1 . Despite usually being associated with the Chinese, the Lunar New Year is also celebrated in other countries. Here are several places in America to celebrate the Lunar New Year.
New York City
New York City, which has one of the largest populations of ethnic（少数民族）Chinese people outside of Asia, is a great place to experience the Lunar New Year. There are around 10 different Chinatowns in New York City. Visitors will find parades, performances and foods in most of these areas but some of the festival characteristics are unique to the particular district.
San Francisco
San Francisco's lunar New Year celebrations are the longest runnings in America. They date back to the 1860s, during the “Gold Rush” period. Today, numerous events take place around the Bay Area, but the headline is the massive Chinese New Year Parade that draws as many as 1 million viewers.
Washington DC
Washington DC has a historic Chinatown. There is a parade here with floats, firecrackers, dancers and music. The Smithsonian American Art Museum can host hands on arts and crafts events that feature performers invited from China. The Kennedy Center stages themed performances, including folk music and symphonies from China.
Chicago
Despite low temperatures in January and February, Chicago celebrates the Lunar New Year in a big way. There are two parades, usually held on different days of the same weekend. One is in the city's traditional Chinatown on the South Side, and the other takes place on Argyle Street. Asian culture is on full display during these parades, and other Chicago com munities also take part.
1. Which city has the longest history of celebrating the Lunar New Year?| A．New York City. | B．San Francisco. |
| C．Washington DC. | D．Chicago. |
| A．Serve Chinese food. | B．Show Chinese dancers. |
| C．Play Chinese court music. | D．Invite Chinese art performers. |
| A．Festival parades. | B．English concerts. |
| C．The American culture weekend. | D．The American-style art exhibitions. |
1. Where does the conversation most probably take place?
| A．In a supermarket. | B．In a department store. | C．In a restaurant. |
| A．Because this is his first time to China. |
| B．Because he knows nothing about Chinese table manners. |
| C．Because he doesn’t know whether he likes Chinese food or not. |
| A．To make himself at home. |
| B．To learn to use chopsticks. |
| C．To choose less strong wines |
| A．Chopsticks. | B．A knife and fork. | C．A spoon. |
3 . May 14 marks the beginning of National Smile Month in the UK. The campaign is organized by the Oral Health Foundation to promote dental (牙齿的) health. The Foundation hopes that a month of smiling across the nation will make people think about the importance of brushing their teeth regularly, culling down on sugary foods, and making regular appointments with the dentist.
The British, in fact, have a reputation for bad teeth. The Internet's Urban Dictionary has an entry (条目) for “British Smile”, defining it as “Any smile with bad teeth”. On the other side of the Atlantic, however, the “Hollywood Smile” gets its name because American movie stars are so proud to show off their sparkling beautiful teeth.
But what about smiling in the UK in general? Do the British smile a lot, or do they look sad all the time? It's said that the British practice the “stiff upper lip”, meaning that they don't often show their emotions; they neither smile nor cry. But this is false: A British person likes to smile as much as anyone else.
As far as smiling in Britain is concerned just like everywhere else, it all depends on the situation. For example, you wouldn't expect anyone to smile at a funeral (葬礼). But if you were at a party of any kind, you'd find everyone smiling from ear to ear. However, smiling is sometimes not allowed under some circumstances (情形). For instance, since 2005 Britain hasn't allowed smiling in passport photographs. At other times, for example at work and school, you simply smile when it's natural to smile.
So the British are no more and no less likely to smile than anyone else. But smiling is good for you, no doubt about it, even if you do have a few bad teeth. And smiling is good for those around you too. This alone makes National Smile Month a great idea. As the essayist William Hazlitt wrote, “A gentle smile, a kind word, a good-natured smile can work wonders and accomplish miracles”.
