Goldie's Secret
She turned up at the doorstep of my house in Cornwall. No way could I have sent her away. No way, not me anyway. Maybe someone had kicked her out of their car the night before. "We're moving house.'; "No space for her any more with the baby coming." "We never really wanted her, but what could we have done? She was a present." People find all sorts of excuses for abandoning an animal. And she was one of the most beautiful dogs I had ever seen.
I called her Goldie. If I had known what was going to happen I would have given her a more creative name. She was so unsettled during those first few days. She hardly ate anything and had such an air(样子) of sadness about her. There was nothing I could do to make her happy, it seemed. Heaven knows what had happened to her at her previous(以前的) owner's. But eventually at the end of the first week she calmed down. Always by my side, whether we were out on one of our long walks or sitting by the fire.
That's why it was such a shock when she pulled away from me one day when we were out for a walk. We were a long way from home, when she started barking and getting very restless（焦躁不安的）. Eventually I couldn't hold her any longer and she raced off down the road towards a farmhouse in the distance as fast as she could.
By the time I reached the farm I was very tired and upset with Goldie. But when I saw her licking (舔) the four puppies (幼犬) I started to feel sympathy towards them. "We didn't know what had happened to her," said the woman at the door. "I took her for a walk one day, soon after the puppies were born, and she just disappeared." "She must have tried to come back to them and got lost," added a boy from behind her. '
I must admit I do miss Goldie, but I've got Nugget now, and she looks just like her mother. And I've learnt a good lesson: not to judge people. How did the author feel about Goldie when Goldie came to the house?
| A．Shocked. | B．Sympathetic. |
| C．Annoyed. | D．Upset. |
In her first few days at the author's house, Goldie .
| A．I felt worried | B．was angry |
| C．ate a little | D．sat by the fire |
Goldie rushed off to a farmhouse one day because she .
| A．saw her puppies |
| B．heard familiar barking |
| C．wanted to leave the author |
| D．found her way to her old home |
The passage is organized in order of .
| A．time | B．effectiveness（效果） |
| C．importance | D．complexity（复杂性） |
Things to do this weekend
★Scottish Dance Party
The Bellingham Scottish Country Dancers, which holds such events, welcomes all ages and dance levels to attend tonight’s ceilidh (同乐会), which starts at 7:30 p.m. at the Boys & Girls Club. Dancers will be taught and snacks will be served. Admission is ＄7 for adults, ＄4 for students. Call 734-1295 or go to www.bellinghamscd.org for more information.
★All-ages Showcase
Vincent Blackshadow is among the performers at an all-ages concert at 8 tonight at the Old Foundry. The High School Band Showcase is organized by Whatcom All-Ages Arts and Music (WhAAM), a community organization founded with the aim of providing a safe all-ages music and arts place. Admission is ＄5. Call 201-7408 or visit www.myspace.com/whaam for details.
★A Touch of Shakespeare
Hans Altweis and Jennifer Sue Johnson star in the Seattle Shakespeare Company’s performance of a part of Shakespeare’s play, Othello, in Russ Banham’s adaptation (改编) that draws upon (利用) the magic realism of Latin American culture. The play runs Sept. 5 through Sept. 8 at the Seattle Center House. Tickets are from ＄18 --＄30. Call (206) 733-8222 or go to www.seatttleshakespeare.org for more information.
★Hike Around Squires Lake
Enjoy views from Alger Alp, followed by a hike around Squires Lake. This hike is easy. Meet organizers at the foot of Alger Alp at 10 a.m. To get to Squires lake, take Interstate 5 south to Lake Samish exit 242, then go east for 0.7 mile on Old Highway 99. The hike is free. Information: www.mountbakerclub.org.Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the passage?
| A．Photography. | B．Sports. | C．Arts. | D．Dance. |
According to the passage, which of the following is free?
| A．Hike Around Squires Lake. | B．All-ages Showcase. |
| C．Scottish Dance Party. | D．A Touch of Shakespeare. |
Which of the following websites can offer more information about Othello?
| A．www.mountbakerclub.org. | B．www.bellinghamscd.org. |
| C．www.myspace.com/whaam. | D．www.seatttleshakespeare.org. |
If you want to enjoy music and only have ＄5, which of the following can you go to?
| A．Scottish Dance Party. | B．All-ages Showcase. |
| C．A Touch of Shakespeare. | D．Hike Around Squires Lake. |
According to the passage, we can know that__________.
| A．both the old and the young can go to Scottish Dance Party |
| B．calling 201-7408 can help you know more about a hike |
| C．it takes a lot of time to reach Squires Lake |
| D．Hans Altweis is a famous writer |
Lee Ann Laraway has polio (小儿麻痹症) and is not able to move very much. Most things are out of reach for her. Jeannie, a Labrador retriever, acts as her arms and legs. Jeannie understands 72 or more different commands. On a shopping trip, she can get money for Lee Ann at the bank or candies at the store. She can pay the cashier (收银员) and get change back. Jeannie brings things to Lee Ann and puts them in her lap.
