1 . HEY boys, attention please! If you want to go to the US, you’d better be fully prepared, because, well, you and the boys in the US are a bit different.     1    

Firstly, know how to knot a tie. In the US, every boy above school age wears suits when they go to weddings.     2     Do you know how to knot a tie? If you don’t, learn how right now!

Secondly, be a gentleman. I know in China some boys are still proud of being strong. But in the US, a good man should also be polite.     3    

The last is to learn something about football and baseball. Chinese boys like ping-pong, basketball and soccer, but American boys love football and baseball. They get very happy when they play and watch these sports.     4     But in order to watch the sports with other boys, at least learning some rules would help.

    5     We sometimes need to know the importance of another culture, but don’t feel you have to know that if it makes you uncomfortable. Have fun along the way!

A．Many boys are fans of football or baseball in America.

B．In my opinion, you’d better try to do the following things.

C．The stronger you are, the more highly people will think of you.

D．My friend Madison from Virginia said it shows respect to others.

E．However, all this doesn’t mean that the American way is always the right way.

F．It’s not necessary to be a fan of football or fix your TV channel to baseball games.

G．Here are two examples: holding the door for people behind you and giving the seat on a bus to old people.

2 . Why is pink or purple a color for girls and blue or brown for boys?
The answer depends largely on cultural values as well as personal experiences. To the Egyptians, green was a color that represented the hope and joy of spring, while for Muslims, it means heaven. Red is a symbol (象征) of good luck in many cultures. In China, children are given money in a red envelope to bring good fortune in the New Year. For many nations, blue is a symbol of protection and religious beliefs. Greek people often wear a blue necklace hoping to protect themselves against evils (灾祸).
People’s choice of colors is also influenced by their bodies’ reactions (反应) toward them. Green is said to be the most restful color. It has the ability to reduce pain and relax people both mentally and physically. People who work in green environment have been found to have fewer stomach aches.
Red can cause a person’s blood pressure to rise and increase people’s appetites (食欲). Many decorators will include different shades of red in the restaurant. Similarly, many commercial websites will have a red “Buy Now” button because red is a color that easily catches a person’s eye.
Blue is another calming color. Unlike red, blue can cause people to lose appetite. So if you want to eat less, some suggest that eating from blue plates can help.
The next time you are deciding on what to wear or what color to decorate your room, think about the color carefully.
1. Muslims regard green as a symbol of heaven mainly because of their______.

A．cultural values	B．commercial purposes
C．personal experiences	D．physical reactions to the color

2. Why will many commercial websites have a red “Buy Now” button?

A．To relax people physically.

B．To increase people’s appetites.

C．To encourage people to make a purchase.

D．To cause a person’s blood pressure to rise.

3. What color might help lose weight according to the text?

A．Red.

B．Green.

C．Blue.

D．Purple.

4. Which of the following would be the most proper title for the text?

A．Colors and Human Beings

B．The Cultural Meaning of Color

C．The Meaning and Function of Color

D．Colors and Personal Experiences

3 . The art of paper cutting in China has a long history, which originated from the 6th century. As paper became more affordable, paper cutting has become one of the most important types of Chinese folk art. Later, this art form spread to other parts of the world, with different areas adopting their own cultural styles. Because the paper cuts are often used to decorate doors and windows, they are sometimes referred to as “window flowers”.

Scissors and knives are the basic tools to make a paper cut, and the subjects are different in figures, such as flowers, bird, characters, familiar folk stories and fairy tales. It’s also common to see some Chinese characters on paper cuts. The most famous paper cutting characters in Chinese are words meaning “lucky” and “double happiness”. Even these days, Chinese people love to hang paper cutting of these two characters at their doors.

Chinese paper cuts were used for religious and ceremonial purposes in the past. They have been buried with the dead and burned at funerals. At the same time, paper cuts have special significance on festivals and holidays.

Paper cuts are made in many areas through the country; in general, the northern style is bold and free while the southern is delicate (精致的) and smooth.

People express wishes and hopes with paper cutting. As a national non-material culture heritage (遗产), paper cutting is really precious.

1. What is necessary if you want to learn paper-cutting?

A．Glue.	B．Scissors.
C．Chinese characters.	D．Different colors.

