We walked in so quietly that the nurse at the desk didn’t even lift her eyes from the book．Mum pointed at a big chair by the door and I knew she wanted me to sit down．While I watched mouth open in surprise, Mum took off her hat and coat and gave them to me to hold．She walked quietly to the small room by the lift and took out a wet mop（拖把）．She pushed the mop past the desk and as the nurse looked up, Mum nodded and said, “Very dirty floors.” “Yes, I’m glad they’ve finally decided to clean them,” the nurse answered．She looked at Mum strangely and said, “But aren’t you working late?”
Mum just pushed harder, each swipe （拖一下）of the mop taking her farther and farther down the hall．I watched until she was out of sight and the nurse had turned back to writing in the big book．After a long time Mum came back．Her eyes were shining.
She quickly put the mop back and took my hand．As we turned to go out of the door, Mum bowed politely to the nurse and said, “Thank you.”
Outside, Mum told me “Grandma is fine．No fever.”
“You saw her, Mum?”
“Of course．I told her about the hospital rules, and she will not expect us until tomorrow．Dad will stop worrying as well．It’s a fine hospital．But such floors! A mop is not good．You need a brush.”When she took a mop from the small room what Mum really wanted to do was ______.
| A．to clean the floor |
| B．to please the nurse |
| C．to see a patient |
| D．to surprise the story-teller |
When the nurse talked to Mum she thought Mum was a ______.
| A．nurse | B．visitor |
| C．patient | D．cleaner |
After reading the story what can we infer about the hospital? ______
| A．The nurses and doctors there don’t work hard. |
| B．It has strict rules about visiting hours. |
| C．The conditions there aren’t very good． |
| D．It is a children’s hospital. |
Which of the following words best describes Mum? ______.
| A．Clever | B．Warm-hearted |
| C．Strange | D．Hardworking |
Essay is optional and no penalties(处罚) for wrong answers. These changes will take place in SAT college exam. The changes include the use of some words more commonly used in school and on the job instead of the words such as “prevaricator” and “sagacious”.
College Board officials said the change is needed to make the exam better representative of what students study in high school and the skills they need to succeed in college and afterward. The new exam will be rolled out in 2016, so this year’s ninth graders will be the first to take it, in their junior year. The new SAT will continue to test reading, writing and math skills, with an emphasis on analysis. Scoring will return to a 1,600-point scale last used in 2004, with a separate score for the optional essay. For the first time, students will have the option of taking the test on computers.
They also said many students who are terrified they will be tested on lots of SAT words currently can ask for help: practicing with flashcards. They know flashcards are not the best way to build real word knowledge that lasts, but when the SAT rolls around they become the royal road. Students stop reading and start flipping.
The essay will be changed in other ways, too. It will measure students’ ability to analyze and explain how an author builds an argument and it will also be up to colleges whether the essay will be required. Each exam will include a passage drawn from “founding documents”: such as the Declaration of Independence or from discussions they’ve inspired. Instead of testing a wide range of math concepts, the new exam will focus on a few areas, like algebra, thought to be most needed for college and life afterward. A calculator will be allowed only on certain math questions, instead of on the entire math portion(部分).
Jim Rawlins, the director of admissions at the University of Oregon, said the changes will potentially help the students but it will take a few years to know its influence, after the students go on to college. He said some colleges are still dealing with questions about the changes made in 2005, such as how to consider the essay portion. The criticism of the SAT is that students from wealthier families do better on the exam because they can afford expensive test preparation classes.
The SAT was taken last year by 1.7 million students. It has historically been more popular on the coasts, while the other main standardized college entrance exam, the ACT, dominated the central U.S. The ACT took over the SAT in total use in 2012, partly because it is taken by almost every junior in 13 states as part of those states’ testing scheme(方案).
ACT president Jon Erickson said when hearing of the SAT changes, his reaction was that they could’ve been talking about the ACT now. “I didn’t hear anything new and different, so I was a little left wanting, at least at the end of this first announcement,” Erickson said .
