1 . Andrew is a teenager from Germany, studying in Garden School. He is very interested in Chinese classic novels. He wants to buy some to read but he doesn’t know what to choose. Therefore, he asked his classmates to recommend some and he has made a list according to their recommendations.

Romance of the Three Kingdoms Author: Luo Guanzhong(1330 — 1400) Recommended by: Tom Reason for recommendation: It influences the world most because it is very rich in strategies (策略) and many are applicable (适用的) today. One of them in the story is the Empty Fort Strategy by the famous strategist Zhuge Liang. The story has spread all over the world. Price: ￥ 58 Dream of the Red Chamber Author:Cao Xueqin(1715 — 1763) Recommended by: Coco Reason for recommendation: It is worth reading as there is a whole group of fans around the world called “Redologists (红学研究者)”. They have conferences and debate its details. It offers a panoramic (全景式的) view of society. The female characters in it are especially strong. Cao wished to respect them. Price: ￥ 55 The Journey to the West Author: Wu Cheng’en (about 1501 — 1582) Recommended by: Chen Ying Reason for recommendation: It is a classic novel published in the 16th century. It has positive spirit and no fear of difficulties. It focuses on a “hero’s journey” and the hero must complete difficult tasks, learning lessons along the way. Price: ￥64 The Water Margin Author: Shi Naian(1296 — 1371) Recommended by: Judy Reason for recommendation: It focuses on action and anti-hero themes (主题). Though the 108 people, 105 men and 3 women, may be “bad guys”, they make up their mind to protect their own people. The novel has been translated into many languages, including German. Price: ￥45

1. Who was born in the 13th century?

A．Luo Guanzhong.	B．Cao Xueqin.
C．Wu Cheng’en.	D．Shi Naian.

2. If Andrew has ￥160, how many books can he buy at most?

A．One.

B．Two.

C．Three.

D．Four.

3. If Andrew wants to find a method to solve his problem, which book may he read?

A．Romance of the Three Kingdoms.	B．Dream of the Red Chamber.
C．The Journey to the West.	D．The Water Margin.

4. Judy recommended The Water Margin to Andrew because ______.

A．it is published in the 16th century	B．the edition (版本) in German is easier for him to understand
C．Andrew can be one of the Redologists	D．Andrew likes Zhuge Liang very much

3 . Have you read The Tale of Peter Rabbit? It’s a very famous children’s book, written by Beatrix Potter.

Beatrix was born in 1866. She and her brother kept many small animals as pets — rabbits, mice, frogs and even bats! They both liked to draw their pets, but Beatrix liked drawing animals from her own imagination most. She also loved enjoying and drawing nature when they visited beautiful places like Scotland and the Lake District.

To make some money, Beatrix started drawing cards with animals. She liked writing and illustrating (图解) letters too. One day, she wrote a letter to her friend’s son, and told the story of Peter Rabbit. She decided to make the story into a book. The Tale of Peter Rabbit was published in 1902, and it was a great success! She wrote, illustrated and published many more books. She also created dolls, painting books, games and other things according to her characters.

Three years after The Tale of Peter Rabbit was published, Beatrix bought a farm in the Lake District. She learned about farming and bought more farms and land to help protect the landscape. She enjoyed country life very much, and was very active in protecting the environment.

When Beatrix died, she left almost all her farms and land to the National Trust, an organization which protects historic places and landscapes. You can even visit Hill Top Farm today, which is exactly like it was when Beatrix lived there!

So if you haven’t read The Tale of Peter Rabbit, or other Beatrix Potter’s books, why not visit your local library or bookshop today?

1. What inspired Beatrix Potter to write “The Tale of Peter Rabbit”?

A．Her love for farming.	B．A letter to a friend’s son.
C．Her interest in the environment.	D．A visit to the Lake District.

2. What did Beatrix Potter do besides writing books?

A．She taught art classes.	B．She created dolls and games.
C．She worked for the National Trust.	D．She became a professional farmer.

3. How did Beatrix Potter contribute to environmental protection?

A．By writing books about it.	B．By delivering speeches.
C．By donating money.	D．By buying farms and land.

