On the last Monday in May, people in the United States celebrate Memorial Day. This federal holiday honors members of the American military who died at war. Schools and government offices close. Most people in the US have this day off from work. People celebrate Memorial Day with outdoor parades.
Most Americans consider it the start of summer though the season really begins in June. With so many people off work, Memorial Day has also become a popular shopping day. However, on most occasions Memorial Day is a serious and even sorrowful holiday. Those who have lost family members at war visit burial sites to decorate the graves. They place flowers, wreaths and US flags on the graves.
Memorial Day comes from a tradition that began after the US Civil War called Decoration Day. The Civil War was a very dark time in the US history. Historians have long thought that about 620,000 soldiers died in the fighting. However, new research suggests that the dead numbered about 750,000.
In 1868, about 5,000 people gathered at Arlington National Cemetery on the edge of Washington, D. C. They decorated more than 10,000 graves of Union and Confederate soldiers. They called it Decoration Day. bone
The tradition spread to other areas of the country. In 1873, New York State called it Memorial Day and was the first to make it a legal-holiday. Other States allowed, but not all. Some southern states had (and-still have) separate celebrations that honor only dead Confederate soldiers.
After World War I ended in 1918, Memorial Day became a day to honor all American soldiers killed at war. In 1971, Congress passed a law making it an official federal holiday all over America.
1.What's the purpose of Memorial Day in America?
A.To mark the start of summer. B.To let people enjoy themselves.
C.To show respect to dead soldiers. D.To set a holiday to encourage soldiers.
2.What's the atmosphere of American Memorial Day like on most occasions?
A.Sad. B.Casual.
C.Pleasant. D.Relaxing.
3.When did Memorial Casual, become a legal holiday throughout the US?
A.In 1971. B.In 1873.
C.In 1918. D.In 1868.
4.What is the best title for the text?
A.Celebration Activities of Memorial Day in the US
B.The Prospect of American Memorial Day
C.Members Honored on American Memorial Day
D.The Evolution on Memorial Day in the US
Alice is a senior at Sunset High School (SHS) in America.The kids in her school are looking forward to senior graduation and summer vacation.And they still desire to live a significant life: doing something worthwhile and making a difference.
Alice, senior class president, decides to take action by organizing a food drive. She also decides to reach out to the community in the neighborhood for support.
She wrote,“Hi! My name is Alice and I'm a senior at Sunset! The SHS student government is hosting a drive and collecting the canned and boxed food for needy families. I know many students in the slum (贫民窟) are not able to access regular meals without school. One-hundred percent of everything donated will go to families in need. So it would be amazing if anybody could donate any extra food and lay it around the house. I would be so happy to come by and pick up any extra food that anyone has and just let me know!”
So far, the community has made some 400 donations, and Alice has picked up each one.They're left in brown paper bags around their houses, and she handles them with the latest gloves. It's all packaged food, and the packaging is cleaned with disinfected wipes. Along with the rest of the student union, which brainstormed the idea last week, Alice is setting up distribution centers to dispense the food in the city so families can get what they need.
“In the community, I've seen so many people offering their help ,and I've picked up so many donations from community residents,”Alice said. It's nice to see people supporting each other.I think it's really good hat we're belong more cautious, especially within the community,Alice says.Every individual is aware of how to take care of themselves, their family and others them.They join hands make a big difference indeed. With everyone's efforts,the donation work goes on easily and smoothly and many poor families has got help.
1.What do we know about the students at SHS in the text?
A.They're eager for a meaningful life. B.They've helped to build a community.
C.They've graduated from senior high school. D.They're forced to do something worthwhile.
2.Why did Alice organize the food drive?
A.To gain greater popularity. B.To get food for families in need.
C.To set up the SHS student union. D.To donate food to the students in her school.
3.What does the underlined word“dispense”in paragraph 4 probably mean?
A.Recycle. B.Hand out.
C.Gain. D.Chew up.
4.What can be concluded from the last paragraph?
A.East or west, home is best. B.it's good to learn此another man's cost.
C.Actions speak louder than words. D.Many hands make work light.
