【推荐1】Expressions cover all parts of our life. They may be around your ears every day. You may know a lot of Chinese expressions that describe how you feel. Here are some English ones for your enjoyment.

Have Your Heart in Your Mouth

This expression means that you're really afraid or anxious about something. When your heart starts beating so much that you can feel a thumping(怦怦跳) in your throat, it may feel like you "have your heart in your mouth."

Have Butterflies in the Stomach

How did butterflies get in your stomach? Well, those really aren't butterflies in there. It is a way of describing those nervous feelings you might get before a test or a very important decision.

These stomach flutters (跳动) are normal and happen to many people. Some people believe having a few butterflies might even help you perform better.

Sick as a Dog

If you've ever been very sick, you may have used this expression. Because dogs eat just about anything they find, they often get sick. So it's all right to describe someone who's not feeling well as being "sick as a dog".

Under the Weather

When it's rainy all day outside, how would you feel? This expression comes from the idea that bad weather might hurt a person's health and mood(心情).

1. The expression "______" is most probably used while you are watching a thriller.

A．have your heart in your mouth

B．sick as a dog

C．under the weather

2. Someone believes ______ if you "have butterflies in the stomach" before a test.

A．you're sure to fail

B．you will forget everything

C．you might do better

3. It's ______ to say somebody is "sick as a dog" when he is not feeling well.

A．impolite

B．suitable

C．wrong

4. When somebody says "under the weather", he must feel ______.

A．upset

B．happy

C．calm

5. All expressions discussed in this passage are about _______.

A．health

B．habits

C．feelings

【推荐2】Can you remember the day when you spoke your first words? If you can, you are unusual. Try to think what the first months of your life were like. I’m sure you just spent most of your time eating, sleeping and crying. As you grew older, your parents spent more time playing with you and talking to you. You watched and listened. You began to know that people make some sounds to go with some things.
Then you began to cry to make sounds you heard. And step by step (逐渐地) you were able to make the right sound for one thing.
On that day you came to understand the secret of the language. The secret is that a certain sound means a certain thing. Only when a group of people use the same set of sounds of things can they understand each other, so these people have a language.
After you found the secret of language, you learnt words. Some of the words mean things, like books, chairs and shops. Some of the words mean actions, for example, go and swim. Soon you learnt to put words together to share your idea, like “I want to go out and play with my friends.”
This is language. By the way of language, people can communicate (交流). So we say languages mean sharing.
1.          can remember the day when we spoke our first words.

A．Few of us	B．One
C．Most people	D．All of us

2. When you were a little baby, you ___________ .

A．tried your best to remember all the sounds you heard

B．spent most of your time eating, sleeping and crying

C．could not hear any sounds around you

D．spent most of your time playing with your parents

3. The secret of language is that ___________ .

A．one sound might be as good as another

B．a certain sound is for a certain thing

C．people can understand each other

D．there is a special sound for each other

4. The underlined word “actions” means _____ in Chinese.

A．表情

B．表演

C．动作

D．感情

5. Which of the following is TRUE?

A．Language is easy to learn.

B．You learn language by reading at first.

C．You couldn’t learn language without parents.

D．Language means sharing.

【推荐3】Millions of British people have given up the traditional “thank you” and took the place of it with the less formal(正式的) “cheers”, according to a survey.

   Although the common person will say “thank you” nearly 5,000 times a year, one in three are more likely to add a “cheers” or “ta” where it’s needed to show they are fashionable.

     One in twenty now say “nice one” instead, while the younger are more likely to offer a “cool” than a “thank you”.

       “Merci”, “fab” and even “gracias” were also listed as common expressions to use, as “much appreciated(感激)”.

     One in twenty who took part in the survey of 2,000 people by the Food Network UK for Thank You Day, which is marked on November 24, 2011, said a formal “thank you” was now not often needed in everyday conversation. More than one in ten adults said they regularly(有规律地) won’t say thank you if they are in a bad mood. Most people stated(陈述) that saying thank you was something that their parents trained them. A huge 70 percent of those who are questioned will say thank you to a person’s face without even meaning it, while one fifth avoid(避免)saying it when they know they should.

It seems our friends and family get the stress of our bad manners. Half of them admit (承认) they’re not good at thanking those closest to them. Many of them explain that they don’t say “thank you” because their family “already know I’m thankful”.

When spoken words won’t do, it falls to a nice text to do the job for most people.

        One third will still send a handwritten thank-you note---but 45 percent admit it’s been more than six months since they tried to send one.
        A quarter of British people say “thank you” with food, with 23 percent cooking a meal to show their appreciation to someone. Another 15 percent make a cake.
        It follows that 85 percent of people will be angry because of not getting the gratitude (感激)they feel they should receive.
1. Most of the people who took part in the survey say that they say “thank you” _______.

