1 . One of my wonderful memories is about a Christmas gift. Unlike other gifts, it came without wrap (包装).
On September 11th, 1958, Mum gave birth to Richard. After she brought him home from hospital, she put him in my lap, saying, “I promised you a gift, and here it is.” What an honour! I turned four a month earlier and none of my friends had such a baby doll of their own. I played with it day and night. I sang to it. I told it stories. I told it over and over how much I loved it!
One morning, however, I found its bed empty. My doll was gone! I cried for it.Mum wept and told me that the poor little thing had been sent to a hospital. It had a fever. For several days, I heard Mum and Dad whispering such words as “hopeless”, “pitiful”, and “dying”, which sounded ominous.
Christmas was coming. “Don’t expect any presents this year,” Dad said, pointing at the socks I hung in the living room.“If your baby brother lives, that’ll be Christmas enough.” As he spoke, his eyes filled with tears. I’d never seen him cry before.
The phone rang early on Christmas morning. Dad jumped out of bed to answer it. From my bedroom I heard him say, “What? He’s all right?” He hung up and shouted upstairs. “The hospital said we can bring Richard home!”
“Thank God!” I heard Mum cry.
From the upstairs window, I watched my parents rush out to the car. I had never seen them so happy. And I was also full of joy. What a wonderful day! My baby doll would be home. I ran downstairs. My socks still hung there flat. But I knew they were not empty; they were filled with love!
1. What happened to the author on September 11th, 1958?A.He got a baby brother. |
B.He got a Christmas gift. |
C.He became four years old. |
D.He received a doll. |
A.Impossible. | B.Boring. |
C.Difficult. | D.Fearful. |
A.Excitement. | B.Happiness. |
C.Sadness. | D.Disappointment. |
A.A sad Christmas day. |
B.Life with a lovely baby. |
C.A special Christmas gift. |
D.Memories of a happy family. |
2 . Foreign visitors to the UK might be disappointed when they learn that not everyone there speaks like Harry Potter and his friends. Usually, there’s an assumption by many non-Brits that everyone in Britain speaks with what’s known as a Received Pronunciation (RP,标准发音) accent, also called “the Queen’s English”. However, while many people do talk this way, most Britons speak in their own regional accents (口音).
Scouse, Glaswegian and Black Country — from Liverpool, Glasgow and the West Midlands — are just three of the countless non-RP accents that British people speak with. There are even differences in accents between towns or cities just 30 kilometers apart. What is even more disappointing is that not speaking in a RP accent may mean a British person is judged and even treated differently in their everyday life.
In a 2015 study by The University of South Wales, videos of people reading a passage in three different UK accents were shown to a second group of people. The group then rated how intelligent they thought the readers sounded. The lowestrated accent was Brummie, native to people from Birmingham, a city whose accent is considered working class.
However, there is no need to be disappointed though you are not speaking in a RP accent. In fact, doing the opposite may even give you strength.
Kong Seongjae, 25, is an Internet celebrity from Seoul. After studying in the UK, he picked up several regional accents. He’s now famous for his online videos, where he shows off the various accents he’s learned. “British people usually get really excited when I use some of their local dialect words, and they become much friendlier. I think it makes a bit of bond between local people and foreigners to speak in their local accent,” he said.
So if you’re working on perfecting your British accent, try to speak like someone from Liverpool, Glasgow or Birmingham. You may not sound like Harry Potter, but you are likely to make more friends.
