2 . Koalas live in the eucalyptus (枝树) forests of southeastern and eastern Australia. They rely on the eucalyptus tree for both habitat and food. In fact, they seldom leave these trees. When not sleeping, they’re usually eating. They can eat more than a pound of eucalyptus leaves a day. Eucalyptus is poisonous, so the koala’s digestive (消化的) system has to work hard to digest it, breaking down the poisons and taking in the limited nutrients (营养). That’s why koalas sleep for 18 to 22 hours a day—they get very little energy from their diet.

Koala numbers decreased in the late 19th and early 20th century from hunting for their fur. Now they face serious threats from habitat loss. Land clearing and bush fires-especially the 2019-2020 Australia Bushfire Season-have destroyed much of the forest they live in. Koalas are easy to be affected by climate change. Increasing carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is decreasing the nutritional quality of eucalyptus leaves and causing longer, more serious droughts and wildfires. In response to drought, koalas are forced to stop sleeping and come down from the trees to find water, putting them at a higher risk of being killed.

Koalas have been identified by the Australian government as one of the 113 animals requiring urgent (紧急的) help. Ensuring there’s the right kind of forest for them to return to is extremely urgent. State governments should create new koala reserves and persuade landowners not to cut down eucalyptus trees. Meanwhile, getting the public to understand koalas’ living habits and their health will throw light on koala biology, which helps to develop plans to better protect the species.

1. What can we learn about koalas?

A．They like moving around very much.	B．They can be found everywhere in Australia.
C．They have developed smart survival skills.	D．They often got ill while eating eucalyptus leaves.

2. What does paragraph 2 mainly talk about?

A．Koalas’ newly-formed habits.	B．The potential threats to Koalas.
C．Koalas’ decreasing population.	D．The outcomes of increased carbon dioxide.

3. What is the most important thing to do right now to protect koalas?

A．Make sure they can have their habitat back.

B．Conduct the research on their living habits.

C．Realize that they are sensitive to climate change.

D．Educate people about the awareness of protecting them.

4. From which is the text probably taken?

A．A travel brochure.	B．A nature magazine.
C．A sports newspaper.	D．A health magazine.

3 . At the hillside of the Emei Mountain in Sichuan, a homestay (民宿) — My Own little Yard (吾家小院) is attracting travelers from far and wide, especially on weekends. The owners of the homestay are a couple in their late 30s who decided to return to their hometown three years ago. Li Xiumei used to be in charge of a small company in Chengdu, and her husband was a sales director. It was an ordinary situation where Li’s husband was on business trips a lot and Li worked overtime on weekends. City life sometimes is not easy.

In 2020, they quit (辞掉) jobs and went back to their village, where there were plenty of homestays around their old countryside house coming into their sight. Stepping onto every balcony of every homestay, they could see the beautiful scenery of the Emei Mountain. More importantly, the villagers have earned a lot of money without entering cities to be peasant-workers, which impressed the couple most.

The couple began to rebuild their old countryside house, which was updated to have a hall, a tea room, a kitchen, and a dining room. Japanese cherry trees were planted in the east courtyard. A swimming pool was placed in the west courtyard, with a bar located on one side.

Li and her husband love gardening and music, and their new home gives them enough space to continue their interests and relax in the heart of nature. Li wants to share the quiet country life, so she makes her new home a homestay. During the summer holiday in 2023, their My Own little Yard — homestay became an online hit after guests shared their experiences on social media.

1. How did Li feel about city life?

A．Satisfied.

B．Attractive.

C．Noisy.

D．Tired.

2. What impressed the couple most when they went back to their village?

A．Villagers becoming rich.	B．Many many homestays
C．Their old countryside house.	D．Scenery of Mount Emei.

3. What can we infer about the homestay from paragraph 3?

A．It is ancient and broken.	B．It can hold many guests.
C．It has been rebuilt by the couple.	D．It must have been carefully designed.

4. What’s the passage mainly about?

A．Sichuan homestays are very popular.

B．The Emei Mountain attracts many travelers.

C．A couple gives up city life to run a homestay.

D．The villagers have earned lots of money as peasant-workers.

4 . The Golden Week is just about to end and soon we will be back at school. It’s with both happiness and sadness. I look forward to seeing my friends and starting practice again, but it also means that I’m officially going through the placement test (分班考试) in less than half a year. From that time on I can choose some subjects I am good at and like. With school starting there are new club activities to try out and experience. For example, Lily is starting a new sport, Track. It’s similar to Cross Country, which I did before The Golden Week.

