Simon Reeve has visited many countries and has become one of our most popular TV travel-show presenters (节目主持人). His programs are different from other ones because he goes to unusual countries and he shows us more than the tourist attractions (旅游景点). From his programs, we also learn about the people in the countries, the way of life and the wildlife. I asked him about his work.
(Q=Question; A=Answer)
Q: 1.
A: I started to work as a TV presenter in 2003. Before that, I was a reporter and writer. In my first travel show, I visited countries in central Asia, such as Kazakhstan.
Q: 2.
A: I’ve made nine travel TV series (电视系列节目). In three of those shows, I traveled around the world in a circle (圆圈)—they were very long journeys! In my most recent series, I went to Australia.
Q: 3.
A: Perhaps you should ask which countries I haven’t visited! I think I’ve traveled to more than 110 countries, but I haven’t been to the North and South Poles. Perhaps I’ll go soon.
Q: 4.
A: Ah, one of my favorite places is the Kalahari Desert in southern Africa. I went there in 2007. It’s really beautiful and a lot greener than a typical desert. I met the San people there, and I learned a lot from them.
Q: 5.
A: The most important thing that I’ve learned is that human beings are very special animals. We can change and live in any environment. Also, in all these different places, with all these different ways of life, our children are always the most important things for us.
The country of Thailand has many festivals. Get to know about some of them.
Festival | When it is celebrated | How it is celebrated |
Chiang Mai Flower Festival | February | Chiang Mai celebrates the opening of its flowers with parades (游行), shows, bands and competitions. |
Songkran (Thai New Year) | April | People throw water at one another to wash away bad luck. |
Royal Ploughing Ceremony | May (usually) | People celebrate the beginning of the rice-planting season. The King and Queen come to watch over the ceremony (典礼). |
Bun Bang Fai (Rocket Festival) | May (usually) | People fire home-made rockets into the sky, hoping that the rockets will bring rain for a good rice harvest (收获). |
Loy Krathong (Candle Festival) | November (usually) | People put candles on bamboo boats and float (使漂流) them down a river. This is believed to carry away bad things. |
根据材料内容选择最佳答案。
1.If you are a flower lover, you can go to Chiang Mai in _______.
A. February
B. April
C. May
D. October
2.What do people do during the Songkran festival in Thailand?
A. They throw water at each other.
B. They put candles on bamboo boats.
C. They celebrate the opening of flowers.
D. They fire home-made rockets into the sky.
3.Which two events have to do with rice?
A. Songkran and Loy Krathong.
B. Loy Krathong and Bun Bang Fai.
C. Songkran and Royal Ploughing Ceremony.
D. Bun Bang Fai and Royal Ploughing Ceremony.
4.If you travel to Thailand in November, which festival might you see?
A. Songkran.
B. Loy Krathong.
C. Bun Bang Fai.
D. Royal Ploughing Ceremony.
5.Where might you see this material?
A. In a diary.
B. In a storybook.
C. In a magazine.
D. In a dictionary.
This morning, my teacher introduced a new student to us. He said that Marco, the new student, was from Mexico and he didn’t know English. Clearly, there was a nervous look on his face. Seeing it, I thought of my first day in this school when I moved from Mexico to Utah. It was hard to live in a place that had a different language and different ways of doing things. I was a little nervous because I had trouble understanding the teacher.
When school started, I sat in the back so I wouldn’t draw any attention. Miss Bolling, my new teacher, asked us to introduce ourselves. I went up to a boy named Ivan and told him my name and started talking to him in Spanish. Ivan knew Spanish so he was the only one I could talk to. Ivan helped the teacher translate (翻译) what she was saying to me.
During the lunch break, I didn’t want to go outside. But the rule was that no student in the school could stay inside during the break. After lunch, Miss Bolling took me out and gave me a soccer ball. Then, I started playing it by myself. I was good at soccer, and it attracted (吸引) Ivan. He came to me and asked me if I wanted to play soccer with him and his friends. I told him yes and when the game was over, he introduced me to his friends. After that, we all became good friends.
根据材料内容选择最佳答案。
1.What can we know from Paragraph 1?
A. The writer wanted to move to Mexico.
B. The writer understood Marco well.
C. Marco enjoyed his new school.
D. Marco didn’t like English.
2.What does the underlined word “attention” in Paragraph 2 mean in Chinese?
A. 信任
B. 感激
C. 表扬
D. 注意
3.How did the writer communicate with his teacher at the beginning?
A. By speaking English.
B. By speaking Spanish.
C. With the help of Ivan.
D. With the help of Marco.
4.Miss Bolling took the writer out after lunch because _______.
A. it was the school rule
B. she wanted to talk with him
C. the writer wanted to play soccer
D. the writer caused some problems
5.The passage is mainly about _______.
A. how to make friends
B. the importance of English
C. the first day in a new school
D. what makes a good teacher
Tim, 20
When I was a teenager, I went to Brittany with my parents. We lived in a lovely house, and the weather was great. But I was 17, and I didn’t want to be on holiday with my parents. I wanted to be with my friends. We went to the beach every day and we went to a wonderful seafood restaurant for my birthday. But I was not happy. What really made me angry was that my parents let my older sister, who was 19, go to Spain with her friends.
