When the lazy days of summer arrive and the schedule is packed with swimming，camp，and family vacations，it can be a challenge to find time for learning. But kids’ reading skills don’t have to grow cold once school’s out. Here are some ways to make reading a natural part of their summer fun.
Explore your library. Visit your local library to check out books and magazines that your kids haven’t seen before. Many libraries have summer reading programs，book clubs，and reading contests for even the youngest borrowers. With a new library card，a child will feel extra grown­up checking out books.
Read on the road. Going on a long car trip？Make sure the back seat is stocked with favorite reads. When you’re not at the wheel，read the books aloud. Get some audiobooks (many libraries have large selections)and listen to them together during driving time.
Make your own books. Pick one of your family’s favorite parts of summer—whether it’s baseball，ice cream，or the pool—and have your child draw pictures of it or cut out pictures from magazines. Stick the pictures onto paper to make a booklet and write text for it. When you’re done，read the book together. Reread it whenever you like!
Keep in touch. Kids don’t have to go away to write about summer vacation. Even if your family stays home，they can send postcards to tell friends and relatives about their adventures. Ask a relative to be your child’s pen pal and encourage them to write each week.
Keep up the reading habits. Even if everything else changes during the summer，keep up the reading routines around your house. Read with your kids every day—whether it’s just before bedtime or under a shady tree on a lazy afternoon. And don’t forget to take a book to the beach！Just　brush　the sand off the pages—it’s no sweat!
【小题1】The purpose of the passage is to________.

   Sustainable development is applied to just about everything from energy to clean water and economic growth, and as a result it has become difficult to question either the basic assumptions behind it or the way the concept is put to use. This is especially true in agriculture, where sustainable development is often taken as the only measure of progress without a proper appreciation of historical and cultural perspectives.

   To start with, it is important to remember that the nature of agriculture has changed markedly throughout history, and will continue to do so. Medieval agriculture in northern Europe fed, clothed and sheltered a popularly rural society with a much lower population density than it is today. It had smallest effect on biodiversity, and any pollution it caused was typically localized. In terms of energy use and the nutrients captured in the product it was relatively inefficient.

   Contrast this with farming since the start of the industrial revolution. Competition from overseas led farmers to specialize and increase yields. Throughout this period food became cheaper, safer and more reliable. However, these changes have also led to habitat loss and to decreasing biodiversity.

   What’s more, demand for animal products in developing countries is growing so fast that meeting it will require an extra 300 million tons of grain a year by 2050.yet the growth of cities and industry is reducing the amount of water available for agriculture in many regions.

   All this means that agriculture in the 21^st century will have to be very different from how it was in the 20th. This will require complete thinking. For example, we need to move away from the idea that traditional practices are unavoidably more sustainable than new ones. We also need to abandon the idea that agriculture can be “zero impact”. The key will be to abandon the rather simple and unchangeable measures of sustainability, which centre on the need to maintain production without increasing damage.

   Instead we need a more dynamic explanation, one that looks at the pros and cons of all the various way land is used. There are many different ways to measure agricultural performance besides food yield: energy use, environmental costs, water purity, carbon footprint and biodiversity. It is clear, for example, that the carbon of transporting tomatoes from Spain to the UK is less than that of producing them in the UK with additional heating and lighting. But we do not know whether lower carbon footprints will always be better for biodiversity.

   What is critical is recognizing that sustainable agriculture is not just about sustainable food production.

1.How do people often measure progress in agriculture?

A．By its productivity.               

B．By its impact on the environment.

C．By its sustainability.               

D．By its contribution to economic growth.

2.What does the author think of traditional farming practices?

　　A．They have remained the same over the centuries.

　　B．They have not kept pace with population growth.

　　C．They are not necessarily sustainable.

　　D．They are environmentally friendly.

3.What will agriculture be like in the 21st century?

　　A．It will go through thorough changes.

　　B．It will supply more animal products.

　　C．It will abandon traditional farming practices.

　　D．It will cause zero damage to the environment.

4.What is the author’s purpose in writing this passage?

　　A．To remind people of the need of sustainable development.

　　B．To suggest ways of ensuring sustainable food production.

　　C．To advance new criteria for measuring farming progress.

　　D．To urge people to rethink what sustainable agriculture is.

