Idioms are phrases and sentences that do not mean exactly what they say. Even if you know the meaning of each word you see or hear, you may not understand the idiom because you don’t understand the culture behind it.
For example, if an American boy asks his mother what’s for dinner tomorrow, she may say “I’ll play it by ear”, that means she doesn’t have plans for dinner and she will decide later. "Play by ear" used to mean playing music using the sheet music, but now people often use it when they’re not talking about music.
There’re many idioms in English. If you learn to use them, your English will be more vivid and colorful. English idioms are more common in spoken English. They can be difficult to remember sometimes. Next time when you hear somebody saying to you, "Give me a hand", you don’t necessarily stretch out your hand to him/her, but you do need to be helpful. And when the situation is out of hand, you usually can do very little to manage all that. What about a green hand? It’s not about the color of your hand! You’re a green hand when you are very new at your work and don’t have much experience. If you and your partner always work together hand in glove, you two definitely work together very well.
Can you guess the meanings of some common English idioms to do with parts of your body?
【小題1】What is an idiom ?
【小題2】What does “ Can you give me a hand “ mean ?
【小題3】Are English idioms more common in written English or spoken English ?

A poor farmer had a friend who was famous for the wonderful apple tree he grew.
One day, his friend gave the farmer a young apple tree and told him to plant it. The farmer was pleased with the gift, but he did not know where to plant it.
He was afraid that if he planted the tree near the road, strangers would steal the fruit. If he planted the tree in one of his fields, his neighbors would come at night and steal some of the apples. If he planted the tree near his house, his children would take the fruit. Finally he planted the tree in his wood. But without sunlight and good soil(土壤),the tree soon died,
Later the friend asked the farmer why he had planted the tree in such a poor place. "What's the difference? " the farmer said angrily and then told what he had thought.
"Yes," said the friend, "but at least someone could have enjoyed the fruit. Now you not only have robbed everyone of the fruit, but also you have destroyed  a good apple tree !"
【小題1】Was the farmer famous for planting the apple tree?
                                                                           
【小題2】What gift did the farmer get from his friend one day?
                                                                              
【小題3】Did the farmer plant the apple tree near his house or in his wood at last?
                                                                             
【小題4】Why did the apple tree soon die?
                                                                            
【小題5】Who destroyed the apple tree?
                                                                               

Life is difficult.
But life is no longer difficult when we truly understand and accept it. Most people do not fully see this truth. Instead, they complain about their problems and difficulties. They think life should be easy.
What makes life difficult is the process of facing and solving problems. Problems make us sad or lonely or angry. These are uncomfortable feeling. 1) Since life has lots of problems, it is always difficult and full of pain and joy as well. However, when we successfully solve them, we can feel that life is very interesting and pleasant.2) __________ are serious tests that can tell _______ from failure. In school we set problems for the students and encourage them to learn well. 3) We learn through the pain of meeting and working out problems. For this reason, wise people learn to face bravely but to deal with the difficulties in their life.
【小題1】將（1）句譯成英文：_______________________________________________
【小題2】在（2）句的空白處填入適當(dāng)?shù)脑~使句意完整、上下文通順____________  _____________
【小題3】將（3）句譯成中文：_______________________________________________
【小題4】寫出與此句意思相近的句子.
We get knowledge in the process of solving the problems.
_____________________________________________________________
【小題5】從文中找出最能表達(dá)該短文主題的句子：
__________________________________________________________________

閱讀表達(dá),閱讀短文，按要求完成短文后的各項(xiàng)任務(wù)。
We are in a world full of competition. Our parents compete with others in their offices, our brothers and sisters compete with others in their colleges, and we compete（1）_______ our ________in school. Most of us give up in the face of competition and will never be successful. Why can’t we do better than others? One important reason is that we have no self-confidence.
In fact, everyone was born equal. You can do what others do. Although your classmates may be better than you in some ways, （2）你可能在其他科目上比他們好. So everyone has his or her advantages. Don’t look at things from a single point of view. Try to find your own advantages, and believe that you can do better than others in those ways.
Competition is not so terrible. Don’t be afraid of it. And don’t be afraid of those classmates who are better than you. Remember that self-confidence is the first step to success. Believe in yourselves, and you will be successful one day. 
【小題1】在①句的空白處分別填入一個適當(dāng)?shù)脑~使句意完整，上下文通順：
                  
【小題2】將②句譯成英文。                                                          
【小題3】回答問題：Why can’t we do better than others?
                                                                              
【小題4】在文中找出與下面句子意思相近的句子，并寫出該句。
You should not be afraid of competition.
                                                                              
【小題5】在文中寫出最能表達(dá)該短文主題的句子。
                                                                      _________

It is said that about half of the people in China smoke. Many young boys and girls have the habit of smoking, though they are middle school students.
More and more people have come to realize how serious this problem is. But they are never bored with it. ①Some people think it is a kind of fashion, some think it is of great fun and others think that smoking can relax themselves.
Smoking causes many illnesses. A lot of people always cough(咳嗽)②______ ______smoking. The most serious illness caused by smoking is lung cancer. At the same time smoking is a waste of money. Beside, careless smokers may cause dangerous fires.
It’s known that smoking does harm to our health. We should get rid of(擺脫) the bad habit of smoking.
【小題1】在②句空白處填上恰當(dāng)?shù)脑~使句意完整、上下文通順：________  ________
【小題2】將①句譯成中文:
_______________________________________________________________
【小題3】回答問題：What’s the most serious illness caused by smoking?
_______________________________________________________________________________
【小題4】在文中找出與下列句子意思相近的句子: We all know that smoking is bad for our health.
_______________________________________________________________________________
【小題5】找出文中最能表達(dá)該短文主題的句子。
_______________________________________________________________________________

