Last weekend marked one of the nicest days so far this spring.
It was warm with a tiny breeze; the sun penetrated through lightweight sweaters to warm the skin; the male choir was warming up, and the graduates were walking around the lawn behind the throng of six-thousand-plus observers.
With all of the parents, sisters, brothers, grandparents, aunts and uncles, the state university was a center of activity. My nephew was going to receive his bachelor’s degree. Who would have guessed that four years would go by so quickly?
As the crowd of freshly elegant candidates wandered, joked, hugged and chattered behind the platform, I heard several cell phones ring. There were several nonsensical(无意义)conversations going on with the accompanying giggles of the not-quite-mature students, but then one conversation in particular caught my attention.
“Yes, Grandma, I’m really graduating. I can’t believe it, either!I never thought I’d be here today, you know? Really!Like, I know it!Yes, it’s a very special day...Hold on, we’re lining up...Oh wow, they’ve got hundreds of balloons they’re going to release!Yes, Kelly’s here...Okay, I’ll give her your love…here we go!Gran, I’m graduating!…Love you too, Gran. I’m so glad you could be here with me!”
And somehow, my initial surprise and annoy at the use of cell phones during such a serious occasion left me. These little representatives of modern technology had joined a young woman and her devoted Gran to share a very special moment in time.
1.The author went to the university to______.
A.enjoy the beautiful spring day B.see how the graduates act
C.see a relative graduate D.receive a bachelor’s degree
2.Why was the author’s attention was caught?
A.Because the conversation was carried on the cell phone.
B.Because the young woman sounded different from other students.
C.Because several nonsensical conversations were going on.
D.Because a young woman was sharing a special moment with her gran.
3.How did the author feel after he heard the conversation between the young woman and her grandmother?
A.Surprised. B.Annoyed. C.Puzzled. D.Moved.
4.What’s the purpose of the author in writing the passage ?
A.To describe an exciting moment in life.
B.To explain the convenience technology brings us.
C.To advise us to use cell phones properly in public places.
D.To describe a common scene in life.
Essay
Epic Fails: The Wright Brothers: Nose-Diving into History By Erik Slader and Ben Thompson. Ages 6 to 12. The first book in the Epic Fails series deals with one of the most ambitious goals humans have pursued: the quests to fly. Authors Slader and Thompson focus on life-or-death scenes, such as when the Wright brothers crashed their glider over and over on the sandy coast of North Carolina; it took them two more years to get it right. |
Epic Fails: The Race to Space: Countdown to Liftoff By Erik Slader and Ben Thompson. Ages 6 to 12 Today, everyone is familiar with Neil Armstrong’s famous words as he first set foot on the moon, “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” He made it look easy, but America’s journey to the moon was anything but simple. Our first attempt was a failure. Still, we didn’t give up. We tried again. And again. And each time we failed, we failed a little bit better. |
Fantastic Failures: True Stories of People Who Changed the World by Falling Down First By Luke Reynolds. Ages 6 to 12. Teacher Luke Reynolds opens each chapter with a quick, impossibly perfect version of one person’s life and then says how that person actually had to face huge challenges to accomplish goals. In this book, Reynolds writes about various common men, women and children. |
Cyrus Field’s Big dream：The Daring Effort to Lay the First Transatlantic Telegraph Cable By Mary Morton Cowan. Ages 6 to 12. In 1853，it took at least a week to relay a message between the United States and Europe because people had to be transported on ships over the Atlantic Ocean. Cyrus Field tried to reduce that transmission（传送）time to just minutes by laying a long undersea cable. In this book，Cowan describes many failures Field suffered before he achieved this major breakthrough. |
1.Who are the four books intended for?
A.Children. B.Teenagers. C.Adults. D.Old people.
2.What do we know about Fantastic Failures?
A.It was written by a famous actor. B.It tells stories of ordinary people.
C.It is about science fiction stories. D.It is a picture book by a teacher.
