Are you learning English and do you need help with grammar? Do you want to learn new vocabulary or slang (俚语)? Well, you can find help online with these top 5 free English as a Second Language websites.
Dave’s ESL Café
This is a complete website that can help you learn and practice English. You can read many stories and do a lot of exercises to test your self. You c an also post questions and answers onto the help center.
About.com
You can get free English courses from About.com and you’ll get regular e-mails that will help you learn English.
The Classroom by Voice of America
You can watch videos and listen to news stories to improve your listening and vocabulary skills. You can also hear English words and their meanings.
Heinle’s Newbury House Dictionary of American English
Do you need to find the definition of a word? Use this online dictionary to find simple and clear definitions, as well as example sentences and idioms (习语). You can also find different cultural facts.
Perso nal English Portal (门户网站) on YouTube
You can watch this series of videos on YouTube to develop your listening skills. You can also do a search for “learn English” on YouTube to find other videos. This is a good way to practice English and have fun.If you want to do English exercises and test yourself, you can go to .
| A．About.com | B．YouTube |
| C．Dave’s ESL Cafe | D．the Classroom by Voice of America |
You can at the help center on the website Dave’s ESL Cafe.
| A．watch videos and pictures |
| B．listen to news and music |
| C．watch movies and matches |
| D．read questions and answers |
About.com often sends e-mails to its visitors to help them .
| A．get relaxed | B．have fun |
| C．become famous | D．learn English |
The underlined word “definition” means “ ” in Chinese.
| A．来源 | B．释义 |
| C．意图 | D．背景 |
From Heinle’s Newbury House Dictionary of American English, you can find .
| A．cultural information | B．online libraries |
| C．interesting news | D．many storybooks |
Teenagers are known for being creative and full of new ideas． Let's have a look at these teenage inventions that might change the world．
（1）What is the passage mainly about ？
A．Popular ads．
B． Useful machines．
C． Strange pictures．
D． Teenage inventions．
（2）The earthworm robot by David Cohen can ．
A． make things stay fresh
B． help people wash clothes
C． go into the smallest places
D． take care of the old people
（3）Which of the following in TRUE ？
A． Plates and cups are made of fresh banana leaves．
B． Remya's washing machine can also keep people fit．
C． David Cohen is a middle school student from India．
D． Kenneth's wearable sensors will keep old people at home．
D
Every 14 days， another language dies． There are many reasons for this． Some people think more common languages have more economic（经济的） power． Because of this， young people choose to learn a common language as they think it is more useful． Another reason is that some languages aren't written down． Guujaaw is a leader of the Haida Nation， whose people have lived on the Queen Charlotte Islands， Canada， for more than 10，000 years． Their language is endangered． Traditionally， it wasn't written down， and， as a result， some people are worried that it will die one day． Guujaaw replies to this，" We talk to each other，listen， visit， and believe in the spoken word． Expressing yourself without writing is natural．" However， if Guujaaw's language and others like it are going to stay alive， writing may have to become part of their lives．
When a language dies， a lot of knowledge dies with it． To begin with， language is a huge part of the culture of the people who speak it． Language allows speakers to say certain things： words that describe a cultural idea may not translate exactly into another language． Furthermore， many endangered languages have rich spoken cultures． Stories， songs and histories are passed on from older people to younger generations （一代）． Elizabeth Lindsey， a language researcher， emphasizes（强调）this．" When an elder dies， a library is burned，" she says．
Also， language death affects our knowledge about nature． Local people often have a deep understanding of plants， animals， and the relationship between them． David Harrison， a researcher on endangered languages， reflects，"80% of plant and animal species（物种） have been undiscovered by science． But that doesn't mean they're unknown to humans．"
Many languages are endangered． However， it's not too late． Children often grow up speaking two languages．"No one…becomes richer by giving up…one language to learn another， "Harrison said． If children feel both languages are important， they will use both．
So， it is necessary that children realize how useful their local language is．
（1）How many reasons are mentioned for endangered languages in Paragraph 1？
A．2．
B．3．
C．4．
D．5．
（2）In Paragraph 2， the writer mainly tells us ．
A． how cultures are passed on
B． how cultures are discovered
C． why languages are written down
D． why languages are important to cultures
（3）The underlined word" affects" in the passage means" "．
A． waits for
B． depends on
C． is different from
D． has an influence on
（4）Which of the following is the writer's opinion ．
A． People need to use common languages more often．
B． The spoken word is more important than the written word．
C． Children are the hope to stop the local language from dying．
D． Many animals and plants are in danger because of dying languages．
C
When our son Bradley was ten， the new bicycle he had received earlier that year was stolen． Owning a bicycle was a big deal to our children when they were little． They spent hours and hours， day after day， on their bicycles， riding up and down the footpath， and at the front of the house． We also rode together as a family a lot． Bicycling was a great way to get the kids out of the house and into the fresh air without spending any money．
