The world is full of great books, just waiting to be read. How can you pick one you'll really like? Here are some tips：
Depend on your hobby. If you have a favorite hobby, look for books about that activity. 1. You're more likely to enjoy reading a book if you're already interested in its subject.
Choose fiction or nonfiction. 2. Those are called fiction books. These books can transport you to another world or help you imagine something beyond your own experience. Nonfiction books tell stories using facts, but that doesn't mean they're boring. Nonfiction books can bring to life everything from the first trip to the moon to what it's like to explore the deepest oceans.
3. Your local library is a great place to find books that you love. Tell a librarian about your interests, and the librarian can help you find other books that you're sure to love. Your teacher is another good person to ask.
Find a family favorite. What was your mother’s favorite book when she was your age? What's about your father's? Ask them and give it a read. Then you can talk about what they like about it and share your thoughts. 4.
Launch a book exchange. 5. It's always fun to see what your friends arc reading. Even if they're not exactly bookworms, you can all encourage each other to read and share books and authors you like. You also can look for book exchanges in your area. It's a great way to build your personal library for free!
A. Ask someone for help.
B. Learn to be a professional.
C. You should read as many books as possible.
D. Some books are entirely made up and imagined.
E. You can find books about almost anything you like.
F. It’s a fun way to get to know your family a little better.
G. Why not get some friends together and exchange favorite books?
Smart thermostats (温控器)have become the face of smart home technology for most, but depending on what your home is like, it's possible to say the Ecobee3 is superior.
Most of the smart thermostats carry the same benefits, including the Ecobee3. They can learn your preferences and schedules, and then adjust the temperature accordingly. They're better-looking and more enjoyable to use than the basic pieces of plastic that occupy most households. And once you're able to heat up or cool down your house from your phone, without having to get out of bed, you won't want to go back to the past.
If you live in a larger house, the Ecobee3 can be much more convenient—offering you a couple of more remote sensors (传感器). Yes it gets pretty expensive at that point. But having those gives you effective control over the temperature in different rooms around your house. In comparison, other thermostats' measurements are largely limited to the area in which they're installed (安装).
If you live in a smaller place, that's no big deal；the Ecobee3 still has distinct advantages. It is touch-enabled, making it less annoying when you want to enter a Wi-Fi passwords see weather information, and so on.
Still, all the smart thermostats are pretty great. Which one is best just depends on whether you need a whole-home solution or a simpler one. For now, if it's the former, go with the Ecobee3. Their presence will probably make you more conscious about saving energy. Ecobee3 Smarter Wi-Fi Thermostat with Remote Sensor is available at all shopping websites.
1.How can you control Ecobee3?
A.By installing Wi-Fi. B.By replacing its sensors.
C.By using the relative phone. D.By closing power supply.
2.What advantage does Ecobee3 have compared with other thermostats?
A.Its size is different B.Its price is lower.
C.Its password is simpler. D.Its coverage area is larger.
3.What change will Ecobee3 bring to us?
A.It makes us enjoy travelling and work better.
B.It leads us to hope to open a shop online.
C.It leads us to build our own smart houses.
D.It helps us pay attention to environmental protection.
4.What's the author's purpose in writing the text?
A.To show the future of Ecobee3.
B.To attract people to buy Ecobee3.
C.To introduce how to use Ecobee3.
D.To explain why Ecobee3 was invented.
It’s a good thing that sloths (树懒) don’t have to go to school. They’d never make it on time. These sleepy tree-inhabitants sleep up to 20 hours a day! And even when they are awake, they barely move at all. In fact, they re very slow, and algae (海藻) actually grows on their fur.
Sloths live in the tropical forests of Central and South America, With their long arms and hairy fur. they look like monkeys, but they are actually related to anteaters (食蚁兽). They can be 2 to 2.5 feet long and weigh from 8 to 17 pounds, depending on species.
There are two main species of sloth, identified by whether they have two or three claws. (爪子) on their front feet. The two species are quite similar in appearance, with roundish heads, sad-looking eyes, tiny ears, and short tails. Two toed sloths are slightly bigger and tend to spend more time hanging upside down than their three toed cousins, who will often sit upright in the fork of a tree branch. Three toed sloths have facial coloring that makes them look like they’ re always smiling. They also have two extra neck vertebrae that allow them to turn their heads almost all the way around!
Some scientists think sloths developed their slow-motion lifestyle so they would be less noticeable to hunters such as hawks and cats, which rely heavily on their eyesight when hunting. The algae that grows on sloths’ fur also helps them avoid hunters by letting them mix in with green leaves. They rarely come down from the trees. About once every week, they go down to go to the bathroom, slowly moving about by digging their front claws into the dirt and dragging their bodies. If they are caught by a hunter, sloths will become aggressive, biting fiercely, striking with their claws, and screaming.