Sustainable development is applied to just about everything from energy to clean water and economic growth, and as a result it has become difficult to question either the basic assumptions behind it or the way the concept is put to use．This is especially true in agriculture, where sustainable development is often taken as the sole measure of progress without a proper appreciation of historical and cultural perspectives．
To start with, it is important to remember that the nature of agriculture has changed markedly throughout history, and will continue to do so ．Medieval agriculture in northern Europe fed, clothed and sheltered a predominantly rural society with a much lower population density than it is today．It had minimal effect on biodiversity, and any pollution it brought about was typically localized．In terms of energy use and the nutrients captured in the product it was relatively inefficient．
Contrast this with farming since the start of the industrial revolution．Competition from overseas led farmers to specialize and increase yields．Throughout this period food became cheaper, safe and more reliable．However, these changes have also led to habitat loss and to diminishing biodiversity．
What’s more, demand for animal products in developing countries is growing so fast that meeting it will require an extra 300 million tons of grain a year by 2050，yet the growth of cities and industry is reducing the amount of water available for agriculture in many regions．
All this means that agriculture in the 21st century will have to be very different from how it was in the 20th．This will require radical（激进的）thinking．For example, we need to move away from the idea that traditional practices are inevitably more sustainable than new ones．We also need to abandon the notion that agriculture can be “zero impact”．The key will be to abandon the rather simple and static measures of sustainability, which centre on the need to maintain production without increasing damage．Instead we need a more dynamic interpretation, one that looks at the pros and cons of all the various way land is used．There are many different ways to measure agricultural performance besides food yield: energy use, environmental costs, water purity, carbon footprint and biodiversity．It is clear, for example, that the carbon of transporting tomatoes from Spain to the UK is less than that of producing them in the UK with additional heating and lighting, but we do not know whether lower carbon footprints will always be better for biodiversity．
What is crucial is recognizing that sustainable agriculture is not just about sustainable food production．
72．How do people often measure progress in agriculture?
A．By its productivity                 B． By its impact on the environment　　
C．By its sustainability                D．By its contribution to economic growth
73．What does the author think of traditional farming practices?
　　A．They have remained the same over the centuries
　　B．They have not kept pace with population growth
　　C．They are not necessarily sustainable
　　D．They are environmentally friendly
74．What will agriculture be like in the 21st century?
　　A．It will go through radical changes
　　B．It will supply more animal products
　　C．It will abandon traditional farming practices
　　D．It will cause zero damage to the environment
75．What is the author’s purpose in writing this passage?
　　A．To remind people of the need of sustainable development
　　B．To suggest ways of ensuring sustainable food production
　　C．To advance new criteria for measuring farming progress
　　D．To urge people to rethink what sustainable agriculture is．

In the very early 　1800’　s, a young boy about 14 years old named John lived in an orphanage (孤儿院) in Old England along with several other children. Orphan meant unwanted and unloved.

Christmas was the one day of the year when the children didn’t work and received a gift, an orange. Usually they tried to taste and preserve it for so long that it often rotted before they ever peeled(剥开)it to enjoy the sweet juice. Many thought were expressed as Christmas time approached. The children would say, “I will keep mine the longest.” John usually slept with his next to his pillow. This year John was overjoyed by the Christmas season. He was becoming a man and stronger and soon he would be old enough to leave. He would save his orange until his birthday in July.

Christmas day finally came. The children were so excited as they entered the big dining hall. Immediately the master shouted, “John, leave the hall and there will be no orange for you this year.” John’s heart broke violently wide open. He turned and went swiftly back to the cold room. Then he heard the door open and each of the children entered. Little Elizabeth with her hair falling over her shoulders, a smile on her face, and tears in her eyes held out a piece of rag to John. “Here John,” she said, “this is for you.” As he lifted back the edges of the rag he saw a big juicy orange all peeled and quartered and then he realized what they had done.

John never forgot the sharing, love and personal sacrifice his friends had shown him that Christmas day. In memory of that day every year he would send oranges all over the world to children everywhere.

1. The first paragraph is mainly to tell us that ______.

   A. John lived in the early 　1800’　s          B. John’s parents had died

   C. John lived a hard life in an orphanage   D. John lived with several other children　　

2. These children would be happiest when ______.

   A. they got the special gift                 B. they preserved it very long

   C. they finally enjoyed the sweet juice       D. they entered the dining hall

3. What would overjoy John most the next year according to the second paragraph?

   A. He placed his orange next to his pillow.

   B. He would eat his orange on his birthday.

   C. He wouldn’t get his special gift.

   D. He would stay in the orphanage for another year

4. According to the text, where did John’s orange come from this year?

   A. It was made up of what these children donated.

   B. His master gave him a whole one again.

   C. These children bought him one.

   D. Little Elizabeth donated hers to John.

5. What can be inferred from the text?

   A. John had expected he wouldn’t get the gift this year.

   B. John knew why he didn’t get the gift this year.

   C. John felt ashamed for not getting the special gift.

   D. The story teaches us to learn to share with others.