On March 15．Dunes View Middle School held a contest for school bands．
Student bands tried out for the opportunity to perform at the school picnic，which will be held at the end of June．The winner of the contest was the band called Four Square.
“We’re very proud that we won the contest and are excited to perform at the picnic，” says Peter Zandt，who plays guitar in the band．“And since we hope to perform someday at other local places，like restaurants and parks，this will be a great first step.”
The contest was the creation of music teacher Mr．Lopez and drama teacher Ms．Cho. The two thought of the idea while discussing recent years' school picnics．“The picnic is one of the biggest events of the year，but it has become a bit formulaic，"said Ms．Cho．“The activities are the same every year .We thought that a performance by a student band would make the school picnic more interesting and fun．”
Mr．Lopez，Ms．Cho，and three other teachers judged the contest，which took place in the gym. To see if the bands could present a wide range of musical skills，the teachers asked them each to prepare two songs：one song with original words，and another in which students played instrumental music only．The judges finally chose the band Four Square as the winner of the contest．Four Square is a rock band with an unusual twist：it includes a violin player! The members of Four Square write their own songs and practice three times a week after schoo1．
Students and teachers agreed that the band competition was：a big success．All are looking forward to the school picnic in June．
1.What can be the best title for the article?
A．Famous Band Visits Schoo1．
B．Teachers Give Music Lessons．
C．Students Have Fun at School Picnic．
D．School Holds Student Band Contest．
2.The underlined word“formulaic”in Paragraph 4 is closest in meaning to ____________．
A．expensive B．dull C．1ong D．uncertain
3.Why did the teachers ask each band to play two songs?
A．To decide which songs to play at the picnic．
B．To see if the bands could play a variety of songs．
C．To make sure the contest did not go on too long．
D．To make the concert more enjoyable for students．
4.According to the article，what is unusual about the band Four Square?
A．It is named after a popular children’s game．
B．Its members practice several times a week．
C．It is a rock band with a violinist．
D．Its members all play guitar．
5.According to the article，what does the band Four Square hope to do in the future?
A．Perform at the school picnic every year．
B．Perform in many different places．
C．Buy new instruments．
D．Record an album．
Most city parks are places where you can escape from big，ugly structures of metal and stone．The Manhattan High Line is different．Raised 25 feet above the ground，this massive metal structure once supported a rail line．The line opened in 1934 but it was hardly used after the 1960s，and much of it was torn down．However，one stretch remained in a region of Manhattan．The railway structure was ugly and everyone knew that at some time，it would have to be removed．
But the High Line was not destroyed．In fact．now the old rail line serves as one of the most peaceful places in the city．The idea to change the rail line into a park came from Joshua David and Robert Hammond．In 1999，they attended a community meeting to decide the fate of the High Line．David and Hammond were the only people at the meeting interested in saving the historical structure. Later on，when they asked railway officials to take them up to look at the High Line，they saw a mile and a half of wild flowers growing in the middle of the city，and they realized that the High Line had potential to become a park．There was growing interest in improving urban centers，and so the project quickly gathered funds for construction．
The first section of the High Line opened in 2009 and immediately became popular with tourists and locals alike．Each part of the park has a different atmosphere．Some areas are like balconies with wonderful city views．Other sections have wide lawns and walkways planted with wild flowers．Only the final section remains the way it has been for the last fifty years—a railway line overgrown with weeds．
1.What is the text mainly about?
A．A park． B．A train line．
C．City transport．D．A historical monument．
2.Which of the following is NOT true about the High Line?
A．It is above ground level． B．Only part of the line remains.
C．It is now a popular park．D．Trains still use the line.
3.Why did David and Hammond want to save the High Line at first?
A．They thought it would make a good park．
B．They wanted to reopen the train line．
C．They thought it had historical value．
D．They were interested in improving the city.
4.Why were people easily persuaded by David and Hammond’s idea?
A．They wanted to make cities nicer places．
B．They wanted to see the wild flowers too.
