For some kids, old photos and baby pictures are embarrassing. For others, they are cherished keepsakes (紀念品). But for thousands of children living in orphanages (孤兒院) worldwide, these records of the past simply don't exist. Either the kids' parents weren't around to snap photos, or the pictures have been lost. Whatever the reason is, the Memory Project is giving orphans a lasting document of their youth.
Over the last two years, the Memory Project has provided hand-painted portraits to more than 4,000 children living in orphanages in poor countries. Ben Schumaker, 24, got the idea when he was visiting an orphanage in Guatemala in Central America. But he's not creating the portraits(肖像) alone. Students in hundreds of high school art classes across the U.S. paint them using photos sent from the orphanages.
Schumaker believes that the artists benefit from the project as much as the orphans do. “There are two purposes of the Memory Project,” he said. “One is to offer a special gift to the child abroad. The other is to help open the eyes of the student who is painting.” Staring into the eyes of another person, Schumaker believes, it creates a real connection. This connection raises awareness in U.S. schools about the needs of the world's poor children. “It's about planting a seed,” he said.
Schumaker is also working on Books of Hope, a project in which students of all ages put together homemade books for children in Uganda and India. He hopes that one day children in Uganda and India will send books to the U.S. “It's important to me to have it be a two-way exchange,” Schmnaker says.
【小題1】
Old photos and baby pictures are clearly unavailable to             .

A．the kids in rich families	B．the kids in common families
C．the kids in expanded families	D．the kids without parents

【小題2】
How can the orphans in Guatemala get a continuing record of their youth?

A．By hand-painted portraits that Ben Schumaker painted.

B．By the photos the orphanage taken for them.

C．By the photos taken by the U.S. students in high schools.

D．By the Memory Project started by Ben Schumaker.

【小題3】
What does the third paragraph mainly tell us?

A．The special gifts that the world's poor children received.

B．The benefits that the Memory Project brings.

C．The need of the US schools.

D．How to help the orphans.

【小題4】
According to the passage, Schumaker helps the kids in poor countries.

A．two

B．three

C．four

D．five

Restaurant owners should not use disposable chopsticks for the good of their health and the environment , an official of the China Cuisine Association（中國烹飪協(xié)會）said.
Bian Jiang, its secretary general, recently called on restaurant owners to say no to one-off tableware(餐具), especially wooden chopsticks. “The country produces and throws away over 45 billion pairs of wooden chopsticks every year, at a cost to the environment of about 25 million tree.” Bian said.
“That’s a heavy blow to the county’s shrinking(正在減少的) forests,” he said, “We should not turn a deaf ear to the call for environmental protection. We should stop using disposable tableware from now on.”
In order to discourage the use of wooden chopsticks and to protect wooden resources, the government put a 5% tax on them in April.
The use of disposable chopsticks has been discussed for years. Their supporters say that both restaurant owners and consumers prefer them, and that an industry has grown up around their production.
. 【小題1】
The secretary general suggests that wooden chopsticks be stopped from being used because           .

A．they cause a lot of pollution of the environment

B．the environment is no longer green

C．the government is not happy with that

D．too many trees are cut

【小題2】
From the text we know that the idea of no disposable tableware will be           .

A．hard to put into practice	B．welcomed by a lot of people
C．receiving indifferent attitudes	D．rejected by some people

【小題3】
What does the underlined word “disposable” in the first paragraph mean?

A．Waste

B．Expensive

C．Man

D．One-use

【小題4】
What’s the main idea of the text?

A．Many people support the idea of saying no to using wooden chopsticks.

B．The government calls on people to stop using wooden chopsticks.

C．Disposable tableware wastes a lot of forests and does damage to the environment.

