1 . One single night every January, volunteers all over America search parks, woodlands and pavements to count those without shelter. After seeing their own figures for homelessness increase by 20%between 2022 and early 2023. Jersey officials were shocked into action. Officials spent more on rental assistance for those at risk of becoming homeless. More services for people living rough have led to a rise in sheltered homelessness. The state also gathers real time data. In November New Jersey’s Office of Homelessness Prevention released its own figures , showing unsheltered homelessness falling across the state by 23% year on year.
Newark, New Jersey’s largest city and home to the state’s largest homeless population, recorded a 58% reduction in unsheltered homelessness since the start of the year due to the government’s financial support to reduce street homelessness, improve the shelter system and expand housing and prevention services.
Luis Ulerio, the director of Newark’s Office of Homeless Services, says “there’s just been a lot of hard work behind that number.” Mr. Baraka, the mayor (市长)，converted a local primary school into a 166-bed facility. He built temporary housing out of shipping containers. A second cluster (群) of containers with supportive services, called Hope Village II, will open soon. The containers have been altered to look like little cottages. A third cluster is in the works Mr.Baraka wants to create a pipeline from shelters to transitional housing and then to getting long-term homeless people into permanent housing.
More services for people living rough have led to a rise in sheltered homelessness. The city also provides money for overdue rent to prevent homelessness. Beth Shinn of Vanderbilt University points out that it’s cheaper to give $ 200 to help make due rent for the poor than to pay thousands later. The city also relies on data , updated daily by those working with Newark’s homeless people. Real-time data is crucial , he says , in order to carry out interventions in state policy all on the frontline.
1. What can we learn about homelessness in New Jersey from paragraph 1?| A．It has greatly affected people’s lives. | B．Official efforts are lacking to address it. |
| C．Great progress has been made to ease it. | D．It is the most serious all over America. |
| A．He designed and built the Hope Village series for them. |
| B．He turned a school and shipping containers into o homes. |
| C．He joined a permanent pipeline to the homeless houses. |
| D．He led the volunteers to count people without shelter. |
| A．Extended. | B．Donated. | C．Distributed. | D．Changed. |
| A．Rent should be provided for the poor when it’s due. |
| B．No rent should be charged to stop overdue rent. |
| C．Real-time data should be in place to spot overdue rent. |
| D．A limit should be set to avoid large sum of overdue rent. |
2 . Cordero is the farm manager at Ollin Farms, not far from Boulder, Colorado. The locally grown vegetables on the farm aren’t just pretty. “We play an important role in public health nutrition programs,” says Cordero’s dad, Mark Guttridge, who started this farm with his wife, Kena, 17 years ago.
At a meeting with about a dozen local farmers, two state representatives, and the Colorado officials of agriculture, Guttridge explains how Boulder county has made creative investments in his farm that could be spread to the state or even national level. Before the meeting, Guttridge shows them one of those investments.
A dozen sheep, which Guttridge raises for wool, feed on root vegetables like radishes that have been leftover for them. “So these guys are out fertilizing the vegetable field,” Guttridge laughs. “They’ll be out here a couple more weeks, and then we’ll get our next summer vegetables planted right there.” Around the field is a special moveable type of fencing that Ollin Farms bought using financial aid from the Boulder County Sustainability Office. It allows them to move the sheep from one field to another, fertilizing as they go. The goal of these investments is “really building up our soil health,” he explains. “That relates directly to the nutrient quality of the food-healthy soil grows healthy food.”
The county also makes an effort to get that healthy food out to different communities to boost public health. That’s where the Boulder County Public Health department comes in. It created a coupon program to give discounts to people buying fruits and vegetables from Ollin Farms. Nutrition incentive programs, like those public health fruit and vegetable coupons, are spreading all over the country, and most are funded through the federal farm bill. Amy Yaroch, executive director at the Gretchen Swanson Center for Nutrition, says “It’s a trip le win. It’s basically good for the consumers who live in that particular community because they’re getting the healthy food, it’s good for the farmer, and then it’s good for the economy.”
