Wrapped up in new shoes Do your shoes fit? If not, Furoshiki Shoes could be a better choice. Furoshiki is a traditional cloth in Japan. People used it for wrapping, holding and carrying things. Italian shoemaker Vibram used it in a new way and made Furoshiki Shoes. The shoes have no laces (鞋带). You just need to wrap them around your feet and fasten with velcro (尼龙搭扣). They are pretty easy to put on. They look comfortable, too.
	Want to go faster when you walk to school?Wear this pair of wheelson your shoes! Airtrick E-skates can easily be fastened to your shoes. Batteries inside give power to the skates. It can go for 10 to 15 kilometers after charging (充电) for 2 hours. There are four speed settings. The skates’ top speed is 28 kilometers per hour.
	Put some beer in the soles of your shoes. A creative design can make you walk on beer! Recently, the Dutch beer company Heincken introduced new sneakers that have soles (鞋底) filled with beer. Designer Dominic used a special surgical injection (手术注射) to put beer into the soles. By wearing these special sneakers, people can get a special feeling as the beer flows inside the sole. They can enjoy a smooth and comfortable experience as they walk.

1. Furoshiki Shoes ________.

A．are made of cloth	B．look nice having no laces
C．are traditional shoes in Japan	D．are more comfortable than traditional shoes

2. What would be the best heading for the second piece of news?

A．Charging shoes

B．Powerful batteries

C．The fastest wheels

D．Get your need for speed

3. The second-speed of Airtrick E-skates probably can reach ________ kilometers per hour.

A．18

B．28

C．38

D．48

4. It’s clear that if you wear Heineken’s new sneakers, you ________.

A．can fly like a bee	B．can always smell beer
C．will feel comfortable	D．will enjoy walking

Every year on my birthday, ever since I turned twelve, a white gardenia (栀子花) would be sent to my house. I had tried to find out the sender’s name, but no card ever came with the flower. The phone calls to the flower shop didn’t help, either. After a while, I gave up and was just pleased with the yearly beautiful white flower wrapped (包裹) in soft pink paper.

However, I never stopped imagining who the giver might be. Some of my happiest moments were spent daydreaming about this sender. My mother encouraged these daydreams. She would ask me if I had been especially kind to someone. Maybe it was one of my classmates. Maybe it was the old man who lived across the street. I had sent letters for him during the winter. But, as a girl, I had more fun imagining from the sender to be some boy I had met.

A month before I was set to graduate (毕业) from high school, my father passed away. I was so sad that I became completely uninterested in my upcoming (即将来临的) graduation dance. Would I have a new dress to wear to it? I didn’t care at all. My mother was caught up in her own sadness. However, she wouldn’t let me miss any of those things. She wanted her children to feel loved. In fact, my mother wanted her children to see themselves much like how I came to view the gardenia: lovely and strong, with perhaps a bit of mystery (神秘感).

Several years after my graduation, I got married at the age of 22. My mother died ten years later. That was when the gardenia stopped coming.

10. The author got a white gardenia for her birthday each year as a gift starting from her ________.

A．2nd birthday

B．12th birthday

C．21st birthday

D．33rd birthday

11. When the author first received the gardenia, she ________.

A．made an email to the flower shop	B．found a card together with the flower
C．called the sender and thanked him a lot	D．wanted to know who sent her the flower

12. According to the text,the author felt very sad because ________.

A．her new dress to wear to dance was lost

B．she missed her high school graduation dance

C．her father died before her high school graduation

D．she didn’t receive beautiful white flowers any more

13. Who most likely had been sending the author the white gardenias for her birthdays?

A．A boy.

B．The old man.

C．Her mother.

D．Her classmate.

When we look at a picture of Earth from space, there are areas of green, blue, and white. Most people will recognize that the green is land, the blue is water, and the white is clouds. Taken as a whole, Earth is mainly blue. That is because of the amount of water it has that covers the surface.

So, how much of Earth is water? About 71% of Earth’s surface is covered in water. Of that 71%, the oceans hold 96.5% of the water. This water found in oceans is all salt water. The remaining 3.5% of the water is fresh water, which can be found in lakes, rivers, glaciers (冰川), and in the ground. Fresh water is what people use for farming, raising animals, drinking, and daily activities such as taking showers and washing clothes or dishes.

Does the amount of water stay the same? For the most part, yes. Water on Earth is part of a closed system. That is, water is always moving and changing forms between ice, liquid, and gas. The form of the water changes all the time, but the total amount of water on Earth remains the same.

If Earth is not necessarily running out of water, why are people worried? Why do we need to think about saving water? First, humans can only use fresh water, which is only 3.5% of all of Earth’s water. Second, of this 3.5%, only 1% is available for human use. Most fresh water is found in glaciers far from where anyone lives. Third, the amount of water that is useful for humans is being used faster than it can be cleaned and put back into the environment.

Now, knowing the facts about water, it is our job to make sure we use Earth’s water in a good way.

14. Where can 96.5% of the water on Earth be found?

A．In oceans.

B．In lakes.

C．In glaciers.

D．In rivers.

15. What does the writer mean by saying “Water on Earth is part of a closed system.”?

A．The amount of water becomes smaller.	B．The amount of water stays the same.
C．The amount of water keeps changing.	D．The amount of water becomes larger.

16. What can we learn from Paragraph 4?

A．Humans can use all the water on Earth easily.

B．Most fresh water is found in the ground easily.

C．Humans can’t use 2.5% of the fresh water freely.

D．Water for humans can be cleaned and recycled fast.