D．People are aware of the cost of using disposable tableware

One often hears that children should arrive at school “ready to learn.” For most children, the acquisition of reading and math skills starts in the first grade. In states where kindergarten is compulsory, it begins even earlier.
Many parents, teachers, and politicians maintain that preschool is the best way to prepare children to learn. There is no real consensus, however, about how this preparation should be achieved.
For some, early childhood education relates to the development of the whole child. They think that preschool should encourage exploration and discovery. Group activities teach positive social behaviors such as sharing, kindness, and patience. Time spent alone encourages independence. Learning letters and counting is important only for children who show an interest in them. Advocates of this approach stress that each child is unique and should learn at his or her own pace.
Other people refer to research showing that children are ready to absorb basic academic concepts by age 3 or 4. They claim that early introduction to letters and numbers lays the foundation for later academic excellence. Since the 1980s, many people have stressed the value of preschool and point to the success of programs -such as Head Start - that target low-income children.
Is there proof that an academic curriculum in preschool will lead to academic success? Studies have not been conclusive. In the short term, evidence suggests that middle-class children who attend preschool are ahead of their peers in maths and language skills as well as in social skills, when they enter school. However, the same studies show that the gap narrows considerably by the time children reach age 8.
Children living in poverty are a different matter. Those enrolled in programs such as Head Start seem to do better than impoverished children who do not attend a preschool. For instance, youngsters in one group enrolled in the program, tracked until the age of 21, earned higher scores on intelligence tests, were more likely to graduate from high school, and demonstrated more interest in higher education.
The idea of public preschool raises many issues. Providing Head Start for all children would be a financial burden on communities that already struggle to fund current school programs. Also, where would a sufficient number of teachers trained in early childhood development be found?
【小題1】
Advocates of the development of the whole child believe school readiness is______ .

A．showing eagerness in exploration and discovery

B．learning basic skills, such as knowing letters and counting

C．showing great interest in basic academic concepts

D．demonstration of intellectual , social and emotional skills

【小題2】
According to the passage, Head Start is most probably______ .

A．a(chǎn) preschool program that supports disabled children

B．a(chǎn) program that helps impoverished children attend a school

C．a(chǎn)n organization that aims to improve current school programs

D．a(chǎn) program that helps design the academic curriculum in preschool

【小題3】
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A．Preschool benefits middle-class children more than poor children.

B．Most children start school with similar language and social skills.

C．Providing Head Start for all children has encountered great difficulties.

D．All children are ready to absorb basic academic concepts by age 3 or 4.

【小題4】
Which of the following may best summarize the main idea of the passage?

A．An academic curriculum in preschool will lead to academic success.

B．Preshool is helpful, despite the disagreement about what it should offer.

C．Children enrolled in preschool demonstrate more interest in learning.

D．Preschool education shouldn't be a financial burden on communities.

To learn English well you must learn about yourself. You must discover what your own special needs are in English. You should pick out what makes English different from your own language and concentrate on those parts. And above all, you should pick out your own personal weaknesses in English, pick out your own special problems, find out what mistakes you most often make and   make a list of them.
It will be best if, in your preparation, you can practise doing the various sorts of work you will be asked to do in examination. You should then make a careful note of any mistakes you make more than once. Count up how many times you make each mistake, and the mistake you make most often should be at the top of your list, the next most common in second place, and so on.
For example, if your own language is Japanese, you may find the problem of articles comes at the top of your list. If you speak German, you may find using some of the conjunctions is your biggest problem. If your mother tongue is French, you find you are always having trouble with some of prepositions. And if Italian is your language, you may constantly forget to use a suitable pronoun when you should.
But these are only examples of mistakes typical of certain languages. They may or may not
be your particular personal mistakes. As I say, these personal ones are the most important of all to discover.
【小題1】
To learn English well the most important thing is to ______.

A．learn about yourself as much as possible

B．discover your own special needs in the language

C．find out the difference between your own language and English

D．pick out your own personal weaknesses in English

【小題2】
The writer advises the readers to ______ .

A．spend as much time on English as possible

B．take examinations of various sorts

C．find out their own problems in doing selected exercises

D．keep a notebook with the important languages points in it

【小題3】
The first item on the list should be the mistake you make ______ .