1. What does Ollin Farms do?| A．It makes public nutrition health plans. |
| B．It offers financial aid to other farms. |
| C．It provides cheap food to the local community. |
| D．It grows fruits and vegetables rich in nutrition. |
| A．By raising sheep on radishes. | B．By buying fences for farmhouses. |
| C．By funding the farm’s soil health. | D．By giving advice about fertilizing fields. |
| A．Cautious. | B．Dismissive. | C．Unclear. | D．Approving. |
| A．Couponing for Health: Stimulating Nutrition Choices |
| B．Growing Health: Innovations in Farm and Public Health Initiatives |
| C．Fertile Fields and Furry Friends: A Farming Fairy Tale |
| D．Local Produce, Global Impact: The Nutrition Choices of Ollin Farms |
3 . The World-Famous Nine
By Ben Guterson, illustrated by Kristina Kister
Zander’s grandmother owns the most incredible department store in the world. When a string of mysterious accidents start happening at the store, Zander’s grandmother tells him that a monster called Darkbloom may have returned. The monster, which can control people, wants a magical object that disappeared from the store decades ago. Zander notices that walls on many floors contain mysterious symbols and takes them down in his notebook. Will the 11-year-old boy be able to solve the puzzle and secure the object before Darkbloom does? Packed with suspense, fascination, and a family drama, this mystery may remind you of a cross between Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.
Ask the Author
The Week: What inspired this book?
Ben Guterson: When I was growing up, Seattle had two big department stores. Something about these big buildings held many possibilities for mystery and discovery to me.
The Week: Why is Zander close to his grandmother?
Ben Guterson: I didn’t want Zander to be alone, so he’s got his loving grandmother there to give him some guidance and keep him safe.
The Week: Do you enjoy mysteries?
Ben Guterson: Yes, I like stories with a mysterious feel to them. I don’t think I have ever been drawn to straightforward realism.
1. What can we learn about Zander?| A．He grows up in Seattle. | B．He lives alone at a store. |
| C．He wishes to be a magician. | D．He wants to defeat Darkbloom. |
| A．A kid loving true-life stories. | B．A kid enjoying fictional works. |
| C．A kid interested in grandma’s dishes. | D．A kid drawn to online store shopping. |
| A．A writer’s profile. | B．An interview outline. |
| C．A children’s story. | D．A book recommendation. |
4 . Picture the scene: you are sitting at a cafe on a hot summe’s day and decide to order a glass of lemonade. It arrives ice cold and you smile in contentment until the waiter asks if you want a straw. Now you have to choose to either take a straw or not. Actually, the decision is not an easy one.
A study by a European research group showed there are significant health and environmental risks associated with the paper-based and bamboo-based straws that have replaced plastic straws.
The recent ban on plastic straws saw the introduction of the modern paper straw. It was hoped by officials that it would address the environmental issues of single-use plastic. However, scientists observing the performance of the new paper straws found themselves puzzled by their ability of never getting soggy (浸湿的). They wondered what might be allowing paper straws to perform so well.
The first study to investigate this was performed by Alina Timshina and co-workers in 2021. It showed that paper and plant-based straws contain significant PFAS (含氟表面活性剂). These are fluorine-based chemicals that have remarkable properties in resisting water, oil and pretty much anything. And almost nothing degrades or reacts with PFAS which means they persist in the environment and will do so for thousands of years.
They also make it into the human body by migrating from packaging into our food and drink. Once PFAS are in our blood they are associated with a number of health effects such as liver and kidney disease. There is also evidence that PFAS may lead to increased risk of high blood pressure in pregnant women.
PFAS have also been found in plastic straws but at lower levels. The only material determined to be free of PFAS was stainless steel, which are currently not widely used, so you risk the embarrassment of sounding like a very demanding customer when asking for one. But then again, maybe we should all be more demanding when it comes to preserving the environment and human health.
