Down-to-earth means being honest,open,and easy to deal with.It is a pleasure to find someone who is down-to-earth.A person who is down-to-earth is easy to talk to.He or she accepts others as equals.A down-to-earth person may be an important member of society,of course,but they do not let their importance go to their heads,and they do not consider themselves to be better than others who are less important.Someone who is filled with self-importance and pride,often without cause,is said to have his nose in the air.There is no way a person with his nose in the air can be down-to-earth.

Americans use another expression that is similar in some way to down-to-earth.The expression is both feet on the ground.Someone with both feet on the ground is a person with a good understanding of reality.He has what is called common sense.He may have dreams but he does not allow them to block his knowledge of what is real.The opposite kind of person is one who has his head in the clouds.A man with his head in the clouds is a dreamer whose mind is not in the world.Sometimes such a dreamer can be brought back to reality;sharp words from the teacher,for example,can usually get a daydreaming student to put both feet back on the ground.

The person who is down-to-earth usually has both feet on the ground.But the opposite is not always true.Someone with both feet on the ground may not be as open and easy to deal with as someone who is down-to-earth.When we have both our feet firmly on the ground,we are realistic and we act honestly and openly toward others,and our lives are like the ground below us,solid and strong.

1.If a person has his nose in the air,he .

A.is down to the earth

B.is easy to deal with

C.always thinks he is more important than others

D.is confident

2.If a person has both feet on the ground,he .

A.is in touch with reality,and doesn’t have any dreams

B.has some dreams but he is realistic

C.is honest,open and easy to deal with

D.is honest,open but hard to deal with

3.The underlined sentence “But the opposite is not always true.” most probably means that ______.

A.the person who has his nose in the air is not true

B.a man with his head in the clouds is often not intelligent

C.the opposite direction is always wrong

D.a person who has both feet on the ground may not be down-to-earth

Having been a music teacher for twenty-seven years, I have always known that music touches the spirit. It can all kinds of barriers to reach the students in a very special way. It can be the by which each child can find their light. I’d like to share a story where music overcame a barrier and made a connection with a young student. One of my most students was a young girl called Vanessa. Vanessa had difficulty walking and couldn’t speak at that time. We sat on the floor for our music lessons. We all like a song, which was a call and response song where I sang the call and the students clapped twice while singing the repeat, "Oh, yes!" We probably that song during every class, Vanessa and I clapping together. She never said or sang a word. One day late in the school year, when the song was finished, Vanessa turned around, looked at me directly in the eye, clapped her tiny hands twice and the words "Oh, yes!" I opened my mouth and for that moment I was the one who couldn’t speak . Through music, we had made an excellent . Several years later, I met Vanessa in the street in town. She waved to me with a big smile on her face and then clapped her hands twice, copying the song we had performed so many times. This precious little girl, her connection with music, left a(n) on me that will last forever. Every child has the ability to learn and grow. It is up to us as to discover the way to reach each and every one of our students. We all must find each child’s light.

1.A. put up B. turn to C. break through D. run into

2.A. goal B. means C. course D. experience

3.A. physical B. mental C. potential D. musical

4.A. favorite B. unforgettable C. active D. serious

5.A. usually B. actually C. hardly D. Final

6.A. recorded B. performed C. composed D. heard

7.A. signed B. read C. wrote D. said

8.A. with interest B. in surprise C. with fear D. by nature

9.A. connection B. choice C. comment D. promise

10.A. towards B. beyond C. through D. for

11.A. impression B. voice C. mark D. message

12.A. artists B. educators C. doctors D. researchers

1.Is it on the square you yesterday that a job fair is to be held? (come)

招聘会是在我昨天碰到你的那个广场举行的吗?

2.Tom hopes his family most parts of China by the time his son reaches 18. (cover)

汤姆希望到他儿子十八岁的时候,他的一家走完中国大部分地区。

3.Linda is not fit to be a nurse because she is afraid to see a patient . (operate)

琳达不适合当护士,因为她害怕看病人做手术。

4.It matters little how a man dies, but is how he lives. (matter)

一个人怎么死并不重要,真正重要的是他怎么活着。

5.Only if you do it in person its importance. (aware)

你只有亲自去做,才会意识到这件事的重要性。

6.Mary has got tired of being a doctor. If she a normal university, she might be a teacher now. (attend)

玛莉厌倦了当医生,如果她当初上了师范学院,她现在可能就是一个老师了。

7.Never his own love story, the father attempted to write it down as gift for his would-be-adult son. (relate)

从未谈过他自己的爱情故事,这位父亲尝试着把它写下来作为礼物送给他即将成年的儿子。

8.It is universally acknowledged that life, there is hope. (be)

人们一致认为哪里有生命,哪里就有希望。

9.With D-economy approaching, people are becoming Data. (attach)

随着“D经济”时代的到来,人们越来越依附于数据。

10. that he has been awarded the first prize, he always works hard. (wonder)

难怪他获得了一等奖,他工作的总是很努力。

The secret of carrier pigeons' unbelievable ability to find their way home has been discovered by scientists: the feathered navigators follow the roads just like we do.

Scientists at Oxford University spent 10 years studying homing pigeons using global positioning satellite (GPS) and got a surprising result. The birds often don't use the sun to decide their directions. Instead, they fly along motorways, turn at crossings and even go around roundabouts (绕道) , adding miles to their journeys.

“It really has knocked our research team sideways to find that after a decade-long international study, pigeons appear to ignore their inbuilt directional instincts (本能) and follow the road system,” said Prof Tim Guilford, reader in animal behavior at Oxford University's Department of Zoology.

Guilford said pigeons use their own navigational system (导航系统) when doing long distance trips or when a bird does a journey for the first time.

“But once homing pigeons have flown a journey more than once, they can fly home on a habitual route, much as we do when we are driving or walking home from work,” said Guilford.

“In short, it looks like it is mentally easier for a bird to fly down a road. They are just making their journeys as simple as possible.”

1. What would be the best title of the passage?

A. Birds Follow Roads as We Do.

B. Why Pigeons Can Fly Long Distance?

C. How Pigeons Find Their Ways Home?

D. Why Crows Fly the Shortest Distance?

2.What does the underlined words "the feathered navigators" refer to?

A. The pigeons.

B. The crows.

C. Dogs.

D. Animals that can swim.

3.Scientists used to think that homing pigeons often find their directions _______.

A. by global positioning satellite

B. by the sun

C. by the road system

D. by following other birds

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