1 . My favourite book is The Adventure of Tom Sauyer by Mark Twain. Tom lives with his aunt Polly in a quiet street of St. Petersburg, Missouri. He’s a lively and clever young boy, and he finds himself in many exciting adventures. He runs away with his two friends, Huck Finn and Joe, to an island in the middle of the Mississippi River for several days. With Huck he goes looking for treasure, with Becky he gets lost in a cave. And finally, they find a box of gold.
My favourite scene in the book is when everyone thinks Tom is dead. He decides to go to his own funeral(葬礼). He hides and watches for a time and then suddenly he appears. Everyone is surprised to see him but they’re also pleased to see him alive.
Tom is the hero of the story, but there are other important characters. Huck is an outsider and everyone is afraid of him. Becky is pretty with fair hair, Joe is Tom’s best friend. And Injun Joe is the bad man of the story.
The theme of the story is about children growing up. It describes how strangers are seen in small towns of America. Finally, it talks about freedom, social rules and how people are punished for bad behaviour.
Why do I think The Adventure of Tom Sawyer is a great book? Mark Twain wrote the story in 1876, but it’s still read and loved by people all over the world today. And although it’s only a story, Twain wrote it in the everyday English of the southern states of America in the 19th century, so it sounds very real. Today its thought to be one of the greatest books in American literature. Go on-read it! I know you’ll enjoy it, too.
1. Where does Tom run away with his two friends?| A．To a quiet street. | B．To a small town. | C．To an island. | D．To a forest. |
| A．Huck Finn. | B．Joe. | C．Becky. | D．Polly. |
| A．They were surprised and happy. |
| B．They were surprised and sad. |
| C．They were worried and excited. |
| D．They were frightened and happy. |
| A．To recommend the book for you. |
| B．To explain the history of America. |
| C．To tell us when Mark Twain wrote the story. |
| D．To explain why the story sounds very real. |
2 . Josh Morrison, 17, dreamed of raising $100,000 to build a home for a low-income family. After years of hard work, his dream has come true. The house is now in the early stages of building.
Six years ago, Josh and his dad went into the Habitat for Humanity ReStore, a home improvement store and donation center run by the nonprofit organization. They were there to buy a sink. Josh, then 11, also noticed a collection of pennies. “I instantly felt the urge to help with that,” he said. Josh set a fund-raising deadline of four years. Many people doubted whether he could reach his goal of $100,000, but it didn’t shake his faith. He devoted his time to raising money at his school and other nearby schools. He collected money from neighbours, got publicity from local newspapers, and placed cans in stores so that people could donate extra change.
Josh’s fund-raising efforts began to produce results. Still, there were challenges. Four months before his deadline, he was $ 30,000 short. He decided to hold a Family Fun Fair and Spaghetti Dinner event in Uxbridge, which is in the province of Ontario. The event raised $19,000.
“I didn’t care how long it took me,” said Josh. “I would raise $100,000.” With three weeks left, a company called Josh’s house and offered to donate $18,000. Eventually, Josh reached a total of $134, 000 before the deadline. “The momentum just kept going, and we decided to do more,” he said. “Josh’s Penny House” is being built by Habitat for Humanity in the city of Oshawa, along with 24 new town houses. Josh has helped with some construction, as have other volunteers. He will choose the family that moves into the unit.
Next year, the 17-year-old kid will head to college in British Columbia, Canada’s westernmost province. As an11-year-old kid when starting fund-raising, Josh was able to send a powerful message across the world. No matter how old you are, if you have a dream and are willing to do anything to achieve it, it can come true.
1. Which word can best describe Josh Morrison in Paragraph 2?| A．Cautious | B．Straightforward | C．Open-minded | D．Determined |
| A．To attain his goal. | B．To call for more attention. |
| C．To win approval from the locals. | D．To find sponsors for a family. |
| A．He received continuous donations. | B．His project became more popular. |
| C．He got more support from his family. | D．The result was beyond expectations. |
| A．Kindness from a Company | B．The Penny House Dream |
| C．A Fund-raising Campaign | D．A Boy with a Warm Heart |
3 . Looking for work?
