Bedfordshire had its fair share of royal visits from the early stages of the 10th Century onwards and the importance that the county placed on this is evident in the monuments, country houses, churches and any number of other structures that are still present there to this day. Bedford Castle is one of those structures and, although it is nowhere near its former glory today, it is an essential attraction to visit if you really want to grasp what its heritage means to the county!
Bedford Castle was built initially as a fortress to help protect Bedfordshire on the south of the River Ouse after the people in the local towns and villages had already been subdued. It was erected in 919 on the orders of King Edward the Elder, although it was destroyed by a Danish invasion years later. This was when it was rebuilt as the castle, of which the ruins exist today!
There is a long history behind the castle that involves several kings as a result of the Duke of Bedford being an ardent royalist. Bedford Castle repeatedly offered the kings of England refuge against various storms in the form of onslaughts from abroad and various domestic threats against them, and this is where much of its fame lies, even though the castle itself is no longer there. There are various tours of the ruins that you can take when you visit though and all of the guides are extremely knowledgeable. They will happily tell you tales of the mound and the castle that preceded it.
The mound is open to the public all year round and is a proud part of the area’s heritage. It is recommended by the majority of people that visit Bedfordshire because it tells you much about why the county is currently how it is. You can view the river from the mound and the surrounding settlements as well as the remains of the castle, and every moment spent there is worth it so enjoy the history and the very nature of the county itself! What do we know from the first paragraph?
| A．The royals pay regular visits to Bedfordshire |
| B．Bedford Castle represents the heritage of the county |
| C．Most of the ancient buildings are in use today |
| D．Bedfordshire had its fair share of royal visits |
The underlined word “initially” in Paragraph 2 probably means _______.
| A．at first | B．since the beginning |
| C．for one particular purpose | D．for a short time |
The kings of England came to Bedford Castle ______.
| A．to escape from the bad weather | B．to visit the Duke of Bedford |
| C．to enjoy the beauty of nature | D．to seek temporary protection |
Why are visitors recommended to visit Bedfordshire? ______
| A．It reflects the history of the country |
| B．It is the major heritage in that region |
| C．The ancient castle is well worth visiting |
| D．The castle is still in good condition |
The purpose of writing the text is _______.
| A．to attract tourists to Bedfordshire | B．to tell the history of Bedfordshire |
| C．to introduce Bedford Castle | D．to show where the kings used to go |
Parkour (跑酷) is a new sport that is developing quickly in the world. The aim of parkour is to jump, climb or run over any all stair, or fence on your path easily. Usually, it is done in a city environment. Practicers take very wall or roof as their training place. If you have seen the beginning of the James Bond movie Casino Royale, then you have seen an excellent example of parkour.
David Belle, a young Frenchman, developed parkour in the 1990s. His father's experiences as a fireman as well as an acrobat(杂技演员)influenced him a lot. His childhood friend, Sebastien Foucan, is the actor in the movie Casino Royale with his parkour performance. Foucan is thought to have developed free-running, which is a more artistic and skillful type of parkour. David belle traveled to India and said one way he trained was by watching a physical one. The aim is to become so skillful, and it is almost unnecessary for you to think about the different actions in running through a path full of barriers(障碍物).
Parkour is not exactly a sport. It is not developed fro competition. It is more about learning to control mind and body in difficult situations. There are many basic movements in parkour. One example is where practicers swing through the narrow space between two bars while keeping their body level with the ground. This is called the underbar. Other movements are the tic-tac and the kong vault jump. Skillful practicers seem to get out of control of gravity.
The popularity has spread largely because of parkour videos and organizations on the Internet. And if you search on the Web, you will find parkour groups performing their skills near you.The author wrote this text to _______
| A．introduce a new sport parkour | B．show how parkour is popular in the world |
| C．Tell the history of parkour | D．explain the basic movements in parkour |
Who performed parkour in the movie Casino Royale?
| A．David Belle. | B．James Bond. | C．Sebastien Foucan. | D．David Belle's father. |
People learn about parkour mainly for ______.
| A．the newspaper | B．the Internet | C．the radio | D．TV |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the text?
