Gift Idea
The other day I was shopping for Grandma when I realized I had no gift ideas at all．It was not a birthday gift or anything like that．It was simply sort of a hello gift．That is how we do things in my family．We don't really give gifts for special occasions．Instead, we occasionally just give presents to each other to tell other people that we are thinking about them．
That was why I wanted a gift for Grandma．But it was like my imagination had dried up． I have gone through all of the gift ideas in previous years, fruits, wines, cheeses, little handmade crafts, and anything else that you can give to a grandmother．I had even given her gift watches, and CDs．What else was there?
I have always found gift ideas for men a little bit easier than for women, because for men, you can always get the usual things, such as video games, power tools and things like that．With a woman's gift idea, however, you have to know more about her．You cannot just get someone a book or a CD．You have to know all about her taste in movies, music, and literature．
My grandmother likes to read a lot, but what she likes is always pretty popular．I didn't want to get her a book that she might not like, but I was running out of time．I needed a gift idea for this weekend and went to visit her．After all, I hadn't seen her for a long time．I wanted to give her a gift so she would not feel ignored．
Finally, I came up with the perfect gift idea．I made a collection of all the stories I had written in the past year．It wasn't a typical gift idea like a bunch of flowers, but it really worked in the situation．You see, I am a writer and my grandma has always been my fan．
Anyway, I had been learning about bookbinding recently, and had pretty much mastered the art．I figured that I would add a little bit of handmade artwork to the stories, bind it altogether, and give it to her．It took hours to complete, but it was well worth the effort．She absolutely loved it．The writer chose a gift for Grandma to _____．
| A．celebrate a special family occasion |
| B．please her during a weekend visit |
| C．congratulate her on her birthday |
| D．beg her pardon for ignoring her |
What gift did the writer finally decide to give his grandma?
| A．Gift watches． |
| B．A bunch of flowers． |
| C．Artwork made by hand． |
| D．Stories written by himself． |
How does the writer feel about giving gifts to women?
| A．Interesting． | B．Challenging． |
| C．Time-wasting． | D．Popular． |
We can learn from the passage that ______．
| A．the writer is a successful novelist |
| B．most people are particular about gifts |
| C．the writer's grandma has a good taste in art |
| D．the writer's family will give gifts on regular days |
My name’s Geoffrey Chaucer. It was 16th April 1386, and I was in London at an inn in Southwark. Tomorrow I would go to Canterbury, to the shrine (圣地) of Saint Thomas Becket, together with twenty-nine other people. Before I say more, I want to tell you about some of the people with me.
First there was a knight, a good man who fought well and knew many different countries. He was a true friend to everyone, and always helped people when they needed it. His clothes were old, dark, and dirty from many years of fighting.
Then there was a businessman with an expensive hat on his head. The man, who looked wealthier than he truly was, always said, “I’m doing very well.” A very quick thinker, he talked about ships and the sea a lot, and showed much interest in changing money from different countries.
After the businessman came a franklin (乡绅) with a white beard. He asked people from near and far to visit him at home as he liked eating and drinking and having a good time with others. He was an important man, he knew right from wrong, and people listened to him.
There was a woman from Bath. Her face was open, and nice-looking, but she couldn’t hear very well. In her red dress, she was a big woman with a big smile and big teeth, laughing a lot and talking easily. She knew all about love.
So there we were, all thirty of us, at the inn. The landlord, a tall fat man, brought us the best dinner in London. He would also join our journey tomorrow. After we finished eating, the landlord smiled, suggesting “We’re going to Canterbury tomorrow, and that’s four days from here. One by one, let’s all tell a story on the road to make the time go quicker. And to the teller of the best story we can give a free dinner here at my inn when we get back. What do you say?” We all said “yes” happily to him. Then the question for us was: Who goes first?Which of the following can be described as kind-hearted?
| A．The knight. | B．The businessman. |
| C．The franklin. | D．The woman. |
Which is TRUE of the people described in the text?
| A．The knight always wore very expensive clothes. |
| B．The franklin usually spent time on his own. |
| C．The woman was deaf and loved the red color. |
| D．The businessman was not as rich as he seemed. |
The underlined sentence most probably means “______”.
| A．Who will be the first to be served at the inn |
| B．Who will be the first to tell a story on the road |
| C．Who will go at the front of the traveling group |
| D．Who will be the leader of the traveling group |
According to the text, Chaucer would probably arrive in Canterbury on ______.
