1 . Different countries celebrate Christmas in different ways. We asked some of our friends to explain what happens in their countries. This is what they told us:
France
In France, Christmas is always called Noël. Everyone has a Christmas tree, sometimes decorated in the old way with red ribbons and real white wax candles. Fir trees in the garden are often decorated too with lights on all night.
Father Christmas is called Père Noël. The Christmas meal is an important family gathering with good meat and the best wine. Few people send Christmas cards. More people send New Year cards to wish everyone good luck and joy for the New Year. These days Christmas lunch is a starter of foie gras (a strong tasting pate made from goose liver) followed by lunch of seafood — usually including lobsters and oysters.
New Zealand
Christmas starts for us with gifts under the tree, to be opened on Christmas morning. Then it’s onto a Christmas lunch either at home or at one’s parents place. Turkey or chicken with all the trimmings (佐料) is eaten. Then comes tea time. It is a BBQ for friends and family to get together, and have a few beers or wines with the meal!
Russia
In the days of the Soviet Union, Christmas was not celebrated very much. New Year was the important time — when “Father Frost” brought presents to children. With the fall of Communism, Christmas can be openly celebrated either on December 25th; or more often on January 7th. This unusual date is because the Russian Orthodox church uses the old “Julian” calendar for religious celebration days. Special Christmas food includes cakes, pies and “meat dumplings”.
Sweden
The most important day is Christmas Eve. A special Christmas meal is eaten on Christmas Eve — ham (pork), herring fish, and brown beans — and this is the time when families give presents to each other. Many people attend a church meeting early on Christmas Day.
1. Why do people in France send New Year cards?| A．To tell their friends the New Year is coming. |
| B．To ask for some special presents. |
| C．To invite their friends to family gathering. |
| D．To send their friends best wishes and happiness for the New Year. |
| A．A special meal is prepared. |
| B．Everyone has a Christmas tree. |
| C．Parents give gifts to their children. |
| D．People attend a church gathering. |
| A．France. | B．New Zealand. | C．Sweden. | D．Russia. |
内容包括：1. 活动目的；2. 注意事项；3. 呼吁参加。
注意：1. 词数100左右；2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
参考词汇：爱国的patriotic；爱国精神patriotism
The art of paper-cutting in China may date back to the second century, since paper
With
Chinese papercuts are rich in content. The auspicious（吉祥的）designs symbolize good luck and the avoidance of evil. The child, lotus and bat designs suggest a family with
4 . Yangzhou paper cutting, with a history of 2,000 years, can be dated back to the Sui Dynasty, making Yangzhou one of the places where paper cutting first became popular.
In the Sui Dynasty, the people of Yangzhou would cut colourful paper or silk and satin (缎子) to celebrate festivals. It is said that Emperor Yang came to Yangzhou three times. In winter, the flowers and trees in the garden became dry and weak. The emperor ordered the gril servants to cut fine silk and satin into flowers and leaves and use them to decorate the trees and lakes. Since then, “colorful cutting” has become a popular art in Yangzhou.
In the Tang Dynasty, the paper cutting industry was highly developed and a large amount of high-quality paper was made as presents to the Court (宫廷).
In the Qing Dynasty, because of the economic development, the people of Yangzhou became interested in wearing fine clothing, especially embroidered (刺绣的) clothing. The embroidered designs were based on paper-cuts, the most well-know of them was from Bao Jun, a paper cutting master. He won a high reputation (名声) as Magic Scissors for his wonderful cutting skills.
After the People’s Republic of China was started, the Chinese government accepted the importance of paper cutting like many other arts and skills. In 2007, China Paper-cuts Museum opened to the public in the back garden of the Wang’s Residence (住所), Yangzhou, greatly helping the development of Yangzhou paper cutting.
1. When did “colourful cutting” become a popular art in Yangzhou?| A．In the Sui Dynasty. | B．In the Tang Dynasty. |
| C．In the Ming Dynasty. | D．In the Qing Dynasty. |
| A．种植 | B．装饰 | C．浇水 | D．砍伐 |
| A．In 2007. | B．In 2008. | C．In 2009. | D．In 2010. |
| A．How to make paper cutting. |
| B．The way to cut paper. |
| C．The importance of Yangzhou paper cutting. |
| D．The history and development of Yangzhou paper cutting. |
5 . Many people may know Coachella, which is one of the largest, most famous and most profitable (盈利的)music festivals in the United States and all over the world. However, few people know Just for Laughs (JFL). Founded by Montreal producer Gilbert Rozon in 1983, Just for laughs is the largest international comedy festival in the world. Paul Ronca, the festival’s director, describes Just for Laughs as the Coachella of comedy. “If you’re a fan of comedy or work in it, this festival should be at the very top of your list,” he says.
