It seems that Shanghai students are not as happy as they should be. That’s what an article in a local newspaper said some time ago.
The paper did a survey of some students and asked them if they were happy. 60% of the students said they were happy, but almost 40% said they were unhappy! However, when the paper asked deaf students the same question, almost 90% said, yes, they were happy. It’s pretty surprising when you think about it. Those students who have a disability are happier than those “healthier” classmates or schoolmates.
When I asked my students if they were happy, most said yes, but they also said they had a lot of pressure: too much homework, not enough freedom, not enough money. And some worry about the future, such as getting a good job, and finding a good husband or wife. Clearly, some students handle this pressure better than others, and the deaf students seem to handle (处理) the pressure best of all. They don’t let it get them down.
I can only imagine why this is. Maybe it has a lot to do with “overcoming adversity (战胜逆境)”. The deaf students have already had to deal with a big problem in their lives. They can’t hear, so talking to other people is very difficult, if not impossible. To communicate with others, they’ve had to learn sign language. After learning to “sign”, they’ve found new friends and they’ve also found the joy that comes with “overcoming adversity”.
We can all learn a lesson from these deaf students.
1. The survey in the passage is done by a newspaper in ________.| A．England | B．Beijing | C．Shandong | D．Shanghai |
| A．The number of unhappy students is larger than that of happy ones. |
| B．Almost 90% students said they were unhappy. |
| C．All the students who have a disability are happy. |
| D．Most deaf students feel that they are happy. |
| A．teacher | B．doctor | C．reporter | D．Nurse |
| A．让他们下来 | B．写下他们的名字 | C．使他们沮丧 | D．使他们振作起来 |
| A．they can’t hear anything |
| B．they found joy that come with “overcoming adversity” |
| C．it is difficult for them to communicate with others |
| D．it is impossible for them to talk to others |
School uniforms are common in primary and secondary schools in many countries. Here’s a list of countries below.
In Brazil, students wear uniforms in private schools. But in public schools, students don’t have to wear uniforms although they might have one. In general, the uniforms are a pair of blue pants and a white T-shirt with the school symbol printed on it.
School uniforms are used in Cuba. All students wear school uniforms with the color as a symbol of grade level. Children also wear scarfs because they are young pioneers.
Japan introduced school uniforms in the late 19th century. Today, school uniforms are very common. Many boys wear white shirts, short pants and caps. Girls’ uniforms might include a gray pleated (褶) skirt and a white blouse.
In Singapore, all students must wear uniforms. Though the colors are different from school to school, the normal uniform for boys is short or long pants, with a shirt (often white), while girls wear white pinafores or skirts.
1. In Brazil the school symbol is on the T-shirt.2. In Cuba a student wears the scarf as a symbol of grade level.
3. A Japanese girl’s uniform is a white skirt, long pants and a cap.
4. In Singapore students usually wear white shirts or skirts.
5. On the school day, a student doesn’t wear the uniform. He probably comes from Brazil.
How do you get your pocket money? And how do you spend it? Let’s see the different answers from a Chinese boy and an Australian boy. Li Meng is a Grade 1 student in Beijing and James Wardley is in a secondary school in Melbourne, Australia.
Where do I get my pocket money?
Li Meng | James Wardley | |
| From | parents: 20 yuan Selling old newspapers：20 yuan | Working in a local supermarket as a cashier (收银员) |
| Total | 40 yuan a week | 95 Australian dollars a week |
How do I spend it？
Li Meng | James Wardley | |
| Food and drinks | 15 yuan for breakfast, 6 yuan for Coke and other drinks | Lunch on the weekdays, pizzas on the weekends |
| 21 yuan a week | 20 Australian dollars a week | |
| For fun | 3 yuan for newspapers or books, 4 yuan for playing with classmates | Going to the cinema with friends |
| 7 yuan a week | 15 Australian dollars a week | |
| Telephone | 360 yuan for a phone card that can last about one year | The mobile phone bill |
| About 1 yuan every day | 10 Australian dollars a week | |
| Total | 35 yuan a week | 45 Australian dollars a week |
*Note: 1 Australian dollar≈6.5 yuan
1. James Wardley usually goes to the cinema for fun.
2. James Wardley gets his pocket money by working.
3. James Wardley can save 45 Australian dollars a week.
4. The writer mainly wants to tell us that it is hard for boys in Australia to get pocket money.
5. Li Meng spends 50 yuan a week on a telephone card.
4 . When my cousin Julia eats chocolate, she feels bad, because many people tell her chocolate has much sugar, and it can make one fat. But Julia says she loves chocolate. If she starts eating it, she can’t stop.
