With the Chinese language growing in popularity,the UK government plans to invest （投资）10 million pounds to help more kids learn Mandarin（普通话）.Do you think it is necessary for the UK pupils to learn Mandarin?Some people share their opinions online.
Tsd（UK）:The learning of any language can be valuable and rewarding,but it is not suitable for everyone. Chinese is a difficult language to learn and the UK has a poor reputation for teaching foreign languages.Why should they learn Chinese when most people in the world speak English?
Mark（US）:I studied French for 2 years in high school and German for 4 years in college.I studied Mandarin informally for about 4 months before moving to China.Now I speak Mandarin every day as my wife doesn’t speak English.But it is far from being fluent.learning additional languages is a great thing,which offers a different perspective on the world around us. Nowadays,it’s almost necessary to be able to speak more than just your native tongue.
George（UK）:No,unless they’re taught from a very early stage of childhood.Mandarin is so difficult. If China really is going to dominate the world, it’ll have to do so by speaking the world’s dominant language---English.
Sam（UK）:I don’t think Chinese will become as widely spoken throughout the world as English.It is too difficult to learn as a second language,To learn Chinese you completely have to devote yourself to learning how to write and read it.If you have to learn it besides other subjects you can’t be good at it.But Chinese will become more popular,and that is a good thing.
1.What is probably Mark’s main motivation（动机）for learning Chinese?
A.Further education.
B.Effective communication.
C.His frequent travel.
D.The official policy.
2.What does Sam think of learning Chinese?
A.It’s necessary.
B.It’s of little use.
C.It takes too much time.
D.It’s not popular.
3.What seems to be the major problem when foreigners try to learn Chinese?
A.Its difficulty as a language.
B.Misunderstanding about China.
C.The great popularity of English.
D.A lack of learning resources.
Everybody hates rats (big mice). But in the earthquake capitals of the world — Japan, Los Angeles, Turkey — rats will soon be man’s best friends.
What happens after an earthquake? We send in rescue dogs. Why? Because they can smell people. Dogs save lives. They help rescuers to find living people. But dogs are big and they can’t get into small spaces. So now a new research project is using a smaller animal to save lives: the rat.
How does it work? First, the rat is trained to smell people. When this happens, the rat’s brain gives a signal (信号)．This is sent to a small radio on its back, and then the rescuers follow the radio signals. When the rat’s brain activity jumps, the rescuers know that someone is alive. The rat has smelled that person.
Although there are already robots which can do this job, rats are better. Christian Linster at Cornell University, New York, says, “Robots’ noses don’t work well when there are other smells around. Rats are good at that.” Rats can also see in the dark. They are cheaper and quicker to train than dogs, and unlike robots, they don't need electricity!
The “rat project” is not finished, but Julie Ryan of International Rescue Organization in Scotland says, “It would be wonderful. A rat could get into spaces we couldn’t get to, and a rat would get out if it wasn't safe.” Perhaps for the first time in history, people will be happy to see a rat in a building (but only after an earthquake, of course)．
1.Why will rats become man’s best friends in the world earthquake capitals?
A.Because they can take the place of man's rescue jobs.
B.Because they can find the position of people alive who are trapped in buildings.
C.Because they can serve as food for people alive who are trapped in buildings.
D.Because they can get into small spaces.
2.From the third paragraph we know the rescuers can judge a person who is alive by _____.
A.the noise made by the rat B.the rat’s unusual behavior
C.the signal sent by the radio on the rat's back D.the smell given off by the person
3.Which of these statements is NOT the advantage that rats have?
A.They are more lovely than other animals.
B.They are less expensive to train than dogs.
C.They don't need electricity.
D.They are small and can get into small places.
4.What can we infer from the passage?
A.At present rats have taken the place of dogs in searching for people.
B.The “rat project” has been completed.
C.People are now happy to see a rat in a building.
D.Now people still use dogs and robots in performing rescues.
When I was about twelve，I headed to a restaurant for dinner with my family．It was winter，and on that night，the wind was really blowing hard．
As my mom and I headed to the restaurant from our car，a girl about my age and her mother came up to us. They asked if we had any spare change （零钱）. My mom right away asked where they lived．They pointed to an old car in a parking lot across the street. The girl said there were six of them living in that car．My mom said she had something to do after handing the people a few dollars. She sent me inside the restaurant with my dad and my three siblings （兄弟姐妹）. But she didn't come．Later，I found out she had gone home and put all the food in our cupboards （食橱） into a few bags．Then，she brought that food over to the car and handed the bags to the family．I wasn't there when that happened，but I can only imagine the joy it brought to those people．
A few days later, when I actually found out about what she had done, I asked her why she helped those people. She told me that they were not lucky. I remember the face of that girl who had asked us for change. She was the same age as me, yet we looked so different．
Here I stood，dressed in almost new clothes, headed to eat in a restaurant and then back home to the bedroom I shared with my younger sister. I remember thinking that the other girl didn't have any food to eat and she was heading back to a cold car shared with five other people．
After painting this picture in my mind, I understood why my mom had done what she did. I will never forget what she did that night, and how she taught me one of the best lessons I ever learned．
1.From the passage, we can know the writer's mother was ______ ．
A.humorous B.determined
C.kind-hearted D.selfish
2.From Paragraph 2, we can learn that ______ ．
A.the poor family had no place to live
B.the poor girl was older than the author
C.the writer's mother didn't know how to cook
D.the poor girl lived near the restaurant
3.Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage？ ______
A.It was a winter morning when the story happened．
B.There were six people in the writer's family．
C.A few months later the writer found out what her mother had done．
D.The writer couldn't understand what her mother did．
4.What is probably the writer's purpose of writing this passage？ ______
A.To tell us why to help poor people．
B.To give an introduction to her mother．
C.To tell us to show love to others．
D.To talk about a social problem．
5.What is the best title of the passage？ ______
A.How to support a poor family
B.A friend in need is a friend in deed
C.The hard life of a little girl's family
D.A lesson in kindness from my Mum．
Volunteer Chances for Teens
About Learning Buddies
Learning Buddies is an education program for K-5 students at the Beacon Hill, Columbia, Douglass-Truth, New Holly and West Seattle Library branches (分馆). Teen volunteers and kids read together, learn math and play educational games with support from librarians.
