Every one of the gymnasts who went to National Qualifiers (国家冠军赛资格赛) showed up with that goal in mind. Everyone gave it their all.
And I hate admitting it, but I was an exception. I did not do my best. Not for the ribbon exercise, nor for the club exercise. Knowing that I could have reached a little further to catch my ribbon, focused a little more so the stick wouldn’t slip through my fingers, tried a little harder to clean up those errors, but I didn’t, still bothers me.
After my disappointing competition, I tried my best to keep my eyes dry. But soon tears burned the edges of my eyes, and as I blinked, the first tear rolled down my cheek. Even though I angrily wiped my tears away before she looked at me, the evidence of my self-pity session presented itself clearly in the form of dirty makeup and reddened eyes.
My mom hated to see me cry, especially because I had no right or reason to. I had messed up — that wasn’t anyone’s fault but mine — and crying wouldn’t help at all. “Why are you crying, Amanda?” she asked, perhaps more pointedly (尖刻地) than intended, but I heard the concern in her voice. Unable to form all the emotions into words, I just looked away and avoided her questions.
“Tell me now why you’re crying.” Her voice this time wasn’t as gentle as it was before; it was filled with frustration and impatience. “Why are you crying?” she whispered again, but this time her voice was shaky and flooded with pain. This was the first time I’d ever seen my mom cry; my mom, who was always so strong and was there to encourage me through the roughest times, was now crying, and I was the reason for it. Finding my voice, I tentatively asked, “Why are you crying?”
She looked at me and answered exactly what I was afraid to hear, “I hate to see you hurting yourself.” So it was my fault. I had put those tears in her eyes. I had filled her with pain, with helplessness and with sadness.
I’ll never forget her pained expression. It forced me to realize how shortsighted and close-minded I’d been. I decided that no matter what happens in the future, I will never lose myself to regret.Which words reflect the change of the mother’s emotions?
| A．Painful — impatient — concerned |
| B．Concerned — frustrated — painful |
| C．Satisfied — painful — frustrated |
| D．Frustrated — angry — painful |
What did Amanda determine to do?
| A．Never cry in face of her mom. |
| B．Never compete as a gymnast. |
| C．Never involve herself in self-pity. |
| D．Never make up before games. |
Exploit your parking space
An unused parking space or garage can make money. If you live near a city center or an airport, you could make anything up to ￡200 or ￡300 a week. Put an advertisement for free on Letpark or Atmyhousepark.
Rent（出租）a room
Spare room Not only will a lodger（房客）earn you an income, but also, thanks to the government-backed “rent a room” program, you won’t have to pay any tax on the first ￡4500 you make per year. Try advertising your room on Roomspare or Roommateeasy.
Make money during special events
Don’t want a full-time lodger? Then rent on a short-term basis. If you live in the capital, renting a room out during the Olympics or other big events could bring in money. Grashpadder can advertise your space.
Live on set
Renting your home out as a “film set” could earn you hundreds of pounds a day, depending on the film production company and how long your home is needed. A quick search on the Internet will bring up dozens of online companies that allow you to register your home for free—but you will be charged if your home gets picked.
Use your roof
You need the right kind of roof, but some energy companies pay the cost of fixing solar equipment (around ￡14,000), and let you use the energy produced for nothing. In return, they get paid for unused energy fed back into the National Grid. However, you have to sign a 25-year agreement with the supplier, which could prevent you from changing the roof.If you earn ￡5000 from renting a room in one year, the tax you need to pay will be based on ______.
| A．￡800 | B．￡500 | C．￡4500 | D．￡5000 |
Where can you put an advertisement to rent out a room during a big event？
| A．On Letpark. | B．On Roomspare. |
| C．On Grashpadder. | D．On Roommateeasy. |
If you want to use energy free, you have to_____.
| A．sign an agreement with the government |
| B．pay around ￡14,000 for the equipment |
| C．sell the roof to some energy companies |
| D．keep the roof unchanged for within 25 years |
For whom the text most probably written？
| A．Lodgers. | B．Advertisers. |
| C．House owners. | D．Online companies |
Plants are flowering faster than scientists predicted (预测) in reaction to climate change, which could have long damaging effects on food chains (链条) and ecosystems.（生态系统）
Global warming is having a great effect on hundreds of plant and animal species around the world, changing some living patterns, scientists say.