C．They realized the High Line was important.
D．They knew that funds were available．
5.We can infer from the last paragraph that the park is ______________.
A．popular with tourists B．similar to what it used to be
C．various in its design D．1ike natural countryside
When another old cave is discovered in the south of France，it is not usual news．Rather，it is art ordinary event．Such discoveries are so frequent these days that hardly anybody pays heed to them．However，when the Lascaux cave complex was discovered in 1940，the world was amazed．Painted directly on its walls were hundreds of scenes showing how people lived thousands of years ago．The scenes show people hunting animals，such as bison or wild cats．Other images show birds and，most noticeably，horses，which appear in more than 300 wall images，by far outnumbering all other animals．
Early artists drawing these animals accomplished a monumental and difficult task．They did not limit themselves to the easily accessible walls but carried their painting materials to spaces that required climbing steep walls or crawling into narrow passages in the Lascaux complex．
Unfortunately，the paintings have been exposed to the destructive action of water and temperature changes，which easily wear the images away．Because the Lascaux caves have many entrances，air movement has also damaged the images inside．
Although they are not out in the open air, where natural light would have destroyed them long ago，many of the images have been destroyed and are barely recognizable．To prevent further damage，the site was closed to tourists in 1963，23 years after it was discovered．
1.What can be the best title for the text?
A．Wild Animals in Art B．Hidden Prehistoric Paintings
C．Exploring Caves RespectfullyD．Determining the Age of French Caves
2.The underlined phrase“pays heed to”in Paragraph 1 probably means _____________．
A．discovers B．watches C．notices D．buys
3.According to the text，which animals appear most often on the cave walls?
A．Birds B．Bison C．Horses D．Wild cats
4.Why was painting inside the Lascaux complex a difficult task?
A．It was completely dark inside．
B．The caves were full of wild animals．
C．Painting materials were hard to find．
D．Many painting spaces were difficult to reach．
5.According to the text，all of the following have caused damage to the paintings except________________.
A．temperature changes B．air movement
C．water D．tourists
Jenny found her old bicycle at the back of the garage．It was a lot smaller than she remembered．When she sat on it and put her feet on the pedals，her knees nearly touched her chin. She then asked her dad for a new bicycle．
“Well，I’m sorry，but I can’t afford a bicycle now，“said Dad．“Why don’t you work and earn some money? You can save up for a bicycle yourself．”
Jenny began to work．That day she earned five dollars for cutting the grass and ten dollars for mowing the lawn for her dad．
That night Jenny went on the computer．She wrote“Gardening and Housework—Ten dollars an hour．Call Jenny at 23 Roseville Lane．“She decorated the page with pictures of cleaning and gardening equipment．She printed it fifty times．Then she posted the pages through all the doors on her street．
That week，Jenny was very busy! Lots of people had jobs to do，but they didn’t have time to do them．So they called Jenny．Every day，Jenny rushed home from schoo1．She did her homework quickly，and then she went out to work．
At the end of the week．she had$65! She told her father．
“That’s enough for a second hand bicycle.”he said．
“Yes，but if I work for one more week，I might have enough money for a new bike，“said Jenny．“In two more weeks，I could buy a really good bicycle! I think that's what I'll do. I want to have the best bicycle in the class，because I earn it myself!”
Jenny’s dad hugged her．“I think you learned something important．We appreciate things a lot more when we earn them．When we get something without earning it，we do not realize its true value．”
1.What was the problem with Jenny’s old bicycle?
A．It was broken． B．It was too dirty．
C．Jenny didn't like it．D．It was too small．
2.Why didn’t Jenny’s dad buy her a bicycle?
A．He wanted to teach her a lesson．
B．He was too busy．
C．He had just bought Jenny a birthday present.
D．He didn’t think it was a good idea．
3.How much money did Jenny earn on the first day?
A．＄10． B．＄5． C．＄65．D．＄15．
4.How did Jenny tell her neighbors about her new business?
