On my eighth birthday, Dad bought me an accordion(手风琴） and said excitedly, "Once you learn to play, it’ll stay with you for life." But I didn’t want to play it. Ijust wanted to play games, But Dad asked me to take accordion lessons.
One day, I found a box in a corner. When I opened it, I saw a beautiful violin. "You’re your father’s," Mum said. "His parents bought it for him. I guess he got too busy on the farm to learn to play it."
I had to practice half an hour every day, and every day I tried to get out of it. But Dad didn’t allow. I asked why. He answered, "Because you can bring people joy. You can touch their hearts." He added softly, "Someday you’ll have the chance I never had: you’ll play beautiful music for your family. And you’ll understand why you’ve worked so hard." I was speechless.
The lessons stopped after I finished high school. When I grew up, I got married and moved into a new house. I put the accordion in the attic（阁楼）.
One afternoon, my two children found the accordion by accident (偶然). They got very excited. "Play it. Play it," they laughed and said. I started to play some simple songs. I was surprised I could still remember them. Soon the kids were dancing. Even my wife was laughing and clapping to the beat.
At that moment, my father’s words came back to me, "Someday you’ll have the chance I never had. And you’ll understand." I finally knew why Dad had asked me to practice hard. Dad never learnt to play his violin. But I told my family, "This is my father’s music."My father didn’t learn to play his violin when he was young because _______.
| A．he didn’t like to play the violin | B．he had to support his family |
| C．he wanted to play games | D．he didn’t keep on practicing |
How might the writer feel when he had to practice playing the accordion?
| A．Delighted. | B．Excited. | C．Bored. | D．Relaxed. |
"Dad didn’t allow" means "_______".
| A．Dad didn’t let me do it. | B．Dad didn’t stop me doing it. |
| C．Dad didn’t help me do it. | D．Dad didn’t see me do it. |
Dad asked me to learn to play the accordion so that _______.
| A．I could go to a better school | B．I could give myself much joy |
| C．I could be a useful man | D．I could make people happy |
The most interesting festivals around the world
| Contents Introduction.....................................1 ＊Baby Crying Day......................2 ＊Cheese--rolling Festival ............................................4 ＊Color Throwing Festival .................................................6 ＊Fish Swallowing Festival ................................................8 ＊International Pillow Fight Day ............11 ＊International Twins Festival ................13 ＊Raincoat Festival ......................15 ＊Roswell UFO Festival ..................16 ＊Tomato Festival........................18 ＊Water Fighting Day...................19 ＊Wife Carrying Festival..............20 ＊World Bodypainting Festival .............22 |
International Pillow(枕头) Fight Day International Pillow Fight Day is held every April around the world---from Amsterdam,Budapest,to New York.It has been celebrated since 2008.Hundreds of people go out with their pillows hitting each other’s face,back and chest.People dress up as superheroes and animals,laughing and fighting. The festival used to be a game to release (释放)energy and stress.Nowadays besides bringing fun,International Pillow Fight Day has become a way to quickly collect pillows for the homeless.In 2014,about 2,000 pillows were collected for the poor in Bronx and Brooklyn. Rules:Bring your own pillows and don’t hit anyone without a pillow or with a camera. The Guinness World Record:The latest record of the largest pillow fight was set on October 27,2013 in Chicago,with 4,500 pillows and 3,813 people. ----11---- |
The International Pillow Fight Day was first celebrated in _________.
| A．2000 | B．2008 | C．2013 | D．2014 |
The latest Guinness World Record of the largest pillow fight was set in _______________.
| A．Chicago | B．Amsterdam | C．Budapest | D．New York |
You may read about ______________ on the Page 19.
| A．Baby Crying Day | B．Color Throwing Festival |
| C．Water Fighting Day | D．World Bodypainting Festival |
Did you have any interesting dreams last night? Do you know everyone dreams? But not everyone remembers their dreams. A person can usually have up to seven dreams a night, and each dream usually lasts from 10 to 40 minutes.
Why do we dream? Scientists believe that we dream to remember because dreams come from our memories and they tell us a lot about ourselves. They also help us learn from the past and even help us solve problems.
Different dreams mean differently to people. For example, if you dream about flying, you are probably quite happy. This is a good time in your life. You may feel that other people see you as a leader. And when you dream that you didn’t study for a test, it usually means you are worried about an important thing coming in your life.
Hi Sam! Sorry I haven’t emailed recently— I’ve been revising for my exams. I have finished them now and I have got some time to relax and some money to spend on going out. Last weekend, I went to see a great film called Yes Man. If you haven’t seen it, you must go! Jim Carrey plays the main character and it’s very funny--and also quite encouraging. It’s based on a book by Danny Wallace which is also called Yes Man. I read the book a few months ago and that’s hilarious, too – I really laughed out loud!
The book is a true story about what happens to the writer, Danny. Basically, he found that he was doing nothing all the time, just worrying about things and complaining about his life. He wasn’t seeing his friends much, so he was lonely and bored. Then one day, he was on a bus in London when he sat down next to a man. The man was a stranger, but they started talking. Danny told him about his boring life and the man just gave him three words: ‘Say “yes” more.’ And for Danny this was a turning point in his life. Those three words influenced everything he did. At that moment, he made a decision: ‘I will say “yes” to everything!’ And he wrote a book about what happened to him in the next year or so. Three years later, the book was made into a hit film.
The film is based on the book although there are some differences. First, it’s set in the US instead of England. Secondly, the main character is based on Danny, but he called Carl in the film. And what’s more, he doesn’t meet a man on a bus. His turning point comes when he goes to a self-help class and they advise him to say “yes” more.