2. What is the text mainly about?

A．Paper cutting skills.	B．Paper cutting experts.
C．The art of paper cutting.	D．The history of paper cutting.

3. What’s the author’s attitude towards the art?

A．Positive.	B．Negative.
C．Doubtful.	D．Neutral.

4 . “Trick or treat, trick or treat! Give me something good to eat!” It is Halloween! Kids dressed in costumes, neighbors giving out candy! It is just an amazing holiday! This year I decided to be a black cat.

The black cat is a sign of bad luck, but is also a sign of Halloween. Halloween began in the Mediaeval-years. A festival was celebrated in Rome and people walked in parades with masks and costumes. The people carved faces into pumpkins and lit them with a candle inside. These were thought of as to ward off all the evil and bad spirits. That is why people sell pumpkins everywhere during the Halloween season. Soon after the name of this festival evolved into what we call present day-Halloween!

Every year in New York City, there is a huge parade, there are floats and people walk around in costumes. Some are animal featured, some are scary and spooky like the skeleton and some are funny like the clown. It is very fun!!! Some people have Halloween parties. Stores sell a variety of costumes; the most popular costumes are the witch, the ghost, many from the old movies. Many stores sell decorating accessories(附属品) like fake spider webs, real pumpkins and plastic ghosts. So, if you are a Halloween lover, you can turn your home into a haunted house! That is absolutely cool!

Halloween

1	Time and place	Forms for celebration	2	3
a sign of bad luck	Halloween began in the mediaeval -years	4	Some are animal featured	Kids dressed in costumes
	5	6
a sign of Halloween	Every year in New York	Stores sell a variety of costumes	Some are scary and spooky like the skeleton	Neighbors giving out candy
			7	8
				9
				10

5 . The Torch Festival (火把节) is a traditional festival which is celebrated among some ethnic groups in southwestern China, such as the Yi, Bai, Hani, Lisu, and Lahu, etc. It usually falls on the 24th or 25th of June, with three days of celebrations. The festival came from worship (崇拜) of fire by ancestors (祖先). For some ethnic groups, it’s a tradition in the festival for elders to share farming experience with young people and educate them about taking care of crops.

During the festival, big torches are made to stand in all villages, with small torches placed in front of the door of each house. When night falls, the torches are lit and the villages are bright. At the same time, people walk around the fields and houses, holding small torches and placing the torches in the field corners. Inside the villages, young people are singing and dancing around the big torches that keep burning throughout the night. Other activities like horse races are also held during the festival.

In a horse race of the Yi people in Yunnan, torches are used to form hurdles for riders to get through. The Hani people in Yunnan traditionally tie fruits to torches with strings. When the strings are broken after the torches are lit, people struggle for the fruits for good luck.

For the Lisu people in Sichuan, the festival is an occasion for holding torch parades. Big torches are carried by teams of people, which is like a fire dragon. If different teams meet, it’s a tradition to exchange the big torches with one another.

1. What can we know about the Torch Festival from the first paragraph?

A．It has nothing to do with farming.

B．Its celebrations usually last two days.

C．It is a traditional festival of all China.

D．It is a festival to show worship of fire.

2. What does the underlined word “them” in paragraph 1 refer to?

A．ancestors.	B．young people.
C．elders.	D．ethnic groups.

3. What is the main idea of the second paragraph?

A．Why the festival is enjoyed.	B．Where the festival is celebrated.
C．How the festival is celebrated.	D．What torches are used for the festival.

4. Which is a way that Lisu people in Sichuan celebrate the festival according to the text?

A．Holding torch parades.	B．Tying fruits to torches with strings.
C．Struggling for fruits for good luck.	D．Using torches as hurdles for a horse race.

6 . Table Manners

We all like to think we have good table manners, but what you consider proper table manners may actually be considered rude in another country! Lets explore some strange table manners around the world.

Most people believe that it is bad manners to slurp（出声地吃或喝） or hold your soup bowl up to your mouth    1     Slurping in Japan is an indication that the food is good. Therefore, in Japan, slurping is considered polite.

    2    In some cultures, finishing all the food on your plate is a sign that your host did not provide you with enough food. Filipinos, Koreans and Thais will all think like this. In many cases your host will continue to serve you each time you clear your plate For Japanese people, however, finishing all the food on one's plate is a sign to the host that the meal is delicious and that you appreciate the meal.