17. What is the main idea of the passage?

A．The reasons why Earth is in different colors.

B．The people who use the most water on Earth.

C．The amount and different types of Earth’s water.

D．The proper ways for people to use fresh water.

根据短文内容，从短文后的五个选项中选出能够填入短文空白处的最佳选项。

Gift-giving is an important part of all human societies. Gifts can express how we feel, but they can also pass on messages that we didn’t plan to give. So gift-giving manners in any culture should be dealt with carefully.

In some cultures that think highly of gift-giving, there is a ritual (仪式) in the giving and receiving of gifts. In Japan, for example, gifts are both given and received using both hands. The giver says something like “It isn’t much, but I want to show my appreciation (感激)”.     18     Then the receiver will accept the gift and put it away to be opened later.

The choice of gifts is important, naturally, and in some cultures it’s easy to offend (冒犯) a person by giving the wrong gift.     19     For example, a gift of a knife in Brazil or an umbrella in China might be seen as the ending of a relationship.

The relationship between the giver and the receiver can also tell us what kind of gift is suitable. For example, in the United States, gifts such as perfume (香水) are only given to women by boyfriends or husbands.     20    

Although the culture of gift-giving is different from one society to another, they all have an idea in common: In any country, when choosing gifts we must always consider the message we wish to show with the gift and think about whether or not it is suitable for the receiver.    21     Your gift will be valued if it shows consideration and respect for the receiver’s culture.

A．The givers must consider the symbols of gifts.

B．Never forget to follow that before deciding on a gift.

C．The receiver of the gift will refuse once or twice, but the giver will insist (坚持).

D．If a woman receives such a gift from her friend or relative, it might be considered strange.

E．How funny it is that a man is given some flowers!

Ever since “Mother Nature” gave me life, I expected to grow tall and big.

As a young _________, I was well protected in the forest. I used to have a good time with my friends under the blue sky and along the river. Our only purpose was to stand high. My pal, Tim often said, “All I ask for is to be _________ the whole day.”

More than 300 days passed and we grew straight. Until one day, our _________ birthday, people came, moved us from the _________ and put us on their trucks. “I don’t want to go!” Tim cried.

After a long journey, we arrived in a completely different place with nothing green. Here we were planted in a line. Because the wind blew strongly, I could not even open my eyes to see Tim _________ beside me. So we needed enough _________ to grow thicker and higher to stop the wind.

As time went by, we finally _________ much stronger. I could keep my eyes open in the wind! I even found the blue sky was back!

This was no longer a no-man’s-land, and hundreds of visitors came here. A man took a picture of us with his _________, “Thank you. We can enjoy clear days without worrying about sand storms.” A young girl jumping up and down _________ and hugged me. “Thank you,” she said, “It’s you that have turned the desert into a green land!”

Tim and I smiled at each other, feeling __________. The sun was shining brightly in the bluer sky.

22.

A．tree

B．fish

C．girl

D．boy

23.

A．smart

B．happy

C．busy

D．thin

24.

A．first

B．second

C．third

D．fourth

25.

A．beach

B．lake

C．house

D．earth

26.

A．clearly

B．greatly

C．kindly

D．widely

27.

A．desert

B．wind

C．sand

D．water

28.

A．became

B．smelt

C．sounded

D．remained

29.

A．radio

B．keyboard

C．backpack

D．camera

30.

A．came back

B．came over

C．came out

D．came from

31.

A．tired

B．bored

C．proud

D．surprised

阅读短文，然后根据内容回答问题。

I joined a band (乐队) as a drummer in my middle school. I thought it would be fun playing the drum and meeting new friends. At first it was easy, but a month later, it got difficult. I was the only one who couldn’t keep pace (节奏) with the other players.

Our teacher, Angie, singled me out to keep practicing while everyone else got to relax. I felt ashamed (羞愧的) as my teammates watched me fail so many times. Finally I got so tired of practicing that I didn’t care about doing it right.

“Are you giving up on me, Steve?” Angie asked.

“Yes, I am,” I shouted. Angie sent me inside the music room where I cried out. Then she came in and said. “Don’t be sad. I believe you can make it!” She told me never to give up. She left me alone and I realized Angie was right—by giving up, I was also giving up on the team and myself.

With her comfort, I decided to go on practicing. However, I still couldn’t play well. Knowing my difficulties, my teammates gave me a hand. They spent three more hours practicing with me every week. Thanks to their support and help, I began to keep pace with them. Later, we performed wonderfully in an important show.

In the whole process, I was taught that although we each had our own job to do in a show, it would take all of us working together to make the show great. I felt accepted and made great progress. I love everyone in the band. I can’t imagine what my school life would be like without them.

42. What did Steve think of playing the drum one month after he joined the band?
________________________
43. Why did Steve want to give up playing the drum?
________________________
44. How did Steve make great progress in playing the drum?
________________________
45. What do you think is the most important when we work as a team? Why? (at least 30 words)
________________________

46. 假设你是李华，你的笔友 Mike 对中国传统节日春节很感兴趣。请你根据以下提示写一封回信，向他介绍春节的习俗。

提示：
1.春节的时间(通常在一月或二月)
2.节日期间人们的庆祝活动
3.春节的意义(家人的团圆……)
参考词汇： set off the firecracker放鞭炮       family reunions 家人团聚
注意：词数80~100，开头结尾已给出，不计入总词数；
可适当添加细节，以使行文连贯；
文章中不能出现真实姓名和学校名称。
Dear Mike,

I’m glad to hear from you. Now let me tell you something about the Spring Festival.

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Best wishes!

Li Hua