Several weeks ago, my friend offered to sell some of our things for us. I thought it was a good chance to _______ my 7-year-old son’s room and _______ some toys that were no longer suitable for him to play with. We _______ that all the money we got from selling the toys would be his money.
The night before the _______, we loaded up the truck with toys and a little bike that was too _______ for him. In the yard he _______ the bike for the last time and then happily put it onto the truck. _______ this little bike had at least two previous owners, it wasn’t in the best _______ and was certainly not new, but the tyres (车胎) were _______ good.
We put a price of $10 on it, but it didn’t sell. So, after the sale was ________, my friend put it on the sidewalk with a sign that ________ “FREE BIKE”. Within five minutes her doorbell rang. A little boy was ________there. In poor English he asked whether the bike was ________ free. She said yes and that he could have it for ________. He smiled, got on the bike and rode away.
Later that evening when I told my son how much money he had made at the sale, he was very ________, shouting happily. He asked about a few of his things, wondering ________ they had been sold. When he asked about the bike, I told him about the little boy and that made him ________. He was much happier than when I told him how much he had ________. He was so happy to ________ that someone else would make good ________of that little bike!
1.A.check B.clean C.build D.display
2.A.look for B.go over C.deal with D.show around
3.A.agreed B.refused C.wrote D.lied
4.A.sale B.show C.trip D.decision
5.A.weak B.thin C.new D.small
6.A.watched B.found C.rode D.designed
7.A.So B.And C.But D.As
8.A.shape B.chance C.place D.time
9.A.also B.still C.never D.hardly
10.A.ahead B.on C.over D.near
11.A.repeated B.said C.copied D.expressed
12.A.jumping B.walking C.standing D.shouting
13.A.really B.usually C.barely D.always
14.A.something B.nothing C.everything D.anything
15.A.calm B.scared C.disappointed D.excited
16.A.when B.that C.why D.if
17.A.worry B.smile C.leave D.cry
18.A.enjoyed B.lost C.made D.bought
19.A.understand B.think C.remember D.hear
20.A.use B.money C.interest D.price
Chinese culture values family bonds (纽带) very much. Family members don’t just gather during the holidays, in fact they often live under one roof all year round.
Different cultures have different family values. 1.
In most East Asian cultures, extended families(大家庭) are common. 2. According to the Atlantic, 90 percent of children in Shanghai and 70 percent of children in Beijing were cared for by their grandparents. Chinese people believe that “a grandparent is a treasure to their family”.
In many Western countries，most families are nuclear families (小家庭). These are only made up of children and their parents.
Additionally, the duties parents have toward their children can also differ.
3. It’s normal for parents to pay for their children’s college, help them find a job, or buy them an apartment. Chinese adults also follow their parents’ opinions when making major life decisions, more often than not.
In most Western countries, however, kids usually move out of the house after they turn 18. 4. Also, if they choose to keep living with their parents after becoming an adult, it can be seen by some as a failure on their part.
While the East cares more about close family bonds, the West values privacy and independence. 5. Families will always be a source of love, warmth, and care for people around the world.
A.These families have three or even four generations living together.
B.Nuclear families are the most common type in China.
C.In China, many parents look after their children all the way into adulthood.
D.Families in the east and west are very different from each other.
E.But in the end, home is best — east or west.
F.Many young people going to college often need to take out loans and work part-time jobs in order to pay for tuition and rent.
G.Both Easterners and Westerners value quality family time.
We all know the feeling of waking up in the middle of the night with a pounding heart and sweaty palms. Relax, you say to yourself— it was just a bad dream. Well, it may be that you really should relax, because nightmares might actually be good for you.
According to New York magazine, bad dreams can improve your mental health. A bad dream tends to be based on a real-life concern, for example, an approaching test or a fear of a person. To eliminate these worries the brain turns the dream into a story in the form of a bad dream.
A bad dream enables you to distance yourself from your anxieties, and turn something you’re worried about now into a memory. The result is that when you wake up, you’re able to move forward and face the future.
A study, featured in The Atlantic magazine, showed something similar. In a survey of more than 700 French students taking a medical school entrance exam, over 60 percent had negative dreams about the test the night before. These included not finishing on time, leaving a question blank, or being late. Those who reported dreams about the exam, even bad ones, did better on it than those who didn’t, suggesting that nightmares do in fact prepare us for the future.
“We think nightmares are so common that they have some purpose to process stressors,” Anne Germain, director of the Sleep Center at the University of Pittsburgh, said.
So, the next time you lie awake at night after a bad dream, remember that it may be the brain’s way of putting your fears behind you and readying you for the future. Although a nightmare may make you afraid in the short term, it might be helping you to move on from the bad stuff you might be facing in the real world. Perhaps we should try to accept our nightmares rather than allow them to keep us awake. After all, lack of sleep causes far more problems than dreams do.
1.Which of the following best explains “eliminate” in Paragraph 2?
A.Remove. B.Reflect. C.Satisfy. D.Strengthen.
2.Why does the author mention the study in the fourth paragraph?
A.To show medical school entrance exams will cause anxiety.
B.To show those who have nightmares will do worse in an exam.
C.To show nightmares help students perform better in an exam.
D.To show most of the students will be stressed before an exam.
3.According to the author, what should we do if we have a bad dream?
A.We should keep ourselves awake.
B.We should relax and go on sleeping.
C.We should study bad dreams carefully.
D.We should prevent it from happening.
4.Where is this text most likely from?
A.A diary. B.A guidebook. C.A novel. D.A magazine.