閱讀短文，然后根據(jù)短文內(nèi)容完成任務(wù)。
There is a popular club in many US middle schools. It’s homework club. More and more students spend (度過) their afternoons at these clubs.
The US middle school students need a quiet place to study. But games, computers and TV are all around kids at home. So the homework club is just for them to do their homework. The club is quiet and it’s (A)________ for students to study. Some teachers are there, too. They can answer students’ questions and help with their work.
Finish (完成) their homework and then they play games or watch TV happily.
任務(wù)一：從方框中選擇適當(dāng)?shù)脑~填入文中的A處。 good, well
【小題1】_____________
任務(wù)二：將劃線句子翻譯成漢語：
【小題2】________________________________________
任務(wù)三：根據(jù)短文內(nèi)容完成句子。
【小題3】There are ____________, ______________ and TV at kids’ homes.
任務(wù)四：根據(jù)短文內(nèi)容回答題。
【小題4】What club is a popular one in many US middle schools?
                                                        
【小題5】What can students do after they finish their homework?
                                                         

New York is one of (A)_______ (excite) cities in the world.
You might want to do some shopping in New York. Fifth Avenue is probably New York’s most famous shopping street, but if you go, be prepared to “window shop” only. This is shopping for the rich. There are other, less expensive shopping areas（區(qū)域）nearby, and you’ll soon (B)come across famous stores such as Bloomingdales, Macy’s and FAO Schwartz.
And if you’ve brought your rollerblades, then a visit to Central Park is a must. This is a large, open park right in the middle of Manhattan, but if you thought that people came here to relax, sits down for a few minutes and get away from the rush of New York life, then you’d be wrong. Nobody sits in Central Park: they run, jog（慢跑）, and most of all they rollerblade.
When you leave New York, you might be tired, even poor and overweight, but the one thing you won’t be is bored!   
【小題1】用（A）處所給單詞的適當(dāng)形式填空。（A）_________________________
【小題2】根據(jù)短文內(nèi)容，回答下列問題。（B）的中文含義
【小題3】Why would you probably only “window shop” in Fifth Avenue?
_____________________________________________
【小題4】What is Bloomingdales?
_____________________________________________
【小題5】What don’t people do in Central Park?
_____________________________________________

請認(rèn)真閱讀下面短文，并根據(jù)短文內(nèi)容回答問題。
Whether summer or winter, holiday time can mean travel. A few years ago, some people moved from California to Maryland with their birds. Traveling with birds is a very unusual experience. But everything can go well with a little planning. There are some good tips for you.
★ The first thing you have to decide is what cage your birds will use. You should make sure that the cage is neither too small nor too big, and can be put into the car easily. If you find that you need a travel cage, get it a few weeks before the trip, so you can give your birds time to get used to it.
★ If your car has the airbag, do not put the cage in the front seat. The force of the airbag even in a little accident could easily damage any cage and even injure or kill the bird inside. The cage should be held in the car with seatbelts.
★ If your trip takes several days, you need to make some stops at pet-friendly hotels. When you stop at hotels during the trip, you must put lots of newspapers under the cage to help control the rubbish.
★ If your travel or moving plans bring you to areas with hot weather, remember that the car will become very hot in a short time in the sun. Never leave your birds in the car alone.
Traveling with birds can be stress-free, and a little planning can make it a pleasant experience.
【小題1】What is the first thing you have to decide?
____________________________________________________
【小題2】 How should the cage be held in the car?
____________________________________________________
【小題3】Why must we put lots of newspapers under the cage at hotels?
____________________________________________________
【小題4】What is the passage mainly about?
____________________________________________________
【小題5】What do you think of traveling with birds? (請自擬一句話作答)
____________________________________________________ 

任務(wù)型閱讀
Most schools are trying hard to improve their lunch programs and they want to offer the best food they can.
Even if your school provides healthy options(選擇)，you may still want to have something delicious outside.
How do you take control? Take a packed lunch to school!
Here are the four reasons to pack your lunch and snacks at least twice a week.
Control  Have you ever waited in the lunch line only to find when you get to the front that you don’t like what they’re serving?
Variety  If you’re eating the same food all the time , your body probably feels ready for a change. Packing lunch a couple of times a week means you can enjoy some favorites that you might not find at every school.
Money Serving Packing healthy snacks so that you needn’t go out for a fast-food lunch, chocolate or a soda! If so, you will save much money. And you can buy something you need.
Warm Feeling   Remember when your mom or dad used to pack your lunch? Pack a lunch for yourself, maybe that is your favorite healthy food.
Whether you pack or eat in the cafeteria(自助食堂)，what’s important is that you make right choices. If you are worried that cafeteria doesn’t offer enough healthy choices, try to make changes. Ask a teacher or someone in food service for advice on hoe to get started.
Take a packed lunch to school

任務(wù)型閱讀
The 30th Olympic host city, London is opening its arms to the world. It is the capital city of the UK .It has the history of 2000 years. Today London is a big city with 7 million people. They are from all parts of the world. Their ways of life are not the same but harmonious(和諧的).Their favorite food is pie and mashed potatoes.