ASK THE BLOG!

Post your problems on the blog (博客) and get other bloggers’ advice!

My problem is my parents. They never stop going on about how I should keep my room tidy, keep my hair tidy and wear smart clothes. They even make me do the washing-up after dinner every night! None of my friends have got such terrible parents. What should I do?

Helen, USA

Hi, Helen. I think you should do what your parents ask. They’re much older than you and you should respect them. It’s their house you live in and their money you spend!

Emily, Australia

Helen, why should your parents do all the washing-up? You should help around the house it’s only fair. I don’t think you should change your appearance (外表) though. Teenagers should look like teenagers.

Simon, England.

1. What is Helen’s problem? ________

A．Her parents treat her badly.

B．She always worries about her parents.

C．Her parents don’t care about her feelings.

D．She wouldn’t like to do what her parents ask.

2. In Emily’s opinion, Helen should ________.

A．understand her parents

B．give her parents money

C．respect her parents

D．live with her parents together

3. Simon suggests that Helen should ________.

A．wear smart clothes

B．help with housework

C．do all the washing-up

D．change her appearance

4. Helen’s problem can be thought as “ ________”.

A．a special event	B．a growing worry
C．a private secret	D．a terrible experience

I joined a fitness club five months ago. Every morning, there was a coach who worked out at the same time as I did. He did his daily exercise with such a quiet determination (决心) that he made it all look effortless (毫不费力) although I knew all too well how hard he was working.

A couple of weeks ago, I was watching him do chin-ups (引体向上). I had never tried doing chin-ups before, but it looked so easy, so I asked him if I could try one. He quickly stepped aside (退到一边) and encouraged me to try. I pulled myself up without thinking...once...then twice. I stopped because that was all I had in me, but he stepped up behind me and pushed me up for two more. It felt so good and I felt strong.

The next few days when I finished my workout, I would ask him to watch me do chin-ups. However, each time I could only do two. I was quite upset, but he told me that when he trained firefighters, men were required to do 5 chin-ups, and women were required to do one or two. Most people couldn’t do them at all, so he was amazed at what I could do. He further told me that if I practice everyday, I would be doing five or six in no time.

Because he told me I could, I didn’t realize how difficult it was. I was encouraged to try and I didn’t doubt (怀疑) it for a moment. I truly thank him for letting me believe that for me success is not only a possibility, but also a realistic goal that I can achieve (实现).

5. The writer wanted to try doing chin-ups for the first time because ________.

A．she was good at sports	B．she felt very well
C．it looked so easy	D．it was part of her training plan

6. What did the coach probably say when the writer tried to do a chin-up?

A．“It’s nothing for you.”	B．“You can do it!”
C．“You’d better give it up.”	D．“I’m afraid you can’t.”

7. The coach let the writer believe she can do well in chin-ups by ________.

A．doing chin-ups on her own

B．pushing her up

C．giving her the example of firefighters

D．teaching her the skills to do it

8. What is the main idea of the passage?

A．Confidence is the secret to success.

B．Encouragement can help us achieve our goals.

C．Truth is much more powerful than lies.

D．Exercise can change both our bodies and minds.

①According to a research, more than 130 billion pounds of uneaten food go to waste in Laura’s country each year. That is about 30% of the yearly food supply (供应). It is a sad fact, especially when you consider how many families and homeless people are in hunger.

②When Laura saw her school dining hall throw away food that was not eaten at all every day, she came up with an idea. She started a project to help her school dining hall to give away uneaten food to homeless shelters (庇护所) in her community. In the past three years, the same project has spread to other schools and some fast food restaurants throughout the city. The project is called Feed & Find, and has already fed thousands of people in her city. How does it work? Through an app, Feed & Find matches local homeless shelters with school dining halls and restaurants that have uneaten food to provide. When dining halls or restaurants have uneaten food left, they can use the app to share the information about the food. A truck driver working for the project is then sent to pick it up and take it to a shelter.

③Pretty cool, right? It’s not surprising that people in other cities have got in touch with Laura, hoping that she could help develop similar projects for their communities.

④Some people, however, have concerns about the safety of the uneaten food. They think such food may not be clean enough. Still, this project is a clever way to help solve the problem of food waste and it helps those in need.