In the film, Carl succeeds in changing his life and doing lots of crazy things: he has flying lessons, he learns to speak Korean and he rides a motorbike with no clothes on! The storyline isn’t very strong. It’s quite weak, I suppose, but all Carl’s stories are very interesting— especially because Jim Carrey is a very funny actor.
I’m really interested in the film because there’s a serious message, too. I believe in making the most of life and I’ve decided I’m going to be more positive. I’ve decided I’m not going to stay at home so much. I’m going to do more things, see my friends more and everything. Actually, that’s why I’m emailing you! It would be great if we could meet up soon. Let me know when you are free.
All the best, Adam
The underlined word hilarious in Paragraph 1 most probably means _____.
| A．simple | B．helpful | C．humorous | D．meaningful |
In Paragraph 3, there are_____ differences mentioned between the book and the film.
| A．two | B．three | C．four | D．five |
Adam wrote this email mainly _____.
| A．to talk about what he was doing recently |
| B．to introduce the book Yes Man written by Danny to Sam |
| C．to advise Sam to watch the film Yes Man made in US |
| D．to talk about why and how he wants to change his life |
From the email we can infer (推断) that _____.
| A．Sam will love Yes Man as much as Adam does |
| B．Yes Man must be the most popular book in the US |
| C．Adam used to stay at home a lot before seeing Yes Man |
| D．Jim Carrey is now a very funny actor because of Yes Man |
One weekend in May 2015, over 48 centimeters of rain fell in Houston, Texas, USA. Soon the city was covered with water. The rising water rushed into the cars on the roads. There were 16 deaths that weekend.
Changing Weather
The weather is changing. Over the last few years, heavy rains have caused floods (洪灾) in Brazil, Pakistan, and Thailand. Droughts (干旱) have struck Russia and Australia. Heat waves have killed thousands in Europe. There are more different kinds of terrible wild weather all over the world. In 2011 alone, the bad weather caused the world to lose 150 billion dollars.
Warmer and Wetter
As more wild weather events happen, a worried world is beginning to ask questions like: What is going on with the weather? And why? Many also want to know: Is this natural, or are we to blame (责怪)?
The answer seems to be: a little of both. Wild weather is natural. This global (全球的) warming makes heat waves more likely to happen. The higher temperatures also cause more water to enter the air. This causes much more rain. Some scientists also believe global warming makes some storms stronger.
This means we’re likely to see more wild weather. “But we don’t have to just stand there and take it,” says Scientist Michael Oppenheimer. He and other scientists say we need to stop the Earth from getting warmer. We also need to be prepared, to do things that will help save lives.What is the purpose of the second paragraph?
| A．To give examples of wild weather events. |
| B．To guess how the weather will change. |
| C．To explain why the weather is changing. |
| D．To describe the weather events in 2011. |
Which of the following can be put in the blank in Paragraph 4?
| A．And wild weather happens more and more. |
| B．And nature also influences human activity. |
| C．But humans have already paid enough attention to the wild weather. |
| D．But most scientists agree human activity has made the Earth warmer. |
Which of the following would Oppenheimer probably agree with?
| A．It is too late to stop global warming. |
| B．Humans have nothing to do with global warming. |
| C．The weather will get better if we can stop global warming. |
| D．To find ways to keep our things safe is the most important. |
What is the main idea of the passage?
A. In May 2015, there was a deadly flood in Houston, Texas, USA.
B. There are more kinds of terrible wild weather all over the world.
C. Many scientists believe global warming makes some storms stronger.
D. Global warming causes wild weather events and that makes people worried.
He was an old man who fished alone in a small boat on the sea and he had gone eighty-four days now without taking a fish. In the first forty days a boy had been with him. But after forty days without a fish, the boy’s parents had told him that the old man was now salao, which is the worst form of unlucky, and the boy had gone with another boat which caught three good fish the first week. It made the boy sad to see the old man come in each day with his boat empty. The sail looked like the flag of failure forever.
The old man was thin with deep wrinkles (皱纹) in the back of his neck. His face was terribly brown because of the strong sunlight on the sea every day and his hands had the deep scars (伤疤) from dealing with heavy fish on the lines. But none of these scars were fresh. Everything about him was old except his eyes and they were the same color as the sea and were cheerful.
“Santiago,” the boy said to him as they climbed the bank from the sea. “I could go with you again. We’ve made some money.”
The old man had taught the boy to fish and the boy loved him.
“No,” the old man said. “You’re with a lucky boat. Stay with them.”
“But remember how you went eighty-seven days without fish and then we caught big ones every day for three weeks.”
“I remember,” the old man said.
“It was papa who made me leave. I am a boy and I must follow him.”
“I know,” the old man said. “It is quite normal.”
“He hasn’t much faith (信心).”
“No,” the old man said. “But we have. Haven’t we?”
“Yes,” the boy said. “Can I offer you a beer on the Terrace?”
“Why not?” the old man said “Between fishermen.”In the story the old man was the boy’s _____.
| A．grandfather | B．friend | C．boss | D．host |
The word they in Paragraph 2 refers to (指的是) _____ of the old man.
| A．the hands | B．the scars |
| C．the eyes | D．the wrinkles |
The old man refused the boy to go fishing with him again because _____.
| A．he wanted to fish by himself |
| B．he could really understand his parents |
| C．the boy asked for some money |
| D．the boy had already learnt how to fish |
From the story we can know that _____.
| A．the old man was always full of hope |
| B．the boy’s parents believed in the old man |
| C．everyone laughed at the old man’s bad luck |
| D．the boy was worried about the old man’s health |
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