Tutors Wanted: Maths/Science/Humanities+Test Preparation
Wage: $27-30 per hour
Schedule: Afternoons, evenings, weekdays, weekends
Job description：
We’re looking for tutors to join us before the next school year starts. Our suitable candidate will be able to assist middle and high school students with test preparation and academic work in Maths, Science and/or Humanities.
We’ll pay for your training before this all and can also offer flexible summer tutoring chances, including teaching group classes. Once our fall semester starts on August 21, we’ll have even higher demands for tutoring sessions on Sundays from 1 pm to 8 pm as well as from 3 pm to 9 pm Monday — Thursday.
What we offer：
Flexible scheduling. Tutors work from 15 to 30 hours per week depending on availability and students’ demands. Free Sunday dinners during the academic year. Health insurance reimbursement (补偿) for staff working over 30 hours per week.
Applicants must：
Have a good command of the subjects they tutor.
Be willing to tutor students through the full academic year.
Application instructions:
E-mail us your CV. Tell us why you want to join Academic Trainers and describe your experience of tutoring students if you have any. Let us know your scheduling preferences and potential start date. Tell us which of the subjects you are able to tutor — Maths, Science and/or Humanities.
1. Which period of time needs the most tutors during the academic year?| A．Sunday afternoons and evenings. | B．Friday afternoons and evenings |
| C．Monday and Thursday mornings. | D．Saturday and Sunday mornings. |
| A．Comfortable accommodation. | B．Free job training every month. |
| C．Health insurance reimbursement. | D．Free meals during the academic year. |
| A．He/She must tutor all the subjects part-time. |
| B．He/She must be good at the subjects they tutor. |
| C．He/She must have a previous tutoring experience. |
| D．He/She must work every evening through the academic year. |
4 . For people who are interested in sound, the field of sound technology is definitely making noise. In the past, sound engineers worked in the back rooms of recording studios, but many of today’s sound professionals are sharing their knowledge and experience with professionals in other fields to create new products based on the phenomenon we call sound.
Sound can be used as a weapon. Imagine that a police officer is chasing a thief. The thief tries to escape. And the officer can’t let him get away. he pulls out a special device points it at the suspect, and switches it on. The thief drops to the ground. This new weapon is called a Long Range Acoustic Device (LRAD, 远程定向声波发射器). It produces a deafening sound so painful that it temporarily disables a person. The noise from the LRAD is directed like a ray of light and travels only into the ears of that person, but it is not deadly.
For those who hunger for some peace and quiet, sound can now create silence. Let’s say you are at the airport, and the little boy on the seat next to you is humming（哼唱）a short commercial song. He hums it over and over again, and you are about to go crazy. Thanks to the Silence Machine a British invention, you can get rid of the sound without upsetting the boy or his parents. One may wonder how the Silence Machine works. Well, it functions by analyzing the waves of the incoming sound and creating a second set of outgoing waves. The two sets of waves cancel each other out. Simply turn the machine on, point it at the target, and your peace and quiet comes back.
Directed sound is a new technology that allows companies to use sound in much the same way spotlights（聚光灯） are used in the theater. A spotlight lights up only one section of a stage; similarly, a “spotsound” creates a circle of sound in one targeted area. This can be useful for businesses such as restaurants and stores because it offers a new way to attract customers. Restaurants can offer a choice of music along with the various food choices on the menu, allowing customers more control over the atmosphere in which they are dining. Directed sound is also beginning to appear in shopping centers and even at homes.
1. What could be inferred from Paragraph 2 about the effect of the LRAD?| A．It causes temporary hearing loss | B．It slows down a running man |
| C．It makes it easy to identify a suspect | D．It keeps the suspect from hurting others |
| A．silence the people around you | B．remove the sound of commercials |
| C．block the incoming sound waves | D．stop unwanted sound from affecting you |
| A．They travel in circles | B．They clear the atmosphere. |
| C．They can be transformed into energy | D．They can be directed onto a specific area |
| A．creative designs of restaurant menus | B．ideal sound effects on the theater stage |
| C．different choices of music for businesses | D．strict control over any suspicious customer |
5 . U.S. actor Brent Hill studied the violin for seven years during his childhood. But, now, he couldn’t make a sound out of it. His latest role as Dewey Finn in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical, School of Rock, in which he plays with 36 talented child musicians, reminds him of his time as an instrumentalist.