    3    This is a belief in many Asian countries, including Thailand, Japan and China. It's considered taboo(禁忌 )because during funerals (丧礼), bowls of rice with chopsticks sticking in them are offered to the dead

Don’t cut your salad with a knife in France. Proper etiquette(礼节) in France when eating a salad to fold the salad leaves onto your fork if they are too big to put in your mouth. You should never cut your salad with a knife.     4    .

Pay attention to forks. Have you ever been to a fancy western restaurant, not sure which fork to use?

    5    Fin Thai culture the proper way to enjoy Thai food is with a spoon in your right hand and a fork in your left. Some countries don’t even use forks but rather eat with their hands, like India, Nepal and Pakistan

A．That isn’t true in Japan

B．It's the one furthest from your plate.

C．You must finish the food on your plate

D．Should you finish all the food on your plate?

E．You may use your fork to eat something like fruit.

F．Never leave your chopsticks sticking in a bowl of rice

G．This rule is taught to many French children from an early age.

7 . The sense of humor is one of the most powerful tools you have for getting rid of any source of stress in your life.     1     We can't over-estimate the importance of the sense of humor too much. In fact, making work fun helps employees perform best and provide quality work.

    2     Telling jokes and stories and using team-building games in companies make people have more fun at work. Some companies even have talent shows or hold dance or sports competitions. It just gives employees a break in the day and a chance to laugh at themselves.

    3     Humor should be about laughing with rather than laughing at others. We all have probably heard jokes that seemed to bother or hurt others. For example, jokes making fun of employees for their weight, race, religion, etc. are not only harmful to the person, but also can create an unfriendly working environment.

Even if the jokes were intended to be humorous, they may not be received that way. I have even heard speakers make slight dirty jokes on the audience, thinking they would be seen as cool. In fact the audience thought the speakers had no taste.     4     In another case, I heard about a manager who was out partying with co-workers and kidding about how the boss liked certain people more than others. Such jokes actually had damaging effects on people in the company.

Humor, if proper, can brighten up the workplace and reduce some of the stress we are all experiencing.     5    

A．And they lost people's respect as a result.

B．Of course, it is important to use proper humor at work.

C．Everyone agreed that their work needed to be more fun.

D．There are plenty of ways to bring humor into the workplace.

E．So take a moment to laugh and help us all to feel happier at work.

F．In addition, laughter can brighten up the feelings of everyone around.

G．The most obvious way to make your job fun is to learn to find some humor.

8 . Our Annual Cultural Events

A Night in Rio
We are proud to bring the energy and enthusiasm of Brazilian Carnival to Charlotte with A Night in
Rio! Get a taste of Carnival through dancing, live music, authentic food, drinks and marketplace. Put on your green and yellow, and join us for the unforgettable experience of Brazilian Carnival!
Date: Saturday, February 24, 2018
TICKETS AVAILABLE ONLY AT THE DOOR
Location: Neighborhood Theatre, Charlotte
Time: 7 PM
Ritmo & Sabor

We are thrilled to bring the annual celebration Ritmo & Sabor Festival! Featuring dance performances and FREE dance lessons and delicious, authentic Latin cuisine, this festival will be a fantastic celebration for the entire family to enjoy! Food and beer will be available for purchase. Come out to enjoy a great summer evening of Ritmo & Sabor!

Date: Saturday July 2, 2018
Location: International & Cultural Center, Charlotte
Time: 5-11 PM
FREE ADMISSION
Las Américas

Join us in the annual celebration LAS AMÉRICAS! We display our history and identity of Latin America through musical performances, story-telling and poetry. Enjoy yourself with local artists, shop your way through a market of arts and crafts and join in some of the finest Latin American cuisine.

Date: August 18, 2018
Location: Midwood International & Culture Center, Charlotte
Time: 2-7 PM
Admission is FREE.
Latin American Festival

Festival Latinoamericano returns for its 28th year, with musical artists and dance performances, a diverse authentic selection of Latin American food, visual artists, and a street festival environment with activities for the whole family.

Location: Symphony Park at South Park Mall, Charlotte
Date: Saturday Sept. 29 (1-8pm)
Admission: $10; Children aged 8 & under are free.
1. What does Ritmo & Sabor mainly provide?