Bob Schaeffer, education director at the National Center for Fair & Open Testing, or FairTest, said it is laudable(值得称道的) that the SAT will provide free test preparation, but it is unlikely to make a dent in the market for such preparation. He also said the new test is unlikely to be better than the current one. His organization has a database with institutions that don't require ACT or SAT scores to make admissions decisions.We can learn from the third paragraph that flashcards_________.
| A．will become the only way to test words |
| B．can help students get ready for SAT words |
| C．can help students memorize the words forever |
| D．are the best way for the students to get high scores |
SAT exams will be less required in 2016 with the purpose of _________.
| A．getting more students interested in the entrance exam |
| B．making it easier for students to be admitted into colleges |
| C．offering chances for the students to be tested on every subject |
| D．testing the students better on the knowledge and skills they’ve learnt |
The change in the 2016’s SAT college entrance exam include the following EXCEPT that _________.
| A．students will use calculators if they get stuck in certain math questions |
| B．some words that are uncommonly used won’t appear in the exam |
| C．students will be given the chance to take the test on computers |
| D．students will be tested on a wide range of math concepts |
According to Jim Rawlins, _________.
| A．the changes are mainly aimed at students from the rich family |
| B．the changes will force students to give up writing essay |
| C．the changes will probably have some bad influence |
| D．the changes will be of no benefit to students |
Which of the following statements is TRUE about the ACT ?
| A．It is more popular in the coastal cities. |
| B．More than 1.7 million students took it last year. |
| C．Jon Erickson felt worried about the SAT changes. |
| D．It has been the most popular college entrance exam so far. |
As children begin to head back to school, there are several things that you can do to make sure that your child stays healthy and performs at their peak potential during the school year.
1. Make sure your child is up to date on their immunizations(免疫). The summer is a good time to schedule visits to the doctor’s as your child is not in school, and the visit won’t require that your child miss school days.
2. Encourage proper nutrition. America faces childhood obesity(肥胖). This means that the percentage of overweight children is increasing each year, and this will place your child at risk of developing a variety of diseases when they are middle age or even young adults. You can start helping your child to become healthier by offering fruits and vegetables at home instead of calorie heavy potato chips and candy.
3. Get your child involved in sports activities. Activities in high school such as track and cross-country are important for socialization for your child, as well as helping to improve their health. You can get your child interested in wholesome activities by discussing with them how you enjoyed similar activities in high school.
4. Have the birds and the bees conversation with your child. Many children become sexually active in junior school and senior high school, and the sooner you discuss sex with your child the sooner they will be prepared. Tell your child that there is always the possibility of infecting a sexual disease when two people have sex; and discuss with your child the use of condoms. The sooner you start having this embarrassing situation the better.
5. Know your child’s friends. You can do this by inviting your child to bring their friends over to your house for a pizza night, or by chatting with them when they stop by your house. If you find your child’s friend has a bad reputation, then you could consider introducing your child to a different network of people, such as through the girl/boy scouts. Forbidding your child from seeing a certain person may only lead them to rebel and become closer to that person.
6. Discuss with your child the seriousness of drug use and abuse. Your child may not realize that using drugs can have serious consequences. Your child may get the false impression that drug use is his right. Explain to a child that saying no to drugs is their right, and that anybody offering them drugs is not their friend.
7. Help your child to avoid a life long smoking addiction by discussing with them the consequences of smoking. The sad fact is that most smokers became addicted when they were in their teenage years, and are unable to quit for long periods of time and often die many years earlier due to their smoking habit which increases the risk of lung cancer, heart disease, and a variety of medical conditions. Even if you are a smoker yourself, you can discuss with your child about how damaging smoking can be on a person’s health.
8. Impress upon your child the importance of traffic rules. Tell them that it is OK to wear a seat belt in anyone’s car, because it may save their life one day. If your child rides a bicycle or a skateboard, then discuss with them the importance of always wearing a helmet. As you child becomes qualified for driver’s permit, you should discuss with them the importance of prevention from drinking and driving.
