On November 19, 1863, Abraham Lincoln went to Gettysburg to speak at the National Soldiers Cemetery（公墓）. The Civil War was still going on. There was much criticism (批评) of President Lincoln at the time. He had been invited to speak at Gettysburg only out of politeness. The other speaker was to be Edward Everett, a famous statesman (政治家) and speaker of the day. Everett was a handsome man and very popular everywhere.
It is said that Lincoln prepared his speech on the train while going to Gettysburg. Later that night, alone in his hotel room and tired out, he again worked briefly on the speech. The next day Everett spoke first. His speech lasted an hour and 57 minutes and it was a perfect example of the day. Then Lincoln rose. The crowd of 15,000 people at first paid little attention to him. He spoke for only nine minutes. At the end there was little applause（掌声）. Lincoln turned to a friend and said, “I have failed again.”
Some newspapers at first criticized (批评) the speech. But little by little, as people read the speech, they began to like its simplicity（简洁）and its deep meaning. It was a speech which only Abraham Lincoln could have made.
Now everyone thinks of it as one of the greatest speeches ever given in American history. In 1863, Abraham Lincoln was __________________ in Gettysburg.
| A．warmly welcomed | B．unpopular | C．greatly praised | D．very polite |
Lincoln was invited to speak at the National Soldiers Cemetery because he was __________.
| A．a famous speaker of the day | B．very handsome and polite |
| C．President of the United States at the time | D．a popular statesman |
It can be inferred from the text that __________________________________.
| A．Lincoln had prepared his speech very carefully before he went to Gettysburg |
| B．Lincoln was very busy at the time and didn’t have much time to prepare his speech |
| C．Lincoln’s speech seemed to be a failure for the first time |
| D．Lincoln’s speech was a little shorter than Everett’s one |
Lincoln’s speech was __________________.
| A．an immediate success | B．not accepted at all |
| C．a total failure | D．not well-received at first |
Which of the following statements is NOT TRUE?
| A．Lincoln’s speech has deep meaning though it is simple in style. |
| B．Neither Lincoln’s speech nor Everett’s was popular then. |
| C．Lincoln’s speech proved to be a great success later. |
| D．Everett’s speech was thought to be perfect at that time. |
A Groundbreaking Event
It was an unforgettable field trip. Twenty-six fifth-graders from George Bancroft Elementary School, in Washington, D.C., went to the White House on Friday. They used shovels, rakes and wheelbarrows to help First Lady Michelle Obama break ground on a new vegetable garden.
This White House garden is the first since World War Ⅱ. In the 1940s, First lady Eleanor Roosevelt planted a White House “Victory Garden” to encourage Americans to grow gardens at home. Mrs. Obama’s new garden is an L-shaped patch near the fountain on the South Lawn. Vegetables to be planted include lettuce, peas, collard greens, onions and spinach. A herb garden will grow garlic, sage and cilantro. These herbs are used in Mexican food, an Obama family favourite. White House chefs will prepare meals for the First Family with food from the garden and some of the produce will be donated to Miriam’s Kitchen, a soup kitchen near the White House.
Health food is important to Mrs. Obama. She said that the purpose of the garden is to make sure that her family, the White House staff, and guests eat fresh vegetables. Mrs. Obama has also said that she hopes the new White House garden will help educate Americans about the importance of fresh, nutritious food at a time when obesity is a national crisis. A diet high in natural, unprocessed foods helps people maintain a healthy weight.
Mrs. Obama said she has found that her daughters, Malia, 16, and Sasha, 13, like vegetables more if they have been involved in growing them. “If they have been involved in planting and picking the vegetables, they are much more curious about giving them a try,” she said. When Bancroft students go back to the White House this summer they will get to taste the vegetables they helped to grow. After they help to harvest the crops, they will cook them in the White House kitchen and then eat them.What did the Bancroft students do outside the White House?
| A．They gave shovels, rakes and wheelbarrows to the First Lady. |
| B．They did research on what life is like for the First Lady. |
| C．They helped First Lady Michelle Obama to plant a garden. |
| D．They gave fruit and vegetables to the First Lady. |
The reason why First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt planted a “Victory Garden” was that _________.
| A．she did it just for fun. |
| B．she wanted other citizens to follow her example. |
| C．she wanted to please her husband. |
| D．she wanted to get some gardening experience. |
Why did Mrs. Obama plan to plant the garden?
| A．Because she wanted her children to become gardeners. |
| B．Because she wanted to know what gardening is like. |
| C．Because she wanted to become a second Eleanor Roosevelt. |
| D．Because she wanted people in the white house to eat a healthy food. |
Liverpool city council want to clear the city of fat pigeons. They say that people are feeding the birds, which makes them fat. The pigeons get bigger because their normal diet would consist of seeds and insects, not high-fat junk food they are eating in the city centre.
The council want people to know that everyone who feeds the pigeons is responsible for the streets being so crowded with these birds. They hope to encourage the birds to move away from the city centre and into parks and open spaces.
