Renting an apartment in the UK can be very difficult. The average monthly rent rose to￡932last month and in London it is even more expensive at￡1588, according to new figures.
With the increasing rents leaving many people difficult to manage their daily life, some are now looking for new choices.
The Older Choice
Office administrator Tina Gotla-Aluri, 42, was struggling to pay￡950 a month for her because share in Putne, south-west London, when a friend suggested Share and Care Home share, which matches older homeowners who have a spare room with people who can offer practical help in exchange. She now lives in Putney with a man in his 90s and pays￡180 a month to the scheme (平台).
In return, Tina provides companionship, goes food shopping, and cooks meals. “He has travelled a lot in foreign countries and food is one of our shared interests,” she says. “I cook British food like Sunday dinners and sometimes Indian or Moroccan food. It's a win-win result.”
Sitting It out
While some people house-sit for free to get a taste of a different life for a few weeks, designer Jennifer Hamley, 39, and her husband, Ben, 37, have turned into a way to live rent-free.
The couple house-sit through Trusted House sitters.com, which connects home and pet owner a with house-sitters. It costs each side ￡89 for a yearly membership. They house-sit mainly in Brighton, taking care of pets, the home, post and watering plants.
“It is a peace of mind for homeowners. A homeowner doesn't need to get anyone to check in on the house, and pet owners don't have to worry about their pets while they are out.”
1.How much can Tina save a month after living with the old man in Putney?
A.￡180 B.￡770 C.￡932 D.￡950
2.What can be inferred about Tina?
A.She is a professional cook. B.She likes Indian food best.
C.She is satisfied with her choices. D.She has travelled to many places.
3.What do we know about Jennifer?
A.She has to pay the homeowner￡89 a year.
B.She house-sits to experience a different life.
C.She gets the information of house-sitting from a newspaper.
D.She looks after the home and pets when the homeowner is out.
4.From which part of a newspaper is the text most probably taken?
A.Entertainment B.Health C.Economy D.Education
About six years ago, I was on a plane next to a talkative woman. I was tired and wanted to take a nap. But before I could go into “Ignore mode”, she tapped me on the shoulder to introduce herself and I knew she was called Helga.
While talking with Helga, I mentioned that I had started an organization in high school called R.A.K.E (Random Acts of Kindness, Etc.). As I described what we did, Helga got very serious and told me that she thought “there was nothing more important in the world than Kindness.” I was curious why she was so enthusiastic and, as the plane took off, she talked about her last fight to Arizona three years ago. Just as the plane was about to leave for Phoenix, her father’s doctor called to inform her that her dad had suddenly passed away. For the three hour plane ride, she sat in stunned silence around strangers. When she arrived the airport in Arizona, she walked to the nearest wall, sat down, and cried.
And here is the part I’ll never forget about Helga’s story. For two hours she sat and wept while thousands walked to and from at the airport. Helga looked at me and said, “Houston, nobody stopped and asked if I was okay that day. Not a single person. It was that day that I realized Kindness Isn’t Normal.”
Kindness Isn’t Normal. That has stuck with me all these years — especially now that I work in schools nationwide speaking about sympathy, kindness and love. I’m reminded all the time that, we spend so much time worrying about our problems and our lives that we walk by or ignore people in need of kindness every day. I’m often so worried about ME that I’m really bad at taking care of YOU.
So, I’ve made it my duty to do my part in making Kindness Normal. I share stories with students, teachers, and parents about our need for character and compassion. I provide young people with practical ways to exercise Kindness (they don’t always know what it looks like!).
1.If you go into “ignore mode” you ______.
A.pay no attention to others B.introduce yourself voluntarily
C.refuse to answer any questions D.start talking with other people
2.Why did Helga cry at the airport?
A.She knew that her father died. B.She felt sick after a long flight
C.She was surrounded by strangers. D.She arrived at a completely new city.
3.Helga’s story helps the author to_______.
A.teach more people in need B.set up the organization R.A.K.E.
C.pay more attention to his problem D.realize the present situation of kindness
4.What is the best title for the passage?
A.A Kind Woman B.Ways to Be Kind
C.Welcome to R.A.K.E. D.Make Kindness Normal
Movies Recommended for May
Avengers: Endgame (IMAX 3D)
Release Date: April 26., 20l9(American) Run time:182 mins
Genres: Action| Adventure | Sci-Fi | Fantasy
After the damage events of Avengers: Infinity War (2018), the universe is ruins. With the help of remaining allies (盟友), the Avengers gather once more in order to destroy Thano's actions and restore order to the universe.
Tickets: Adult: $17.00 Child: $14.00 Senior: $14.00
Shadow (CD)
Release Date: May 5, 20l9(America) Run time: l16mins
Genres: Action| Adventure
During China's Three Kingdom era (AD 220-280), in Pei, a kingdom ruled by a young and unpredictable king faces danger both inside and outside. But the king has a secret weapon: a “shadow”, who can fool both Pei's enemies and the King himself.
Ticket Adult: $12.00 Child: $6.00 Senior: $7.00
Dunbe (IMAX 3D)
Release Date: March 29, 20l9 (America) Run time: l13mins
Genres: Adventure | Family | Fantasy
Dumbo, a young elephant, whose over-sided ears enable him to fly, helps save a struggling circus, but when the circus plans a new adventure, Dumbo and his friends discover some dark Secrets.