A．She mailed letters to them．
B．She delivered messages by hand．
C．she sent them an email．
D．She talked to all her neighbors．
5.We can infer from Jenny’s words at the end of the story that she was ___________．
A．pleased because she had learnt a useful lesson
B．grateful to her father for his advice
C．optimistic about making more money
D．disappointed because she couldn’t afford a new bicycle
A Wonderful Christmas Gift
Ann and her mother had lived in a small cottage as long as Ann could ．
Christmas was so close．Ann wished she could get a new with lace as a wonderful Christmas gift．But Ann did not want to ask her Mom for a new dress．She knew how hard her mom worked to both ends meet．Maybe she could make a —maybe Santa Claus would come…
It was not just gift that Ann．It was her mother．Nowadays she was working overtime and looked and worn out．
The days passed and soon it was Christmas Eve．Ann went to bed with a heart．She knew that there would be gifts for her．
Ring…．Ring…Ann jumped，hearing alarm．
She suddenly remembered it’s Christmas day．Without much hope she looked there were any gifts for her．Wonder of wonders! There lay a beautiful packet with a red ribbon．
Ann opened the package．It was a pretty frock with attractive lace．The material was soft and silky the hard material of the dresses she usually wore．
She checked the gift carefully to who gave her the frock．Suddenly a small piece of paper fell out．Ann started to read the note．
“Dear Ann，
This frock is gifted to you for being a good girl．Hope you continue to do good things and help your mother．
Yours，
Santa Claus”
Ann felt that there was something about this note．She the note carefully. Then it struck her．She realized this is her mother's．Her mother had worked overtime to money to buy this expensive sift．Ann was happy beyond ．She knew that she is the girl to have such a wonderful mother as a wonderful Christmas gift.
1.A．rememberB．imagine C．think D．speak
2.A．packet B．hat C．doll D．dress
3.A．earnB．make C．put D．get
4.A．promiseB．decision C．plan D．wish
5.A. worried B．discouragedC．ashamed D．surprised
6.A．happy B．energetic C．pale D. miserable
7.A．1ight B．heavy C．tired D. cheering
8.A．few B．some C．no D．any
9.A．if B．though C．as D．because
10.A．attached B．tied C．packed D．carried
11.A．patiently B．calmly C．excitedly D. quietly
12.A．1ike B．unlike C．dislike D．1ikely
13.A．point out B．bring out C．hand out D．find out
14.A．carelessly B．nervously C．eagerly D．disappointedly
15.A．familiar B．similar C．strange D．unique
16.A．1ooked intoB．made use of C．wrote down D．took away
17.A．dress B．handwritingC．note D．packet
18.A．offer B．win C．spend D．save
19.A．reach B．praise C．words D．power
20.A．best B．poorest C．greatest D．luckiest
Professor Williams lived alone and he was very ．He used to arrive at the university to give a lecture and find that he had forgotten to bring his notes．Or he would lose his spectacles and be unable to see the ．He could never find any chalk to with，and he often forgot the time and would ramble(漫谈)on for hours because he had his watch at home．But the most thing of a11 about him was his ．His overcoat was rarely ，as most of the buttons were ．His shoes were usually untied because he had lost the laces．He must have lost his comb as well because his hair was always standing on．His trousers were by an old tie instead of a belt．He was a chain smoker．He would smoke in class．Cigarette ash was liberally scattered over his waistcoat．
1.A．hard-working B．warm-hearted C．good-tempered D．absent-minded
2.A．blackboard B．floor C．ceiling D．window
3.A．sign B．deliver C．write D．address
4.A．put B．placed C．1eft D．forgotten
5.A．exciting B．amazing C．attractive D．delightful
6.A．appearance B．act C．behavior D．conduct
7.A．tied B．fastened C．ironed D．packed
8.A．1osing B．falling C．missing D．hanging
9.A．rounded up B．stuck together C．put together D．held up
10.A．even B．frequently C．constantly D．continuously
