1 . The most popular drinks in Britain are tea and coffee. Traditional English food is meat, potatoes and vegetables, but now there’s a lot of international food from all over the world in the supermarkets and markets.
There are normally(通常地) two dishes in a meal: a meat dish and a dessert. People usually eat a light lunch and a big meal in the evening. The most traditional（传统的）dish is roast beef with roast potatoes (cooked in the oven) and vegetables. One of the most traditional desserts is called trifle. Beer is very popular. People often go to pubs for a drink and to talk. Pubs are typical(典型的) British bars.
1. What’s the most popular drink in Britain?2. What’s the traditional English food?
3. How many dishes are there normally in a meal?
4. When do people have a big meal in the UK?
5. Is beer popular in Britain?
Lantern Festival
This time, we’re going to talk about another traditional Chinese festival that comes right after the Chinese New Year’s Day. It is the Lantern Festival. The Lantern Festival is on the 15th day of the 1st lunar month. It is the end of the Chinese New Year, always 15 days after the Chinese New Year’s Day. On the Lantern Festival, there are lantern shows and lion dances in many places of the country, as well as in the China Towns in America. One kind of the food for the festival is tangyuan. It is another kind of dumpling made of sweet rice rolled into balls and stuffed with sweet or salty fillings. The Lantern Festival is also the beginning of the daily routines of the year. It is a festival for family and friends, just like the Chinese New Year.
1. When is the Lantern Festival?2. What can you find on the Lantern Festival?
3. What do people eat specially on that day?
4. It is a festival for family and friends, isn’t it?
5. Where do people in America celebrate this festival?
6. What would you love to do on that day?
National Holidays
Countries around the world have national holidays. Of course, the holidays are on different days. The ways people celebrate national holidays are sometimes the same, though.
In the United States, the national holiday is on July 4th. There are many parades of all kinds of people and jobs on that day. People cook food outside and eat outdoors. In France, national holiday is on July 14th. There are big parades, too. Planes fly overhead in the sky to give a show sometimes. People dance in the streets. Many events such as concerts and films are free on that day.
Mexican Independence Day is on May 5th. There are big parades, too. In Mexico City, people put on play every year. The play shows how Mexico won its independence. Everywhere around the city is mariachi (墨西哥流浪乐队) music and dancing. People eat their favorite Mexican dish Mole Poblano (chocolate chicken) on that day.
1. The national holidays in different countries are on the same day.2. Mexico’s Independence Day is on July 14th.
3. In the United States, people have all kinds of parades on July 4th.
4. In France, you don’t need to pay any money if you go to the concerts on their national holiday.
5. In France, people play mariachi music on their Independence Day.
4 . The Dragon Boat Festival, the 5th day of the 5th lunar month, has a history of more than 2,000 years. It is usually in June in the Gregorian calendar.
There are many legends（传说）about the evolution（演变）of the festival. The most popular is about Qu Yuan (340—270 BC). Qu Yuan was the minister of the State of Chu and one of China’s earliest poets. Qu Yuan cared much for his country and people. In 278 B.C., he heard that Qin had finally captured（攻占）Chu’s capital, so he jumped into the Miluo River. That day was the 5th of the 5th month in the Chinese lunar calendar. After his death, the people of Chu came to the bank of the river to pay their respects（敬重）to him. The fishermen sailed their boats up and down the river to look for his body. People threw rice dumplings into the water to keep fish away from his body. People followed the customs such as having a dragon boat race, eating rice dumplings on that day. From 2008 on, the festival becomes a national holiday in China.
1. When did people start to celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival?2. Qu Yuan was one of China’s earliest poets, wasn’t he?
3. How did Qu Yuan die?
4. What did people do after Qu Yuan died?
5. Why did people throw rice dumplings into the water?
They wanted to
6. In which year does the Dragon Boat Festival become the first national holiday in China?
5 . Picnics bring us great times with family and friends. Of course, they are also the good chance to enjoy delicious foods. Not all foods are good for picnics. Ice cream and cakes are tasty. But they may mess up your basket and attract flies. There is a rule for buying picnic food—make sure it is easy to carry, keep and eat. Here are some great ideas for picnic food from around the world. They may help you decide which food to take on a picnic.
US
Cold fried chicken is a popular picnic food. Fried chicken is easy to carry around. It is just as delicious whether it is cold or hot. You can buy some from a fast food restaurant.
UK
Scotch eggs (苏格兰鸡蛋) are a traditional picnic food for British people. People can make them at home. People usually keep it in the fridge before picnics and enjoy it cold.
France
France is famous for its cheese. Therefore, cheese is important on picnic menus. As the weather is very hot, people usually choose hard cheese. It keeps well. All fruits go very well with cheese, especially apples, watermelon and grapes.
1. What is the rule for choosing picnic food?2. Why is ice cream not good for picnics?
3. Where can people buy fried chicken from?
4. What is a traditional picnic food for British people?
5. Will French people choose some bananas to go with cheese?
6. What food will you take for picnic? Why?
This is a house for the US presidents（总统）to live and work in. It’s open to the public（公众）in the morning from Tuesday to Saturday.
