1 . The famous Spanish painter Pablo Picasso once said, “Every child is an artist. The problem he has is how to remain an artist once he grows up.”
This is both encouraging and discouraging. The fact that we were all born to be artists is certainly exciting, and yet the reality has proven that many of us have failed to remain one.
Fortunately, some people have seen the problem and want to solve it.
Western educators have suggested that we introduce the concept of “STEAM” instead of “STEM”—traditional “core majors” including science, technology, engineering, and math—since the “A”, which stands for “art”, is just as important.
And on April 11, China’s Ministry of Education issued a guideline. Colleges and universities are required to provide more art-related courses and students need to earn a certain number of art credits in order to graduate.
These efforts came after many scientific studies had found that art education helps students develop self-confidence and teamwork skills, as well as habits of mind such as problem solving and critical thinking, according to The Washington Post.
It’s true that none of these skills is aimed for specific jobs. But as former US ballet dancer Damian Woetzel told The Atlantic, the purpose of art is “to give kids the tools to become adults who are creative, adaptable, and expressive—capable of having their eyes and ears and senses alive”. And we can now see how we lost track of our born “artist self” on our way to growing up: We failed to keep our abilities to see, hear and feel, and became blind, deaf and insensitive adults.
Hopefully, art education can help turn things around.
1. What is the function of the first paragraph?| A．To introduce the topic. | B．To summarize the whole passage. |
| C．To introduce a famous artist. | D．To encourage us to be artists. |
| A．Art is as important as traditional “core majors”. |
| B．All of us should learn art in college. |
| C．Traditional “core majors” are out of date. |
| D．Western education is more helpful. |
| A．More art-related courses will appear in all schools. |
| B．College students will have to gain enough art credits to graduate. |
| C．More students will major in art at colleges and universities. |
| D．Art will become much more important than science. |
| A．Every child is an artist | B．Learning from the artists |
| C．Bringing art to life | D．Life is art |
1. What is the relationship between the speakers?
| A．Father and son. | B．Mother and son. | C．Husband and wife. |
| A．It was hit from behind. | B．It hit a running boy. | C．It hit a bus. |
| A．He missed the bus. | B．A bus ran into his car. | C．His bus had an accident. |
1. When will the woman go abroad?
| A．In ten weeks. | B．In March. | C．In May. |
| A．A little worried. | B．Very excited. | C．Unhappy. |
| A．Her car was damaged. | B．She needs anew car. | C．She was injured. |
1. Why does Lucia ask for leave?
| A．To get more sleep. | B．To wait in the traffic jam. | C．To deal with a traffic accident. |
| A．By car. | B．By subway. | C．By bus. |
7 . Hosting an international sports event is an important thing that has to be prepared well. Due to that, many opinions exist.
Firstly, positive views need to be talked about. When a country gets to host such a famous event, it will probably get well-known by other nations, and surely that can help the country a lot. For instance, the government and residents have a chance to use the opportunity to advertise their culture to foreign people. Above all, by doing that, the country’s economy might increase sharply during the event. Besides, it will satisfy some people’s wish to meet famous sports players. They have a high rate of talking to their favorite players whom they really want to talk to once in their life.
However, the risk of hosting a big event still exists. An important event is not necessarily good at all. That is why there is a debate about this topic. If a country can’t be able to prepare for the event in a period, they have to do as many ways as possible to finish preparation on time, and serious results may happen. The most obvious thing is that people attending that event will have a bad experience and are sure to make grumbles. This then affects the country’s image. For example, Qatar is a country that will host the 2022 World Cup. The government has to rush to finish building big stadiums, over 6,000 migrant workers sacrificing (牺牲)their lives for that. Hearing the sad news, some people around the world disagree to go to Qatar to attend the World Cup. The result is that Qatar has been badly affected.
In conclusion, hosting an international sports event is both good and bad, and good things or bad things depend on that country’s attitude and responsibility.
1. What might benefit most from hosting an international sports event in a country?| A．Advertising. | B．Economy. |
| C．Fans. | D．Players. |
| A．Because even important events are not always good. |
| B．Because countries don’t prepare for events well. |
| C．Because people present often have bad experiences. |
| D．Because building big stadiums costs too much money. |
| A．Proper plans. | B．Possible challenges. |
| C．Poor comments. | D．Great contributions. |
| A．Positive. | B．Negative. |
| C．Critical(批评的). | D．Neutral(中立的). |
8 . The Housing Problem
With the high speed rising in prices of houses, it is difficult for wage-earners to afford an apartment. Recently, the housing problem has been a widespread topic for people.
