【推荐1】Canada is a bilingual country with "co-official" languages. English and French enjoy equal status as the official languages of the country. This means that the public has the right to communicate with and receive services from federal(联邦的)government institutions in either English or French. Federal government employees have the right to work in the official language of their choice in bilingual regions.

Like the United States, Canada started as a colony. Beginning in the 1500s, it was part of New France but later became a British colony after the Seven Years' War. As a result, the Canadian government officially recognized the languages of both colonizers: France and England. The Constitution(宪法)Act of 1867 legally accepts the use of both languages in federal courts. Years later, Canada strengthened its commitment to bilingualism when it passed the Official Languages Act of 1969, which restated the constitutional origins of its co-official languages and set out the protections afforded by its dual-language status.

Recognition of both English and French protects the rights of all Canadians. Among other benefits, the 1969 Act recognized that Canadian citizens should be able to access federal laws and government documents, whether their native language was French or English. The general law also requires that consumer products feature bilingual packaging throughout the country.

The Canadian federal government is committed to advancing the equality of status and use of the English and French languages, within Canadian society. However, the reality is that some Canadians speak English, and of course, some Canadians speak the other language entirely.

Although the federal government theoretically guarantees bilingual services in all areas, there are many regions of Canada where English is the clear majority language, so the local government does not always seek services in French in those regions. Canadians use the phrase "where numbers warrant" to determine whether a local population's language usage requires bilingual services from the federal government.

While many Canadians are bilingual, they are not only speaking English or French. Statistics Canada finds that more than 200 languages that were not English or French, were reported as a language spoken by its people. About two-thirds of the respondents who spoke one of these languages also spoke either English or French.

1. The acceptance of two official languages in Canada is due to______________.

A．the language-using tradition caused by Canada's colonial history

B．the convenience for business dealings by using two languages in the country

C．the welcome attitude toward immigrates from all over the world.

D．the mastery of two languages of Canadians because of school education

2. In reality whether bilingual service provided by the federal government is necessary in different districts is decided by_____________.

A．the legal order from the federal government

B．the popularity of the language in the world

C．the number of schools teaching the language

D．the number of local people using the language

3. Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?

A．English has gained superior legal position to French because of bigger number of users in Canada.

B．The legal court usage of French and English was established in Canada in 1969.

C．Both French and English should be used on products in Canada according to federal law.

D．Canadian people speak either French or English in social communication.

4. What is the main idea of the passage?

A．The advantages of using multiple languages in Canada.

B．The history and current situation of two languages used in Canada.

C．The disadvantaged status of the French language used in Canada.

D．Canadians' advancement in balancing two languages in business world.

【推荐2】There are many types of tombs in Egypt. However, throughout Egypt’s past, the tombs of kings and high officials, upper class artists and craftsmen, and poor people were very different. For poor people, the types of tombs they used stayed about the same, but the tombs of kings and high officials changed a lot over time.

At first, the kings of Egypt were buried in what are known as mastabas in southern Egypt, mainly at a place called Abydos. They had a pit where the dead were buried in the ground covered by stones above ground. Later mastabas sometimes had many rooms below and above ground to store the items that the dead person wished to take with him or her into the afterlife.

Later, during a period known as the Old Kingdom, the kings decided to be buried in a more northern location around the capital of Egypt. It was a city called the White Walls, but the Greeks called it Memphis. There were several cemeteries around Memphis. The first was a place called Saqqara, where the earliest pyramids were located. These were not true pyramids, as they had stepped sides rather than being smooth. Later kings experimented with true pyramids at a place called Dashure, where they finally built the first true pyramid tomb. However, the largest and grandest pyramids were later built at a place called the Giza Plateau, which is now just outside of the modern city of Cairo, Egypt. However, there were a number of other locations where the kings of Egypt built pyramids, but almost all of them were built near Memphis in the north or only as far south as a place called the Fayoum.

1. With time passing by, the tombs of poor people in Egypt________.

A．became deeper and deeper	B．changed a lot in shape
C．moved from place to place	D．didn’t change much

2. According to Paragraph 2, why were many rooms built in a mastaba?

A．To keep stones in them.	B．To make the tomb look bigger.
C．To bury the dead people’s families.	D．To store things for the dead people.

3. Where were most of the true pyramids in Egypt located?

A．At Abydos.

B．At the Giza Plateau.

C．Near Memphis.

D．At the Fayoum.

【推荐2】In many countries around the world, more and more people live in cities. Cities share many similar things, but are also different from country to country.

MEXICO

Mexico s cities are modern but have many traditional Indian and Spanish things. The most important buildings are around a central square, which is also a place to meet with friends. There are outdoor marketplaces, where people can find almost anything they need. On Sundays, parks are popular places for families. Many people move to Mexico City from the countryside. It has a lot of excitements, but also lots of traffic and air pollution.