| A．Children should not be allowed to do parkour. |
| B．Casino Royale is a movie introducing parkour |
| C．Most of the lovers of parkour are Internet users. |
| D．Parkour is a mental exercise as well as a physical one |
| Voyages By Neil Waldman Travel with young Abe Lincoln down the Mississippi River, taking his boat down to New Orleans. Along the way, Lincoln finds himself on his own voyage of discovery. It is an amazing experience with risk and excitement.(Chapter book) |
| The People Could Fly By Leo Hamilton and Diane Dillon It tells a folk tale about African people who could fly. Long ago in Africa, people could fly like shing black birds in the sky. Enslaved (被奴役) and sent from Africa, their wings were lost, but an old man uses magic, and helps them fly away to freedom.(Chapter book) |
| Through Georgia's Eyes By Rachel Rodriquez and Julie Paschkis Discover the wideness and wonder of deserts and rivers through the eyes of painter Georgia O'Keefe. Deep-colored paper paitings show the artist's imagination and the amazing sightseeing that inspired her work. (Picture book) |
| A Horn For Louis By Eric A. Kimmel and James Bernardin Louis armstrong was too poor to have a real music instrument, but he had a horn(喇叭). Jazz and blues music was everywhere in the streets of New Orleans. This is teh story of how Louis got his first real "horn", when he was just a boy with a dream of becoming a musician. (Chapter book) |
| Go, Go America By Alan Barnard 50 states of fun, with interesting facts — in what state the entertainment capital of the world is, where the first hamburgers were served, what the Cereal Festival is, who hosts the Hog Calling Contest and more.(Picture book) |
| Stitchin's and Pullin' By Patricia C. McKissack, Cozbi A. Cabrera In Gee's Bend, Alabama, generations of women have sewed, talked, sang and laughed, for as long as anyone can remember. Each piece tells a story. |
If you are interested in adventure, you may prefer ______.
| A．A Horn For Louis | B．Go, Go America | C．Through Georgia's Eyes | D．Voyages |
What do Through Georgia's Eyes and Go, Go America have in common?
| A．They are both about the US. | B．They are both written by two authors. |
| C．There are lots of pictures in both books. | D．There are funny stories in both books. |
The book, A horn for Louis, is mainly about _____.
| A．how jazz and blues music was formed in its birthplace, New Orleans |
| B．how Louis got his instrument when he dreamed of becoming a musician |
| C．how Louis got the horn to become a famous musician |
| D．how Louis worked and supported his whole family |
John and Bobby joined a wholesale company together just after graduation from college the same year. Both worked very hard. After several years, however, the boss promoted (提升) Bobby to the position of manager but John remained an ordinary worker. John couldn't understand it anymore, gave his resignation(辞呈) to the boss and complained that the boss didn't value hardworking workers, but only promoted those who flattered (奉承)him.
The boss knew John worked very hard for the years. He thought for a moment and said, "Thank you for your criticism(批评), but I have a request. I hope you'll do one more thing for our company before you leave. Perhaps you'll change your mind and take back your resignation."
John agreed. The boss asked him to go and find out anyone selling watermelon on the market. John went and returned soon. He said he had found out a man selling watermelon. The boss asked how much per kg? John shook his head and went back to the market to ask and returned to tell the boss$1.2 per kg.
Boss told John to wait a second, and he called Bobby to come to his office. He asked Bobby to go and find anyone selling watermelon on the market. Bobby went, returned and said,"Boss, only one person selling watermelon. $1.2 per kg, and $ 10 for 10 kg. He has 340 melons in all, 58 of which are on the table. Every melon weights about 2kg. Bought from the South two days ago, they're fresh and red, good quality."
John was very impressed and realized the difference between himself and Bobby. He decided not to resign but to learn from Bobby.
My dear friends, chances exist in the daily details. For the same matter, a more successful person sees more and farther so that he can find out an opportunity and catch it to achieve his aim.According to the first paragraph, John thought that _____.
| A．Bobby was lazy though he was clever |
| B．it was unfair that the boss just promoted Bobby |
| C．Bobby wasn't fit to be a manager |
| D．the boss disliked hardworking workers |
The boss told John and Bobby to go to find anyone selling watermelon on the market in order to __.
| A．show watermelons were in great need on the market |
| B．test their abilities to make market research |
| C．make John find out the differences between them two |
| D．convince John of Bobby's ability to do business |
It is known from the text that John was hardworking but _____.
| A．a little stupid | B．a little rude | C．not good at learning | D．not thoughtful |
The story shows such an opinion that _____.
| A．a successful person observes and thinks more |
| B．a successful person is curious and eager to learn |
| C．the main key to success is to know what you want |
| D．one's success sometimes is not related to his hard work |
Exchanging music over the Internet is fun and easy. Better yet, it's free, which means you don't have to pay for any more expensive music CDs. Several online file-sharing services make it easy for music lovers to exchange their favorite tunes with one another.
