1 . Do you like Chinese traditional painting and dance? They are two important parts of the traditional Chinese art. But what about when they meet each other?

This year, a dance drama titled Poetic Dance: The Journey of a Legendary Landscape Painting (《只此青绿》) was staged on CCTV’s Spring Festival Gala and became popular.

According to CCTV, this poetic dance program was inspired by the 900-year-old Chinese painting A Panorama of Rivers and Mountains (《千里江山图》), created by Song Dynasty painter Wang Ximeng at about 18. The painting is amazing in its sweeping size, rich coloration and the expressive details, reported by CCTV. It shows a Chinese blue-green landscape: mountains and groupings of infinite (无限的) rise and fall between cloudless sky and rippling (涟漪的) water.

When the dancers moved elegantly, audiences seemed to be looking at the moving mountains and rivers. “It brings me a pure experience of beauty. It is not only a drama but also an exhibition. Vast mountains and rivers are coming to life!” Internet user Mo Weisha wrote in a review. “More than a thousand years later, green mountains and rivers still impress people as they did long ago.” Some people even decided to watch the dance again when it was staged in the theaters later. In fact, in recent years, more and more modern shows have featured Chinese traditional culture and received warm welcome. As for the reason, it is due to people’s great love for traditional culture.

“The younger generations have grown up with a more open mind. They accept Chinese culture and are proud of it,” Yao Wei, director of Henan TV Station’s Innovation Center, told China Daily.

1. What’s the writing purpose of paragraph 1?

A．To raise a question.	B．To introduce the topic.
C．To describe the art world.	D．To show a doubtful thought.

2. What pushed the poetic dance?

A．CCTV’s Spring Festival Gala.	B．A Chinese blue-green landscape.
C．Song Dynasty painter Wang Ximeng.	D．An old Chinese traditional painting.

3. Why did this poetic dance enjoy welcome?

A．Traditional culture is accepted and loved by people.

B．Green mountains and rivers greatly impress people.

C．The poetic dance can be staged in the theaters later.

D．Increasing modern shows feature Chinese traditional culture.

4. What’s the main idea of the whole text?

A．It explains why Chinese art enjoys popularity.

B．It shows us art can come to life through dance.

C．It highlights the beauty of Chinese traditional art.

D．It tells us the love for Chinese traditional painting.

2 . It is difficult for a teacher to decide whether to allow students to listen to music in the classroom. Every time students need to write an essay or work on a problem, they say, “Can I put my headphones on? I think better that way.” But is that really true? Does music help concentrate?

Research offers little to back up the idea that listening to music improves concentration. In one small study, 133 students performed reading tasks while listening to either light music, hip hop, or no music at all. Students who performed the reading tasks in silence scored the highest. Music with a higher intensity (强度) like hip hop was more distracting and had a bad effect on task performance.

Volume (音量) plays a more important role than the type of music. The study found that the louder the music, the worse the performance in concentration. The type of music didn’t matter. Data from the study showed once again that silence was the best environment to improve concentration.

However, music has a positive effect on work performance. Studies have showed that listening to music leads to positive changes in mood, as well as creativity. In fact, in music-listening cultures, which students are certainly part of, there’s actually a change in mood when the music is taken away.

It’s hard to convince my students that music doesn’t help with their concentration. Taj, a senior told me, “I wouldn’t be able to concentrate if I were listening to music and trying to read. However, when I write, I feel like music helps me concentrate deeply. I don’t have writer’s block. It’s easy for me to put my words on paper.”

“Maybe not with reading, but when it comes to math, listening to music certainly helps,” Danela told me. “You could actually be singing along with what you’re listening to and doing well in math.”

1. What does the underlined word “distracting” in paragraph 2 probably mean?

A．Making it difficult for someone to concentrate.

B．Causing great excitement.

C．Making someone want to do something.

D．Making someone feel frightened.

2. What can we learn from the small study?

A．Students do well in reading tasks while listening to music.

B．Music can’t improve people’s mood and creativity.

C．Different types of music lead to different performances.

D．The volume of music affects concentration.

3. What do Taj and Danela have in common?

A．They believe music doesn’t help concentrate.

B．They use music to help with their paper-writing.

C．They can’t focus on reading while listening to music.

D．They don’t listen to music while doing math problems.

4. Which of the following can be the best title for the text?

A．Should Students Listen to Music?	B．Does Music Help Concentration?
C．Is Music Related to Reading?	D．Can Music Change Mood?

3 . Guan Shanyue Art Museum

Shenzhen artists are sending hope and gratitude to the Chinese CovID-19 frontline workers through 215 artworks at the “We Are Together”exhibition running until May 17. The paintings, sculptures, photographs and music videos show medical workers, delivery men, cleaners, police officers and volunteers working tirelessly during the outbreak. Meanwhile, a selection of master Quan Shanyue’s paintings featuring flowers and birds are also on display until July.

Hours: 9 a. m. -12 pm; 2 pm. 4. 30 p. m. closed Mondays.

