Question

   I had moved from my home in Zimbabwe to Botswana to work as a teacher for a year. When I saw my house there,I was surprised at how big and empty it was.①So I wondered how I would survive alone in such a big house.

   But I was not alone. One night,I was awakened by strange sounds. I turned on the lights and saw three skinks (石龙子) . I used a small stick to try to chase them out.

   Instead of leaving,they hid under the bed or in the space between the roof and walls. I gave up and decided to live with the skinks. They celebrated their victory in style. They ran around the house,making all sorts of noises. Sometimes they ran between my feet.

   But to me,the skinks were more than pets. I had realized they were harmless and even useful.

   One day,I saw three young skinks in a comer,gobbling up ants.②多亏了石龙子，我的卧室不再有 蚂蚁。Like most lizards,skinks need sunshine in the morning to warm up their bodies.

   The skinks became my alarm clock. Each morning,when I heard them squeezing under the door,I knew it was time to get up. But on cloudy days,they sometimes made me late for work.

   Since I had changed my attitude towards skinks,I was not so lonely. I often sat and watched them.

   At the end of the school year,I went back to Zimbabwe. Now I would miss my scary roommates. ③ I hoped that the next person who lived there would also learn to be patient and to let skinks be skinks.

根据短文内容，完成下面的任务。

1. 把①处画线句子改为简单句。

2. What made the noises in the writer's new house on the first night?

3. Why did the writer think the skinks are harmless and even useful? List three reasons.

①

②

③

4. 把②处画线汉语译成英语。

5. 把③处画线句子译成汉语。

Answer 1

  “我”孤身一人来到Botswana任教，独居在空旷的大房 子里，与一群不速之客——蜥蜴石龙子结下了不解之缘。从 最初的讨厌到乐得与它们朝夕相伴。它们是驱赶蚂蚁的超 级杀手，恪尽职守的闹钟，更是“我”的玩伴。希望每个人多 点耐心对待石龙子，让它们自由自在地生活。

1. So I wondered how to survive alone in such a big house.在复合句中，如果主句的主语与从句的主语一致的时候， 从句可以改为“疑问同+ to do”的结构。

2. Three skinks.根据第二段中的“...saw three skinks. ”可 知，第一个晚上的声音是三只石龙子发出的。

3 .①They killed the ants.②The skinks became my alarm clock.③They made me not feel lonely.根据第五、六、 七段可知，作者认为石龙子没有伤害，还很有用是因为它 们可以杀死蚂蚁;可以做提醒作者起床的闹钟；可以使我 不会感觉孤独。

4. Thanks to the skinks,there weren’t ants any more in my bedroom.

5. 我希望下一个住在那儿的人也学会耐心，让石龙子自由 自在地生活。