Ken and Anthony were childhood friends. They went to elementary and high school together. They went to college in different states, and then they lost touch. That was twenty years ago.
One morning Ken was reading the newspaper with his morning coffee. Inside he saw an announcement for a poetry reading at a nearby bookstore. He was surprised to find that the featured poet was none other than his friend Anthony. Ken decided to see what his old pal was up to.
Ken sat in the last row of the area set up inside the bookstore. When Anthony was introduced and came up the podium, Ken hardly recognized him. Anthony was almost completely bald and had a little potbelly (大肚子). When Anthony was in high school, he was very handsome. What Anthony had lost in looks was made up for in talent. Anthony’s poetry was quite good.
Anthony recognized Ken sitting in the back row. When the reading was over, Ken stood in line with the others waiting for Anthony to sign a copy of his book. When it was Ken’s turn, Anthony stood up and hugged his long lost friend. Anthony invited Ken to stay until he had finished signing books. Ken did, and the two men grabbed a cup of coffee at a nearby café.
Even though so many years had passed since the two had seen each other, both men had a lot in common. Both graduated from college with degrees in comparative literature (比较文学). Both went to graduate school. Anthony got his Master’s of Fine Art in writing. Ken went to law school. Both men married Mexican women. Both men also had sons that were only a year apart. Ken and Anthony decided not to lose touch again. They planned to meet once a month for breakfast on Saturdays.Ken found his long lost friend from the .
| A．radio | B．TV | C．magazine | D．newspaper |
How did Ken probably feel while seeing Anthony at the bookstore?
| A．Worried. | B．Amazed. |
| C．Frightened. | D．Relaxed. |
What Anthony had lost in looks was made up for in talent. What is the meaning of the sentence in Paragraph 3?
| A．Although Anthony was out of shape, he became wise and talented. |
| B．Anthony had changed a lot, for writing poetry needed lots of energy. |
| C．Although Anthony was bald and a little fat, he was still very handsome. |
| D．Anthony looked wise because he was completely bald and had a little potbelly. |
What can be the best title for the passage?
| A．Childhood friends | B．Childhood memories |
| C．Changes of friends | D．Ways to get friends back |
A 90-year-old tortoise (乌龟) is going twice its usual speed after being equipped (装备) with a set of wheels. The animal, called Mrs T, was facing a terrible future after losing her two front legs in a mouse attack while she was sleeping in winter, but her owners glued the wheels onto her shell (外壳).
“She’s going double the speed she used to,” said the owner Jude Ryder, “She uses her back legs to push herself along and seems quite happy.”
The 58-year-old owner was surprised when she went to check on her loved pet last month and found her front legs had been eaten in the mouse attack. The local animal doctor tried his best to save Mrs T. But he was afraid that the tortoise would not survive without being mobile. After paying £1,000 for the treatment, Mrs Ryder turned to her son Dale for help. Dale designed the front wheels and used resin (树脂) to add them to the front of the shell. Mrs Ryder said: “She liked them immediately, but she must learn how to turn and stop. She can get a good speed up, much faster than before. Mrs T is still quite young for a tortoise. She could go on for another 50 years. All she needs is a new set of tyres (轮胎) sometimes.”
When Mrs T was sixty years old, she was bought as a pet for Dale, an 8-year-old boy. It liked running happily in Mrs Ryder’s garden in spring and summer. When winter came, Mrs T slept in the garden shelter. A mouse got in last month and chewed (咬) off both her front legs. Mrs Ryder said: “We were afraid she would be sure to die, but her new set of wheels have saved her life. She can run in the garden again and we can always find her because she leaves very strange footprints behind wherever she goes.”
Mice attacking tortoises is not uncommon around us—in 2013 Britain’s oldest tortoise died after a mouse attack. The tortoise called Thomas was 130 when he was bitten at his home in Guernsey. He spent five days on strong antibiotics (抗生素), but the wound became so infected (被感染的) that his owner had no choice but to have him put to sleep.
After being equipped with a set of wheels, Mrs T can move by using .
| A．her back legs to push herself |
| B．her front legs to pull herself |
| C．her back wheels to pull herself |
| D．her front wheels to push herself |
According to the passage, Mrs Ryder’s son is about .
| A．8 years old | B．28 years old |
| C．38 years old | D．58 years old |
Which of the following shows the right order of the story?
a. A mouse chewed off Mrs T’s two front legs.
b. Mrs T’s owners glued the wheels onto her shell.
c. Mrs T learned how to turn and stop with equipped wheels.
d. The local animal doctor tried his best to treat Mrs T.
e. Mrs T was bought as a pet for Dale when she was sixty.
| A．e-a-b-c-d | B．a-b-c-d-e |
| C．a-e-b-c-d | D．e-a-d-b-c |
What can we learn from the passage?
| A．Mrs Ryder is able to move much faster than before. |
| B．Tortoises attacking mice is not uncommon around us. |
| C．The animal doctor added the front wheels to the shell. |
| D．Mrs T can go faster after being equipped with wheels. |
A public primary school in New York City has stopped giving its students homework.
P.S. 116 Principal Jane Hsu wrote a letter to parents last month, explaining that after more than a year of analyzing (分析) studies, the school had decided that students’ after-school time would be better spent on activities like reading at their own pace (步伐) and playing instead of working on homework.