| A．April 19th | B．April 20th |
| C．April 24th | D．April 28th |
Movies coming soon
The Croods
Length of time:1 hour 32 minutes
Style: Family, Action
Release date(上映日期): November 22, 2014
Directors: Kirk De Micco, Chris Sanders
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Emma Stone, Ryan Reynolds
Summary
A prehistoric family are forced to flee their cave after it’s destroyed by a disaster that threatens to change their lives forever in this animated(动画制作的) film featuring the voices of Nicolas Cage and Emma Stone.As a protective caveman father leads his family out of harm’s way, the clan(家族) crosses paths with a clever teen named Guy (voice of Ryan Reynolds), who offers to help them reach a distant land where they will be safe from a terrible disaster that will soon change the entire world.
Admission
Length of time: 1 hour 47 minutes
Style: Comedy
Release date: November 22, 2014
Director: Paul Weitz
Starring: Tina Fey, Paul Rudd, Nat Wolff
Summary
Tina Fey and Paul Rudd star in director Paul Weitz’s comedy about an honest Princeton admissions officer.The officer meets a teenager who may be her long-lost son while recruiting(招收) students from an alternative high school.Years ago, Portia Nathan(Fey) quietly gave her newborn son up for adoption.Now she’s got a great career recruiting students for Princeton university.Then, one day, she receives an unexpected call from her close college classmate John Pressman(Rudd), who runs an alternative high school that is home to some very gifted students.One such student is Jeremiah(Nat Wolff), who John believes could be the son that Portia gave up for adoption back in her youth.Meanwhile, as Portia puts her career in danger by changing Jeremiah’s transcript(成绩单), an unexpected love story begins to happen.Who is a film director?
| A．Paul Weitz. | B．Emma Stone. |
| C．Paul Rudd. | D．Nicolas Cage. |
In the movie The Croods, the escaping family is led by____________.
| A．Ryan Reynolds | B．a smart teen |
| C．the father | D．the mother |
It can be inferred that John Pressman____________.
| A．is played by Nat Wolff |
| B．has adopted Portia’s child. |
| C．changes Jeremiah’s transcript |
| D．knows about Portia’s experience |
In which section of a newspaper can we most probably read the text?
| A．New movies. | B．Movie reviews. |
| C．Adventure movies. | D．Movie Stars. |
Cursive(草书) writing is about to become extinct.Do we raise the red flag? To teach or not to teach cursive writing is a question that several state education departments are meeting with.
Before you read this text, do a simple exercise.Pick a pen and paper and start writing in cursive.Yes, that fancy handwriting that you learned in grade school.You may not have forgotten the good times you had while writing curly(弯曲的) Ms and Ns.However, the chances are that you won’t be able to write it as excellently as you used to.Some people are good at making the perfect curls, while some are bad.I am still terrible at it.
Cursive writing is hardly used by kids anymore as even adults don’t write in this style, unless they are using it for their signature.Learning it was a usual practice in school for several decades.However, in 2011, the Indiana Department of Education made it optional(可选择的) for schools to teach cursive writing to the students.In fact, there are 46 more states that have also done the same.
There are some who believe that it is high time for cursive writing to retire from school curriculum.After all, if we don’t leave the past behind, we cannot make way for new things.If you walk into any classroom, you would find children using keyboards to communicate in the written form.On the other hand, fans of cursive writing insist on its usefulness.They remind us that if we stop teaching and learning cursive writing in school, very soon most of our historical documents will become hard to us.Where do we stand on this subject? Is it the right time to erase an almost forgotten writing style and live in the keyboarding world? Or can we do both without compromising on our school curriculum? Let me know your thoughts on this matter by leaving a comment in the section below.From the second paragraph, we know that the author ___________.
| A．didn’t learn cursive writing in grade school |
| B．is poor at making the perfect curls |
| C．often writes in cursive |
| D．often does physical exercise |
In Indiana schools, children ___________.
| A．must learn cursive writing |
| B．are interested in cursive writing |
| C．can choose to learn cursive writing |
| D．learn cursive writing every day |
It can be inferred that the author __________.
| A．prefers to learn cursive writing |
| B．is a cursive writing teacher |
| C．welcomes people to show their opinions |
| D．is a very famous expert in education |
Which of the following could be the best title for the text?
| A．Is cursive writing necessary? |
| B．Is the keyboarding world good? |
| C．How to write in cursive |
| D．How to improve cursive writing |
Outdoor air pollution is an obvious danger because it’s hard to miss.Auto gases, industrial waste, city smog—everyone knows they’re a health hazard(危险) and a call for solutions is on everyone’s lips.But there’s another threat just as perilous— a hidden threat(威胁) we are usually unaware of.We’re speaking about the threat of indoor air pollution.