Jeannie was trained at a place called Canine Companions for Independence, located on twelve acres of land in Santa Rosa (California). The land was donated (捐赠) by the cartoonist Charles Shultz. “We train four different types of dogs here,” said Ken Kirsh, a dog trainer there. “Hearing dogs, service dogs, skilled companion dogs, and facility dogs.”
Trainers work with Labrador retrievers and golden retrievers for hours a day, but not every dog is good enough to be a working dog.
The work is a serious business. Hearing dogs warn their owners of sounds like ringing telephones and doorbells. Other dogs work with disabled patients like eight-year-old Noah Habib who communicates with a special computer. He likes it when people come to ask him about his dog. His father says, “People are really interested in the dog and will come over and ask to pet her and play with her, and ask about what she does, and these are people that normally might not approach us and want to talk to Noah.”
When Lee Ann Laraway comes home with Jeannie and her goods, Jeannie helps her open the door. “You can train a dog to do a lot of things.” said Lee Ann.According to this passage, we can know that Jeannie is Lee Ann’s .
| A．servant | B．daughter | C．dog | D．mother |
Jeannie can help Lee Ann do all the following things EXCEPT___________.
| A．go to the bank to get money |
| B．pay for what Lee Ann buys in the shop |
| C．bring things home |
| D．do some cooking at home |
People want to talk to Noah mainly because .
| A．he is good at training dogs |
| B．he is not only honest but also lovely |
| C．they want to play with his dog |
| D．they want to ask him for help |
Which of the following is the best title for the passage?
| A．Dogs are helpful to people | B．Four kinds of dogs |
| C．Jeannie, a very clever dog | D．How to train working dogs |
What kind of dogs are not trained in the center?
| A．Dogs that warn their owners of sounds like doorbells. |
| B．Dogs that help their blind owners cross over a road. |
| C．Dogs that open the door for their owners. |
| D．Dogs that work with children who have polio. |
In 1933 an unknown American called Clarence Nash went to see the filmmaker Walt Disney. He had an unusual voice and he wanted to work in Disney’s cartoon film for children. When Walt Disney heard Nash’s voice, he said “Stop! That’s our duck!”
The duck was the now-famous Donald Duck, who first appeared in 1934 in the film The Wise Little Hen. Donald lived in an old houseboat(水上住家) and wore his sailor jacket and hat. Later that year he became a star after an eight-minute Mickey Mouse film. The cinema audience liked him because he was lazy and greedy, and because he lost his temper very quickly. And they loved his voice when he became angry with Mickey’s eight nephews. Soon Donald was more popular than Mickey Mouse himself, probably because he wasn’t a goody-goody like Mickey.
In the 1930s, 40s and 50s Donald and his friends Mickey, Goofy and Pluto made hundreds of Disney cartoons. He also made educational films about the place of the USA in the world, and safety in the home. Then in 1966 Donald Duck and his voice disappeared---there were no more new cartoons.
Clarence Nash died in February, 1985. But today’s children can still see the old cartoons on television and hear that famous voice.Who made Donald Duck film?
| A．Mickey Mouse | B．Clarence Nash | C．Walt Disney | D．Pluto |
When did Donald Duck become popular?
| A．In 1933 | B．In 1934 | C．In 1966 | D．In 1930 |
Where do today’s children see Donald Duck?
| A．In new film | B．At the cinema | C．On television | D．At concerts |
The underlined word “goody-goody” in the second paragraph means a person who __________ .
| A．likes to appear to be faultless in behavior |
| B．likes to appear to be faulty in behavior |
| C．dislikes to appear to be faultless in behavior |
| D．dislikes to be faulty in behavior |
What’s the main idea of the second paragraph?
| A． Donald’s lovely voice. |
| B．A brief introduction of Donald. |
| C． Donald’s temper. |
| D．Donald Duck and Clarence Nash. |
Beijing opera or Peking opera （Pinyin: Jīngjù） is a form of Chinese opera which arose in the late 18th century and became fully developed and recognized by the mid-19th century．The form was extremely popular in the Qing Dynasty court and has come to be regarded as one of the cultural treasures of China．Major performance troupes （剧团，戏班子） are based in Beijing and Tianjin in the north，and Shanghai in the south．The art form is also enjoyed in Taiwan，and has spread to other countries such as the United States and Japan.
