All around the world, people drink tea. But tea doesn’t mean the same thing to everyone. In different countries people have very different ideas about drinking tea.
In China, for example, tea is always served when people get together. The Chinese drink it at any time of the day at homes or in tea houses. They prefer their tea plain, with nothing else in it.
Another tea-drinking country is England. In England, the late afternoon is “tea time”. Almost everyone has a cup of tea then. The English usually make tea in a teapot and drink it with cream and sugar. They also eat cakes, cookies and little sandwiches at tea time.
In the United States people drink tea mostly for breakfast or after meals. Americans usually use tea bags to make their tea. Tea bags are faster and easier than making tea in teapot. Sometimes they drink tea from cans, like soda.
1. Do people in different countries have the same idea about drinking tea?2. When and where do the Chinese drink tea?
3. What does the sentence “The Chinese prefer their tea plain” mean?
4. What else do the English eat at tea time?
5. What do American use tea bags to do?
6. Why do people usually use tea bags instead of making tea in teapot?
2 . Most of the old men love pet birds very much today because they enjoy life. These old bird lovers take their birds out to give them fresh air. They often hang their cages （笼子） on the tree branches in the parks. Then they sit and read newspapers. They feel very happy.
If you want to know more about this, the bird and flower market in Nanjing is a good place to visit. The bird lovers can get bird food, cages, and other things from it. It’s also a great place to buy potted or cut flowers. Many old people often go to the bird and flower market to enjoy the twitter （鸟鸣） of the birds and the sight of fresh flowers.
1. Do all of the old men love pet birds very much today?2. Why do the old bird lovers often take their birds out?
3. What do the bird lovers often do when they hang the cages on tree branches?
4. Where can they buy potted flowers and bird food?
5. What do many old people often go to the bird and flower market to do?
6. What do you think of the old men in the passage?
All around the globe, on any given day, you will find some sort of sports event on your local television station. With networks dedicated(专注于) only to sports, you can find things like boxing, bowling, basketball, football, baseball and soccer on 24 hours a day!
In the United State, there are several sports that seem to be much more popular than others. The most popular sports in the United States today, being watched live and on screens, are:
(1) Baseball is one of the top sports being played in the United States. Having been played in the United States the longest, baseball attracts millions of fans to ball fields every year. Proud parents everywhere enjoy watching their children learn and play the game. When it comes to sports, professional and amateur (业余爱好者) baseball is ranked (分等级) right up there at the top.
(2) Football began as a college sport in the United States in the mid-1800s. Football is truly the “American Sport”, since the modern football originated(起源于) in the United States. It has grown from being played only in college to having professional teams and being played by students in both elementary and high schools.
(3) Basketball is a popular sport worldwide. The number of people around the world playing basketball can reach 300 million! Basketball is one of some professional sports in the United States to welcome foreign players onto teams, with many players of professional basketball being recruited(招募) from other countries and brought to the United States to play.
(4) Hockey is one of the newer sports gaining popularity in America. It did not originated in the United States, but it has found its way into their sporting life and become one of the fastest growing sports. Ice hockey is the most popular form of this sport, with street hockey being popular with older kids everywhere.
1. Which sport has been played in the United States longest, baseball, football or basketball?2. When did football begin as a college sport in the United States?
3. Why can we say football is truly the “American Sport”?
4. How many people play basketball around the world?
5. Street hockey is the most popular form of this sport, isn’t it?
6. Are you interested in one of the sports in the passage or not? Why?
Grass is very useful. It’s the food of the animals, and also a kind of fuel (燃料). What else can we do with it?
A farmer named Rob Marshall makes a castle with grass. He is from Victoria (维多利亚), Australia. He is 40 years old now. He spends six hours building the 30-meter-long and 6-meter-wide castle. The castle is not huge or strong. But it attracts (吸引) many people to visit it. Hundreds of tourists have visited the castle. The farmer welcomes the people. We can visit the special castle or we can make our own (自己的) castle in the future.
1. What’s the castle made of?2. Who makes the special castle?
3. How long does it take him to build the castle?
4. How many tourists have been to the castle?
5. Why is grass very useful?
6. Do you want to visit the special castle? Why?
Do you play with your phone before bedtime? You may want to read a book instead. According to a US study, looking at screens at night can cause us to sleep badly.
In the evening, our bodies make melatonin (褪黑素). Melatonin helps us feel sleepy and relaxed. It’s an important part of our sleep cycle (周期). Our electronic screens stop that cycle from working normally (正常地).
Why? Phones, computers and TVs make blue light. Blue light stops our bodies from making melatonin. Even just a little bit of blue light can have an effect (影响). Eight minutes of blue light can keep your brain “awake” for an hour, according to the study. Even if you fall asleep, you may have lots of dreams. Your brain won’t have a good rest.
It’s even worse if you play an exciting game before bed. Games make our hearts beat faster, so we have a harder time falling asleep. Then, when we fall asleep, we don’t get enough “deep sleep”.
1. Does melatonin help us feel sleepy and relaxed?
2. What do phones, computers and TVs make to stop our bodies from making melatonin?
3. How long can eight minutes of blue light keep our brain “awake”?
4. Do you think you have enough sleep? Why or why not?
6 . Malls are popular places for Americans to go. Some people spend so much time at malls that they are called mall rats.