However, this illegal sharing of music — a form of music piracy(盗版)— is doing harm to the music industry. Industry experts estimate (估计) that US$4.3 billion in worldwide sales was lost to music piracy last year. These lost profits could force record companies to stop producing the music of many popular artists. That would hurt both musicians and music fans alike.
Music producers are puzzled about how to fight music piracy. Their efforts to fight piracy using the law have had only limited success. The music industry did win a legal victory against Napster, a famous music website. The courts ordered Napster to stop giving away copyrighted music from their site. But a number of other music-sharing networks have sprung up in its place.
These new networks are made up of thousands, or even millions, of individuals. Unlike Napster, there's no one company controlling the distribution(发行)of music over each network. So it's nearly impossible to stop the illegal activities.
Now people in the music industry have decided that " if you can't beat them, join them." They've begun to offer legal alternatives to online music piracy. Major music producers have given companies like Apple Computer permission(许可) to sell their music online. Apple's iTune Music Store allows computer users to legally download any song for 99 cents.
Will these new measures save the music industry from piracy? That depends on whether music fans are willing to pay 99 cents fro a song that they can download illegally for free. Unfortunately, many people believe music should be free. The music industry, however, hopes to persuade these music fans to change their tune.This text is written to _____.
| A．discuss music piracy on the Internet |
| B．introduce the popularity of online music |
| C．persuade music fans to give up downloading music |
| D．protect copyrighted music from being downloaded illegally |
Which of the following statements is NOT true?
| A．Some online file-sharing services are responsible for music piracy. |
| B．Napster, a famous music website, broke down because of its piracy. |
| C．There have been no perfect measures to put an end to piracy. |
| D．Legal sharing of music is available at Apple's iTune Music Store. |
Which of the following statements would the author agree with?
| A．The only effective way to fight music piracy is to stop it by law. |
| B．Music lovers will be persuaded to pay for online music in time. |
| C．It is certain that no one will be willing to pay for online music. |
| D．There is a long way for music industry to go in fighting piracy. |
The underlined word "illegal" in Paragraph 2 probably means _____.
| A．being protected by the law | B．popular | C．being against the law | D．surprising |
People in the United States honor their parents with two special days：Mother’s Day, on the second Sunday in May, and Father’s Day, on the third Sunday in June. These days are set aside to show love and respect for parents. They raise their children and educate them to be responsible(有责任感的) citizens. They give love and care. These two days make us think about the changing roles of mothers and fathers. More mothers now work outside the home. More fathers must help with child care.
These two special days are celebrated in many different ways. On Mother’s Day people wear carnations. A red one symbolizes a living mother. A white one shows that the mother is dead. Many people attend religious services to honor parents. It is also a day when people whose parents are dead visit the cemetery(墓地).On these days families get together at home, as well as in restaurants. They often have outdoor barbecues for Father’s Day. These are days of fun and good feelings and memories.
Another tradition is to give cards and gifts. Children make them in school. Many people make their own presents. These are valued more than the ones bought in stores. It is not the value of the gift that is important, but it is “the thought that counts”. Greeting card stores, florists, candy makers, bakeries, telephone companies, and other stores do a lot of business during these holidays.Which of the following is NOT a reason for children to show love and respect for parents?
| A．Parents bring up children. |
| B．Parents give love and care to children. |
| C．Parents educate children to be good persons. |
| D．Parents pass away before children grow up. |
What do you think “florists” do?
| A．They sell flowers. |
| B．They make and sell bread. |
| C．They offer enough room for having family parties. |
| D．They sell special gifts for Mother’s Day and Father’s Day. |
Which do you think is right about “carnation”?
| A．It has only two kinds of colors. |
| B．It refers to the special clothes people wear on Mother’s Day or Father’s Day. |
| C．It’s a kind of flower showing love and best wishes. |
| D．People can wear carnations only on the second Sunday in May. |
What do you know from the passage?
| A．Mother’s Day and Father’s Day are both in May. |
| B．Fewer women worked outside the home in the past. |
| C．Not all the children respect their parents |
| D．Fathers are not as important as mothers at home. |
On Mother’s Day and Father’s Day, .
| A．people usually have family parties |
| B．everyone goes to visit the cemetery |
| C．children always go to parents’ home |
| D．hand-made cards are the most valuable gifts |
粤公网安备 44130202000953号