Bradley had discovered that his bicycle had been stolen from our backyard in Campbelltown， South Australia， when he and his sister went outside for a morning ride． He couldn't believe that someone would do this．
He got a large piece of cardboard， painted a sign begging for the bicycle to be returned， and tied the sign to the letterbox． The following morning， when I went out to collect the mail， I found a white envelope with the magical words， " Buy yourself a new bicycle"． There was a ＄100 banknote inside．
We were very touched that someone had the heart to do this． We've never been able to thank the person but we suspect（猜想）that it may have been one of our wonderful neighbours． Bradley painted a big" !" on the sign and we left it outside for a couple of weeks afterwards， hoping the kind stranger would drive down our street．
A delighted Bradley was able to buy a new bicycle． As the years went on， the bicycles became bigger and more expensive but remained just as important for those family bicycle rides． Now Bradley is 25． Sometimes I miss the days when receiving a bicycle was the best thing in the world to them．
All these years later we are still thankful for the stranger's kindness． We were a young family with three little children and it meant a lot to us． We still talk about it and， even now， wonder who the kind stranger was．
（1）According to the passage， Bradley often when he was a child．
A． rode a bike
B． made signs
C． took a walk
D． collected mails
（2）Which of the following is the best to fill in the blank in Paragraph 4？
A． Come back
B． Thank you
C． A new bicycle
D． A good boy
（3）From the action of the stranger， we can learn that ．
A． love builds a warm family
B． a special memory lasts long
C． happiness makes a better life
D． a kindness helps others a lot
（4）The best title for the passage can be ．
A． A rich stranger
B． A thankful mother
C． a bicycle for Bradley
D． a banknote for the family
B
Right now you probably spend most of your time in school． Do you wonder what you are going to do after high school？ Will you continue to go to school？ Will you learn a trade？ Perhaps it is time to think about your choices and to prepare for them． Some day work will be a big part of your life．
What kind of job would be right for you？ Think about your interests and your skills． You may like to listen to music， dance， play basketball， or work with computers． You may know how to drive a car or how to get along with people． Knowing both your interests and skills will help make a better plan for your career（职业）．
To get an idea of what work you would like to do， make a list of your interests and a list of your skills． Think about what you have done to be successful in your interests． After that， brainstorm a list of career choices that might match your interests and skills． You can later keep your lists with the projects and documents that can help you achieve the career you want． They can help you know more clearly about your achievements in school and in the world of work．
Roberta Zhan， an art designer， finds her work satisfying because it allows her to use her interests and skills． She enjoyed imagining something in her mind's eye while she was in school． She took art， design， and computer lessons， and also learned about taking photos on her own．
Here is what she says about the meaning of work： "If you have a job you like， work means much more than just making money． It means using your talents， making a contribution（贡献）， and getting a real sense of satisfaction from doing a job．"
（1）The passage is most probably written to ．
A． students
B． teachers
C． parents
D． designers
（2）At the beginning， the writer introduces the topic of the passage by ．
A． listing facts
B． giving examples
C． asking questions
D． explaining differences
（3）Roberta Zhan might be most interested in when she was at school．
A． singing songs
B． creating pictures
C． playing basketball
D． playing computer games
（4）The passage is mainly about ．
A． the real meaning of work
B． the importance of interests and skills
C． the journey of Roberta's life
D． the way of preparing for the future career
A
Eating your way around the world
Australia： Try a pie floater？
Feeling hungry？ No visit to South Australia is complete without trying the local food﹣a pie floater． They are traditionally sold at roadside food shops， some of which stay open all night． It is a meat pie floating in a thick green pea soup． Finally， the pie is covered with plenty of bright red tomato ketchup（番茄酱）． Enjoy!
Vietnam ：Soup for breakfast
The food stands in the streets of Ho Chi Minh City， Vietnam， open early in the morning and stay busy till late at night， selling fast food to hungry passers﹣by． The most famous dish is pho， a noodle soup with slices of beef or chicken and different vegetables． It's usually eaten for breakfast﹣many Vietnamese people say they cannot start the day without this delicious food!
Belgium： Home of French fries
You can find French fried potatoes all over the world， but as Belgians will tell you， they， not the French， invented this popular street food， back in the 17th century． French fries， eaten from a paper cone are the Belgian's favourite food． The secret of perfect French fries is that they are fried （油炸） twice in hot oil， to give a perfect， golden outside．
（1）A pie floater in South Australia is a kind of food with ．
A． fried potatoes
B． thick soup
C． beef or chicken
D． a golden outside
（2）According to the passage， all the three kinds of local food ．
A． are sold in the street
B． have meat inside
C． have tomato ketchup
D． are fried in hot oil
（3）The passage most probably comes from the column（栏目） in a magazine．
A． education
B． health
C． travel
D． technology
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