Just for Laughs was originally a two—day French—only comedy event. In 1985, Andy Nulman joined the festival's staff and introduced English language events as well. Thanks to Andy Nulman, the festival grew from a two—day show to a month—long event drawing international audiences. In 1999, Nulman left the festival’s fall —time employ. However, he directed its major shows at the Saint—Denis Theatre every July, and remained on the board of directors of the festival's parent company. About II years later, Nulman returned to Just for Laughs in July 2010 as president of Festivals and Television.
Now Just for Laughs is coming Io Africa. A joint venture (合资企业) between the great comedy brand and a South Africa's company, Just for Laughs Africa will give the African comedians the opportunity of getting international publicity. The long—term continental partnership was announced during the 35th Montreal Comedy Festival, with the news that the first Just for Laughs Africa will take place in Durban, South Africa.
“We have already set up successful Just for Laughs festivals in many cities beyond Montreal including Toronto, Vancouver and Sydney, and we couldn’t be more excited by this new venture in South Africa ,” says Gilbert Rozon, president and founder of the Just for Laughs Group. “The opportunity to bring the experience of the Just for Laughs team to developing African comedy was one we just couldn’t decline, so we agreed on the partnership,” says Gilbert Rozon.
1. What can we learn from Paul Ronca’s words?| A．JFL is as popular as Coachella. |
| B．JFL plays an important role in comedy. |
| C．JFL has more supporters than Coachella. |
| D．JFL attracts many people to learning comedies. |
| A．Promoting JFL successfully. |
| B．Making JFL more profitable. |
| C．Introducing JFL to South Africa. |
| D．Helping JFL get more show invitations. |
| A．develop more skills | B．make Africa widely known |
| C．become known worldwide | D．improve the development of comedy |
| A．Doubt. | B．Explain. |
| C．Understand. | D．Refuse. |
Traveling abroad is gaining more
增加：在缺词处加一个漏词符号(∧)，并在其下面写出该加的词。
删除：把多余的词用斜线（\）划掉。
修改：在错的词下面划一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。
注意：1.每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；
2.只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。
The “ Foreign Cultures” section in our school’s newspaper are very popular among us students. It carries articles writing by foreign friends about the cultures of our home countries. And we will especial welcome articles about how English people spend their festivals the life of English high school students. You’d better to write something about the culture in your country. That we want is anything relevant so long as it’s interested and informative. 400 word will be fine. It is required that the articles will be sent before June 28.
8 . It may seem as if Mother's Day was invented by a company named Hallmark, but people have been taking time on the calendar to give a shout-out to Mom for a long time. The Greeks and Romans had mother goddess festivals — although their celebrations didn't involve the menfolk taking their underappreciated mothers out to dinner. A more recent tradition was Mothering Sunday, which developed in the British Isles during the 16th century. On the fourth Sunday in April, young men and women who were living and working apart from their families were advised to return to their mothers’ houses.
Mother's Day as it is observed in the United States started in the 1850s with Ann Jarvis, a West Virginia woman who held “Mothers' Work Days” to promote health and hygiene(卫生 ) at home and in the workplace. During the Civil War, Jarvis organized women to improve sanitary conditions for soldiers on both sides, and after the war she became a peacemaker, furthering the cause by bringing together mothers of Union and Confederate soldiers and promoting a Mother's Day holiday.
Jarvis's work inspired another 19th-century woman, Julia Ward Howe. In 1870 Howe published her “Mother's Day Proclamation”, which envisioned(设想) the day not as appreciation of mothers by their children but as an opportunity for women to exercise their collective power for peace. Howe started holding annual Mother's Day celebrations in Boston, her hometown, but after about a decade she stopped footing the bill and the tradition faded away.
It was Jarvis's daughter Anna who succeeded in getting Mother’s Day recognized as a national holiday. After her mother died, in May 1905, Anna started holding yearly ceremony on the anniversary and conducting a tireless PR campaign to have the day made a holiday. In 1908 she succeeded in enlisting the support of John Wanamaker, the Philadelphia department store magnate and advertising pioneer, and by 1912 West Virginia and a few other states had adopted Mother's Day. Two years later, President Woodrow Wilson signed a resolution declaring the second Sunday in May a national holiday.
It wasn't long, though, before whatever ideals the day was supposed to celebrate were buried under an amount of greeting cards and candy. By the 1920s Anna Jarvis was campaigning against the holiday she had been instrumental in creating. “I wanted it to be a day of emotionalism, not profit,” she said.