When was the last time you went to your local library? Last week? A month ago? A year ago?
For many reasons, borrowing books from libraries seems to be in decline. With advances in technology, it is now possible for people to download and read whatever they like on electronic devices such as Kindles. It has been argued that doing this is cheaper than buying hard-copy books. They are also lightweight, making them ideal for travelling.
Call me old fashioned, but I’ve never got into the e-books: I like to have printed books lining my bookshelves; I love the smell of a new book; and I enjoy leafing through paper pages — as long as I avoid the paper cuts!
So, I prefer paper books, and I also prefer to own them myself. Libraries only lend books, so what use are they to someone like me, or to someone who only reads electronic books?
Personally, I still love libraries. They offer a quiet space to sit, read, think, do research…a real escape from the outside world. When I was at university, I frequently spent hours at the library and borrowed numerous journals, articles and other printed materials, as it was just too expensive to buy brand new books every week. Libraries are free!
Libraries often organize a series of interesting activities as well. My local library hosted actors, historians and other speakers during the town’s annual art and literature festival. Well-known authors are also invited to libraries to give speeches or lead discussions about their work. Events such as these are a great way to appeal to people of all ages in the community and encourage the use of libraries.
There are still many fantastic ways to use libraries — maybe we just need to be more awake to them!
1.What is the writer’s purpose of using question sentences in Paragraph 1?
A.To introduce the topic of the passage.
B.To make readers answer questions.
C.To give readers some advice.
D.To conduct a survey.
2.What can we know about e-books?
A.They are easy to buy.
B.They are cheap and easy to take.
C.They can be borrowed from libraries.
D.They are a waste of energy.
3.What does the underlined word “them” in Paragraph 4 refer to?
A.Libraries. B.E-books.
C.Paper books. D.Bookshelves.
4.What is the best title of the passage?
A.The end of the library?
B.The reasons for my loving libraries!
C.Which is better, e-books or paper books?
D.The last time of visiting your local library!
The Torch Festival is a traditional festival celebrated among some ethnic groups in southwestern China, such as the Yi, Bai, Hani, Lisu，Naxi，Pumi and Lahu，etc. It usually falls on the 24th or 25th of June, with three days of celebrations. The origin（起源）of the festival may have something to do with the worship of fire by ancestors（祖先），who believed fire had the power to drive away insects and protect crop growth. For some ethnic groups，it’s a tradition in the festival for elders to share farming experience with young people and educate them on taking care of crops.
During the festival, big torches are made to stand in all villages, with small torches placed in front of the door of each house. When night falls, the torches are lit and the villages are bright. At the same time, people walk around the fields and houses, holding small torches and placing the torches in the field corners. Inside the villages, young people are singing and dancing around the big torches that keep burning throughout the night. Other activities like horse races, bullfights, etc. are also held during the festival.
In a horse race of the Yi people in Yunnan, torches are used to form hurdles（栏架） for riders to get through. The Hani people in Yunnan traditionally attach fruits to torches with ropes. When the ropes are broken after the torches are lit, people struggle for the fruits for good luck.
For the Lisu people in Sichuan, the festival is an occasion for holding grand torch parades. Big torches are carried by the procession（队伍）, which is like a fire dragon. If several processions from different directions meet, it’s a tradition to exchange the big torches with one another.
1.Why did people originally light torches during the Torch Festival?
A.To drive away insects and evils.
B.To celebrate crop harvests.
C.To light up the villages and fields.
D.To memorize their ancestors.
2.Which of the following activities is not included during the festival?
A.Learning how to farm.
B.Singing and dancing.
C.Horse racing and bullfighting.
D.Enjoying big dinners.
3.Looking for fruits is the festival activity of _______.
A.the Yi people
B.the Hani people
C.the Lisu people
D.the Naxi people
4.What can we infer from the last two paragraphs?
A.Horses are the most popular animals in Yunnan.
B.Most peoples celebrate the festival in a similar way.
C.Fruits are regarded as a sign of good luck in Sichuan.
D.The festival is celebrated differently by different ethnic groups.
Enjoy historic Oakland Cemetery after dark at Capturing the Spirit of Oakland Halloween Tours, a seasonal tradition! A costumed docent (讲解员) guides you through the cemetery’s beautifully-lit Victorian gardens as you experience the stories that Atlanta’s sons and daughters come to life.
Tours will be held nightly from 5: 30 pm to 10: 30 pm, Friday Oct. 23—Sunday Oct. 25, and Thursday, Oct. 29—Saturday, Oct. 31. Tours last approximately one hour.
The evening also includes musical performances. A story teller and guests are encouraged to arrive in costume to set the mood for the events.
Tickets are available in advance only via ticketalternative. com. Tickets are $25 for adults and $13 for children aged 4-12 (plus taxes and fees). Children under 3 are free. This event is family-friendly, but is recommended for children aged 8 and up.
Tickets go on sale to Historic Oakland Foundation members in advance, on July 1-15, and go on sale to the general public on July 15. If you’re not a HOF member, join today!
1.When can we take part in Capturing the Spirit of Oakland Halloween Tours?
A.At 8:30 am on Oct. 23. B.At 8: 30 pm on Oct. 24.
C.At 10: 00 pm on Oct. 28. D.At 10: 00 am on Oct. 31.
2.What can we do while attending the tours?
A.Learn to build Victorian gardens. B.Get Halloween costumes for free.
C.Enjoy some musical performances. D.Tell other people Halloween stories.
3.How much should a couple with their 8-year-old son pay for the tickets?
A.$13. B.$38. C.$50. D.$63.