9. The numbers in Paragraph① tell us ________.

A．food waste is serious

B．some people are poor

C．the population is large

D．the research is interesting

10. People in other cities would like Laura to ________.

A．find a truck driver

B．visit their communities

C．give away food to them

D．help develop projects like hers

11. The underlined words “concerns” in this passage means ________.

A．ways

B．worries

C．secrets

D．decisions

12. Which is the purpose in writing this passage?

A．To explain a food safety project.

B．To show a driving service app.

C．To introduce a food sharing project.

D．To introduce a dining guide app.

①Type in “A cat wants to go to space” and ask the robot to write a bedtime story. Just one second later, you’ll get the story of Max, who was on his way past many difficulties to sing among the stars.

②This robot writer is real. It’s called Chạt GPT. It was developed by US company Open AI. It can translate languages, talk with people and write songs, poems and even jokes. It’s one of the most powerful AI of its kind (范围) of a real person! According to a US report of more than 1, 000 students, over 89% of them have used Chat GPT to help with homework.

③Some schools in the US, Australia and France have banned (禁止) the use of Chat GPT. In the US, New York City public schools banned students and teachers from using Chat GPT on the district’s networks and devices (设备), CNN reported. The move comes out of worries that the tool could make it easier for students to cheat (作弊), “It does not build critical (批判的)-thinking and problem-solving skills (学术的) and lifelong success,” said Jenna Lyle, a secretary of the New York City Department of Education.

④However, not all educators say “no” to Chat GPT. Some Canadian universities are drafting (起草) policies on its use, for both students and teachers. They have no plans to completely ban the tool so far.

⑤There is no doubt (怀疑) that Chat GPT is a powerful tool that people will use. What we need to do is to “adapt (适应) our learning, teaching and examinations”. That way, we can have integrity (诚信) while we’re using the tool.

13. The writer uses “the cat story” as an example to ________.

A．introduce a bedtime book

B．tell what Chat GPT can do for animals

C．show how Chat GPT learns about space

D．show what creative work Chat GPT can do

14. What does Jenna Lyle think of Chat GPT?

A．It might offer the wrong information.

B．It is so far the smartest AI chatbot tool.

C．It is not good for developing students’ minds.

D．It is necessary for academic and lifelong success.

15. How is the text organized? (①＝paragraph ①...)

A．①②③/④/⑤

B．①②/③/④⑤

C．①②/③④/⑤

D．①/②③/④⑤

16. What’s the best title for the passage?

A．The future of education.

B．What can robots bring us?

C．Will teachers be replaced by robots?

D．A good study tool or a way to cheat?

阅读短文，从下面所给的选项中选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项，其中有一个多余的选项。（每个选项限用一次）

Confucius was born on September 28th, 551 BC in China. He was a great teacher at that time. Confucius is also known as Kong Qiu.     17     However, some people describe him as being born poor.

Confucius’s ideas were based on the concept (观念) of self-discipline (自律). He believed that a leader needed to exercise self-discipline. His teaching idea focused on the “Six Art”. To Confucius, the main goal of being a teacher was to teach people to live with honesty.     18    

    19     He wrote some of the most famous traditional Chinese works, and one of them is The Spring and Autumn Annals (《春秋》). Confucius’s students wrote The Analects of Confucius (《论语》) according to his sayings. It teaches everyone in China how to behave well and be a good man.

Confucius died on April 11th, 479 BC in Qufu, China.     20     He is also an important symbol of ancient Chinese culture.

A．Today he is widely considered as one of the greatest teachers in Chinese history.

B．The Analects of Confucius is one of Confucius’s greatest works.

C．Through his teaching, he influenced many people in that society.

D．Confucius is famous for writing.

E．It is thought that he was born in a rich family.

阅读短文，理解其大意，从A、B、C、D四个选项中选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项。

My father and I always had a bit of trouble in our relationship. It’s not that we didn’t love each other. It’s just that we used to have ________ opinions. My dad is one of the most hard-working men I know, but I was a dreamer. I played sports as a kid, but ________ when I was making progress. Then I showed an interest in music. My father got excited and bought me a ________ when I was about eight. But I really didn’t like it until I was a teenager. During those teen years, I got up my guitar and began playing along.

