Music has always been an important part of Chinese people’s life. People enjoy listening to music at home and in concerts halls. As time goes by， music changes.
Traditional music is part of our culture， so it often stays with us for a long time. Many of the traditional Chinese songs have been around for many years. Young musicians learn songs from older musicians and the music changes only very little. Modern Chinese music， which is loved by many young people， however， is mainly pop music. That means the songs will be popular for a short time and then replaced by new songs. Today’s musicians write new songs every year and we hear new songs on the radio every day.
Before radio and TV were invented， music could only be heard live — that is you had to go places where musicians gave performances. The best musicians were very busy， so it was difficult and often expensive to hear really good music. For most people， the best chance to hear good music was during a festival or at a wedding. Today， people hear music all the time. Radio and TV play songs every day and night and you can even hear music played on the street.
One thing that hasn’t changed very much is what the songs are about. Both modern and traditional Chinese songs are about love and life. Some songs tell stories about past and some are about the news or the future. All of the songs have something to do with what it means to be a human being.
Music， traditional or modern， Chinese or international， seems to be a world language that everybody can understand and enjoy. Music changes and styles come and go， but nothing changes our love for good music.
Music changes as1.goes by
Passage Outline | Supporting details |
The changes of different kinds of music | Traditional music2.nearly the same because it is part of the culture. 3.music changes a lot because it is welcomed only for a short time and new songs soon takes its4. . |
The changes of5.of enjoying music | Before radio and TV were invented， music could only be heard live in a6.or during a festival or at a wedding. Today， people hear music all the time on Radio and TV and can even hear someone7.music on the street. |
The changes of contents of music | They haven’t changed much because they are about8. and life. |
Conclusion | Music is a world language. 9. music changes and styles come and go， our love for good music10.changes. |
In the middle of the first term of school， the whole seventh grade was tested for basic skills. Steve hurried through his tests， and continued to dream of other things. His heart was not in school， but in the woods.
One day， Miss White’s voice broke into his daydreams. “Steve! Listen carefully!” Steve turned to look at her， fixing his eyes on Miss White， as she began to go over the test results for the seventh grade.
“You all did pretty well，” she told the class， “except for one boy， and it breaks my heart to tell you this， but...” She hesitated， her eyes searching his face. “...The smartest boy in the seventh grade is failing my class!” She just stared at Steve. Steve dropped his eyes.
After that， it was war! Steve still wouldn’t do his homework. Even as the punishments became more serious， he was still stubborn.
“Just try it! ONE WEEK!” He was unmoved.
“You’re smart enough! You’ll see a change!” Nothing touched him.
“Give yourself a chance! Don’t give up on your life!” Nothing.
“Steve! Please! I care about you!”
Wow! Suddenly， Steve got it! Someone cared about him! Steve went home from school， thoughtful， that afternoon. Walking into the house， both parents were out. He， quickly， gathered up a jar of peanut butter， a loaf of bread， a bottle of water， and this time...his schoolbooks.
The following Monday he arrived at school on time， and he waited for Miss White to enter the classroom. She walked in， all smiles! God， she was beautiful!
Miss White， immediately， gave a quiz on the weekend homework. Steve hurried through the test and was the first to hand in his paper. With a look of surprise， Miss White took his paper. Obviously puzzled， she began to look it over. Miss White’s face was in total shock! The smartest boy in the seventh grade had just passed his first test!
From that moment nothing was the same for Steve. Life at home was the same， but life still changed. He discovered that not only could he learn， but he was good at it!
He discovered that he could understand knowledge and translate the things he learned into his own life. Steve began to go ahead!
1.Why did Steve use to be bad at his lessons?
A. He was not a smart boy in his class.
B. He hadn’t put his heart into his studies.
C. The teacher complained him from time to time.
D. The test for the seventh grade challenged his confidence.
2.What does the underlined word “stubborn” in the passage probably mean?
A. completely unchanged
B. seriously punished
C. careless with the homework
D. lost in the test
3.Who made Steve begin to work hard at his lessons later?
A. His parents.
B. His classmates.
C. The teacher.
D. Failure in the test.
4.Which of the following descriptions is TRUE according to the passage?
A. Steve often helped his parents work in the woods instead of going to school.
B. The teacher punished Steve for his failure in the test for the seventh grade.
C. Steve not only made progress but finally became a good student of the class.
D. Steve was actually a clever boy， but Miss White hadn’t realized it at first.
5.Which of the following words best describes Steve’s teacher?
A. Hardworking. B. Caring.
C. Generous. D. Strict.
Introduction: Speaking English is not only about using proper grammar. To use English effectively， you need to understand the culture in which it is spoken. Here are a number of important tips to remember when speaking English in the United States. | |
General Points to Remember Most Americans only speak English. While it is true that more and more Americans speak Spanish， most Americans only speak English. Don't expect them to understand your native language. Americans have difficulty understanding foreign accents (口音). Many Americans are not used to foreign accents. This requires patience from both of you! | Public Behavior Always shake hands. Look your partner in the eye. Don't hold hands: Same sex friends do not usually hold hands or put their arms around each other in public in the United States. Smoking is out! Smoking， even in public places， is strongly disagreed by most modern Americans. |
Addressing People Use last names with people you do not know. Always use “Ms.” when addressing women. Many Americans prefer first names. Americans prefer informal greetings and using first names or nicknames when speaking with friends and workmates. | Conversation Tips Talk about work. Americans commonly ask "What do you do?"It is a popular topic of discussion between strangers. Talk about sports: Americans love sports! However， they love American sports. Speak about location. |
1. What is necessary to know when we speak English besides using grammar?
A. The culture.B. Introduction. C. Grammar. D. Topics.
2. If you are introduced to a woman called Pearl S. Buck， how should you address her usually?
A. What are you doing， Madam Buck?
B. How do you do， Ms. Buck?
C. How are you doing， Mrs. Pearl?
D. How are you， Miss Pearl S.?
3.What can we can learn from the table?