1. Why is National Smile Month held in the UK?| A．To build a more friendly society through smiling. | B．To guide people to care their teeth. |
| C．To promote the health benefits of smiling. | D．To teach people how to protect their teeth. |
| A．flashing | B．white | C．smiling | D．aging |
| A．People can smile when taking passport photos. |
| B．British people are less likely to smile than others. |
| C．People often smile at a party of any kind. |
| D．British people often hide their true emotions with a smile. |
| A．It lasts too long. | B．It is a time-consuming event. |
| C．It achieves its purpose. | D．It should be promoted around the world. |
Xi'an,or Chang'an as it was called for many centuries,has been a built-up urban area for over 3,000 years,and once
These days,the city has made
A Sweet Art— Sugar Painting
In and around China’s southwestern Sichuan province, one can often find folk artists producing sugar
According to some academic studies, sugar painting originated from the Ming Dynasty when sugar animals and figures
Although the number of sugar painters has decreased, due to its unique charm, a certain number of artists are making efforts
Nowadays, this art is getting support again from the general public
6 . Vida Woodhull Stabler is the director of the Omaha culture center at Omaha Nation Public Schools in Macy, Nebraska. She has been working for years to pass on the cultural knowledge of tribal (部落的) elders for future generations. But she faces a predicament: Only about a dozen Omaha tribe members speak the language fluently today.
For Kyleigh Merrick, 15, learning the Omaha language as a teen today is important but also a challenge. She goes to language class every day, but outside of class, there are few opportunities to speak it. Her great-grandmother uses it at home, but among her peers, only a handful will sometimes greet each other in the Omaha language. At school, only a few students are taking Omaha language classes and seem deeply interested in tribal language and culture.
Another big force that has worked against passing the native tribal language on over generations is boarding schools . The local government began sending native students to boarding schools from the 1800s to the 1960s. Students there were not allowed to express tribal culture and were taught only English.
“Our language does not have access to the same types of materials that Spanish and German do ― you can walk into any library and find Spanish books to read,” Stabler said. “Our community has had to develop tangible (有形的) materials on our own. The first challenge is ensuring people want to learn. The second is making sure they have materials to learn from.”
At Omaha Nation Public Schools, Stabler put tribal culture into students’ everyday school experiences, like hanging up a calendar with months in English and Omaha. In biology class, for instance, kids might make traditional tribal foods.
For Stabler, the work of making sure tribal culture lives on into the next generations never stops. “If students are rooted to our land ― they’ll be rooted as human beings,” Stabler said.
1. What does the underlined part “a predicament” in Paragraph 1 probably mean?| A．A golden chance. | B．A tough decision. |
| C．A difficult situation. | D．A different direction. |
| A．She knows many Omaha speakers. |
| B．She is able to speak some tribal language. |
| C．She seldom takes language classes. |
| D．She thinks learning the Omaha language is easy for her. |
| A．Few students have an interest in learning the Omaha language. |
| B．Spanish and German books should be banned from libraries. |
| C．More reading materials in the Omaha language should be provided. |
| D．The local government forces students to speak only English in school. |
| A．Setting up tribal libraries. | B．Introducing tribal culture to school. |
| C．Persuading students to learn the Omaha language. | D．Encouraging tribal elders to teach the Omaha language. |
增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号（
）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。
Dear Lucy,
I’m glad to receive your letter asked about my holiday life. I usually get up very early or do exercise in the park. Learning at home takes on most of my time. At times, I helped my parents with some housework when they are busy, that makes me happy. Meanwhile I take active part in social activities, such as community voluntary work. Sometimes, I join many more volunteers in going out to the streets to collect rubbishes. Besides, I try our best to help those in need, often going to the orphanage to visit the lonely children. I find greatly pleasure in these activities.
Yours,
Li Fang
8 . The United States celebrates Valentine's Day each year on February 14. Many other countries celebrate Valentine's Day, too, each in their own way. Here is a look at the Valentine's Day traditions in three countries.
Wales：land of love spoons
In Wales, it is called St. Dwynwen's Day, which takes place on January 25. The traditional romantic gift on this day is a love spoon.
