1 . History Fair Competition
Understanding history is vital to understanding ourselves as a people and as a nation.
History is much more than the study of dusty old objects and events long past. It is an essential part of who we are today and who we will become. Thornton Middle School History Fair Competition makes understanding history exciting, engaging, and fun!
This Year's Theme
All participants must address how communication or transportation technology has promoted the quality of life for Americans throughout history. To many people, technology means computers, hand-held devices, or vehicles that travel to distant planets. However, technology is also the application of scientific knowledge to solve a problem, touching lives in countless ways.
Individuals or groups may enter one of the following categories:
Performance
Documentary（纪实作品）
Essay Writing
Category Requirements
Performance: A dramatic presentation of the topic no more than 10 minutes long. If special clothes are used, they should truly represent a given period.
Documentary: A visual presentation (such as a video, slide show, or computer project) no more than 10 minutes long . A desktop computer, screen, projector, and loudspeakers will be available. Students must provide their presentations on CDs before Friday, March 23.
Essay Writing: An academic paper of 2,000 to 2,500 words. No illustrations are allowed. Please do not include covers. A list of references must be included.
Important Dates
January 5 Submit（提交）a topic proposal to your history teacher. The teacher may require a second proposal if the first is off-topic or unclear.
February 5 Submit a first draft of your essay, performance script（剧本）, or documentary highlights.
February 19 A committee of teachers will evaluate materials and give opinions. Students then have an opportunity to improve their products.
March 9 Submit a final draft of your essay.
March 15 Performance and documentary committee preview
March 24 Thornton Middle School History Fair Competition
7:00 A.M. -- 9:00 A.M. Participants signing in at the gym
10:00 A.M. -- 6:00 P.M. Competition and judges' review
7:00 P.M. Awards ceremony and picnic
1. What is the theme of this year's competition?
| A．Technology advances science. |
| B．Science interacts with technology. |
| C．Science has made the study of history easy. |
| D．Technology has improved the life of Americans.. |
| A．special clothes and a screen | B．a desktop computer and a CD |
| C．a projector and special clothes | D．a desktop computer and loudspeakers |
| A．Include more information in the essay. | B．Remove the references. |
| C．Provide a cover for the essay. | D．Explain the details with illustrations. |
| A．Preview performances and documentaries. |
| B．Make comments on the materials. |
| C．Improve the participant's first draft. |
| D．Collect a second proposal from the participant. |
2 . The Great Wall of China winds across the country like a giant stone snake. It is 1,500 miles long, the Wall crosses mountains and rivers. It reaches from the ocean on the east to the desert on the west. The Chinese began their Wall more than 2,000 years ago. They worked on it for hundreds of years. The Chinese wanted to keep out their enemies. At the bottom, the Wall is 25 feet wide. At the top it is about 15 feet wide. The sides of the wall are made of stone and brick, while the inside is filled with earth. Parts of the Wall rise as high as three-storey buildings. Every 100 yards along the Great Wall there is a watchtower where soldiers used to stand to watch for enemies approaching(到来). The road on top of the Wall is wide enough for two wagons(马车) to pass. If we were to build such a Wall now, we would use modern machines. But the Chinese had to build the Wall all by hand. If the Wall were in our country, it would reach from the state of New York to Nebraska. The Great Wall of China is the longest wall ever built.
1. The passage does not say so, but it makes you think that the Great Wall _____.| A．has a gate every 100 yards | B．is used as a road today |
| C．is still as useful today as it was | D．is as high as three-storey buildings |
| A．It stops the wind from blowing. | B．It can move. |
| C．It looks like a snake. | D．It is very long. |
| A．The Great Wall China was built with modern machinery. |
| B．The Great Wall goes from New York to Nebraska. |
| C．There are many snakes inside the Great Wall. |
| D．The writer of the passage is an American. |
3 . Are you interested in Chinese traditional arts? Do you want to learn how to make them by hand? If so, come and join our clubs this weekend in our school.
Sky Lantern Club
Introduction:Sky Lanterns are made of bamboo and covered with paper. They were first used to ask for help when people were in trouble. Today, they are used to show happiness and good wishes.
Time:Saturday 8:30am— I0:30am
Place:Building 3 Room 501
Paper Cutting Club
Introduction:Paper Cutting turns a simple thing like a piece of paper into a beautiful piece of art. Pictures about flowers, animals and so on are put on windows, doors and walls as symbols of good wishes and good luck.
Time:Saturday 9:00an_11:00am
Place:Building 3 Room 502
Chinese Knot Club
Introduction:Chinese Knots are usually made of red and yellow ropes. They are used to express good wishes, including happiness, love, peace and so on.
Time:Sunday 2:30p.m —4 :30p.m
Place:Building 3 Room 603
1. What are Sky Lanterns made of?| A．Clay and paper | B．Cloth and steel. |
| C．Red and yellow ropes | D．Bamboo and paper. |
| A．Building 3 Room 501 | B．Building 3 Room 502 |
| C．Building 3 Room 603 | D．Building 3 Room 520 |
| A．A notice. | B．A story |
| C．A fiction. | D．A piece of news |
Juliano thinks that cooked food makes us sick. “Food is alive, like you and me. When you cook food, you take away some of the vitamins,” he says. Juliano never eats food that is over 50 degrees. His restaurant doesn’t have a stove（火炉）or a microwave（微波炉）. But he has lots of clever ideas for making raw food taste great. Instead of heat, Juliano uses water to prepare food. He puts foods in water to make them soft. For example, he places beans in water for a few days and rice in water for two to four weeks.
Everything at the restaurant is cold, and the pizza and the rice taste good. So do the fruit and vegetable juices made from carrots, apples, oranges and so on. Juliano’s restaurant doesn’t serve meat, but some people who eat raw food also eat raw meat. Juliano has three friends who ate raw meat. They all got very sick. One of them is still sick.
Juliano eats mostly fruits, vegetables, nuts, rice and beans. He says he feels very healthy. “Raw food gives you lots of energy,” he says. Juliano says he needs only six hours of sleep a night, and he never gets sick.
1. How is the food in Juliano’s restaurant prepared?
| A．Foods are heated on a stove to a certain degree. |
| B．Foods are cooled in a fridge. |
| C．Foods are put into water to make them soft. |
| D．Foods are boiled and then cooled. |
| A．Carrot juice. | B．Cold pizza. | C．Hot meat. | D．Raw rice. |
| A．Eating raw meat may make people sick. |
| B．People will like eating raw food in the future. |
| C．Juliano has not enough money to buy cooking equipment. |
| D．Restaurants like Juliano’s are very popular in America. |
| A．A special restaurant in San Francisco. |
| B．A man who eats only raw food. |
| C．Raw food is better than cooked food. |
| D．How to make raw food taste good. |