Being here for a month now, I can easily tell the differences between my junior and senior schools. The hardest or most different part for me was to have the same schedule every day here. Honestly, I prefer to have different classes every day, as I did in my junior school. However, I have fallen in love with the Friday football games. Football is one of my favorite sports now. Before I came, I knew nothing about it. Now I love it, especially to watch it with my junior schoolmates. In Golden Week, we have also been so lucky to go to two school football games.

Before I left school on the Golden Week, I had a test called Weekly Test. Mostly because I didn’t have too many hard classes, it went pretty smoothly. My favorite class is English, and also my hardest. Personally I really like English, where I could write essays (文章), challenge writing skills and improve English talking.

With the end of the Golden Week, I expect to get starting again, starting a new sport and see my friends and classmates.

1. Why does the author feel sad before school starts again?

A．Her homework is not finished.	B．The placement test will take place soon.
C．Her school life will get harder.	D．The new sport no longer attracts her.

2. How does the author’s junior school differ from the one she is in now?

A．The holidays are longer.	B．The teachers are kinder.
C．The meals are healthier.	D．The courses are richer.

3. What does the author enjoy doing most with his junior schoolmates?

A．Watching football matches.	B．Playing video games.
C．Having a talk in English.	D．Visiting her relatives.

4. What does the underlined word “it” in the third paragraph refer to?

A．Class.

B．Game.

C．Test.

D．Student.

5 . Who says you have to stay indoors when the temperatures drop? Here are favourite places to explore this winter.

Athens, Greece

In Athens, every November temperatures stay around the mid-20s, so’ have a trip to the Parthenon and Acropolis. A full afternoon is also necessary for exploring the Museum of Cycladic Art and its exhibitions—recently it has hosted Picasso’s.

Edinburgh, UK

Yes, it’s probably going to be freezing cold. Hot coffee steams up in a pleasing, romantic fashion in cafes. People can take a few minutes’ walk from the Scottish National Portrait Gallery.

For simple Scottish dishes there’s neighbourhood inn, the Little Chartroom. And the Sheep Heid Inn has been long enough to have served Mary Queen of Scots. In the eight bedrooms at the 18th century Rock House, each is a mixture of ancient details and current fashion.

Valletta, Malta

Flights from the UK to Malta’s capital are only around £30, making it one of the best destinations for a November trip. This tiny city has a temperature of 17 or so and has changed itself into a year-round city break with artistic cafes, hotels and newly opened galleries—Muza opened last year and houses the former National Gallery collection.

1. Which place has exhibited Picasso’s works lately?

A．Muza.	B．The Museum of Cycladic Art.
C．National Gallery.	D．Scottish National Portrait Gallery.

2. Which of the following is the coldest in winter?

A．Athens.

B．Valletta

C．Huarz

D．Edinburgh.

3. What is special about Rock House?

A．It served the Queen of Scotland.	B．It has at least eight kinds of rooms.
C．It combines ancient and modern styles.	D．It offers Scottish local specialties.

6 . I live in Xizhou in Yunnan Province, on the historic Tea Horse Road. I have to admit that when I first heard that Paul Salopek was going to walk the entire globe on his own two feet, I was blown away. I couldn’t imagine that there could be such an unusual person in the world.

Last May, I met Paul. He told me that it was his first time in China. He talked to me with great excitement about the history, migrations, and discoveries in my region of China. He spoke of the Shu-Yandu Dao (the Southern Silk Road), the travels of the 17th-century Chinese explorer Xu Xiake, the Tea Horse Road and the early 20th-century American botanist Joseph Rock. He also talked of Xuanzang. Paul considered many of them heroes and in a sense Chinese pioneers of slow journalism.

I decided to accompany Paul on his walk toward Yunnan. On September 28, 2021, we set out. Our days were simple: walk, eat, sleep, and repeat. We woke up at sunrise, set off in high spirits, and rested at sunset, dragging ourselves into exhausted sleep.

We met many people on the road. Some were curious, surrounding us and watching us; some gave us directions; some invited us into their home to take a rest; some spoke of the charm of their hometown. We met many beautiful souls, simple souls and warm souls. We were walking with our minds.

Together, we were impressed by the biodiversity of the Gaoligong Mountains. As I walked on ancient paths through mountains, I seemed to hear the antique voices of past travelers urging me to be careful on the road.

Looking back on the more than 200 miles I walked with Paul, I came to a realization. Walking for its own sake, while healthy and admirable, is only a small part of the benefit of moving with our feet. A deeper reward is rediscovering the world around us, shortening the distance between each other, and sharing each other’s cultures.

