Many of us read news every day is probably because we’d like to know what’s happening in the world. Today we can get news from TV or the Internet, but how did ancient people get news?
At the very beginning, information spread by word of mouth. People living in tribes (部落), got news from neighbors or travelers. Ancient Romans changed the way people knew about their communities. They posted a list of daily happenings at public squares in the cities. Ancient Chinese people did it in another way. The government had news sheets sent to officials in the whole country so people could know what was going on in the capital.
The fifteenth century saw big progress in printing technology in the west. The progress brought a sudden rise of news business. Printers sold whatever people loved to read. In the sixteenth century, the first real newspaper appeared. People started to form the habit of reading newspapers. They liked to share their opinions on newspapers. The invention of telegraph (电报) machines led to another big step in history. News stories were sent to the papers in minutes instead of weeks.
Now we get news in seconds from all over the world. We can become some kind of reporters by posting online what happens around us.
1. From whom did people living in tribes get news?2. Where did ancient Romans post a list of daily happenings?
3. What brought a sudden rise of news business in the 15th century?
4. When did the first real newspapers appear?
5. How can we become some kind of reporters now?
2 . No one knows when the first kite was made. The first record of a kite was more than 2,000 years ago in China. Han Xin, the leader of an army, wanted to bring down a king. He decided to dig a tunnel (隧道）into the king’s palace. He flew a kite over the wall of the palace to make sure the length (长度）of its string (线).In this way, he coulddeterminehow long the tunnel should be.His men in the tunnel took the kite string with them. When they reached the end of the string, they knew to dig up.
Kites have been flown in Japan for hundreds of years. In the 1700s, kites were flown in autumn to give thanks for a good harvest. They were also flown to send good wishes to couples who had their first son. Today in Japan, kites are often flown as part of a celebration, such as the beginning of a new year. And kite festivals are held each year in many parts of the country.
Kites have been used for scientific purposes in the western world. In 1752，Benjamin Franklin tied a key to a kite and flew it in a storm to find out that lightening was a form of electricity. In the 1890s，Lawrence Hargrave invented the box kite to test ideas about flight. From 1898 until 1933，the United States Weather Bureau (气象局）used box kites to collect weather data. The Wright brothers also experimented (试验）with kites. What they learnt helped them make the first airplane flight in 1903.
1. Why did Han Xin want to dig a tunnel?
| A．To pull down the palace. | B．To fight against the king. |
| C．To search for the king’s treasure. | D．To find out the length of the kite string. |
| A．测定 | B．选择 | C．了解 | D．考察 |
| A．to give thanks for a good harvest in summer |
| B．to express good wishes to the first-born daughter |
| C．to celebrate the beginning of a new year |
| D．to hold kite festivals all over the country |
| A．In 1752. | B．In 1898. | C．In 1903. | D．In 1933. |
| A．The History of Kites | B．The Experiments of Kites |
| C．The Invention of a Kite | D．The First Record of a Kite |
In the Han Dynasty (汉朝), students in old-style private schools used bamboo boxes to carry books to school. People consider the bamboo boxes to be the earliest schoolbags. They were usually two or three layers (层) in the box. Kids put different things like books, brushes, ink stones (砚) and paper in the boxes.
Hundreds of years later, people developed a new kind of schoolbag called the budai, or the "hip-pocket". The budai was lighter than the bamboo box. With the founding (成立) of the People's Republic of China, military rucksacks (军用帆布包) became popular. Many people carried them when they were in school. Ask your grandparents or parents about these bags. Maybe they can tell you about their experiences of carrying them when they were in school.
A new style of schoolbags has appeared in recent years. Many of them have colorful and fashionable designs (时尚的设计) on them, such as pictures of cartoons or pop stars. And they are more comfortable to use. Some students pull wheeled bags filled with heavy textbooks and others carry backpacks.
Schoolbags are still changing. Can you imagine what future schoolbags will be like?
1. Schoolbags in the Han Dynasty were made of _______.
| A．cloth |
| B．paper |
| C．plastic |
| D．bamboo |
| A．Military rucksacks were popular in the 1950s. |
| B．The budai was heavier than the bamboo box. |
| C．There are some pictures on the new style of schoolbags. |
| D．Schoolbags have changed a lot. |
| A．wheeled bags |
| B．military rucksacks |
| C．bamboo boxes |
| D．the budai |
| A．a letter |
| B．a guidebook |
| C．a newspaper |
| D．a notice |
| A．to tell us how to use schoolbags |
| B．to explain why we use schoolbags |
| C．to introduce the importance of schoolbags |
| D．to introduce the development of schoolbags |
Today, most people in Western cultures expect to eat meals with their own set of tableware. People use plates to hold their food and drink only from their own glasses. But Europeans didn’t always eat this way.
