Austin Children’s Museum

This 7,000-square-foot museum aims to entertain and educate children up to age 9. In its Global City exhibit, people can go shopping for groceries, order lunch at a diner, pretend that they’re doctors or construction workers, and more. In other fun exhibits, they learn about Austin’s history, explore the world of water, and experience life on a large Texas farm.

Open time: From Tuesday to Saturday, 10:00 a.m.～5:00 p.m.

On Sunday, 12:00 a.m.～5:00 p.m.

Address: 201 Colorado St, Austin, Texas 78701

Phone: 512-4722499

Brooklyn Children’s Museum

Founded in 1899, it is the world’s oldest children’s museum, featuring interactive exhibits, workshops, and special events. The Mystery of Things teaches children about cultural and scientific objects and Music Mix welcomes young virtuosos (名家).

Open time: From Wednesday to Friday, 2:00 p.m.～5:00 p.m.

On Saturday and Sunday, 10:00 a.m.～5:00 p.m.

Address: 145 Brooklyn Ave, Brooklyn, New York 1213

Phone: 718-7354400

Children’s Discovery Museum

This museum’s hand-on exhibits explore the relationships between the natural and the created worlds, and among people of different cultures and times. Exhibits include Streets, a 5/8-scale copy of an actual city, with streets lights, and waterworks, which shows how pumps can move water through a reservoir system.

Open time: From Monday to Saturday, 10:00 a.m.～5:00 p.m.

On Sunday, from noon. Closed on holidays.

Address: 180 Woz Way, Guadalupe River Park, San Jose, California 95110

Phone: 408-2985437

Children’s Museum of Indianapolis

This museum is the largest of its kind. Exhibits cover science, culture, space, history, and explorations. Among them are the Space Quest Planetarium (additional fee), the 33-foot-high Water Clock, the Playscape gallery for preschools, and the Dinosphere exhibit, along with hand-on science exhibits.

The largest gallery, the Center for Exploration, is designed for ages 12 and up.

Open time: From Tuesday to Sunday, 10:00 a.m.～5:00 p.m.

Closed on Thanksgiving Day and December 25.

Address: 3000 N Meridian St, Indianapolis, Indiana 46208

Phone: 317-3343322

Suppose that December 25 is Tuesday, which of the following museums can you visit?

       A. Austin Children’s Museum.      B. Brooklyn Children’s Museum.

       C. Children’s Discovery Museum. D. Children’s Museum of Indianapolis.

If you want to see how pumps can move water through a reservoir system, you should visit the museum in _____.

       A. Texas  B. New York C. California D. Indiana

After entering the museum you need to pay an additional fee to see _____.

       A. the Center for Exploration       B. the Space Quest Planetarium

       C. the Global City exhibit     D. Waterworks

Which of the following is not exhibited in Children’s Museum of Indianapolis?

       A. culture          B. history           C. explorations           D. special events

The purpose of writing this passage is to _____.

       A. ask adults to visit museums

       B. compare some museums and decide which one is the best

       C. introduce some museums and encourage parents to visit them with their children

       D. introduce some exhibits and museums to foreigners    

SECTION  B
Directions: For each blank in the following passage there are four words or phrases marked A,B,C and D. Fill in each blank with word or phrases that best fits the context. ( 12%)
The purpose of a letter of application (求职信) is to help you to “sell” yourself. It should state clearly the job you want, and should tell what your abilities are and what you have done. It should be   46  , human, personal and brief without  47  out any necessary facts.
In writing a letter of application, keep in   48   that things a possible employer is most   49  to want to know about are your qualification, your achievements and your aims. The opening paragraph is perhaps the most important part. If the first few sentences   50  to win the reader's attention, the rest of the letter may not be   51   at all. Try to key your  52  remarks to the needs or interests of the employer, not to your own needs or desires. For example, instead of beginning with “ I saw your advertisement (广告) in today's newspaper”. You might say “ I have made a careful   53  of your advertising during the past six months” or “I have made a survey in my neighborhood to find out how many housewives   54  your product and why they like it”.
Try to be clear about the kind of job   55   you are now applying for. College graduates looking for their first positions often ask “What can I provide in a letter?” Employers want experience---which, naturally, no beginners has. The answer is that everything you have ever done is experience .
It is important to write a good strong closing remark for your letter.   56   a specific request for an interview or give the possible employer something definite to do or expect. An excellent   57  is to enclose (内附) a stamped, self-addressed envelope (信封) with your letter. That makes it easier for a possible employer to get in touch with you.
46. A. rough                            B. simple                  C. complex                D. numerous
46. A. sending                         B. taking                   C. leaving                 D. picking
48. A. mind                             B. sight                     C. contact                 D. touch 
49. A. probably                       B. possibly                 C. likely                   D. surely
50. A. need                             B. fail                        C. wish                    D. used
51. A. kept                               B. continued               C. written                 D. read
52. A. opening                           B. closing                 C. puzzling               D. surprising
53. A. decision                               B. interview              C. study                    D. discussion
54. A. change                          B. make                    C. sell                       D. use
55. A. what                             B. which                            C. that                        D. when
56. A .Make                            B. Ask                      C. State                    D. Get
57. A. result                            B. decision                C. promise                D. Idea

In a recently published book, I came across some exercises with interesting names such as fishbone diagrams, lotus flowers and clustering. As I used these exercises in my classes, I noticed that students were interested. They said more and wrote more. They enjoyed expressing their ideas and sharing them in groups. They were no longer passively waiting for the bell , but actively taking part in the lesson. I find that creativity can act as a way to increase participation and improve fluency.

