Are you looking for something fun? Would you like to help other people in your free time? Then join us and be a volunteer（自愿者）.

We have volunteer jobs for people of all ages. Anyone, between the age of 12 and 80, can become a volunteer.

You can help people in many ways. Nursing homes need volunteers to take care of old people. Hospitals need volunteers to look after children while their parents see a doctor. Animal lovers can help take care of those dogs and cats without homes. There is something that out volunteers want to tell you.

“As a volunteer, I don’t want to get anything. Seeing the children’s happy faces, I am happy, too.” said Carlos, an old woman of 62.

“ I often played computer games in my free time before. Now I help middle-aged people learn how to use computers.” said another volunteer at the age of 18.

If everyone gives a hand, we’ll have a better world to live in.

Interested? Call us on 1-800-555-5756 or visit our website: www.active.com.

1.What kind of person can become a volunteer?

2. ____ need volunteers.

3.Carlos ______.

4.What does the phrase “give a hand” mean? It means “ ____”

5.This passage is ______.

Are you looking for something fun and would you like to help others in your spare time? Then join us to be a volunteer! We’re a non-profit organization. We have volunteer jobs of all ages. Anyone, from twelve-year-old children to people in their seventies can become a volunteer.

You can help people in many ways. Schools need help with taking care of children while parents are working. Hospitals need volunteers to look after children while their parents are seeing a doctor. Animal lovers can help take care of those dogs and cats without homes. There is something for everyone.

“As a volunteer, I don’t want to get anything. Seeing the children’s happy faces, I’m happy, too.” Said Carlos Domingo, an old woman of 62. “I often played computer games in my spare time before. Now I help older people learn how to use computers.” said another volunteer at the age of 18.

If everyone helps out a bit, we’ll have a better world to live in. Interested? Call us 1-800-555-5756 or visit our website: www.activol.com.

1.__When do the volunteers help others?

A. In their spare time.  B. At weekends  C. On weekdays.  D. In the evenings.

2._______ can be a volunteer.

A. Children    B.Old women C.Anyone aged 12-70   D.Young people

3.__Volunteers want to get _______ when they help others.

A. money     B.computers     C.everything    D.nothing

4.__Carlos Domingo does volunteer work with ______.

A. animals       B.children       C.computers     D.older people

5.__We can read such a passage ______.

A. in a newspaper  B. in a storybook  C. in a picture book D. in a textbook

Traveling by train is usually not easy in China. It can be hard to get a ticket. When you’re traveling to the railway station you look at your watch, afraid you will miss your train.

But there is good news for people traveling between Beijing and Shanghai. Construction (建设) on the express railway (高速铁路) between the two cities started just before the Spring Festival of 2008. When it is finished by 2013, taking a train will be as easy as taking a bus.

“There will be trains every several minutes. Buying a ticket, getting through the checkpoint (检查站) and taking your seat, will take just 10 minutes,” said an engineer.

There may be high-speed trains running at 350 kilometers an hour. The travel time between the two cities will decease from 10 to about 5 hours. The trains will carry twice the present number of passengers.

The new line will be 1,318 kilometers long and go across specially built bridges. It will run along side the present line. There will be 21 stations in Hebei, Tianjin, Shandong, Anhui and Jiangsu.

“The cost of traveling by the express railway may be around 800 yuan. That will be more expensive than an ordinary train, but cheaper than by air.” Said Zhang Xiaoling, a Jiangsu government official.

According to Zhang, the higher price is caused by the large cost of the railway project. At about 200 billion yuan, the project may be even more expensive than the Three Gorges Project (三峡工程).

1.The express railway between Beijing and Shanghai will be finished _______.

    A. at the end of this year                  B. before the Spring Festival of 2008

    C. after 2013                           D. in about 5 years

2.Before taking your seat, you should _____ with your ticket.

    A. buy a ticket                         B. get through the checkpoint

    C. pack your things                     D. make some friends

3.The word “decrease” in the passage possibly means ______ in Chinese.

    A. 延长             B. 缩短         D. 提速             D. 限速

4.Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?

    A. Traveling by train is usually difficult in China because tickets are too expensive.

    B. The high-speed trains will have 21 stations in Hebei, Tianjin, Shandong, Hunan and Jiangsu.

    C. Tickets for the high-speed trains will be cheaper than those for planes.

    D. The cost of the express railway project is as high as that of the Three Gorges Project.

5.What can be the best title of the passage?

    A. An enormous project.                 B. Train tickets will get more expensive

    C. Specially built bridges              D. Beijing—Shanghai express railway

Word travelled quickly in the small fishing village of Port Washington, Wisconsin. So when McCarty wanted to build a playground for kids with special needs. 2,800 people ? a third of the town ? rolled up their sleeves(衣袖)and helped her.

"A lot of learning comes through play," said McCarty, 52, a special education teacher for 28 years. But her students were too often left out. She'd seen the traditional playgrounds stop wheelchairs dead in their tracks.

On September 16, 2008, the first day of the project, they came. Two women heard about the project on the way to work and took the day off to help. A couple in their 80s took part in the job. Children came and gave a helpful hand. Many were volunteers. They all worked very hard.

Today, Possibility Playground is one of the most popular destinations in Ozaukee County. All children can play shoulder to shoulder. There is special equipment(装置) in different parts. Here, you see all the kids on the same playground having fun.

"People used to ask. 'Why do you want to build a playground just for children with disabilities?' " McCarty said. "They didn't get it. It's only when you build a playground for children with disabilities that you build one for all children."

1.What's McCarty?

2.How many people are there in the town?

3.What does the underlined word mean?