A．when they are in good mood	B．completely out of habit
C．when they feel truly grateful	D．purely out of politeness

2. It can be learned from the passage that _______.

A．different ways of expressing gratitude are all fashionable

B．people should avoid saying “thank you” nowadays

C．a thank-you note is still appreciated by most people

D．people in a bad mood never say “thank you”

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

A．Most people express their gratitude to others by buying food for them.

B．About fifty percent of people try not to say thank you when they should.

C．Most people may feel natural when they fail to receive others’ gratitude.

D．Many people think it unnecessary to say thanks to their family members.

【推荐1】China has named the nation’s first Mars rover（火星车）Zhu Rong. For all of us, Zhu Rong is a well-suited name.

In an ancient Chinese story, Zhu Rong had the face of a man and the body of an animal. He rode on two dragons. When he had a big fight with Gong Gong, the god of water, Zhu Rong won. But after the fight the human world came into complete darkness. Then he brought fire from heaven（天国）to the world.

“Zhu Rong is regarded as the earliest god of fire in traditional Chinese culture,” a space officer said. “The first Mars rover was named Zhu Rong. The name symbolizes（象征）light and hope for space exploration（探索）in our country, and means to lead humans to continue exploration.”

After leaving the earth in the summer of 2020, Zhu Rong circled Mars for several months and landed on it in May, 2021. In recent years, our country has sent up the world’s first quanturm satellite（量子卫星）, and Chang’e-4 has made a soft landing on the moon. We have made great progress in space technology and will soon start building our own space station.

1. What did Zhu Rong bring from heaven to the world?

A．Wars.

B．Fire.

C．Water.

D．Animals.

2. For China’s space exploration, what did the name Zhu Rong symbolize?

A．A big fight.

B．Complete darkness.

C．Light and hope.

D．Chinese culture.

3. What does the underlined word “it” in the last paragraph refer to?

A．The earth.

B．Mars.

C．The moon.

D．The sun.

4. What can we infer（推断）from the passage?

A．Zhu Rong is a bad person in an ancient Chinese story.

B．China has made great progress in space technology.

C．The writer is proud of China’s space technology.

D．Gong Gong, the god of water, rode on two dragons.

【推荐2】In China, green traveling has been widely chosen by people. More and more people choose cycling instead of driving to school, to workplace or to go sightseeing. Now I’d like to introduce a new form of sharing bike—the mobike (摩拜单车).

I think it’s very convenient to use if you have a smartphone（智能手机）. You can unlock a mobike by using the smartphone. You should find a nearest mobike through the APP and scan the QR code（二维码）on the bike and you can enjoy your trip. Compared to other forms of sharing bike, the greatest advantage of the mobike is that you can easily find one and never worry about where to park it.

In a word, the mobike is becoming a new green travel mode（方式）. Riding a mobike can make us stronger and healthier. I believe it can relieve（缓解）the traffic pressure and does good to the environment as well. From now on, no matter where I go, I will choose this green traveling.

1. What kind of travel mode does the writer introduce in this passage?

A．The motorbike.

B．The subway.

C．The mobike.

D．The bus.

2. What does the underlined word “unlock” mean in Chinese?

A．骑行

B．使用

C．锁

D．解锁

3. How do you unlock a mobike?

A．By swinging（摇动）a card.	B．By using a key.
C．With remote control.	D．By scanning the QR code on the bike.

4. Why does the writer like the mobike?

A．Because it’s fast.

B．Because it’s safe.

C．Because it’s cheap.

D．Because you can easily find one and never worry about where to park it.

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

A．The writer introduces a new form of sharing bike.

B．It’s very convenient to use the mobike if you have a smartphone.

C．The mobike can be easily found in villages.

D．The mobike is becoming a new green travel mode.

【推荐3】Do you like singing or playing musical instruments（乐器）? If you say “yes”, you can join us! We have piano lessons every Friday evening in our club. We also have guitar lessons on Monday evenings. You don’t have to pay any money. The lessons are all free. Just come and have a try! We also have lessons to teach students singing skills（技巧）on Tuesday evenings. If you like singing, you will find them useful. In our club you can meet many students from different classes and you can make friends with them. All the lessons start at 7:00 in the evening. Come on! Join us! You will have wonderful evenings!

1. How many lessons are there in the club?

A．One.

B．Two.

C．Three.

D．Four.

2. Students have guitar lessons ________.

A．every evening	B．every Friday evening
C．on Monday morning	D．every Monday evening

3. The lesson of singing skills starts at ________ on Tuesday.

A．7:00 a.m.

B．7:00 p.m.

C．8:00 a.m.

D．8:00 p.m.

4. What does the underlined word “free” mean in Chinese?

A．免费的

B．付费的

C．便宜的

D．昂贵的

5. From the passage, we can know that students can ________.

A．have lessons every evening	B．make some new friends in the club
C．have lessons of dancing skills in the club	D．join the club if（如果）they’re good at singing