1 . Carmen had always dreamed of being on stage. She was excited when she got her first big break with a part in the school play. She would play a part of the doctor. She would wear long, white doctor’s coat and carry a big bag that held a newspaper with blank (空白的) pages and a box of bandages. Carmen would say some lines. She would do some funny acts and try to make her friends laugh. She could hardly wait to act in a real play on stage.
As the play came closer, Carmen began to worry about being on stage. She just couldn’t remember her lines. She sat in her bedroom, saying the lines over and over again. They just wouldn’t stick in her head. It would be terrible if she forgot her lines on stage. She thought for a long time and decided to quit the play. She still wanted to be in the play, but she didn’t want to risk making a fool of herself on stage.
Carmen walked into the kitchen and said she wouldn’t be in the play. “Don’t worry so much”, Carmen’s father said. “You’re a talented young girl. You are a natural performer.” “Yes,” her mother agreed, “You’ll do better if you relax.”
Carmen knew they were right, but she couldn’t stop worrying. Suddenly, she had a great idea. She took out the newspaper and wrote all of her lines on the blank pages. Now she could look at the newspaper and no one would know she was reading her lines. This would help her relax. That day, Carmen went on stage. She said her first line. Then she said her next line. Carmen didn’t look at the newspaper once. Remembering her lines was easy because she was relaxed.
As a result, Carmen remembered everything. After the play, Carmen let out a long deep breath and smiled happily. Carmen’s parents went backstage, they rushed over to congratulate her on a job well done.
“You are great!” Her mother said as she hugged Carmen.
“You are a star!” her father said proudly.
1. Why did Carmen begin to worry about being on stage?| A．She didn’t like the role of doctor. |
| B．She couldn’t follow other actors. |
| C．She looked like a fool on the stage. |
| D．She couldn’t remember her lines. |
| A．Quit the play. |
| B．Try to relax herself. |
| C．Say the lines over and over again. |
| D．Don’t focus on what others’ think. |
| A．To help her relax. |
| B．To follow her parents’ advice. |
| C．To help her remember the lines better. |
| D．To read the lines directly while acting. |
| A．Excited—Happy—Nervous—Relaxed. |
| B．Excited—Relaxed—Nervous—Happy. |
| C．Excited—Happy—Relaxed—Nervous. |
| D．Excited—Nervous—Relaxed—Happy. |
2 . It happened two years ago. It was Mother’s Day morning. I was doing some shopping at our local supermarket with my five-year-old son, Tenyson. As we were leaving, we found that only minutes earlier an elderly woman had fallen over at the entrance and had hit her head on the ground. Her husband was with her but there was blood everywhere and the woman was embarrassed and clearly in shock. Walking towards the scene, Tenyson became very sad about what had happened to the couple.
He said to me, “Mum, it’s not much fun falling over in front of everyone.”
At the front of the supermarket a charity group had set up a stand selling fish and chips and flowers to raise funds: Tenyson suggested that we should buy the lady a flower. “It will make her feel better,” he said. I was amazed that he’d come up with such a sweet idea. So we went over to the flower seller and asked her if we could buy a flower for the lady to cheer her up. “Just take it,” she replied. “I can’t take your money for such a wonderful gesture.”
By then doctors had arrived and were attending the injured woman. As we walked up to her, my son became frightened by all the blood and medical equipment (器具). He said he was just too scared to go up to her. Instead I gave the flower to the woman’s husband and told him, “My son was very sad for your wife and wanted to give her this flower to make her feel better.”
The old man started crying and said, “Thank you so much. You have a wonderful son. Happy Mother’s Day to you.”
The man then bent down and gave his wife the flower telling her who it was from. Though badly hurt and shaken, the old lady looked up at Tenyson with love in her eyes and gave him a little smile.
1. Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?| A．The elderly woman was knocked down by a truck. |
| B．Tenyson’s mother agreed with him to buy the elderly woman a flower. |
| C．Tenyson sent the flower to the elderly woman in fear. |
| D．The elderly woman was moved to tears by Tenyson. |
a. We went to a charity stand and got a gift for the elderly woman.
b. I did some shopping at the supermarket with Tenyson.
c. The injured woman was taken care of by the doctors.
d. We found an elderly woman hurt herself by accident at the entrance.
e. The old man was moved to tears and thanked me and my son.
| A．d-b-a-c-e | B．b-a-d-e-c | C．b-d-a-c-e | D．d-a-b-c-e |
| A．A Special Mother’s Day |
| B．A Terrible Accident |
| C．The Power of Flower |
| D．An Unforgettable Hit |
3 . Today is Lisa’s family day and they will have a family dinner this evening. Lisa’s mother Zoe is the cook today and she asks what everyone wants to have this evening. Here are their answers:
Lisa’s grandparents Paul Brown and Sally Brown
“We’d like to have black fungus (黑木耳) and we’ll bring some purple sweet potatoes from our farm. We’re both 63 years old now. Eating the food in those colors can help us stay young.” | Lisa’s father Nick Brown
“I’d like to have some orange or yellow food such as carrots, oranges and bananas. As an office worker, I have to sit in front of the computer for a long time every day. Orange and yellow vegetables and fruit are good for my eyes.” |
Lisa’s brother Tony
“Can I have some green vegetables like cabbages and cucumbers? I’m in a soccer team and my dream is to be a soccer player one day. Green food is good for players, so all our team members eat green vegetables every day.” | Lisa
“For me, I’d like some apples and strawberries. Our teacher says that red food can help remember things better. You know my history is not good. I want to eat more red food so that I can remember all things well.” |
Lisa’s mother prepares a rich dinner. Different colors of the food are like a rainbow on the table. All of Lisa’s family find their favorite food and they have a good time together.
1. How many people are there in the Browns?| A．4. | B．5. | C．6. | D．7. |
| A．office workers | B．the old | C．players | D．students |
① 
② 
③ 
④ 
⑤ 
| A．①③⑤ | B．②③④ | C．②④⑤ | D．①③④ |
| A．Because it can help her with her study. |
| B．Because it is good for her eyes. |
| C．Because she wants to keep healthy. |
| D．Because it can help her realize her dream. |
| A．He is quite lazy. | B．He is very active. |
| C．He is too careless. | D．He is very handsome. |
I was an extremely active child, always running around and crashing into things.
My mother expressed her concern to the doctor when he put stitches (缝合针) in my arm for the third time in as many years. The doctor recommended that I take up fishing.
But since I had nearly drowned (淹死) when diving into a reservoir a few years earlier, my mother ruled water out of my life. Finally, she decided to choose reading as the only cure for my condition.
For one hour every day, I was forced to sit on a chair and read a book. I cried so hard that I couldn’t see the letters on the page. Then my teacher uncle stepped in with a pile of books. He said all I had to do was to read the first twenty pages of a book. If I was still bored after that, I could put it down and pick up another.
The first book I picked up was The Enormous Crocodile, and after twenty pages, I fell out of my chair laughing. This crocodile is tired of eating fish and wants to eat some children for a change, so he crawls into a children’s playground and pretends to be a seesaw (跷跷板). I followed this up with Charlie and The Chocolate Factory and Fantastic Mr. Fox. Their quick plots and simple messages were very satisfying to read.
Little by little, the books became longer and more challenging. I was in the middle of reading The Lord of the Rings when my mother complained that I was reading too much and that I should run around outside like I used to. But by then, I was hooked on novels like Adventures of Robinson Crusoe. It was amazing to read about Robinson’s life on the lonely island and it taught me some life skills.
To this day, I think of books as a secret friend to whom I can always turn for advice. A good book must do two things: entertain and educate. If a book doesn’t interest you after twenty pages, put it down and try another one.