People like malls for many reasons. They don’t feel any danger around them because malls have police stations or private security guards. People don’t need to pay for parking in malls, and the weather inside is always fine. The newest malls have beautiful rest area with waterfalls and large green trees.
The largest mall in the United States is the Mall of America in Minnesota. It covers 4.2 million square feet. It has 350 stores, eight night clubs, and a seven-acre park! There are parking spaces for 12,750 cars. About 750,000 people shop every week.
The first indoor mall in the United States was built in 1965 in Edina, Minnesota. People loved doing all their shopping in one place. More malls were built all over the country. Now, malls are like town centers where people come to do many things. They shop, of course. They also eat in food house that have food from all over the world. They see movies at theatres. Some people even get their daily exercise by doing the new sport mall walking. Others go to malls to meet friends. In some malls, people can see a doctor or a dentist and even attend church. In other words, people can do just everything in malls. Now residents（居民）can actually live in their favourite shopping centre.
1. Do people need to pay for parking in malls?2. How many people shop in the largest mall in the United State every week?
3. When and where was the first indoor mall built in the United States?
4. Why were more malls built all over the country?
5. Some people do mall walking as their daily exercise, don’t they?
6. Do you prefer to have a one-day trip to such malls? Please give your reason.
7 . Hello! My name’s Sam. I’d like to talk about my family rules. Because they make a great life for me and help make what I am today. Some of my family rules are:
◎Honesty (诚实)
My dad says it’s always important to say what really happens (发生). Sometimes, my parents even test me in different ways about honesty. So they can make sure I am honest.
◎Kindness
My family always show love and kindness to others. Even when we do not have much, my parents still give what they have to those who are needy. Mom says the world is like many rivers run into the same sea and you do not know the future. The person you help today may be of help to you tomorrow.
◎Education (教育)
This is easy to understand because knowledge makes us somebody when we grow up.
◎Dress
People say that you are what and how you dress. You may give out others a wrong you when dressing wrongly. So, our dress really matters.
1. What makes Sam’s great life?2. Why do Sam’s parents test his honesty?
3. How does Sam’s family show love and kindness to others?
4. When you dress wrongly, what do you give out others?
5. Which of Sam’s family rules is good for your family? Why?
Why are so many British people interested in historical television programs like Downton Abbey (《唐顿庄园》)? Maybe because they want to see how both rich and poor people lived years ago. Or is it because they like looking at the beautiful buildings people lived in the country houses?
Downton Abbey is not a real place, but the house they used for the program is real. Highclere Castle in the south of England was a castle (城堡) 900 years ago, but in the 19th century, people changed it into a house.
Why did people build country houses? Probably because they wanted other people to see how much money they had. These houses often had lots of furniture (家具), paintings and servants (仆人) to cook, clean, and look after the family.
But as we know from the story of Downton, the money of the families who lived in these houses did not last.
Today, many country houses are open to anyone. People pay money to take a look inside. Some of the houses were sold and became hospitals, schools, hotels, and even prisons (监狱). And some are used for making films and TV programs like Downton Abbey.
1. What kind of program is Downton Abbey?2. Where was Highclere Castle?
3. When was Highclere Castle changed into a house?
4. Are many country houses open to anyone today?
5. What are country houses used for today?
9 . You may know the English letters A, B, C, but do you know there are people called “ABC”? You may like eating bananas, but do you know there are people called “banana people”? If you don’t know, I will tell you about them. They are some Chinese people like you and me, but they aren’t in China. Why do people call them like that?
If we call somebody an “ABC”, we mean he or she is a Chinese person but was born in America. Sometimes, people also call them “banana people”. A banana is yellow outside and white inside. So if somebody is a “banana person”, he or she is “white” inside and “yellow” outside. By saying that, we mean he or she has yellow skin (皮肤) but does things in an American way. “Banana people” were born in America and they live in America for a long time, so they think like Americans and do things like Americans. However, these people still have Chinese blood (血统). Their parents, grandparents, or even great-grandparents are from China. They all have black eyes and black hair, so they look like us, Chinese people.
There are many famous “banana people” in America. They do very well in America and they are really great in their own fields.
根据上面短文的内容回答问题（每小题答案不超过6个单词）。
1. Does “ABC” mean English letters or “banana people” according to this passage?
2. Where was an “ABC” born?
3. Do “banana people” think like Americans and do things like Americans?
4. What blood do “banana people” have?
5. What do you think of “banana people” in their own fields?
10 . This book is for children. It is about the seas. It tells us about different kinds of water pollution and the things we can do to keep the seas clean. It also tells us about the different ways we can save water. In this book, Simon Walker said, “Three-fourths of the Earth is water. For thousands of years, the seas have helped us by giving us food and water, but we are feeding them with dirty water from factories and rubbish from our homes. Now, the seas are crying because they are very sick. Please help to save them!’’
You can see many wonderful photos of the seas in this book. There are also beautiful photos of sea animals like whales and seahorses. You can also see photos of the pink dolphins.
I think it is a very interesting and useful book.
1. Who is the writer of the book?2. Is the book for children or adults?
3. Why are the seas crying?
4. How much of our Earth is water?
5. What is the book about?
6. What do you think of the book?