Chocolate is popular all over the world. People like chocolate with ice cream, cakes, and cookies. Most Americans like milk chocolate, and most people in England like dark chocolate.
Is chocolate really bad for health? The new study shows that chocolate is good for us. The study shows chocolate has many vitamins(维生素). One vitamin can help us feel happy. Feeling happy is important for health.
Good chocolate doesn’t have much sugar. “I eat a little chocolate at a time, and I enjoy it!” says Tara Berish, another chocolate lover.
Chocolate not only tastes good, but also smells nice. Girls like it very much. On Valentine’s Day(情人节), chocolate is always chosen as a present. People will send chocolate to their lovers.
1. How does Julia feel when people tell her chocolate has much sugar?| A．Happy | B．Good | C．Bad | D．Unhappy |
| A．milk | B．cakes | C．ice cream | D．cookies |
| A．studies chocolate | B．eats much chocolate |
| C．hates chocolate | D．likes chocolate |
| A．health | B．happiness | C．love | D．life |
| A．Chocolate is very popular all over the world. |
| B．Chocolate can sometimes make us feel happy. |
| C．All chocolate has much sugar. |
| D．Eating a little chocolate is good for health. |
Cold air. Snow. Short days. We are in winter now.
Winter is a cold season.It comes between autumn and spring.For us, the winter months are usually November, December and January. In China, winter is the time between the beginning of winter and the beginning of spring. But, this is the time that the southern part of the earth,has its summer. Justimaginewhen we are playing with snow, Australian kids are enjoying ice cream!
In winter, we can do some activities.
Put on a holiday play and try acting. Ask your cousins or classmates to your house and make beautiful clothes and write a play. Act it out for your family. Play around. Go outside and enjoy yourself. Make a snowman with your friends. If you really have to stay indoors, clean your room and decorate it. You will find a lot offun.
1. 将文中划线句子译成汉语。2. 根据文章内容,用英语回答问题。
①Which are the winter months in China?
②Which season is it in Australia when we are playing with snow?
选择：选出划线单词意思。
3. imagine ______
| A．想像 | B．发明 | C．移动 |
| A．兴趣 | B．乐趣 | C．玩具 |
①
②
6 . Everyone has a family name. In China, the family name is different from that in English countries. In English countries, the family name is the last name. Do you know how English people get their family names? And what do they mean? English people usually get their family names in these ways.
Some family names come from the places of their homes. If a man lives on or near a hill, his family name may be Hill. In England, people’s family name may be Wood or Lake, because they live near the woods or the lake. Some family names come from a person’s job. If a person is a cook, his family name may be Cook. And many people get their family names from their fathers’ first names. For example, if you see the name Jackson, you can know he is the son of Jack.
1. In the passage, how many ways can English people get their family names?| A．Two. | B．Three. | C．Four. | D．Five. |
| A．Hill | B．Wood | C．Lake | D．Cook |
| A．place | B．job | C．country | D．school |
| A．Jack’s father | B．Jack’s friend | C．the father of Jack | D．the son of Jack |
| A．English People | B．Chinese People | C．Family Names | D．Hills and Lakes |
7 . A science fiction flying car looks like a normal car, but it is an aircraft (飞行器) that anybody can fly directly from any place to another without using roads or runways. Science fiction writers have written about flying cars for a long time. But now flying cars will soon fly out of the world of science fiction into our real world. And the dream of the science fiction writers will soon come true.
The first-known sky car is the FSC-1. The FSC-1 looks like an expensive sports car. You can drive the FSC-1 on the road like a normal car. If you touch a button, its wings and propeller (螺旋桨) fold out and then it can take off, fly and land as an airplane. The owners of the FSC-1 can choose if they want to drive or fly.
Another flying car or sky car is the Moller Skycar M400. Although you can’t drive it on the roads, it is small and easy to fly and can take off and land like a helicopter (直升飞机). Urban Aeronautics’ X-Hawk is another type of sky car. It is expected to be available for about $3 million.
Just like any new technology, flying cars have taken a long time to be developed. But some experts think the technology is far from what people imagine when they are sitting in traffic. It still needs to be improved.
