Few laws are so effective that you can see results just days after they take effect.But in the nine days since the federal cigarette tax more than doubled－to $1.01 per pack－smokers have jammed telephone “quit lines” across the country seeking to kick the habit.

This is not a surprise to public health advocates.They've studied the effect of state tax increases for years，finding that smokers，especially teens，are price sensitive.Nor is it a shock to the industry，which fiercely fights every tax increase.

The only wonder is that so many states insist on closing their ears to the message.Tobacco taxes improve public health，they raise money and most particularly，they deter people from taking up the habit as teens，which is when nearly all smokers are addicted.Yet the rate of taxation varies widely.

In Manhattan，for instance，which has the highest tax in the nation，a pack of Marlboro Light Kings，cost $10.06 at one drugstore Wednesday.In Charleston，S.C.，where the 7 cent a pack tax is the lowest in the nation，the price was $4.78.

The influence is obvious.

In New York，high school smoking hit a new low in the latest surveys－13.8%，far below the national average.By comparison,26% of high school students smoke in Kentucky.Other low tax states have similarly depressing teen smoking records.

Hal Rogers，Representative from Kentucky，like those who are against high tobacco taxes，argues that the burden of the tax falls on low?income Americans “who choose to smoke.”

That's true.But there is more reason in keeping future generations of low?income workers from getting hooked in the first place.As for today's adults，if the new tax drives them to quit，they will have more to spend on their families，cut their risk of cancer and heart disease and feel better.

1.The text is mainly about ________.

A．the price of cigarettes

B．the rate of teen smoking

C．the effect of tobacco tax increase

D．the differences in tobacco tax rate

2.What can we learn from the last paragraph?

A．The new tax will be beneficial in the long run.

B．Low?income Americans are more likely to fall ill.

C．Future generations will be hooked on smoking.

D．Adults will depend more on their families.

3.Rogers' attitude towards the low?income smokers might be that of ________.

A．tolerance? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? B．unconcern?

C．doubt? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? D．sympathy

4.What does the author think is a surprise?

A．Teen smokers are price sensitive.

B．Some states still keep the tobacco tax low.

C．Tobacco taxes improve public health.

D．Tobacco industry fiercely fights the tax rise.

 Boiler rooms are often dirty and steamy, but this one is clean and cool. Fox Point is a very new47-unit living building in South Bronx, one of the city’s poorest areas. Two-thirds of the people living there are formerly (以前) homeless people, whose rent is paid by the government. The rest are low-income families.  The boiler room has special equipment, which produces energy for electricity and heat. It reuses heat that would otherwise be lost to the air, reducing carbon emissions(碳排放)while also cutting costs.

 Fox Point is operated by Palladia, a group that specializes in providing housing and services to needy, people. Palladia received support from Enterprise Community Partners (ECP), which helps build affordable housing by providing support to housing developers.

ECP has created national standards for healthy, environmentally (环境方面) clever and affordable homes which are called, the Green Communities Standards. These standards include water keeping, energy saving and the use of environmentally friendly building materials.  Meeting the standards increases housing construction costs by 2%, which is rapidly paid back by lower running costs. Even the positioning of a window to get most daylight can help save energy.

Michael. Bloomberg, New York's mayor, plans to create 165,000 affordable housing units for500,000 New Yorkers. Almost 80% of New York City’s greenhouse-gas emissions come from buildings, and 40% of those are caused, by housing.. So he recently announced that the city’s Department of Housing and Preservation and Development (DHPD) , whose duty is to develop and keep the city’s supply of affordable housing, will require all its new projects to follow ECP’s green standards.

Similar measures have been taken by other cities such as Cleveland and Denver, but New York’s DHPD is the largest city developer of affordable housing in the country.

1.What is the purpose of describing the boiler room in the first paragraph?

A.  To explain the measures the city takes to care for poor people. 

B.  To suggest that affordable housing is possible in all areas.

C.  To show how the environment-friendly building works.

D.  To compare old and new boiler rooms.

2.What is an advantage of the buildings meeting the Green Communities Standards?

A.  Lower running costs.

B.  Costing less in construction.   

C.  Less air to be lost in hot days.

D.  Better prices for homeless people.

3.It can be learned from the text that,           

A.  New York City is seriously polluted

B.  people’s daily life causes many carbon emissions in New York City

C.  a great number of people in New York City don't have houses to live in

D.  some other cities have developed more affordable housing than New York City

4.What is the main purpose of this text?

