I love charity(慈善) shops and so do lots of other people in Britain because you find quite a few of them on every high street. The charity shop is a British institution, selling everything from clothes to electric goods, all at very good prices. You can get things you won’t find in the shops anymore. The thing I like best about them is that your money is going to a good cause and not into the pockets of profit-driven companies, and you are not damaging the planet, but finding a new home for unwanted goods.
The first charity shop was opened in 1947 by Oxfam. The famous charity’s appeal to aid postwar Greece had been so successful it had been flooded with donations(捐赠物). They decided to set up a shop to sell some of these donations to raise money for that appeal. Now there are over 7,000 charity shops in the UK. My favourite charity shop in my hometown is the Red Cross shop, where I always find children’s books, all 10 or 20 pence each.
Most of the people working in the charity shops are volunteers, although there is often a manager who gets paid. Over 90% of the goods in the charity shops are donated by the public. Every morning you see bags of unwanted items outside the front of shops, although they don’t encourage this, rather ask people to bring things in when the shop is open.
The shops have very low running costs: all profits go to charity work. Charity shops raise more than ￡110 million a year, funding(资助) medical research, overseas aid, supporting sick and poor children, homeless and disabled people, and much more. What better place to spend your money? You get something special for a very good price and a good moral sense. You provide funds to a good cause and tread lightly on the environment.
1.The author loves the charity shop mainly because of .
A. its convenient location B. its great variety of goods
C. its spirit of goodwill D. its nice shopping environment
2.The first charity shop in the UK was set up to .
A. sell cheap products B. deal with unwanted things
C. raise money for patients D. help a foreign country
3.Which of the following is TRUE about charity shops?
A. The operating costs are very low. B. The staff are usually well paid.
C. 90% of the donations are second-hand. D. They are open twenty-four hours a day.
4.Which of the following may be the best title for the passage?
A. What to Buy at Charity Shops.
B. Charity Shop: Its Origin & Development.
C. Charity Shop: Where You Buy to Donate.
D. The Public’s Concern about Charity Shops.
Are people less happy or more happy the older they get ? A study found that people generally become happier and experience less worry after age 50. In fact, it found that by the age of 85, people are happier with their life than they were at 18.
The finding came from a Gallup survey of more than 340,000 adults between the age of 18 and 85 in the United States.
Arthur Stone in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science at Stony Brook University in New York led the study. His team found that levels of stress were highest among adults between the ages of 22 and 25. Stress levels dropped sharply after people reached their fifties.
Happiness was highest among the youngest adults and those in their early seventies. But the people least likely to report feeling negative emotions were those in their seventies and eighties. The survey also found that men and women had similar emotional patternsas they grow older. However, women at all ages reported more sadness, stress and worry than men did.
The researchers also considered possible influences like having young children, being unemployed or being single. But they found that influences like these did not affect the levels of happiness and well-being related to age.
So why would happiness increase with age ? One theory is that, as people get older, they become more thankful for what they have and have better control of their emotions. They also spend less time thinking about bad experiences.
The original goal of the study was to confirm the popular belief that aging is connected with increased sleep problems. The survey did find an increase during middle age, especially in women. But except for that , people reported that they felt their sleep quality improved as they got older.
1.Old people may be happier probably because _________
A. their children have grown up. B. they don’t have to work every day.
C. they can do whatever they like best. D. they are most likely satisfied with life.
2.According to the survey, when will adults feel most stressful?
A. In their twenties. B. In their fifties.
C. In their seventies. D. In their eighties.
3.What may make Arthur Stone a bit surprised?
A. Women usually live longer than men. B. Middle-age men mostly are very rich.
C. Old people usually have a better sleep. D. Most of old people can’t sleep well at night.
4.Which of the following may be the topic of this passage ?
A. The difference between men and women. B. Old people’s feeling of happiness.
C. The young people and the old people. D. The connection of sleep and happiness.
Monthly Talks at London Canal Museum
Our monthly talks start at 19:30 on the first Thursday of each month except August.