The dangers caused by indoor air pollution are too often underestimated(低估) and overlooked.According to a recent study, indoor air pollution can be many times higher than outdoor air pollution.A similar study by the Environmental Protection Agency shows that, in general, the air in our homes and offices is two to five times more polluted than outdoor air.
Scientific studies have found that indoor air pollution exacerbates(恶化) the symptoms of asthma(哮喘), and contributes to causing nausea(恶心), headaches and damage to the central nervous system.Evidence has even been found linking poor indoor air quality to certain cancers.Children who spend eighty percent of their time inside are particularly affected by indoor air pollution.
Cigarette smoke, chemical fertilizers(肥料), perfumes and clothing that has been dry-cleaned may contribute to indoor air pollution.Building materials—including paint and glue—are also contributors.
And homes aren’t the only indoor areas affected by this danger.Offices are affected too—sometimes more so—with their copy machines and printers, inks and processing solutions (显影液)and so on.
Fortunately there are many ways to reduce indoor air pollution and improve indoor air quality in your home and office.A major first step would be the use of an air purifier(净化器).What does the underlined word “perilous” mean?
| A．Nervous. | B．Similar. | C．Obvious. | D．Dangerous. |
The author mentions some studies in Paragraph 2 to show indoor air pollution__________.
| A．is recently overestimated |
| B．is very common and serious |
| C．has drawn people’s attention |
| D．is linked to many serious diseases |
Which of the following is the usual contributor of air pollution in our homes?
| A．Smoking. | B．Printing. |
| C．Copy machines. | D．Processing solutions. |
7.What would be discussed in the paragraph that follows?
| A．An introduction to the air purifier. |
| B．Other dangers of indoor air pollution. |
| C．Other sources of indoor air pollution. |
| D．More solutions to the problem of air pollution. |
A mother, who wished to encourage her son’s progress in playing the piano, bought tickets for a performance by the great Polish pianist Ignace Paderewski.When the evening arrived, they found their seats near the front of the concert hall and eyed the impressive Steinway waiting on the stage.Not long after they arrived, the mother came across a friend in the hall and they began to talk with each other.Meanwhile the boy slipped away and could be found nowhere.
At eight o’clock, the lights in the concert hall began to fail, and then the spotlights(聚光灯) came on.Only then did they notice the boy who was up on the piano bench, innocently picking out “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star”.Seeing this, his mother was shocked and embarrassed.But before she could bring her son back, the master appeared on the stage and quickly moved to the keyboard.
He whispered gently to the boy, “Don’t quit.Keep playing.” Learning over, Paderewski reached down with his left hand and began filling in the bass(低音的) part.Soon his right arm reached around the other side and performed a delightful accompaniment(伴奏).Together, the old master and the young boy performed so wonderfully and harmoniously on the stage and they held the attention of the crowd with their beautiful music.
In all our lives, we receive helping hands from time to time—some we notice; some we don’t.Equally we ourselves have countless opportunities to offer helping hands—sometimes we want our assistance to be noticed, sometimes we don’t.Little of what we all achieve is without learning from others and without support from others.We are supposed to hand out what we have received.We can learn from the text that the mother___________.
| A．was pleased to see her son playing the piano on the stage |
| B．admired the master so much that she went to watch his performance |
| C．encouraged her son to play the piano on the stage |
| D．was talking with a friend when her son slipped onto the stage |
Seeing the boy playing the piano, the great master___________.
| A．felt very shocked and angry |
| B．encouraged him to continue |
| C．asked his mother to take him away |
| D．shouted at the boy |
The author wrote this text in order to__________.
| A．show how patient the great master was |
| B．tell the readers a very interesting story |
| C．report an incident in a concert hall |
| D．urge us to reach out to those in need |
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