1 . In America, when the eighth graders leave the middle school, they are often worried about moving to the high school. It is a hard time for them,but it can be an exciting one as well. To make it easier, students need to get familiar with their school.
Even though they’ve done this already in the middle school, it’s still important to find where their classrooms are. Most schools take students to the high school for a visit at the end of their eighth grade year. And, most schools also have a freshman(新生) speech for parents and students before the first year begins. Sometimes the main office will give away a map of the school. This can help students and parents to find different places in the school.
One way to know your high school more and make new friends is to join a club or play a sport. Schools often offer chances to join different clubs and sports. Fall activities begin in August before the first day of school. If you are not interested in sports, there are clubs for any interest, such as drama, dance, chess, photography, community service, etc. These clubs allow students from different grades. By joining an activity,students can find new friendships, not to mention improving their chances in future college applications(申请). The school office will have a list of activities offered at the school and information on how to join them.
What’s more, to have a great start to a high school year, students can write down some of their worries, and ask for help from teachers and school workers.
1. According to the text, most students feel when entering the high school.| A．unhappy | B．nervous |
| C．lonely | D．disappointed |
| A．There are fewer students from higher grades in the school clubs. |
| B．The school clubs in high school mainly welcome sports fans. |
| C．The school office can help new students join school clubs. |
| D．Summer activities begin before school starts. |
| A．Before the eighth grade year starts. |
| B．Right after the high school year starts. |
| C．At the beginning of the new term in the high school. |
| D．By the end of the last year in the middle school. |
| A．To describe high school life. |
| B．To give advice to new high school students. |
| C．To teach useful experience. |
| D．To introduce new schools. |
2 . Few buildings on earth can compete with the legendary beauty of the Taj Mahal. Towering over the ancient Indian city of Agra, the Taj Mahal is the grandest monument (纪念碑) to love ever created.
The lovers in this story are the 17th century Indian emperor Shah Jehan and his wife Mumtaz Mahal. She took a leading role in advising him, which is something unusual for a woman to do for a husband who’s an emperor. Over the course of their nineteen-year marriage she gave birth to 14 children. But in 1631 while trying to deliver their fifteenth — she tragically died. He was heartbroken when she died. And after her death, he decided to build the world’s greatest monument ever built, for love.
He ordered the royal architects to design the most beautiful building the world had known and decided to name it after his beloved, Mumtaz Mahal. He called on twenty thousand workers and sent many more people to all corners of his country in search of valuable metals and jewels. And after seventeen years of hard work, Shah Jehan’s monument was completed and his beloved empress was moved to her final resting place.
Everything had gone according to plan, but Shah Jehan’s luck was about to change ... In 1658, just four years after the completion of the Taj Mahal, he was thrown out of power. Unfortunately, his son, Aran Azibe imprisoned him, his own father. And he spent the last seven years of his life in prison. And he was allowed to look at the Taj Mahal through a window. His life was in ruins, but when he died his last wish was promised. He was buried beside his beloved wife in the Taj Mahal.
1. The Taj Mahal was built for ______.| A．Mumtaz | B．Shah |
| C．Mumtaz or Shah | D．Mumtaz and Shah |
| A．1658 | B．1662 |
| C．1654 | D．1665 |
| A．She gave birth to 14 children for her husband. |
| B．She gave important advice to her husband. |
| C．She asked her son to imprison his father. |
| D．She planned to build the world’s greatest monument. |
| A．He was killed by his own son. |
| B．He lost his power as a result of the Taj Mahal. |
| C．He put his own son into prison. |
| D．He hoped to be buried together with his wife. |
Shoppers should visit the grocery store on a full stomach by scheduling their trip immediately after a large meal. If that’s not possible, they should find something healthy to eat while preparing a grocery list.
Although having a list and sticking to it is the most important factor in saving money, shoppers must prepare lists wisely in order to save.
| A．A carefully planned list should include in — season produce and any items on sale or discounted through coupons (优惠券). |
| B．Of course, the shopper should stick strictly to the shopping list and resist the temptation to buy additional items. |
| C．People who are full are less tired and more likely to buy what they want. |
| D．Now that the shopper has completed the grocery list, it’s time to leave for the store. |
| E．You should keep your shopping list carefully in case you can exchange it for coupons. |
| F．Most shoppers are less persuaded to buy extra goods when they are not hungry. |
| G．Shopping when not hungry, sticking to a grocery list, and following a few simple rules will cut down the grocery bill. |
4 . Kong Zi, also called Confucius (551-479B.C.), and Socrates (苏格拉底) (469-399 B.C.) lived only a hundred years apart, and during their lifetimes there was no contact between China and Greece, but it is interesting to look at how the world that each of these great philosophers came from shaped their ideas, and how these ideas in turn, shaped their societies.