Increased carbon dioxide (CO2) in the air from burning coal and oil can have an effect on how plants produce oxygen (氧气), while higher temperatures and changeable rainfall patterns can change their patterns of growth.
“Predicting species’ reaction to climate change is a major challenge in ecology,” said the researches of several U.S. universities. They said plants had been the key object of study because their reaction to climate change could have an effect on food chains and ecosystem services.
The study, published on the Nature website, uses the findings from plant life cycle studies and experiments across four continents and 1,634 species. It found that some experiments had underestimated (低估) the speed of flowering by 8.5 times and leafing（长出叶子） by 4 times.
“Across all species, the experiments under-predicted the speed of the advance —for both leafing and flowering —that results from temperature increases,” the study said.
The design of future experiments may need to be improved to better predict how plants will react to climate change, it said.
Plants are necessary for life on the Earth. They are the base of the food chain, using photosynthesis (光合作用) to produce sugar from carbon dioxide and water. They let out oxygen which is needed by nearly every organism on the planet.
Scientists believe the world’s average temperature has risen by about 0.8℃ since 1900, and nearly 0.2℃ every ten years since 1979.
So far, efforts to cut emissions (排放) of planet-warming greenhouse gases are not seen as enough to prevent the Earth heating up beyond（超出） 2℃ this century —a point scientists say will bring the danger of a changeable climate in which weather extremes are common, leading to drought, floods, crop failures and rising sea levels.What is the key information the author wants to give in Paragraph 1?
| A．Plants’ reaction to weather could have damaging effects on ecosystems. |
| B．The increasing speed of flowering is beyond scientists’ expectation. |
| C．Climate change leads to the change of food production patterns. |
| D．Food chains have been seriously damaged because of weather. |
We can learn from the study published on the Nature website that __________.
| A．plants’ flowering is 8.5 times faster than leafing |
| B．there are 1,634 plant species on the four continents |
| C．scientists should improve the design of the experiments |
| D．the experiments failed to predict how plants react to climate change |
Scientists pay special attention to the study of plants because __________.
| A．they can prove the climate change clearly |
| B．they are very important in the food chainsA |
| C．they play a leading role in reducing global warming |
| D．they are growing and flowering much faster than before |
What can be inferred from the last two paragraphs about the world’s temperature?
| A．It has risen nearly 0.2℃ since 1979. |
| B．Its change will lead to weather extremes. |
| C．It is 0.8℃ higher in 1979 than that of 1900. |
| D．It needs to be controlled within 2℃ in this century. |
Making friends is a skill like most skills. It improves with practice. If you want to meet people and make friends, you must be willing to take some action. You must first go where there are people. You won’t make friends staying home alone.
Joining a club or a group, talking with those who like the same things as you do is much easier. Or join someone in some activity.
Many people are nervous when talking to new people. After all meeting strangers means facing the unknown. And it’s human nature to feel a bit uncomfortable about unknown. Most of our fears about dealing with new people comes from doubts about ourselves. We imagine other people are judging us, finding us too tall or too short, too this or too that. But don’t forget that they must be feeling the same way. Try to accept yourself as you are, and try to put the other person at ease. You’ll both feel more comfortable.
Try to act self-confident even if you don’t feel that way. When you enter a room full of strangers, such as a new classroom, walk tall and straight, look directly at other people and smile.
If you see someone you’d like to speak to, say something. Don’t wait for the other person to start a conversation.
