I learned about life from an ant farm. When I was seven years old, my family created one. First, we put clean sand in a thin glass box and put the ants into it. Soon they got to work making tunnels. I was amazed that each one knew exactly what to do. With my mom’s help, I kept a record of what happened each day and named the ants.

One day when I had put my face close to the structure (building), accidentally I knocked it over, and all the tunnels fell in. Although the ants survived their earthquake, one by one they began to die. I was frightened as I watched them give up their tunnel-building to carry the bodies to a corner of the farm. My mother reported that the ants were dying of “frustration (挫折)”. They simply could not stand the reality that their tunnels had been destroyed.

Although much time has passed, I still think of that ant farm. Over the years, I came to realize the ants have the spirit of teamwork. Working together, they were able to create an amazing world for themselves. I also learned that they should be admired for their hard work. Day in and day out, each worked at their task. The ant farm showed that teamwork and perseverance (毅力) are indeed the keys to success. But there was an even larger lesson that I did not realize until recently —Adversity (逆境) is a natural part of life, and must be accepted. Unlike the ants, humans cannot give up when they face disappointment.

So I try to live my life like those hardworking ants. But, unlike them, I try not to let frustration defeat (击败) me. I will have to keep building my tunnels.

1.The family created an ant farm in a glass box because it was easy _________.

A．for the ants to live in                     B．to get sunlight in

C．to keep the sand clean                   D．for the boy to watch

2.Which of the following is NOT the lesson from the ant farm?

A．The ants have the spirit of teamwork.

B．The ants give up when they face frustration.

C．The ants should be admired for their hard work.

D．Teamwork and perseverance are indeed the keys to success.

3.What’s the writer’s purpose of writing the passage?

A．To share a personal experience.

B．To tell readers a story about ants.

C．To warn readers not to build an ant farm.

D．To call on readers to learn from the ants.

4. What did the writer think of the ants?

A．Persistent (执着) and friendly.

B．Selfish and foolish.

C．Clumsy (愚笨的) and lazy.

D．Hard-working but pessimistic (悲观).

根据所给音标写出单词

1.It’s a [tr?d???nl]　　　　　 that the young look after the old in our country.

2.Please don’t play with the knife,it may cut your ['f??ɡ?(r)]　　　　　.

3.I was waiting for the school bus but it didn’t come.Then

I ['ri:?la?z]　　　　　 it was Saturday.

4.Our drinking water is less and less.Don’t [we?st]　　　　　 it,please.

5.You have to be ['pe??nt]　　　　　 if you are waiting at the end of a long queue.

用方框内所给单词的适当形式填空，使短文正确、通顺。每词限用一次，每空一词。

Bob Harris was a weatherman at a small television station. He worked for twenty years and during those twenty years, he felt that his life was boring. Every day, he studied the weather and tried to predict(预报)the next day’s weather. Then, he stood in front of the camera and read his report. Some days it was cloudy, some days it was sunny; sometimes rainy, while sometimes snowy. The weather changed each day, but Bob still felt that his job was always the same. His boss often told him to be happier and smile more in front of the camera, but Bob rarely smiled. He thought that most people did not watch his weather report and his job did not matter much to anyone. One day, he arrived at work and began to study the weather as usual. He noticed that something was different that day.
Everything he studied told him that there was going to be a very big storm very soon, though he was not completely sure. Suddenly, Bob felt excited. He ran to his boss’s office and asked to do a special weather report. The boss agreed and Bob gave a special report that afternoon, warning people of the coming storm. Because of this report, many people were safe during the storm.
Bob realized(意识到) that his job was actually very important.
【小题1】Why did Bob feel that his life was boring?

Tokyo, March 11, 2011

Could it have been worse?

More than a minute before the earth under their feet began to shake, many millions of Japanese people got cell phone alerts; TV networks interrupted (打断,中断) their broadcasts and turned to the latest announcement of Japanese government; loud speakers started suddenly to warn people of the coming tsunami; bullet trains came to a stop. The earthquake on March 11 was the first test of the nation’s earthquake early-warning technology (地震预警技术). However, in the fight of Man vs Nature, Nature won again. Hundreds, if not thousands of people, lost their lives in Japan. Scientists believe it is the fifth-strongest quake in the world since 1900 and the most powerful on record ever to hit Japan.

Lin tells of calm survivors

When the office began to shake, his friends were calm and still working. But the shaking became stronger. People shouted at him: “Run out of the building, now!” This was Lin Jia’s first experience of an earthquake. Lin, 26, has been in Japan for three months, working as a software engineer in Shinagawa, Tokyo. Lin stayed with others in a bus station all afternoon. Buildings were shaken by a series(系列) of aftershocks. He was nervous, but the people around him were so calm and organized that he gradually (逐渐) calmed down.

1. What does the underlined word “alert” mean?

A. 闹钟          B. 警报             C. 短信            D. 铃声

2. How many ways of earthquake early-warning are mentioned in the passage?

A. 2             B. 3                 C. 4               D. 5

3. Which of the following is NOT true?

A. Lin Jia has never met with an earthquake in Japan.

B. There have been five earthquakes in Japan since 1900.

C. The earthquake is the most powerful on record ever to hit Japan.

D. The local government warned people of the coming earthquake in some ways.

4. What is the most important after an earthquake according to the article?

A. Keep away from the nuclear power plants.

B. Running out of the building. 

C. Keep calm and organized.    

D. Get the cell phone alerts

5. Where does this article probably come from?

A. a newspaper      B. an advertisement     C. a diary          D. a novel