He Xiangning Art Museum

Selected paintings by master He Xiangning are offering an in-depth review of her revolutionary and artistic career. The paintings mainly portray plum blossoms, pine trees, lions, tigers, and landscapes. Meanwhile, contemporary Chinese oil paintings produced in the past 30 years are also on display at the “As Times Go By”exhibition until May 5.

Hours: 9:30 a. m. - 4:30 p. m. , closed Mondays.

MixC Shenzhen Bay

The ”Fantastic Dali” exhibition, running until May 5, presents an unimaginable world of 200 artworks by Spanish master Salvador Dali. Another exhibition running until May 28 features painting “Along the River During the Qingming Festival” by Ming artist Qiu Ying(1494-1552)and vivid scenes for visitors to take photos.

Hours(Dali): 10 a. m. -7 p. m. (Mon. -Fri.), 10 a. m. -9 p. m. (Sat.-Sun)

Hours(Qiu Ying): 10 a. m. -9 p. m. , closed Mondays.

1. What are on exhibition in Guan Shanyue Art Museum?

A．Artworks by a Spanish master.	B．Paintings featuring landscapes.
C．Music videos showing lions.	D．Artworks honoring COVID-19 fighters.

2. Which is accessible to visitors on Mondays?

A．“Fantastic Dali”.

B．“We Are Together”.

C．“As Times Go By”.

D．“Along the River During the Qingming Festival”.

3. Where is the text probably taken from?

A．A travel journal.	B．An art website
C．A painting album.	D．A comic book.

4 . Ireland has had a very difficult history. The problems started in the 16th century when English rulers tried to conquer (征服) Ireland. For hundreds of years, the Irish people fought against the English. Finally, in 1921, the British government was forced to give independence to the south of Ireland. The result is that today there are two “Irelands”. Northern Ireland, in the north, is part of the United Kingdom. The Republic of Ireland, in the south, is an independent country.

In the 1840s the main crop, potatoes, was affected by disease and about 750,000 people died of hunger. This, and a shortage (短缺) of work, forced many people to leave Ireland and live in the USA, the UK, Australia and Canada. As a result of these problems, the population fell from 8.2 million in 1841 to 6.6 million in 1851.

For many years, the majority of Irish people earned their living as farmers. Today, many people still work on the land but more and more people are moving to the cities to work in factories and offices. Life in the cities is very different from life in the countryside, where things move at a quieter and slower pace.

The Irish are famous for being warm－hearted and friendly. Oscar Wilde, a famous Irish writer, once said that the Irish were “the greatest talkers since the Greeks”. Since independence, Ireland has revived (复兴) its own culture of music, language, literature and singing. Different areas have different styles of old Irish songs which are sung without instruments. Other kinds of Irish music use many different instruments such as the violin, whistles, etc.

1. What does the author tell us in Paragraph 1?

A．How the Irish fought against the English.

B．How Ireland gained independence.

C．How English rulers tried to conquer Ireland.

D．How two “Irelands” came into being.

2. We learn from the text that in Ireland ________.

A．food shortages and a lack of work in the 1840s led to a decline in population

B．people are moving to the cities for lack of work in the countryside

C．it is harder to make a living as a farmer than as a factory worker

D．different kinds of old Irish songs are all sung with instruments

3. The last paragraph is mainly about ________.

A．the Irish character	B．the Irish culture
C．Irish musical instruments	D．a famous Irish writer

4. What can be the best title for the text?

A．Life in Ireland	B．A Very Difficult History
C．Ireland, Past and Present	D．The Independence of Ireland

6 . Seba lives in Memphis, Tennessee—a place famous for music. He grew up with music all around, but he especially loved the drumming of Stewart Copeland from the band The Police. “The Police songs are full of so much cool drumming,” he says.

Before he turned three, his parents asked him what he wanted for his birthday. “Drums!” he answered. His parents weren’t sure, but after seeing him play the drums at a local music store, they decided he was serious. They bought him a junior drum kit.

But soon Seba grew upset. He couldn’t get his junior drum kit to make the sound he heard Mr. Copeland making. It was a lesson for the family: good instruments were worth paying for. His parents bought him a professional drum kit and signed him up for lessons.

In just a few months, his drum teacher reported that Seba was learning extremely quickly and needed a higher level of training. He was still four.

Seba’s parents encouraged him to explore music in other ways. Seba learned bass (贝斯), guitar, and piano. He faced challenges—some related to his size. “I couldn’t see over my drum set,” he says. “And I couldn’t reach some of the cymbals.” He also had trouble finding a good bass that was small enough.

In 2020, Seba got special permission to join a summer music program at Berklee as an 8-year-old. Seba studied bass in an online program. To keep up, he had to practice up-to 36 hours a week.

After the intense summer, his parents thought Seba might want a break. They were wrong. Instead, Seba asked his parents to home-school him so he could keep going to Berklee during the school year. His parents had to make some big changes to make the plan work.

