1 . With the Forbidden City and Jingshan Park to its east, Zhongnanhai to its south, Beihai Park, also known as Northern Sea Park, is one of the oldest, largest and best-preserved ancient imperial gardenst (皇家花园) in China located in the center of Beijing.
Beihai Park is said to be built according to a traditional Chinese legend. The story is that once upon a time there were three magic mountains called “Penglai”, “Yingzhou” and “Fangzhang”. Gods in those mountains had a kind of medicine which would help humans gain immortality (永生). Consequently, many emperors constantly sought those mountains. I For example, Emperor Qin Shihuang had sent people to look for the magic mountains but they failed. Emperor Wudi, the fifth emperor of the Western Han Dynasty did similar things.
It was believed that different mountain-water combinations in ancient Chinese architecture led to totally different effects. So from then on, almost every emperor during the succeeding dynasties would build a royal garden with one-pool-with-three-hill layout near his palace. Beihai Park was surely built after this traditional style: the water of Beihai with Zhongnanhai is the Taiye Pool; the Jade Flowery Islet, the island of the Circular City and the Xishantai Island represent the three magic mountains.
Actually, Beihai Park was initially built in the Liao Dynasty (916-1125) and was repaired and rebuilt in the following dynasties including Jin, Yuan, Ming and Qing. The large-scale rebuilding in the reign of Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) generally established the present scale and pattern. In 1925, it was first opened to the public, attracting hundreds of thousands of visitors from all over the world every year.
It is enjoyable to walk around the various scenic areas in Beihai Park. There are many places to visit, including the Bai Ta, Five-Dragon Pavilions, Nine-Dragon Wall, Yong’an Temple and so on. There is also a classy restaurant called Fangshan Restaurant where the Empress Cixi once dined.
1. Where is Beihai Park?A.Near the ocean. | B.In the south of Zhongnanhai. |
C.To the west side of Jingshan Park. | D.In the uptown area of Beijing City. |
A.They loved to listen to stories. | B.They both pursued immortality. |
C.They were mountain-climbing lovers. | D.They were the first emperor of their dynasties. |
A.Less than 100 years old. | B.About 500 years old. |
C.About 1, 000 years old. | D.Nearly 2, 000 years old. |
A.A famous park. | B.Historical palaces. |
C.An unforgettable legend. | D.Ancient architectural styles. |
A.for | B.with | C.in | D.of |
3 . Picking up litter is a fun, simple, and free activity that can have instant results for your child and your community.
What you’ll needPlastic bag to collect trash (垃圾)
Gloves—especially important as we practice COVID-19 safety measures
Optional: pick-up stick, a separate bag for recyclables
Instructions1. Assign gloves and a trash bag to each family member.
2. Clear out litter from an area of a park, beach or your own neighborhood. Take all necessary precautions (防范措施), including wearing sturdy (结实的) gloves, being careful on river banks or near roads, having adults handle dangerous items, and supervising children closely.
3. Properly dispose of all litter.
ReflectionsWhy is it important to pick up litter?
How can you inspire others to help keep the neighborhood clean?
ResourcesColonel Trash Truck by Kathleen Crawley
The colonel is on a mission to protect the beauty of the earth by cleaning up litter-and convincing others to do the same.
Here Comes the Garbage Barge ! by Jonah Winter
This story is sure to inspire your whole family to be mindful of your environmental impact.
Take it furtherTake a few digital photos of what you’ve picked up. Then send an essay about your experience along with your favorite photos, your name and address to mail@ wildernessproject.org. Your essay will be published on the Nicodemus Wilderness Project website, and you’ll get an official certificate. For tips on conducting the clean-up and writing the story, as well as essays and photos from other people, visit the website.
1. What are a must for the event?A.Pick-up sticks and cameras |
B.Books about cleaning up. |
C.Plastic bags and gloves. |
D.Bags for recyclables. |
A.Keep an eye on children. |
B.Leave dangerous items alone. |
C.Keep away from the riverside |
D.Stay in your own neighborhood. |
A.By inviting others to clean up their neighborhood. |
B.By sharing a list of environmental books on the website. |
C.By writing a review of other participants’ stories online. |
D.By emailing an essay with photos about their clean up experiences. |
A.on;to | B.away;to | C.away; on | D.down;on |
5 . Longing for the most amazing places on the planet? You can do no wrong with these lakes across the globe.