1. Why was the writer forced to read?| A．The doctor advised him to read more books. |
| B．Reading could be a relaxing activity for him. |
| C．His mother wanted to find a way to keep him quiet. |
| D．His family wanted to punish him for being too active. |
| A．To pick up different types of books. | B．To sit still and read for an hour a day. |
| C．To read longer and more challenging books. | D．To go through the first 20 pages of the book. |
a. He started to read more challenging books.
b. He considered books as friends to turn for advice when needed.
c. He found it interesting to read The Enormous Crocodile.
d. He read more books of quick plots and simple messages.
e. He fell in love with reading novels.
| A．c-d-a-e-b | B．d-c-a-b-e | C．c-d-a-b-e | D．d-c-e-a-b |
| A．Reading can bring us both joy and knowledge. |
| B．Reading is much more challenging than fishing. |
| C．Spending an hour reading is a useful habit for us. |
| D．Kids like reading books that are easy to understand. |
5 . In 1804, two explorers, Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, made an important journey. Today, people know a lot about the places they visited, but 200 years ago there were no maps of that part of the United States. They would travel by boat most of the way and they would make the first maps of that part. They were going to follow where the Missouri River went. They hoped it would take them to the ocean.
To help with the exploration, they took more than 40 people and many supplies in three boats, including a lot of food. Also, they made cruel rules. If people broke them, they would get serious punishments. It was summer when they started on this long trip from St. Louis. They traveled slowly, only a few miles every day, because they had to row their boats on the river. They traveled for months and were still far from the ocean. In winter snow and ice made it very difficult to travel, so they camped along the river and waited for spring.
Native Americans helped them along the way. They helped them get food, and showed them where places were and how to survive there, especially in the very cold winter.
As they traveled, they made maps. Their maps showed the way the river went. It passed through grasslands, and then they were in mountains. When they got to the mountains, they had to leave their boats and walk.
It took more than a year for the explorers to get to the ocean. When they got there, they had made maps that would help many people. But they had to bring the maps back. It had taken more than a year to make this first part of the trip. It also took a long time to get back. When the explorers came back in 1806, some people said they were heroes.
Their maps would help people explore and develop the new land. Long after their trip, there would be roads to the west. People would travel quickly by car. Today people can travel their route by plane. But if you look out the window from the plane, you will see those high mountains, and you will see what a difficult journey it was.
1. What was the aim of the journey?| A．To move to a new land. |
| B．To make a map of the US. |
| C．To become famous explorers. |
| D．To discover where a river ran. |
| A．They set off without any preparation. |
| B．They moved slowly because they had a big team. |
| C．Bad weather stopped them from travelling in winter. |
| D．They had to find out the way all by themselves. |
A． | B． | C． | D． |
| A．People have made greater progress in the west of America today. |
| B．There are new ways to explore the west of America today. |
| C．The maps of the west of America haven't changed much. |
| D．Lewis and Clark’s journey to the west wasn’t that easy. |
6 . Lily’s disappointment was surely clear. She woke up on Christmas morning and, along with her brother, ran down to see the gifts under the tree.
In the living room sat a nice mini bike. For a short moment, Lily was filled with great excitement. She couldn’t imagine anything better than getting that bike. Then, she saw a baby doll sitting on the sofa.
Then she knew. She knew that the mini bike belonged to her brother and that doll would be hers. It was always like this. Tommy always got cool things: skateboards, science kits. The mini bike was just the latest cool thing. Lily always got the boring gifts: a set of toy cooking kits, a pair of fairy lady’s feather wings. They were amazing for other girls, but she didn’t like them at all. To Lily, this doll seemed unusually boring again.
Tommy had seen that mini-bike in the front window of Moore’s Bike Shop, but hadn’t Lily too? Tommy had asked for the bike and had said it was the only thing he wanted for Christmas. Although Lily had the same thought, she failed to say it, again. She was a shy girl, even in front of her family.
Tommy’s eyes grew wide at the bike. He knew it was his—no doll for him. He ran into his parents’ room and jumped up and down on the bed, “Thank you, Dad! Thank you, mum!”