Neither philosopher lived in times of peace, though there were more wars in Greece than in China. The Chinese states were very large and feudal, while the Greek city-states were small and urban. The urban environment in which Socrates lived allowed him to be more radical (激进的) than Confucius. Unlike Confucius, Socrates was not asked by rulers how to govern effectively. Thus, Socrates was able to be more idealistic, focusing on issues like freedom, and knowledge for its own sake. Confucius, on the other hand, advised those in government service, and many of his students went out to government service.
Confucius suggested the Golden Rule as a principle for the conduct of life: “Do not do to others what you would not want others to do to you.” He assumed that all men were equal at birth, though some had more potential than others, and that it was knowledge that set men apart. Socrates focused on the individual, and thought that the greatest purpose of man was to seek wisdom. But like Confucius, he also believed that the superior class should rule the inferior (下层的) classes.
For Socrates, the family was of no importance, and the community of little concern. For Confucius, however, the family was the centre of the society, with family relations considered much more important than political relations.
Both men are respected much more today than they were in their lifetimes.
1. Which of the following is TRUE according to the first paragraph?| A．Socrates and Confucius had much in common. |
| B．Confucius had much influence on Socrates’ ideas. |
| C．The societies were influenced by the philosophers’ ideas. |
| D．There were cultural exchanges between China and Greece. |
| A．all men were equal when they were born |
| B．the lower classed should be ruled by the upper class |
| C．the purpose of man was to seek freedom and wisdom |
| A．Family. | B．Potential. | C．Knowledge. | D．Community. |
| A．time and events | B．comparison and contrast |
| C．cause and effect | D．definition and classification |
Woolworth realized he had a natural skill for showing goods to attract people’s interest, but he soon learned something more important. One day his boss told him to sell some odds and ends（小商品）for as much as he could get. Frank put all these things on one table with a sign which said “FIVE CENTS EACH’. People fought and pushed to buy the things and the table was soon cleared.
Soon afterwards, Woolworth opened his own store, selling goods at five and ten cents. But he had another lesson to learn before he became successful. That is, if you want to make money by selling low-price goods, you have to buy them in large quantities directly from the factories. Once, for example, Woolworth went to Germany and placed an order for knives. The order was so large that the factory had to keep running 24 hours a day for a whole year. In this way, the price of the knives was cut down by half.
By 1919, Woolworth had over 1000 stores in the US and Canada, and opened his first store in London. He made many millions and his name became famous throughout the world. He always ran his business according to strict rules, of which the most important was : ‘THE CUSTOMER IS ALWAYS RIGHT.”
1. Frank took a short business course in order to __________.
| A．earn more money for his family |
| B．learn something from a salesman |
| C．get away from the farm |
| D．get enough to eat |
| A．he knew how to get people to buy his goods |
| B．he cut down the price by half |
| C．he had put the goods on a table in a very nice way |
| D．the sign he put on the table was well designed |
| A．the factory workers worked 24 hours a day |
| B．knives were ordered in large quantities directly from the factory |
| C．the knives were made in German, where labour was cheap |
| D．the knives were produced in one factory |
| A．His business skills and his wealth |
| B．The low price of the goods he sold |
| C．His trip to Germany and his huge order of knives |
| D．His natural skill for showing things |
| A．whenever there is a quarrel between the customer and shop assistant, the customers are always right. |
| B．If you want to succeed, the rule is the only way |
| C．stores must always follow the customer’s orders if they want to make more money |
| D．stores should do their best to meet the customer’s needs if they want to be successful |
6 . Banks view online banking as a powerful “value-added” tool to attract and keep new customers while helping to eliminate costly paper handling or teller(出纳员)interactions in an increasingly competitive banking environment .
