1 . Beijing Opera is famous to us. It has a history from 1790. Its music and singing come from Anhui and Hebei. There are four main roles in Beijing Opera: Sheng, Dan, Jing and Chou. Beijing Opera is full of famous stories, beautiful facial(脸部的) paintings, wonderful clothes and fighting. Some of the stories are mainly from history books, but many of them are from famous novels(小说). The people in the stories usually can’t agree with each other. They became angry, unhappy, sad and lonely. Sometimes they are frightened and worried. Then they find a way to get on well with each other. Everyone is usually happy in the end.
Beijing Opera is an important part of Chinese culture. In the past, it was popular with old people while young people didn’t like it. But now, more and more young people are becoming interested in it. At the same time,more people around the world are learning about Beijing Opera.
Choose the best choice from A, B or C according to the passage.
1. How long is the history of Beijing Opera until 2025?
A.Less than 220 years. | B.More than 220 years. | C.230 years. |
A.Anhui and Hubei | B.Beijing | C.Henan and Hubei |
A.angry | B.happy | C.sad |
A.newspaper | B.magazines | C.history books and famous novels |
A.There are three main roles in Beijing Opera. |
B.Beijing Opera isn’t a part of Chinese culture. |
C.More and more people are interested in Beijing Opera nowadays. |
2 . Do you know how to do goose step (正步走)? Can you make your quilt look like a piece of tofu? You can learn all these skills in military raining (军训). Schools in other countries also have military training programs for students. What do they usually do? Let’s take a look.
South Korea
In South Korea, men between the ages of 20 and 30 must serve in the army (服役). They usually serve for two years. Children also have military training in primary school. They have different kinds of activities, such as hiking and walking through mountains at night. Sometimes, the activities are very hard. For example, students need to exercise in the snow with no shirts on.
The US
US schools don’t ask students to do military training. If children take an interest in the military, they can join military camps. The government also holds activities for children to experience military life. Children learn how to work in a team and work out hard problems themselves. For example, a group has to climb over a high wall. If even one person falls down, the whole group needs to do it again. So everyone must help each other and finish the task together.
Russia
In Russia, boys between the ages of 15 and 16 have to take part in a five-day military training program. They learn skills like shooting (射击), parachute jumping (跳伞) and cooking outside. Students also learn military history. Recently, Russia has encouraged all schoolchildren from 14 to 18 to try military training.
Complete the chart according to the passage with not more than two words for each blank.
Military Training in Different Countries | |
South Korea | ★Elementary school students have different activities. Some of them are very hard. For example, students might exercise in the snow |
The US | ★Children can join military camps if they are ★Children can learn how to work in a team and |
Russia | ★Boys between 15 and 16 need to do military training for ★They learn shooting, parachute jumping, cooking and military |
“In life there is no such thing as complete happiness. Happiness always comes with worry.” These are the words from Yang Jiang’s famous work We Three.
Yang Jiang was a writer and translator. She wrote several successful comedies and novels and was also famous for her translation work.
Yang Jiang was born in Beijing in 1911 and grew up in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province. She started studying at Tsinghua University in 1932 and there she met Qian Zhongshu. They married in 1935. During 1935—1938, they were abroad to study at Oxford University and University of Paris. In Oxford, Yang gave birth to their daughter Qian Yuan in 1937. They came back to China the next year. In 1949, Yang began to teach at Tsinghua University. She passed away in 2016.
The book We Three is a national bestseller (畅销书). It’s about Yang Jiang’s family life with her husband and their daughter. Yang started writing it at the age of 92.
In the book, Yang used simple language to describe all the joyful and difficult times she spent together with her husband and daughter. From her words, you can feel the love between them. The love usually cannot be described with words alone. You can not only understand what the three of them had achieved and how proud Yang was to have her husband and daughter, but also feel how sad she was for having to spend the rest of her life without her loved ones. However, like Yang wrote, “ Although the pains in life hurt so much, it is the light and hope that I see.”
Complete the chart according to the passage with only one word for each blank.
Yang Jiang | |
Her achievements | She was a writer and translator. Several successful comedies and novels were She was famous for her translation work. |
Her | In 1911, she was born in Beijing. In 1932, she studied at Tsinghua University and she met Qian Zhongshu there. Three years later, they got married. During 1935-1938, she and her husband were In 1937, their daughter was born. The next year, they returned to China. In 1949, she began to work as a In 2016, she passed away. |
Her work We Three | It is a Yang Jiang started writing it at the age of 92. She described all the joyful and difficult times she spent together with her husband and daughter. |
As children grow up, they have a birthday every year. But in modern China, a birthday held at the age of 18 has special meaning. It’s the celebration of coming of age (成年).