A．more than once

B．many times

C．most often

D．very often

An idea that started in Seattle's public library has spread throughout America and beyond. The concept is simple: help to build a sense of community in a city by getting everyone to read the same book at the same tome.
In addition to encouraging reading as a pursuit (追求) to be enjoyed by all, the program allows strangers to communicate by discussing the book on the bus, as well as promoting reading as an experience to be shared in families and schools. The idea came from Seattle librarian Nancy Pearl who launched (發(fā)起）the "If All of Seattle Read the Same Book " project in 1998. Her original program used author visits,study guides and book discussion groups to bring people together with a book, but the idea has since expanded to many other American cities, and even to Hong kong.
In Chicago, the mayor(市長）appeared on television to announce the choice of To Kill a Mockingbird as the first book in the "One Book, One Chicago" program. As a result, reading clubs and neighbourhood groups sprang up around the city. Across the US, stories emerged of parents and children reading to each other at night and strangers chatting away on the bus about plot and character.
The only problem arose in New York ,where local readers could not decide on one book to represent the huge and diverse population. This may show that the idea works best in medium-sized cities or large towns,where a greater sense of unity(一致）can be achieved .Or it may show that New Yorkers rather missed the point ,putting all their energy
And passion into the choice of the book rather than discussion about a book itself.
Ultinatel was Nancy points out,the level of sucicess is not meastured by how many people read a book,but by how many people are enriched by the process.or have enjoyed speaking to someone with whom they would not otherwise have shared a word.
【小題1】What is the purpose of the project launched by Nancy?

A．To invite authors to guide readers.

B．To encourage people to read and share.

C．To involve people in communnity service.

D．To promote the friendship between cities.

【小題2】Why was it difficult for New Yorkers to carry out the projict?

A．They had little interest in reading.

B．They were too busy to read a book.

C．They came from many different backgrounds

D．They lacked support from the locat government

【小題3】According to the passage,where would the project be more easily carried out?

A．In large communities with little sense of unity

B．In large cities where libraries are far from home

C．In medium-sized cities with a diverse population

D．In large towns where agreement can be quickly reached

【小題4】The underlined words“shared a word”in Paragraph 5 probably mean     

A．exchanged ideas with each other

B．discussed the meaning of a word

C．gamed life experience

D．used the same language

【小題5】According to Nacy,the degree of students of the project is judged by
          

A．the careful selection of a proper book

B．the growing popularity of the writers

C．the number of people who benefit from reading.

D．the number of books that each person reads.

Hurry! Time to “steal vegetables”
Don't be afraid! We are not encouraging the stealing behavior, but to tell you maybe the most popular topic from white-collars' mouth in cities. Together with "How many vegetables do you steal today," "it's harvest time for your ripe peach," "I bought you a new car today."
Are there so many people in the city really have their own farms, or are they really so rich to buy someone else cars casually?
The answer is obviously negative. They just play some games on Social Network Sites (SNS) like kaixin001.com.
Can you imagine that more than millions of people in Chinese mainland will spend lots of time on SNS to play game and talk to friends, especially white-collars who work in the cities? Take kaixin001.com as an example, the current member of it has already hit 38 million.
However, the great number of people who would like to use such SNS indicates another social problem. That is lots of people choose to escape from the reality. And SNS just offer them a Virtual space to forget the reality.
Kinds of games and various of friends do give netizens lots of fun. Though indulging, dreaming, chatting and playing , it seems like people could really escape from all the upsets in reality. But virtual world is not real and no one can live in it forever, and reality is not that simple like noodling around on the internet.
Since this kind of social phenomenon is so popular on the internet, people start thinking to remove it in the reality.After playing the "happy farm" game on kaixin001.com, would you like to put yourself among the real corps while smelling the fragrance of the countryside? Recently, a farm land service called "happy farm in reality" was opened in the suburbs of Shanghai where white-collar workers from around that region can experience the real farmer's life by themselves
【小題1】What is the topic of the passage?

A．It’s time to” steal vegetables.”

B．a(chǎn) computer game called “Happy Farm”

C．open a farm in reality

D．something behind the game “Happy Farm”

【小題2】Why are so many people interested in “Happy Farm”?

A．Because they like playing computer games.

B．Because it offers them a virtual space to escape from reality.

C．because they can talk and play with their friends at the same time.

D．because they can harvest peaches.

【小題3】Which group are the majority playing the “Happy Farm” game?

A．Farmers

B．White-collars

C．workers

D．students

【小題4】What’s the author’s attitude towards the “ Happy Farm” game?