Tickets: Adult: $16.00 Child: $12.00 Senior: $13.00
Pokémon Detective Pikachu (Real D 3D)
Release Date: May 10, 2019 (America) Run time: l04mins
Genres: Action |Adventure |Comedy |Family
Tim tries to figure out the strange death of his father, a police detective, with the help of his dad's former partner, a yellow Pokémon creature (Pocket Monster) named Pikachu. But they discover a shocking plot that could destroy the whole Pakteon universe.
Tickets: Adult: $17.00 Child: $14.00 Senior: $14.00
1.What would you recommend to a man who is interested in ancient stories?
A.Avengers: Endgame B.Shadow
C.Dumbo D.Pokémon Detective Pikachu
2.How much should a 72-year-old man with his 9-year-old grandson pay for Dumbo?
A.25 dollars B.28 dollars C.20 dollars D.31 dollars
3.What do the four movies have in common?
A.They are all 3D movies. B.They all feature adventure.
C.They are all released in May. D.They all last less than two hours.
根据题目所提出的具体要求，在答题卡上写出一篇连贯完整的短文，词数不少于60。假如你是李华，请你参考下面的信息，给学校英文广播站写一篇广播稿，号召大家绿色生活，并举例说明。
•save energy
•reduce pollution
•improve the environment
短文的开头已为你写好，不计入总词数。
Nowadays green living is becoming more and more popular.
阅读下面短文和问题，根据短文内容和每小题后的具体要求，在答题卡相 应题号后的横线上写下相关信息，完成对该问题的回答。答语要意思清 楚，结构正确，书写工整。
Is traffic a big problem where you live? Increased cycling may be the answer. Where are the best places to live and cycle? A new report lists the best bike-friendly cities around the world.
Top of the list is Amsterdam, the bike capital of the world. An unbelievable 40% of all traffic movements are by bicycle. Copenhagen, the city of bikes, is a city where 32 % of workers cycle to work because it's fast and easy. Berlin is another European city that's great for cycling. The city has about 80 kilometers of bike lanes, and 50 kilometers of pavement (人行道)paths. Cycling accounts for 12% of total street traffic.
Barcelona has been praised for its cycle service ''Bicing''，a bicycle service that allows users to take and leave bicycles at any of the 100 stations spread around the city. The city has created a ''green ring'' that surrounds the city area of Barcelona with a bike path. There are 3,250 parking spaces for bikes at street level at present. Barcelona City is also building a new underground car park for bicycles.
The UK has its cycle-friendly cities too. Bristol is the birthplace of ''Sustrans'' — the cycle-route charity which was formed 30 years ago. One of their projects was turning an old rail line between Bristol and Bath into a bike route. Other bike-friendly cities in the UK include Cambridge and York.
Bicycle is a most popular means of transportation in China. Nowadays, riding a bicycle is also a good way to support low-carbon living. There are many riding routes in Beijing for outdoor-lovers to explore. Cyclists can get close enough to experience the history and culture of Beijing, including the Forbidden City, the Bird's Nest, Hutong etc.
1.Why do 32% of workers cycle to work in Copenhagen?(不多于六个单词)
2.What is "Sustrans'' ？(不多于三个单词)
3.What is also a good way to support low-carbon living nowadays?(不多于三个单词)
4.What is the passage mainly about?(不多于七个单词)
Fans of art believe that its main purpose is to make us look at life from many different angles. When it comes to Cubism, however, the artists of this era wanted us to look at life from every angle.
The father of Cubism, Spanish artist Pablo Picasso, is among the art world's most famous names. Like many other great names before him, he felt restrained by the rules of his teachers and decided to do something: break them.
Early in his painting career, Picasso realized something important about how people view and remember scenes of beauty. When we look at a subject, we don’t just see it from one angle, as many paintings appear. Instead, we study the subject from a number of different angles, heights and viewpoints. This is the aim of Cubism: It portrays subjects from a wide range of angles; it doesn’t force us to see things as the artist viewed them at the time he or she painted them. To bring his visions to life, Picasso and other Cubists took the most basic components of a subject and rearranged them in a way which let us see it in full detail.
“By breaking objects and figures down into distinct areas, Picasso aimed to show different viewpoints at the same time and within the same space,” in the words of the Tate Institution. Or as Lithuanian-born Cubist Jacques Lipchitz once put it: “Cubism is like standing at a certain point on a mountain and looking around. If you go higher, things will look different; if you go lower, again they will look different.”
Cubism stood out as it was an art movement which didn't just rely on the artist to share their vision by painting what they saw. As cubist paintings mainly show their subjects in a deconstructed form, this means that viewers must use their imaginations to find the missing pieces for themselves. As Guardian art critic Johnathan Jones noted, this is part of the beauty of enjoying Picasso’s works. “If you can relax your gaze enough and just enjoy the painting long enough, something really amazing happens. Your mind produces a solid feeling of the things Picasso was looking at the world is revealed in its majesty,” he wrote.
1.What is a main features of cubist works?
A.They are simple pictures. B.They break things down into parts.
C.They are mainly in black and white. D.They present scenes of life to viewers.
2.Why are Jacques Lipchitz’s words quoted?
A.To point out the origin of cubism.
B.To compare cubism with other schools of art.
C.To show his understanding of what cubism was.
D.To show that mountains were a common subject in cubism.
3.Which word would Jonathan Jones probably use to describe cubist works?
A.Imaginative. B.Traditional. C.Colorful. D.Life-like.
4.Which is the best title for the passage?
A.Seeing Every Side. B.The History of Cubism.
C.The Beauty of Enjoying. D.Pablo Picasso: A Great Cubist.