4. What happened to Beatrix Potter’s farms and land after she died?

A．They were sold to private investors.	B．They were left to the National Trust.
C．They were turned into public parks.	D．They were used for agricultural research.

4 . An ancient species of great ape likely disappeared hundreds of thousands of years ago when climate change put their favorite fruits out of reach during dry seasons, scientists recently reported.

The species is known as Gigantopithecus blacki. It once lived in southern China. It stood 3 meters tall and weighed up to 295 kilograms. It represents the largest great ape known to scientists.

“It’s just a massive animal — just really, really big,” said Renaud Joannes-Boyau, a researcher at Australia’s Southern Cross University. He helped write the study, which recently appeared in Nature. But its size may also have been a weakness. Joannes-Boyau said, “When food starts to be scarce, it’s so big that it can’t climb trees to explore new food sources.”

The huge apes likely looked similar to the modern orangutans (红毛猩猩). They survived for around 2 million years in Guangxi. They ate plants that included fruits and flowers — until the environment began to change. Starting about 600,000 years ago, Guangxi’s forests began producing fewer fruits. The area was experiencing more periods of dry weather. Researchers examined pollen (花粉) and sediment (沉积物) found in caves to learn more about the changes and their effects. The giant apes did not disappear quickly, the researchers say. They likely went extinct sometime between 215,000 and 295,000 years ago.

As the climate changed, smaller apes may have been able to climb trees to search for different food. But the researchers found that the giant apes ate more food that provided less nutrients. “When the forest changed, there was not enough food preferred by the species,” said Zhang Yingqi of China’s Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology. He helped write the study.

1. What is Gigantopithecus blacki?

A．An ancient giant ape.	B．A recently found ape species.
C．A modern orangutan.	D．An endangered species.

2. Which of the following can replace the underlined word “scarce” in the third paragraph?

A．dangerous.

B．rare.

C．important.

D．necessary.

3. How did Gigantopithecus blacki’s size become a weakness?

A．It made them easy to be sick.	B．It made them unable to find mates.
C．It made them difficult to climb trees for food.	D．It made them struggling in adapting to climates.

4. According to Zhang Yingqi, what caused Gigantopithecus blacki’s decline?

A．Competition for food.	B．Climate change.
C．Spread of diseases.	D．Human activities like hunting.

5 . The campaign to reduce food waste is in its third week, and we’re already seeing some great results. We’d like every student and teacher to join in the campaign, so if you haven’t started yet, read our blog and join in!

Stop wasting food at school.

“The children are making a big effort to think in a sensible way about the food they put on their plates. We now have about 15% less waste and we think this percentage grows as more children join in the campaign,” school lunch director Marge Kaplan said. The school canteen now offers two portion (份) sizes for all main meals: small and large. This week they’ll replace single bread rolls with slices of bread. You can take as many slices as you want, but one at a time.

Latest news!

From next week you’ll be able to put any waste from fresh fruit and vegetables into the special green bin at the back of the canteen. Miss Norris, the school gardener, will empty the bin each day into a giant compost (堆肥) container in the school’s vegetable garden. That can be used to improve the quality of soils.

Stop wasting food at home.

Every year, we waste about a third of our food. In the UK, more than 97% of food waste ends up in a landfill (废物填埋) site. That’s a lot! Come to a special meeting with supermarket owner Carlos Rodriguez to learn how we can save food and money at home!

Campaign meeting!

When: Friday 12 May, 5-6 p. m.

Where: School hall

What: Top tips on how to store food, measure sensible portion sizes and cook tasty meals from leftovers

Students and families are welcome!

1. What change was made in the school canteen to reduce food waste?

A．Offering only healthy meals.	B．Serving meals in reusable containers.
C．Releasing some new punishment rules.	D．Introducing two sizes for main meals.

2. What will the school do with waste from fresh fruit and vegetables?

A．Donate it to food banks.	B．Improve the quality of soils.
C．Send it to recycling.	D．Feed school pets.

