People have always been dreaming of going to the moon. As long as the year 1901, H. G. Wells, an English writer, wrote a book vividly describing a trip to the moon. On landing there, the explorers discovered that the moon was full of underground cities. Words failed to express their surprise when they spotted so many “moon people”. The “moon people” felt even more surprised. “Why,” they asked, “are you traveling to outer space when you don’t even use your inner space?”
H. G. Wells could only imagine a travel to the moon. In 1969, human beings really left their footsteps on the moon. People today know that there are no underground cities on the moon. However, the question that the “moon people” asked is still an interesting one. A growing number of scientists are seriously thinking about it.
Underground systems are already in place. Many cities have underground car parks. In some cities, such as Tokyo, Seoul and Montreal, there are large underground shopping areas. The “Channel”, a tunnel connecting England and France, is now complete.
But what about underground cities? Japan’s Taisei Corporation is designing a network of underground systems, called “Alice Cities”. The designers imagine using surface space for public parks and using underground space for flats, offices, shopping, and so on. A solar dome (太阳能穹顶) would cover the whole city.
Supporters of underground development argue that building down rather than building up is a good way to use the earth’s space. The space, they say, can be used for farms, parks, gardens, and wilderness. H. G. Wells’ “moon people” would second it. Would you?
1.The explorers in H. G. Well’s story were surprised to find that the “moon people” .
A. knew so much about the earth
B. understood their language
C. lived in underground cities
D. were advanced in technology
2.What does the underlined word “it” (paragraph 2) refer to?
A. Discovering the moon’s inner space
B. Using the earth’s inner space
C. Meeting the “moon people” again
D. Traveling to outer space
3.What sort of underground systems are already in place?
A. Offices, shopping areas, power stations.
B. Tunnels, car parks, shopping areas.
C. Gardens, car parks, power stations.
D. Tunnels, gardens, offices.
4. We can learn from the text that .
A. H. G. Wells once went to moon himself.
B. Underground cities are more comfortable.
C. The solar dome is a necessary part of underground cities.
D. More underground systems will be in place in 2013.
5.What would be the best title of the text?
A. Alice Cities — cities of the future
B. Space travel with H. G. Wells
C. Enjoy living underground
D. Building down, not up
Encouraging early reading skills can build a path to a lifelong love of reading and can help your child get a head start in school. While reading to your child is still the most important thing you can do to build reading skills, there are many techniques that can help.
Make reading fun. Play games with your child as you read. Many traditional children's games can be adapted to encourage reading skills.
While reading or during play, tell your child, "I spy with my little eye, something that begins with the letter "b". Help the child find something on the page or in the room that begins with that letter. For example, “I see a barn.” This can also be used to teach beginning letter sounds.Ｉspy with my little eye something that begins with the sound “s”. Help the child find a word that begins with the "s" sound.
In this variation on the popular game, instruct the child that, "Simon says, point to something that starts with the letter "n". The child can then find an object in the room or a body part, such as the nose, that starts with the letter presented. This can also be used to teach beginning sounds.
Make a game out of rhyming (押韵) words by making up silly words to rhyme with the child's name or favorite toys. This sets the stage for rhyming real words by showing the child the similarities of sounds. As the child masters making up the words, begin rhyming real words to one another.
Tips to raise a successful reader:
Put books in places where the child plays. If books are easily accessible, children are more likely to pick them up.
Let children "read to you" by looking at pictures. Making up stories to go along with illustrations helps children discover how words relate to pictures.
Take books along on trips or even short visits to the doctor's office or grocery store.
Have children help you shop. Reading grocery lists and looking for specific items helps build vocabulary.
1. Which of the following statements is TRUE?
A. A good reading habit can benefit your child at school.
B. Computer games help children develop reading skills.
C. You should be careful as for what books to read.
D. Children enjoy reading poems to their parents.
2.What does the underlined word “accessible” most probably mean?
A. available B. beneficial C. readable D. worthwhile
3.What can we conclude from the text?
A. The most important thing is to make reading funny.
B. Children have a preference for stories with pictures.
C. Rhyming games should begin only with real words.
D. Children tend to read more if books are at hand.
4.Which of the following can be the best title of the text?
A. Interest is the best teacher
B. Practice makes perfect
C. Good methods are half done
D. Failure teaches success
5.What are the intended readers of the text?
A. Parents. B. Adolescents. C. Educators. D. People in general.
Many animals recognize their food because they see it. So do humans. When you see an apple or a piece of chocolate you know that these are things you can eat. You can also use other senses when you choose your food. You may like it because it smells good or because it tastes good. You may dislike some types of food because they do not look, smell or taste very nice. Different animals use different senses to find and choose their food. A few animals depend on only one of their senses, while most animals use more than one sense.
Although there are many different types of food, some animals spend their lives eating only one type. The giant panda eats only one particular type of bamboo. Other animals eat only one type of food even when given the choice. A kind of white butterfly will stay on the leaves of a cabbage, even though there are plenty of other vegetables in the garden. However, most animals have a more varied diet. The bear eats fruits and fish. The fox eats small animals, birds and fruits. The diet of these animals will be different depending on the season.
Humans have a very varied diet. We often eat food because we like it and not because it is good for us. In countries such as France and Britain, people eat foods with too much sugar. This makes them overweight, which is bad for their health. Eating too much red meat and animal products, such as butter, can also be bad for the health. Choosing the right food, therefore, has become an area of study in modern life.
