I started learning English when I was 6 years old. For 8 years I have learned English in the way everybody else did—by going to English classes. It was useless. I did everything that the teachers told me to do. But I didn’t get any results. I mean, I was always one of the best students in class. However, it took me a long time to read English texts. I made lots of mistakes when writing, and my pronunciation was bad, and I could only speak English very slowly. After my eight years of studying hard, these were the results.
In 2003, I went to the best high school in Wroclaw. It was a special school with a lot of English classes. I owe(感激) a lot to the people I met there, both students and teachers. My first two years in high school were very important for my English. My English teacher, Mr Janusz Laskosz, gave me a lot of good advice, especially on pronunciation and vocabulary. My talented friends, Wojtek and Michael Ryszard, who are my partners now, were both fantastic English learners. What’s more, every time I heard them speak, they seemed to have a bigger vocabulary（词汇）. I wanted to be as good as them, so I studied harder. And my English improved. Wojtek and Michael also introduced me to SuperMemo, which has been very important in my life. And, of course, I could discuss the English language with them, which was a great thing.The writer studied hard at English in the first eight years, _________.
| A．but he was still not good at it |
| B．and then he could read English articles very quickly |
| C．so his pronunciation was quite good |
| D．and then he invented an effective way to learn it |
The writer made great progress in learning English _________.
| A．after he read many English texts |
| B．because he spoke English very slowly |
| C．even before he went to the high school in Wroclaw |
| D．because of his English teacher, his friends Wojtek and Michael |
We can learn from the passage that _________ could help people learn English better.
| A．good texts | B．beautiful environment |
| C．studying harder alone | D．good teachers and friends |
The best title for the passage is “_________”.
| A．How to make friends | B．How I learn English |
| C．My good English teacher | D．My high school |
Although I’m not in my childhood, I still prefer reading fairy tales. They often make me think of some special experiences and feelings. This summer I’ve reviewed this kind of tales, The Little Prince. It was published in 1940. It’s the world-famous fairy tale by the French author Antoine.
“I”, the narrator(讲述者) of the story, is a pilot. His plane has something wrong and lands in the Sahara. The little prince lives on a small planet, and he grows a flower called ROSE there. One day they have a quarrel(争吵), so the little prince runs away. On his all-alone journey, he meets different kinds of people. From these people he gets a conclusion(结论) that grown-ups are strange. And with the help of the man he meets, he descends in the Sahara.
This book moved me a lot. It is not only a fairy tale for children and teenagers, but also for grown-ups.The author loves fairy tales, because _____.
| A．they are very interesting |
| B．they are not about real life |
| C．they make him or her think of special feelings |
| D．they often have a happy ending |
The writer of The Little Prince is from _____.
| A．France | B．China |
| C．Canada | D．America |
The little prince runs away, because _______.
| A．he doesn’t love his hometown |
| B．he is a naughty boy and loves adventures |
| C．he has made mistakes |
| D．he has quarrelled with ROSE |
The underlined word “descend” means ______ in the passage.
| A．end | B．die |
| C．land | D．fly |
The best title for this article is “_____”.
| A．A fair tale |
| B．My favourite fairy tale—The Little Prince |
| C．How to choose the story |
| D．How I spent my childhood |
Hearst Castle is in California, America. A person called William Randolph Hearst built it between 1922 and 1939, at a cost of more than $30 million. Last year, I had a trip to that castle.
I spent the whole day looking around. But there was much to see, and a day wasn’t enough. Hearst Castle has four houses. The main house, “Casa Grande”, is the biggest one. Visitors can live in the other three ones. Many of them are Hollywood film stars, and they often come to the parties there.
At Hearst Castle, there are also beautiful gardens and two swimming pools, one inside and a larger one outside. I loved the one outside, the “Neptune Pool”. It was a pity that we couldn’t go swimming there!
The guide told us that Mr. Hearst travelled around Europe with his mother at the age of ten and looked at paintings and castles. He never forgot that tour and wanted his house to look like a castle. When Mr Hearst died in 1951, his family gave Hearst Castle to the people of California. Now it’s a museum.The underlined word “Castle” in the first paragraph means _____.
| A．城堡 | B．胜地 | C．城垛 | D．楼阁 |
“Casa Grande” is _____ the other three ones at Hearst Castle.
| A．younger than | B．bigger than |
| C．older than | D．smaller than |
There are _____ at Hearst Castle.
| A．beautiful gardens |
| B．one swimming pool inside |
| C．one swimming pool outside |
| D．all the above |
_____ made Mr. Hearst build this wonderful castle.
| A．A tour around Europe |
| B．The paintings and castles in Europe |
| C．His mother |
| D．His dream |
Which of the following sentences is TRUE?
| A．Hearst Castle in California was cheap to build. |
| B．Hearst Castle is on a mountain near the sea. |
| C．Many Hollywood film stars come to Hearst’s parties. |
| D．After Mr. Hearst died, his family lived at Hearst Castle. |
It was an exciting moment for Shen Xue and Zhao Hongbo, a retired married couple from Harbin, China. It was also a great moment for China because it was the country’s first gold medal in the pairs figure（花样）skating competition at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympic Games.