At the same time Lily walked into the other room silently. She was disappointed and a bit angry. It took a while for anyone to realize she was missing.
“What’s wrong, Lily?” Papa asked gently. “Did you see your pretty doll?” “I saw it,” she said unhappily.
“What’s wrong, honey? You won’t believe how long your father waited in line to buy that doll! It was nearly 30 minutes.” Mama said.
Silence. Lily’s mouth was fixed. Her face was pale. “Oh, Mama, you know Lily is never excited by presents!” her brother laughed. “Come out and watch me ride!”
And so they did.
However, Lily made a decision after a while. She needed to speak out what she really thought. Then, she took a deep breath, walked straightly outside…
1. Why was Lily unhappy when seeıng the gifts?| A．Because she was never excited by gifts. |
| B．Because she liked the bike but it was not hers. |
| C．Because she didn’t know which gift to choose. |
| D．Because she couldn’t get the bike she asked for. |
| A．Surprised and proud. | B．Nervous but moved. |
| C．Disappointed but thankful. | D．Amazed and excited. |
| A．Because they didn’t care for her. |
| B．Because Lily’s brother told them not to. |
| C．Because they didn’t know Lily wanted one. |
| D．Because they wanted Lily to like girls’ things. |
| A．She would watch her brother riding the bike. |
| B．She would leave home because she was angry. |
| C．She would tell her family that she wanted the bike. |
| D．She would ask her brother to exchange the gift with her. |
7 . Hi, Maggie, it’s me, Leroy! Let me tell you about the holiday so far. On Monday, we were in Edinburgh. We went there from London, and I was next to William on the bus. The people were friendly in Edinburgh, and everyone in our group seemed happy. Some tried traditional Scottish (苏格兰的) cooking, but William and I had a hamburger instead. I bought a large picture of Edinburgh Castle.
The next day we went to Paris on the train. I sat next to Marcus, and we listened to his CDs.The journey was very long, so we had lunch on the train. I had a hot dog, and I bought some postcards. From there, we went to Rome on Wednesday, again on the bus, and this time, I sat next to John.We stopped for lunch at a service station, and I had a large steak (牛排) and a mountain of chips. When we got to Rome, I bought a book.
Now I’m sitting next to Elisabeth on a train just outside Bavaria. Elisabeth is playing the harmonica (口琴) I bought. She has never played it before, but she’s very interested in it!
Tomorrow we are flying to Helsinki in Finland. I will sit next to Maria because she doesn’t like flying and I want to help her relax.
Anyway, it’s time to get off the train now, and I must say goodbye. Say hello to Mom and Dad for me, and I’ll see you soon!
1. What did Leroy do on Monday?| A．He took a bus ride. | B．He left for Edinburgh. |
| C．He started his holiday. | D．He tried Scottish cooking. |
| A．By car. | B．By bus. | C．By train. | D．By plane. |
| A．Leroy and William. | B．William and Elisabeth. |
| C．Elisabeth and John. | D．Marcus and Leroy. |
| A．Edinburgh→London→Paris→Rome→Bavaria. |
| B．London→Edinburgh→Paris→Rome→Bavaria. |
| C．Edinburgh→London→Paris→Bavaria→Rome. |
| D．London→Edinburgh→Paris→Bavaria→Rome. |
| A．Parent and child. | B．Brother and sister. |
| C．Doctor and patient. | D．Student and teacher. |
8 . A story is told of Marie Curie. Her sisters once built a pyramid (金字塔) of chairs around her. Marie was busy reading. She didn’t even notice until she stood up and knocked them all over!
It would not be surprising if this story were true. As a child, Marie loved books and experiments. Nothing could distract her from her studies. She did not lose this love of learning as she got older. In the 1880s, very few women went to college, and even fewer women became scientists. Marie did both.
After she met and married another scientist, Pierre Curie, the two of them began working together. Their studies focused on the element radium (镭元素). They had discovered it during their research. Radium is found in some rocks. It is a white metallic element with a blue glow (微弱而稳定的光). The glow lasts for a thousand years.