Hill shared his story on arriving in Beijing. School of Rock is being staged in Beijing from March 22 until April 14 on its debut China tour. The musical staged its world premiere on Broadway in 2015.
The musical is based on the successful 2003 Hollywood comedy, starring Jack Black. The plot follows Dewey Finn, a failed rock star forced to make money as a substitute teacher at a private elementary school, where he turns a class of straight-A students into a rock band.
“The role, Dewey, is the biggest kid. I am a big kid in real life, so this part is not challenge. When I got the role, I did the exact same thing as Dewey who is a loser,” Hill says. “Working with child actors is exciting.”
Thousands of kids auditioned. Three-and-a-half months later, 36 made the cut. Samantha Zhang plays the role of Katie. She has practiced piano for seven years and violin for four but had to learn to play bass for the musical. “No many girls play bass. It’s so cool, and I feel like a rock star,” says the 13-year-old, who made her musical-theater debut in 2014. It’s the first time for the girl, who lives in Sydney with her Chinese parents, to visit China.
Webber became interested in the movie. He wrote 12 new songs. Hill says it’s difficult to get Black’s acting out of his subconsciousness. However, Webber’s songs enable Hill to make the role his own.
“School of Rock is about how music reaches and transforms everyone’s life especially children.” Webber said. “When the substitute teacher turned the straight-A student class into a rock band, it changed his life and theirs forever.”
1. What caused Hill to realize he was an unsuccessful violinist?| A．His latest role as Dewey Finn. | B．His childhood sufferings. |
| C．Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical. | D．36 talented child musicians’ performance. |
| A．He is the biggest child in his family. | B．He has staged the musical many times. |
| C．He liked to work with child actors. | D．He had the same experience as Dewey Finn. |
| A．She has little talent for music. | B．She enjoys her role of Katie. |
| C．She made her debut in China. | D．She was born in China. |
| A．Musicals lead to one’s success. | B．Webber’s new songs make little sense. |
| C．Music has significant effects in life. | D．Hill has performed in many musicals successfully. |
6 . Learning to say “yes, and”
When I first heard about the improvisation (即兴交流) class, I was hesitating. As a quiet and shy girl, I feared improvising in front of strangers. However, I knew I wanted to work as a science communicator after finishing my Ph.D., so it seemed like a perfect chance to learn how to speak and communicate with others effectively. I signed up, knowing the experience would give me help.
During our first class, we learned an important concept of improvisation: “yes, and.” It means that, as improvisers, we’d better accept what fellow performers say. If someone says that rhinos (犀牛) are librarians, for example, then rhinos are librarians. We do not question the logic; we say “yes” and then continue with the scene as if nothing is wrong.
The first few scenes were hard, but as weeks turned into months, I became more comfortable and even started to enjoy our classes. I became better at listening, relating to my conversation partners, and communicating clearly in the moment. Once when I was giving a presentation about my science, an audience member surprised me with a question that didn’t grow out of the information I’d presented. Instead of getting confused and nervous, I took the “yes, and” approach—accepting the question and letting my mind focus on why it was asked. That helped me find an appropriate answer. I got pretty excited about it.
The benefits of improvisation go beyond communication. Before attending the class, I would get stuck when my experiments produced unexpected data, thinking that I had made a mistake. But now, instead of getting discouraged, I will stay open to the possibility that the results are real, keep exploring the data and end up identifying a new type of cell—one that isn’t behaving as expected.
I think all scientists can benefit from this lesson. If the data say rhinos are librarians, then it’s worth finding out whether rhinos are, in fact, librarians. As scientists, our job isn’t to challenge data that support, a preconceived story, but to say “yes, and.”
