1 . In 1990, Hal Donaldson was 23 years old, fresh out of college and found himself in Calcutta, India, where he was asked to interview Mother Teresa.

Donaldson says about the great woman famed for feeding the hungry, “She wasn’t wearing shoes and her ankles were swollen. She sat down with me and was very polite.” After the interview, Mother Teresa asked him, “What are you doing to help the poor?” Donaldson admitted that he was young and wasn’t focused on helping others. With a smile on her face, Mother Teresa said, “Everyone can do something.”

Those words deeply struck Donaldson and forced him to face hard truths about himself.

Hal Donaldson grew up in the San Francisco Bay area. When he was 12 years old, his parents were hit by a drunk driver; his father died, and his mother was seriously injured. To make ends meet, they went on welfare. Donaldson says, “I had holes in my shoes and clothes. When you’re teased at school for that, you just want to escape.”

He managed to do just that. Donaldson got into college and turned his focus to making money for himself. He says, “I was just trying to find my way out of insignificance.” However, it’s easy to overlook others along the way. I was the guy that would see a homeless person and cross the street, so I didn’t have to confront (面对) him. My focus was on climbing to the top instead of helping those trying to climb with me.

Donaldson returned home from India with a different thought. He traveled to eight cities in America and stayed on the streets and listened to stories of the homeless. “My heart broke,” he says. “I knew I could no longer just live for myself.”

Inspired by Mother Teresa’s words and the stories he’d heard across America, Donaldson loaded a pick up truck with $300 worth of groceries and handed them out to anyone who needed help. In 1994, Donaldson created the nonprofit organization, Convoy for Hope, which works with communities across America and around the world. Their work focuses on feeding children, women’s empowerment, helping farmers and disaster services.

1. What did 23-year-old Hal Donaldson do in India?

A．He interviewed Mother Teresa.

B．He fed the hungry with Mother Teresa.

C．He attended an job-interview for a college.

D．He did something to help the poor.

2. What can we learn about Hal Donaldson from paragraph 4?

A．He was born with disability.	B．He led a hard life as a child.
C．He was well treated at school.	D．He survived as an orphan.

3. How does Hal Donaldson describe himself in college?

A．Self-centered

B．Sympathetic

C．Popular

D．Generous

4. How did Hal Donaldson change after he returned home from India?

A．He preferred traveling to volunteering.

B．He suddenly fell in love with journalism.

C．He turned his focus to living for himself.

D．He gradually devoted himself to helping others.

2 . Art and science may seem like opposite things. One means the creative flow of ideas, and the other means cold, hard data-some people believe. In fact, the two have much in common. Now, a study finds art can help students remember better what they have learned in the science class.

Mariale Hardiman, an education specialist at Johns Hopkins University, noticed that students who used art in the classroom listened more carefully. They might ask more questions. They might volunteer more ideas. What’s more, students seemed to remember more of what they had been taught when their science lessons had involved(涉及) art. To prove that, Hardiman teamed up with some researchers and six local schools.

In the experiment, the researchers worked with teachers in 16 fifth-grade classrooms. They provided traditional science lessons and art-focused ones. In a traditional science class, for example, students might read aloud from a book. In the art-focused one, they might sing the information instead.

The team randomly assigned(随机分配) each of the 350 students to either a traditional science classroom or an art-focused one. Students then learned science using that way for the whole unit-about three weeks. When they changed to a new topic, they also changed to the other type of class. This way, each student had both an art-focused class and a traditional one. Every unit was taught in both ways, to different groups of students. This enabled the researchers to see how students did in both types of classes.

The team found that students who started off in a traditional class performed better after they moved into an art-focused class. But those who started off in an art-focused class did well even when they went back to a traditional science class. These students appeared to use some of the art techniques(技巧) after going back to a traditional class. Classroom teachers reported that many students continued to sing the songs that they learned after finishing the unit. “The more we hear something, the more we retain it,” Hardiman says. “It suggests that the arts may help students apply creative ways of learning on their own.”

1. Why did Mariale Hardiman do the study?

A．To prove the importance of art at school.

B．To see if art might improve science learning

C．To find a way to help her students learn better.

