Almost two thirds of children want their parents to spend more time reading to them before they go to bed. Most of these kids like mom's storytelling more than dad’s. Researchers said they carried out a study that showed younger children aged 3－4 were most hungry for more stories. Over three quarters of them said they wished their parents to read to them more often. More than half of all children aged 3－8 said story time was their favorite pastime with their parents.
“The results of our research reveal the traditional activity of storytelling continues to be a powerful learning and emotional resource(资源)in children's lives，” said child psychologist Richard Wolfson.
Storytelling ranked before television or video games among pastimes for kids.82 percent of them said reading a story with their parents helped them sleep better. This finding came from a survey of 500 children aged 3－4 in Britain. According to the research，there are two ways for mothers to become the best storytellers. They can use funny voices to show different characters in a story. They can also make their own special sounds to keep the story interesting and attractive. When mom and dad are not at hand，celebrities will do: over 30 percent of children said they would like to hear a bedtime story from famous people like Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe. Other movie stars like Zac Efron，Miley Cyrus and Emma Watson are also welcomed by children.
“It can be very difficult for parents to find the time to read with their children. But these moments can help build close relationship between parents and children，and also can play an important part in their child's development，”said Wolfson.
1.The study shows that as fouryearold children get older，they ________．
A. depend more on stories from parents B. become less thirsty for bedtime stories
C. show more interest in playing outdoors D. become better storytellers to other children
2.If a mother wants to be a better storyteller，she'd better ________．
A. use different sounds to make the story sound more real
B. invite other family members to read stories together
C. ask children to play different roles in the stories
D. make a lot of noise to keep the children awake
3.The word “celebrities” in the third paragraph refers to persons ________．
A. who love children very much B. who are known about by many people
C. who write stories for children D. who can tell stories very well
4.With the last paragraph，the passage wants to tell us that ________．
A. few parents can afford the time to tell stories
B. with love dads can also become good storytellers
C. it is worth spending time reading with our children
D. it doesn't take much time to enjoy stories with our children
Why do earthquakes happen？Scientists explain that the outside of the earth is made of a number of different plates(板块)．For example，at San Francisco the Pacific(太平洋的)Plate which is moving towards the northwest meets the North American Plate. The Pacific Plate is moving very slowly—at 5.3 centimeters a year. Sometimes these two plates stop and do not move for years. Then suddenly，they jump and an earthquake is felt. As a result of the movement of these plates，West America near the sea has always been a bad place for earthquakes. When the 1906 earthquake happened，the Pacific Plate jumped 5－6 meters to the north.
We cannot stop earthquakes，but we can do things to make sure they don't destroy(毁坏)the whole cities. First，it is not a good idea to build houses along the lines，where two of the earth's plates join together. Second，if you think there may be an earthquake，it is better to build houses on rock not on sand. Third，you must make the houses as strong as possible. Weak buildings will fall down in an earthquake，but strong ones may stay up.
1.An earthquake can be felt ______．
A. when two plates push each other B. when one plate becomes a bad place
C. when one plate meets the sea D. when two plates don't move for years
2.An earthquake shook San Francisco in the past because ________．
A. San Francisco stands along between the Pacific Plate and the North American Plate
B. San Francisco stands near the Pacific
C. the plate of San Francisco always moves slowly
D. the city of San Francisco wasn't built very well
3.What can we do to make sure earthquakes don't destroy the whole cities?
①Build houses far from the earthquake lines.
②Build houses on rock not on sand.
③Make the houses as strong as possible.
④Stop weak earthquakes.
A. ①②③ B. ②③④ C. ①③④ D. ①②③④
4.Where can we find the passage?
A. In a history book. B. In a science book.
C. In a tour guide for America. D. In a safety guide for common people.
Have you been asked for money by some disabled beggars(乞丐)while you're enjoying shopping？Do you have any pity on them who are so poor and lonely or do you just feel afraid of their terrible shapes？As one of the most special groups，disabled people's living conditions—not only their material(物质的)conditions，but their mental(精神的)world—really need improvement.
The treatment for disabled people should go like this: First，don't look down upon them. Don’t be afraid of looking at the terrible shapes of the disabled. Try to treat them equally．Because they are a part of the society，we can't discard(抛弃)them. The second is to help them as much as we could. If you can be a volunteer and do some work for the disabled people，that would be very nice. That does help not only to the disabled people but also to yourself because you will feel good after your kind action.
If every one of us gives a little love，the world will become a beautiful wonderland!
1.From Paragraph 1，we can see that________．
A. disabled people are poor，but they are happy
B. most of the disabled people ask for money from those who are shopping
C. disabled people's living conditions need improvement
D. no one would like to help disabled beggars
2.The underlined word “equally” means “________” in Chinese.