Beginning in the 17th century, Welsh men made beautiful wooden spoons as a show of their love for that special person in their lives. Each shape of the spoons has a different meaning. For example, horseshoes mean good luck； keys represent the key to a lover's heart； and wheels are a sign of support.
Argentina：a week of sweets
Argentina celebrates Valentine's Day in February, but also gives a whole other week to love in July. They call it Sweetness Week. If you kiss someone, they have to give you a sugary treat.
Sweetness Week started in 1989 with a candy company called Arcor. They made an advertisement called “Candy for a Kiss”. The idea was to give the company's chocolates and other candies in exchange for a sweet kiss on the cheek. The campaign had a stronger effect than the company expected—it led to a new holiday!
Every July, couples who take part give each other candies and kisses all week long.
South Korea: three is a charm
For South Koreans, Valentine's Day happens in three parts： February 14, March 14 and April 14.
On February 14, women traditionally give men gifts of chocolate to show their love. One month later, on a holiday known as White Day, men show their thanks by giving women a sweet gift. The name “White Day” comes from the custom of giving white-colored gifts.
Let's not forget Black Day on April 14. Single people who did not get gifts on February 14 or March 14 often gather on Black Day to eat noodles with black bean soup.
1. What does a key-shaped spoon mean?| A．Strong support. | B．Good luck. |
| C．Deep love. | D．Real thanks. |
| A．In July . | B．In June. |
| C．In March. | D．In February . |
| A．White chocolates. | B．Silver spoons. |
| C．Black candies. | D．Black beans. |
9 . Math Holidays
Mole Day
Mole Day is celebrated annually on Oct. 23 from 6:02 am to 6:02 pm. It celebrates Avogadro’s Number (approximately 6.02 × 1023), which is a basic measuring unit in chemistry. The first Mole Day took place in 1991 and has been honored every year since. The concept of a celebratory day was created by Maurice Oehler, a retired high school chemistry teacher. It aims to develop interest in chemistry, encouraging schools around the globe to celebrate Mole Day with various activities related to chemistry.
Fibonacci Day
Nov. 23 marks Fibonacci Day, a special day that celebrates tile man known as Leonardo Fibonacci who developed a mathematical concept called the Fibonacci Sequence (斐波那契数列), in which every number is the sum of the previous two numbers. So, for example, 11/23 marks the day because 1+1 equals 2, and then 1+2 equals 3 (the date being the 23rd). It may be somewhat difficult to grasp, but the concept is not entirely theoretical.
Square Root Day
Square Root Day is a holiday that occurs when the month and day are square roots of the last two digits of the year: e.g. 2/2/2004 and 3/3/2009. The last Square Root Day was 4/4/2016 and the next one will be 5/5/2025. The holiday was created by a high school teacher Ron Gordon in Redwood City, California, who noticed that an upcoming date (9/9/1981) represented a square root.
Pi Day
The granddaddy of mathematical and scientific holidays, however, falls every year on Mar. 14. The date, 3/14, represents the first three numerals in the calculation of pi; so the date is known annually as Pi Day. Pi Day was founded in 1988 by physicist Larry Shaw working at the Exploratorium in San Francisco. The event featured the eating of various pies, tossing pizza pie dough and parades and speeches.
1. Which holiday is linked to Avogadro’s Number?| A．Pi Day. | B．Mole Day. |
| C．Fibonacci Day. | D．Square Root Day. |
| A．Oct.23, 2020. | B．Nov. 23, 2021. |
| C．Mar. 14, 2030. | D．Jun 6, 2036. |
| A．Larry Shaw. | B．Ron Gordon. |
| C．Maurice Oehler. | D．Leonardo Fibonacci. |
要点包括：1. 国画简要介绍；
2. 本次展览目的；
3. 展览时间地点。
要求：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：figure paintings (人物画)，landscape（风景画）
Dear Linda,
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Yours,
Li Hua
