2 . “Look at the results. What should our alpha level be to correct for multiple comparisons?” I stared at the statistics problem on the whiteboard and saw a lot of symbols and numbers but nothing that looked remotely like an “a”, let alone an “alpha”. All around me, pencils scratched out calculations as my classmates got to work. I pretended to start my own calculations as my heart beat soundly and my face turned hot.

“If I don’t know the answer to this question,” I thought, “I don’t belong in this class.”

It turns out I’m not alone. In a study of over 1,000 high school students recruited by Character Lab Research Network, about 40% said they regularly hesitated to admit when they didn’t know something in class. The struggles were especially strong among girls and were most common in math.

Why? We tend to believe that you can’t be good at math unless you’ re really smart. The more we think we need to be “brilliant” to succeed, the harder it is to reveal what we don’t know to others. But if students don’t feel comfortable voicing their questions in school, they will miss opportunities to learn from peers and teachers — the very opportunities that can make them brilliant.

To help teens overcome this resistance, you can change their feelings by sharing times you have felt reluctant to ask — like my story about statistics class.

I filled the blanks with puzzling statistics with a little help from my classmate Liz. Still in a panic, I glanced up from my paper and saw a hand shoot into the air. “What do you mean by alpha level?” Liz asked.

“Good question,” the teacher said. Now the learning could begin.

Don’t hide what you don’t know. The more you conceal your questions, the scarier it becomes to ask for help. Be brave and share your questions with the world.

1. Why does the author mention his statistics class in the first paragraph?

A．To illustrate the importance of fame.	B．To complain about the boring class.
C．To lead in the topic of the study.	D．To draw the interest of the readers.

2. What can we infer from the study?

A．Only talented students are able to do well in math.

B．Most senior students aren’t interested in math lesson.

C．The elder students would become more inactive in class.

D．The more questions you ask, the cleverer you will become.

3. What did the teacher do to help the students in the statistics class?

A．He changed the question into a simple one.

B．He shared his experience with the students.

C．He built students’ courage to ask questions.

D．He ignored the students’ indifference in class.

4. What is the best title of the text?

A．Nothing is to hide	B．Everything is possible
C．Everyone is a talent	D．All will be answered for

3 . 假定你是李华，在地球日（Earth Day）到来之际，你班英语课将举办保护环境的英语演讲比赛，请你以“The Importance of Protecting the Environment”为题写一篇发言稿，内容如下：
1. 描述当前环境问题的严重性；
2. 提出至少两种环保措施；
3. 呼吁大家共同参与环保行动。
注意：1. 字数在100字左右；
2. 可以适当增加细节, 以使行文连贯。

The Importance of Protecting the Environment

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

6 . On November 8, an enormous new airship called Pathfinder 1 made its first test flights in California. The huge airship was built by LTA Research, a company that’s hoping to make an old method of transportation new again.

The new airship is massive. At 121.9 meters long, it’s far longer than a football field. It’s the largest airship of its kind since the 1930s. But the Pathfinder 1 is built using a lot of new ideas and new materials.

Airships were especially popular in the early 1900s. They were used for transportation, for spying, and were even used in war. Most of that ended in 1937, after an airship called the Hindenburg caught fire and burned as it was landing. The Hindenburg tragedy scared people away from airships. Now, a company called LTA (Lighter than Air) Research is hoping to change that.

LTA has been working on its airship, Pathfinder 1, for about 10 years. From the outside, Pathfinder 1 looks analogous to the airships of the 1930s. But Pathfinder 1 is completely new. The airship’s outside skin is made from another tough, light material. The ship gets its lift from helium—a lighter-than-air gas that does not burn.

The Pathfinder 1 has 12 electric motors, which can be powered by either batteries or generators. The motors make it possible for the airship to take off and land without a runway. The Pathfinder I can fly at speeds of up to 75 mph (120 kph), but it will be flying lower and much more slowly during its early test flights. There will be many tests before the airship is allowed to fly freely.

LTA hopes to show that airships can provide a zero-pollution way to move heavy equipment over long distances, and even help people out in emergency situations, such as after an earthquake or a hurricane, when roads are closed and there’s no place for planes to land.

1. What do we know about the Pathfinder 1?

A．It is made from heavy material.	B．It is difficult to take off and land.
C．It is the largest airship in history.	D．It is the most popular airship now.

2. What is paragraph 3 mainly about?

A．The design of Pathfinder 1.	B．The development of airships.
C．The changes of airships in history.	D．The difficulty to build an airship.