9. Be cautious about signs of depression in childhood. A surprisingly large number of children may become depressed, and a small number of teenagers and children commit suicide(自杀) each year. Realize that any signs of unusual depressed mood, angry outbursts, suicidal comments, feelings of hopelessness, and loss of enjoyment of activities with friends may be signs of depression.What topic is NOT discussed in this passage?
| A．Traffic | B．Smoking |
| C．Depression | D．Study |
The first three tips focus on children’s .
| A．medical care | B．nutritious food |
| C．physical health | D．sports activities |
“Have the birds and the bees conversation with your child” means “ ” .
| A．have a humorous talk to children about sex |
| B．tell children stories about the animal world |
| C．give a formal expert education to children |
| D．deliver lectures to children on sex diseases |
This passage is meant for parents to .
| A．teach their children to behave well |
| B．prepare their children for a new term |
| C．educate their children after school |
| D．train their children for special ability |
Sometimes successful health campaigns can have quite unexpected reactions. The years of warnings about skin cancer mean that Britons are happy to cover themselves in sunscreen or stay out of the sun altogether, but it also means that most of us are not getting enough vitamin D.
Scientists announced yesterday that Britons need to increase to three times the amount of vitamin D they get per day. They called on food producers to fortify(强化)their products with more of the vitamin and suggested people should consider taking supplements(补充物) to keep levels up. They also suggested getting out in the sun for short periods more often, but they warned against “sun bingeing”.
The government does not publish official advice on the amount of vitamin D people should take due to a lack of research, says Dr Birgit Teucher of the Institute for Food Research. But in the US, the government recommends 5 micrograms a day. By that count, Dr Birgit Teucher said that around 90% of Britons between 19 and 64 would be lacking in the vitamin because they only took around 3 micrograms a day.
Vitamin D is important for absorption of calcium(钙)by the body, which is needed for healthy teeth and bones. A lack of it can lead to serious diseases in both children and adults. The vitamin can be found in some foods but it can also be obtained from chemicals in the skin reacting to sunlight. Dr Barbara Boucher said adults should get 5 to 25 micrograms a day. Shortage of vitamin D may be linked to diseases such as muscle weakness, high blood pressure and rickets(佝偻病).
Dr Birgit Teucher gave several reasons for the lack among Britons. Increasing numbers of office-based jobs mean a lack of exposure to the sun; and the rise of becoming overweight means that vitamin D—which is fat soluble(可溶解的)一is increasingly stored in body fat, where it cannot be accessed readily.
Professor Brian Wharton of the Institute of Child Health said that children in particular needed to have enough vitamin D to prevent rickets.
Professor Graham Bentham, an environmental scientist at the University of East Anglia, added that babies who were only breast-fed probably need to take supplements in case their mother was vitamin D lacking. Those drinking milk were likely to be OK, thanks to the fortification of the drink.
The scientists called on food producers to fortify milk, bread and breakfast nutrient to enable people to get their daily amount of the vitamin. Prof Graham Bentham added that 30 minutes of sun exposure to the face and forearms between April and October would be sufficient. Outside these months, the sun is not strong enough in Britain for the body to produce its own vitamin D.
But Prof Graham Bentham warned against spending too long in the sun. “Sun bingeing is well known to be dangerous,” he said. “In any case, vitamin D transformation in the skin switches off after a while so short frequent amounts are better for vitamin D formation.”From Paragraphs l&2 we can infer that_________.
| A．some health campaigns are very successful |
| B．people are lacking in various vitamins |
| C．Britons are advised not to get out in the sun |
| D．vitamin D can be obtained by staying in the sun |
The word “sufficient” (Paragraph 8) is the closest in meaning to _________.
| A．enough | B．proper |
| C．familiar | D．available |
From the passage, we can conclude_________.
| A．the babies who were only breast—fed certainly need to take vitamin D supplements |
| B．a large quantity of vitamin D stored in body fat is the primary reason for being overweight |
| C．the sunlight can produce adequate vitamin D that the body needs all year round |
| D．vitamin D is vital for the body to absorb calcium needed for healthy teeth and bones |
The government doesn’t give official advice on the amount of vitamin D because_________.
| A．they think it is harmful for health |
| B．they don’t want to be blamed |
| C．they aren’t confident of its function |
| D．they haven’t concrete proof |
Which best describes the writer’s tone in the passage?
| A．Humorous. | B．Objective. |
| C．Pessimistic. | D．One-sided. |
Did you know that the position you choose to sleep in says something about what kind of person you are?