In ancient China, the coming-of-age ceremony was very important for the young people. According to the book LiJi (《礼记》), it was the symbol of their right (权利) to get married and their duty (义务) to share family responsibilities. Only after the ceremony could the young people be called “adults” .
At the coming-of-age ceremony, after all the guests sat in the right position, the parents would give a short speech. A respected (受尊敬的) elder that was chosen to hold this ceremony would wash hands and do the guan li or ji li in several steps. Then, the child would kneel on the ground and listen to his or her parents’ expectations and words used to educate the child. After showing thanks to guests, he or she could stand next to his or her parents as a real adult.
In modern China, the coming-of-age ceremony in some universities and senior high schools is getting its popularity. Besides a traditional ceremony mentioned above, some young people may wear traditional Chinese clothing or modern clothing and take professional photos to record this special event. Some choose to make a charitable donation (慈善捐赠) such as money or time to a charity or an organization. They also reflect on their achievements to set better plans for their future education, career (职业生涯) or personal development.
Choose the best choice from A, B or C according to the passage.1. After the coming-of-age ceremony, the young people could get married and had to ________ in ancient China.
A.give a short speech | B.have a birthday party | C.be responsible for their families |
A.stand upside down | B.go down on one’s knees | C.lie down on one’s back |
A.A respected elder. | B.Some friends. | C.The parents. |
A.Take photos. | B.Get married. | C.Make money. |
A.the book Li Ji | B.modern clothing | C.the coming-of-age ceremony |
5 . A teacher gives young students some advice on how to deal with danger.
If you are in a traffic accident
If a car hits you, you should remember the car number. If it is a bicycle, try to telephone your parents before you let the rider go. This is because you don’t know how seriously you are hurt.
If it is raining hard and there is lightning (闪电)
Don’t stay in high places and stay away from trees.
When there is a fire
Get away as fast as you can. Put wet things on your body and try to find an exit (出口). Don’t take the lift.
If someone is drowning(溺水)
If you can’t swim, don’t get into water. Just cry out for help.
Remember that danger is never as far away as you think. Take care of yourself all the time.
Complete the chart according to the passage with only one word for each blank.
Students’ Safety | |
Danger | |
In a traffic accident | If hit by a car, remember the car number. If hit by a bicycle, |
Raining with lightning | Stay at |
Fire | Don’t take the lift and find an exit as fast as |
Drowning | If you can’t swim, just shout “ |
6 . Most of us probably don’t like doing housework. And most of us think that cleaning the bathroom or cooking dinner for the family makes us tired. However, the fact is that someone has to do it. Most of the time, our parents have to do the housework. Is it really fair?
Doing housework is really not as bad as it sounds. If we all do our part, it will seem less annoying (烦人的). Why should your mother have to wash your dirty clothes? You are able to take care of yourself. Doing some housework will show that you are becoming more and more independent.
Some of us may think that we are too busy to do housework. But most parents work all day and are then expected to keep a clean house! Dividing housework among the whole family will make everyone’s job much easier.
Please remember: Learning to do housework can provide you with valuable skills for the future.
Judge the following sentences true(T) or false(F) according to the passage.
1. Most of us think that doing chores is boring.
2. It is really fair for our parents to do the housework.
3. Doing some housework will make us less independent.
4. It is easy to divide housework among the whole family.
5. Learning to do housework can offer valuable skills to us.
7 . It’s very important to follow the traffic(交通)rules in our life. When we go outside, we have to follow the traffic rules. Go at green lights and stop at red lights. When we take a car or sit next to the driver, we have to wear safety belts(安全带). Also, we should tell our parents to follow the rules. When they drink wine(酒), they mustn’t drive on the road. Rules, rules, rules! There are too many rules in the world. The government(政府)is strict but these traffic rules make us safe(安全的).
Complete the chart according to the passage with not more than two words for each blank.
We must | |
① ②When we take a car or sit next to the driver, we have to wear safety belts. ③For our parents, don’t drive on the road after | |
Why to do | The government |
8 . The Ministry of Education (教育部) announced a notice in 2021 that restricts (限制) primary and middle school students from carrying mobile phones to school.
The government wants to improve students’ focus on study and fight addiction (沉迷) to the Internet and games.
According to a 2020 report by the China Internet Network Information Center, China had 175 million Internet users under the age of 18 in 2019. This is worrying, as long-time use of smartphones harms children’s eyesight, cervical vertebrae (颈椎) and even the brain, according to the World Health Organization.