1.Who belongs to the same race as the sloth?
A.The monkey.
B.The anteater.
C.The hawk.
D.The cat.
2.Sloths are classified mainly by________.
A.their arms
B.their heads
C.their claws on their front feet
D.their fur on their bodies
3.According to the text, sloths go down from trees once every week in order to________.
A.clean their bodies.
B.hunt food
C.avoid being hunted
D.search for habitats
4.What can we learn from the text?
A.Sloths always like smiling.
B.Cats dislike hunting sloths.
C.Sloths can sleep for a long time.
D.Sloths keep clam when facing danger.
Since the very year I was born, South Jersey has been a part of me. Since both of my grandparents have lived in the area for many decades, my family has visited South Jersey yearly since 2014. Its warm and lively feel is very appealing to many families that are looking for an easy and fun getaway.
Every summer we pile into the car and drive four hours away to the Seaview Hotel and Club, a wonderful place which is located in Galloway, 20 minutes from the beach and boardwalk (木板人行道). The Seaview is enticing and quite inexpensive as well, which is perfect for any family. The rooms are neat, and the breakfasts are a real attraction, even to adults. I have always loved going down to their lovely outdoor swimming pool in the mornings and then ordering a lunch from The Coastal Grille, the hotel’s main restaurant. The Seaview is really great，and somewhere else is even more exciting.
At the end of every day in South Jersey, my family always makes it an important goal to drive to the local beach and boardwalk, Ocean City. Ocean City is wonderful with great swimming, lots of pizza places, ice cream stands, and excellent rides and games.
After dinner, we always check out “Gillian’s Pier,” the impressive and exciting, yet small amusement area located on the boardwalk. It is lots of fun to ride on bumper car (碰碰车) and rollercoaster and to taste soft serve ice creams and cotton candy. Next door, there is even a video arcade (游戏厅), so overall South Jersey is your classic family summer vacation. I would definitely recommend visiting, even just for a weekend, someday.
1.Why has the author visited South Jersey every year since 2014?
A.Because it is by the sea.
B.Because he was born there.
C.Because it has beautiful scenery.
D.Because it is his grandparents’ hometown.
2.What does the underlined word “enticing” in paragraph 2 mean?
A.Crowded.
B.Attractive.
C.Remote.
D.Developed.
3.What is the author’s aim to describe his yearly tour to South Jersey?
A.To show the attraction of South Jersey.
B.To show his living conditions.
C.To show it’s convenient to go to South Jersey.
D.To show his preference for tourism.
4.What may be the best title for the text?
A.Fun in South Jersey
B.My traveling life
C.A famous tourism spot
D.My hometown, South Jersey
Short Story Competition
●The competition begins at June 30 and ends at December 15.
●It is open to all local citizens of Ontario who are at 16 or over, except the employees and judges. and anyone living with any employee of the sponsors or judges.
●The author's name. address, phone number and a 25-50-word self-introduction must be included with each entry on a separate sheet of paper. The name of the author should not appear in the story itself.
●Stories must be original and unpublished up to the time the winners are declared on December 25.
●Stories must be written on a computer, be double-spaced and no more than 2,500 words. Total word count should be printed on the front page of the story,
●No changes to a story are allowed once the Star receives your entry. Typescripts （文稿）will not be returned.
●A $ 5 entry fee must accompany each entry. Cheques or money orders should be made out to the Star Short Story Competition. Please do not send coins,
●Winners will be informed by telephone between 9 am and 5 pm on December 25.
●Professors from the Writing Centre at Ryerson University will complete the first round of judging. Another group of professional writers will select the final three.
More Information：
Send your story to：the Star Short Story Competition, the Star Street, Ontario M5E1E6. Full contest rules are available at www. the star, com/contests
Tel： 416-367-2000
1.Who can join in the competition?
A.A daughter of the judge.
B.A salesman living in The Star Street.
C.A visitor coming from another city.
D.A student in the local primary school.
2.Which of the following stories may be accepted by the competition?
A.A true story written on a piece of paper.
B.A famous story copied from the Internet.
C.A newly created story printed by its author.
D.An original story with its author's name in it.
3.What can you do if you want to join in the competition?
A.Change the story at any time.
B.Take the typescripts back.
C.Pay the fee by credit card.
D.Surf the website for information.
假定你是李华，你的叔叔想找一个喜欢晨跑且英语好的人陪他练习英语口语，请你就此事给在你校就读的英国交换生Jack写一封邮件，内容包括：
1. 写信目的；
2. 时间安排和报酬；
3. 期待回复。
注意：1. 词数100左右；
2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
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