1. Why does the writer mention the scene in paragraph 1?| A．To show the politeness of waiters. | B．To reflect the necessity of drinks. |
| C．To highlight the importance of straws. | D．To lead to the following findings. |
| A．They are life-threatening. | B．They are chemically stable. |
| C．They allow paper straws to resist water only. | D．They are less in paper straws than plastic. |
| A．Insisting on using steel straws. | B．Imposing a ban on paper straws. |
| C．Putting steel straws into mass production. | D．Promoting the use of plastic straws. |
| A．The availability of stain straws. | B．The inefficient ban on plastic straws. |
| C．The negative effects of paper straws. | D．The characteristics of different straws. |
5 . Plenty of critics have warned: don’t see the new French movie The Taste of Things on an empty stomach. The actress Juliette Binoche
When you see a delicious meal in a movie or an advertisement, chances are that it’s
Easier said than done. Real food can’t always handle
After doing
The Taste of Things does not have much dialogue. The action and the intimacy(亲密关系)are in the kitchen. “In life we have two sources of
| A．invites | B．leads | C．plays | D．introduces |
| A．passion | B．curiosity | C．concern | D．demand |
| A．unreachable | B．uneatable | C．irresistible | D．unimaginable |
| A．cooking | B．flavouring | C．consuming | D．coating |
| A．parts | B．materials | C．dressings | D．seasonings |
| A．instruct | B．apply | C．move | D．engage |
| A．simple | B．flexible | C．special | D．multiple |
| A．actions | B．performances | C．dishes | D．tastes |
| A．planted | B．harvested | C．arranged | D．delivered |
| A．rough | B．expansive | C．shallow | D．single |
| A．historian | B．scientist | C．stylist | D．artist |
| A．in honor of | B．in search of | C．in return for | D．in preparation for |
| A．taught | B．encouraged | C．advised | D．promised |
| A．theory | B．explanation | C．gesture | D．costume |
| A．success | B．progress | C．achievement | D．pleasure |
6 . The open-air bookstalls (书摊) that line the River Seine are as symbolic of Paris as the Louvre or the Arc de Triomphe. But most of the boxy, dark green stalls must be temporarily removed before the 2024 Summer Olympics for what officials say are security reasons.
Organizers in Paris are aiming to bring back magnificence to the Games, which begin on July 26. The opening ceremony will take place not in a stadium, but along the Seine, with thousands of Olympic athletes riding on a flotilla (船队)of 160 boats before hundreds of thousands of visitors on the river’s banks. The ceremony’s unusual format poses security headaches, for both the International Olympic committee and the Paris police, who said they had concerns that bombs could be hidden in the stalls.
The booksellers, known as “les bouquinistes”, have said they will not compromise, calling the order issued by the Paris police chief last week an affront to the French capital’s history and soul. “Paris without the bouquinistes is like Venice without the boats,” said Jean-Pierre Mathias, 76, who has had a stall along the Seine for about four decades.
Open every day from morning until dusk, the bouquinistes are both a scene along the riverside and a symbol of Paris’s literary culture, attracting curious tourists and locals looking for rare books. The tradition dates back to at least the 17th century and by the 19th century, Napoleon gave approval to the bookstalls, popular with intellectuals and writers, and they became permanent.
The city’s mayor (市长), Anne Hidalgo, initially highlighted the booksellers’ importance to the city and suggested an alternative plan that would keep the stall s in place once the police confirmed they were not a security threat. But that plan was no longer under consideration because the police declared it necessary to remove the stalls for safety, a spokeswoman for Ms. Hidalgo said on Tuesday.