1. The writer thinks that flying cars will be no longer a dream because ________.| A．science fiction writers’ ideas are stupid | B．they are too expensive to make |
| C．they will soon be available | D．they are only in science fiction |
| A．change itself into a robot | B．move on water like a ship |
| C．be flown only like an airplane | D．be driven like a car and flown like an airplane |
| A．it can’t fly | B．it can’t be driven like a car |
| C．it is difficult to land | D．it is much more expensive |
| A．normal | B．traditional | C．not good enough | D．strange |
8 . Many parents today worry about their children’s diets. Then what is a healthy diet for children? Miss Jones from Happy Children Hospital gives the following advice:
◆ Children shouldn’t eat food with too much salt because it can cause high blood pressure(高血压).◆ Children should eat food with less fat, oil and sugar. They should not eat too much junk food.
◆ Fruit and vegetables are rich in vitamins. Children need to eat fruit and vegetables often.
◆ Water is important to everyone. Children need to drink enough water every day.
◆ Children need to eat breakfast every day. It is good for their bodies and minds.
1. Probably Miss Jones is a ________.
| A．teacher | B．doctor | C．shop assistant | D．a waitress |
| A．绿色食品 | B．垃圾食品 | C．天然食品 | D．营养食品 |
| A．enough juice | B．enough water | C．enough coffee | D．enough milk |
| A．Water. | B．Junk food. | C．Sugar. | D．Fruit and vegetables. |
| A．Bad Habits | B．Junk Food | C．Advice on a Healthy Diet | D．An Unhealthy Lifestyle |
9 . In England, people often talk about the weather because they can experience (经历) four seasons in one day. In the morning, the weather is warm just like in spring. An hour later, black clouds come, and then it rains hard. The weather gets a little cold. In the late afternoon, the sky will be sunny, the sun will begin to shine, and it will be summer at this time of a day.
In England, people can also have summer in winter, or have winter in summer. So in winter, they can swim sometimes, and in summer sometimes they should take warm clothes.
When you go to England, you will see that some English people usually take an umbrella or a raincoat with them in the sunny morning, but you should not laugh at them.
If you don’t take an umbrella or a raincoat, you will regret (后悔) later in the day.
1. Why do people in England often talk about the weather?| A．Because they may have four seasons in one day. |
| B．Because they often have very good weather. |
| C．Because the weather is warm just like in spring. |
| D．Because the sky is sunny all day. |
| A．sunshine and snow | B．black clouds |
| C．summer and winter | D．spring and autumn |
| A．warm | B．cool | C．cold | D．rainy |
| A．their friends ask them to do so | B．it often rains in England |
| C．they are going to sell them | D．they are their favorite things |
| A．Bad Seasons | B．Summer or Winter |
| C．The Weather in England | D．Strange English People |
10 . We spoke to three students from around the world about different national holidays. There are different customs（习俗）for each festival.
Tan Xiaodong, 15, Hong Kong, China
“It’ll soon be Chinese New Year. Before it, we’ll clean the house and decorate it for good luck. Every shop is going to close for a few days and go out a lot to celebrate in the streets. We might go and see the lion and dragon dances in the city center. I love this festival.”
Wendy, 16, Sydney, Australia
Australia Day is on 26th January and it’s an important holiday here. We always have a Monday off, so we celebrate for three days. My parents and I go to the countryside for a picnic and friends always come over. Many people go to beach parties or street parties and there is lots of music and dancing. What fun!”
Amy, 14, New York, USA
The first Thanksgiving Day was hundreds of years ago when Europeans who came to America thanked God for his help. It’s still a very important day for families to be together. This year we’re going to visit my grandparents and we’ll eat a delicious meal of turkey. Thanksgiving Day is on the fourth Thursday in November every year.”
1. How many festivals are mentioned in the passage?| A．Two. | B．Three. | C．Four. | D．Five. |
| A．do a lot of shopping | B．see lion and dragon dances |
| C．decorate the house for good luck | D．eat turkeys |
| A．have a meal in the countryside | B．go to a swimming pool . |
| C．have a party at school | D．clean the house and dance |
| A．A country. | B．A festival. | C．A bird. | D．A kind of drink. |
| A．different festivals have different customs |
| B．many people go out for a picnic with friends before Chinese New Year |
| C．the first Thanksgiving Day was born a hundred years ago |
| D．Australia Day is an important day for family members to get together |
