My grandma is good at gardening. She could make anything bloom(开花). _ __ me. In my eyes, she was inspiring and __ __. For most of her life, she lived on a farm, where she brought up four children, and buried my grandpa.

I visited her on weekends. After the gardening work, I was __ __ to climb the mountain, singing songs and gathering flowers. Sometimes the plants scratched me. She would say, "Beauty has a ___. I hope it was worth it."

"Yes, ma' ma," I'd say. "_ __ was."

I loved gathering flowers on my own. But what I loved best was gathering them with her. Even then, as a child, I knew what I wanted most from my grandma was not her flowers, but her __ __. She's been gone for years, but sometimes, when I __ __down to pick a flower or pull a weed, I see her __ __, not mine.

I thought I'd grow up to be a gardener too. I told myself, someday my children had children, I'd be a gardening grandma. Then the grandbabies started showing up, and I discovered 1'd much rather run after them __ __ go digging. Actually I'm no gardener. I'm a __ __, not a planter. I differ from my grandma in lots of ways, but this: I will always carry __ __ me a heart she made from her own.

I needn’t plant a garden. My children are my flowers. They delight and complete me with a beauty that is worth any price. All I need to do is __ __ them with time, water them with love, and hope that someday, when they hold their first grandchild, they might see my hand.

1.A. NotB. EvenC. OnlyD. Often

2.A. famousB. humorousC. caringD. amusing

3.A. determinedB. anxiousC. curiousD. free

4.A. standardB. rangeC. priceD. quality

5.A. ItB. IC. SheD. That

6.A. possessionB. promiseC. beautyD. time

7.A. climbB. reachC. lookD. sit

8.A. smileB. spiritC. soulD. hand

9.A. thanB. untilC. unlessD. since

10.A. workerB. teacherC. pickerD. farmer

11.A.toB. withinC. beyondD. for

12.A. attendB. missC. promoteD. influence

How do you celebrate New Year’s Day? If I had to take a guess, you probably celebrate New Year’s Day surrounded by family and friends, enjoying drinks of your choice (probably wine and champagne) and watching the ball drop. If you’re particularly lucky, perhaps you share a kiss with that special someone when the clock hits 00:00am. Have you ever imagined how New Year’s Day would look in another country? Listed below are five of the top ten “Unique New Year Traditions from Around the World.”

1. Breaking Dishes on Neighbor’s Door——Denmark

A strange and weird Danish New Year tradition, depending on how you look at it, is throwing dishes at neighbor’s door. Strangely, this makes them happy instead of annoying them. The family with the tallest tower of broken plates, glasses, cups and other crockery is considered to be the luckiest person because it symbolizes their large amount of loyal friends.

2. Talking to Spirits——Mexico

Talking to spirits is a part of Mexican belief. Mexicans strongly believe that they can communicate with the souls of their dead loved ones. New Year’s Eve is considered the best time to communicate with dead spirits to convey a message or ask for guidance. And this is not done at home on an individual basis but is a legal Mexican practice. Taos Inn, in New Mexico for example, offers 15 minutes session of spiritualism and meditation(默念) for $15. Not a bad price for some helpful guidance!

3. Wearing Polka Dots ——Philippines

Imagine streets full of people wearing polka dots and dining room tables full of round shaped food and fruits on one single day of the year. This all actually happens in the Philippines on New Year’s Eve every year. Philippines believe that this will bring them prosperity by associating the round dots to coins and wealth.

4. Burning Scarecrow(稻草人) Dummy——Ecuador

Ecuador has a unique custom of crafting scarecrows and then burning them at midnight. They adorn them and fill the scarecrows with newspapers and pieces of wood. As midnight approaches, everyone gathers outside their home and each family burns their own scarecrow. The tradition says that this destroys all the bad things that took place in the past 12 months. The scarecrow also scares away bad luck, which in turn, fills their new year with luck and happiness.

5. Mistletoe(槲寄生) Leaves Are Placed Under Pillow to Find Husband——Ireland

The single women of Ireland wait desperately for New Year’s Eve because it is the night that can bring them the love of their lives. They place mistletoe leaves under their pillow hoping to catch their future husband. It is also believed in the Irish culture that this act will help them get rid of bad luck.

The world is a large and very different place. Yes, people of all nations may celebrate New Year’s much differently around the world, with different traditions, but there are a lot of general themes to be seen. We all want to start a new, fresh year with renewed enthusiasm and hope no matter what happened during the past year. We all want to be happier, find love, renew friendships increase our wealth and also hope for a little extra luck in the coming New Year.

1.When New Year’s Day is coming, people always celebrate it in many ways EXCEPT __________.

A. sharing the time with their lovers

B. getting together with their families

C. enjoying drinks with their friends

D. setting the ball drop

2.What can you learn when you are paying a visiting to Mexico during New Year’s Day?

A. You’d better talk to your ancestors just at home secretly, or you’ll break the law.

B. It’s New Year’s Day that Mexicans consider the best time to talk to spirits.

C. It’s commonly believed that the dead have spirits and souls living around.

D. You can ask for help free when you want to talk to the dead

3.The single women of Ireland always ________ hoping to catch their future husband on New Year’s Eve.