1. Why did the author attend the improvisation class?| A．To get a different experience. |
| B．To finish her Ph.D. at university. |
| C．To give up her job as a science communicator. |
| D．To improve her speaking and communicating ability. |
| A．She formed her own idea quickly. |
| B．She came up with lots of creative responses. |
| C．She paid more attention to the logic of answers. |
| D．She became a good listener before giving an opinion. |
| A．explain the process of using the method |
| B．prove the benefits of the improvisation class |
| C．share her own research experiences with readers |
| D．attract fellow scientists to attend the improvisation class |
| A．They should attend the improvisation class. |
| B．They should question all preconceived ideas. |
| C．They should carry on research by admitting earlier data. |
| D．They should try to improve their academic knowledge. |
7 . Being stuck at home doesn’t mean that learning stops. In fact, it's just the opposite. Here are some activities and resources to foster (促进) kids' imagination and build their curiosity at home.
Let's Get down to ScienceThe science lab at school may be closed, but kids can still put on goggles and a white lab coat and learn at home. This Test Tube Experiment Kit will make them feel like a genius in no time. Kids will get the chance to learn about basic chemistry, physics, and more by creating pop-resistant bubbles, bouncy balls, and other objects.
To Infinity (无穷) and BeyondEarth is a part of the Milky Way, but do kids know how many galaxies there are in the universe? There are so many fun and fascinating things to learn about space that the possibilities truly go to infinity and beyond. A great way to start your child's educational space adventure is with this Discovery Real Life Sticker and Activity Book: Space.
Take a Walk on the Wild SideBiology class is in session! Here's kids' chance to get up close and personal with a great white shark without putting on a wetsuit. This 4D Great White Shark Anatomy Kit allows them to get an inside look at what makes these predators of the deep so powerful. And then take an even deeper dive into a shark's world with I'm a Shark.
Let your kid take advantage of this time at home and find new ways to keep exploring the world around him.
1. What is common among these activities above?| A．They are all performed outdoors. |
| B．They are all associated with physics. |
| C．They all recommend some resources for kids to study. |
| D．They are all carried out by the way of experimenting. |
| A．The Test Tube Experiment Kit. |
| B．Discovery Real Life Sticker and Activity Book: Space. |
| C．The 4D Great White Shark Anatomy Kit. |
| D．I'm a Shark. |
| A．To gain financial benefits. | B．To save kids from boredom. |
| C．To explore new technologies. | D．To inspire kids to study at home. |
8 . You probably know who Marie Curie was, but you may not have heard of Rachel Carson. Of the outstanding ladies listed below, who do you think was the most important woman of the past 100 years?
Jane Addams (1860-1935)Anyone who has ever been helped by a social worker has Jane Addams to thank. Addams helped the poor and worked for peace. She encouraged a sense of community (社区) by creating shelters and promoting education and services for people in need. In 1931, Addams became the first American woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize.
Rachel Carson (1907-1964)If it weren’t for Rachel Carson, the environmental movement might not exist today. Her popular 1962 book Silent Spring raised awareness(意识) of the dangers of pollution and the harmful effects of chemicals on humans and on the world’s lakes and oceans.
Sandra Day O’Connor (1930-present)When Sandra Day O’Connor finished third in her class at Stanford Law School, in 1952, she could not find work at a law firm because she was a woman. She became an Arizona state senator (参议员) and in 1981, the first woman to join the U. S. Supreme Court (最高法院). O’Connor gave the deciding vote in many important cases during her 24 years on the top court.
Rosa Parks(1913-2005)On December 1,1955, in Montgomery, Alabama, Rasa Parks would not give up her seat on a bus to a white passenger. Her simple act landed Parks in prison. But it also set off the Montgomery bus boycott (抵制). It lasted for more than a year, and kicked off the civil-rights movement. “The only tired I was, was tired of giving in,” said Parks.