1.We can infer from the text that humans and animals ____.
A. depend on one sense in choosing food
B. are not satisfied with their food
C. choose food in similar ways
D. eat entirely different food
2.Which of the following eats only one type of food?
A. A white butterfly. B. A small bird.
C. The bear. D. The fox.
3.Certain animals change their choice of food when ____.
A. the season changes
B. the food color changes
C. they move to different places
D. they are attracted by different smells
4.We can learn from the last paragraph that ____.
A. food is chosen for a good reason
B. French and British food is good
C. some people have few choices of food
D. some people care little about healthy diet
5.What will most probably be talked about in the next paragraph?
A. Why choosing the right food is important.
B. How to choose the right food.
C. The right amount of food for a person.
D. Vegetables matter more than meat and sugar.
The 30-mile road that runs through the mountains of Willie Valley makes most drivers′ hands sweat. But Andersen, a 46-year-old father of four, wasn’t expecting any trouble on the road last New Year’s Eve, when he set off for a ski trip to the Bear Mountains with nine-year-old daughter Mia, four-old son Baylor, and nine-year-old neighbor Kenya. Andersen had driven through the Valley hundreds of times over the years.
The weather was fine. But the higher they drove, the more slippery the road became. Rounding a sharp U-turn, Andersen saw a heavy truck off the road and immediately hit his brakes. In a minute, the car was going at 25 miles per hour down the mountain before falling down from a ten-foot dam into the extremely cold Logan River.
The crash had broken a few windows, and within seconds, the car was filled with water. “It was frightening that we were going fast into deep water,” remembers Andersen, a soft-spoken manager.
Having lost all sense of direction, Andersen began to search the freezing water for the kids. Mia had been right next to him in the front seat; now, in the blackness, he couldn’t find her. “I thought, if I don’t get out, maybe none of us are going to get out.” Andersen got out of his seat belt, swam through a broken window, and, deeply and quickly, breathed air at the surface. That’s when he saw a group of men, about ten in all, appear at the top of the dam. One after another, they rushed down into the water. Helping onto safety all the three children, they began to shout at the father, “Who else is in the car？”
Andersen says respectfully, “It was like the sight of angels.”
1. What might be the main cause of the car accident？
A. The bad weather. B. The high dam.
C. The sudden brake. D. The heavy truck.
2. Andersen didn’t expect any trouble on the road because _____.
A. he was familiar with the road
B. he was good at driving
C. his hands didn’t have sweat
D. the weather was fine
3. What can be learned from the last paragraph？
A. Andersen lost consciousness in the water.
B. Strangers helped Andersen out of the car.
C. Andersen liked Mia most among the children.
D. Strangers teamed together to save three children.
4.The underlined sentence is to express Andersen’s feeling of being _____.
A. tired B. excited C. doubtful D. thankful
5.Which of the following can be the best title of the text？
A. Stay calm when in trouble
B. Drive rounding a U-turn
C. Miracle rescue from a river
D. Mystery of the Bear Mountains
I arrived at my mother's home for our Monday family dinner. The smells of food over from the kitchen. Mother was pulling out quilt (被子) after quilt from the boxes, showing their beauties. She was for a quilt show at the Wooden Church. When we began to fold and put them into the boxes, my attention was by something at the bottom of one box. I it out. “What is it?” I asked.
“Oh?” Mom said, “that's Mama's quilt.”
I the quilt. It looked a group of school children had it together: irregular designs, childish pictures, a crooked on the right.
“Grandmother made this?” I said, . My grandmother was a at making quilts. This didn't certainly look like any of the quilts she had made.
“Yes, right before she died. I brought it home last year and made some ,” she said. “I’m still working on it. See, this is I’ve done so far.”
I looked at it more closely. She had made straight a crooked line. At the center of the quilt, she had stitched a piece of cloth those words: “My mother made many quilts. She didn't get all line . But I think this is beautiful. I want to see it finished. Her last quilt.”
“Oh, this is so nice, mom,” I said. It to me that by completing my grandmother’s quilt, my mother was her own mother. I realized I held in my hands a family . It started with the loving hands of one woman, and continued with the loving hands of another, two generations.
1.A. flew B. rushed C. floated D. wandered
2.A. proudly B. slightly C. calmly D. hopefully
3.A. trading B. reaching C. asking D. preparing
4.A. up B. down C. back D. off
5.A. drawn B. shocked C. embarrassed D. excited
6.A. raised B. pulled C. caught D. held
7.A. pressed B. folded C. spread D. arranged
8.A. even if B. if only C. as if D. only if
9.A. picked B. added C. chained D. pieced
10.A. line B. bar C. stick D. mark
11.A. delighted B. scared C. surprised D. worried
12.A. master B. beginner C. scholar D. customer
13.A. decisions B. dresses C. changes D. progress
14.A. how B. which C. where D. what
15.A. to B. with C. for D. by
16.A. straight B. wrong C. mixed D. respectable
17.A. occurred B. happened C. replied D. struck
18.A. promoting B. moving C. honoring D. approaching
19.A. custom B. treasure C. memory D. award
20.A. passing B. holding C. satisfying D. covering
____ they didn’t share with you was that they couldn’t afford the trip at all.
A. That B. As C. Which D. What