1. What can we infer from Paragraph 1?A.Non-Brits usually hold that all Britons speak in a RP accent. |
B.Only “the Queen’s English” is accepted in the UK. |
C.Foreign visitors are disappointed at their on spoken English. |
D.Any Received Pronunciation around the world is also called “the Queen’s English”. |
A.Favored by foreign visitors to the UK. | B.Closest to the RP accent. |
C.Smart and easy to understand. | D.Spoken by people of lower class. |
A.Speaking in a RP accent. | B.Speaking in regional accents. |
C.Speaking the Brummie accent. | D.Speaking like Harry Potter. |
A.A study about the most intelligent accent in Britain. |
B.A comparison between different British accents. |
C.How much British people value the RP accent. |
D.The influence of regional accents on people’s lives. |
3 . Top 4 Traditional Summer Jobs for College Students
With the summer break around the corner, students will be looking for seasonal and short-term jobs for extra cash, to stay busy or to make additions to their resume (简历). The following jobs have been longtime go-tos for many young adults.
Lifeguard
Because summer is the busiest season for pools and beaches, lots of summer jobs exist for strong swimmers. Lots of positions can be found at community and neighborhood pools, while those who live near the coastline can also find positions at public beaches. These jobs are a great opportunity to build your fitness, keep people safe and be outdoors to enjoy some fun in the sun. The average hourly wage for lifeguards is $9.50.
Camp Counselor (辅导员)
Students, who enjoy spending their time with children, being a leader and overseeing fun, outdoor activities are often the perfect fit for camp counselor positions. Students studying science, for example, can work at a science camp, while those with a creative talent can work at an arts-focused summer program. The average hourly wage for camp counselors is $9.28, but those with years of experience or specific academic backgrounds may earn more.
Sales Associate
Students with a skill for persuasion and helpfulness often enjoy sales associate jobs. Students interested in business, finance or sales/marketing often gravitate (被吸引) towards these roles, but they’re also a great fit for anyone seeking a low-pressure summer position or even just a discount at their favorite store. The average wage is $10.20 hourly.
Food Server
Although it may not seem like the greatest way to spend a summer, working as wait staff allows students to build their social skills, stay active, enjoy free meals while working and familiarize themselves with different cuisines. The average salary is $9.00 hourly, but tips can raise that number hugely.
1. Being a lifeguard means you can___________.A.work indoors only | B.work near your home |
C.have fun with your friends | D.work without certifications |
A.It requires students to be good at outdoor activities. |
B.A background in a specific area may provide an advantage. |
C.It offers the highest average hourly wage among the four jobs. |
D.The experience of babysitting can help you earn more money. |
A.Enjoy free meals. | B.Enjoy lower purchase prices. |
C.Develop a set of new skills. | D.Build a career for sales or marketing. |
A.How to deal with people. | B.How to deal with pressure. |
C.How to grow their patience. | D.How to make different cuisines. |
A.Lifeguard. | B.Camp counselor. | C.Sales associate. | D.Food server. |
4 . After I entered high school, I attended advanced classes and I had a teacher who made me think I was stupid.
In my freshman year, I had trouble writing essays for that teacher. She was strict. She made fun of me, sometimes in front of the class. It didn’t help that my friend was a genius (天才) who would text me the night before our essay was due (到期) and ask, “ What is the essay about again?” She would receive a 97 and I would receive an 80 even though I had revised (修正) and edited that piece for two weeks. Once I got a 97 on a project that took me two and a half weeks to complete, and I was asked how much help my mom had given to me. In the second grade, I had trouble with my essay writing once again. Besides, I had problems in Maths even though I understood the concepts.
Now I am in a new school and taking many subjects and I am doing well. Actually in the beginning, I was nervous. I thought I would fail all of my classes because my previous teachers had failed me and made me ashamed to try. I thought I was just going to get another 80 on an essay. It is hard indeed. They are fast-paced courses and it isn’t easy to keep up with all the readings and when my next lab will be. But with so much adjustment (调整) to the stress, I have become confident. Now I know how much time I need to perfect that essay, and when to set aside time to meet with my tutor (老师) before my next biology exam.
I am writing this blog to the kids that have gotten lost in the mix---any adjusting freshmen, any lost kids in advanced classes, and the hidden genius in everyone. I went through two years in high school, thinking I was a little slower than the other kids in advanced classes. But in this new environment, with the experience I have received and my new-found confidence, I can say, “I’m Anne Hilker and I am smart!” We are all smart.