Five Flower Lake
Set in the striking karst landscape of the Jiuzhaigou Valley in Sichuan province, China, Five Flower Lake is extraordinarily clear, with visibility to a depth of 40 metres. Five Flower is one of a series of blue-, green-and sky-colored lakes blocked by rock falls, but it differs from the others as its waters change color, looking sometimes yellow, sometimes green, but usually diamond blue. In winter, Five Flower never freezes; in summer, it never dries up. Local wildlife living in the surrounding mountain forests include the rare giant panda and the golden snub-nose monkey.
Crater Lake
The deep-blue waters of Crater Lake in Oregon, US, fill the outlet of an ancient volcano that collapsed 7,700 years ago. Its strangest occupant is the “Old Man of the Lake”, a nine-metre-tall tree stump(树桩), which has stood upright in the water for more than a century. No rivers or streams enter the lake. Water loss in summer is compensated by winter snow and rain, the entire body of water being replaced every 250 years.
Lake Ohrid
Ancient Lake Ohrid has been around for about five million years and crosses the mountainous border between Macedonia and Albania. It has unique plants and wildlife, including the Ohrid “plashica”, a fish native to the lake, whose scales(鳞片) are used to make Ohrid pearls.
Lake Maggiore
Surrounded on three sides by the Lipontine Alps and touching the plain of Lombardy to the south, Lake Maggiore is Italy’s longest lake. Considered part of the country’s lake district, it is shared with Switzerland. Characterized by a Mediterranean-style climate, temperatures here are mild all year. This has given rise to some of northern Italy’s most wonderful gardens, which appear to float like flower-decked boats on the water.
1. What makes Five Flower Lake different from other lakes?A.Its agreeable climate. | B.The rare local wildlife. |
C.Its color-changing waters. | D.The visibility of waters. |
A.By artificial rain. | B.By snow and rain. |
C.From nearby streams. | D.From an ancient tree. |
A.Five Flower Lake. | B.Crater Lake. |
C.Lake Ohrid. | D.Lake Maggiore. |
6 . Best Gifts for Children
How to Code a Rollercoaster
This is a picture book about coding (编程). This book does a good job of introducing and explaining what code is, how computers understand it, and introducing common coding terms. The book is part of the popular “Girls Who Code” series, but it is intended for younger readers. (Penguin Random House, $17.99)
Marble Circuit
With brightly colored pieces, Marble Circuit doesn’t present as a difficult logic (逻辑) game — but don’t be too confident. After deciding on a card, players must put pieces and allow the right number of glass balls to run into each space at the bottom of the board. Because it requires greater ability to reason correctly than some other kinds of puzzles do, Marble Circuit is suggested for the over-8 crowd. (MindWare, $24.95)
Babu Set of 3 - Roller, Stacker, Rocker
As a classic block-building toy, Babu requires players to balance the blocks on a curved (弯曲的) base, try out different styles of towers or make special cars. (MindWare, $59.95)
Botzees
Kids can follow directions or use their imaginations to build a robot out of the 130 blocks, and then command it to dance, sing, drum and light up with an app on a smart device. Though the robot attracts younger testers, kids aged 5 and up enjoy the toy’s advanced features better. (Pai Technology, $99.99)
1. What do we know about How to Code a Rollercoaster?A.It’s a difficult coding book. |
B.It costs no more than $15.00. |
C.It’s a coding book easy to read. |
D.It is the first book of its series. |
A.Logical skills. | B.Reading skills. |
C.Coding skills. | D.Computer skills. |
A.How to Code a Rollercoaster. |
B.Marble Circuit. |
C.Babu Set of 3 - Roller, Stacker, Rocker. |
D.Botzees. |
7 . Two years ago, I lost my wallet. I made the poor decision of keeping my identity card, my credit card, a large amount of money and other various things inside my
About a week
After that, I decided that I wanted to do
That’s why I
A.handbag | B.wallet | C.pocket | D.car |
A.money | B.food | C.gold | D.card |
A.satisfied | B.excited | C.worried | D.puzzled |
A.bad | B.good | C.beautiful | D.wonderful |
A.ahead | B.earlier | C.long | D.later |
A.threw | B.searched | C.returned | D.suggested |
A.the people | B.the police | C.the students | D.the children |
A.sadness | B.surprise | C.regret | D.disappointment |
A.got up | B.looked up | C.gave up | D.picked up |
A.it | B.her | C.him | D.them |
A.kind | B.funny | C.stupid | D.serious |
A.protect | B.respect | C.help | D.recognize |
A.bad | B.good | C.free | D.sick |
A.allow | B.force | C.choose | D.encourage |
A.herself | B.himself | C.itself | D.yourself |
A.delicate | B.decisive | C.detectable | D.delighted |
9 . Sam is autistic. Thus, dining out can be tricky. Though he loves to eat, he dislikes the loud noise during restaurant dining. So he has a solution: overpower all noise with a much louder noise of his own. Faced with a possibility of dining alone all the time, I decided to work on dining skills at a trendy new spot early one Tuesday night.