JAPAN

Japan s cities also have a mix of traditional and modern things. There are tall office and apartment buildings as well as traditional wooden houses. Many people would like to live near the center of cities, but because houses there are too expensive, they have to take public buses or trains from faraway places. Traffic, pollution, and crowds are problems. However, there is little crime, and even very crowded cities have many parks and gardens.

AUSTRALIA

Although 80% of Australians live near cities, the cities are not as large as those in some other countries. Most people live in houses in the outer area of the cities—not in apartment. The areas also have their own churches, schools, and shopping centers. In large cities, like Sydney, the areas are often far from the center town. Though many people take public buses and trains to work, traffic is slow and there are many traffic jams.

1. People in Mexico can go to ________ to get what they need.

A．outdoor marketplaces	B．the central square
C．the park	D．the countryside

2. Many Japanese people prefer to live in the center of the cities but they can’t because ________.

A．it is too crowded to live there	B．houses there are too expensive
C．they like taking buses or trains	D．it’s too noisy to live there

3. What makes the cities in Australia different from other cities in the world?

A．Many people like to live in apartment in city areas.

B．Many people like to live in outer areas around cities.

C．Lots of people like to live in the center of large cities.

D．The traffic is very slow and there are always traffic jams.

【推荐1】Some people think that they will get ill if they use their brains (大脑) too much. It is not true. Through many studies, scientists show us that the more you use your brains, the better it will be, and the cleverer you will become.

Of course, if you want to keep your mind clear and active, you must take a proper rest and study properly. To the teenagers, using their brains in the morning is good for their health.

There are many ways to rest. One is a peaceful rest. Sleep is a peaceful rest. Another is an active rest. For example, take a walk outdoors, do more exercises every day. To change the way of the brains’ activities is also a good way to rest.

In everyday life, to eat some eggs, meat, fresh vegetables and fruit(水果)is also good for the brains.

Wish you a wise man and a happy life.

1. According to the writer of the passage, our brains should be used _______.

A．hardly	B．seldom
C．more often	D．at times

2. Which of the following sentences is NOT TRUE

A．Sleep is a kind of a good rest.

B．Doing morning exercises is a peaceful rest.

C．Going out for a rest is an active rest.

D．There are different activities for a good rest.

3. Which is TRUE?

A．Illness comes from the fact that the brains are used too much.

B．Fruits are the most important for the brains.

C．The brains will be better if they are used often.

D．Sleep is the only way of having a rest.

4. “Teenagers” in paragraph 2 probably means_______.

A．young girls	B．middle-school students
C．clever boys	D．poor students

5. Which of the following can be used as the best title for the passage

A．How to use your brains

B．How to rest

C．How to become a wise man

D．Keep your mind clear

【推荐3】Don't ignore the difference teenagers can make.

Jonny Thomas, 14, Florida

When Jonny Michael Thomas decided to honor his friend and classmate Elizabeth Buckley, who died from cancer, he remembered how much she loved peacocks (孔雀). He wanted to build a life-sized peacock fountain in Elizabeth's favorite park in the city. He thought it could be a place for people to relax and be inspired. Jonny raised $52,000 to build the fountain.

Barrett England, 13, Utah

The wheels began to turn for Barrett England when he heard about Karma Bike shop, a place where young people can earn a free bike by reading and performing community service. Barrett visited Karma's owner with his idea: He would collect and repair used bikes and donate them to the shop. He expected to get about 10 donated bikes. In the end, Barrett received 39.

Zachary Blohm, 15, Wisconsin

The 25-year-old playground at an elementary school near Milwaukee, Wis., was so small that only 70 of its 575 students could play on it at a time. That's when Zachary Blohm saved the day. He and some volunteers build a huge playground. To raise money, Zac planned T-shirt and bake sales (烤饼义卖), sold tickets and more. He held monthly money-raising events for more than a year. Overall, he collected $130,000--- enough to finish his project.

Jack Zimmerman, 16, New Jersey

For some people, finding a meal is as simple as opening the refrigerator. For more than 366,000 hungry kids in New Jersey, it's not that easy. That fact didn't sit well with Jack Zimmerman, who organized a drive to reduce childhood hunger in his state. His goal: create 40,000 packaged meals that could be donated to those in need. On game day, Jack and his volunteers started their work. After the final count, the team had packaged 47,124 meals--- well above Jack's goal.

1. The peacock fountain was built in a park ________.

A．to encourage people	B．for the love of animals
C．in memory of a teenager	D．to cure a cancer sufferer

2. What did Barrett do for Karma Bike shop?

A．He helped it win customers.	B．He repaired bikes there.
C．He donated bikes to it.	D．He offered a reading service there.

3. What do the four people have in common?

A．They care about others.	B．They're top students.
C．They like various public activities.	D．They're money raisers for the poor.