1. What did the author want to show by mentioning her friend?A.She faced a lot of competition. |
B.Her friend was a great help to her. |
C.Her friend made her feel even worse. |
D.Her teachers loved students like her friend. |
A.She felt very happy for the author. |
B.She praised the author in front of the class. |
C.She wasn’t pleased with the author’s mother. |
D.She didn’t believe it was finished by the author alone. |
A.Hard work doesn’t pay off. |
B.She isn’t as stupid as she feared. |
C.Fast-paced courses don’t benefit her. |
D.Advanced classes aren’t suitable for her. |
A.To show students should study very hard. |
B.To tell teachers to believe in their students. |
C.To show teachers should be kind to their students. |
D.To tell students to learn to face stress and have confidence. |
A.Inspired | B.Disappointed | C.Moved | D.Anxious |
5 . Here are some of the coolest robots in the world.
Pleo
Pleo is one of the most good-looking robots on the market. The robot is designed to learn from its experiences, and the environment it is kept in. Pleo has become especially popular among children, as it could be used for both entertainment and educational purposes. It exhibits lively behavior like eating and sleeping. It can now be bought at a price of $469.
BigDog
BigDog is the most advanced rough land robot on earth. Designed to serve military (军事的) uses, the machine is around 3 feet long, 2.5 feet tall, and weighs 240 pounds. The robot can move on rough land at a speed of four miles per hour, and is able to carry up to 340 pounds of weight.
I-Sobot
An Amazing human-like robot, I-Sobot is one of the smallest human-like robots, with a height of just 6.5 inches and a weight of 12 ounces. It costs $300. It has become the most-produced robot in the world. This small robot can walk, play the air guitar, and perform about 200 moves. This robot can be controlled by either a remote control or voice commands.
Schaft
Schaft is an award-winning robot by Google. It looks like a man. Schaft can perform several tasks on its own, and is able to get through disaster areas and work with any tools and materials at hand. With the strength of 10 average people, Schaft is able to lift and clear heavy things. It weighs 209 pounds. It is able to move at a speed of 2km / h.
KeepOn
KeepOn is a small robot which can perform simple and natural interaction. Developed in 2015, KeepOn is an interactive toy designed to help children with autism(自闭症) in their social development, and costs anywhere from $40 to $100.
1. What makes Pleo different from the other four robots mentioned in the text?A.Being very cheap for customers. | B.Having a very special appearance. |
C.Having the ability to learn new things. | D.Being able to be played with all the time. |
A.Pleo | B.BigDog | C.I-Sobot | D.KeepOn |
A.It can move fast. | B.It is difficult to control. |
C.It is expensive to produce. | D.It has been very popular. |
A.Entertainment | B.Interacting with children |
C.Educational purposes | D.Performing rescue tasks |
A.Children who want to win an award. |
B.Old and lonely people who need much help. |
C.Parents with a child who cannot interact well. |
D.Parents who want their children to learn new things. |
6 . Exercise and I had never had a good relationship due to my fear of sports. From a young age, my dad
When I entered the University of Regina, my dad
The spring semester came. A friend of mine
I went, and that was it. Zumba became my
A.expected | B.allowed | C.forced | D.invited |
A.therefore | B.though | C.instead | D.besides |
A.avoided | B.risked | C.regretted | D.kept |
A.in shape | B.for fun | C.at ease | D.on business |
A.refused | B.happened | C.bothered | D.decided |
A.hardly | B.merely | C.constantly | D.gradually |
A.eager | B.content | C.embarrassed | D.disappointed |
A.cheated | B.comforted | C.asked | D.annoyed |
A.happy | B.proud | C.careful | D.sure |
A.cup | B.part | C.share | D.mouth |
A.curiosity | B.passion | C.fear | D.confidence |
A.perfect | B.positive | C.adorable | D.official |
A.accept | B.feel | C.display | D.compare |
A.witness | B.separate | C.discourage | D.save |
A.trouble | B.sense | C.peace | D.contact |
7 . When I was a boy growing up in New Jersey in the 1960s, we had a milkman delivering milk to our doorstep. His name was Mr. Basille. He wore a white cap and drove a white truck. As a 5-year-old boy, I couldn’t take my eyes off the coin changer fixed to his belt. He noticed this one day during a delivery and gave me a quarter out of his coin changer.