3.What lesson can we learn from the four books?
A.All roads lead to Rome. B.Failure is the mother of success.
C.An early bird catches worms D.Actions speak louder than words.
假定你是李明，你们班正在为即将举行的英语戏剧节 (English Drama Festival) 排练节目The Million Pound Bank Note，请你给外教Mr. Green写一封电子邮件寻求他的指导和帮助，要点如下：
1. 排练时间、地点；
2. 请他指导台词；
3. 表示感谢。
注意：1. 词数100左右；
2. 可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
参考词汇：排练 rehearsal [n.]；台词 line [n.]
Dear Mr. Green,
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Yours,
Li Ming
假定英语课上老师要求同桌之间交换修改作文，请你修改你同桌写的以下作文。文中共有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：在缺词处加一个漏字符号（^）， 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：在错的词下画一横线，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。
Great changes have been taken place in my village. Ten years ago, the small and low houses of my village lie on the north of a lake. The villagers produced much waste. As result, the lake was serious polluted. To the west of the village was a sandy field, where was the source of much dust.
Now the poor house have been replaced by green trees. Beside, the sandy field that the villagers used to plough has been covered of fruit trees. On the lake, now clean and clear, the villagers often spend their spare time fish.
In a word, their village has become a green one.
根据首字母及汉语提示拼写单词或在空白处填入一个合适的词。
1.Many of the rebels were captured and t____________ (折磨) by secret police.
2.I’ve got a r____________ (大致的) idea of where I want to go.
3.There is convincing e____________ (证据) of a link between exposure to sun and skin cancer.
4.He smiled i____________ (讥讽地) .
5.We searched until we knew it would be p____________ (没有意义) to continue.
6.He’s getting a phone i____________ (安装) tomorrow.
7.A plastic bag was f____________ (漂浮) in the water.
8.Habits and skills in our past experiences are the b____________ (基础) for the decisions we make.
9.The house had many drawbacks, most n____________ (尤其) its price.
10.Special m____________ (措施) are being taken to protect the local water supplies.
11.Only the timely __________ (arrive) of the police prevented the situation from becoming worse.
12.His ideas were clear and ___________ (logical) presented.
13.The manager suggested that this work ____________ (finish) tomorrow.
14.John wants to be famous—he is tired ____________ being nobody.
15.Are you familiar __________ this type of machine?
Painting
The art of creating pictures using colors, shapes and lines is called painting. Museums and galleries show the paintings of professional (专业的) artists. But painting is also a popular form of entertainment and creative expression.
1.. Experienced painters usually use a brush to apply oil paints to a canvas cloth surface. Young painters usually use watercolors on pieces of paper. Very young children may use finger paints to create paintings.
Painters can use their art to express devotion to a religion, to tell a story, to express feelings and ideas, or simply to present a pleasing picture. Religious paintings often show a god or a scene from a sacred text (圣典). Other common subjects have been famous legends and events in history, as well as scenes from daily life. Artists also paint portraits (画像), or pictures of people.2.. All of these types of paintings show the human figure in some way.
Some kinds of paintings do not focus on people. In landscape (风景) painting the focus is on scenes from nature. Artists also paint still objects such as fruits and vegetables.3.. Some artists communicate their ideas through pictures that do not represent any object.
4.. Paintings dating back 15,000 years have been found on the walls of caves in France and Spain.
5. Samples of painted pottery (陶器) from at least 5,000 years ago have been found in China and Iran. The ancient Egyptians decorated their temples with beautiful paintings. People in ancient Greece painted decorative objects such as vases in addition to the walls of temples.
A.These works are called still-life paintings.
B.These works can communicate a special feeling.
C.Humans have been making paintings for thousands of years.
D.People of all ages create pictures using a variety of materials.
E.Cave paintings generally show animals that early humans hunted.
F.The design of a painting is the plan of its lines, shapes and colors.
G.Sometimes artists make portraits of themselves, which are called self-portraits.