Beijing opera features four main types of performers．Performing troupes often have several of each variety，as well as numerous secondary and tertiary performers．With their elaborate （认真的，精心的） and colorful costumes，performers are the only focal points on Beijing opera's characteristically small stage．They make use of the skills of speech，song，dance，and combat in movements that are symbolic and suggestive，rather than realistic．Above all else，the skill of performers is evaluated according to the beauty of their movements．Performers also hold a variety of stylistic conventions that help audiences navigate the plot of the production．The layers of meaning within each movement must be expressed in time with music．The music of Beijing opera can be divided into the Xipi and Erhuang styles．Melodies include arias （唱腔），fixed-tune melodies，and percussion patterns．The repertoire of Beijing opera includes over 1,400 works，which are based on Chinese history，folklore，and，increasingly，contemporary life.
In recent years，Beijing opera has attempted numerous reforms in response to sagging audience numbers．These reforms，which include improving performance quality，adapting new performance elements，and performing new and original plays，have met with mixed success．Some Western works have been adopted as new plays，but a lack of funding and an adverse political climate have left Beijing opera's fate uncertain as the form enters the 21st century．How long has Beijing Opera become a popular art form?
| A．About one and a half centuries. |
| B．More than two centuries. |
| C．More than one century. |
| D．About half a century. |
How many art forms of Beijing Opera at present?
| A．Two including Beijing and Tianjin，and Shanghai in the south. |
| B．Two including Beijing and Tianjin in the north. |
| C．Three including Beijing and Tianjin，and Shanghai in the south and Taiwan. |
| D．Five including Beijing and Tianjin，and Shanghai in the south，Taiwan，US and |
What are the features of the performers’ movements of Beijing Opera?
| A．Elaborate. | B．Colourful. |
| C．Realistic . | D．Representative. |
Which of the followings is NOT true according to the passage?
| A．Performers can take different stylistic traditions in the plays. |
| B．The standard to estimate a performer is the amount of his/her movements. |
| C．It’s necessary to keep movements along the music in time. |
| D．The content of Beijing Opera is plentiful but much fixed. |
What will be the future of the Beijing Opera?
| A．Very bright. | B．Certainly good. |
| C．Much uncertain. | D．More popular. |
Each new school year brings fresh reminders of what educators call the summer learning gap．Some call it the summer learning setback．Simply speaking，it means the longer kids are out of 'school，the more they forget．The only thing they might gain is weight.
Most American schools follow a traditional nine-month calendar with winter and spring breaks and about ten weeks of summer vacation．Some schools follow a year-round calendar．They hold classes for about eight weeks at a time，with a few weeks off in between．The National Association for Year-Round Education says there were fewer than 3,000 such schools at last count．They were spread among forty-six of the fifty states.
But many experts point out that the number of class days in a year-round school is generally the same as in a traditional school．Lead researcher Paul von Hippel said，“Year-round schools don't really solve the problem of the summer learning setback．They simply spread it out across the year.
Across the country，research shows that students from poor families fall farther behind over the summer than other students．Experts say this can be prevented．They note that many schools and local governments offer programs that can help.
But calling them “summer school” could be a problem．The director of the summer learning center at Johns Hopkins，Ron Fairchild，said research with groups of different parents in Chicago and Baltimore found that almost all strongly disliked the term “summer school”．In American culture，the idea of summer vacation is connected to beliefs about freedom and the joys of childhood．The parents welcomed other terms like “summer camp,” “extra time” and “hands-on learning.”According to the first paragraph，the summer learning gap ____
| A．helps children to gain weight |
| B．leads children to work harder |
| C．improves children's memories |
| D．affects children's regular studies |
Compared to traditional schools，students in the year-round ones _____
| A．perform better and have more learning gains |
| B．have much less time for relaxation every year |
| C．have generally the same number of class days |
| D．hold more classes with more free weeks off |
Which of the following statements is true?
| A．Students from poor families often fall behind after the vocation. |
| B．Year-round schools can solve the problem of the learning gap. |
| C．There are schools in each state following a year-round calendar． |
| D．Nothing can help the students who fall behind after the vocation. |
Why did almost all parents dislike the term “summer school”?
| A．They cherish the children's rights of freedom very much. |
| B．They are worried about the quality of the “summer school”． |
| C．They want their children to be forced to make up the gap. |
| D．They can't afford to the further study during the vacation. |
What would be the best title of this passage?
| A．Opening Summer Camps |
| B．Forbidding Summer Schools |
| C．Spreading Year-Round Education |
| D．Minding the Summer Learning Cap |
粤公网安备 44130202000953号