Have you ever ridden a Ferris wheel lately? Can you imagine the flying feeling as you are pulled up to the top and then moved down to the bottom quickly again?

Today a Ferris wheel is usually 40 to 60 feet tall． That seems very high when you are on the top looking down． But the first Ferris wheel was 264 feet high – taller than a twenty-story building! Can you imagine the view from the top of that?

The first Ferris wheel was built for the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago． The people who planned the fair were looking for an attraction that would bring people to Chicago． George Ferris handed a drawing of a giant wheel that people could ride on． At first everyone laughed at his strange idea． But Mr． Ferris did not give up, and finally the idea was accepted． The ride opened in June of 1893．

Today’s Ferris wheels have 12 to 16 seats, which each carry 2 or 3 people． But that first one had 36 enclosed cars, each holding 60 passengers． When filled, it carried 2, 160 people． During that summer in Chicago, about 1．5 million people rode the Ferris wheel．

After the fair the ride was moved to a nearby amusement park built especially to show off the wheel． In 1904, it was moved again – to St． Louis for the Louisiana Purchase Exposition． After the fair there, the wheel stood unused． In 1906 it was finally sold to a company for scrap metal (廢鐵)．

Luckily a Chicago bridge builder, W．E． Sullivan, figured out how to make a smaller Ferris wheel that could easily be taken apart and put together． In 1906 he started the company that still makes many of the Ferris wheels used today．

But, whenever you ride one, remember that it all began with George Ferris’s strange idea!

1.How tall is a Ferris wheel today?

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2.What was the first Ferris wheel built for?

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3.What did people think of Ferris’s idea at first?

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4.How many people rode the first Ferris wheel during the summer in 1893?

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5.Compared with today’s Ferris wheels, what was the first Ferris wheel like?

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信息匹配

High school life can be terrible if you get it all wrong． Find out how to survive high school with a few easy tips．

◆1._______．

High school is a fun time to make new friends and meet new people． Make friends with all kinds of people and not just a group which you are comfortable with． Socialize, but by judging who you can connect to． You will find friends, but stay away from the ones who don’t want to be your friends．

◆Be yourself．

Do your own things, and don’t just follow others．2.________． Just be yourself and create a strong self-image．

◆Be positive (積極的)．

There is nothing better than having a smile on your face whenever you can．3.________． Just be brave enough to meet new people or do something you’ve never tried． Meanwhile, respect your teachers and classmates and try to be helpful if you want the same in return．

◆Be confident．

When you believe in yourself, others will believe in you．4.________． And people respect you for that． Make sure you won’t easily get influenced by others．

◆Love high school．

5.________． Make the most out of it, and you will never get those moments back． Come up with funny ideas, top your class, make the best friends, drink, go to parties, but just make as many memories as you can!

書面表達(dá)

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提示詞語： called, at first, finally, brave, difficulty, share

Let‟s call up Tom and tell ______ the good news.

A．her B．him

C．us D．you

Linda always goes to see her grandpa _____ Wednesday afternoon.

A．in B．a(chǎn)t

C．on D．of

Zootopia is a great movie, ______ we all like it very much.

A．or B．because

C．but D．a(chǎn)nd

— ______ I have a look at your dictionary?

— Of course you can. Here you are.

A．Need B．Can

C．Must D．Should

I like everybody who lives here, but you are ______ of all.

A．nice B．nicer

C．the nicest D．nicest

—What are you doing, Sam?

—I ______ the house for my uncle.

A．a(chǎn)m painting B．painted

C．paint D．will paint

She decided ______ some English clubs and practise her spoken English.

A．join B．joined

C．joining D．to join