1. The bookstalls must be removed before the Olympics due to ________.| A．traffic crowdedness | B．audience attention | C．potential danger | D．ceremony chaos |
| A．Doubt. | B．Shame. | C．Claim. | D．Appeal. |
| A．Objective. | B．Indifferent. | C．Approving. | D．Opposed. |
| A．Paris bookstalls, a symbol of French culture |
| B．Paris bookstalls, a welcomed tourist attraction |
| C．Paris bookstalls gaining support from citizens |
| D．Paris bookstalls facing the relocation order |
7 . We decided not to tell the kids. Marla knew that once our three daughters understood that their mother had been given 1,000 days to live and they’d start counting.
They would not be able to enjoy school, friends, their teams, or birthday parties. They’d be watching too closely how she looked, moved, acted, ate, or didn’t. Marla wanted her daughters to stay children: unburdened, confident that tomorrow would look like yesterday.
In 2009, Marla’s physician called to tell her that she had early-stage breast cancer. She was also BRCA-positive, meaning that she carried the gene for the disease, a troublesome marker. After several medical operations, she needed eight rounds of chemotherapy (化疗) to clear the cancer found in her lymph nodes.
Our kids were 8, 9, and 11 at the time, and though they understood then that she was undergoing treatment, we never told them the news. We soon learned from Memorial Sloan Kettering’s head of breast-cancer oncology: Marla had a triple-negative cancer cell, the most severe of them all. It is commonly referred to as “the breast-cancer death sentence”. This specialist outspokenly told her: “Go live your next 1,000 days in the best way you know how.”
Despite the sickness of chemotherapy, she went on running long distances, for her own mental fitness, and more importantly, so her kids would see her strong. I knew these miles were a wonder. Marla earned and survived a little more than 3,500 days instead of 1,000 since her initial diagnosis. In her lifetime, she celebrated 25 anniversaries, 57 children’s birthdays, three college acceptances, and two high-school graduations. But the next numbers make me numb: Zero college graduations. Zero weddings. Zero grandchildren.
Marla said to me at the hospital, “No glory days for us. We almost had the kids out of the house, and now you’re alone. I’m so sorry.” I replied, “Sorry about what? You made life worth living. When you kissed me, I melted. I admired your pureness, your power. You outran science. Thank you for taking me on your magic carpet. Rest easy, my one and only girlfriend.”
1. If the children were told about Marla’s illness, they would ________.| A．remain innocent | B．study harder | C．hang out with friends | D．live with burden |
| A．She continued sports activities. | B．She accepted it angrily. |
| C．She avoided social life. | D．She refused medical treatment. |
| A．Their precious memories. | B．Seriousness of her illness. |
| C．A mixed feeling of joy and regret. | D．Importance of family celebrations. |
| A．Life is not all roses. | B．Live life to the fullest. |
| C．Love overcomes thing. | D．Happiness takes no account of time. |
8 . These picks contain 4 special editions of classic books:
Farewell to Manzanar
By Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston and James D. Houston(Clarion Books)
Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston lived with her family at Manzanar, a camp where the US imprisoned Japanese American during the World War II. This is the 50th anniversary edition of her incredible memoir. Ages 8 and up
I Shook Up the World
By Maryum “May May” Ali, illustrated by Patrick Henry Johnson(Beyond Words)
This is the 20th aniversary edition of a book about boxer Muhammad Ali(1942-2016), written by his daughter. It is divided into “rounds” about his life, including when he won an Olympic gold medals. It also describes his role in the civil rights movement. Ages 6-10
The Tale of Despereaux
By Kate DiCamillo, illustrated by Timothy Basil Ering(Candlewick)
The Newber y Award-winning fantasy book contains a new short story by author Kate DiCamillo in the 20th anniversary edition. The story, “The Tapestry at Norendy”, is about a girl who discovers magic by listening to a tale about a mouse. Ages7-10
Warriors: The Ultimate Guide