If you hear the word“Castle” or the word“palace”，you may picture the same kind of building for both：large，made of stones，probably with a tower. And，of course，you're not entirely wrong，as those are features of both palaces and castles.
So then hay bother to visit one royal building in the United Kingdom Buckingham Palace and another the same country Windsor Castle?It turns out there is a difference，and you
can find it pretty plainly in these two popular buildings.
The Case for Castles
Castles were residences for royalty.But they were also intend as defensive seats. Say you're a king who has taken a particular area over.Now you have to hold it. castle and staff it with soldiers to defend your conquered territory and ensure it remains part of your kingdom.
Castles were built throughout Europe and the Middle East primarily for protection of the king and his people.Some common features of castles include：
●thick walls and heavy gates to keep invaders out
●protective low walls for archers to shoot with cover
●high towers for keeping a lookout over the surrounding
●gate houses for admitting allies instead of allowing enemies into the castle
The Place for Palaces
Palaces， on the contrary， had no defensive purposes.They were first meant for showing off the great victory of the war.Palaces were where the spoils(战利品) of war might be displayed,along with grand architecture,massive banquet halls,golden table settings and maybe even hundreds of luxuriously decorated rooms.
While kings certainly took up residence in palaces as well as castles,nonmilitary royals might also have lived in (or still live in)palaces. Ministers could live in castles to show the power of their riches rather than their nonexistent military power. The term comes from Palatine Hill in Rome.
1.Which of the flowing is one feature of castles?
A.Low towers surrounding castles.
B.Defensive low walls for shooting.
C.Gatehouses allowing enemies into the castle.
D.Thick walls and heavy gates to lock invaders in.
2.Why were palaces first built?
A.To accommodate ordinary soldiers.
B.To defend the king's conquered territory.
C.To show off the art of royal painting,
D.To display huge success of the war.
3.What is the main purpose of the next?
A.To list the reasons for kings living in palaces.
B.To make a comparison between castles and palaces.
C.To talk about The value of castles in modern times.
D.To show palaces are more popular than castles.
假定你是李华，下月你所在的城市将举行旅游节（the Tourism Festival）,组委会想招聘一些英语 导游, 请你用英语写一封100字左右的应聘信,内容包括:
1. 写信目的. 2. 你的英语水平. 3. 你的特殊优势.
注意院开头和结尾已经给出,不计入总词数.
Dear Sir/Madam,
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Yours,
LiHua
下面短文中有10处语言错误,每句中最多有两处. 每处错误仅涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修 改. 增加:在缺词处加一个漏词符号(∧),并在其下面写出该加的词.
删除:把多余的词用斜线(\)划掉.
修改:在错的词下划一横线,并在该词下面写出修改后的词.
注意:1. 每处错误及其修改均仅限一词.
2. 只允许修改10处,多者(从第11处起)不计分.
On Friday, our teacher told us there will be an English corner in our campus. Hardly had I finished the last class than I set off there.
To my joyful, the English corner had just been on for a few minute. I joined them on their talk. At the first, I was afraid that my English was too poor to make myself understand. I was also afraid of laughed at. But a smiling face here or an encouraging nod there soon put me at ease. Though I spoke to them only in simply English that day, I believe I will make greater progress in the future.
阅读下面材料,在空白处填入适当的内容(1 个单词冤或括号内单词的正确形式)
Trash is a big problem. You do your part to reduce, reuse and recycle it. 1. is it enough?
I do my part to recycle things and bring my bags for purchases, but I am far 2. producing zero waste. Recently a family of four in California talked about their zero — waste lifestyle on a television show which 3. (great) inspired me to some extent. The family live in a wealthy country. While 4. (raise) two children, Bea Johnson, the hostess 5. (determine) to live a zero ---waste lifestyle since then.
Her children just pack their 6. (lunch) in bags which they can reuse the next day. They have simplified their lives so completely that they are able to pack up easily and spend 7.(extend) periods of time travelling and doing things they love. They are able to pay for the trips because they spend 40% 8. (little) on living expenses. They also rent their home while they are gone and give detailed instructions to the renters on 9. they can create a zero-waste lifestyle.
I'm happy about the achievement that they have gained; meanwhile I 10. (encourage) by their example to do more in the future.
