【推荐1】Antarctica

Weather

Antarctica lies in the most southern part of the world. It is the coldest area on Earth. There isn’t much rain, but there is a lot of snow and wind. The lowest temperature was on 21 July in 1983 at -89.2℃!

Population

Nobody lives in Antarctica all the time! The first people to stay there for a while were fishermen in 1786. Now there are about 5,000 scientists and researchers there in the summer.

History of exploration (探险)

During 1907—1909, British explorer Earnest Shackleton explored Antarctica on foot. In 1911, two explorers—a British man named Scott and a Norwegian named Amundsen raced 1, 400 kilometers to the South Pole (南极). Amundsen arrived first.

Animals and birds

There aren’t any large animals in Antarctica. Polar bears live at the North Pole. But there are a lot of penguins and seabirds. Every spring there are over 100 million seabirds in Antarctica.

1. According to paragraph 1, which one is right about the weather in Antarctica?

A．It is not cold at all.

B．There aren’t many rainy days there.

C．The lowest temperature was at -83.2℃.

D．It’s hard to see snowy and windy days there.

2. When did the first people stay there?

A．In 1983.

B．In 1786.

C．In 1909.

D．In 1907.

3. How did Scott and Amundsen get to Antarctica?

A．They got there by plane.	B．They drove there.
C．They ran there.	D．They got there by ship.

4. From the last paragraph, what can we infer?

A．It is difficult for large animals to live in Antarctica.

B．All the seabirds in the world are in Antarctica.

C．The weather in Antarctica is similar to that in North Pole.

D．Seabirds don’t like the weather in spring in Antarctica.

5. What can we know from the passage?

A．Antarctica is not as cold as North Pole.

B．Only a few people can live in Antarctica all the time.

C．Summer is friendlier than the other seasons to people in Antarctica.

D．Scott didn’t reach Antarctica at last.

【推荐2】We have to accept the truth: Sometimes, we just want to shout out loud.

For example, we all have days like this: our dog has made a mess on the floor we just cleaned, or our friend called to tell us he or she couldn’t come at the last minute when we had cooked dinner for him or her. We might be really angry but we tried to tolerate things like those. According to ancient Chinese wisdom (至理名言), we should shout in a loud voice instead of keeping quiet. In fact, it’s good for our health.

“Chinese people have passed on the practice from ancient times to now as a part of traditional medicine.” said Mrs. Li, a 60-year-old woman from Hangzhou. “My parents taught me to do this. It’s a part of our folk (民俗的) culture.”

Mrs. Li is a member of a group of people who love shouting. Each morning, she and some of her friends climb to the top of a hill and let out loud shouts before starting their daily exercise. They believe that shouting is good exercise for their lungs (肺) and it brings them a lot of fun.

“Sometimes I shout out and others shout back,” said Mrs. Gu, another shouting lover. “It makes you happy. You laugh and then you feel very comfortable.”

Dr. Peter Calafiura, an American doctor, agrees that shouting can have a positive influence on people’s health.

So, next time you start your morning run, why not try to shout out first? It will make you healthier.

1. The underlined word “tolerate” in Paragraph 2 means “________” in Chinese.

A．纠正

B．忍受

C．铭记

D．批判

2. Mrs. Li learned to shout to make herself feel better from ________.

A．her parents

B．her teacher

C．Mrs. Gu

D．Dr. Peter Calafiura

3. Where does Mrs. Li shout every day?

A．In a park.

B．At a square.

C．In her house.

D．On a hill.

4. What does Dr. Peter Calafiura think of shouting?

A．It’s great fun for people.	B．It’s good for people’s health.
C．It’s easy for people to learn.	D．It causes problems on people’s health.

【推荐3】In our solar system (太阳系), there is only one planet that is full of lives. It is our Mother Earth.

Just like mothers look after everything in homes, Mother Earth looks after everything around the world. Do you know when Mother Earth’s birthday is? It is April 22. People call the day the Earth Day. People around the world celebrate this day by making it very special for her. How do you think she will feel special? She will feel special if all of us love nature, keep it clean and use all of her seas, mountains and other natural resources (资源) in a right way.

Here are some other ways to keep her happy and healthy:

★Walk or ride a bike. Cars, trains and planes make Mother Earth sick (病的), because they make pollution.

★Don’t cut forests — animals’ home. Animals are children of Mother Earth like us.

★Plant trees. Trees help keep the air clean.