A.  To call on people to pay more attention to housing problems.

B.  To prove that some standards are needed for affordable housing.

C.  To ask society to help homeless people and low-income families.

D.  To introduce healthy, environmentally clever-and affordable housing.

 Boiler rooms are often dirty and steamy, but this one is el.ean and cool. Fox Point is a very new47-unit living building in South Bronx, one of the city’s poorest areas. Two-thirds of the people living there are formerly (以前) homeless people, whose rent is paid by the government. The rest are low-income families.  The boiler room has special equipment, which produces energy for electricity and heat. It reuses heat that would otherwise be lost to the air, reducing carbon emissions(碳排放)while also cutting costs.

 Fox Point is operated by Palladia, a group that specializes in providing housing and services to needy, people. Palladia received support from Enterprise Community Partners (ECP), which helps build affordable housing by providing support to housing developers.

ECP has created national standards for healthy, environmentally (环境方面) clever and affordable homes which are called, the Green Communities Standards. These standards include water keeping, energy saving and the use of environmentally friendly building materials.  Meeting the standards increases housing construction costs by 2%, which is rapidly paid back by lower running costs. Even the positioning of a window to get most daylight can help save energy.

Michael. Bloomberg, New York's mayor, plans to create 165,000 affordable housing units for500,000 New Yorkers. Almost 80% of New York City’s greenhouse-gas emissions come from buildings, and 40% of those are caused, by housing.  So he recently announced that the city’s Department of Housing and Preservation and Development (DHPD) , whose duty is to develop and keep the city’s supply of affordable housing, will require all its new projects to follow ECP’s green standards.

Similar measures have been taken by other cities such as Cleveland and Denver, but New York’s DHPD is the largest city developer of affordable housing in the country.

1. What is the purpose of describing the boiler room in the first paragraph?

A.  To explain the measures the city takes to care for poor people. 

B.  To suggest that affordable housing is possible in all areas.

C.  To show how the environment-friendly building works.

D.  To compare old and new boiler rooms.

2. What is an advantage of the buildings meeting the Green Communities Standards?

A.  Lower running costs.

B.  Costing less in construction.   

C.  Less air to be lost in hot days.

D.  Better prices for homeless people.

3. It can be learned from the text that,            

A.  New York City is seriously polluted

B.  people’s daily life causes many carbon emissions in New York City

C.  a great number of people in New York City don't have houses to live in

D.  some other cities have developed more affordable housing than New York City

4. What is the main purpose of this text?

A.  To call on people to pay more attention to housing problems.

B.  To prove that some standards are needed for affordable housing.

C.  To ask society to help homeless people and low-income families.

D.  To introduce healthy, environmentally clever-and affordable housing.

One often hears that children should arrive at school “ready to learn.” For most children, the acquisition of reading and math skills starts in the first grade. In states where kindergarten is compulsory, it begins even earlier.

Many parents, teachers, and politicians maintain that preschool is the best way to prepare children to learn. There is no real consensus, however, about how this preparation should be achieved.

For some, early childhood education relates to the development of the whole child. They think that preschool should encourage exploration and discovery. Group activities teach positive social behaviors such as sharing, kindness, and patience. Time spent alone encourages independence. Learning letters and counting is important only for children who show an interest in them. Advocates of this approach stress that each child is unique and should learn at his or her own pace.

Other people refer to research showing that children are ready to absorb basic academic concepts by age 3 or 4. They claim that early introduction to letters and numbers lays the foundation for later academic excellence. Since the 1980s, many people have stressed the value of preschool and point to the success of programs -such as Head Start - that target low-income children.

Is there proof that an academic curriculum in preschool will lead to academic success? Studies have not been conclusive. In the short term, evidence suggests that middle-class children who attend preschool are ahead of their peers in maths and language skills as well as in social skills, when they enter school. However, the same studies show that the gap narrows considerably by the time children reach age 8.

Children living in poverty are a different matter. Those enrolled in programs such as Head Start seem to do better than impoverished children who do not attend a preschool. For instance, youngsters in one group enrolled in the program, tracked until the age of 21, earned higher scores on intelligence tests, were more likely to graduate from high school, and demonstrated more interest in higher education.