D．To know how to encourage students to ask questions.

2. What were the students required to do in the experiment?

A．Take two types of classes.	B．Learn three units in total.
C．Learn two topics for three weeks.	D．Choose what they’d like to learn.

3. What does the underlined word “retain” in the last paragraph mean?

A．Finish.

B．Express.

C．Improve.

D．Memorize.

4. What is the text mainly about?

A．Art helps students develop creativity.

B．Art-focused classes interest students a lot.

C．Art can make science easier to remember.

D．Art has something in common with science.

3 . For some people, the warmest memories from childhood come from being read a great story.     1     It develops children’s language skills and increases their ability to succeed in school and later work.

A new report by the American Academy of Pediatrics says reading aloud is so important that parents should start as soon as their children are born and continue to read aloud even after their children can read by themselves. They say parents should also point to and talk about pictures in books for infants (婴幼儿).     2    

The company Scholastic is a major U. S. publisher of children’s books. Every two years, Scholastic publishes a report on American reading attitudes and habits. The 2015 report says only 31percent of children in the U. S. read a book for fun almost every day.

    3     One is simply to have books in the home. Elizabeth Lyttleton, the mother of three, is lucky. Her mother once wrote and illustrated children’s books, so the family always have plenty to read. She says all her children learn from books but in different ways.     4     Researchers from the Scholastic company found that 80% of children surveyed—of all ages—say they love being read to. And children ages 6 to 11 whose parents do not read to them anymore say they miss it.

    5     Of all the six to 17-year-olds in the Scholastic study, more than 90% said their favorite books are the ones they chose for themselves.

There are other methods that might help you with your studying.

A．Do children still read for fun?

B．A book does not have to be serious to be good for kids.

C．But reading to children does more than create warm memories.

D．For young children, parents should ask questions about the book.

E．Another way to develop a reading habit in children is to read to them.

F．Scholastic also identifies some ways to develop a love of reading in a child.

G．The Scholastic report also suggests permitting children to choose their own books.

4 . I’m a strong believer that learning different languages makes you look incredibly good when you’re in a foreign country and can understand and speak the language. The list below is 4 apps that will help you learn a foreign language! You can download them for free.

Babbel- Learn languages

Babbel is an excellent language tool to help you progress step by step with learning a new language. It helps you learn grammar along the way as you work your way through the tasks and assignments. You need to pay a monthly subscription (订阅费), but this will still be cheaper than taking physical lessons with a tutor!

Duolingo-Learn Language Free

The app has many languages to choose from and will work through the basics all the way to advanced words and sentences. It’s all completely free too! It’s incredibly well designed, looks great and will help you learn, remember and progress with just a little bit of time every day.

Tandem-Language Exchange

Rather than have you work through tasks and memorize different things, the app lets you match with people who share your interests but speak the language you want to learn. You can then have text, voice and video conversation with people who want to learn your native language, and in return you learn theirs, all by simply communicating with each other. It’s a great way to learn with only 1$ a day.

Learn English Online-busuu

This app is perfect if you want to learn English. There are all sorts of audio and visual learning aids (you should pay for your VIP membership). You’ll find yourself working through interactive tests and learning tools for vocabulary and dialogue.

1. Which app suits you best if you want to learn through communication?

A．Babbel-Learn Language	B．Tandem-Language Exchange
C．Duolingo-Learn Languages Free	D．Learn English Online-busuu

2. What is Duolingo different from the other three apps?

A．It is completely free to use.	B．It is specially for English learning.
C．It is unsuitable for beginners.	D．It is the most effective app.

3. What do the apps have in common?

A．They cover all languages.	B．They focus on grammar.
C．They contain many tests.	D．They are free to download.

5 . Welcome to your future life!

You get up in the morning and look into the mirror. Your face is firm and young-looking. In 2045, medical technology is better than ever. Many people at your age could live to be 150, so at 40, you’re not old at all. And your parents just had an anti-aging (抗衰老的) treatment. Now, all three of you look the same age!

You say to your shirt, “Turn red.” It changes from blue to red. In 2045, “smart clothes” contain particles (粒子) much smaller than the cells in your body. The particles can be programmed to change clothes’ color or pattern.

