Eight years ago, my wife and I created the Wish You Well Foundation. Since its start, we’ve funded literacy(读写能力)programs in more than 30 states. We’ve heard unbelievable stories of determination and perseverance(毅力). In Pittsburgh, I met a 30-year-old man who tearfully related how he’d finally learned to read so he could help support his family. In Connecticut, a woman shared her story of finally learning how to read at 50 so she could be able to read to her grandchildren.

    We’ve also started a program called Feeding Body & Mind, operated jointly with Feeding America, which is the distributor for most of the nation’s food banks. The program collects books, then ships them to food banks around the country. That way people go home with food, which they need to live, as well as with books, which they need to change their lives.

    “The program seeks to address the connection between literacy, poverty, and hunger, ”explains Ross Fraser of Feeding America. “Anyone who lacks basic literacy skills will have a very difficult time finding employment that provides a living wage, making them destined(注定) for a lifetime of poverty. Our food banks have a saying, ‘A child who is hungry and cannot learn becomes an adult who cannot earn. ’”

    All of us can join in the fight against illiteracy. Become aware of the literacy rates in your state and county by going to the website at nces. ed. gov/naal, which shows this data. Send a letter to your representatives in Congress asking for increased funds and action. Reach out to local libraries and literacy organizations to learn about becoming a tutor and other volunteering opportunities.

    There is no greater gift than teaching someone to read. With that one skill, you help develop someone’s potential and make it as varied and endless as the stories still waiting to be told.

60. The underlined word “related” in Paragraph 1 probably means “_______”.

A. made a connection

B. learned by heart

C. brought back to one’s mind

D. told a story

61. From Paragraph 2, we can know that _______.

A. books are transported by bus

B. books can change people’s lives

C. Feeding Body & Mind produces food

D. Feeding Body & Mind publishes books

62. From the passage we can know literacy skills have an effect on _______ .

A. finding jobs

B. making friends

C. practicing determination

D. learning skills

63. What’s the purpose of the passage?

A. To call on more people to fight against illiteracy.

B. To encourage more people to visit a website.

C. To call on more people to donate books.

D. To inspire students to read more books.

Public schools in Washington, D.C. provide students with musical instruments for free. When something goes wrong with an instrument, Charles West and Larry Jernigan do the repairs. Both men approach their work with a passion(激情). For them, it’s important that students have a joyful experience with music.

The two have worked together for almost 20 years. This year alone, they’ve fixed about 450 instruments. Both men are musicians and music lovers, so learning to do repairs came naturally.

“I have been a musician all my life.” says West. “I played in an orchestra here in the city. I majored in music in college. I played in an army band.”

Jernigan’s musical interests are varied. “I was formerly trained in the piano and guitar. The alto sax, and the flute, I picked up while working here.”

In addition to fixing instruments, the two also go to schools to instruct teachers and students on how to make minor repairs on their own.

West believes if children start early and stay involved with music, it enriches other areas of their lives. “I see that in other kids. I see it in myself. I have seen it hundreds of times and it works,” he says. “They learn teamwork. They learn patience and respect.

But West has concerns about the future of music in the electronic age.

“This instant age has taken away from the sit-down, the patience. And to learn to play an instrument, it takes patience, it takes diligence, it takes time.”

Being able to enjoy music on the job is one of the benefits of the job. Both men agree their best rewards are the students’ performances.

What’s the job of West and Jernigan at school?

A. Teaching music.

B. Writing music.

C. Making musical instruments.

D. Repairing musical instruments.

They love the job because they can     .

A. earn more money                                  B. learn repair skills     

C. enjoy music                                          D. watch performances

Which of the following is true of the two men?

A. They have fixed 450 instruments in the past 20 years.

B. They can play and repair musical instruments.

C. Jernigan used to play in an army band.

D. West was trained to play the piano.

According to West, what can people learn from music?

A. Teamwork and patience.                        B. The value of time.           

C. The truth of society.                              D. Diligence and confidence.

What is mainly talked about in the text?

A. How to repair musical instruments.

B. Learning experiences of two repairmen.

C. How to prepare a musical performance.

D. The enjoyable job of two music lovers.

The number of speakers of English in Shakespeare’s time is estimated(估计) to have been about five million. Today it is estimated that some 260 million people speak it as a native language, mainly in the United States, Canada, Great Britain, Ireland, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. In addition to the standard varieties of English found in these areas, there are a great many regional and social varieties of the language as well as various levels of usage that are employed both in its spoken and written forms.

In fact, it is impossible to estimate the number of people in the world who have acquired an adequate(足够的) working knowledge of English in addition to their own languages. The purpose for English learning and the situations in which such learning takes place are so varied that it is difficult to explain and still more difficult to judge what forms an adequate working knowledge for each situation.

The main reason for the widespread demand for English is its present-day importance as a world language. Besides serving the indefinite needs of its native speakers, English is a language in which some of important works in science, technology, and other fields are being produced, and not always by native speakers. It is widely used for such purposes as meteorological and airport communications, international conferences, and the spread of information over the radio and television networks of many nations. It is a language of wider communication for a number of developing countries, especially former British colonies. Many of these countries have multilingual populations and need a language for internal communication in such matters as government, commerce, industry, law and education as well as for international communication and for entrance to the scientific and technological developments in the West.