A．Music and visual art.	B．Food and beer.
C．Dance and poetry.	D．Dance and food.

2. What can you do at Las Américas?

A．Buy some local crafts as souvenirs.

B．Enjoy typical Latin American beer.

C．Dance in green and yellow clothes.

D．Watch local dancers’ performances.

3. Which event requires a ticket for a seven-year-old child?

A．Las Américas.	B．Ritmo & Sabor.
C．A Night in Rio.	D．Latin American Festival.

9 . Finding spare change or an extra dollar in your pocket always feels like a victory,     1    . Without thinking, you might hear the familiar rhyme in your head when you spot one on the sidewalk: " Find a penny, pick it up. All day long you’ll have good luck.”

According to one theory, people originally thought pennies would bring good luck because of religious beliefs    2    . This theory also fueled other superstitions(迷信行为) like charm bracelets and metal horseshoes, which are also "lucky. "Plus, metal currency like pennies were linked to more wealth and thus more luck. That might be a straightforward explanation, but other eleven strange origins of other everyday superstition sure aren’t.

Another reason people might have claimed pennies would bring good luck comes down to the battle between good and evil, which is like two sides of the coin. Finding a penny heads up. meant you’d have luck on your side, but tails up would mean the opposite,    3    . Some people say that if you find a penny tails up, you should turn it over to make it heads up so that it can bring luck to whoever finds it next.       4    . The Irish half-penny, which stopped circulating in 1987, is especially lucky to anyone who finds one. Then there: 's also the old saying " Something old, something new something borrowed, something blue, and a penny in the shoe. "     5    

A．Pennies From Heaven is a way of thinking

B．although the exact reasoning for this is unknown

C．but even finding something worth as little as a penny is satisfying

D．No matter what the reason is, pennies are part of many lucky traditions

E．Placing g silver sixpence in the bride’s left shoe is said to be a symbol of wealth

F．These are all things brides should wear on their wedding day for good luck in their marriage

G．Folktales from ancient civilizations said metals were gifts from gods intended to protect people from evil

10 . Imagine this: You’re at the movies seeing the latest box-office hit. The leading actor chases down the film’s bad guy before winning over the beautiful leading lady. What does he do next? He sucks on a cigarette.

What’s wrong with this picture? Doesn’t the beautiful woman see her hero’s yellow teeth? Doesn’t she smell his smoky breath? And wouldn’t the good guy have trouble chasing, since smoking causes a person to cough?

But you don’t see any of that when someone smokes cigarettes in the movies. And there is a lot of smoking in movies. Actors light up in more than 50 percent of youth-rated (G, PG, PG-13) movies, according to the American Legacy Foundation, which aims to put an end to smoking among young people. That means that Hollywood is showing 14 billion images of smoking to young people every year.

All that exposure to on-screen smoking can influence teens to smoke. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) argues that 44 percent of teens who begin smoking do so because they’ve seen smoking in movies. The CDC reports that teens are two to three times more likely to start smoking after seeing repeated smoking scenes in movies than teens who are lightly exposed to smoking in movies.

Several organizations are working to remove smoking in youth-rated movies. And adults are not the only ones who care about this issue. Many teens are actively involved. Livia Clandorf, 16, of Chatham, New York, is a member of Reality Check, an organization that educates teens about what it considers to be the manipulative(巧妙处理的) practices of tobacco companies. Livia participated in an event called a “movie stomp(跺脚)”. Reality Check rents out a movie theater and screens a youth-rated film that shows smoking, they stomp their feet and show disapproval by shouting “boo”.

1. What purpose does Paragraph 1 serve in the passage?

A．To provide background information of a movie.

B．To attract readers’ attention to the topic.

C．To describe a plot in a movie.

D．To offer some basic knowledge of cigarette.

2. What is the picture you are asked to imagine like according to the author?

A．It’s touching.	B．It’s beautiful.
C．It’s frightening.	D．It’s unreasonable.

3. What can be inferred from the CDC’s words?

A．Over 50 percent of teens smoke.	B．Teens should watch more movies.
C．Many movies cause teens to smoke.	D．Teens are less likely to smoke than adults.

4. When will participants in a “movie stomp” stomp their feet?

A．When they are active.	B．When they are excited.
C．When they feel like smoking.	D．When they see smoking scenes.