The idea of public preschool raises many issues. Providing Head Start for all children would be a financial burden on communities that already struggle to fund current school programs. Also, where would a sufficient number of teachers trained in early childhood development be found?

1.

 Advocates of the development of the whole child believe school readiness is______ .

A. showing eagerness in exploration and discovery

B. learning basic skills, such as knowing letters and counting

C. showing great interest in basic academic concepts

D. demonstration of intellectual , social and emotional skills

2.

 According to the passage, Head Start is most probably______ .

A. a preschool program that supports disabled children

B. a program that helps impoverished children attend a school

C. an organization that aims to improve current school programs

D. a program that helps design the academic curriculum in preschool

3.

Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A. Preschool benefits middle-class children more than poor children.

B. Most children start school with similar language and social skills.

C. Providing Head Start for all children has encountered great difficulties.

D. All children are ready to absorb basic academic concepts by age 3 or 4.

4.

Which of the following may best summarize the main idea of the passage?

A. An academic curriculum in preschool will lead to academic success.

B. Preshool is helpful, despite the disagreement about what it should offer.

C. Children enrolled in preschool demonstrate more interest in learning.

D. Preschool education shouldn't be a financial burden on communities.

第二节信息匹配（共5小题；每小题2分，满分10分）
请阅读下列广告和相关信息，并按照要求匹配信息。请在答题卡上将对应题号（56-60）的相应选项字母涂黑。首先，请阅读下列广告：
A Kid-Tough? Digital Camera
Product: J8209
Ages: 3 years & up
Price: $70.00
Here’s a real digital camera that’s tough enough–and easy enough–for kids to use. What a perfect way for kids to get creative by taking, viewing and even printing their own digital pictures!
B Laugh & Learn? Learning Table?
Ages: 6-36 months 
Product: C5522
Approx. Retail Price: $40.00
Stir up the learning fun! Two interactive play modes teach A-B-C’s, 1-2-3’s, colors, textures, first words, music, and so much more! 15 sing-along songs, 10 fascinating activities, speech, sounds, and lots of ways to imagine and play.
C Brilliant Basics? Big Discoveries Table?
Ages: 9 months & up 
Product: K6671
Price: $25.00
This activity-filled table offers plenty to do, with open-ended play all around. While your baby is busy having fun, you’ll be amazed at all the new skills that develop! Before you know it, baby will be making big new discoveries, improving motor skills, developing eye-hand coordination, and learning to recognize colors, shapes and sizes.
D Baby Gymtastics? Bat & Score Goal?
Ages: 6-36 months 
Product: K0476
Price: $21.00
With this versatile set, even sitting babies can enjoy scoring a goal! When they bat the inflatable ball or the wiggly cheetah, baby is rewarded with music, lights and sounds. Then, once little ones start crawling or can stand and kick, you can easily convert it, for the whole goal experience! Detach the ball and the rhino becomes the “goalie.” Toddlers can push, kick or toss the ball at the target, while you stand back and catch the excitement!
E Go Baby Go!
Ages: 9-36 months
Price: $35.00
There’s nothing like having a friend you can rely on especially when you are learning to walk! This charming lion is ready to steady baby’s first steps, encouraging progress with rewarding lights, sounds, and upbeat music. Once walking is a sure thing, toddlers can hop on the lion’s back and ride all around for a roaring good time. Designed with a wide wheel base for sturdy support. With on/off switch plus volume control for quiet play.
F  ESPN Shot Block? Basketball
Product: H4685
Ages: 5 years & up
Approx. Retail Price: $80.00
Bring defense to the game! Automatic shot-blocking rim defense and 8 ways to play add even more fun, excitement and challenge to indoor basketball fun!
Includes 2 balls. For indoor use only. Requires 4 "C" batteries.
请阅读以下人员的相关信息，然后匹配与之相应的广告：
56. Jack and his wife want to buy a toy for their 7-month-old baby. But Jack has a low income and intends to buy something which is not so expensive.
57. Alice and her husband have a 7-year-old son who likes using their expensive digital camera. They decide to buy him one which is cheap and easy to operate.
58. Lynne’s daughter is 11 months old. Lynne thinks it’s time for her daughter to learn to walk.
59. Margaret’s son, who is two years old, is very good at distinguishing（辨别）different shapes. Magaret says it is due to a toy she bought when her son was one year old. Which toy is she talking about?
60. Peter is fond of playing basketball. He expects his son to begin playing it before he goes to Primary School.