【推荐2】Ramadan is one of the most important festivals for Muslims. The name of the festival comes from the Arabic month‘in which it is celebrated. Ramadan is celebrated in countries all over the world, especially in Africa and the Middle East. The time for celebrating Ramadan varies each year. People celebrate it in the ninth month of the Arabic lunar calendar. During Ramadan, people must not eat during the day: from when the sun comes up to when the sun goes down, people celebrating Ramadan will not eat or smoke. When the sun has gone down, however, the celebration begins. People often stay up all night eating singing and dancing.

In late spring, many people around the world celebrate Easter. The festival is a celebration of spring and it is also a religious holiday. It is the time for Easter bunnies and egg hunts, and of course for eating lots of delicious foods. Easter is celebrated in late March or early April but the exact dates are different form year to year. People celebrate Easter in different ways: in some countries, the Easter Bunny—a big rabbit—will visit and children will go on egg hunts, looking for eggs and candy that have been hidden by their parents. In other countries, Easter is a time for children to dress up like witches and go from door to door asking for candy—much like Halloween in the US. The Easter Bunny and the Easter Egg are popular symbols of the festival.

1. Ramadan and Easter are             .

A．festivals celebrated in Asia and Africa

B．festivals celebrated by people all over the world

C．two names of the year

D．the only festivals that people like to celebrate during the day.

2. During Ramadan, people do not          during Easter.

A．eat

B．sing

C．talk

D．sleep

3. In some countries, children will go on           during the day.

A．picnics

B．egg hurts

C．trips

D．fighting

4. The two main popular symbols of Easter are the              and the           .

A．Easter Man, Easter egg

B．Easter Bunny, Easter tree

C．Easter Man, Easter tree

D．Easter Bunny, Easter egg

【推荐3】St Patrick’s Day: All You Need to Know About Your Local Parades

Thousands of people will crowd around cities, towns, and villages all over the country on Friday for the annual St Patrick’s Day festivities.

Cork

Cork City’s St Patrick’s Day parade will start at 1p.m, with the event also live-streamed from 12:45 pm for those unable to be there in person. Featuring Cork’s long-established bands and hundreds of sports and dance groups, the parade will also have a special multi-cultural focus, in the form of the migrant support group Together Razem.

Limerick

A huge turnout is expected in Limerick on Friday to watch the parade which kicks off at midday from O’Connell’s St. Serving as Grand Marshall is Limerick native and star of D’Unbelievables and the Oscar-nominated The Banshees of Inisherin, Jon Kenny, who is looking forward to his “starring role” in this year’s celebrations.

Waterford

Following the success of last year’s first-ever three-day festival, Waterford City is hoping to top the 2022 celebrations. The fun kicks off with live music in the Cultural Quarter on Thursday night. On Friday, the parade will set off from the Quays at 1p.m, led by Grand Marshall, boxing champion Kelyn Cassidy. The rest of the weekend will be filled with more music, workshops, and dancing, and there will be a fairground for the kids to enjoy.

Clare

Beginning at 11 am from Clare County Council’s headquarters, the parade in Ennis will celebrate the commitment of Clare’s sporting heroes to their local communities. The parade’s hosts are former president of Ennis Rugby (英式橄榄球) Club Jimmy O’Brien, Barefield athlete PJ Purcell, and great-grandniece of Kilnamona boxer Michael McTigue, Aisling Rynne.

1. What is the special focus of Cork City’s St Patrick’s Day?

A．Music and dance with local characteristics.

B．Supporting multiculturalism with Together Razem.

C．Live broadcast from the beginning.

D．Local celebrities host performances.

2. Who will take part in Limerick’s St Patrick’s Day?

A．Jon Kenny.

B．Kelyn Cassidy.

C．PJ Purcell.

D．Michael McTigue.

3. How long can Waterford’s St Patrick’s Day be inferred to last?

A．A week.

B．One day.

C．Four days.

D．Two days.

【推荐1】When a language dies, so does a unique way of seeing the world. Time is running out for many tongues. Experts estimate that of the 6,700 or so languages spoken around the world, 40% could disappear by the end of the century. The UN has designated 2019 the International Year of Indigenous Languages to draw attention to the danger. Slowly, countries are developing more resources to the issue.

Canada aims to pass an Indigenous Language Act before its elections in October 2019. The act would give more than 65 languages spoken by First Nations, Inuit and Metis peoples national recognition and teaching resources. In government-funded boarding schools, which operated from the 1880s to 1996, indigenous children faced beatings or electric shocks if they were caught using their native languages. “We want to put the same amount of effort to revitalise indigenous languages as Canada put to wipe them out,” says Perry Bellegarde, national chief of the Assembly of First Nations.

Legal recognition for a language is the first step in bringing a native culture back from the brink (边缘). Maori is one of the success stories. When it became one of New Zealand’s official languages in 1987, less than 20% of the Maori population spoke it well enough to be regarded as native speakers. Today it is off the endangered list.