In the 1500s, members of the royalty and nobility（皇室与贵族）used knives to cut meat. Since they hardly had their own plates and bowls, they would eat the slice of meat off the tip of the knife. They would use shared spoons to eat soup and would dip bread or their fingers into gravy（调味汁）. There were a few eating rules. For example, if you had a bone left in your hand after eating a chicken leg, you were expected to throw it politely under the table.
When some of the Europeans settled（定居）in the North America, they brought this eating style with them.
While the new settlers were sharing cups and dipping their fingers into bowls of food, royalty and nobility in Europe were starting to increase their tableware. They were also starting using a set of manners to go with their new knives, forks, spoons, plates, etc. They started to think that sharing cups or plates were unclean and even impolite. Their new manners made them feel higher than the lower classes.
By the 1700s, these new customs had spread to rich American settlers. As new landowners, they wanted to have a higher class than they would have had in Great Britain. They bought their own tableware and brought them to America.
By the late 1800s, mealtime manners had changed for everyone. As the American middle class grew, they needed more tableware to show that they were rich. There was also a new system of manners by this time. Though it was difficult to understand, it had a great effect on people’s everyday life.
1. Which of the following was considered impolite in the 1500s?| A．Getting gravy with one’s fingers. | B．Having soup with shared spoons. |
| C．Eating meat off a knife tip. | D．Keeping the bones in one’s hand. |
| A．wanted to feel higher than the royalty |
| B．hated to share cups and plates again |
| C．wanted to feel higher than the lower class |
| D．made more money in America than in Britain |
| A．The tableware. | B．The mealtime. |
| C．The American middle class. | D．The new manner system. |
①The European royalty shared their spoons, plates and bowls at first.
②The American middle class grew and needed more tableware.
③Some Europeans moved to North America with their eating style.
④New American landowners bought more tableware.
⑤The European royalty started to increase tableware.
| A．③①⑤②④ | B．①⑤③④② | C．①③⑤④② | D．③⑤①②④ |
5 . People have been painting pictures for at least 30,000 years.
The earliest pictures were painted by people who hunted animals. They used to paint pictures of the animals they wanted to catch and kill. Pictures of this kind have been found on the walls of caves in France and Spain. No one knows exactly why they were painted there. Perhaps the painters thought that their pictures would help them to catch these animals. Or perhaps human beings have always wanted to tell stories in pictures.
About 5,000 years ago, the Egyptians and other people in the Near East began to use pictures as kind of writing. They drew simple pictures or signs to represent things and ideas, and also to represent the sounds of their language. The signs these people used became a kind of alphabet (字母表).
The Egyptians used to record information and to tell stories by putting picture writing and pictures together. When an important person died, scenes and stories from his life were painted and carved on the walls of the place where he was buried. Some of these pictures are like modern comic strip stories. It has been said that Egypt is the home of the comic strip. But, for the Egyptians, pictures still had magic power. So they did not try to make their way of writing simple. The ordinary (普通的) people could not understand it.
1. Why were pictures of animals painted on the walls of caves in France and Spain according to the passage?| A．Maybe the hunters loved animals. |
| B．Maybe the hunters wanted to be artists. |
| C．Maybe the pictures could be helpful to the painters. |
| D．Maybe the pictures could stop the hunters telling stories. |
| A．hear | B．watch | C．symbolize | D．build |
| A．Human beings have been painting pictures for less than thirty thousand years. |
| B．The earliest pictures can be found in Europe. |
| C．People in Far East have used pictures as kind of writing for five thousand years. |
| D．The Egyptians invented today’s English alphabet. |
| A．Picture writing and numbers together were used to record information and tell stories by the Egyptians. |
| B．An important Egyptian could be studied through the walls of the place where he was buried. |
| C．Egypt is the home of the modern comic strip books. |
| D．Ordinary people can easily understand the Egyptian’s way of writing. |
| A．An encyclopedia. | B．A science book. | C．A fashion magazine. | D．A newspaper. |
6 . Early in the 16th century, it was difficult for people to live without enough food. So lots of people tried hard
Magellan sailed from Seville in August, 1519,
They then continued, hoping to reach Asia But they couldn’t see any land
The remaining officers then had to get back to Spain. They decided to sail around Africa. After
The adventure of Magellan’s expedition told us that when facing difficulties, we should not give up easily. Instead, we need to be confident of
| A．reach | B．reached | C．to reach | D．reaches |
| A．found | B．to find | C．finding | D．founded |
| A．for | B．with | C．without | D．by |
| A．success | B．successful | C．successfully | D．succeed |
| A．while | B．after | C．since | D．until |
| A．a | B．an | C．the | D．/ |
| A．killed | B．was killed | C．killing | D．had killed |
| A．many | B．any | C．few | D．little |
| A．great | B．greater | C．greatly | D．the greatest |
| A．our | B．us | C．ourselves | D．we |
7 . When you were young, who flew kites with you in the park? Who taught you how
This idea of Father’s Day
There are many ways to show your love and thanks to your father, such as sending him a greeting card. Usually fathers prefer cards
| A．to play | B．play | C．played | D．playing |
| A．you | B．your | C．yours | D．yourself |
| A．have come | B．came | C．come | D．will come |
| A．from | B．at | C．on | D．in |
| A．die | B．died | C．dead | D．death |
| A．are | B．is | C．was | D．were |
| A．make | B．was made | C．is made | D．was making |
| A．that | B．whom | C．what | D．who |
| A．good | B．well | C．better | D．best |
| A．a | B．an | C．the | D．/ |
8 . The Silk Road is the name of different roads that connected Europe, Africa and Asia long ago. It
Businessmen travelled along the Silk Road to carry silk, of course.