If you are a high school student who enjoys math, reading and helping kids succeed in school, please consider volunteering as a Learning Buddy. You will get service learning experience and earn(获得) community service hours for school.
Learning Buddies teaches kids once a week. Volunteer chances are offered at the following Library branches, October through December and March through May.
●Beacon Hill Branch: Tuesday, 4:15 p.m. to 5:45 p.m.
●Columbia Branch: Thursday, 4:15p.m. to 5:45 p.m
.●Douglass-Truth Branch: Tuesday, 4:15 p.m.to 5:45 p.m.
●New-Holly Branch: Tuesday, 4:15 p.m. to 5:45 p.m.
●West Seattle Branch: Tuesday, 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Become a Learning Buddy
High school students must be at least 14 years old and live close to a Library branch that offers the Learning Buddies program.
You can ask for a volunteer application (申请书) and attend an interview at one of the following Library branches at least one month before the fall or spring Learning Buddies series.
● Beacon Hill Branch: call the Teen Services Librarian at 206-684-4711.
●Columbia Branch: call the Teen Services Librarian at 206-386- 1908.
●Douglass-Truth Branch: call Services Librarian at 206-684-4704.
● New-Holly Branch: call the Supervising Librarian at 206-386- 1905.
●West Seattle Branch: call the Teen Services Librarian at 206-684-7444.
1.Which number should you call if you want to volunteer on Thursday?
A.206-684-4711. B.206-386-1908.
C.206-684-4704. D.206-386-1905.
2.Students who want to become a Learning Buddy must__________.
A.be 14 years old or over
B.do well in all school subjects
C.live close to the kids being taught
D.be able to teach kids twice a week
3.Where does this text probably come from?
A.A travel guide. B.A science report.
C.An invitation. D.An advertisement.
读后续写
We have a pit bull (比特犬). We found him a few weeks ago, walking along the road in a rural area. He jumping on cars, we thought maybe his family was camping somewhere nearby, so we passed him by. A few hours later, on our return trip, he was still in the same place, again, trying to get folks to stop for him. When he saw us, he laid down in the middle of the road, so we were unable to get around him.
We stopped the car and looked around for a few minutes, trying to figure out if anyone was around from whom he was separated. It didn’t appear so. Then, we took a good look at the dog. He had no collar and he was really thin. We decided he was abandoned.
My husband said, “If he doesn’t bite me when I try to pick him up to put him in the car, then we have a new dog.” The dog happily joined us with no fight at all. The only thing we were in danger of was getting licked to death. He kept sticking his head between the two front seats and thanking us for picking him up.
The dog was clearly on the road for some time. He was extremely under weight. He was covered in scars and new wounds. We have guessed that some of the scars were from when he was on the road. We thought of possible fights with coyotes, but he also looked as though he was used to fighting other dogs. We figured his incredibly sweet personality was the reason he was abandoned. He can’t have been a good fighting dog.
Therefore, we fed him a lot over the course of the next two weeks and he gained over twenty pounds.
注意：
1. 所续写短文(两部分共计)的词数应为150左右；
2. 应使用5个以上短文中标有下划线的关键词语；
3. 续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好；
4. 续写完成后，请用下划线标出你所使用的关键词语。
Paragraph 1:
We took him to the vet.
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Paragraph 2:
Now we all love the dog very much. He once helped save me from trouble.
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阅读下面材料，在空白处填入适当的内容（一个单词）或括号内单词的正确形式。
Li Qiang couldn’t believe that he was taking 1. this prize that he won last year. The company “Future Tours” transported him 2. (safe) into the future in a time capsule. Confused by the new 3. (surround), he was hit by a lack of fresh air. His head ached. The air seemed thin, as though its combination of gases had little oxygen 4. (leave). Wang Ping advised him to put on a mask and 5. (hurry) guided him through to a small room for 6. rest. He lost sight of Wang Ping when they reached 7. looked like a large market because of too many carriages 8. (fly) by in all directions. Afterwards, he 9. (show) into a strange-looking house. Exhausted, he 10. (slide) into bed and fell fast asleep there.