You walk into the kitchen. You pick up the milk, but a voice says, “You shouldn’t drink that!” Your fridge has read the chip (芯片) that contains information about the milk, and it knows the milk is old. In 2045, every article of food in the grocery store has such a chip.

It’s time to go to work. In 2045, cars drive themselves. Just tell your “smart car” where to go. On the way, you can call a friend using your jacket sleeve. Such “smart technology” is all around you.

So will all these things come true? “For new technology to succeed,” says scientist Andrew Zolli, “it has to be so much better that it replaces what we have already.” The Internet is one example—what will be the next?

1. What can we learn from the text that in the future?

A．People will never get old.	B．Everyone will look the same.
C．Red will be the most popular color.	D．Clothes will change their pattern.

2. What can be inferred from Paragraph 4?

A．Milk will be harmful to health.

B．More drinks will be available for sale.

C．Food in the grocery store will carry electronic information.

D．Milk and meat in the grocery store will stay fresh much longer.

3. Which of the following is mentioned in the text?

A．Nothing can replace the Internet.

B．Fridges will know what people need.

C．Jacket sleeves can be used as a guide.

D．Cars will be able to drive automatically (自动地).

4. What is the text mainly about?

A．Future technology in daily life.

B．Medical treatment of the future.

C．Food and clothing in many years later.

D．The reason for the success of new technology.

6 . It’s been nearly two decades since the traditional clothing style Hanfu first started to reemerge in China. Since then it has gone from a small cultural movement celebrating an ancient fashion to a trend that is booming on social media, having been adopted by China’s Generation Z as a means of connecting with their past. Instead of following other cultures blindly, Generation Z now have different opinions about what trend is by promoting local culture while having an objective view of exotic cultural products.

The new tastes of Generation Z—young people born after 1995—are well represented on Bilibili. In the recent New Year’s Eve gala presented by Bilibili, it attracted more than 100 million views within 48 hours with a colourful set of programmes ranging from Peking Opera to classical Chinese cartoons. The same is also true of movie industry. Last year, for the first time, the top 10 most viewed films in China were all domestic films, while the ticket sales for imported films have dropped to only 16.28 percent.

”Generation Z grew up with the rapid development of China and under good economic conditions. With the development of the Chinese Internet industry, they have more access to diverse international information and culture, which bring them a much broader vision and makes them more open and confident in analyzing foreign culture. Apart from taking pride in China’s rapid development, this generation also pursues individuality and values devotion to the country,“ Professor Zhang Yiwu said.

He also noted that the popular rock and punk culture pursued by the 70s and 80s generation is more of a challenge against real life and local culture. Some people who were born in the 1970s and 1980s did not grow up in the Internet age—they experienced the transformation of China going from poor to rich first-hand. This kind of longing and admiration of the West came from a lack of confidence.

However, Generation Z now have the confidence to look at Western culture with equal status. This kind of cultural confidence will result in China being more active and creative in its development on the international stage in the future.

1. What does the underlined word ”exotic“ in Paragraph 1 mean?

A．Foreign.

B．Fashionable.

C．Traditional.

D．Elegant.

2. Why is Bilibili mentioned in Paragraph 2?

A．To confirm the rise of new media.

B．To promote Chinese Internet industry.

C．To highlight the popularity of domestic art.

D．To show the popularity of New Year’s Eve gala.

3. What do we know about Generation Z from the passage?

A．They have a stronger cultural identity.

B．They are longing for cultural diversity.

C．They have made China develop rapidly.

D．They are more fond of foreign culture.

4. What can be a suitable title for the passage?

A．Confident China, Better Future

B．China’s Progress Results in Cultural Confidence

C．China’s New Generation Redefine Local Culture as Trendy

D．Hanfu Style, Connector of Ancient Fashion and Modern Trend

7 . Math had never been something I was good at since middle school. Classes became harder in high school, and I was even further from a math teacher’s dream student. So at the start of my freshman year, I had an aversion to math. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to do well, but simply that I didn’t think I was able to do well. “I can’t” became my state of mind in all things related (有关的) to math.