Everyone was very quiet when Shen and Zhao were skating onto the ice. They were expecting something wonderful to happen. As soon as the music started, Shen and Zhao skated around the field quickly with beautiful style; every move was perfect. When the music stopped, all the people cheered. In the end Shen and Zhao won the Olympic gold medal.
In China, winter sports are not as popular as they are in America and Northern European countries. So China sent only 90 athletes to Vancouver to take in a few, carefully chosen sports. Such a good decision also led to Wang Meng and Zhao Yang winning gold medals in the little known, but exciting sports of short track (轨道) speed skating.
China did not win a lot of medals at these Winter Games. Most of the events are still very new to China and need to be developed. But Chinese athletes learn very quickly. For example, China’s women’s curling team(冰壶队) only began in 2003, but they were No. 1 at the 2009 World Women’s Curling Championship.
This means that with hard work and a bit of luck, China’s winter stars could soon shine on the world stage.Shen Xue won the gold medal in the ________event at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.
| A．pairs of figure skating |
| B．short track speed skating |
| C．women’s curling |
| D．long track speed skating |
The people were _____when Shen Xue and Zhao Hongbo started skating at the games.
| A．noisy | B．quiet | C．cheering | D．excited |
The underlined（划线）word “couple” means _____in Chinese.
| A．对手 | B．朋友 | C．夫妻 | D．同事 |
China’s women’s curling team won’t be eight years old until______.
| A．2003 | B．2009 | C．2010 | D．2011 |
What made China’s winter athletes get such a success?
| A．Luck. |
| B．A chance. |
| C．Hard work and a little luck. |
| D．The country’s support. |
Can animals do work for us? Some scientists think that animals may do a lot of jobs. They say that we may see many elephants, monkeys, dogs, bears and other animals do a lot of things. Animals can get something to eat if(如果) they do some work for people.
Some scientists say that many different animals may do lots of jobs if they know they will get something to eat. Of course, dogs can guard a house, and elephants can do some heavy jobs. And we can also teach animals to work in factories. In America apes(猿) can help people make cars. Scientists believe that these big monkeys may drive cars.Many different animals may do many jobs if ___.
A. they can go to the wild. (野外)
B. they learn they can get something to eat
C they have a good place to live in
D. they are happy___ can work for us.
A. Only a few animals B. Lots of animals
C Few animals D. No animalsWhat kind of animals can guard(看护) a house?
| A．A dog | B．An elephant | C．An ape | D．A monkey |
What jobs can elephants do?
| A．Doing heavy jobs. | B．Guarding a house |
| C．Making cars | D．Driving cars |
Which of the following is true?
| A．In China apes can help people make cars. |
| B．Scientists believe that monkeys may play the piano |
| C．All the animal can do work. |
| D．Apes may drive cars |
Expressions cover all parts of our life. They may be around your ears every day. You may know a lot of Chinese expressions that describe how you feel. Here are some English ones for your enjoyment.
Have Your Heart in Your Mouth
This expression means that you're really afraid or anxious about something. When your heart starts beating so much that you can feel a thumping(怦怦跳) in your throat, it may feel like you "have your heart in your mouth."
Have Butterflies in the Stomach
How did butterflies get in your stomach? Well, those really aren't butterflies in there. It is a way of describing those nervous feelings you might get before a test or a very important decision.
These stomach flutters (跳动) are normal and happen to many people. Some people believe having a few butterflies might even help you perform better.
Sick as a Dog
If you've ever been very sick, you may have used this expression. Because dogs eat just about anything they find, they often get sick. So it's all right to describe someone who's not feeling well as being "sick as a dog".
Under the Weather
When it's rainy all day outside, how would you feel? This expression comes from the idea that bad weather might hurt a person's health and mood(心情).The expression "__" is most probably used while you are watching a thriller.
A. have your heart in your mouth
B. sick as a dog
C. under the weatherSomeone believes__ if you "have butterflies in the stomach" before a test.
A. you're sure to fail
B. you will forget everything
C. you might do betterIt's __ to say somebody is "sick as a dog" when he is not feeling well.
A. impolite B. suitable C. wrongWhen somebody says "under the weather", he must feel
A. upset B. happy C. calmAll expressions discussed in this passage are about
A. health B. habits C. feelings
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