A．positive

B．worried

C．neutral

D．we don’t know

It is true that shyness can be a disadvantage socially for those who suffer from it seriously. I mean real shyness, not somebody who is simply quiet. Quiet people could be shy, but on the other hand, they may just be observing because they are unsure of you or others in your company. They may be capable of being extrovert (性格外向的) and sociable, but on some particular occasions, they are quiet.
I have learnt from my experience that those who observe and listen more and talk less can gain a position of strength. This means that even a very shy person, the type who is reluctant to talk in company (在交際場合) , especially new company, can become a strong person in just about anything they choose. Remember, knowledge is power, and a shy introvert (性格內(nèi)向的人) is in a better position to gain knowledge than an extrovert. Introverted people can give great attention to learning, and as good listeners they can take in an enormous amount from others. Over time, people can come to respect them far more than the extrovert who speaks a lot. Usually about themselves.
What does it take , then for a very shy person to be that successful person they have always wanted to be ? They may only need one more thing to push themselves on their way. They need to dare themselves to take the leap; and when they do , they will probably find all the knowledge they have gained over the years will help them on their way to the top in their chosen field.
【小題1】
What does the first paragraph mainly want to tell us?

A．A person who is quiet may not be shy.

B．A shy person may not be a calm one.

C．Quiet people are usually doubtful.

D．Shyness is sometimes a bad feature.

【小題2】
The underlined word “reluctant” in paragraph 2 probably means ______.

A．lazy

B．careful

C．eager

D．unwilling

【小題3】
According to the author, introverted people can be successful because they usually ___________.

A．have a strong will	B．talk less and show off less
C．learn more than extroverts	D．have a good attitude to learning

【小題4】
It can be learned from the last paragraph that “one more thing” probably refers to __________.

A．energy

B．courage

C．quietness

D．knowledge

T-shirts out; uniforms in
School uniforms（制服） are becoming more and more popular across the U.S.A. That’s no surprise, because they offer many benefits. They immediately end the powerful social sorting and labeling (標記) that come from clothing. If all students are dressed in the same way, they will not pay too much attention to their clothing, and some of them will not be laughed at for wearing the “wrong” clothes.
Some people are against the strict rule of school uniforms, but they do not realize that students already accept a kind of rule — wanting to look just like their friends. The difference is that the clothing students choose for themselves creates social barriers(障礙); school uniforms tear those barriers down.
As in other places, uniforms remind the wearers of their purposes and duties. For example, when a man or woman puts on a police uniform, he or she becomes, for a time, the symbol (象征) of law and order. The uniform means to the wearer his or her special duties and sends the same message to everyone the wearer meets. People with different jobs wear uniforms of one kind or another. For students, the school uniform reminds them that their task for the six or seven hours they are in school is to get an education.
Some parents are unhappy about uniforms, saying that school uniforms will affect their children’s “creativity.” First, as noted above, the clothes students choose to wear do not necessarily express their individuality (個性). They just copy their classmates. Second, students have the rest of the day to be as creative as they like. While they’re in school, their job is to master reading, writing, and maths; this should take up all the creativity they have. Mastery of those skills will be good for the students to build up their creativity in every way.
【小題1】In Paragraph 1, the word “benefits” probably means       .

A．tasks

B．messages

C．differences

D．a(chǎn)dvantages

【小題2】 From the passage we learn that uniforms in general       .

A．prevent the wearers from being laughed at

B．help the wearers keep their duties in mind

C．a(chǎn)re seen as a symbol of power

D．help to create social barriers

【小題3】 Some people are against school uniforms because       .

A．they fail to realize that students have accepted the uniforms

B．they believe that uniforms will make students less creative

C．they don’t agree that uniforms can remove social barriers

D．they think that school uniforms are too popular

【小題4】The author would probably agree that       .

A．it makes no difference whether to wear school uniforms or not

B．students’ individuality may not come from school education

C．students’ creativity is related to the clothes they choose

D．school uniforms help to create equality among students

【小題5】 School uniforms are becoming more and more popular and important because _____

A．they can stop the powerful social sorting and labeling.

B．if all students are dressed in the same way, they will not pay too much attention to their clothing.

C．uniforms can remind the wearers of their purposes and duties

D．school uniforms will affect their children’s creativity.