However, I was soon to learn that “I can’t” was not a choice in Mr. A’s class.

Mr. A always greeted (迎接) us with open arms as he said, “Welcome! Smile! It’s a great day to be alive!” It was clear that Mr. A had a true passion (热情) not only for math but for teaching. If Mr. A ever experienced bad days in life, he never showed it. Mr. A greeted us with that same smile every day. He encouraged each student, from the top achiever to the “I can’t” student.

I found myself looking forward to math class, although I still hated the subject itself. Being in Mr. A’s presence made me feel good, as if I had the chance to succeed. As the year progressed, I spent increasingly more time on my homework, and I met with Mr. A weekly. My classmates began to do the same, and it became “cool” to have lunch and talk with Mr. A. We didn’t know it at the time, but he was changing our attitudes (态度).

Though my story is not one of overnight success and I didn’t become a straight-A math student, my hard work did begin to pay off and my grades slowly began to climb. There were hard times, of course. Difficult math questions sometimes succeeded in bringing me down, but Mr. A kept reminding (提醒) me, “Kate, smile! It’s a great day to be alive!”

1. What does the underlined word “aversion” in paragraph 1 probably mean?

A．Interest.

B．Responsibility.

C．Dislike.

D．Misunderstanding.

2. What first made the author look forward to math class?

A．Mr. A’s attitude.

B．Her interest in math.

C．Her friends’ encouragement.

D．The top achievers in her class.

3. How did the author feel about her talk over lunch with Mr. A?

A．It was straight.

B．It was awkward.

C．It was challenging.

D．It was impressive.

4. How did the author change in math?

A．She made slow progress.

B．She fell in love with math.

C．She became a straight-A math student.

D．She became comfortable with difficult math questions.

8 . “Good morning,” the new teacher said. “I’m Ernesto Flores, your teacher for fifth grade. “In all his years in school, Julio had never heard a teacher use his or her first name. Of course, the students always found out what they were, but it was up to the students to discover this information for themselves.

“Now I’d like to find out who you are,” said Mr. Flores. He began to call the roll (点名) , starting with the boys. Julio shook his head. Teachers always began with the girls.

“Julio Sanchez,” called Mr. Flores, pronouncing it Hulio. That was the correct way to say the name in Spanish.

Several kids laughed. They had never heard Julio’s name pronounced without the J.

Mr. Flores looked up from the roll book. “Isn’t that how you say your name?” he asked Julio. “Or do you prefer Julio with a J?”

“At home, they call me Hulio. But at school everyone calls me Julio,” Julio said.

“Do you like two pronunciations of your name?” asked the teacher. “It’s a good Spanish name and you should be proud of it.”

Julio smiled. “I know,” he said, “but it doesn’t matter to me.”

“Are you sure?” asked Mr. Flores. “Your name is a very important part of you.”

Julio thought for a moment. “Okay,” he said. “From now on, everyone please call me Hulio. Puerto Rico, where I was born, used to be a Spanish colony (殖民地).”

“That’s right,” said Mr. Flores. “Can you tell us something about Puerto Rico?”

“I came here when I was only eight months old. I don’t remember anything,” Julio replied.

“I think you can interview your parents instead,” Mr. Flores said.

Julio nodded. It would be fun to learn more about the place where he had been born.

Julio had to admit (承认) that Mr. Flores was creative and interesting.

1. Why did Julio shake his head?

A．The new teacher was a man.	B．The new teacher used his full name.
C．The new teacher asked him a question.	D．The new teacher started the roll with the boys.

2. Why did some kids laugh?

A．They didn’t like Spanish.

B．They found that Julio had a funny name.

C．They didn’t expect Julio’s name to be called first.

D．They thought the teacher had made a mistake in pronunciation.

3. What would Julio probably do after school?

A．Find out more about his birthplace.

B．Learn how to pronounce his name correctly.

C．Use the new name his new teacher gave to him.

D．Discover more information about his new teacher.

4. In Julio’s mind, what kind of teacher was Mr. Flores?

A．Strict.	B．Proud.
C．Different.	D．Hard­working.

9 . I have dreamed of taking a trip to Hawaii since I graduated, but the best thing always needs waiting.