Of course, he delivered more than milk. There was cheese, eggs and so on. If we needed to change our order, my mother would pen a note — “Please add a bottle of buttermilk next delivery” — and place it in the box along with the empty bottles. And then, the buttermilk would magically (魔术般) appear.
All of this was about more than convenience. There existed a close relationship between families and their milkmen. Mr. Basille even had a key to our house, for those times when it was so cold outside that we put the box indoors, so that the milk wouldn’t freeze. And I remember Mr. Basille from time to time taking a break at our kitchen table, having a cup of tea and telling stories about his delivery.
There is sadly no home milk delivery today. Big companies allowed the production of cheaper milk, thus making it difficult for milkmen to compete. Besides, milk is for sale everywhere, and it may just not have been practical to have a delivery service.
Recently, an old milk box in the countryside I saw brought back my childhood memories. I took it home and planted it on the back porch (门廊) . Every so often my son’s friends will ask what it is. So I start telling stories of my boyhood, and of the milkman who brought us friendship along with his milk.
1. Mr. Basille gave the boy a quarter out of his coin changer to __________.A.show his magical power | B.pay for the delivery |
C.satisfy his curiosity | D.please his mother |
A.He wanted to have tea there. | B.He was a respectable person. |
C.He was treated as a family member. | D.He was fully trusted by the family. |
A.Nobody wants to be a milkman now. | B.It has been driven out of the market. |
C.Its service is getting poor. | D.It is not allowed by law. |
A.He missed the good old days. | B.He wanted to tell interesting stories. |
C.He needed it for his milk bottles. | D.He planted flowers in it. |
8 . Take a look inside a high school classroom. You will most likely find a teacher at the front of the class and students sitting at their desks. Yet, look closer, and you might notice a familiar scene: many of these students are not paying attention. Instead, they are dozing off (打盹) or even completely asleep.
Today, the majority of high school students are not getting enough sleep. This is a serious problem, especially as students are doing more than ever with their time. They come to school early, spend hours listening to teachers and taking tests, then run off to practices and meetings, and come home to be faced with even more work. And the homework load these days is not light; teachers give hours’ worth of homework each night.
Most kids need at least nine hours of sleep per night in order to function properly. Yet the period of this nine hours shifts as a child gets older. After puberty (青春期), the body’s internal clock changes so that it is difficult for teens to fall asleep before 11 p.m. So even if a student falls asleep at eleven, they would need to sleep until at least 8 am, to get a full night’s sleep. Considering the time at which most high schools in this country begin, those nine hours are clearly being shortened. Few high schools start after 8 a.m.
However, there are schools that have paid attention to this research and pushed backward the start of their school day. In schools where the start time is after 8:30 in the morning, the teachers believe that there has been a real change in their students. They note that the students miss class less, pay more attention in class, perform better in class, and report lower levels of depression. The researchers of these studies say that the results are quite important and that more schools should consider pushing backward their start time of their school day.
1. Which of the following would the author agree with?A.High school students must go to bed before 10 p.m. |
B.High schools should begin their school day at a later time. |
C.Most schools should push forward the start of their school day. |
D.Kids should shorten their sleep time gradually as they grow older. |
A.why high school students should get more sleep |
B.what’s life like for college students at present |
C.why high school students feel sleepy in the classroom |
D.how to lighten high school students’ homework load |
A.arrives | B.reduces | C.increases | D.changes |
A.Disappointed. | B.Satisfied. | C.Puzzled. | D.Surprised. |
9 . My new teacher is cool. Her name is Paula so we call her Miss Paula.
