2 . We have an English corner in our classroom. Every morning many of my classmates come to the corner. My teacher Miss Zhang comes here, too. At the corner, we all speak English.

The corner started last year. At first, there were only _________ students because many were _________ to speak English. After several weeks, more and more students came here. At first, some students just _________ to the other students. I was one of them. I was afraid to speak English. I thought someone would _________ me, but I wanted to speak. I always spoke English in my heart. My teacher went on saying, “Don’t be afraid. Open your mouth.” I tried and tried to open my mouth. At last, I said, “Hello!” to the teacher. The teacher was very _________. She said “Hello!” to me at once. From _________ on, I began to speak English. I work hard at English and I try my best _________ more. I learn _________ my teacher and my classmates at the corner. Now I can speak a little English. Every Sunday morning, I come to the corner _________.

It’s a good __________ to speak English. Please join us.

1.

A．a lot of

B．a few

C．a little

D．a bit of

2.

A．excited

B．interested

C．angry

D．afraid

3.

A．Talked

B．spoke

C．listened

D．came

4.

A．help

B．laugh at

C．stop

D．fit into

5.

A．happy

B．interesting

C．sad

D．afraid

6.

A．then

B．now

C．today

D．that

7.

A．saying

B．of talk

C．to speak

D．telling

8.

A．to

B．at

C．for

D．from

9.

A．late

B．often

C．early

D．too

10.

A．room

B．place

C．home

D．school

3 . The English channel of school radio station will choose some students to work there.

Reporters wanted

Do you like talking with people? Do you like meeting interesting people? We want two reporters for our station. If you’re good at English speaking and writing, please join us. If you want to get more information, please call Miss Li at 89561423.

A newsreader wanted

If your spoken English is good, you can work as a newsreader. We need a girl student who has a good voice. You should work at 9:00-9:30 in the morning from Monday to Thursday. You can call Miss Zhu at 89561424. Join us! We are waiting for you!

1. How many students does the radio station want?

A．One.

B．Two.

C．Three.

D．Four.

2. Lucy is interested in talking with people, so she can call ______.

A．89561423

B．89561424

C．89561425

D．89561426

3. The newsreaders in the school radio station don’t have to work on ______.

A．Mondays

B．Wednesdays

C．Thursdays

D．Fridays

4 . While I was working at a French school, I was often preparing my work in the staff room. Sometimes I would hear the school secretary talking. At first I thought she was talking to me, as there was no one else in the room except me, so I tried to respond to her. However, I soon realized that in fact, she was talking to herself. I noticed a lot of people do this in France. In the UK, people might think you’re a bit strange if you talk to yourself at work, but there it seemed quite normal. It really did confuse me at times, because I was not sure whether people were talking to me or just talking to themselves.

Another area of confusion involved the French language. In French, there are two ways to say “you”: “tu” is the informal form while “vous” is the formal form. This is an aspect of French which, even now, I do not really understand. When I learnt French, I was taught to call everyone vous unless they were my family or friends. So I was surprised that virtually everyone in France used the informal tu all the time. School children used tu when they stayed with their teachers and all the staff called the head teacher tu. But I continued to use vous because I didn’t want people to think I was impolite.

As you might know, school children in the UK traditionally wear school uniforms but in France pupils do not wear a uniform. It was a culture shock for me to see children wear Spiderman T-shirts and baggy (宽松的) blue jeans in the classroom.

I found the differences puzzling at times, but I couldn’t deny what a great opportunity it was to live and work in another country. The UK and France are only separated by a small channel of the sea, but there are many differences between the two countries.

1. In the staff room, the school secretary ________.

A．always chatted online

B．interrupted the writer

C．talked to herself often

D．always made speeches

2. Why did the author always use “vous” when talking to others?

A．She tried to be polite to others.

B．She couldn’t tell tu from vous at all.

C．She didn’t have close friends in France.

D．She couldn’t understand French very well.

3. How did the author feel seeing French kids wear Spiderman T-shirts at school?

A．Pleased.	B．Embarrassed.
C．Frightened.	D．Surprised.

4. What made the author feel happy to live in France?

A．Experiencing different cultures.

B．Communicating in an informal way.