I took a trip with my friends to Haleakala National Park, which lies in Hawaii.

When we arrived at Haleakala National Park, we were advised to watch the early morning sunrise. I was lost in the sightseeing (观光) that afternoon, so I could hardly wait to see the sunrise. The next morning, we all got out of bed very early and got to the seaside at 3 o’clock. In the first half an hour, we imagined how wonderful it would be when the first light came out through the thick clouds and how soft it would be when the light touched our skin, so we waited and waited. However, another half an hour later, I gradually lost my patience since there was nothing but the chilly darkness, and I felt that I was frozen to death. (冻死) But my friends were still extremely cheerful.

Nearly another one hour later, “Amazing!” Judy burst out and we all shouted to welcome the light, which was really unbelievable. Until today, I dare say that it is the most impressive sunrise in my life. However, waiting in the morning darkness is also one memory I can’t forget forever.

Waiting sometimes is really a hard thing for most of us as it needs patience and strong-willed determination (决心) , but what about the result after that? It might turn out to be pleasing and unbelievable. So, it is really worth (值得的) waiting for the best.

1. What can we learn from the passage?

A．he author’s friends and the author took a trip to China.

B．Hawaii is a good place to enjoy the sunrise.

C．Sometimes, it is worth waiting for the best.

D．The author enjoyed the worst sunrise in his life.

2. When did they see the first light of the sunrise?

A．About 3 o’clock.	B．About 4 o’clock.
C．About 5 o’clock.	D．About 6 o’clock.

3. What’s the meaning of the underlined word in Paragraph 2?

A．Total.

B．Cold.

C．Terrible.

D．Interesting.

4. How did the author feel when waiting for the sunrise?

A．Excited all the time.	B．Afraid all the time.
C．Firstly excited then afraid.	D．Firstly excited then impatient.

10 . A team of researchers from several institutions in the UK and one in Estonia has created a type of buoy(浮标)that has proven to be effective at frightening seabirds, thus preventing them from getting caught in gillnets - a type of vertical fishing net that is made of a material that makes it nearly invisible underwater.

Every year, hundreds of thousands of seabirds die when they get caught in gillnets. Some estimates suggest that up to a half-million birds are caught in them each year. Over the years, researchers have created devices to prevent the birds from trying to catch fish near or in gillnets, but those didn’t work well.

To find a way that would work for all seabirds, the researchers first studied seabirds in a general sense, looking to find things that they would avoid. They noted that seabirds avoided eye contact with other creatures. Then the researchers came up with a simple idea - they put a small pole to a regular buoy and then attached a pair of googly eyes(金鱼眼) to the top of it. They made the eyes big enough so that even birds with poor eyesight, such as geese, would see them. Adding to the effectiveness of the device, waves made the eyes move back and forth. And the wind made the buoy spin very slowly, making sure that birds from every direction would get a good look at the eyes.

To test their idea, the researchers selected several sites near gillnets and counted how many birds approached and how many attempted to catch fish near the nets. They then set up their googly-eyed buoys and once again counted birds. Over the course of 62 days, they found the number of birds that tried to catch fish near the gillnets dropped by approximately 25% for a distance of up to 50 meters. They also found that the birds were less likely to fish near where the buoys had been for up to three weeks after they had been removed.

1. What is the function of Paragraph 2?

A．Introducing a new topic to discuss.

B．Providing background information.

C．Summarizing the previous paragraph.

D．Pointing out the main idea of the text.

2. Why did the researchers make the googly eyes big?

A．To clearly observe seabirds’ eye contact.

B．To ensure all the seabirds can see them.

C．To effectively identify the right direction.

D．To allow them to survive the strong wind.

3. What does the researchers’ test result mainly suggest?

A．The new device still needs improving.

B．Gillnets are a death valley for seabirds.

C．The googly-eyed buoy proves effective.

D．Seabirds hardly catch fish near the nets.

4. What is the text mainly about?

A．A device keeping seabirds safe from gillnets.

B．A way to help seabirds catch fish effectively.

C．A googly-eyed buoy guiding seabirds to hunt.

D．A group of researchers interested in seabirds.