Hi! My name is Robert and I live in Chicago. My school is called Parkside Elementary.  It is Jake and Elizabeth's school too.  Michael and Trevor's school is called Lincoln Middle School.  In the USA many students go to elementary school between the ages of 5-10, then middle school between the ages of 11-13, and then a four year high school, and last but not least, many people go to college or vocational school. Our elementary school starts at 8:30 am and ends at 3:20 pm. We go to school on Monday through Fridays and have the weekends off.

Some of the favorite sports here in America are basketball, baseball, football, soccer, hockey, and more. But, my favorite sport is football. My favorite player in the NFL (National Football League) is Brian Urlacher of the Chicago Bears ( the Bears are my favorite team too).

Americans wear jeans, a shirt, socks, shoes, and sometimes a hat. I usually wear a baseball hat, my favorite pants, and my favorite shirt. My pants have 4 pockets on it, and my shirt has red and black stripes on it.

There is no common agreement in the west about the best method of education. Many views can be found among parents, teachers, and students.

1.Students in elementary school stay at school for about ________days.

A．four             B．five              C．six               D．seven

2.The writer’s favorite sport is __________.

A．basketball         B．baseball           C．hockey           D．football

3.The third passage mainly tells us __________.

A．the writer’s favorite sports               B．the writer’s favorite food

C．the writer’s favorite clothes              D．the writer’s favorite color

4.“views”in the last passage means _________ in Chinese.

A．视野             B．风景             C．见解             D．检查

Reading is the key to school success and, like any skill, it takes practice. A child learns to walk by practicing until he no longer has to think about how to put one foot in front of the other. An excellent sportsman practices until he can play quickly, correctly and without thinking. Educators call it “automaticity (自动性)”.

A child learns to read by sounding out the letters and finding the meaning of the words. With practice, he stumbles less and less, reading by the phrase (短语). With automaticity, he doesn’t have to think about the meaning of words, so he can give all his attention to the meaning of the text.

It can begin as early as first grade. In a recent study of children in Illinois schools, Alan Rossman of Northwestern University found that automatic readers in the first grade not only read almost three times as fast as the others, but also got better results in exams.

According to Rossman, the key to automaticity is the amount (数量) of time a child spends reading, not his IQ. Any child who spends at least 3.5 to 4 hours a week reading books, magazines or newspapers will probably reach automaticity. It can happen if a child turns off TV just one night for reading at home.

You can test yourself by reading something new which is suitable (适合) for your level. If you read aloud with expression, with a sense of the meaning of the sentences, you probably are an automatic reader. If you read brokenly, one word at a time, without expression or meaning, you need more practice.

1.“Reading is the key to school success” means that reading            .

A. helps school develop faster

B. is a key to a successful school

C. helps students go to a key school

D. can improve students’ learning results

2.Children with “automaticity” can read faster because they            .

A. know how to read the words

B. do not have to think while reading

C. read by themselves without any help

D. pay attention to the meaning of the text

3.Rossman tells that any child who             will possibly be an automatic reader.

A. turns off TV one night 4 weeks

   B. reads books by the word quickly

   C. spends an hour reading every day

   D. gets the same grades as others in exams

4.The underlined word “stumble” in the passage means “           ” in Chinese.

   A. 结结巴巴地读                       B. 全神贯注地读

   C. 心不在焉地读                       D. 声情并茂地读

5.The best title for the passage is “           ”.

   A. IQ Is the Key to the Automaticity

   B. TV Is Bad for Children’s Reading

   C. Automaticity Depends on Practice

   D. Automatic Reads Will Be Successful

In North America, most students go to school by bus. The subway is also widely used in some cities. In small towns and cities, walking is still popular.
The yellow school bus is a familiar sight all over North America. It is a very convenient form of transportation because it takes students right to the entrance to the school. It also gives students opportunity to chat with their friends. However, the bus is slow and does not always pick up on time.
The subway is a means of getting around quickly in many cities. However, it is expensive and can be very crowded during rush hour. Another disadvantage of the subway is that the stops are not so close to the school, and students often have to walk considerable distance or take a bus from the subway stop to the scho
Walking has a number of advantages for those who live reasonable close to school. It's free and it provides a form of exercise. However, it's no fun if you have a large backpack full of books to carry. It's also unpleasant if the weather is either too hot or cold or wet.
【小题1】In North America, most students usually go to school by_________.
A. school bus or subway B. car or bicycle C. taxi or car
【小题2】 For many students, the yellow school bus is convenient but it is_________.
A. too expensive B. slow and sometimes late      C. crowded and dirty
【小题3】Subways are fast but the stops are often a little bit_________the school.
A. close to B. busy for C. far away from
【小题4】Walking is a good way for the students that live reasonable close to school and it is_________.
A. not convenient B. bad for health C. good for health
【小题5】This passage is about_________in North America.
A. transportation B. students C. schools

Today it is found that school students hardly pay much attention to sports. Is it because they aren’t interested in sports? No. They often say they have other more important things to do.
What are these important things? Examinations! Students have to spend much time on all kinds of examinations at school. So many of them almost become bookworms (书呆子). Books stop them from doing sports. Because of the pressure from their parents and teachers, the students have to work harder and spend most of their time on books. As for (就……而言) the students, they want to get good results so that they can improve their studies. So it is necessary for them to give all of their free time to their studies and stop their school sports. In fact, education can’t go without physical (身体的) exercises, because a quick mind hardly goes along with a weak body. If you don’t have a strong body, you can never get anything, let alone (更不用说) a great success in your life.
【小题1】       are the greatest problems, so the school students don’t pay much attention to sports now.