1. Earth is the only one planet that is full of lives in our solar system.
2. April twelfth is the Earth Day.
3. People around the world celebrate the Earth Day by making it very special for her.
4. Walking or riding a bike are bad for saving the earth.
5. Forests are animals’ home and animals are children of Mother Earth like humans.

【推荐1】Scotland is part of Great Britain, on the north of England.

It is a beautiful country with many mountains, forests, beaches, rivers and lakes. In northern Scotland, it gets light until 10:30 am in summer and in winter you can sometimes see the northern lights. Scotland has many islands, but people only live on some of them. Last month, I had a chance to travel there. Here is something interesting about it.

Languages

There are several languages in Scotland. Most people speak English or Scots. Some Scottish people speak Scottish Gaelic. It is an old Celtic language and is very different from English.

Music

At public (公共的) events(活动) and cultural events, you can often hear traditional music and see traditional dancing. Pipers play music on bagpipes (风笛). Pipers and dancers usually wear kilts. A kilt is a traditional skirt with a tartan (方格花纹) design which is worn by men and women.

Sports

The most popular sport in Scotland is football. Another popular game, golf was invented in Scotland in the Middle Ages. You can go skiing or snowboarding in winter at Scotland’s ski resorts (旅游胜地).

1. Where is Scotland?

A．On the south of England.	B．On the north of England.
C．To the south of England.	D．To the north of England.

2. What’s the most popular sport in Scotland?

A．Football.

B．Tennis.

C．Golf.

D．Basketball.

3. Which of the following is TRUE?

A．It’s dark at 10 pm in northern Scotland in summer.

B．There are people living on all islands in Scotland.

C．Scottish Gaelic is an old Celtic language.

D．Golf is a new sport in Scotland.

4. What is the best title for the passage?

A．The sports of Scotland	B．The famous places of Scotland
C．The people of Scotland	D．The culture of Scotland

【推荐2】Mary is a thirteen-year-old girl. One day she had a cough and went to see a doctor. The doctor gave her some cough medicine. These are the words on the bottle of the medicine:

Cough Medicine       Shake well before use.       Take three times daily after meals.

Dose（剂量）: Adults（成人）-2 teaspoonfuls   Children 8~14-1 teaspoonful   Children 4~7-1/2 teaspoonful

Not for children below the age of 4.

Keep in a fridge. Use before Aug. 2020.

1. Mary should take ________ in a day.

A．1 teaspoonful

B．2 teaspoonful

C．3 teaspoonfuls

2. The medicine should be kept in ________.

A．any place

B．hot water

C．a cold place

3. Mary should ________ the medicine left after Aug. 2020.

A．go on shaking

B．keep eating

C．stop eating

4. People aged ________ can’t take this medicine.

A．2

B．13

C．7

【推荐3】Different countries have different customs and cultures. Every culture around the world has different customs and ways of communicating. When you learn a language, you learn more than words.

In China, people are used to saying “sorry” to show that they regret doing something wrong. But it’s very proud for American people to have polite manners towards one another in public. They often use the word “sorry”—even when they don’t really mean it! Usually, if they want to ask a stranger for the time, they will start by saying “Sorry to trouble you.” If they’re five minutes late for the appointment, they will greet the person by saying “Sorry, I’m late!” It’s quite different in China. They use the word “sorry” in so many different situations that the meaning of the word has changed a little over time. The two main dictionary definitions (定义) of “sorry” are: 1) feeling sad for someone else because of their problems or bad luck; 2) feeling regret because you’ve done something wrong.

So what does “sorry” really mean? And why do western people use it so much? Well, in western culture, saying “sorry” is a way to be polite. It’s also a very clever way to get what they want. If you want to borrow something from others, you’d better say “sorry” to them about something. Or it’s hard for you to get what you want. So maybe saying “sorry” is not only just being polite, but also a good method to get what you want!

1. How many examples of the use of “sorry” are given by Americans in the second paragraph?

A．Two.

B．Three.

C．Four.

D．Five.

2. When do people in America say “sorry” according to the passage?

A．When they regret doing something wrong.

B．When they ask strangers for help.

C．When they greet people for the first time.

D．When they arrive at a place early.

3. What does the underlined word “appointment” in the passage mean?

A．Idea.

B．Class.

C．Date

D．Safety.

4. In which country do people say “sorry” to get what they want?

A．Japan.

B．China.

C．Korea.

D．Germany.

5. What’s the best title of the passage?

A．How to Say “Sorry” Correctly.	B．The Different Meanings of “Sorry”.
C．Why Western People Say “Sorry”	D．Why Chinese People Say “Sorry”