The first time we met her she said we are going to be good friends and that good friends are always nice to each other.
Miss Paula has been teaching us a lot of things. Some of us used to get in trouble for talking in the hallway (过道). Miss Paula says she can’t change the rule that we can’t make noise in the hallway but we can still talk to each other. She is teaching us sign language. I already know how to say “hello” and “how are you” with my hands. Now we love it when we have to walk somewhere and we are always quiet except for a laugh or two.
Miss Paula likes everybody even Sam and nobody likes Sam. He never does what he’s told but now he is doing better. Miss Paula says every single one of us is perfect and beautiful just the way we are. I guess that includes Sam.
This week at school was really the best ever. I didn’t even get in trouble when I thought I would because I spilled (洒) milk on my homework and had to hand it in when it was still wet. Miss Paula just smiled and asked “What’s this?” So I told her what happened. Miss Paula put it near the window to make it dry. She said the sun had been waiting for such an important job as this and would be happy to help us.
Well I have to go and get ready for bed now. I have school in the morning and I want to wake up early so I will have time to pick Miss Paula some flowers.
1. From the passage we know that Miss Paula ________.A.is strict with the writer | B.changed the school rules |
C.is very kind to her students | D.uses sign language in class |
A.Sam dislikes his new teacher. | B.Sam has made some progress. |
C.Sam is often praised by Miss Paula. | D.Sam is one of the writer’s best friends. |
A.Bored. | B.Excited. | C.Relaxed. | D.Worried. |
A.loves and respects her new teacher | B.is a bit afraid of her new teacher |
C.always picks her teacher some flowers | D.wrote this article in the morning |
10 . “Luck is a matter of preparation meeting opportunity, ” said the American talk show host Oprah Winfrey. I’ve never watched her show, but when a self-made billionaire gives life advice it’s probably worth listening to.
Her point is that blind luck is very rare. You may have to be lucky to find a good job these days but that does not mean you should sit at home waiting for the opportunity to come to you. If you’re a Chinese, you may already be familiar with the tale of a farmer waiting by a tree stump for a rabbit to run out and break its neck.
A book by the UK psychologist Richard Wiseman, called The Luck Factor, argues we can all make ourselves luckier. It’s most about going to a temple to burn some incense in hopes that the gods will give you good fortune, but practical advice you can follow each day.
Wiseman conducted an experiment as part of his studies. First he divided volunteers into two groups: those who said they were lucky in life and those who said they were not. He gave everyone a newspaper and asked them to look through it to count how many photographs it had inside. On average, the unlucky people took about two minutes to count the photographs while the lucky people took just seconds. Why? On the second page of the newspaper, a command, “Stop counting. There are 43 photographs in this newspaper,” was written in big letters. The unlucky people mostly did not spot the message.
It’s easy to compare this situation to a young person looking for jobs in a local paper. They might search so hard for one type of position that they miss an even better opportunity. People who are “lucky”, in fact, keep an open mind and don’t go through the same routine every day.
In a word, try to turn bad luck into good. Even if you do fall down and break a leg, the time spent at home can be used wisely to study English.
1. Which of the followings most agrees with the writer’s point?A.Success is for those who are prepared. | B.Rome was not built in a day. |
C.All is not gold that shines. | D.A good heart defeats ill fortune. |
A.She became famous through her family background. |
B.She was very lucky and seldom suffered difficulties in her life. |
C.She is a British talk show host. |
D.She became successful by her own effort. |
A.man can defeat mature | B.luck is your own hand |
C.bad luck can turn into good | D.never waiting for the chance to come |
A.lucky people are quick-minded | B.unlucky people are slow to read |
C.lucky people often have an open mind | D.unlucky people are more creative |
A.Discover | B.Mark | C.Make | D.Receive |