Mobile Messages

Laura will have a birthday party at home at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday. She invites some of her friends to come to her party. Here are their replies on her mobile phone.

1.When will Frank get to Laura's birthday party?

A. At about 6:30 p.m. B. At about 6:40 p.m.

C. At about 7:00 p.m. D. At about 8:00 p.m.

2.Who has got a present for Laura?

A. Frank. B. Emma. C. Juliet. D. Mathew.

3.Juliet will miss Laura's birthday party because she has to ______.

A. play in a football match

B. go away with her parents

C. do some shopping

D. stay with another friend

A Winning Day

Mom And I were sitting in the front row of the basketball arena (球场). Thanks to Mom’s boss, I could watch my first professional basketball game in such a great seat! And the most exciting thing was that I could see my favorite basketball player, Dwight Edwards, in person. I was holding his photo in my hand all the time.

Throughout the game Dwight made one fantastic play after another. With 3 seconds left in the game, he scored the winning basket for his team! After the television reporter finished interviewing Dwight, Mom and I walked toward him.

“Umm... Mr. ... Mr. Edwards? I’m Keysha, and I think you’re amazing.” My heart was beating fast. But I collected my courage and asked, “Would you please sign my photo?”

“Sure, Keysha. Thanks for coming today.” Dwight smiled as he signed the photo and then shook my hand. I thanked him.

As Mom guided my steps toward the exit, I watched Dwight until he disappeared into the locker room. When I turned around, I noticed a little boy holding a piece of paper and a pen and crying. “It’s OK, son,” his father said. “We’ll meet Dwight Edwards some other time.”

I looked at Dwight Edwards’ signature and thought about how great it was to meet him. Then I thought about how kind Mom’s boss was for giving us the tickets to allow me to have this experience.

I handed Dwight’s photo to the boy. “Here, I want you to have this,” I said.

The boy’s eyes widened. “Dwight’s autograph (亲笔签名)? Wow!” he exclaimed. “Thank you!”

“No problem,” I replied.

“Keysha, that was very thoughtful of you,” Mom said. “I know how much that autograph meant to you.”

I smiled at her. “I got to see Dwight Edwards play an amazing game. Then I got to meet him and shake his hand. I won’t need an autograph to remember this day.”

1.What was the most exciting thing for Keysha?

A. Having a seat in the front row.

B. Watching a professional basketball game.

C. Getting a free ticket for a basketball game.

D. Seeing her favorite basketball player in person.

2.How did Keysha feel when she asked the player to sign the photo?

A. Confident. B. Nervous. C. Proud. D. Sad.

3.Keysha gave the autograph to the boy because ______.

A. the boy’s father asked her for it

B. the autograph meant little to her

C. she would like to make the boy happy

D. she would meet Dwight some other time

Too many people think that intelligence is a gift of nature and that there is little anyone can do to improve theirs. IQ tests have managed to confuse many of us, leading us to believe that intelligence is largely fixed.

It is not. Just like swimming, cooking, dancing, and many other things, being smart is a skill that requires training. I discovered some of the most important tools to be smart when I watched my professors for years to learn how to do useful research. Now I will share them with you.

Practice self-critical thinking

Critical thinking is the act of questioning the arguments that are put before us. It is a valuable skill — without it, we are too willing to believe what other people say and easily get influenced. The problem is that we usually only apply (应用) critical thinking to other people's ideas. When we apply critical thinking to our own ideas, its power reaches a whole new level. I call this self-critical thinking. If you practice self-critical thinking, you will find imperfection in your arguments before anyone else. And you can come up with a better idea. By practicing self-critical thinking, your mind will surprise you.

Be persistent

Smart and successful people don't give up. They believe that they can do it, so they spent months, even years trying until finally something works out. You might know that Thomas Edison failed thousands of times before he succeeded. Actually, almost all scientists experience failure regularly. So if you want to be smart, be persistent.

Learn to present your ideas

You may have your good ideas, but if you don't sell your ideas, no one will recognize their worth and consider you smart. So you need to learn how to present your ideas. Pronounce clearly, express your thoughts properly. And most importantly, let your enthusiasm (热情) about your ideas shine through. Enthusiasm spreads quickly. When you have something to say, say it well. Selling your ideas is not only good for your reputation (声誉), others can also benefit from your message.

Finally, you must also believe in yourself. Those who appear smarter than you simply have used the right tools to exercise their minds. You are smarter than you think.

1.When we practice self-critical thinking, we _________.

A. are very likely to doubt other people's ideas

B. are willing to believe and accept other people's ideas

C. can easily come up with better ideas than other people

D. can find weak points in our own ideas before other people

2.What can we learn from the passage?

A. Too many people think they can improve their intelligence.

B. Scientists can succeed much more easily than normal people.

C. Pronouncing clearly is the most important skill to express ideas.

D. Others can recognize the value of your ideas, if you sell them properly.

3.What does the passage mainly talk about?

A. How to be smart. B. How to argue forcefully

C. How to be successful D. How to do useful research

I ask every student I interview for admission (获准入学) to my college the same question, “What do you look forward to the most in college?” I was surprised and pleased recently when a student replied, “I look forward to the possibility of failure.” This is not how most students answer the question when sitting before the person who can make decisions about their academic (学术) futures, but this young man took a risk. “My parents have never let me fail,” he said. “When I want to take a risk at something, they remind me it’s not safe. They think taking a hard course or trying a challenging activity will destroy my college admission.”