Just meeting someone new does not mean that you will make friends with that person—friendship is based on mutual liking and “give and take”. It takes time and effort to develop. The best topic of the passage may be ________.
| A．Friendship | B．Making friends |
| C．Meeting New People | D．Facing the Unknown |
Which of the following statements is NOT TRUE?
| A．Making friends needs practicing. |
| B．Making friends needs to be more active in getting in touch with people. |
| C．When meeting someone, make him feel nice and easy. |
| D．Before making friends with someone, judge him if he’s too this or too that. |
The development of friendship needs ________.
| A．a lot of money | B．lots of conversation |
| C．time and effort | D．carefully judging |
A Koala Isn’t a Bear
Koalas remind people of teddy bears．They have thick fur and large ears．Their broad, flat nose makes them look cute, similar to teddy bears．In fact koalas aren’t cute．They have sharp teeth and very sharp claws! Koalas are marsupials．This means the mother carries her baby in a pocket while it develops, similar to a kangaroo．The baby koala lives in its mother’s pocket for the first six months of its life．
The name “koala” comes from a native Australian word that means “no drink”. The koalas get almost all their water from the eucalyptus(桉树) leaves they eat．That’s where they get their food too．Koalas eat only eucalyptus leaves, and only the leaves of certain eucalyptus trees．The eucalyptus trees are where the koalas live．It’s also where they sleep．Koalas sleep about nineteen hours a day!
Why do they sleep so much? Some people think it’s because they’re lazy．But koalas aren’t lazy．They sleep so much because there isn’t much nutrition in eucalyptus leaves．Koalas store hardly any fat, so they must save their energy．One way to do this is to move slowly and sleep a lot.
After a day of sleeping they like to move around and eat just after sunset．They live alone most of the time．Koalas are very protective of their trees．If a koala sees another koala eating in its favorite tree, it might tell the other koala to leave by “barking” at it．Koalas do “talk” to each other．Besides barks, the males make a deep grunting sound．The mothers and babies talk in soft clicking sounds．If they get scared they may scream like a baby.According to the article, how are koalas and kangaroos alike?
| A．They both have thick fur. |
| B．They both have sharp teeth. |
| C．They both eat eucalyptus leaves. |
| D． They both carry their young in a pocket. |
The word “koala”comes from a word that means _______.
| A．no drink | B．moving slowly |
| C．large ears | D．barking loudly |
Why do koalas sleep a lot?
| A．Their babies need to get much rest. |
| B．They get tired from playing so much. |
| C．Their food does not give them much energy. |
| D．They do not like to be awake when it is warm. |
If an adult koala screams like a baby, he may get ________.
| A．worried | B．scared | C．hungry | D．sleepy |
Welcome to the Electronic Village to explore new ways of language teaching and learning.
| Electronic Village Program (Thursday, June 18, 2015) |
|
| Nearpod 9:00 am to 10:00 am Room 501 Nearpod is a software program that creates a rich context(语境) for students to learn vocabulary. The presenter will show how to use it. |
TEO 2:00 pm to 3:00 p m Room 502 Our students come from different backgrounds but have the same desire to learn on-line. The presenter will use examples from his first on-line class to explain how any teacher can begin teaching on-line with TEO. |
| Kahoot 10:30 am to 11:30 am Room 601 Kahoot software can be used to create grammar tests which can be graded on a network. It can provide students with instant feedback(反馈), including resports about their strengths and weaknesses. |
Prezi 3:30 pm to 4:20 pm Room 602 Uses of Prezi in listening and speaking courses draw students’ attention to speaking more fluently. The presenter will show how students can use Prezi to confidently present on a variety of topics, including introducing family, friends, and hobbies. |
Nearpod can be used to ______．
| A．offer grammar tests |
| B．teach listening on-line |
| C．help vocabulary learning |
| D．gain fluency in speaking |
If you want to improve your speaking skills, you can go to____________．
| A．Room 501 | B．Room 502 |
| C．Room 601 | D．Room 602 |
Which of the following can assess your grammar learning?
| A．Nearpod． | B．Kahoot． |
| C．TEO． | D．Prezi． |
A teacher who wants to learn on-line teaching is expected to arrive by ______．
| A．9:00 am | B．10:30 am |
| C．2:00 pm | D．3:30 pmB |
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