Today, most large national banks, many local banks and credit unions offer some form of online banking, variously known as PC banking, home banking, electronic banking or Internet banking. Online banks are sometimes referred to as “brick-to-click” banks, both to tell them from “brick-to-mortar” banks that haven’t yet offered online banking, as well as from “virtual”(虚拟)banks that have no physical branches or tellers whatsoever.
The challenge(挑战)for the banking industry has been to design this new service channel in such a way that its customers will readily learn to use and trust it. Most of the large banks can now offer fully safe, fully functional(功能的)online banking for free or for a small cost. As more banks succeed online and more customers use their sites, fully functional online banking will likely become as commonplace as automated teller machines (ATM).
Online banking has a lot of advantages. Unlike your corner bank, online banking sites never close; they’re at hand 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and they’re a mouse click away. If you’re out of state or even out of the country when a money problem appears, you can log on instantly to your online bank and take care of business. Online bank sites generally carry out and confirm (确认)deals at or quicker than ATM processing speeds. Many online banking sites now offer fashionable tools to help you manage all of your valuable items more effectively.
1. The word “eliminate” in the first paragraph probably means “ ”.| A．keep | B．remove | C．reduce | D．improve |
| A．To make online banking attractive. | B．To open new services all over the world. |
| C．To offer online banking for free. | D．To take care of business 24 hours a day. |
| A．“brick-to-click” banks are in fact another kind of physical banks |
| B．the function of a “brick-to-click” bank is as common as that of an ATM |
| C．a “brick-to-mortar” bank is no better than a virtual one |
| D．customers can deal with their banking by a mouse click |
| A．Banking of Various Forms | B．Improvement of Banking Industry |
| C．Development of Online Banking | D．Functions of the “Brick-to-Click” Bank |
The process of learning to read is complex, and one of the most important things to know is that parents can help their children learn to read. As children have conversations with adults, they hear both new and familiar words and their vocabulary grows.
There are many opportunities for adults and children to talk together, such as when riding in the car or in a bus, doing housework like fixing dinner, or bathing and getting ready for bed. A major part of conversation is listening. When children talk, adults listen and respond. Then children listen and respond, and so the flow of conversation happens.
Have you watched you pre-school child pretend to read to his younger sisters or brothers? Have you read his favorite story over and over? These experiences tell children that reading is fun. And when things are fun and they are repeated, your child will see letters. He begins to connect them to familiar words, especially the letters that make up his name. A natural next step for him to take is to write the letters.
When children see parents make a grocery list, they want to use a pencil and paper to make their own list. To encourage these beginning writing activities, have pencils, markers, crayons and scrap paper within your children’s reach.
The more children get connected with talking, listening, reading and writing, the easier it is for them to become active readers. While you as a parent have a big influence on these early behaviors, it is important to remember that opportunities for literacy experiences happen when you and your child share in the basic routines（日常生活）of everyday life.
1. The third paragraph tells us that parents can talk with their children__________.
| A．during daily routines | B．only in quiet places |
| C．in their spare time | D．when they are eager to walk |
| A．copy the action of the adults. |
| B．prefer to talk with those of their own age. |
| C．show no interest in reading at all. |
| D．waste a lot of paper and other materials. |
| A．When their parents ask them to do so. |
| B．When they believe they can write well. |
| C．When they know what they want to know |
| D．When they can connect letters with familiar words. |
| A．talk about parents’ influence on their children’s behavior |
| B．encourage parents to set a good example to their children |
| C．advise parents to make reading a part of their children’s daily life |
| D．make parents believe in the importance of early reading |
The first one is about drinking. Now，you may not buy alcohol in this country. If you are under 18 years of age，nor may your friends buy it for you.
Secondly，noise. Enjoy yourselves by all means，but please don’t make unnecessary noise，particularly at night. We ask you to respect other people who may wish to be quiet.
Thirdly，crossing the road. Be careful！The traffic moves on the left side of the road in this country. Use pedestrian crossings and do not take any chances when crossing the road.
My next point is about litter (throwing away waste material in a public place)．It is an offence (违法行为) to drop litter in the street. When you have something to throw away，please put it in your pocket and take it home，or put it in a litter bin.
Finally，as regards something，it is against the law to buy cigarettes or tobacco if you are under 16 years of age.