Many schools in Beijing have taken action to restrict students’ phone use at school. According to Zhou Dandan, an English teacher at Beijing No. 20 High School, every classroom in her school has a box to store students’ phones during class.
Li Jisen, a student from Beijing No. 101 Middle School, agrees with the new policy. Li believes that restricting phone use at school is a good way to put the focus back on schoolwork.
However, Liu Yanping, headmaster of First Branch of Beijing National Day School, told South China Morning Post that it’s not wise to take a “one size fits all” (一刀切) method.
Kathy Chen, a parent from Shanghai, allowed her daughter to take her phone to school. Chen said it’s more important to develop kids’ ability to self-manage and develop good habits of phone usage.
Complete the chart according to the passage with not more than two words for each blank.
Notice on phone use on campus (校园) | |
Target (目标) group | |
The | To restrict students from carrying mobile phones to school. To improve students’ focus on study. To prevent students from getting addicted to the Internet and games. |
People’s | Li Jisen: The rules will help put the focus back on schoolwork. Liu Yanping: We should take a method Kathy Chen: It’s more important to help kids develop good habits and the ability to self-manage. |
9 . Somebody is calling for help in the water. You want to jump in and save them, but that might put you in danger. What do you do?
Soon this won’t be a problem anymore because a robot swimmer called Swumanoid will be on hand to help.
Scientists from Japan designed this robot to swim like an Olympic athlete (运动员). They mapped a swimmer’s body and looked at how every part of the body moves while swimming. The robot can swim just like a human does.
Swumanoid can swim the backstroke (仰泳) and the front crawl (自由泳) at a speed of 0.64 meters a second, about one-third of the world record speed for these swimming styles, according to the Daily Mail.
Motomu Nakashima, head of the team that designed the robot, hopes that robots like Swumanoid can serve as lifeguards in the future.
Besides saving lives, Swumanoid can also be used in swimming research. It can test water resistance, which makes it move more slowly. And it helps to find out how people swim. The information that is collected could help scientists find ways to improve a swimmer’s skills.
Unlike human swimmers, robots don’t get tired from doing the same stroke (泳姿) again and again, so they do not slow down. Therefore, they can collect information more efficiently (有效地).
But the robot is not yet ready to take the place of human lifeguards. Scientists say there are still certain things that need to be improved, such as its motors (引擎) and waterproofing design (防水设计).
Choose the best choice from A, B or C according to the passage.
1. Swumanoid can swim just like a human does because ________.
A.it was created by an Olympic swimmer |
B.it can swim the way real swimmers move |
C.it can follow directions according to a map |
A.阻力 | B.压力 | C.重力 |
A.it can do many types of strokes |
B.it can swim as fast as world record-holders |
C.it won’t feel tired and never slows down |
A.one | B.two | C.three |
A.show how swimming robots are built |
B.describe how lifeguards do their work |
C.introduce the swimming robot Swumanoid |
10 . You may think you cannot live through summer without air conditioners (空调). But in ancient China, hand fans were almost the only ones to help people keep cool.
Chinese people started to use hand fans more than 2,000 years ago. The fans came in different shapes, such as round and square. They were also made from all kinds of materials. Palm (棕榈) leaf fans were cheap and easy to make. Feather fans (羽毛扇) showed the owner’s high status (地位). Sandalwood (檀香) fans could send out sweet smell.
Later, hand fans became far more than just something that could cool you down. They developed into art works, in which Tuanshan (round fans) and Zheshan (folded fans) were the most common.
In the shape of a full moon, Tuanshan were usually made of silk.They had beautiful birds and flowers on them.Women especially those in the imperial palace (皇宫), liked to use them. Meanwhile, men, especially the literati (文人), used Zheshan.The literati liked them because Zheshan were usually made of paper and they could paint and write poems on them.It was a way for them to show off their ability in literature, painting and handwriting.Almost anything can be painted on Zheshan.
Today, Chinese people still use these fans.Next time when you are waving a fan, you may think of the stories behind it.
Complete the chart according to the passage with only one word for each blank.
Stories and Art of Chinese Fans | |
History. | |
The number of kinds | There are |
Palm leaf, feather, sandalwood, silk and paper. | |
Feathers (特征) | Palm leaf fans were cheap and made Feather fans showed the owner’s status. Sandalwood fans could send out a sweet smell. Tuanshan were enjoyed by women in the imperial palace. Zheshan were |