A. Smoking is allowed in the modern United States.
B. Americans shake hands when greeting same sex friends.
C. Different friends should hold hands when first meeting.
D. When you speak to others， it's polite to look into their eyes.
4. “When speaking to a stranger， ask them where they are from and then make a connection with that place” can be used as a supporting sentence to ________.
A. talk about sports
B. address people
C. speak about location
D. talk about work
5.What would be the best title for the text?
A. American English Tips
D. American Customs
C. Language Differences
B. The Different Language Culture
Long， long ago there were a lot of donkeys. The donkeys worked hard every day. They had no time to play or to relax， but they never felt appreciated(赏识)for the work they did.
One day two donkeys got bored. They wanted to live a comfortable life， so the donkeys went to see a wise old man. They told him their problem. The wise old man agreed that they worked too hard， and he wanted to help the donkeys. “I have an idea，” he said.
“What is your idea?” asked the donkeys.
“I will paint you and no one will know you are donkeys，” said the man.
The man went off to find some paint and he returned in just a few minutes. He had two pots of paints. One pot was filled with white paint， and the other black paint.
The old man first painted them white， and then painted black stripes over the white paint. When he finished， the donkeys did not look like donkeys at all. “You no longer look like donkeys，” the old man said. “Everyone will be fooled. I will call you something else， Zebras.”
The zebras went to a field to eat grass. Now they did not have to work.
Soon， other donkeys saw the zebras. They asked the zebras where they came from. When the zebras told the donkeys their secret， the donkeys all rushed to see the old man.
“Please make us into zebras， too.” They pleaded. So the wise old man painted more donkeys. As he did， more and more donkeys came.
The old man could not paint fast enough. Soon the donkeys became impatient. They began to kick about， and they knocked over the paint pots.
There was no more paint. The painted donkeys ran off to become zebras. The unpainted donkeys， because of their impatience， had to return to work.
1.Why did the two donkeys go to see a wise old man?
A. To become patient.
B. To ask him for help.
C. To change into zebras.
D. To have a rest.
2.When the two donkeys returned， why did they no longer have to work?
A. They didn’t eat enough grass.
B. They didn’t want to work.
C. No one knew they were donkeys.
D. They were no longer donkeys.
3.What finally happened to the impatient donkeys?
A. They won praise for the work they did.
B. They hated the zebras and fought with them.
C. They looked for another wise man to paint them.
D. They were still donkeys working hard all the time.
4. According to the passage， which of the following is TRUE?
A. The donkeys worked very hard and got much appreciated.
B. The wise old man decided to help the donkeys because he liked them.
C. The old man became impatient because he had to paint so many donkeys.
D. The old man helped the donkeys by painting them with white and black stripes.
5.What can we infer (推断) from the passage?
A. Being patient is very important.
B. Both donkeys and zebras had to work hard.
C. There is always a good way not to work hard.
D. The wise old man was killed by these impatient donkeys.
完形填空
阅读下面的短文，掌握其大意，然后从各题所给的四个选项中选出一个最佳答案。
Once again， I was at a new school. was a girl in my class named Paris. That was where the similarities ended.
I was tall and she was small. I was one of the in the class while she was the youngest. My hair was thick， short and ugly while hers was long and beautiful. I couldn’t stand her， considering her my . But she wanted to be friends.
One day， she invited me over and I said yes – I was too to say no. Actually， no one had invited me over to before. But this girl， who wore the latest fashions， wanted to see me.
When we got to the she shared with her sister， she took out a big case of Barbies – which was my next surprise. I had never played with them. But we sat on the floor of a walk-in cupboard as we made up crazy stories about the Barbies. That’s when we that we both wanted to be writers when we were older. We both had wild .
We had a great time that afternoon. Our jaws (下巴) ached from smiling so much. She me her outfits， which had mostly come from a designer clothing store. The woman who owned it sometimes used her a model for her newspaper ads and gave her clothes in exchange.
Paris charmed the whole neighborhood. The owners lent her fashion magazines down the block， the movie theater gave her free passes and the pizza place let her free pieces. Soon I was included in her world. We slept over at each other’s houses and spent every free moment together.
Paris， my first real friend since childhood， helped me get through my tough teenage and taught me an amazing thing about making friends: Your “worst enemy” can turn out to be your best friend.
1.A. So B. NeitherC. Either D. Or
2.A. oldest B. strongestC. tallestD. smartest
3.A. leader B. angle C. hero D. enemy
4.A. surprised B. satisfied C. stressedD. worried
5.A. study B. play C. chat D. sing
6.A. kitchen B. balcony C. bedroomD. garden
7.A. talking B. thinking C. shouting D. laughing
8.A. broke out B. worked outC. took outD. found out
9.A. instructionB. imagination C. information D. interest
10.A. sentB. showedC. provided D. passed
11.A. for B. with C. as D. by
12.A. supermarketB. museum C. bookshop D. community
13.A. sell B. have C. borrowD. make
14.A. magic B. naturalC. simpleD. funny
15.A. weeks B. monthsC. seasonsD. years
—In my opinion， buying books online can save us a lot of money.
—________
A.That’s all right.
B. I’m sorry to hear that.
C. I think so， too.
D. It’s my pleasure.