To my delight, we arrived at an empty restaurant. So far, so good. Everything went well until two older and elegantly-dressed women entered. They were seated two tables away from us. I felt a sense of impending doom.
The women began to chat, paying little notice to us. Sam happily took this as his cue(暗示) to start talking and drown them out. I leaned into Sam and asked for a quiet voice, but unfortunately Sam had left that voice at home.
I glanced at the neighboring table, knowing we wouldn’t go unnoticed much longer. I quickly used Plan B: eat quickly and leave. Sam, who normally inhales food, suddenly embraced the concept of leisurely dining and refused to rush — all while chattering away endlessly.
“SHUSH!” I said, a little annoyed. Sam responded by giggling loudly. “Be quiet!”
Now the two women were watching us. The older of the two women leaned over. “Here it comes!” I thought. She completely surprised me when she said, “Honey, stop shushing that boy. He has something important to say. I have friends that talk way more than he does, and they aren’t nearly as interesting.”
Then she asked Sam, “Now, boy, Don’t you listen to your mom. You talk as much as you want. I want to hear everything you have to say.” Turning to me, she added, “You have a delightful boy. Relax and enjoy your dinner—and don’t let him skip the chocolate cake. It’s unmissable.”
I will always remember those two lovely ladies. Their kindness meant the world to a stressed-out mom. Wherever they are, we’re sending them lots of love and hopes for chocolate cake.
1. What can we learn about the author and Sam from paragraph 1?A.Few like to have dinner with them. | B.Sam suffers physically and mentally. |
C.The author has no idea how to dine out. | D.Sam enjoys talking loudly when dining out. |
A.Thrilled. | B.Annoyed. | C.Regretful. | D.Embarrased. |
A.Express himself freely. | B.Follow his mom’s order. |
C.Listen to everything she said. | D.Relax and enjoy the dinner. |
A.My Autistic Son. | B.Chocolate Cake. |
C.Two Helping hands. | D.The Pleasure of Eating. |
10 . Endangered Wildlife of Malaysian Borneo
May 2023—4 days
Register now at tours@ neuscientist. com and we will contact you soon with full tour information.
Day 1: Arrive into Sepilok
Welcome to Borneo! You will be met upon arrival at Sandakan airport and then go to Sepilok Nature Resort. In the evening, your guest expert and guide Charles Ryan will give a talk on the trip ahead and then you can enjoy a welcome meal together. After dinner, head out for a night walk in the thick rainforest to search for wildlife(野生动物)active at night.
Day 2: Sepilok Orangutang Rehabilitation Centre
Start early for a pre-breakfast birdwatching walk. Return to the lodge for breakfast and walk the short distance from the resort to the Sepilok Orangutang Rehabilitation Centre. In the afternoon,head out to the Rainforest Discovery Centre. In the evening, Charles will give talks about the day’s finds. He will also help you improve your skills to take pictures.
Day 3: River Safaris and Sustainable Farming
There will be an early wakeup call today for coffee and tea, before searching for wildlife. You will finish at the village of Abai for breakfast at one of the houses. Afterwards, visit a forest restoration site, see the effect that it has on wildlife and have an opportunity to plant some trees.After returning by boat to the lodge for lunch, we will take another river trip in search of more wildlife.
Day 4: Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Centre
After breakfast, leave for the Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Centre, where you will be given a private tour of the centre by the founder of the centre, Dr Wong. The sun bear is the smallest bear species(物种) in the world. Afterwards,go to an early lunch at San Da Gen Kopitiam. At night, you can walk to search for some wild animals in the forest.
1. What can visitors do early on the second day?A.Enjoy a welcome meal. | B.Watch wild birds. |
C.Make coffee by themselves. | D.Learn to plant trees. |
A.Visitors have to take an early lunch. | B.Visitors search for wild animals at night. |
C.Visitors watch the world’s smallest bear. | D.Visitors wake up early for coffee and tea. |
A.Day 1. | B.Day 2. | C.Day 3. | D.Day 4. |