C．Traveling along the channel of the sea.

D．Having a chance to work with French teachers.

5 . Picking a smartwatch isn’t as simple as buying the best-looking or most feature- packed one you can find. To make things easier for you, I tested nearly every flagship smartwatch available over the course of four months to make sure I wasn’t leaving any stone unturned. Here are some of my best picks.

Apple Watch Series 9 GPS

The Series 9 came out in September. I’ve been using it for several months, and the experience is nearly identical to last year's Series 8, but it has some minor improvements that’ll help it stand the test of time a bit longer. It has double brightness of Series 8, new gesture- based controls that don’ t require you to touch the screen, and Siri commands are now processed right on the device rather than sent to the cloud.

Garmin Venu 2 Plus

If you’re not sure whether you can commit to Android or iOS for more than a year or two, or you like to lean heavily into the fitness aspect of wearables, get Garmin’s Venu 2 Plus. Its fitness tracking is hard to beat, with options for cardio, HIIT, yoga, Pilates, golfing, cycling, and swimming, plus all the basics for health tracking.

Apple Watch Ultra 2

Compared with the Series 9, the Ultra 2 has bigger screen, longer battery life, more durable design, and additional Action Button for quickly triggering workouts. However, I don’t think the price point merits a best-in-class designation. The Ultra 2 has an Action Button on the left side of the display. You can program it to quickly start a workout, timer, the watch’s flashlight mode, or run a custom Shortcut automation.

The Series 9 is still an excellent option for most smartwatch users, but the Ultra 2’s additional adjustments make it worthwhile for anyone who truly swears by getting things done on their wrist.

1. What advantage does the Apple Watch Series 9 have over the Series 8?

A．Lower Price.

B．Brighter display.

C．Longer battery life.

D．Larger cloud storage.

2. Which smartwatch model is praised for its fitness tracking capabilities?

A．Garmin Venu 2 Plus.	B．Apple Watch Ultra 2.
C．Apple Watch Series 8.	D．Apple Watch Series 9 GPS.

3. What function can be triggered by the Action Button on the Ultra 2?

A．Checking heart rate.	B．Adjusting weather settings.
C．Changing watch faces.	D．Starting flashlight mode.

6 . Whether you feel like taking a road trip, or you just need some fun, you’ll enjoy this list of popular tourist attractions.

Alabama: Gulf Coast Beaches

If Alabama wasn’t the location for your next summer beach vacation, you may want to reconsider. There are 32 miles of white sands that have washed down from the Appalachian Mountains for thousands of years. That’s probably why over six million people visit Alabama’s Gulf Coast beaches every year. Ten dollars per person.

Alaska: Kenai Fjords Wildlife Cruise

Alaska is the place to go for spotting breathtaking (令人惊叹的) wildlife. In fact, the number of visitors who travel to Alaska to see wildlife has increased 45 percent. The Kenai Fjords Wildlife Cruise will bring you up close to whales, sea lions, and sea birds. A five-hour trip that starts at noon and covers 55 miles of sea will be the best $98 you’ve ever spent.

Arkansas: Hot Springs National Park

Skip the beach and choose a new type of relaxation at Hot Springs National Park. It’s America’s oldest national and the smallest national park. There’s a no-booking policy, perfect for travelers rolling through. Doors open at 8 a.m., so get there early!

Connecticut: Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History

Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History is a must stop if you’re traveling nearby Yale University. It attracts plenty of people and has many collections including New England birds, dinosaurs, Greek and Roman antiquities, and even an Egyptian mummy. Adults pay $13 for entry, but if you want to visit for free, go on a Thursday.

Don’t miss the four best tourist attractions.
1. Why do many people go to Alabama’s Gulf Coast beaches?

A．It has a good and convenient location.	B．It has a history of thousands of years.
C．It has tens of miles of white sands.	D．The Appalachian Mountains are beautiful.

2. When should you get to the Kenai Fjords Wildlife Cruise if you want to visit it?

A．Five hours before it opens.	B．Five hours after it opens.
C．Before 8 a.m.	D．Before twelve o’clock at noon.

3. What is special about Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History?

A．Many people go there to see collections.	B．You needn’t pay for it on certain days.
C．It makes you not want to leave.	D．It’s very beautiful and attractive.

