【推荐2】Some people say that today, reading is not as important as it was. These days we have photographs, films, radio and television. Why read a description of something when you can look at a photograph? Why read a newspaper when the latest news is brought to us every hour on radio and TV?
Photography was certainly a wonderful invention. Photographs can give a very clear idea of places and of people that we have never seen. An encyclopedia (百科全书) , for example, is always better when it has good illustrations. But we also need words to explain the photographs and drawings. A photograph of an elephant may give us a very good idea of what an elephant looks like, but it tells us nothing about the different sorts of elephants there are and where they are found, their exact size and weight, how they can be useful to man and so on.
In the same way, a good film has action, movement, color, and maybe music. These are things we do not find on the printed page. But reading a novel has certain advantages over watching even an excellent feature film. Reading a novel requires imagination. Each of us imagines a story differently.
Watching news on television can certainly be exciting. But we need newspapers as well. Some important news stories happen when there are no cameras around. More importantly, a newspaper does not just report the news. It explains why something has been happening. It also contains interesting articles on different subjects. Newspapers are an important part of our lives, if we want to understand what is going on in the places we live as well as in other parts of the world.
Reading is very important for information and pleasure. We need to be good readers to enjoy a full life as human beings. Reading is a skill and like other skills, it needs practice. The more we read, the better readers we become. And the better readers we become, the more we enjoy reading! The secret is to get the reading habit. Read at least a little every day.
1. According to Paragraph 2, photographs can give us __________.

A．enough information about people and places

B．no information about things

C．some information about things but not enough

D．the wrong information about things

2. Newspapers contain __________.

A．more information than television

B．less information than television

C．more news from other countries

D．less information about important events than TV

3. What are the advantages of novel over a feature film?

A．There are more interesting subjects in novels.

B．We do not hear any music in a novel.

C．Novels always explain what is happening.

D．Novels make us use our imagination.

4. What does the author think about reading?

A．It is a wonderful invention.

B．It is an important part of our lives.

C．It requires no practices.

D．It is not as important as television.

【推荐1】Choose the best answer(选择最恰当的答案)

In today’s world many people seem to be hungry for money. Some of them even lose their lives for it. Money does have its most useful effect on the poor, but once a person has a rich life, a lot more money doesn’t mean more happiness.

If money was everything, all millionaires(百万富翁) would have true love, true friendship, good health and a long life. However, this is not always true.

Nothing else is more pleasant than the three words which are “I love you”. But can love be bought? I’m afraid not. Love means to give, not to take. To every person, health and long life are probably the most precious things. Well, can health and a long life be bought with money? The answer is “No”. Of all the longest living people in the world, few of them are millionaires. True friendship can’t be bought either.

In a word, Where money is worshiped, money can cause brothers to quarrel, lovers to hate, strangers to fight and so on. No matter how much money you have, it is still not enough to make you a happy person if you have no one to laugh with, no one to cry for.

1. What’s the most important thing in the writer’s opinion?

A．Money.

B．Health and a long life.

C．Friendship.

D．Love.

2. Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A．If you don’t have much money, you can’t get happiness.

B．You may have a long life even if you are poor.

C．Every year many people die because they are poor.

D．If you are rich, you will have real friendship.

3. In fact, all millionaires ________.

A．have less money

B．die earlier

C．hate their money

D．have true love

4. The underlined word “worshiped” means “________” in Chinese.

A．崇拜

B．贬低

C．鄙视

D．挥霍

5. What does the passage mainly tell us?

A．Money is as important as true love.	B．Money is not so necessary.
C．Money is important, but not the most important.	D．Money can cause some problems.

6. What does the underlined word “it” refer to?

A．To make you a happy person.	B．To have someone to laugh with or cry for.
C．The money you have.	D．Your opinion about money.

【推荐2】Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, I'm Roy Darby, and this is my show. This is a television show for all families, and I know you'll enjoy it. 

Let's start with a story. Once there was a proud pig on a farm. He thought he was the  most important of all the animals on the farm. But it was not enough that he himself thought this: he had to be sure that other animals thought it, too. So he went up to a chicken and asked, "Who is the most important animal on the farm?" The chicken answered, "You are, Mr. Pig." Then he asked a dog, and he got the same reply. 

Next, he asked a cow. When the cow seemed uncertained of the right answer, the pig looked angry, and showed his teeth, "Oh, you are, of course, Mr. Pig." said the cow. "Of course," the pig said, "there is no doubt about it." 

At last the pig asked a big horse the same question. The horse lifted one foot, rolled the pig over and placed his foot on the pig's head. "I think you know the answer now." said the horse.