Hsu’s letter says that many studies show that there is no connection between homework and academic (学业的) success. Some other studies also show that the connection between homework and success is dubious at the primary school level.
Harris Cooper, a social psychologist who researches education, found that doing homework makes students perform better in school as they grew older. In later grades, students who did homework performed increasingly better than students who did not. In 2006, Cooper published a study that analyzed 15 years’ worth of data on the influence of homework. He found that homework had a good influence on students as they aged.
Some parents are not happy with the decision to give up homework. “I think they should have homework. I want my daughter to have fun, but I also want her to be working towards a goal,” Daniel Tasman, the father of a second-grader at the school, said to the reporter.
“Students have to do homework in order to gain. Students have to do homework because they may not be able to understand everything in school,” Sharon Blake, a student’s grandmother told ABC news.
The passage is probably from a .
| A．newspaper | B．comedy | C．cartoon | D．novel |
Jane Hsu wrote a letter to parents to explain .
| A．how students should read at their own pace |
| B．what activities students could take at home |
| C．why the school gave up homework recently |
| D．how important the homework is for students |
The word “dubious” in Paragraph 3 probably means “not ”.
| A．clear | B．public | C．real | D．special |
What can we infer (推断) according to the passage?
| A．Cooper found homework had a bad influence on students as they aged. |
| B．Some parents are worried about their children if there is no homework. |
| C．Some students are not happy with the decision to give up school homework. |
| D．Daniel Tasman wanted his daughter to have fun instead of working to a goal. |
Nancy would like to take part in a fancy-dress party (化妆舞会). She had to go to the party with her friends because her husband has been to another city to go on a business trip. Later that night, she was busy in dressing up herself as a ghost, including putting on masks and some special costumes.
After finishing it, she went downstairs to look at herself in the mirror. Suddenly, there was a knock on the front door. She knew that it must be the baker (面包师). She had told him to come straight in if ever she failed to open the door and to leave the bread on the kitchen table. Not wanting to frighten (使惊吓) the poor man, Nancy quickly hid in the storeroom under the stairs.
To her surprise, it was her husband who changed his plan and came back home 2 days earlier. The husband called his wife’s name happily and looked for her all around. Nancy was so excited that she ran to her husband without realizing she was a ghost at that moment. But it was too late. Her husband let out a cry and jumped back several steps. Then he lost his sense and lay on the ground.At first, Nancy decided to go to the fancy-dress party with .
| A．her friends | B．the baker |
| C．some neighbors | D．her husband |
Nancy went to the storeroom under the stairs because she .
| A．wanted to look at herself in the mirror |
| B．wanted to give her husband a big surprise |
| C．did not want to make the baker feel scared |
| D．saw a burglar at home and protected herself |
What happened at the end of the story?
| A．Nancy went to the party with her husband happily. |
| B．Nancy’s husband was so scared that he lost his sense. |
| C．Nancy had a wonderful party to welcome her husband at home. |
| D．Nancy’s husband was angry with her and left home alone at once. |
What can be the best title for this passage?
| A．A happy husband. | B．A poor baker. |
| C．A short business trip. | D．A ghost at home. |
How often will the club have English activities?
| A．Once a month. | B．Once a week. |
| C．Twice a month. | D．Twice a week. |
After taking part in English activities in the club, you will .
| A．have activities every day |
| B．be a shining English star at once |
| C．have fun writing English |
| D．speak English better than before |
According to the poster, how can you join the Happy English Club?
| A．Send an email to the club. |
| B．Post a letter to the headmaster. |
| C．Tell your own English teacher. |
| D．Make a phone call to the club. |
Why is Denmark(丹麦) the “kingdom of fairy tales”? Because it was the home of famous writer Hans Christian Andersen. But there might be other reasons， says a new study.
Denmark is the happiest country in the world， according to the 2013 World Happiness Report by the United Nations (UN). The report ranks（排列）156 countries and regions (地区). All the top five happiest countries are from Europe， and three of them are from Scandinavia.
What makes people there happy? The UN considered several reasons.
Money is one. We are happy if we have money to cover our necessities. But extra (额外的) money cannot bring us more happiness. People in Northern Europe know this. From cars to mobile phones， from clothes to buildings， their designs are quite simple. Luxury (奢华) is not there.
Another reason is health. Nordic (北欧的) people have a healthy diet. They love fresh food. “There is not a big fast-food culture and no ready meals. We sit down with our families to eat our meals，” said Trina Hahnemann， a Danish cook.
A harmonious (和谐的) social life also makes us happy， according to the UN report. How about Nordic people? They live in harmony not only with people around， but also with nature. Night life is not popular in Scandinavia. People go home after work for some quality（高品质的） time with family members. Many families have a backyard. Father and child spend hours there each week， planting flowers and building swings.
Do you want to be happy? Think about the Nordic lifestyle， and happiness is in your own hands.
回答下面5个问题，每题答案不超过7个词。Where does Hans Christian Andersen come from?
How many countries of the top five happiest countries are from Scandinavia?
Do Nordic people love fresh food or ready meals?
What do father and child spend hours doing in their yard each week?
What can make people there happy according to the passage?
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