I’d like to finish by saying that if you require any sort of help or assistance，you should contact your local police，who will be pleased to help you.
Now，are there any questions?
1. The main purpose of this speech would be to________.
| A．prepare people for international travel |
| B．declare the laws of different kinds |
| C．give advice to travelers to the country |
| D．inform people of the punishment for breaking laws |
| A．keep in touch with | B．join |
| C．report | D．get in touch with |
| A．In this country，if you are under 18 years of age，you may not buy alcohol，but your friend can buy it for you |
| B．you may not buy cigarettes or tobacco unless you are above 16 years of age |
| C．because the traffic moves on the left side of the road，you must use pedestrian crossings when crossing the road |
| D．you can’t make noise except at night |
“Aren’t you cold, Dad?” I’d ask. “No,” Dad would reply. “I’m not cold—working too hard to be cold.”
Many times I wondered whether my father was an extremely tough man, or whether he was foolish.
One time when I was quite young, perhaps five or so, I went ice fishing with Dad. It was a bright, clear day—and bitterly cold.
After we’d been out on the ice for a little while, my feet started getting cold.
“Daddy, my feet are cold.” I said.
“Yeah, it’s cold out here today,” he replied.
“Tell you what,” he said. “Walk around. Make some circles in the snow. See how many different patterns you can make. That will get your feet warm.”
I was just a little girl at the time but I remember thinking, “How in the world will walking around in the snow make my feet warm? Dad must be out of mind.”
But he was my father, after all. I made circles in the snow. I made squares. Pretty soon I was having so much fun making patterns in the snow. I forgot about my feet being cold.
Now, all these years later, I know, too, from personal experience how my father was able to take his coat off and work outside in the winter wearing just a shirt, a cap and gloves. Because I do it, too. “Aren’t you cold?” my husband asked one winter day. “No,” I replied. “I’m not cold—working too hard to be cold.”
I hope my husband has decided I’m both tough and smart. But I guess quite a bit of the time he thinks I’m foolish.
Wherever Dad is on that great big farm in the sky—I’m sure he can’t help but smile whenever I take my coat off while I’m working outside in the winter.
1. When the author’s feet felt cold, her father advised her to ________.
| A．go home alone first | B．keep walking in the snow |
| C．draw pictures in the snow | D．light a fire on the ice |
| A．forgettable | B．warm-hearted | C．crazy | D．cruel |
| A．Tough. | B．Smart. | C．Brave. | D．Foolish. |
| A．remember her tough and smart father |
| B．show how her father cared about her |
| C．describe memories of her childhood |
| D．explain why her father loved her so much |
Every September l6 the Mexican people hold a celebration in Mexico City, their country’s capital. It is their Independence Day. On that date in 1821 they told Spain they would no longer be ruled. Breaking free from Spain caused a war. When it was over, the Mexicans had their own government. They made their own laws.
Today America and Mexico are friends, but it wasn’t always that way. President James Polk wanted America to reach from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean. He tried to buy what is now the American southwest from Mexico. Mexico would not sell. So from l846 to 1848 Mexico and America fought a war to ascertain where their borders would be. When the war ended, Mexico had lost a lot of land. Now the Rio Grande River forms the border between the two nations. America is on the north side of the river. Mexico is on the south side.
Mexico has mountains and a hot, dry climate. Crops can grow on only a small part of the land. Still, Mexicans grow much of the coffee, oranges, and sugar used in the US. Mexicans have influenced building styles in southwestern US and added words such as patio and canton to American English. Americans also enjoy eating many Mexican foods like burritos, tacos, tortillas, and tamales.
1. According to the passage, what happened second on historical timeline?
| A．Mexicans declared their independence from Spain. |
| B．The Spanish ruled Mexico. |
| C．The Aztecs lived in Mexico. |
| D．Americans fought a war with Mexico. |
| A．the US to expand its borders to the Pacific Ocean |
| B．Mexico to change its Independence Day to July 4th |
| C．Mexico to become one of the states of the Union |
| D．Americans to adopt the Mexican language |
| A．inspect | B．cover |
| C．change | D．determine |
| A．building styles | B．vocabulary |
| C．clothes | D．food |
| A．didn’t speak Spanish |
| B．couldn’t read or write any language |
| C．didn’t have tools |
| D．didn’t understand the concept of time |