Ten robotic birds have been brought into the city centre to scare the pigeons away and visitors are asked not to give the pigeons any food. The mechanical birds - known as “robops” - will sit on the roofs of buildings. They can be moved around to different locations. They look like a peregrine falcon, which is a bird that kills pigeons. They even make noises and flap their wings to scare the pigeons. They hope that the pigeons will go away before the city becomes the European Capital of Culture in two years.Pigeons in Liverpool get fat because they eat ________ .
| A．birds | B．seeds |
| C．insects | D．high-fat junk food |
What do Liverpool city council try to do?
| A．They want the pigeons to move out of the city centre. |
| B．They want people to feed the pigeons with healthy food. |
| C．They want people to keep the pigeons at home. |
| D．They want to keep robotic birds instead of pigeons. |
The robotic birds are used to _________.
| A．make the city colorful |
| B．drive away the pigeons |
| C．help feed the pigeons |
| D．show people directions |
This passage is most probably a(n) __________.
| A．notice | B．news report |
| C．short story | D．advertisement |
Today is Sarah’s birthday. She is seventy-five. We asked a few old friends to dinner.
Like most elderly people, I suppose, we spent most of the evening talking about old times. Thirty years ago, the village used to be a quiet place. Now it has changed. Every Sunday hundreds of cars pass through the village at what I think a dangerous speed. They make the village almost as noisy as the streets of a large town. As a boy I enjoyed riding on the backs of the farm horses. Things are different now. Today there are very few horses working on the farms. The farm workers today drive tractors, not horses. A man is not of much use on a farm unless he knows all about machines. Now almost every house in the village has a TV set. Is it a good thing for children to spend the evening sitting in front of a TV set? When I was young I did not waste my time indoors. I would spend the long summer evenings outdoors. I would play with my friends, go fishing or walk by the river. When my grandchildren asked me the reason why I haven’t bought a TV set, I tell them there are many books I still want to read. I can’t find time for both reading and watching TV.The old like to talk about _______.
| A．themselves | B．others | C．the past | D．nothing |
When I was a boy, I _______ riding on farm horses.
| A．used to see people |
| B．disliked |
| C．was fond of |
| D．saw some elderly people |
Which is NOT right according to the passage?
| A．In the past the village was a quiet place. |
| B．It is a good time for children to watch TV all evening. |
| C．On Sundays many cars pass through the village at a dangerous speed. |
| D．When I was young I didn’t waste my time indoors. |
I would rather _______ than _______.
| A．watch TV; do some reading |
| B．play with friends; go fishing |
| C．do some reading; watch TV |
| D．go fishing; play with friends |
Shakespeare’s Birthplace and Exhibition of Shakespeare’s World
Welcome to the world-famous house where William Shakespeare was born in l564 and where he grew up. The property (房产) remained in the ownership of Shakespeare’s family until 1806. The House has welcomed visitors traveling from all over the world, for over 250 years.
◆Enter through the Visitors’ Centre and see the highly-praised exhibition Shakespeare's World, a lively and full introduction to the life and work of Shakespeare.
◆Stand in the rooms where Shakespeare grew up.
◆Discover examples of furniture and needlework from Shakespeare’s period.
◆Enjoy the traditional English garden, planted with trees and flowers mentioned in the poet’s works.
pThe Birthplace is within easy walking distance of all the car parks shown on the map: nearest is Windsor Street (3 minutes’ Walk).
㊣The House may present difficulties but the Visitors’ Centre, its exhibition, and the garden are accessible (可进入的) to wheelchair users.
⊙The Shakespeare Coffee House (opposite the Birthplace).
How much is the admission for a family of two grown-ups and two children?
| A．￡9.80. | B．￡12.00. | C．￡14.20. | D．￡16.40. |
Where is the nearest parking place to Shakespeare’s Birthplace?
| A．Behind the exhibition hall. |
| B．Opposite the Visitors’ Centre. |
| C．At Windsor Street. |
| D．Near the Coffee House. |
A wheelchair user may need help to enter .
| A．the House | B．the garden |
| C．the Visitors’ Centre | D．the exhibition hall |
Computer programmer David Jones earns ￡35,000 a year designing new computer games, yet he cannot find a bank ready to let him have a credit card (信用卡). Instead, he has been told to wait another two years, until he is 18. The 16-year-old works for a small firm in Liverpool, where the problem of most young people of his age is finding a job. David’s firm releases (推出) two new games for the fast throwing computer market each month.
But David’s biggest headache is what to do with his money. Even though he earns a lot, he cannot drive a car, take out a mortgage (抵押贷款), or get credit cards. David got his job with the Liverpool-based company four months ago, a year after leaving school with six O-levels and working for a time in a computer shop. “I got the job because the people who run the firm knew I had already written some programs,” he said. David spends some of his money on records and clothes, and gives his mother 50 pounds a week. But most of his spare time is spent working.
“Unfortunately, computing was not part of our studies at school,” he said. “But I had been studying it in books and magazines for four years in my spare time. I knew what I wanted to do and never considered staying on at school. Most people in this business are fairly young, anyway.” David added:“I would like to earn a million and I suppose early retirement is a possibility. You never know when the market might die away.”In what way is David different from people of his age?
| A．He often goes out with friends. |
| B．He lives with his mother. |
| C．He has a handsome income. |
| D．He graduated with six O-levels. |
What is one of the problems that David is facing now?
| A．He is too young to get a credit card. |
| B．He has no time to learn driving. |
| C．He has very little spare time. |
| D．He will soon lose his job. |
Why was David able to get the job in the company?
| A．He had done well in all his exams. |
| B．He had written some computer programs. |
| C．He was good at playing computer games. |
| D．He had learnt to use computers at school. |
Why did David decide to leave school and start working?
| A．He received lots of job offers. |
| B．He was eager to help his mother. |
| C．He lost interest in school studies. |
| D．He wanted to earn his own living. |
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