3. What is the purpose of the meeting with Carlos Rodriguez?

A．To plan a landfill visit.	B．To discuss the environmental impact.
C．To teach saving food and money.	D．To introduce new recycling ways.

4. Where is probably the passage taken from?

A．The Internet.

B．A textbook.

C．A research report.

D．A storybook.

6 . The Chinese paddlefish (白鲟) living in the Yangtze River was declared extinct (灭绝的), according to a paper from Chinese experts at the Yangtze River Fisheries Research Institute. Wei Qiwei, an author of the paper, says that the fish has not been seen in the wild since 2003, nor do artificially bred (人工繁殖) individuals exist.

The Chinese paddlefish is one of the world’s largest freshwater fishes, which can grow up to 7 metres long. People call it “the Giant Panda of Rivers” because it is rare and native to China under first-level national protection, and its ancestors date back to more than 100 million years ago.

From the middle of last century, the population of the Chinese paddlefish declined rapidly due to overfishing, habitat degradation (毁坏) and pollution. The construction of Gezhou Dam in 198l on the Yangtze River also created a barrier to the migrating (迁徙) fish, contributing to the sharp decline of it.

Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of the People’s Republic of China announced a 10-year fishing ban along key areas of the Yangtze River to protect biodiversity in the country’s longest waterway. It started to come into effect this year.

1. What does the author intend to do in the first paragraph?

A．To draw our attention to a ban.	B．To introduce some Chinese experts.
C．To share his experiences in China.	D．To inform us of the Chinese paddlefish.

2. The Chinese paddlefish called “the Giant Panda of Rivers” because          .

A．neither wild nor artificial Chinese paddlefish have been seen

B．it is one of the world’s largest freshwater fishes

C．it is rare and native only to China

D．its ancestors lived as long as the giant panda

3. What does the underlined word “it” refer to in Paragraph 3?

A．Overfishing.	B．The Chinese paddlefish.
C．Water pollution	D．The construction of Gezhou Dam.

4. Where is the text most probably taken from?

A．A newspaper article.	B．A public advertisement.
C．A Chinese student’s paper.	D．An expert’s book.

7 . Our mother has to leave home every day before we go to school. She has to walk twelve blocks to take the bus to work. We think it’s terrible that there is no bus that comes closer to our street.

I said to my mother, “This is a public transportation system. It is our system. It should come closer to our home. I do not want you to walk that far to get to the bus.” She agreed, but she said it would take more than one family to get the bus line to change. I told my mother I would ask my teacher about it. We could do a study and maybe start a petition (请愿书).

My teacher liked the idea. He said we could do the survey. So our class surveyed all our parents. We collected our survey data and made a table. We found that 90% of all the parents would use the bus more if it was easier to get to. We also found that only 20% of the parents could get to it easily, just by walking five blocks. For all the others, it took between 6 and 12 blocks.

We made a map to show how the bus route (路线) could be changed to reach people in our community more easily. Then my teacher called the alderman (市议员) to see if we could meet to talk about our study.

The alderman was impressed. She said we had done a really good job of thinking out the problem and a solution. She promised she would talk with the head of the transportation system about it.

Now my mother can leave later, and she only has to walk four blocks to get to the bus. When she leaves in the morning, she always says, “Son, I’m so glad you got the bus route changed.”

1. According to the first two paragraphs, the author wanted to ______.

A．get the public transportation system improved

B．walk with his mother to the bus stop

C．invite more families to take the bus

D．ask his teacher about a study plan

2. What did the author and his classmates find in the survey?

A．90% of the parents took the bus to work because it was easier to get to.

B．20% of the parents lived within five blocks to the bus stop.

C．Most parents used to wait for the bus to pick them up.

D．Only a few parents sent their kids to school by bus.

3. What does the underlined word “impressed” in Paragraph 5 probably mean?

A．Worried.	B．Annoyed.
C．Moved.	D．Relaxed.

4. What can we learn from the author’s experience?

A．We should take notice of our family life.

B．We should communicate with others.

C．The harder we study, the greater progress we’ll make.

D．As long as we make efforts, we’ll make a difference.