1. What would be the best title for this passage?

A. The Difficulties of Learning English

B. International Communications

C. The Standard Varieties of English

D. English as a World Language

2. Which of the following statements is NOT true?

A. Some 260 million people in the world have an adequate working knowledge of English.

B. There are some 260 million native speakers of English in the world.

C. It is almost impossible to estimate the number of people with an adequate working knowledge of English.

D. People learn English for a variety of reasons.

3. According to the passage, what is the main reason for the widespread use of English?

A. It was popular during Shakespeare’s time.

B. It is used in former British colonies.

C. It serves the needs of its native speakers.

D. It is a world language that is used for international communication.

4. What forms an adequate working knowledge of English?

A. The ability to read a newspaper.

B. It is difficult to judge because it differs for each situation.

C. Being a multilingual.

D. Being a native speaker.

5. What type of developing countries would be most likely to use English?

A. Those geographically close to the United States.

B. Those interested in the culture of the United States.

C. Former colonies of Great Britain.

D. Countries where international conferences are held.

Looking back on my childhood, I am quite sure that naturalists are born and not made. Although we were all brought up in the same way, my brothers and sisters soon left their pressed flowers and insects completely forever. Unlike them, I had no ear for music and languages. I was not an early reader and I could not do mental mathematics.

Before World War I, we spent our summer holidays in Hungary. I have only the dim memory of the house we lived in, of my room and of my toys. Nor do I remember clearly the large family of grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins who gathered next door. But I do have a clear memory of the dogs, the farm animals, the local birds, and above all, the insects

I am a naturalist, not a scientist. I have a strong love of the natural world and my interest had led me into varied investigations. I love discussing my favorite subjects and enjoy burning the midnight oil reading about other people’s discoveries. Then something happens that brings these discoveries together in my mind. Suddenly you imagine you see the answer to the question, because it all seems to fit together. This has resulted in my publishing 300 papers and books, which some might honor with the title of scientific research.

But interest, a good eye, a good memory and enjoyment of the animal and plant world do not make a scientist: one of the outstanding and necessary qualities required is self-discipline(自我修养), a quality I lack. A scientist, up to point, can be made. A naturalist is born. If you can combine the two, you get the best of both worlds.

The first paragraph tells us the author __________.

A. was interested in flowers and insects in his childhood

B. lost his hearing when he was a child

C. didn’t like his brothers and sisters

D. was born to a naturalist’s family

The author can’t remember his relatives clearly because __________.

A. he didn’t live very long with them

B. the family was extremely large

C. he was too young when he lived with them

D. he paid more attention to nature

The author says that he is a naturalist rather than a scientist probably because he thinks he __________.

A. has a great deal of trouble doing mental mathematics

B. lacks some of the qualities required of s scientist

C. just reads about other people’s discoveries

D. comes up with solutions in a most natural way

So you thought the hamburger was the world’s most popular fast food? After all, McDonald’s Golden Arches span（跨越）the globe（全球）. But no, there is another truly universal fast food, the ultimate（极好的）fast food. It’s easy to make, easy to serve, much more varied than the hamburger, can be eaten with the hands and it’s delivered to your front door or served in fancy restaurants. It’s been one of America’s favourite foods for over 50 years. It is, of course, the pizza.

It’s kind of silly to talk about the moment when pizza was “invented”. It changed over the years, but one thing’s for certain—it’s been around for a very long time. The idea of using pieces of flat, round bread as plates came from the Greeks. They called them “plakuntos” and ate them with various simple toppings（配料）such as oil, garlic（大蒜）, onions and herbs. The Romans enjoyed eating something similar and called it “picea”. By about 1000 AD in the city of Naples, “picea” had become “pizza” and people were experimenting with more toppings: cheese, ham, anchovies and finally the tomato, brought to Italy from Mexico and Peru in the sixteenth century. Naples became the pizza capital of the world. In 1889, King UmbertoⅠand Queen Margherita heard about pizza and asked to try it. They invited pizza maker, Raffele Esposito, to make it for them. He decided to make the pizza like the Italian flag, so he used red tomatoes, white mozzarella cheese and green basil leaves. The Queen loved it and the new pizza was named “Pizza Margherita” in her honour.

Pizza went to America with the Italians at the end of the nineteenth century. The first pizzeria in the United States was opened in 1905 at 53 Spring Street, New York City, by Gennaro Lombardi. But the popularity of pizza really exploded when American soldiers returned from Italy after World WarⅡ and raved about(夸赞) “that great Italian dish”. Americans are now the greatest producers and consumers of pizza in the world.

1.Which is the correct order of the changes of pizza?

A．Plakuntos→pizza→picea                  B．Pizza→plakuntos→picea

C．Picea→plakuntos→pizza                  D．Plakuntos→picea→pizza

2.Why are Mexico and Peru important in the development of pizza?

A．Because pizza first became popular in these countries.

B．Because pizza was invented in these countries.

C．Because one topping was brought to Italy from these countries.

D．Because people there are the greatest consumers of pizza.

3.What do the Italian flag and a Pizza Margherita have in common?

A．There is a picture of a Pizza Margherita.      B．They have the same colours.

C．Both of them represent Italy.               D．They are both popular in Italy.

4.When did pizza become really popular in the United States?

A. After 1945.      B. In 1889.     C. In 1905.         D. By 1000AD.

5.What’s the best title of the passage?

A．McDonald’s and Pizza                   B．Global Pizza

C．Pizza in the United States                  D．How to Make Pizza