The second step is to teach a new generation of native speakers. Technology is a big help. Duolingo, a popular language-learning app, recently added Hawaiian and Navajo to its courses. BASAbali, a wiki documenting Balinese, uses Facebook to reach speakers in rural areas. Say it in Saami is an online dictionary that translates modern lingo into languages spoken by the Sami people in Northern Europe.

Saving rare languages needs people to champion them. Bali now asks officials to use Balinese on Thursdays. The UN year will kick-start projects that could save thousands of tongues. The challenge in 2019 will be to get others to listen and start talking.

1. The writing purpose of the passage is to __________.

A．analyze the reasons why we should protect indigenous languages

B．explain what the UN has done to prevent native languages disappearing

C．introduce the measures taken by countries to stop native languages going

D．describe what Canada has done to save languages spoken by First Nations

2. What does the underlined word mean?

A．Destroy.

B．Restore.

C．Learn.

D．Remove.

3. According to the passage, how can we save rare languages?

A．Name a year as the Year of Indigenous languages.

B．Urge students to learn native languages by electric shocks.

C．Develop online dictionaries to help students to learn English.

D．People need to make efforts to learn or speak native languages.

4. What attitude does the author hold to the International Year of Indigenous Languages?

A．Supportive.

B．Indifferent.

C．Objective.

D．Neutral.

【推荐2】Scientists say they have found high levels of small plastic particles(颗粒) in Arctic snow. A German-Swiss research team collected snow samples(样本）from the Arctic and other areas. They included northern Germany, the Bavarian and Swiss Alps, and the North Sea island of Heligoland.When the researchers examined the samples in a laboratory, they were surprised to find very high levels of microplastics.

Microplastics are very small pieces of plastic. These plastic particles are generally smaller than 5 millimeters in length. They come from the breakdown of man-made plastic products and industrial waste.

The study found the highest levels of microplastics came from the Bavarian Alps. One snow sample from the area had 154,000 microplastic particles per liter. Samples collected from the Arctic had much lower levels. However, even samples from the Arctic contained up to 14,000 particles per liter.

The study also attempted to explore how some of the material could have been carried in the atmosphere. A limited number of earlier studies did find microplastics in the air of some cities, including Paris, Tehran and Dongguan, China.

Bergmann Melanie co-wrote the report on the new study. She believes the new study clearly shows that “the majority of the microplastic in the snow comes from the air.” The new study suggests that much of the microplastic found in Europe and the Arctic comes from the atmosphere and snow.

While there is growing concern about the effect of microplastics on the environment, scientists are still studying their possible harmful effects on humans and animals. “I hope the new study will lead to more research on this issue. I think   microscopic plastic particles should be included in worldwide observations of air pollution levels.We really need to know what effects microplastics have on humans, especially if inhaled with the air that we breathe.” Bergmann said.

1. Why did scientists collect samples from so many places in paragragh 1?

A．To make the research convincing.

B．To attract people to explore there.

C．To measure the length of microplastics .

D．To examine the samples easily in the lab.

2. What is the second paragraph mainly about?

A．The risks of microplastics.

B．The transport of microplastics.

C．The breakdown of plastic products.

D．The description of microplastics.

3. What did the research team find about microplastics?

A．Many people threw them away at the Alps.

B．They were delivered to remote areas through air.

C．They could be caught sight of in the air.

D．They had no great effect on the environment.

4. What can be inferred from what Bergmann said in the last paragraph?

A．Scientists are worried about the the influence of microplastics.

B．We have found a practical solution to the environment problem.

C．The effect of microplastics on human must be urgently researched.

D．There is no need to change observations of air pollution levels.

【推荐3】Whenever I talk about personality in relation to choosing a career, some people complain like this: Those tests are so stupid. When I was in sixth grade, I took one of them and it said that I should be a farmer. While I don’t think I would be a very good farmer, the results are probably a lot more accurate than I’d like to admit. At the time, it seemed unreasonable—I hated the outdoors and physical activities. Now, I think it might have had some points that fit my personality: I like planning (good for planning how to grow crops), working by myself (for those long days on an agricultural machine), and sometimes working on a team(for harvest time).

Watch out for any personality test that claims to be able to tell you what your dream job is by the type of animal you’d like to be, or from your favorite breakfast food as a child. While there are many personality assessments(评估) that are accurate, I’d like to say that they are a second step. The best choice is self-assessments.

Before finding ways to know your work preferences, it’s important to make a clear difference between liking a topic and liking the work. I once met a third-year marine(海洋的)biology student at a large state school in Ohio. He was placed into the Whale Watch program, where he found out that he became violently sea sick on any kind of boat—a big disadvantage for a student who thought he wanted to study whales in the wild.

The best match is a career in which the major tasks of the work are the tasks you most enjoy doing and the topic is one of interest. If that career doesn’t exist, my advice would be to take the job where there is a skill match. In this way, you will succeed at the basic tasks of your job and perhaps become interested in it.

1. What is some people’s opinion on choosing a career through personality tests?

A．It’s possible to lead to career failure.	B．It’s helpful only in a limited way.
C．It’s unreasonable.	D．It’s worth a try.