1. What is Jane Addams famous for in history?| A．Her social work. | B．Her teaching skills. |
| C．Her efforts to win a prize. | D．Her community background. |
| A．Not having training in law. | B．Her little work experience in court. |
| C．Her identity as a woman. | D．Her poor financial conditions. |
| A．Jane Addams. | B．Rachel Carson. |
| C．Sandra Day O’Connor. | D．Rosa Parks. |
| A．They are highly educated. | B．They are truly creative. |
| C．They are pioneers. | D．They are peace-lovers. |
9 . Ten years ago, I went on a vacation in Italy. After climbing up a hill for a panoramic (全景的) view of the blue sea, white buildings and green olive trees, I paused to catch my breath and then positioned myself to take the best photo of this panorama.
Unfortunately, just as I took out my camera, a woman approached from behind, and planted herself right in front of my view. Like me, this woman was here to stop, sigh and appreciate the view.
Patient as I was, after about 15 minutes, I grew frustrated. Was it too much to ask her to move so I could take just one picture of the landscape? Sure, I could have asked her, but something prevented me from doing so. She seemed so content in her observation. I didn't want to mess with that. Another 15 minutes passed and I grew bored. The woman was still there. I decided to take the photo anyway.
Now when I look at the photo, I think her presence in the photo is what makes the image interesting. The landscape, beautiful on its own, somehow comes to life and breathes because this woman is engaging with it.
This photo, with the unique beauty that unfolded before me and that woman who "ruined" it, now hangs on a wall in my bedroom. What would she think if she knew that her figure is captured and frozen on some strangers bedroom wall? A bedroom, after all, is a very private space, in which some woman I don't even know has been immortalized (使永存). In some ways, she lives in my house.
Perhaps we all live in each other's spaces. Perhaps this is what photos are for: to remind us that we all appreciate beauty, that we all share a common desire for pleasure, for connection, for something that is greater than us. That photo is a reminder, a captured moment, an unspoken conversation between two women, separated only by a thin square of glass.
1. What happened when the author was about to take a photo?| A．Her camera stopped working. | B．A friend approached from behind. |
| C．Someone asked her to leave. | D．A woman blocked her view. |
| A．losing her patience | B．enjoying herself |
| C．waiting for the sunset | D．thinking about her past |
| A．The woman's existence in the photo. | B．The perfect positioning of the camera. |
| C．The rich color of the landscape. | D．The soft sunlight that summer day. |
| A．the need to be close to nature | B．the importance of private space |
| C．the shared passion for beauty | D．the joy of the vacation in Italy |
10 . At the foot of the Tianmu Mountain in Zhejiang, a homestay (民宿) is attracting travelers from far and wide, which has won architectural medal at the 2021 German iF Design Awards.
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 division at a company in Hangzhou, and her husband was a sales director. It was an ordinary situation where Li’s husband was on business trips a lot and Li still worked on weekends. City life sometimes is not easy.
In 2018, they quit jobs and went back to Dongtianmu village, which lies in a forest of bamboo. The first time they drove into the village was one late afternoon. The cooking smoke was rising from the foot of the mountain, which gave them a very different feeling from the city.
The homestay was built beside her husband’s old countryside house. The old house is preserved (保留), while a brand-new building was built on its side and the whole site is made up of four courtyards. It has been updated to have a hall, a tea room, a kitchen, a dining room. Japanese cherry trees are planted in the east courtyard. A swimming pool is 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. In 2019, the homestay became an online hit after guests shared their experiences on social media. “The longer I stay here, the more I feel it was the right choice to come back, and this is more meaningful than making money,” Li says.
1. How did Li feel about city life?| A．Satisfied. | B．Noisy. | C．Attractive. | D．Tired |
| A．The forest of bamboo. | B．The smoke of cooking. |
| C．The fresh air in the village. | D．The feeling of loneliness. |
| A．It is ancient and broken. | B．It can hold many guests. |
| C．It must have been carefully designed. | D．It has been rebuilt by the couple. |
| A．Continuing their music dream. | B．Living in the countryside. |
| C．Staying at the old house. | D．Developing a city. |