3. What does the underlined word “analogous” mean in paragraph 4?

A．Similar.

B．Superior.

C．Useful.

D．Accessible.

4. Why does LTA build the Pathfinder 1?

A．To conduct air transport without polluting.	B．To make airships fly low above the ground.
C．To replace Hindenburg after the air tragedy.	D．To deal with serious traffic jams in cities.

7 . Shivani Bhalla feels a strong sense of duty towards wildlife, and she wants others to feel it too.

Now based in Samburu in northern Kenya, the conservationist has worked for over 17 years with lions in the region. As lion habitats have contracted due to land-use change, conflict between lions and humans has increased. The African lion, one of the continent’s most iconic species, is now classified as vulnerable(脆弱的). Bhalla and her team aim to reduce these conflicts and seek mutually beneficial solutions.

Bhalla has seen firsthand the challenges facing the lions. Kenya’s recent economic growth has also included agricultural and industrial expansion into lion territory. Habitat loss from agricultural and industrial expansion has created tension between lions and communities. As lions struggle to find enough of their natural prey(猎物), they target raised animals. Impacted communities sometimes defend their herds and livelihoods via killings of the lions.

Habitat changes have also changed the lions` social structure. “In Samburu,” Bhalla says, “We don’t have prides(狮群). We actually have lions that live alone or they live in small groups. Lions adapt to their environment and they learn how to survive with what they have.”

Lions have also changed their behavior in an apparent attempt at self-preservation. As soon as they leave protected land and enter more populated areas, they tend to become nocturnal-active at night, and hiding in thick bush during the day.

Bhalla and her team have developed a number of successful programs designed to respond to the new reality of increased human-lion encounters. Looking to the future, a Lion Kids camp program provides conservation education and safari (游猎) experiences to children. Bhalla says she hopes to inspire these young conservationists to do work in Kenya. “People talk about children as the next generation of conservationists,” she says. “I like to call them a ‘new’ generation because children can be conservationists today.”

For Bhalla, it’s about more than just saving the species; she’s working to preserve something key to national identity.

1. What do Shivani Bhalla and her team mainly work on?

A．Expanding the habitats of African lion groups.

B．Protecting Kenya’s endangered animal species.

C．Promoting the country’s economic development.

D．Preserving lion populations and reducing conflicts.

2. How do lions in Samburu adapt to changes in their habitats?

A．They have formed larger groups.	B．They have started living in isolation.
C．They have migrated to other regions.	D．They have become more active during the day.

3. What do we know about the Lion Kids camp program?

A．It teaches children hunting skills.

B．It offers safari experiences to children.

C．It is more successful than other programs.

D．It encourages children to be professional researchers.

4. What is Shivani Bhalla’s attitude towards children’s potential as conservationists?

A．Negative.

B．Skeptical.

C．Optimistic.

D．Unclear.

9 . Poetry has a place in the curriculum of primary schools. It can be taught as part of reading, writing, and language lessons, and it fits easily into classroom themes, projects, and celebrations.     1    . Here are four reasons to teach poetry in the classroom.

Build Reading, Speaking & Listening Skills

The unique thing about poetry is that we often read aloud, repeat often, and share in groups. When children are listening to poems orally, they are building their listening skills     2    . When sharing poems in a classroom, look at, and read them together. Children are strengthening their reading skills and building reading fluency through repeated reading.

Explore Language & Vocabulary

    3    . Children can learn about phonics and letter sounds by listening for and locating rhyming words. A poem can be used to teach vocabulary, sentence structure, parts of speech, and many grammar skills. Poetry also builds vocabulary. Children get exposed to words they have not heard before, and they listen to them in context.

Inspire Writing

Learn about how poems are created and the words they contain. It is the first step in writing.     4    . In poetry, we learn how to put words together to form meaning and context. We learn how to choose the right words to create imagery and effect. Writing poetry is a transferable skill that will help children write in other ways and styles.

    5    

Poetry is a form of expression. Writing it lets us get out our feelings and thoughts on a subject while reading it encourages us to connect and find meaning in our experiences. Poetry can have a positive impact on the social and emotional learning of children. It may offer them a new way of thinking about something. It can put things into words that children may not know how to express otherwise.

A．Build a Love for Reading

B．Encourage Creative Thinking

C．It can add additional value to our studies

D．Poetry often contains words that rhyme for effect

E．Different types of poems have various components

F．Children have a natural curiosity to foster and encourage with poetry

G．They learn to attend to the words they hear and think about what those words mean