Facing the housing problem, most people believe that, for their limited income, to purchase a house, the family members have to spend a whole life to save money for the house. It is beyond their consideration at all, so they have to live in a small house with a big family and it is very common in big cities that several generations live under the same roof.
| A．For another, now people in growing numbers are beginning to realize spending money ahead of time. |
| B．People are too eager to buy a large house. |
| C．Moreover, it should make policies guiding housing prices to be reasonable and affordable. |
| D．All in all, the housing problem now becomes a social problem. |
| E．Many parents are worried about the housing problem. |
| F．Most people can’t afford it. |
| G．But what causes the price of houses to rise so fast? |
9 . Feeding America: by the Numbers
41.2 million Americans are food insecure, which means they don’t know when or how they’ll get their next meal.
13 million American children face hunger—That’s l in 6 kids. 1.5 million old soldiers receive food stamps (食品救济券).
27% of families with incomes above the poverty level are short of food. 18.7% of Mississippians are short of food (Highest rate of all states). 5. 4 million old people now face food insecurity in America. 8. 7% of Hawaiians are food insecure (Lowest rate of all states).
$1 donated (捐赠)to Feeding America will buy 10 meals for people facing hunger in America.
Want to Do Something?
One way to stop the hunger is through neighborhood food banks. They need three things: money, your time and food. If you plan to donate food, here are what food banks need most:
●Apple sauce
●Boxed meals
●Canned beans
●Canned chicken
● Canned chili
●Canned fish
●Cooking oil
●Dried herbs and spices
●Nuts
●Peanut butter
● Whole-grain cereal
Note:Avoid food with glass packaging (包装)because they can be broken in transport. Trusted Media Brands—Readers’ Digest’s parent company—has become an official media partner of Feeding America. See how you can help our efforts at feedingamerica. com.
1. How many kids are facing hunger in America?| A．5.4 million. | B．13 million. |
| C．41.2 million. | D．78 million. |
| A．Boxed meals. | B．Canned chicken. |
| C．Glass bottles of milk. | D．Oil used for cooking. |
| A．To show readers the problems of food safety. |
| B．To ask readers to help the poor out of poverty. |
| C．To inform readers of serious food shortages in America. |
| D．To encourage readers to donate food or money to food banks. |
10 . Seeking a suitable university for you? The University of Waikato is the right one. It is internationally recognized for its excellence and achievements. It will help you develop advanced research skills. As a university student you can get first-class research facilities with trained teachers to help, support and advise you in your study. We pride ourselves on our high standards, our research success and our international recognition. For further information: inf@waikato.ac.nz
●Degree
We offer a wide choice of bachelor’s degrees for international students, which include: Arts, Communication Studies, Social Sciences, etc. Bachelor of Music and Bachelor of Education are only for New Zealand citizens. For further information: deg@waikato.ac.nz
●Tuition Fees
Tuition fees are different from department to department, generally from $5,000 to $6,000 a year. For further information: tui@waikato.ac.nz
●Accommodation
You can have a room in a 4-bedroom flat, which will cost about $100 a month with other regular living costs of about $150 a month for one person. For further information: ave@waikato.ac.nz
●Health
The Student Health Service provides excellent medical services for students. The Medical centre is open five days a week, including student holidays with four doctors and nurses to meet your medical needs. For further information: heal@waikato.ac.nz
●Sports
The Centre is a great place to have sports activities. Trained exercise teachers can help you work out a training plan and keep you active. The sports hall has volleyball, basketball and indoor football courts and a swimming pool as well. There are also a large number of sports clubs at Waikato. For further information: sport@waikcato.ac.nz
1. You have to pay at least a year if you study at the University of Waikato.| A．$5,250 | B．$8,000 | C．$9,000 | D．$11,000 |
| A．Go to a hospital nearby. | B．Buy some medicine in a drug store. |
| C．See a doctor at the school medical centre. | D．Try to get help from your classmates. |
| A．introduce the University of Waikato to readers |
| B．instruct readers to choose a right university |
| C．persuade readers to choose the University of Waikato |
| D．show how proud the author is of the university |