A study of 1,000British people has been done by Chris,a British professor and director of the Sleep Assessment and Advisory Service in the UK.It looked at the six most common sleeping positions and which personalities tend to match them.Have a look.
1. Fetus (胎儿) position – This is the most common sleeping position. About 41 percent of the participants said they sleep in this position. These sleepers may appear to be strong but they are usually sensitive (敏感的) and shy. The more they curl (蜷缩) up, the more worried they are.
2. Log position (树干睡姿) – This is the second most common position. People who sleep like a log are usually stubborn.
3. Yearner position (向往型睡姿) – This position says that you are open-minded and eager (急切的) to face challenges.
4. Soldier position – These sleepers lie on their backs with their arms down and close to the body. They are usually reserved and quiet.
5. Freefall position – People who sleep in this position are outgoing (外向的) but feel a lack of control in their lives. This is the least comfortable position.
6. Starfish position – People who sleep like this are good listeners, helpful, and uncomfortable being the center of attention.What is the main idea of this passage?
| A．Sleeping position decides personality. |
| B．Sleeping position reflects personality. |
| C．What the six different sleeping positions are like. |
| D．Different people have different sleeping positions. |
Which of the following pictures shows “soldier position”?
According to the passage, which of the following statements is correct?
| A．Those sleeping in fetus position are always strong. |
| B．Those sleeping in log position changes their ideas easily. |
| C．Those sleeping in freefall position usually feel uncomfortable in their lives. |
| D．Those sleeping in starfish position may feel uneasy when focused on. |
What does the underlined word “participants” in paragraph 3 most probably mean?
| A．Fetus | B．British people |
| C．People surveyed | D．Sleepers |
If you see a group of kids hitting and abusing an animal, would you stop them? Would you at least call the police? Again people would walk away. Some people do not believe that animal abuse is a big issue.
Every day animals are abused in their homes or on the streets. It seems as if politicians do nothing to stop this issue. Everyone is worried about education and global warming. What about animals? We should not ignore them just because they cannot talk to us. Animals, like us humans, have rights. Every living being has the right to warm shelter and good food, but most importantly, they have the right to be wanted and loved. They have the right to be a special, much loved member of their own family.
There are many organizations that deal with abused animals or animals that have no home like ASPCA, PETA, the Humane Society and many more. There are organizations that deal with this issue, but that does not mean that we still shouldn’t help. The biggest saying that bothers me is, “I am only one person. I can’t make a difference.” If everyone thought like that, we wouldn’t have the organizations and loving people who help the world every day. By helping one animal, you are making a difference.
There are many things you can do right now to help animals around your neighborhood. You can volunteer at your local animal shelter, raise money for animal shelters, inform your community about animal abuse or you can write to your representatives and tell them that animal abuse needs to be taken seriously.
As you walk down the street, try to help any animals you see walking around. You can easily buy a cheap box of dry cat or dog food to feed the animals. If we do not help our animals now, we may never have animals again. Always remember that with every step you take, you help save an animal’s life and isn’t that worth fighting for?Some people won’t stop kids from abusing animals because ______.
| A．they are too busy to worry about the animals |
| B．they don’t take animal abuse seriously |
| C．they just leave it to the police |
| D．they are afraid of being laughed at |
We can learn from the text that ASPCA ______.
| A．is another name for the Humane Society |
| B．provides shelter for both animals and humans |
| C．deals with such issues as education and global warming |
| D．aims at protecting animals from being abused |
Which of the following statements will the author agree with?
| A．Dogs have the right to be treated kindly. |
| B．One person cannot possibly make a difference. |
| C．Cruelty to animals deserves more attention than global warming. |
| D．It is the politicians’ duty to stop animal abuse. |
The main purpose of the text is to ______.
| A．criticize those who abuse animals |
| B．advise people to stop animal abuse |
| C．show how animals are abused |
| D．explain why people abuse animals |
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