The radium glows because it produces energy. That is one reason why the Curies were so interested in it. But studying radium is not like opening a book. Radium must be isolated (分离) from the rock around it. That is like trying to take just the chocolate out of chocolate milk.
The couple spent their life savings on eight tons of rock. An old shack (棚屋) became their workplace. They heated the rock to remove the bits of radium from it. Days of work turned into months. Finally, they spent four years in that shack studying the mysterious element with the blue glow.
During their research, the Curies found that radium could help treat disease. That is when Marie and her husband became big news. They were written about often. This got the public interested in radium. Soon, the Curies’ work earned them the Nobel Prize in Physics. This award is one of the highest honors in the world. Marie had come a long way from the days of chair pyramids.
1. Why did Marie knock her sister’s chair pyramid over?| A．Because she was angry with her sister. | B．Because she paid full attention to reading. |
| C．Because she didn’t notice it while sleeping. | D．Because she was busy doing experiments. |
| A．Take her attention away from. | B．Protect her from. |
| C．Connect her with. | D．Remind her of. |
| A．Humorous and clever. | B．Hard-working and smart. |
| C．Patient and friendly. | D．Talented and honest. |
| A．Marie Curie: A Woman Who Loves Reading |
| B．Marie Curie: A Woman Ahead of Her Time |
| C．Marie Curie: A Woman Who Has a Famous Husband |
| D．Marie Curie: A Woman Who Built Chair Pyramids |
| A. This exhibition shows some out-of-this-world objects. If you are interested in China’s space exploration, you can’t miss it. B. Photography fans must visit Camera Display Room. It shows camera development from the first camera to the latest one. C. In this exhibition, there are many VR machines. You will have a chance to explore the future world with the science of today. D. Explore unbelievable objects, including some never seen by the public before. These are all from Professor Stephen Hawking’s office. E. Visit our exhibition to explore science. It should show how science has influenced 100 years, including the first 10 inventions. F. Join one of our volunteer tour guides to explore the world’s oldest collections of clocks and watches. Some have a history of 200 years. G. This exhibition is a great new home for the most important medical collections in the world. It’s a must-go place for people working in the hospital. |
10 . Bert won a national prize called Young Heroes for his “green” project. He was now a university student. His love for insects grew deeper and he was protecting them for the future.
▲ . When he was around 4 or 5 years old, he always loved to watch different insects, especially beautiful swallowtails (凤蝶). He learned an interesting fact about swallowtails. Their bright colors warned hungry animals that they tasted bad. And it was also fun to watch how they came into being. But the reason he really fell in love with them was that they were very easy to get close to. For example, if you wanted to attract (吸引) swallow tails, you could plant some zinnias, a kind of bright flowers.
Bert started a zinnia garden at his house. He raised a large number of swallowtails over the years. With the world’s swallowtail population falling, Bert wanted people to realize that if insects like swallowtails disappeared, so would all the others above them on the food chain (链). To make the fact clear and easy to understand for other students, he also created a zinnia garden at his junior high school.
Part of the joy for Bert was watching the younger students get activated when running after swallowtails. “Whenever a swallowtail lands on them, the young students will soon fall in love with these cute insects. They develop a new appreciation (鉴赏) for students,” he said.
Bert put his efforts into the environmental educational project and made it take flight.
1. After Bert was honored with Young Heroes, ________.| A．he often gave speeches in public | B．he set up his “green” project |
| C．he became interested in swallowtails | D．he went on protecting insects |
| A．Bert saved many swallowtails. | B．Bert had a boring childhood. |
| C．Bert found his love early in life. | D．Bert made a hard decision. |
| A．To watch students have fun. | B．To make his school more beautiful. |
| C．To stop swallowtails from disappearing. | D．To help students learn about swallowtails. |
| A．Excited. | B．Upset. | C．Healthy. | D．Confident. |
| A．A Bright Flower | B．A Green Project. |
| C．A Beautiful Garden. | D．A Warning Action. |