Then I went to college. My father thought I should focus more on my ________, while I thought I should have more fun playing music. I dreamed to be a ________. When I grew into a young man, I suddenly fell seriously ill one day and it was discovered that I had a terrible kidney (肾) disease. I had to accept treatments all my life (移植).

I felt like there was a heavy weight on my shoulders. Life became ________ for me. But I was lucky enough because of my loving parents who ________ me and took care of me. While trying to decide just what to do with my life, my father got tested to see ________ he was the right man to give me his kidney. I tried to ________, but he’d hear none of it. He saved my life at last.

Two years ago, I made up a band. He had always wanted to play in a band, but ________ got the chance when he was young. It was one of the greatest gifts I could give to him.

21.

A．special

B．different

C．private

D．simple

22.

A．gave up

B．ran away

C．came round

D．went on

23.

A．football

B．bike

C．guitar

D．book

24.

A．hobbies

B．studies

C．skills

D．choices

25.

A．teacher

B．policeman

C．musician

D．doctor

26.

A．magical

B．boring

C．difficult

D．necessary

27.

A．provided

B．encouraged

C．controlled

D．managed

28.

A．whether

B．how

C．why

D．what

29.

A．reply

B．regret

C．avoid

D．refuse

30.

A．almost

B．still

C．never

D．nearly

阅读短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或用括号内所给词的正确形式填空，使短文通顺、连贯。

My brother Claudio is one of the people I love most. He is wise and always helpful, taking care of me and     31     (we) young sister, Sarah. The day when he left home to go to college. I     32     (teach) the importance of being a man.

It was a     33     (rain) Saturday morning in August. We were woken up by the sound of Sarah playing the piano as usual. In the kitchen, there was     34     surprise for Claudio—his favorite pancakes. Mom gave us a big smile and told us     35     (sit) down for the breakfast. This was an important day for all of us!

While we     36     (eat) breakfast, Claudio went upstairs to collect his things. I suddenly heard him calling my name. When I walked     37     the room we shared, I found Claudio sitting at my bedside. “It’s time, brother,” he said. I thought he was saying that it was time for him to leave the house,     38     in fact he told me that I should take on a bigger role in the family from then on. He said I should do     39     (many) for Mom than before after he was gone.

I thought about his     40     (word) very carefully and then understood everything. That day I learned about family, love and duty.

阅读短文，然后根据内容回答问题。

The World Health Organization (世卫组织) says air pollution makes seven million people lose their lives around the world each year. Even if polluted air does not kill people, it can make them very sick.

However, breathing dirty air does more than hurt people’s body. It can also affect (影响) their brain and their ability to think.

A new study shows that air pollution can cause a “huge” reduction (降低) in our intelligence (智商). The researchers reported that long-term exposure (暴露) to air pollution can affect a person’s mental(智力的) abilities in two areas: language and math. Xi Chen, the researcher of the Yale School of Public Health led the study. He and his team found that breathing polluted air can reduce a person’s education level by about one year.

Chen said that the affect generally is worse for those over 64 years of age, for men and for those with little or no education. “The older persons-they are more affected. And we find, quite interestingly men are more affected than women. And people working outdoors are more affected than people working indoors.”

The researchers found that the influence of pollution on language ability is even more serious as people age, especially among men and the less educated. Why area person’s language skills more affected than math? There’s an important part in our brain: white matter.

White matter is more connected with a person’s language skills. Studies have shown that air pollution has a great influence on the white matter in the brain.

Chen said that air pollution did affect the math skills just not as much as their language skills.

41. What harm does breathing dirty air do to people?
________________________________________________________________________________________________
42. In what areas can air pollution affect a person’s mental abilities?
________________________________________________________________________________________________
43. Why area person’s language skills affected by air pollution?
________________________________________________________________________________________________
44. Where do you think air pollution mainly come from? What’s your advice on stopping air pollution? (at least 30 words)
________________________________________________________________________________________________

45. 生活和学习中，变化无处不在。面对变化，唯有积极适应，请你用英语写一篇短文投稿，谈谈你曾经历过的一个变化，以及有什么收获。

要点如下：
1.What is the change that happened in your life?
2.How did you deal with it?
3.What have you learned from the experience?
注意：
1.词数 80～100；
2.可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯；
3.文中不能出现真实姓名及学校名称；
4.开头已给出，不计入总词数。

There are many changes in a person’s life.

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