2. What does the author think of the personality test she took when she was young?

A．She admits it forecasts her present job accurately.

B．She thinks it shows some part of her personality.

C．She finds it helpless for her.

D．She has little interest in it.

3. What is the best way to know your dream job?

A．Taking personality tests on your favorite things.

B．Doing accurate personality assessments.

C．Trying your dream job in practice.

D．Finding it out by yourself.

4. Why was the marine biology student unsuitable for his job?

A．He disliked the job.

B．He felt sick traveling on a boat.

C．He was afraid of marine animals.

D．He knew little about his preferences.

5. The author suggests you find a job that ________.

A．is easy for you	B．offers you something
C．matches your experience	D．requires skills that you enjoy

【推荐1】When I was growing up, I had an old neighbor named Dr. Gibbs. He didn’t look like any doctor I’d ever known. He never yelled at us for playing in his yard. When Dr. Gibbs wasn’t saving lives, he was planting trees. His house sat on ten acres, and his life’s goal was to make it a forest.

The good doctor had some interesting theories about plant care and growth. He never watered his new trees as others did. Once I asked why. He said that watering plants spoiled them and that if you water them each successive tree generation would grow weaker and weaker. So you have to make things tough for them and weed out the weaker trees early on. He talked about how watering trees made for shallow roots, and how trees that weren’t watered had to grow deep roots in search of moisture. I thought he meant that deep roots were to be treasured.

So he never watered his new trees. He planted an oak and, instead of watering it every morning, he beat it with a rolled-up newspaper. Smack! Slap! Pow! I asked him why he did that, and he said it was to get the tree’s attention.

Dr. Gibbs passed away a couple of years after I left home. Every now and again, I walked by his house and looked at the trees that I’d watched him plant some twenty five years ago. They’re extremely tall, big and robust since they have deep roots now. However, the trees in my garden trembled in a cold wind although I had watered them for several years.

It seems that adversity and suffering benefit these trees while comfort and ease never could. I stood there, deep in thought.

Every night before I go to bed, I check on my two sons. I often pray for them. Mostly I pray that their lives will be easy. But I think that it’s time to change my prayers because now I know my children are going to encounter hardship.

1. According to Paragraph 2 and Paragraph 3, we can infer that Dr. Gibbs’ motto may be _________?

A．“Seeing is believing”	B．“Honesty is the best policy”
C．“Practice makes perfect”	D．“No pain, no gain”

2. The underlined word “robust” in Para. 4 probably means _________?

A．strange

B．deep

C．strong

D．old

3. Which of the following statements is TRUE?

A．The writer is twenty-five years old.

B．Dr. Gibbs beat his trees with a rope.

C．Dr. Gibbs thought that watering trees might spoil them.

D．The writer will not pray for her children any more.

4. Which of the following can be the best title of the passage?

A．A Doctor

B．The Deep Roots

C．My Prayer

D．My Childhood Memory

【推荐3】My family and I never talked about school as the ticket to a future. I was in the classrooms, but I wasn’t there to learn to write, read or even speak. When it was my turn to read, I wanted to hide. I was 13 years old, but I already hated being who I was.

I had an English teacher, Mr. Creech, who knew I couldn’t read. In one of my first lessons the teacher said that anyone who had a reading age below six had to stand up. I felt so embarrassed. But at the same time, it made me realize that I needed to change the situation. I was determined that it wouldn’t happen again. Later that day, Mr. Creech encouraged me and promised he would try his best to help me learn to read. From then on, I never gave up practicing reeding.

Now I was 41 years old. One day, I planned to fly back to Texas to visit my friends and family. On my way from the airport, I saw Mr. Creech buying himself a drink. I rushed over and reached into my pocket to pay for him. “Do I know you?” he asked. “Yes, sir, you do know me,” I answered excitedly. “My name is Anthony Hamilton. You taught me English.” The look on his face told me that he remembered the boy he’d once encouraged.

“I’m so glad I had a chance to see you,” I said. “And Mr. Creech, I have great news to share,” I told him I had learned to read. But that wasn’t all. I had become a published author and an active speaker. “The next time you get another Anthony Hamilton in your classroom, please encourage him to read as well,” I added.

The experts say what once worried me has a name: dyslexia. But I can tell you it was a lack of desire for education.

1. Which of the following could best describe Mr. Creech?

A．Considerate and dutiful.	B．Demanding and helpful.
C．Emotional and warm-hearted.	D．Friendly and hardworking.

2. Why couldn’t the author read before meeting Mr. Creech?

A．Because his reading age was not long enough.

B．Because his parents didn’t teach him how to read.

C．Because he was afraid of reading before the class.

D．Because he didn’t have inner driving force to learn to read.

3. What can we inter from the passage?

A．Mr. Creech taught two students called Anthony Hamilton.

B．The author had become a published author and an active speaker.

C．Dyslexia was the underlying reason that made the author unable to read.

D．The author was grateful to Mr. Creech.

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

A．发音障碍

B．学习恐惧症

C．诵读困难症

D．教育恐惧症