The writer  her children so that she could concentrate on her writing, because they are too noisy．

A．sent out

B．sent for

C．send up

D．send away

Oral English , also known as spoken English , is the form of English that is used when people are speaking to one another . Students who are learning English as a second language often feel uncomfortable using oral English because they fear that they will not be understood . It is important that a person who is learning to speak English practice using the language .   【小题1】  
Listening is important to learning spoken English .    【小题2】  Pay attention to conversations that happen around you while you are shopping . Watch the news every evening while you have supper .
Part of learning spoken English is in understanding how English words are formed . Watch the mouths and tongues of native English speakers carefully .                         【小题3】    Notice how the lips form certain sounds . Imitate （ 模仿）what you see .
Rent movies over the weekend . Try to follow the story line of comedy shows .   【小题4】    Not having to respond in English lets you concentrate on simply understanding what is being said . Understanding how English is used in conversation will help you to better communicate in the language .
  【小题5】    When you are reading , pay more attention to the correct pronunciation of the words you are reading rather than comprehension of each word . Read easy books that were written for children . Reading simple books takes away the frustration of sounding out hard words .    

1 

Egypt: Bridging the Gap between School English and Real English

Teaching English in Egypt in general and in my town Damietta in particular, is mainly directed towards helping students to pass their final exams. Unfortunately, most teachers do not adopt a long -term approach that guarantees that their students will be able to use English outside the classroom. So students only concentrate on one skill which is writing. Thus their listening and speaking skills are disabled. What is important to them is to pass the exam which is primarily based on writing .Teachers are not only concentrated with providing their students with questions that are similar to those of the final exam, particularly General Secondary Education Certificate (GSEC) Examination, so students spend most of their time answering typical exam questions.

Most students' scores are high; a lot of students get full marks. However, few students are able to communicate in English because their role plays. As a result, a lot of students complain that they are unable to understand and talk fluently with native speakers of English.

To enable students to communicate freely and spontaneously(自然地) in English, I bring features of real communication into language practice, I always ask students about their own experiences, and suggest groups of students practice what they have learned outside the classroom. This helps lower-achieving students absorb language. Furthermore, role play is a very effective way to improve speaking skills particularly if it is connected to the experience of the students.

【小题1】           Who probably write this passage?

A. a teacher    B. a governor    C. a student    D. a reporter

【小题2】           In Egypt, the students only concentrate on ------

A. listening skill        B. speaking skill    C. reading skill         D. writing skill

【小题3】           The teachers question their students based on -------

A. what they learn in the class

B. What their parents expect

C. The questions that  are similar to those of GSEC

D. The ability that will be used outside the classroom

【小题4】           Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?

A. Most of the students can't get high marks but can communicate with the native speakers of English.

B.  Communicating skill is more important than writing skill.

C. Role play connected to the speaker's experience is more effective

in improving his skill.

D. The lower--achieving students can do better in speaking skill than the upper achieving students.

【小题5】           Who will responsible for the gap between school English and real English?

A. Their parents      B. The students    C. The school    D. The education sys tem

By the time a student starts to apply (申请) for a US university, much of his or her record, including grades and after-school activities, has been set in stone. For this reason, the student must in his or her first year of high school start getting ready for college. He or she also has to decide on the non-academic (非学业的) tasks, which are important to improve the student’s chances of getting in.

1. After-school activities

   When it comes to high school activities, quality is better than quantity (数量). Admissions (录取) officers do not want to see a student who has joined dozens of organizations (组织) for a short period of time.

   Many students try to do this towards the end of their high school. But schools want to see a student who has been with one organization for all or most of high school. A student who can do this shows maturity (成熟). It is the quality that admissions officers look for as it is one of the markers of future success.

2. Leadership

    Schools want to see a student who has taken on a leadership role in an organization. A student can show leadership by taking on any role that needs extra commitment (奉献) and responsibility.

    If you do not have a great title (头衔) such as president, be sure to explain any leadership roles you have taken. This kind of involvement (参与) in school activities shows you are the responsible person that admissions officers look for.

3. Consistency (一致性)

   Admissions officers like an application (申请) to be consistent. For example if there is a high school activity you particularly (特别地) love, it would help if that activity matches your future academic and career interest.

Of course not everything needs to be consistent. Otherwise (否则) the student would be narrow and this is not what schools are looking for. However, you cannot have different parts of your application saying conflicting (矛盾的) things.

Who was the article written for?

A. US college students hoping to study in China.  

B. Chinese college students hoping to study in the US.

C. Third year high school students hoping to study in the US.

D. Teenagers hoping to study in the US.

The underlined phrase "set in stone" in Paragraph 1 probably means ______.

A. made clear                                        B. something unchangeable   

C. become obvious                              D. at the right level(水平)

The author’s suggestion is to ______.

A. try as many different organizations as possible

B. start planning for college at the beginning of high school

C. make everything in an application consistent

D. put non-academic tasks before academic tasks

According to the article, which of the following statements is TRUE?

A. Students should choose after-school activities they have great interest in.

B. It’s already too late for first year students to apply for a US university.

C. It is necessary for a student to be a president if he/she is to apply for a US university.

D. Students should concentrate on just one activity in high school.

There lived a king who liked art. One day an artist offered to paint the most

beautiful picture in the world on the wall of his palace.

So the king said, “All right, you may work on one of the walls in the new hall.” Just then, another artist said, “ Please allow me to work on the opposite wall. I shall make exactly what that man will make on the opposite wall. Moreover, I shall do so without looking at his work. I would even request you to have a thick curtain put up between the two walls so the either of us cann’t see the other.”

Everyone in the king’s court, including the king and the first artist was surprised. So the king decided to give the man a chance.

The following day a thick curtain was put into place and both the artists got to work. The first artist brought in a regular supply of paint, oil and water. But the second one would come with a cloth and a bucket of water every day.

A month later the first artist said that his work was completed and invited the king to come.

So the king sent the message to the second artist, saying he was coming to see their works that evening.

After seeing the first artist’s wall, the king was very impressed with the painting and gave him a huge sum of money as a reward. He then asked for the curtain to be opened up.

The same painting was seen on the opposite wall too! It was exactly like the one on the first wall. But this man had not seen what was going on, on the other side of the curtain.

The man said simply, “It’s very easy I just polished the wall every day!”

It was a wall made of white marble. The fellow polished it till it shone like a mirror.  

The reflection of the painting across the room showed up in it!

1.A thick curtain was put up between the two walls in order to _____________.

A．help them concentrate on their work.

B．keep the first artist’s painting a secret.

C．prevent their painting from being seen.

D．make it hare for them exchange ideas.

2.Why did the first artist receive a large sum of money from the king?

A．His painting satisfied the king.

B．His painting was the best the king has ever seen.

C．He painted better than the second artist.

D．The king promised to give him a reward.

3.How was the king feeling when he saw second wall?

A．Surprised and excited.                   B．Fascinated and doubtful.

C．Satisfied and curious.                    D．The paintings on the wall.

4.What would be the best title of the text? _____________

A．A king who loved art.                    B．Two artists and the king.

C．Whose painting is better?                 D．The painting on the wall.