1. How did the writer first respond to Paul’s travel plan?

A．Scared.	B．Puzzled.
C．Disappointed.	D．Surprised.

2. What can we learn about Paul Salopek from paragraph 2?

A．He was a western journalist.	B．He had a knowledge of China.
C．He came to China several times.	D．He was Joseph Rock’s acquaintance.

3. What does paragraph 4 tell us about the writer and Paul?

A．They honored the ancestors.	B．They set off in high spirits.
C．They satisfied the locals’ curiosity.	D．They built bonds with people.

4. What is the main purpose of the writer’s writing the text?

A．To share and reflect on a journey.	B．To suggest a new way of travel.
C．To advocate protection of biodiversity.	D．To introduce and promote Chinese culture.

7 . Just wanting a hamburger, Hembert Figueroa was surprised to learn the dollar bills in his pocket were no good at Dos Toros Taqueria in Manhattan.

Figueroa, an ironworker, had to stand to the side, holding his hamburger, until a cashier helped him find another customer willing to pay for his meal with a card in exchange for cash. “I had money but I couldn’t pay,” he said.

Cash-free stores are causing a backlash among some activists who say the practice looks down upon people like Figueroa, who either lack bank accounts or rely on cash for many transactions (交易).

Supporters for banning cashless stores worry that technology is moving too fast for the 6.5% of American households—8.4 million—that do not have a bank account.

Business owners who go cashless say they are following the lead of majority of customers who are abandoning cash payments. Retailers are under pressure to satisfy customers with higher expectations for fast and convenient service, driven by companies like Amazon and Uber.

Leo Kremer, co-worker of Dos Toros, said the amount of cash transactions at his stores fell from about 50% a decade ago to 15% last year. Cash transactions made handling cash especially troublesome. Before going cashless, Dos Toros locations were robbed twice.

Financial experts who work with low-income people caution against making assumptions about the shopping preferences or buying power of those who rely on cash. Justine Zinkin, CEO of Neighborhood Trust Financial Partners, said the greater urgency in the digital time is finding ways to better include low-income people in the banking system, such as urging banks to offer no-fee starter accounts and encouraging banks to open branches in underserved areas.

1. What trouble was Hembert Figueroa faced with at Dos Toros Taqueria?

A．He failed to find a cashier for help.	B．He couldn’t make a deal with cash.
C．He took no money or a card with him.	D．He was caught carrying false bank notes.

2. What does the underlined word “backlash” in paragraph 3 mean?

A．Strong disagreement.

B．Warm welcome.

C．Heated debate.

D．High expectation.

3. What did Justine Zinkin suggest according to the text?

A．Making regulations to ban cashless stores.

B．Raising the buying power of low-income people.

C．Finding ways for banks to adapt with the digital time.

D．Making banks more accessible to low-income people.

4. What’s the main idea of this passage?

A．An introduction of cashless stores, a new form of transaction.

B．An introduction of cashless stores, a production of new technology.

C．A discussion about whether cashless stores are lawful.

D．A discussion about whether cashless stores should be banned.

8 . Parents are an enormously powerful force in the lives of children. Whether Johnny can read, whether Johnny knows right from wrong, whether Johnny is a happy, well-adjusted kid or shy and bad-tempered, has a whole lot to do with the kind of parenting Johnny has received. If Johnny’s mom and dad have been able to come through with lasting, determining loving attention, the odds (可能性) are that Johnny is on track to become a productive, compassionate citizen. If they have not, Johnny is in trouble—and so is our nation.

Thirty years ago Chicago sociologist James S. Coleman showed that parental involvement mattered far more in determining school success than any quality of the formal education system. Across a wide range of subject areas, in literature, science and reading, Coleman estimated that the parent was twice as powerful as the school in determining achievement at age fourteen. Psychologist Lawrence Steinberg, who recently completed a six-year study of 20,000 teenagers in nine different communities, confirms the importance of parents. Steinberg shows that one out of three parents is “seriously disengaged” from his or her adolescent’s education, and this is the primary reason why so many American students perform below their potential—and below students in other rich countries.

A weight of evidence now shows obvious links between absent parents and a wide range of behavioral and emotional problems in children. A 2017 study of 90,000 teenagers—the Add Health Project undertaken by the Carolina Population Center and the Adolescent Health Program at the University of Minnesota—found that youngsters are less likely to get hopeless, use drugs or become involved in crime when they spent significant time with their parents. This study found that only the physical presence of a parent in the home after school at dinner and at bedtime significantly reduces the incidence of risky behavior among teenagers.