1. The Roy Darby show is __________.

A．a funny story about a pig	B．for ladies and gentlemen only
C．a show about life on the farm	D．a family show on the television

2. The story tells about __________.

A．an important pig and his animal friends	B．a proud pig who thinks he is very important
C．a pig who is the most important animal on the farm	D．important animals on the farm

3. When he put his question to the chicken, the chicken __________.

A．gave him the answer that he wanted	B．went up to him and answered him
C．said that the master was more important	D．said that the pig was as important as the chicken

4. The dog _________________.

A．answered in the same way as the chicken	B．did not understand the question
C．asked the very same question as the pig	D．received the same reply as the chicken

5. The pig was angry with the cow because _________.

A．the cow showed his teeth	B．the cow did not give the right answer straight away
C．the cow gave him the wrong answer	D．the pig had to tell the cow the right answer

6. It is clear that the big horse thinks _________ is the most important animal on the farm.

A．the pig

B．the cow

C．he himself

D．the dog

【推荐3】

Some people live to climb the highest mountains. Some people only think about it while others avoid ever climbing at all. But one thing is certain that all people come across mountains in their life.

When I was a little girl, my parents moved us to the tiny village of Otongo, Hidalgo, Mexico. This town was built at the bottom of a big mountain.

One day after school, while exploring(探索) the green woods of this mountain, I came upon a lot of stairs. What could these steps lead to? Could this be the way to the top?

I was so curious that I started climbing up those mysterious(神秘的) steps.

I climbed and climbed, but still there was nothing in sight. It was getting really dark, and I wasn’t even close to the top.

The voice of reason told me to hurry back home and try again the next day. I ran back home in the dark while trying not to get too afraid. I didn’t tell anyone about what I found that night. I went to bed dreaming about what I would find at the top of this magical mountain we lived on. Could there be a handsome prince, treasure or ghosts up there?

Ah...such childhood fantasies(想象)! Those were the days when we could dream. We could do crazy things. We believed! I'm all grown up now, and life has shown me a beating at times.

I did live on a mountain in a town as described, but I created this childhood fantasy to make my days so much more fun as a kid. This story is a good metaphor(比喻) for life today.

You might ask, "What was at the top of that mountain?" I ask you, "What would you have wanted to find?"

Dream about what's at the top of your mountain. What do you want out of life?

Tomorrow is another day, and still, you must climb. Whatever you do, never ever give up on your dream! Never let anyone tell you, "You can't."

1. Which word is the best to describe the writer as a child according to the article?

A．Honest.

B．Friendly.

C．Humorous.

D．Imaginative.

2. What do paragraphs 2-7 mainly talk about?

A．How the writer reached the top of a mountain.

B．A childhood story told by the writer.

C．Advice the writer gave on climbing a mountain.

D．What the writer's favorite mountain was like.

3. What does the word “mountains” stand for in real life?

A．Dreams.

B．Treasures.

C．Difficulties.

D．Fantasies.

4. What does the underline word “reason” in Chinese?

A．理由

B．理智

C．理解

D．理论

5. What is the writer 's purpose in writing this article?

A．To encourage people to follow their dreams.

B．To share her childhood memories with readers.

C．To explain the advantages of climbing mountains.

D．To show how adults think differently from children.

【推荐1】Betty is not a traditional American nice girl. She is unfashionable, has thick red glasses, untidy hair and large metal braces（牙套）on her teeth. But this hasn’t stopped her from becoming one of American’s favourite TV characters. So how did she manage to do it?

The answer is that charm can be more attractive than beauty. Betty is the main character in a TV show Ugly Betty. The show is about her life as an office worker at a fashion magazine in New York.

Betty has many exciting experiences and romantic stories. Betty is often looked down on and laughed at by the people around. But she manages to do better than others with her hard work, charm and wisdom. The show tells us about how a girl goes from an ugly young duck into a beautiful swan.

Though you may know the ending of the show from the beginning and the story is familiar to many of us, it has still been a big success in the USA. It has attracted a large number of viewers and won two Golden Globes awards, one of the highest honors for a television program in the USA. “I think you can see a bit of Betty in all of us, and I mean men as well, because it’s about the underdog（弱者）,” says Ashley Jensen, who plays one of the characters on the show.

The program is so popular because of the performance of the 23-year-old American actress Ferrera who plays the role of Betty. She brings the character alive on the screen.

1. Betty is popular because of _______.

A．her clothes

B．her charm

C．her personality

D．her appearance

2. In Paragraph 4, the underlined word “it” refers to（指的是）_______.

A．the beginning

B．the ending

C．the story

D．the show

3. Which is the reason for the success of the show?

A．A large number of viewers.	B．Betty’s life as an office worker.
C．The wonderful performance.	D．Two Golden Globes awards.

4. Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?

A．Betty is a girl of wisdom.

B．Betty acts as a beautiful swan on the show.

C．Betty is an American favourite TV character.

D．Betty is often looked down on by the people around her.

5. What can be the best title for the passage?

A．Beauty from Within	B．A Romantic Story
C．An Ugly Girl	D．An Exciting Experience

【推荐2】We are learning English, but how can we learn English well? A student can know a lot about English, but maybe he can not speak English.
If you want to know how to swim, you must get into the river. And if you want to be a football player, you must play football. So , you see, you can learn English only by using it. You listen to your teacher carefully in class. You must read your lessons every day. You must speak English to your English teacher and classmates and also you must write in English. Then one day, you may find your English very good.
1. You know a lot about English but maybe you ______.

A．can’t speak it	B．can study it
C．can’t study it	D．can’t use it

2. You must get into the river ______.

A．to play with water	B．to go boating
C．to learn how to swim	D．to catch a fish

3. Do you want to be a football player? Please____.

A．put your football away	B．buy a good football
C．play football	D．watch others play football

4. According to the passage，how can we learn English well ?

A．We must have a good English book.

B．We must have a good English teacher.

C．We must see more English films.

D．We must use it often.

5. Who can you speak English to in your class?

A．Only my classmates.

B．My English teacher and classmates.

C．My father and mother.

D．All my friends.

【推荐3】During this Spring Festival, a name---- the novel coronavirus(冠状病毒), became hot. It is so dangerous that it caused a new kind of epidemic(传染病). This epidemic spreads(传播) so quickly that the whole country was in a difficult situation. Many parts of the country had to go under quarantine(隔离) in hopes of controlling the spread of this epidemic.

Through this epidemic is very dangerous, people all around the country worked together to fight against it. A large number of medical workers, from different parts of the country, after making a decision that could mean life or death, left their home and went to Wuhan to save people’s lives. And to help to give people treatment(治疗) in time, many workers worked day and night to build hospitals. And many people volunteered to check the body temperature for passengers. And some people even shot videos online to teach people how to wash hands correctly. “ I see a strong will from Chinese people in the fight against the virus,” a foreigner said.

Though the fight is difficult, when we pull together, we can get out of this hard situation successfully. “When the epidemic is over, I’ll go out to breathe the fresh air and get close to the nature.” I believe our Chinese people can learn a lesson from this terrible experience. Also, it may make people rethink life and death.

1. According to Paragraph One, we can know that the epidemic is________.

A．quick to spread

B．dangerous for animals

C．east to control

2. During the epidemic, the medical workers________.

A．all came from Wuhan

B．made their decision easily

C．were very fearless

3. To fight against the epidemic, which of the following is NOT TRUE about what people did?

A．Doctors and nurses took risks to save people.

B．Workers worked hard to build new houses.

C．Volunteer helped to check passengers’ temperature.

4. We can learn________from people’s fight against the epidemic.

A．teamwork makes perfect

B．every coin has two sides.

C．easier said than done

5. We can infer(推断) that________after the epidemic.

A．people will get away from the nature.

B．People may think seriously about how to live

C．people will take many lessons

【推荐1】How long does a year last? Children might say that a year lasts forever. But your parents might say that a whole year can pass "in the blink of an eye". Why does time seem to pass faster as we get older?

According to scientists from Duke University, US, our brains degrade（退化）and change over time. This physical change causes the rate at which we take in and deal with new information to fall down.

Babies, for example, move their eyes much more often than grown-ups because they're dealing with images at a faster rate, Adrian Bejan from the university told the Daily Mail. They take in a lot of information and do many things in a single day. This makes them feel like· a single     day lasts for a long time.

However, as people's brains degrade over time, fewer images are dealt with in the same amount of time. Therefore, older people receive less information during a day than younger people. This causes things to seem as it they're happening more quickly.

What's more, people may also "feel" time differently due to psychological（心理的）reasons. People may measure time by the number of memorable events that can be recalled（回忆）within a certain period.

Have you ever noticed that when you recall your firsts (first day of school. first family vacation, first birthday party, etc.), they seem to be in slow motion! That's because when something is a "first", there are many exciting things to remember. Recalling these memories makes you feel like they took forever, according to David Eagleman of the Baylor College of Medicine in the US.

For many grown-ups, life is made up of daily things. When they look hack they might feel like there are not many interesting things to remember. Therefore, time seems to be moving faster to them.