    Creativity has become a popular word in recent years. Scholars in arts, psychology, business, education and science are all working to get a deeper understanding of it. Robert J. Stemberg is a creativity specialist and Yale professor of psychology. He defines creativity as “the ability to produce work that is both new (original） and appropriate(applicable to the situation ） ”. This definition is useful, as we want our students to use language in a new way and to use it correctly and properly. Mot scholars say there are two types of creativity: big “C” creativity and small “c” creativity. Big “C” creativity refers to genius level thinking that results in artistic masterpieces and scientific breakthroughs. Small “c” creativity refers to everyday level thinking that can be used in any situation our emphasis is on the latter. While it goes without saying that any of our students could go on to be the next Picasso or Edison, our aim is to help students produce more ideas and use language in a new way.

1. The underlined words “waiting for the bell ” in the first paragraph probably means______.

A. longing for a phone call      B. hoping to have a bell

C. expecting the end of the class   D. waiting to speak in the class

2.It can be inferred from the passage that the author thinks the exercises in the book were _____.

A. popular   B. useful   C. scientific    D. Creative

3.When you use a familiar word in a new way, you are ________.

A creative in the sense of big “C” creativity.

B. creative in the sense of small “c” creativity..

C. not creative in the sense of big “C” creativity..

D. not creative in the sense of small “c” creativity.

4.The main purpose of the passage is to _________.

A. show how useful the book is

B. explain what creativity is

C. discuss how one can be creative

D. tell what teaching aims at

However important we may regard school life to be, we can’t ignore the fact that children spend more time at home than in the classroom. Therefore the great influence of parents can’t be ignored or discounted by the teacher. They can become strong supports of the school or they can consciously or unconsciously prevent the school from accomplishing its aims.

Administrators have been aware of the need to keep parents apprised of the newer methods used in schools. Many principals have conducted workshops explaining such matters as the reading readiness program and developmental math.

Moreover, the classroom teacher can also play an important role in explaining to parents what they should do. The informal tea and the many interviews carried on during the year, as well as new ways of reporting pupils’ progress, can significantly aid the interchanged of ideas between school and home.

Suppose that a father has been drilling Junior in arithmetic processes night after night. In a friendly interview, the teacher can help the parent change his method. He might be persuaded to let Junior participate in discussing he family budget, buying the food, using a measuring cup at home, setting the clock, calculating mileage on a trip and engaging in scores of other activities that have a mathematical basis.

If the father follows the advice, it is reasonable to assume that he will soon realize his son is making satisfactory progress in math and at the same time, enjoying the work.

Too often, however, teachers’ conferences with parents are devoted to unimportant accounts of children’s wrongdoing, complaints about laziness and poor work habits, and suggestions for punishments and rewards at home.

What is needed is a more creative approach in which the teacher, as a professional advisor, plants ideas in parents’ minds for the best use of the many hours that the child spends out of the classroom. In this way, the school and the home join forces in fostering the fullest development of youngsters’ competence.

1.The underlined phrase “keep parents apprised of” (Line 1, Para. 2) probably means to let parents         .

A．judge                         B．know                  C．design                 D．develop

2.What is the purpose of the schools’ informal tea and interviews?

A．To improve the relationship between teacher and parents.

B．To explain to parents the change of the school curriculum.

C．To report students’ misdoings and suggestions for punishments.

D．To help develop good communication between school and home.

3.Why does the author provide all example in Paragraph 4？

A．To help parents to know the importance of home activities.

B．To show how the teacher can guide in home training.

C．To prove parents all non professional advisors.

D．To advice parents to teach kids math at home.

4.From the passage we learn that the author       .

A．thinks teachers should do better as professionals

B．is worried about children’s performance at home

C．is satisfied with the present state of school education

D．believes time spent out of the classroom has been wastedw.^w..c.#o@m

Have you ever wished you could solve complex math problems without thinking? What about learning to play the piano in just three days? Or mastering several foreign languages within a month?

Eddie Morra, the main character in the movie Limitless can do all these things. But he isn’t Superman or Harry Potter. Eddie has taken pills called NZT.

Thriller Limitless came out in China on October 13. In the movie, Eddie is faced with “writer’s block”. He hasn’t written a single word of a novel, and his deadline has passed. And there’s more bad news: his girlfriend breaks up with him. By chance, Eddie runs into a relative who is a drug dealer. He gives Eddie some pills called NZT that allow people to make use of 100 percent of their brains. With the magic pills, Eddie’s life changes completely. He can recall everything he has ever read, seen or heard. He gains a sixth sense that allows him to predict future events. He even becomes a kungfu master by simply memorizing actions in Bruce Lee’s movie.

Before long he has finished his novel, won back his girlfriend and stepped into the financial world. He becomes rich incredibly quickly and is soon employed by a powerful Wall Street company. However, bad side effects are just around the corner. The effects of the pill last for only one or two days, and Eddie has to find more supplies of the pills. Meanwhile, the pills start to have other effects on him. Eddies’ mind loses the ability to control the actions of his body. What does destiny hold for him? Will he be able to go back to his normal life?

“Eddie’s fate turns out to be a barbed （讽刺的） joke… a sharp-eyed comic fable for an age of greed (贪婪)and speed.” writes A. O. Scott, a movie critic with the New York Times.

The drug isn’t real-----yet, some researchers say such memory-enhancing drugs might not be far off. Would you take such a pill despite its side effects? Is the ability to remember everything a blessing or a curse?

1.Which of the following happened to Eddie after he took the pill?

2.What’s A. O. Scott’s opinion of the movie?

A. The movie can help slow our pace in life.

B. The movie turned out to be only a joke.

C. The movie can help invent a memory-enhancing drug.

D. The movie aims to show something is wrong with our society.

3.What can be inferred from the last paragraph?

4.What is writer’s purpose of writing the passage?