Along and around these ancient paths（小路）, many fascinating（吸引人的）and mysterious stories happened.
It is said that Roman soldiers who
During its
In modern times, the old Silk Road route（路线）are still used, but now they are crossed
| A．name | B．named | C．is named | D．was named |
| A．a | B．an | C．the | D．/ |
| A．reach | B．reached | C．was reached | D．was reaching |
| A．for | B．from | C．in | D．since |
| A．We | B．Our | C．They | D．Their |
| A．other | B．others | C．another | D．the other |
| A．lose | B．lost | C．to lose | D．losing |
| A．live | B．living | C．to live | D．lived |
| A．marry with | B．marry for | C．married | D．is married with |
| A．the busiest | B．busy | C．busier | D．busiest |
| A．meet | B．to meet | C．met | D．to meeting |
| A．and | B．but | C．or | D．so |
| A．on | B．in | C．by | D．through |
| A．is | B．are | C．were | D．was |
| A．On the way | B．By the way | C．In this way | D．To this way |
9 . Early in the 16th century, it was difficult for people to live without enough food. So lots of people tried hard
Magellan sailed from Seville in August, 1519,
They then continued, hoping to reach Asia. But they couldn't see any land
The remaining officers then had to get back to Spain. They decided to sail around Africa. After
The adventure of Magellan's expedition told us that when facing difficulties, we should not give up easily. Instead, we need to be confident of
| A．reach | B．reached | C．to reach | D．reaches |
| A．who | B．whom | C．whose | D．which |
| A．for | B．with | C．without | D．by |
| A．success | B．successful | C．successfully | D．succeed |
| A．while | B．after | C．since | D．until |
| A．a | B．an | C．the | D．/ |
| A．killed | B．was killed | C．killing | D．had killed |
| A．many | B．any | C．few | D．little |
| A．great | B．greater | C．greatly | D．the greatest |
| A．our | B．us | C．ourselves | D．we |
请阅读下面这篇文章，根据所提供的信息，回答5个问题。要求所写答案语法正确、语义完整，并把答案写在答题卡指定的位置。
Have you ever been to Hawaii? Hawaii has always been a magic name to people who like traveling. People from all over the world dream of seeing the beautiful islands in the middle of the ocean. I always have one of their dreams to watch the sun going down. The sun drops like a ball of fire into the sea, and it drops so quickly that you can even see it moves.
About two thousand years ago, the first people went to Hawaii in a very small boat. They found the beautiful white sand beaches and the waving palm trees（棕桐树）. But it was difficult for people to go to Hawaii at that time. And there were no big hotels like the ones today. Now people can get to Hawaii in different ways. More and more people go to Hawaii. So lots of nice big hotels have been built in recent years. However. the scenery in Hawaii hasn’t changed much. The white sand beaches and the waving palm trees are still there.
People often have a peaceful time taking a walk along the water in the morning. At night, they get together to hold parties, chatting with each other, singing and dancing. Children like to play games. So if you’re thinking about relaxing yourself. Hawaii is surely the first place for you to choose.
1. Has Hawaii been a magic name to people who like traveling?2. When did the first people go to Hawaii?
3. How did the first people go to Hawaii?
4. Why have lots of nice big hotels been built in Hawaii in recent years?
5. What do children like to do in Hawaii?
6. 书面表达
请根据要求完成短文写作，并将作文写在答题卡指定的位置。
假如你是Li Hua，你和父母曾经去过某地度假。请以“A Wonderful Trip to _____________”为题，写一篇短文。内容包括：
（1）度假的时间、地点；
（2）介绍度假的地方及旅游经历；
（3）你的感受。
作文要求：
（1）不能照抄原文;不得在作文中出现学校的真实名称和考生的真实姓名。
（2）语句连贯, 词数70个左右。
A Wonderful Trip to