7 . Many people will never forget their campus life, for it gave them something important for their career. Even though it is very difficult nowadays to attend a college or university after graduating from high school, there are still a large number of reasons to go to college.

In general, college graduates make more money than people who only have a high school degree. Besides higher pay, college graduates also experience better jobs than those who haven’t graduated from college. Many employers expect their employees to have a college degree. College programs provide students with peculiar training that only higher education can offer, giving them popular and valuable qualifications (资格证书).

To deal with heavy college study, you have to be organized. Finishing several different classes is not an easy task, considering that each class covers plenty of materials. If you’re unable to stay organized, there are teachers, advisers and professors there to help you. The organization skills you’ll learn in college will help you succeed in future jobs. Whether you’re solving a math-based problem or make out the main idea of a novel, college classes train your brain to solve difficult problems and will prepare you for problems in the workplace.

Whether you grew up in a small town or in New York City, being admitted into a college or university means that you will meet a great number of new people. Your social skills will improve by communicating with them, which could help you when you enter into the job market. When you take part in classroom activities, study groups and school clubs, you are introduced to intelligent people with whom you could one day start a company or form a life-long friendship.

Study-abroad programs are offered by most colleges and universities and are seen as one of the most meaningful experiences offered during four years of college life. In addition to learning more about a foreign culture, students are required to complete their studies.

1. What does the underlined word “peculiar” in Paragraph 2 probably mean?

A．Special.	B．Common.
C．Limited.	D．Traditional.

2. What can we learn about the college degree?

A．It is more important to rural students than urban students.

B．It makes you become employers in different fields.

C．It helps increase your earning power.

D．It is a must to become rich.

3. What is the third paragraph mainly about?

A．The functions of organization and problem-solving skills in college.

B．The difficult problems and different organizations in college.

C．Heavy college study and work.

D．College classes and professors.

4. What can be inferred from the text?

A．It is no use going to college or university.

B．College helps students improve their human relationship.

C．The aim of study-abroad is to help end students’ college classes.

D．Work experience is less important than a qualification in the job interview.

8 . From Milan to Riyadh, these culture-packed cities offer creative experiences, whether through interesting street arts, innovative exhibitions or award-winning architectures.

Milan

Milan’s fashion heritage dates back to its days as an important trading center, when rich businessmen would bring luxurious clothes to the city and improve their bartering (以物易物) skills in its streets. The area’s fashion-forward reputation was later strengthened by design masters such as Giorgio Armani, Dolce & Gabbana and Versace, all of whom grew their brands here.

Shanghai

Shanghai has a long history in the fields of art and architecture, and has long attracted creative professionals both domestically and internationally. But today, the integration of traditional temples into the surrounding modern metropolis (大都市) continues to attract tourists. Begin with a wander through the streets of the original Old City, taking in the 600-year-old City God Temple and the nine-bend Jiu Qu Qiao. Then, make for the Shanghai Museum, where more than a million artifacts — including ancient sculptures, china and calligraphy — are on display.

Copenhagen

Copenhagen’s architecture has been awarded many honors over the years, including UNESCO World Capital of Architecture 2023. Today, many of the city’s most popular tour routes centre on these eye-catching aspects. The harbour-front Copenhagen Opera House presents a neo-futuristic style while the Black Diamond Royal Library and the Bicycle Bridge dot the skyline with their distinctive designs.

Riyadh

Saudi Arabia’s largest city Riyadh has actively positioned itself as a global destination for creative travellers and to this end, it has established the Riyadh Art initiative. The first public art project of its kind in the country, Riyadh Art aims to transform the city into a “gallery without walls” through public art installations, festivals and workshops.

1. What is Milan famous for?

A．Its festivals.

B．Its fashion products.

C．Its architecture.

D．Its modern art.

2. Where will you go if you want to visit the Bicycle Bridge?

A．Copenhagen.

B．Shanghai.

C．Milan.

D．Riyadh.

3. What do we know about Riyadh?

A．It is Saudi Arabia’s second largest city.	B．It has a lot of galleries without walls.
C．It aims to attract creative visitors.	D．It plans to set up the Riyadh Art initiative.