Gabriela, 28
I’m from Rome and the summer here is really hot. So last year my husband and I decided to go to Sweden. We booked (预订) a 10-day holiday in Stockholm, and the temperature there in the summer is normally about 20OC. But when we got to Stockholm, it was 35OC! We didn’t want to go shopping or visit museums or do anything — we were too hot. We just sat in hotels and argued all day. We didn’t need to go to Sweden to do that!
Olivia, 26
Three years ago, I went to the Seychelles alone. My travel agent told me that it was always sunny. But when I arrived there, the weather was terrible. It was cloudy and very windy. To pass the time, I decided to take a diving course (潜水课). But I got very upset when I went under the water. I spent two boring and expensive weeks there.
根据材料内容选择最佳答案。
1.Tim went to Brittany with his _______.
A. brother
B. sister
C. parents
D. friends
2.What did Gabriela and her husband do in Stockholm?
A. They went shopping.
B. They visited museums.
C. They dived in the ocean.
D. They argued in the hotel.
3.How long did Olivia stay in Seychelles?
A. One week. B. Two weeks.
C. Three weeks. D. Four weeks.
4.Which of the following is TRUE according to the material?
A. Tim spent his 17th birthday with his friends.
B. Olivia went to Seychelles with her husband.
C. The food in Stockholm is very expensive.
D. The summer in Rome is very hot.
5.The three people are talking about their _______.
A. first trips to a foreign country
B. trips with a little money
C. unsuccessful trips
D. family trips
Did you have a bad day yesterday? If you have one bad day after another, you need to learn the 90/10 secret (秘诀).
A bad start
Jack’s daughter, Emily, knocked over (打翻) a cup of milk and it fell on his trousers at breakfast yesterday. Jack got annoyed. He shouted at his daughter and she started to cry.
“Why did you shout at her?” asked his wife. “Why did you put the cup on the edge (边缘) of the table?” replied Jack. Then he went to change his trousers.
Because she was upset, Emily didn’t get ready for school in time and she missed her bus. Jack had to drive Emily to school. Because he didn’t have enough time, he forgot his bag. He was forty minutes late for work. As soon as he got there, he had to go home again to get his bag.
Did it have to be a bad start?
Again the milk fell on Jack’s trousers, but this time he didn’t shout. He smiled and said, “It’s OK. Don’t worry!” Then he went to change his trousers. When he came back, Emily said, “Bye, Daddy.” And she ran out to catch her bus. Jack went to work early, and he had a great day.
So, here’s the 90/10 secret.
Ten percent of life is what happens to us. We can’t control it. That’s life. Things happen and we have to deal with (应对) them.
Ninety percent of life, however, is how we deal with it. Remember that when something bad happens next time.
根据材料内容选择最佳答案。
1.What does the underlined word “annoyed” in Paragraph 2 mean?
A. Nervous.
B. Bored.
C. Angry.
D. Shocked.
2.How did Emily go to school yesterday?
A. By car.
B. By bus.
C. By bike.
D. On foot.
3.Jack returned home yesterday morning because _______.
A. he felt uncomfortable
B. he forgot to take his bag
C. his wife needed his help
D. his trousers were too dirty
4.Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
A. Emily is always late for school.
B. Emily doesn’t like drinking milk.
C. Jack was late for work yesterday.
D. Jack’s wife had a great day yesterday.
5.The passage mainly tells us _______.
A. how to be a good father
B. how to balance work and life
C. how to prepare breakfast for children
D. how to deal with unhappy things in life
Dear Parents,
Young People’s Day Camp (YPDC) has been providing wonderful summers for the children of Central New Jersey since 1972. Now we are preparing for a new summer and it will be our most exciting summer ever.
Our camp is in beautiful Roosevelt Park with a library and a museum. As a former (昔日的) baseball player, I feel the need to keep teenagers healthy. So we will offer a special training program. This program will cover different sports for each child through the summer camp.
Transportation (交通车辆)
We use 20-passenger buses. We will pick up (接) each child between 7:30 a.m. and 8:15 a.m. with door to door transportation. Children will be home between 3:45 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.
Rates (费用)
No. | Weeks | Rates |
1 | 2 | $ 925 |
2 | 4 | $ 1,700 |
3 | 6 | $ 2,280 |
4 | 8 | $ 2,950 |
Every day my son came home happily. He talked about how much fun he had and what he did. Before the summer was even over, he said, “Mom, I want to go back next year. I would like to say thank you and I will see you all next summer.”
— Christina
Please feel free to call us with any questions. I will always make myself available for both you and your children throughout the year. Phone: 732-768-2279.
根据材料内容选择最佳答案。
1.What can we know about YPDC?
A. Its owner was once a basketball player.
B. It is for middle school children only.
C. It has a history of over 40 years.
D. It is near Roosevelt Park.
2.A child can catch the YPDC bus at _______.
A. 9:00 a.m.
B. 8:00 a.m.
C. 7:00 a.m.
D. 6:00 a.m.
3.If Peter’s mom chooses No. 2 for him and No. 3 for his brother, how much should she pay?
A. $4,560.
B. $3,980.
C. $3,400.
D. $3,205.
4.According to Christina, YPDC is _______.
A. dangerous
B. expensive
C. traditional
D. interesting
5.What’s the writer’s purpose of writing this material?
A. To tell people the development of YPDC.
B. To find drivers for YPDC buses.
C. To ask people to join YPDC.
D. To raise money for YPDC.
