Roller skating is easy and fun, and it is popular all over the world, But many years ago, it wasn’t easy at all. Before 1750, people never tried skating on wheels. That changed because of a man named Joseph Merlin. Merlin’s work was making instruments. In his free time he liked to play the violin.w Merlin was a man with many ideas and many dreams. People called him a dreamer.

One day Merlin received an invitation to go to an important party. He was very pleased and a little excited. As the day of the party came near, Merlin began to think. He wanted to find a way to make a wonderful entrance at the party. Merlin had an idea. He thought that he would attract a lot of attention if he could skate into the room.

Merlin tried different ways to make himself roll. Finally, he decided to put two wheels under each shoe. These were the first roller skate shoes. Merlin was very proud of them. He dreamed of arriving at the party and skating into the room while playing the violin. He was sure that everyone would be very surprised.

On the night of the party Merlin rolled into the room, playing his violin. Everyone was really surprised to see him. There was just one problem. Merlin had no way to stop his roller skating. He rolled on, playing the violin. Then, with all eyes on him, Merlin hit into a huge mirror on the wall. The mirror broke into many pieces with a very loud noise. But nobody forgot Merlin’s wonderful entrance after that.

34. The story tells us that people began to enjoy roller-skating          .

A. before the year 1750                              B. before the invitation

C. because of Joseph Merlin                          D. because it was dangerous

35. People called Merlin a dreamer because          .

A. he slept and dreamed a lot                   B. he was full of different ideas

C. he was a talented violinist                    D. he always made people’s dreams come true

36.           made Merlin think of skating on wheels.

 A. Merlin’s work    B. Merlin’s violin           C. A huge mirror    D. An important party

37. What was Merlin’s problem after he rolled into the room?

 A. He couldn’t stop his roller-skating.       B. He couldn’t attract a lot of attention

 C. Everyone was surprised at him.            D. He couldn’t play the violin while rolling.

Here are four poems written by some students.

31. Which of the following is mentioned in both Owen’s and Roger’s poems?

A. Smiles and flowers.                               B. Bees and flowers.

C. Birds and flowers.                                 D. Leaves and flowers.

32. Roger enjoys spring by           it.

    A. smelling            B. playing                     C. feeling                     D. watching

33. All the poems describe the spring except          .

    A. Owen’s        B. Roger’s                    C. Angela’s            D. Kevin’s

Today, I felt unhappy with my head full of problems, so I decided to take a walk even though I didn’t know where I would go. The most    16    thing happened when I was walking along the street.

I saw an old man, over seventy years old, sitting on a chair. He was a seller of secondhand shoes. He seemed so helpless and nobody was    17     his shoes. Then, a little girl came towards him. I heard the girl say in a/an    18     voice, “Grandfather, may I clean your shoes?” That old man    19     and passed her a shoe. The girl said, “I do this    20    I want to earn some money to buy my brother a new school    21    .”

I heard this and tears came to my eyes. To my    22   , the old man said,” Oh, little girl, just stop doing this. Come with me and I will buy one     23    you.” To see what would happen, I    24   . They walked to a    25     and there the old man    26     gave her a uniform, which must have cost him a lot. The girl was    27     and said, “Thank you so much for doing this. May God bless you.” Then she left, leaving the old man    28    .

As the old man decided to leave, I stopped him and whispered in his ear, “You are really a great hero! Thank you for your    29    !” My own sadness had disappeared. It had been    30     by the light of this moving act. I began to realize that a little act can brighten up someone’s day.

16. A. strange               B. unlucky             C. amazing            D. interesting

17. A. cleaning              B. buying               C. finding              D. taking

18. A. polite                  B. angry                C. high                  D. funny

19. A. agreed                B. sold                  C. began                D. sat

20. A. if                        B. unless               C. though                     D. because

21. A. shoe                   B. bag                   C. uniform             D. shirt

22. A. sadness               B. surprise             C. happiness          D. excitement

23. A. for                            B. to                            C. with                  D. at

24. A. left                     B. stayed               C. guessed             D. followed

25. A. restaurant            B. shop                 C. museum            D. sitting-room

26. A. really                  B. suddenly            C. slowly               D. nearly

27. A. relaxed                B. humorous          C. tired                  D. excited

28. A. crying                 B. shouting            C. smiling              D. walking

29. A. money                B. kindness            C. support             D. suggestion

30. A. driven away        B. turned down      C. talked about       D. used up

---I have some big news for you. You’ve been accepted as a member of our club.

---________ That’s great!

　 A. Pardon?　　　　　　　 B. Best wishes!　　　　　 C. Good ideas!　　　　　　　 D. Have I?

---It won’t take long to clear up after the party if we all volunteer to help.

---That’s right. ________.

A. Many hands make light work　　　　　B. Too many cooks spoil the broth

C. The early bird catch the worm　　　　 D. The grass is always greener on the other side.

Could you tell me ________?

　 A. how long you have bought the car　　　　B. who can help us organize the show

　 C. what was your favourite subject　　　　　 D. how many students are there in your class

---________ does your robot need repaired?

---Every six months.

　 A. How long　　　　　 B. How often　　　　　　　 C. How soon　　　　　　　 D. What time

 Don’t try to do everything at once. Take it a bit ________.

   A. at times                B. at that time             C. at a time                    D. at all times

---Did you hear Julia singing in the music room at nine last night?

---No, it ________ be Julia. She has gone to Paris.

　 A. may not　　　　　　　 B. can’t 　　　　　　　　　 C. mustn’t　　　　　　　　　　 D. couldn’t

You look quite tired. You’d better ________ a good rest.

　 A. stop to have　　　B. stop having　　　　 C. to stop to have　　　 D. to stop having