Last May, Seba became the youngest person ever to receive a professional certificate (证书) from Berklee. The certificate is equal to about four college-level classes.

1. What troubled Seba after he got a junior drum kit?

A．His parents signed him up for lessons.

B．He couldn’t make the sound he wanted.

C．He didn’t like the drum his parents bought

D．His drum wasn’t as good as Mr.Copeland’s.

2. What challenge did Seba meet in learning music?

A．He couldn’t find a bass of good quality.

B．He was too short to see over the drum set.

C．He was unable to explore all kinds of music.

D．He couldn’t receive a higher level of training.

3. What did Seba do after the summer program?

A．He went to Berklee.	B．He had a good rest.
C．He continued to learn.	D．He studied online music.

4. What do you think of Seba?

A．Talented and hard-working.	B．Famous and honest.
C．Serious and responsible.	D．Grateful and polite.

7 . Despite many public health campaigns to highlight various problems with sugary drinks, we drink them a lot. But, not everyone consumes them. Two new studies shed light on the fact that some of us easily fall victim to the harms of sugary drinks than others.

Though sugary drinks are everywhere, some people find them harder to resist and the first study, conducted by professor Joshua McGreen at Flinders University, sought to understand why. For the research, 128 young adults of 17 to 25 completed a computer test evaluating their attitudes about soft drinks, measured against their soft drink consumption. The study showed that the more unconscious positive judgments individuals had of soft drink advertising, the more soft drink they consumed. It also found that a lack of inhibitory control, which is the cognitive process that allows us to control our desires — say, to buy a nice-tasting soft drink even though we know it’s unhealthy — was also a factor in increased consumption.

A second study provides clues about who is more easily influenced by the marketing strategies. The study found that soft drink companies, like Coca-Cola and PepsiCo, have multi-billion-dollar advertising and marketing budgets aimed to “create, maintain and increase consumer demand around benefits related to happiness, social status etc.” These campaigns are “increasingly being directed at disadvantaged groups”, including children and adolescents generally.

Soft drinks, even “zero-sugar” ones, are typically high in calories, but of little nutritional benefit. Placing a tax on sweet drinks may be one strategy to reduce people’s consumption. McGreen also suggests that people develop strong self-control of soft drink consumption. It’s something he wants to research further.

1. What do the two new studies focus on?

A．The harm of sugary drinks.	B．The popularity of sugary drinks.
C．The consumers of sugary drinks.	D．The profit made by sugary drinks.

2. Who are most likely to buy sugary drinks according to McGreen?

A．Those who have a good impression of soft drinks.

B．Those who have a good spending habit.

C．Those who can control their desires well.

D．Those who have no interest in soft drink advertising.

3. What is the last paragraph mainly about?

A．The warning against the consumption of soft drinks.

B．Plans to research into self-control of soft drink consumption.

C．The importance of sports stars in advertising soft drinks.

D．Suggestions on reducing the consumption of soft drinks.

4. What is the author’s attitude towards “zero-sugar” soft drinks?

A．Positive.

B．Negative.

C．Uncaring.

D．Ambiguous.

10 . Who is the greatest teacher in Chinese history? Many people would think of Confucius, whose birthday was September 28. Although he lived over 2,000 years ago, people still remember and respect him for his contribution to the education today.

Confucius lived in the Kingdom of Lu, which lies in Shandong Province. He lived during the Spring and Autumn Period. He had a hard childhood. His father died when he was only 3. His mother brought him up. As a child, he had to work to help his mother, but young Confucius didn’t give up studying. He visited many famous teachers and learned music, history, poetry and sports.

Later, he became a teacher and started the first public school in Chinese history. At that time only children from noble families could go to school, but Confucius believed everyone should go to school if they wanted to learn. He had about 3,000 students in his lifetime.

Today, people still follow Confucius’ lessons. He told us that we all have something worthy to be learned. “When I am with three people, one of them must be better than me in some areas. I choose their good qualities and follow them.”

He also taught us that thinking is very important in study. He said, “All study but no thinking makes people puzzled, while all thinking but no study makes people lazy.” Confucius is not only a great teacher, but also a famous thinker with wise thoughts about the world and society. His most important teachings are about kindness(仁) and good manners(礼). He said, “A person should be strict with himself, but be kind to others.”

1. Today we still remember Confucius mainly because________.

A．he lived a poor life in his childhood

B．he traveled with his students from state to state

C．he lived during the Spring and Autumn Period

D．he had wise thoughts and great views about education

2. The underlined word “noble” in Paragraph 3 has the closest meaning to   .

A．poor

B．wealthy

C．fool

D．cute

3. What can we learn from Confucius according to the passage?

A．Thinking is very important in study.

B．We can learn everything from others.

C．We should always care for ourselves.

D．Learning music and sports is popular.

4. Which of the following is the best title for this passage?

A．Confucius’ teaching methods

B．A great man with a hard childhood

C．A person who changed Chinese history

D．Confucius-a great teacher and thinker