The Statue of Liberty自由女神像
It’s 91 meters tall. It’s as tall as a 35-storey(层) building. You can take a lift to the lookout tower（瞭望台）. It can hold 40 people. There are 25 windows for visitors to enjoy the view.
The Empire State Building（帝国大厦）
It is the tallest building in New York. It has 102 storeys. You can get a view of the whole city if the weather is good.
1. What is the White House for?
2. When is it open to the pubic?
3. How tall is the Statue of Liberty?
4. How many people can the lookout tower hold?
5. The Empire State Building is the tallest building in New York, isn’t it?
6. Where can we get a view of the whole city if the weather is good?
Not everyone working in a big company is an important worker. But the important workers are the best you can find in a company. Sometimes the company cannot run without those important workers. They are called the key players.
Through a study of the key players, we find that there are three important qualities in a key player. First, a key player knows how to work with other workers selflessly. He understands the importance of teamwork: only by working together can we work faster and better. Secondly, a key player always makes the best use of his time. What he thinks should be done today will never be put to tomorrow’s list. Business happens every minute. If we don’t hurry, we will never catch a chance. Last but not least, a key player is willing to take risks. If you want to achieve success that others have never got, you have to take risks. You should never be afraid to fail. If you fail, try again; but if you succeed, you are the only winner!
The three qualities are necessary if we want to do better in our jobs. Always remember, the biggest prizes are only for the key players.
1. According to the passage, the most important players in the ball game are key players.
2. There are more than four important qualities we can usually find on a key player.
3. A key player seldom works together with other people.
4. A key player makes a good use of time.
5. A key player always plays safe. He never takes risks.
More than 200,000 members of Beijing’s driving associations (协会) are being asked to leave their cars at home at least one day a month in the hope of improving air quality in the capital. Their aim is to reduce traffic jams and noise, and improve air-quality as well.
“I love driving, but I’m ready to make more blue-sky days in Beijing,” said Lu Chuan, a film director and a former environmental ambassador (大使). Lu plans to ride his bicycle and walk more often in the future to protect the environment.
“Motor vehicle emissions (排放) are the main cause of Beijing’s air pollution,” said Du Shaozhong, from the Beijing Environmental Protection Bureau (环保局). According to the city’s environment department research, Beijing’s vehicles give out 3,600 tons of pollution each day.
The “no-car day” activity comes as Beijing tries to achieve 238 “blue-sky days”, or days with good air quality this year, five days more than last year.
The “no-car day” was first introduced by 34 French cities that started the world’s first “no-car day” on September 22, 1998.
1. How often are members of Beijing’s driving associations asked to leave their cars at home?2. Lu Chuan agrees to help make more blue-sky days in Beijing, doesn’t he?
3. What’s Lu’s plan to protect the environment?
4. What are the main cause of Beijing’s air pollution?
5. How many “blue-sky days” did Beijing achieve last year?
6. What do you think the writer of this passage tries to tell us?
☆ Earthquake (地震）
The earthquake is one of the most dangerous natural disasters (灾害）in the world. It often happens at night. People are asleep and can’t feel it. Many buildings and houses fall down (倒塌). Lots of people maybe stay under them.
☆ Typhoons
The typhoon is a kind of strong wind. It happens over the sea in summer. A bit of rain and wind in summer can be nice. But bad storms are quite different. Some of the worst storms are typhoons. Every year, about 80 typhoons hit different places around the world. The strongest ones are usually around the Pacific Ocean and the South China Sea.
☆ Volcanoes (火山)
Mountains sometimes send fire and smoke high into the air. They make the earth move and break, and houses near them may fall down. Inside the volcanoes, there are holes deep into the Earth. The inside of the volcano is very hot. Rocks flow like water.
☆ Lightning
Lightning travels inside a cloud, between clouds, or from a cloud to the ground. It is colourful, but it can cause serious problems. It often kills people in rainy weather.
1. The earthquake often happens at night.
2. The typhoon often happens over the sea in spring.
3. Every year, about 180 typhoons hit different places around the world.
4. The strongest typhoons usually happen around the Pacific Ocean and the South China Sea.
5. The outside of the volcano is very hot.
6. Lightning may kill people in rainy weather.
10 . The BBC has two television channels: BBC1 and BBC2. Women and children like to watch the programmes on BBC1. The open university puts out its courses on BBC2.
The BBC also has four radio channels: Radio 1 broadcasts pop music; Radio 2 provides light music and sports; Radio 3 offers serious music and talks; Radio 4 concentrates（集中）on news, talks and plays.
There is no advertising（广告）on BBC radio or television. The BBC gets most of its money from the sale of licenses（出售许可证）.
1. BBC has __________ television channels and ________ radio channels.| A．two; two | B．two; four | C．four; two | D．four; four |
| A．BBC1 | B．BBC2 | C．Radio 1 | D．Radio 2 |
| A．BBC1 | B．BBC2 | C．Radio 1 | D．Radio 2 |
| A．Radio 1 | B．Radio 2 | C．Radio 3 | D．Radio 4 |
| A．Radio 1 | B．Radio 2 | C．Radio 3 | D．Radio 4 |
| A．advertising | B．audiences | C．the sale of licenses | D．government |