By Erin Hunter(Haper Collins)
This colorful guide has been updated to mark the 20th anniversary of the Warriors series, and it includes profiles of 85 of the most outstanding warrior cats. With new art, detailed map, and introductions to each of the clan(宗族), the book makes you personally on the scene in the Warrior World. Ages 8 and up
1. Which book tells the stories of an Olympic golden medalist?| A．Farewell to Manzanar | B．I Shook Up the World. |
| C．The Tale of Despereaux | D．Warriors: The Ultimate Guide |
| A．Magical elements. | B．Inspiring stories. |
| C．Historical significance. | D．Various artistic forms. |
| A．They are intended for children. | B．They win different awards. |
| C．They mark significant anniversaries. | D．They are related to animals. |
9 . Chloe Smith is a girl aged 6 from Atlanta, Georgia. One day, while taking a walk with her father near their home, she
The medal belongs to former canoeist (划艇运动员) Joe Jacobi, who won gold while
Chloe’s dad had seen Jacobi’s story on the news, and
Chloe was
| A．sought | B．buried | C．noticed | D．dropped |
| A．waste | B．object | C．material | D．antique |
| A．embarrassed | B．satisfied | C．frightened | D．shocked |
| A．competing | B．applying | C．coaching | D．preparing |
| A．broken | B．stolen | C．replaced | D．deserted |
| A．purchase | B．register | C．preserve | D．recover |
| A．secured | B．prized | C．advertised | D．priced |
| A．project | B．decision | C．habit | D．idea |
| A．quickly | B．gradually | C．really | D．carefully |
| A．identifying | B．obtaining | C．evaluating | D．investigating |
| A．sorry | B．eager | C．upset | D．hesitant |
| A．In addition | B．In fact | C．In return | D．In advance |
| A．purpose | B．report | C．attempt | D．story |
| A．heart-warming | B．breath-taking | C．eye-catching | D．life-changing |
| A．important | B．simple | C．interesting | D．right |
10 . In the old-fashioned town of Willowbrook, two friends named Emma and Liam shared an intimate bond. They were inseparable and spent every moment together, laughing, exploring, and creating unforgettable memories.
One cold winter morning, as the first snowflakes gently fell from the sky, Emma woke up with a stuffy nose and a sore throat. She tried to brave it and get ready for school, but her body felt weak and achy. Unwillingly, she called Liam to let him know she couldn’t make it to school that day.
Liam was concerned when he heard the tiredness in Emma’s voice. “Don’t worry, Em. I’ll take care of everything at school for you,” he assured her. Feeling grateful for Liam’s understanding, Emma forced a smile and replied, “Thank you, Liam. You’re the best friend anyone could ask for.”
After school, Liam hurried to Emma’s house, carrying a meal he had prepared for her. He knocked on the door, and Emma’s mother welcomed him with a warm smile. “Oh, Liam, you’re such a thoughtful friend,” she said.
“I brought some soup and tea for Emma. I hope it will make her feel better,” Liam replied, some concern in his eyes. Entering Emma’s room, Liam found her curled up under a blanket, looking pale but relieved to see him. “Hey, I brought some comfort food to cheer you up,” he said, setting the food on her bedside table.
Emma’s eyes lit up, and she smiled weakly. “You didn’t have to, but thank you. This means the world to me,” she whispered. Sitting by her side, Liam kept her company, chatting softly and making her laugh despite her illness. The warmth of their friendship enveloped the room, bringing a feeling of comfort to Emma’s tired soul.
As Emma regained her strength, she realized just how lucky she was to have a friend like Liam. His unwavering presence and kindness had made her recovery easier and brighter. Their friendship grew stronger with each passing day, and from that moment on, they knew they would be there for each other through thick and thin.
1. What does the underlined word “intimate” in Paragraph 1 probably mean?| A．Satisfactory. | B．Informal. | C．Close. | D．Temporary. |
| A．It was too cold to go outside. | B．Liam failed to pick her up. |
| C．She was in a bad condition. | D．School was closed for the heavy snow. |
| A．Considerate and caring. | B．Brave but lazy. |
| C．Selfless and active. | D．Independent but stubborn. |
| A．Emma’s illness. | B．A precious friendship. |
| C．Liam’s company. | D．How to help a friend. |