A. 平等地 B. 确切地 C. 严格地 D. 不同地
3.People have pity on disabled beggars because________．
A. they are homeless B. they are poor and lonely
C. they have terrible shapes D. they are discarded
Will you put others' needs before your own？What _____ will you get if you do？Here is an experience of mine.
It was a wet day and I had a _____ time. I was busy and everyone I talked to was in a bad mood. What's more，I went out without breakfast and I left my _____ at home. So I couldn't get lunch and was terribly hungry.
When I finished my work，I _____ to ask my wife to meet me at the door with some money so that I could quickly go to buy_____．Then I quickly made my way home in hope of eating my_____ meal of the day at 5：00 p．m.
As I was halfway home，my wife told me by phone that a friend of ours was in _____ and needed a lift home. My mind said，“I will get him _____ I get the meal.” But my mouth said，“All right. I'll give him a _____．”
He jumped in the car with a smile on his face and repeated how ______ he was that I would drive him home. He told me he usually walked home from his company but that day the ______stopped him from making that journey.
______was a mess. A drive to him normally took 10 minutes，but that day it took 30 minutes.
Now you would guess the person that I was helping is a ______ friend of mine. But，in fact，he is a friend of a friend.
I wonder if I will ever see this person again，but I feel glad I was there when he ______ me.
So you will feel yourself helpful and useful when you ______ more about others.
1.A. help B. feeling C. change D. reward
2.A. fun B. quiet C. hard D. good
3.A. keys B. glasses C. wallet D. notebook
4.A. called B. wanted C. advised D. remembered
5.A. gifts B. clothes C. fruit D. dinner
6.A. hot B. first C. simple D. free
7.A. trouble B. danger C. fear D. treatment
8.A. since B. after C. before D. when
9.A. choice B. greeting C. ride D. suggestion
10.A. sorry B. grateful C. surprised D. satisfied
11.A. rain B. time C. work D. traffic
12.A. He B. I C. Weather D. Traffic
13.A. new B. lovely C. close D. common
14.A. chose B. phoned C. joined D. needed
15.A. learn B. worry C. care D. talk
近年来，英语中考开始采用听力口语自动化考试，即人机对话（man-machine conversation）的方式检验学生的口语和听力。特别是对于口语测试（以前的中考对口语没有要求），学生们有不同的看法。我校就“你喜不喜欢用人机对话的形式来检验你的英语口语？”进行了调查，结果如下。请你根据表格内容，用英语写一篇短文，并谈谈你的态度及理由。
| 态度 | 理由 |
85%的学生 | 喜欢 | 1.spoken English is important； 2. make students pay more attention to their spoken English； 3.teachers will let them speak English more in class. |
15%的学生 | 不喜欢 | 1.spoken English is poor； 2. can’t answer all the questions correctly； 3. computers break down suddenly. |
你 | …… | …… |
注意：（1）文章必须包括表中的全部内容，可适当增加细节；
（2）你的理由至少两条；
（3）文章开头已给出，你可以抄用此开头，但不计入总词数；也可以自己写开头，则计入总词数；
（4）词数：80—100。
Do You Like to Have Tests in the Man-machine Conversation?
Several days ago, we did a survey about whether you like to take your spoken English tests in the man-machine conversation. Here are the results.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
六、任务型阅读（本题有5小题，每小题1分；共计5分）
Chris Jones 刚刚结束了一次不同寻常的印度之旅，记者就此对他进行了采访。以下是采访的部分内容。请根据Chris Jones的回答，从A, B, C, D四个选项中选择恰当的问题填入第71-74小题的空格处。
Reporter: 71
Chris: Well, it all started two years ago when I was having a trip to India. I visited a photographic exhibition of elephants and I realized that the only way to travel around India was on an elephant.
Reporter: What did you do next?
Chris: I flew to New Delhi and started looking for an elephant. I needed an elephant trained to carry people. I asked an expert for help. He taught me how to ride an elephant. He also helped me find an elephant.
Reporter:72
Chris: Not too long. I bought an elephant called Tara for about USD 6,000.
Reporter: 73
Chris: Tara and I set off from New Delhi a week later. We were heading to Sonepur in northern India. And what a ride! Elephants can travel at about 6 miles an hour. It took us 64 days to complete the journey.
Reporter: 74
Chris: Yes, a few. But nothing serious. On the third day, Tara hurt her foot. But that got better quickly. Also, there was a lot of heavy rain during the first week and we got very wet!
1._____
2._____
3._____
4._____
5.Which is the best title for the report?
A. A Sad Journey B. An Unusual Elephant
C. A Fast Journey D. An Unusual Journey