Parents often believe that they have a good relationship with their teenagers (青少年). But last summer, Joanna and Henry noticed a change in their older son. Suddenly he seemed to be talking far more to his friends than to his parents. "The door to his room is always shut," Joanna noted.
Tina and Mark noticed similar changes in their 14-year-old daughter. "She used to cuddle up (蜷伏)with me on the sofa and talk," said Mark. "Now we joke that she does this only when she wants something. Sometimes she wants to be treated like a little girl and sometimes like a young lady. The problem is figuring out which time is which."
Before age 11, children like to tell their parents what's on their minds. "In fact, parents are first on the list," said Michael Riera, author of Uncommon Sense for Parents with Teenagers. "This completely changes during the teen years," Riera explained. "They talk to their friends first, then maybe their teachers, and their parents last."
Parents who know what's going on in their teenagers' lives are in the best position to help them. To break down the wall of silence, parents should create chances to understand what their children want to say, and try to find ways to talk and write to them. And they must give their children a mental break, for children also need freedom, though young. Another thing parents should remember is that to be a friend, not a manager, with their children is a better way to know them..
【小題1】
"The door to his room is always shut" suggests that the son ____.

A．is always busy with his studies	B．doesn't want to be disturbed
C．keeps himself away from his parents	D．begins to dislike his parents

【小題2】
What troubles Tina and Mark most is that            .

A．their daughter isn't as lovely as before

B．they can't read their daughter's mind exactly

C．they don't know what to say to their daughter

D．their daughter talks with them only when she needs help

【小題3】
Which of the following best explains "the wall of silence" in the last paragraph?

A．Teenagers talk a lot with their friends.

B．Teenagers do not want to understand their parents.

C．Teenagers do not talk much with their parents.

D．Teenagers talk little about their own lives.

【小題4】
What can be learned from the passage?

A．Parents are unhappy with their growing children.

B．Parents have suitable ways to talk with their teenagers.

C．Parents should be patient with their silent teenagers.

D．Parents should try to understand their teenagers.

To be a good teacher, you need some of the gifts of a good actor; you must be able to hold the attention and interest of your audience; you must be a clear speaker, with a good, strong, pleasing voice which is fully under your control; and you must be able to act what you are teaching, in order to make its meaning clear.
Watch a good teacher, and you will see that he does not sit still before his class:he stands the whole time he is teaching; he walks about, using his arms, hands and fingers to help him in his explanations, and his face to express feelings. Listen to him, and you will hear the loudness, the quality and the musical note of his voice always changing according to what he is talking about.
The fact that a good teacher has some of the gifts of a good actor doesn’t mean that he will indeed be able to act well on the stage, for there are very important differences between the teacher’s work and the actor’s. The actor has to speak words which he has learnt by heart; he has to repeat exactly the same words each time he plays a certain part, even his movements and the ways in which he uses his voice are usually fixed beforehand. What he has to do is to make all these carefully learnt words and actions seem natural on the stage.
A good teacher works in quite a different way. His audience takes an active part in his play：they ask and answer questions, they obey orders, and if they don’t understand something, they say so. The teacher therefore has to meet the needs of his audience, which is his class. He cannot learn his part by heart, but must invent it as he goes along.
I have known many teachers who were fine actors in class but were unable to take part in a stage-play because they could not keep strictly to what another had written.
【小題1】
What is the text about?

A．How to become a good teacher.

B．What a good teacher should do outside the classroom.

C．What teachers and actors could learn from each other?

D．The similarities (相似處) and differences between a teacher’s work and an actor’s.

【小題2】
The word “audience” in the fourth paragraph means ____.

A．students	B．people who watch a play
C．people who not on the stage	D．people who listen to something

【小題3】
A good teacher ____.

A．knows how to hold the interest of his students	B．must have a good voice
C．knows how to act on the stage	D．stands or sits still while teaching

【小題4】
In what way is a teacher’s work different from an actor’s?

A．The teacher must learn everything by heart.

B．He knows how to control his voice better than an actor.

C．He has to deal with unexpected situations.

D．He has to use more facial expressions.

【小題5】
The main difference between students in class and a theatre audience is that ____.

A．students can move around in the classroom

B．students must keep silent while theatre audience needn’t

C．no memory work is needed for the students

D．the students must take part in their teachers’ plays