This is not an uncommon story. Kids all over the world are under great pressure to be perfect. So it’s hard to find imperfection in a college application (申请). Students try their best to hide negative things and only tell us impressive things. But perfection doesn’t exist (存在), and we don’t expect to see it. In fact, admission officers are likely to be skeptical of students who present themselves as persons without weaknesses.

We want to find out who students really are outside of their medals and test scores. We get excited when we read an application that seems real. If their viewpoints are about lessons learned or challenges overcome, these applicants are likely to jump to the top. We believe a mistake in high school should not define (定义) the rest of your life, but how you react could shape you forever.

Teenagers will never be perfect. They do silly things, mess up and fall down. The ability to bounce (反弹) back is a basic life skill students have to learn on their own. The lessons of failure can’t be taught in a classroom; they are experienced and reflected upon. During my interviews, another student told me, “I’m ashamed that I failed my math class, but I took it again and got a B-plus.” “From the experience I learned to let go of shame,” he said. “I realized that I can’t let a grade define my success.”

I smiled. This kid will do well and be successful in my college. He has the skills to face challenges. Failure is about growth, learning, overcoming, and moving on. Let’s allow young people to fail. Not only will they learn something, it might even get them into college.

1.The writer tells the story of the student in Paragraph 1 to show that ________.

A. many kids are usually told to avoid taking risks

B. some students like to behave in an unusual way

C. some students feel uncertain about their college life

D. many kids and their parents often have different opinions

2.What does the phrase “be skeptical of” probably mean?

A. Be interested in. B. Be ashamed of.

C. Be doubtful about. D. Be pleased with.

3.The writer probably agrees that ________.

A. teachers should be responsible for helping kids deal with failures

B. kids can grow and learn lessons by facing challenges bravely

C. parents should try to keep their kids from making mistakes

4.Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?

A. Want to Succeed? Work Hard

B. Want to Be Perfect? Do Your Best

C. Want to Get Into College? Learn to Fail

D. Want to Do Well in an Interview? Be Honest

阅读短文，根据短文内容回答问题。

Most cars get their energy from petrol (汽油). But some cars use electricity. They get their power from large batteries (电池). There are also some cars that have both an electric motor and a petrol motor. They are called hybrid cars.

Most people think of electric cars as a new invention, but they have been around for a long time. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries electric cars were popular because the technology for petrol engines was not highly developed. But when the petrol engines became easier to make and more powerful，they became more popular. Interest in electric cars was high in the 1970s and 1980s because oil became very expensive. Recently, electric cars　have again become popular because people want cars that pollute less.

Electric cars are better than petrol cars in several ways. The biggest benefit is that they can reduce pollution. In areas with a high percentage of electric cars, there is less pollution. But it is important to understand that electric cars still cause pollution. The electricity to power electric cars has to come from a power station. Unless these power stations run on solar or wind energy, they are most likely burning fossil fuels (化石燃料). The second benefit of electric cars is a reduction in the dependence on foreign oil. Since electric cars can run on electricity from coal or nuclear power (核能) stations, there is less of a need to import oil.

There are some problems with electric cars as well. One disadvantage is that electric cars are more expensive than petrol cars. This is mostly because of the high cost of the batteries. They need to be charged in special places. Right now, there aren’t enough places where people can charge the batteries. Another problem is that electric cars cannot travel as far as petrol cars. Some people are afraid that the battery will run out of electricity before they reach their destination.

Despite these problems, many people, including car industry experts, believe that the percentage of electric cars will increase in the future.

1.What do electric cars get their power from?

_____________________________________________________

2.When were electric cars first popular?

_____________________________________________________

3.Why have electric cars become popular again recently?

_____________________________________________________

4.What is the third paragraph mainly about?

_____________________________________________________

5.What are the disadvantages of electric cars compared with petrol cars?

_____________________________________________________

首都北京有很多蕴含历史和文化的旅游景点，如故宫 (the Palace Museum)、长城 (the Great Wall)、老舍茶馆 (Lao She Teahouse) 等。它们吸引了众多外国游客。

假如你是李华，你的外国笔友 Peter 即将到北京旅游。请你用英语写一封电子邮件，向他推荐一个能了解中国历史和文化的景点，告诉他在这个景点可以看到什么或者做些什么，以及他需要做什么准备。

提示词语: ancient buildings, art works, handcrafts (手工艺品), book a ticket

提示问题:? Which place do you advise Peter to visit?

? What can he see or do there?

? What preparations does Peter need to do?

Dear Henry,

How is it going?

I’m glad you will come to Beijing. I advise you to visit

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If you need any help, please let me know.

Yours,

Li Hua

Dear Henry,

How is it going?

I’m glad you will come to Beijing. I advise you to visit

___________________________________________________________________________________________

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If you need any help, please let me know.

Yours,

Li Hua

培养独立自主的生活能力对中学生非常重要。独立自主的生活能力包括自主安排时间、自觉完成作业、自己整理房间、做饭等。

某英文网站正在开展以“培养独立自主的生活能力”为主题的征文活动。假如你是李华，请用英语写一篇短文投稿，谈谈你在生活中能独立自主做哪些事情，还需要在哪些方面改进。

提示词语: manage time, waste, tidy up, learn

提示问题:

? What can you do independently in your daily life?

? What do you need to improve?

It’s very important for teenagers to learn to do things independently.

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It’s very important for teenagers to learn to do things independently.

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Jack’s parents are teachers. ________ teach English in Beijing.

A. I B. We C. They D. You

My sister likes reading. ________ favourite book is Harry Potter.

A. He B. She C. His D. Her

—Tanya, the concert starts ________ 7 p.m. We are pretty late.

—OK, Mom. I’m coming.

A. on B. at C. in D. for