1. It can be inferred from the first paragraph that .| A．mothers didn't get enough appreciation in the past |
| B．Mother's Day was invented by Hallmark |
| C．young people all returned to their mothers' houses |
| D．Greeks and Romans were the first to celebrate Mother's Day |
| A．Ann Jarvis. | B．Julia Ward Howe. |
| C．Woodrow Wilson. | D．Anna Jarvis. |
| A．Because it was extremely emotional. |
| B．Because the festival was not profitable. |
| C．Because the celebrations went against the original spirit. |
| D．Because the day was celebrated in the form of exchanging greeting cards and candy. |
| A．The Definition of Mother’s Day |
| B．The Argument on Celebrating Mother's Day |
| C．The Story Behind the Creation of Mother's Day |
| D．Different Forms of Celebration on Mother's Day |
9 . What better way to experience the history of a site than to have a hand in actually preserving it? This was the thought behind the founding of Adventures in Preservation(AIP) in 2001. The nonprofit's founders.Judith Broeker and Jamie Donahoe, were both long time preservationists and world travelers. They had seen a great many buildings in poor condition, as well as buildings that had been“restored" without the benefit of conservation expertise.
Twelve years on, they are still involved in the day-to-day management of the organization, supported by a volunteer staff located around the world, Judith' s favorite projects have long been the ones in Eastern Europe, and she enjoys opportunity to travel there each year. She, along with anyone else who's joined an adventure, always quotes their fellow jammers, as they' re called, as the highlight of each project. The groups are made up of people from all different ages, occupations, and cultures.Yet each time, they form a strong bond and work so well together that the work becomes fun. Which,after all, is the point of a working vacation, no?
Raising understanding of people's own heritage(遗迹) is another part of AIP projects. In many places, there is so much focus on the news that not only are heritage buildings being lost but so are the traditional building skills needed to keep them. By providing training and raising awareness of the importance of their heritage, AIP is helping keep both alive.
Next year, AIP has projects in Europe and the US. There will be even more projects the following year as projects currently under development in Ghana, Armenia, Ukraine and the US come on line. Each project is also an opportunity for travel, adventure, and personal growth, and AIP welcomes people from around the world to join a project and“"jam" with them.
1. For what major purpose was AIP set up?| A．To gain wonderful benefits. | B．To protect old buildings. |
| C．To hunt for experts. | D．To train fresh hands. |
| A．Machines. | B．Projects. | C．Colleagues. | D．Organizations. |
| A．Ambition. | B．Education. | C．Wealth. | D．Effort. |
| A．AIP' s boom(繁荣). | B．AIP' s eagerness. |
| C．AIP' goal. | D．AIP' function. |
10 . There are many famous festivals around the world like the Carnivals in Rio and Venice Munich's Oktoberfest.Here are some unusual and crazy festivals in the world.
Mighty Mud Mania,USA
Children's dreams really do come true in the City of Scottsdale.Children aged 1 to 13,get to participate in a mud race.During the running of the Mighty Mud Obstacle(障碍物)course,several mud holes in the ground are intentionally placed as kids compete for the fastest time in each race.There are also mud puddle pools for small kids,and a mini mud course for those six and younger.
The New Straits Times Million Ringgit Charity Duck Race,Malaysia
Thirteen years ago,Eric Schechter and his friends were brainstorming to find new ways raising money for local charities when they came up with the idea of rubber duck races.The event,crazy as it may sound,involves racing“cool”rubber ducks down a local waterway and having members of the community"adopt"the ducks for a chance to win valuable donated prizes,possibly even＄1 million bucks.
Songkran Festival,Thailand
What better way to celebrate the"start of the return of rains"than with a country—wide water fight?Thais celebrate their festival officially from April 13th until April 15th.These three days represent the last day of the old year,the day of transition,and the first day of the New Year.These are days of cleaning the houses and the body,days of merry making,and renewal.Nothing evil has to be taken into the New Year.
Canberra Sled Dog Classic,Australia
Dog sledding is one of the fastest growing sports on the east coast of Australia.As there's no snow(the trail is earth and sand and is smooth and wide with a few hills and turns),the sleds have wheels instead of runners,but the excitement is the same.
1. What is special about Mighty Mud Mania?| A．Water and mud games. | B．Fastest growing sports. |
| C．Snow and sand tracks. | D．Longest local history. |
| A．To raise ducks. | B．To collect money. |
| C．To found charities. | D．To make waterway. |
| A．USA. | B．Malaysia. |
| C．Thailand. | D．Australia. |