A. wear polka dots

B. burn scarecrow dummy

C. break dishes on neighbor’s door

D. place mistletoe leaves under their pillow

NEWS BRIEF

● "New labels to show calories

The US government ruled that all food establishments(场所) should put the calorie information of their foods on their menus. Within a year chain restaurants, like fast food KFC, will have to say clearly on their menus how many calories their fried chicken wings, fries, and other items contain. Amusement parks, movie theaters and supermarkets will also have to follow the rules. The move is designed to fight against the problem of obesity(肥胖) in the US.

Antibiotics leading to world problem

The entire world is facing this problem; antibiotic resistance. And the resistance will lead to the deaths of 10 million people across the world by 2025, predicted a new report released by the UK government. Antibiotics are used to destroy or slow the growth of harmful bacteria in our bodies. But overuse and misuse of them can encourage bacteria to develop new ways of overcoming antibiotics, which makes it increasingly difficult for humans to fight diseases.

●___________________________________

Australia is the world's most expensive destination for international students, according to a study done by Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC). They have to spend an average of $ 42,000 ( about 258 ,000 yuan) a year to study at Australian universities. Singapore is not far behind, with an average yearly cost of $ 39,229, followed by the US at $ 36,564 and the UK at 35,045. However, Australia's education quality only ranks joint fourth with Canada, well below the US, the UK, and Germany. In addition, international students studying in Germany only have to pay about one-sixth the cost of studying in Australia.

● New Games sports may be added

The International Olympic Committee has canceled the 28-sportcap for future summer Olympics But each summer Games will still only be allowed 10, 500 athletes and 310 events. Countries that could host the games will discuss plans with the committee during a new invitation stage before bidding. They are also allowed to hold events outside their own countries and get financial support from the committee. No changes will be introduced for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

1.The news brief covers ______________.

A. medicine, disaster, finance, events

B. health, medicine, education, sports

C. service, health, education, events

D. business, medicine, eco

nomy, sports

2.The underlined word "antibiotics" in Line 7 refers to ___________.

A. serious diseases

B. varieties of resistance

D. harmful bacteria

C. medical drugs

3.Which of the following fits in the blank best in the news brief?

A. Australian study most expensive

B. The cost of studying overseas

C. International students in Australia

D. Australia's education quality

4.Which of the following statements is best supported by the news brief?

A. Some events may be held outside the host country in future summer Olympics

B. It is Australia's best education quality that will cause students to make a wise choice.

C. It is necessary for the UK government to try hard to encourage using lots of antibiotics.

D. Popcorn sold in cinemas in the world will soon have calorie information labels.

Want Kids to Eat Better? Get Them Cooking

Cooking programs and classes for children seem to positively influence children's food preferences and behaviors, according to a recent review. And, although the review didn't look at long-term effects of such programs, the findings suggest that such programs might help children develop long-lasting healthy habits.

This research comes at a time when childhood obesity(肥胖)rates have been rising rapidly. More than one-third of adolescents in the United States were obese in 2012, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This trend has been caused, at least in part, by a significant decrease in the amount of meals that people consume at home since the 1980s, according to background information in the study.

Cooking education programs, such as Food Explorers, teach children about new healthy foods and how to prepare them. They also stress the importance of eating five fruits and vegetables every day. A volunteer parent explains a new food to the group, and the kids make something based on the lesson, such as fruit or vegetable salad. Depending on the program, kids may be sent home with information about healthy foods to bring to their parents, the review explained.

The study team reviewed eight other studies that tested different types of cooking education programs. Children in these classes were between 5 and 12 years old, according to the review. The goal of the study team was to learn more about developing an efficient program to encourage healthy food choices that last a lifetime. The study found that it is particularly important to expose kids to healthy foods on a number of occasions. This makes them feel comfortable with the new foods, which helps them build healthy habits.

The study stressed the importance of getting parents involved in(参与)their children's eating habits. Parents who are unable to enroll their kids in a cooking class can achieve similar benefits by having their kids help them while they prepare meals at home. Children are more comfortable at home, which makes them more receptive to new foods because they will make the connection to a positive experience.

1.What can we infer from the second paragraph?

A. Eating out frequently causes obesity.

B. Childhood obesity is totally caused by eating habit.

C. Childhood obesity rates have been rising rapidly since 2012

D. Food consumption has decreased significantly since the 1980s

2.On cooking education programs, ________.

A. children learn how to prepare foods from their parents

B. children will learn how to cook in the company of their parents

C. children may learn information unknown to their parents

D. children focus more on cooking skills than on information about healthy foods

3.Which of the following is true according to the study?

A. Parents should let their kids cook independently at home.

B. A greater willingness to try new foods helps building healthy habits.

C. Children who participate in cooking programs are less likely to become obese.

D. Children who take cooking courses are more likely to choose fruits and vegetables as adults

4.Which of the following categories does this passage belong to?

A. Education Systems

B. Science and Technology

C. Parent-child Relationship

D. Public Health Research

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