1. The phrase "in the blink of an eye" has the similar meaning to "____________".

A．carefully

B．directly

C．slowly

D．quickly

2. Time seems to pass faster as we get older because _____________.

A．human brains become smaller and smaller over time

B．grown-ups often forget things easily and quickly

C．grown-ups don't deal with information as quickly as babies

D．babies are able to do a lot of things in a single day

3. What can we know according to David Eagleman?

A．Babies move their eyes much more often than grown-ups.

B．Psychological factors can affect how a person feels about time.

C．Recalling memories makes people feel like time is going faster.

D．Memorable events can slow down the pace of brain degradation.

4. The author writes this article to ___________________________.

A．explain why people feel time differently as they get old

B．explain why babies learn things faster than grown-ups

C．encourage people to make better use of their time

D．encourage people to create more memorable memories

【推荐2】Jane was not a good student. Her head was in the clouds(处于幻想之中) most of the time. She wanted to listen in class, but other things seemed more important: her clothes, her hairstyle, films and television. Many times she tried to work hard at her lessons, but soon she became absent-minded.
One day, her math teacher gave the class an important lesson and told her students that there would be a test the next week. She helped them review all the week. Jane seemed to listen in class, but her mind went away again.
The day of the test arrived. Jane couldn’t answer many of the questions on the exam. Mike, a very hard-working student, sat next to Jane. So Jane decided to copy his. Mike was very angry when he found Jane was copying his answers. He changed all his answers so that they were not right. Before the bell rang, Mike quickly changed his answers back into right ones. After the test, Mike turned to Jane and said, “ All those answers you copied from my paper are wrong.”
1. Jane thought a lot of things except ________.

A．her clothes

B．her study

C．films and television

2. The math teacher helped her students review for a weekbecause ________.

A．there would be an English test

B．she wanted them to fail the math test..

C．she wanted her students to study hard.

3. Jane couldn’t answer many of the questions on the exam because _______.

A．her mind was not in the study most of the time

B．she was not clever.

C．she always slept in class.

4. Mike was angry when he ________.

A．was changing all his answers

B．failed the math test

C．found Jane was copying his answers

5. Which of the following is right?

A．Jane copied the wrong answers.

B．Mike couldn’t answer the questions

C．Jane sat before Mike.

【推荐3】Stilton Cheese Rolling

May Day is a traditional day for celebrations, but the 2,000 English villagers of Stilton must be the only people in the world who include cheese rolling in their annual plans. Teams of four, dressed in a variety of strange and funny clothes, roll a complete cheese along a 50-metre course. On the way, they must not kick or throw their cheese, or go into their competitors’ lane(赛道). Competition is fierce and the chief prize is a complete Stilton cheese weighing about for kilos(disappointingly, but understandably the cheeses used in the race are wooden ones). All the competitors are served with beer or port wine, the traditional accompaniment for Stilton cheese.

Fiery Foods Festival ---- The Hottest Festival on Earth

Every year more than 10,000 people head for the city of Albuquerque, New Mexico. They come from as far away as Australia, the Caribbean and China, but they all share a common addiction ---- food that is not just spicy, but hot enough to make your mouth burn, your head spin and your eyes water. Their destination is the Fiery Food and BBQ Festival which is held over a period of three days every March. You might like to try a chocolate-covered habanero pepper ---- officially the hottest pepper in the world---- or any one of the thousands of products that are on show. But one thing’s for sure ---- if you don’t like the feeling of a burning tongue, this festival isn’t for you!

La Tomatina ---- The World’s Biggest Food Fight

On the last Wednesday of every August, the Spanish town of Bu hosts La Tomatina ---- the world’s largest food fight. A week-long celebration leads up to an exciting tomato battle as the highlight of the week’s events. The early morning sees the arrival of large trucks with tomatoes ---- official fightstarters get things going by casting tomatoes at the crowd.

The battle lasts little more than half an hour, in which time around 50,000 kilograms of tomatoes have been thrown at anyone or anything that moves, runs, or fights back. Then everyone heads down to the river to make friends again ---- and for a much-needed wash!

1. In the Stilton cheese rolling competition, competitors on each team must ________.

A．wear various formal clothes	B．roll a wooden cheese in their own lane
C．kick or throw their cheese	D．use a real cheese weighing about four kilos

2. Where is the Fiery Food and BBQ Festival held?

A．In New Mexico.

B．In the Caribbean.

C．In Australia

D．In China.

3. The celebration of La Tomatina lasts ________.

A．three days

B．seven days

C．less than three days

D．more than seven days

4. Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A．The chief prize for the Stilton cheese rolling competition is beer or port wine.

B．More than 10,000 Chinese take part in the Fiery Food and BBQ Festival.

C．Thousands of spicy foods are on show in the Fiery Food and BBQ Festival.

D．An exciting tomato battle takes place at the beginning of La Tomatina.