Admission is at normal charges and you don’t need to book. They end around 21:00.
November 7th
The Canal Pioneers, by Chris Lewis. James Brindley is recognized as one of the leading early canal engineers. He was also a major player in training others in the art of canal planning and building. Chris Lewis will explain how Brindley made a positive contribution to the education of that group of early “civil engineers”.
December 5th
Ice for the Metropolis, by Malcolm Tucker. Well before the arrival of freezers, there was a demand for ice for food preservation and catering, Malcolm will explain the history of importing natural ice and the technology of building ice wells, and how London’s ice trade grew.
February 6th
An Update on the Cotsword Canals, by Liz Payne. The Stroudwater Canal is moving towards reopening. The Thames and Severn Canal will take a little longer. We will have a report on the present state of play.
March 6th
Eyots and Aits—Thames Islands, by Miranda Vickers. The Thames had many islands. Miranda has undertaken a review of all of them. She will tell us about those of greatest interest.
Online bookings:www.canalmuseum.org.uk/book
More infor:www.canalmuseum.org.uk/whatson
London Cannal Museum
12-13 New Wharf Road, London NI 9RT
www.canalmuseum.org.uk www.canalmuseum.mobi
Tel:02077130836
1.When is the talk on James Brindley?
A. February 6th. B. March 6th.
C. November 7th. D. December 5th.
2.What is the topic of the talk in February?
A. The Canal Pioneers. B. Ice for the Metropolis
C. Eyots and Aits—Thames Islands D. An Update on the Cotsword Canals
3.Who will give the talk on the islands in the Thames?
A. Miranda Vickers. B. Malcolm Tucker.
C. Chris Lewis. D. Liz Payne.
假定你是李华，正在你班学习汉语的英国留学生Bill对中国的建筑很感兴趣，周末你想带他到苏州园林游玩。请你给Bill写一封电子邮件，邀请他一同前往。
注意:
1.词数100左右；
2.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
3.开头语已写好，不计入总词数。
Dear Bill,
How are you doing?
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Yours,
Li Hua
假定英语课上老师要求同桌之间交换修改作文，请你修改你同桌写的以下作文。文中共有10处语言错误，每句中最多有两处。每处错误仅涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。
增加:在缺词处加一个漏字符号(∧)，并在其下面写出该加的词。
删除:把多余的词用斜线(\)划掉。
修改:在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。
注意:1.每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；
2.只允许修改10处，多者(从第11处起)不计分。
There is an old man live next to my door. He lives alone. Occasional his children will come to visit to him. When we asked him the reason for which he didn’t move to live with his children, he said he didn’t want to trouble them because their different lifestyles. The man likes to sit in front of the shop, that people chat excitedly every day. Once he helped the woman carry heavy food home. Besides, whenever someone ask for informations, he knows everything. He is surely a good person. And we were willing to look on her as our friend.
阅读下面的短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。
National Love Our Children Day began in America in 2004. It 1. (fall) on the first Saturday in April. 2. (it) aim is to honor and celebrate America’s children and stress the 3. (important) of love as they grow up. It is also intended to promote the relationship of family members and raise awareness of the need to protect children 4. the harmful side of society. Some people may argue that every day should be Love Our Children Day. However, there are millions of other children 5. are less fortunate and grow up without a loving childhood. Healthy and happy children provide the basis for a safe society for future generations when they become 6. (parent).
National Love Our Children Day 7. (start) by the organization Love Our Children USA nearly 15 years ago. It helps to organize events across America to make children feel 8.(delight). Their website advises us 9. (spend) the day with the children and do something special together or buy them something they’ve been dreaming for 10. long time. Former mayor of New York City, Michael Bloomberg, also said, “All of our children deserve the love, encouragement and respect which they need to reach their full potential today and every day of the year.”