1. What can be inferred from paragraph 1?

A．Children should be taught to be successful in life.

B．Children are affected by many factors during the growth.

C．Parents’ character has a deep influence on children.

D．Parents should be strict with their children about behaviors.

2. What does the underlined word “they” in paragraph I refer to?

A．Odds.

B．Parents.

C．Citizens.

D．Children.

3. What’s the purpose of Lawrence Steinberg’s research?

A．To know the importance of parents’ company.	B．To find out why there are so many crimes.
C．To get ways to prevent teenagers’ bad behaviors.	D．To find links between parents’ education and crimes.

4. What’s the author’s attitude towards parents’ company with children?

A．Dismissive.

B．Doubtful.

C．Favorable.

D．Unclear.

9 . It can be tough to pull kids away from their computers and mobile devices these days. While they’re playing games, wouldn’t it be great if they could be learning at the same time? Good educational apps offer fun challenges that teach specific grade-level skills. Here are four apps that combine fun and learning.

Understanding Math ($3.99; iOS)

Understanding Math goes beyond basic comprehension to gain a deeper understanding of the whys and hows of math. The app tracks your child’s progress to determine strengths and weaknesses in different skill areas, and you can customize (改制) your child’s learning experience to suit the needs.

Word Creativity Kit ($2.99; iOS)

Word Creativity Kit aims not only to make creative writing fun but also build up grammar rules. The app presents a series of words from seven categories, such as space or fantasy. Kids add their own words to finish the complete thoughts that these words have inspired.

Barefoot World Atlas ($4.99; iOS)

Barefoot World Atlas helps kids learn about geography and world cultures with a touch of the screen. Each region features a set of subtopics from wildlife and natural features to native, and architecture. These facts and illustrations are delivered in photographs, sounds, and hundreds of mini videos.

My Grades & Homework ($80.99; iOS)

A combination of grades and homework tracker, My Grades &Homework can help your child stay organized and on top of the progress in school. A convenient calendar and course list format offer a glance at your child’s assignment schedule that he or she might not normally get from standard homework planners.

1. Which app is beneficial to children’s writing skills?

A．Understanding Math.	B．My Grades & Homework.
C．Barefoot World Atlas.	D．Word Creativity Kit.

2. What do the four apps have in common?

A．They need purchasing when downloading.	B．They help children improve their grades.
C．They make studies fun by mini videos.	D．They inform parents of their children’s progress.

3. What is the purpose of the text?

A．To encourage parents to prevent their children from playing games.

B．To advocate more educational apps combining fun and learning

C．To introduce four educational apps for readers to buy and use.

D．To ask readers to design more interesting educational apps for children.

10 . I have dreamed of taking a trip to Hawaii since I graduated, but the best thing always needs waiting.

I took a trip with my friends to Haleakala National Park, which lies in Hawaii.

When we arrived at Haleakala National Park, we were advised to watch the early morning sunrise. I was lost in the sightseeing (观光) that afternoon, so I could hardly wait to see the sunrise. The next morning, we all got out of bed very early and got to the seaside at 3 o’clock. In the first half an hour, we imagined how wonderful it would be when the first light came out through the thick clouds and how soft it would be when the light touched our skin, so we waited and waited. However, another half an hour later, I gradually lost my patience since there was nothing but the chilly darkness, and I felt that I was frozen to death. (冻死) But my friends were still extremely cheerful.

Nearly another one hour later, “Amazing!” Judy burst out and we all shouted to welcome the light, which was really unbelievable. Until today, I dare say that it is the most impressive sunrise in my life. However, waiting in the morning darkness is also one memory I can’t forget forever.

Waiting sometimes is really a hard thing for most of us as it needs patience and strong-willed determination (决心) , but what about the result after that? It might turn out to be pleasing and unbelievable. So, it is really worth (值得的) waiting for the best.

1. What can we learn from the passage?

A．he author’s friends and the author took a trip to China.

B．Hawaii is a good place to enjoy the sunrise.

C．Sometimes, it is worth waiting for the best.

D．The author enjoyed the worst sunrise in his life.

2. When did they see the first light of the sunrise?

A．About 3 o’clock.	B．About 4 o’clock.
C．About 5 o’clock.	D．About 6 o’clock.

3. What’s the meaning of the underlined word in Paragraph 2?

A．Total.

B．Cold.

C．Terrible.

D．Interesting.

4. How did the author feel when waiting for the sunrise?

A．Excited all the time.	B．Afraid all the time.
C．Firstly excited then afraid.	D．Firstly excited then impatient.