father seemed able to give away the food in a way that honored those he was giving to. This was not an arrogant act. He would stop at each place and talk a little, which I can remember totally pissing me off. I wanted to get the hell out of there. My father wanted to be sure everyone had food. If there were people he found who didn’t have food, he would take the time to go back and get more. That’s the kind of man he was.

1. When the father was ill, he       .

A．lived in North Carolina	B．gave away food to the poor
C．came to help the poor in his hometown	D．stayed at the home of the author’s brother

2. The author mentions the wine store to tell us       .

A．the same taste as his father	B．the life in his childhood
C．the experience with his father	D．the birthplace of his father

3. The author was afraid of giving away food to the poor probably because       .

A．his father didn’t stay with him then	B．his father didn’t take good care of him
C．he was unfamiliar with the surroundings	D．he had never met so many poor people

4. The underlined word “arrogant” in the last paragraph probably means “      ”.

A．angry

B．proud

C．careless

D．wild

【推荐1】Brownie and Spotty were neighbor dogs who met every day to play together. These two loved each other and played together so often that they had worn a path through the grass of the field between their respective houses.
One evening, Brownie’s family noticed that Brownie hadn’t returned home. They went looking for him with no success and by the next week he was still missing.
Curiously, Spotty showed up at Brownie’s house alone. Barking, whining (哀叫) and generally pestering (纠缠) Brownie’s human family. Busy with their own lives, they just ignored the nervous little neighbor dog.
Continuously,Ted, Brownie’s owner, was disturbed by the angry, determined little dog. Spotty followed Ted about, barking insistently, then rushing toward a nearby empty lot and back, as if to say, “Follow me! It’s urgent!”
Eventually, Ted followed Spotty to a deserted spot half a mile from the house. There Ted found his beloved Brownie alive, one of his hind legs crushed in a steel leghold trap. Horrified, Ted now wished he’d taken Spotty’s earlier appeals seriously. Then Ted noticed something quite remarkable.
Spotty had done more than simply led Brownie’s human owner to his trapped friend. In a circle around the injured dog, Ted found an array of dog food and table scraps which were later identified as the remains of every meal Spotty had been fed that week!
Spotty had been visiting Brownie regularly, in the hope of keeping his friend alive by sacrificing his own comfort. Spotty had evidently stayed with Brownie to protect him from hunger and other dangers, and keep his spirits up.
Brownie’s leg was treated by a veterinarian (兽医) and he recovered. For many years thereafter, the two families watched the faithful friends chasing each other down that well worn path between their houses.
1. Why did Ted pay little attention to Spotty at the very beginning?

A．Because Ted was tired of listening to Spotty barking.

B．Because Ted only cared about Brownie’s safety.

C．Because Ted was not free at that moment.

D．Because Ted knew where Brownie was.

2. When Ted was led by Spotty to Brownie, he     .

A．was curious to find out what had happened

B．highly appreciated Spotty’s help

C．was worried about Brownie’s health

D．regretted not following Spotty earlier

3. Not only did Spotty help Ted find Brownie but also       .

A．he went to see his friend and played with him secretly

B．he sent messages to some other persons in his community to save his friend

C．he managed to lead a veterinarian to treat his friend

D．he sent food to his friend, accompanied him and inspired him to cheer up

4. What can we learn from the story?

A．Barking dogs seldom bite.

B．A friend in need is a friend indeed.

C．Love me, love my dog.

D．Every dog has its day.

【推荐2】Spring will soon be upon us and a new term is here. All over the world spring is the season of new life: flowers bloom，baby animals are born, and the weather becomes warmer. During this time of year, people usually walk around with a spring in their steps and a feeling of fresh beginnings. However, for a fresh beginning it takes more than the bright colors and fresh air of spring. We need to look at ourselves, set new goals, and decide how to improve ourselves.

In England, people usually do this on the first day of the year. We look at the past year and think about what we’d like to change or improve in our lives, and we call this a New Year’s resolution (决心). These can be anything from improving one’s health through exercise or giving up bad habits, to studying harder for better grades or trying to find a good work or life balance.

Luckily, we don’t have to wait for the beginning of a new year to try and become better people. We can do this whenever we like. The milestone of a new term is just a good place to start.

Sometimes it’s difficult to take the first step in achieving newly set goals, but an old saying is “to begin is to be half-way there. ” I agree with this because taking on a new task or changing habits can seem daunting at first, but once we begin, they get easier.

The trick with deciding on a resolution for a new term is not to set unrealistic goals. If we do this, it’s easy to lose heart, because the final goal seems so far away. Try to make many small goals that you want to reach on the way to your final goal. This way, you can see your progress easily.

1. What should we do in spring according to the first paragraph?

A．To have an animal for a pet.

B．To set goals for a fresh beginning.

C．To take a walk around outdoors.

D．To enjoy fresh air and bright colors.

2. What does the underlined word“daunting”probably mean in Paragraph 4?

A．changeable

B．difficult

C．lovely

D．dangerous

3. What does the last paragraph want to tell us?

A．If you see no progress,you’ll be sad.

B．Whatever happens，stick to your dreams.

C．Your goals should be realistic and small.

D．Never lose heart when meeting with difficulties.

4. What can be learned from the text?

A．Well begun is half done.

B．All roads lead to Rome.

C．All that ends well is well.

D．Be swift to hear,slow to speak.

【推荐3】What do you usually do after school? Most of you may have to finish homework. After that, some of you may take after-school classes, such as Xueersi to learn English or take math classes. Do you feel like there’s too much work to do? Some of you may not have enough time to sleep. But there is some good news on the way that may cheer you up.

On March 5, during the first session (会议) of the 13th National People’s Congress (全国人民代表大会), Premier Li Keqiang delivered this year’s Government Work Report. Education was one of the highlights.

"We will give attention to solving the problem of heavy extracurricular burdens (课外负担) on primary and secondary school students," Li said during his speech.

Chinese parents often put a lot of effort and money into their children’s education. Many send their children to after-school classes. In 2016, China had about 180 million school-aged students, according to a report by the Chinese Society of Education. More than 137 million of them were taking part in extracurricular classes or off-campus training.

To work out this problem, the Ministry of Education (MOE,教育部) and three other ministries put out guidelines on Feb 26 that call for more action to be taken to reduce extracurricular burdens. Their targets are private training schools that create excess workloads (过度的作业量) and pressure for students.

The guidelines are aimed at training schools which have no professional qualifications (资格) or pose(造成) safety risks, said Lü Yugang, an official from the MOE. He also said that reducing workloads for students should be a priority.

"It is a must-do task for children to study happily and grow in a healthy manner … and sleep half-hour or an hour more every day," said Wang Guoqing, spokesman for the first session of the 13th National Committee of the Chinese People’s Politial Consultative Conference (中国人民政治协商会议).

1. From the first two paragraphs, we know that _______.

A．students now have more homework than before

B．some students take after-school classes

C．many aduIts don’t get enough sleep nowadays

D．this year’s Government Work Report didn’t mention education

2. _________ students took part in off-campus training in 2016, according to a report by the Chinese Society of Education.

A．180 million	B．180 billion
C．137 million	D．137 billion

3. According to LüYugang, action might be taken to close training schools _________.

A．that are not approved by the MOE

B．that punish students physically

C．that have no professional qualificeations

D．that charge high tuition (学费)

4. What is the story mainly about?

A．Risks of off-campus training classes.

B．Reducing students’ workloads.

C．The 2018 Government Work Report.

D．Guidelines created by the 13th National People’s Congress.

5. Who is the passage written for?

A．the teachers	B．the parents
C．the students	D．the MOE offieials