It helps us understand the world better if we know a little geography and have some maps at hand. But with maps in Chinese only, misunderstanding is possible in studying world events. Chinese names are long, hard to pronounce and without meaning to a foreigner. For the opening of the country maps are important and helpful and needed badly.

I wish maps with various languages, like those used in the United Nations, would come out and be sold in all bookstores open to Chinese.

1.The writer is mainly talking about ____.

A. geography B. maps

C. Chinese names D. the opening of the country

2.Knowing a little geography and having some maps in Chinese only, a foreigner ____.

A. can study world events easily

B. can study world events without misunderstanding

C. can’t study world events without misunderstanding

D. will feel joy in studying world events

3.What are the difficulties for a foreigner to use a map in Chinese?

A. A foreigner has nowhere to buy a map

B. All the bookstores only open to Chinese.

C. The names of Chinese people are long, hard to pronounce and without meaning.

D. The names of places on a map in Chinese are long, hard to pronounce and without meaning.

4.In the United Nations people use maps in ____.

A. foreign languages only B. Chinese only

C. various languages D. English only

I had just gone to bed after a very hard day when the phone rang. It was an eccentric(怪癖的) farmer. I had never met him before although I had often heard people talk about him. He sounded quite nervous and he had been talking for a minute or so before I understood anything. Even then I could make out that someone called Milly had had a very bad accident. I hadn’t the slightest(轻微的) idea who she was but I obviously had to go.

It had been snowing so heavily that I didn’t know the way. I had been driving for at least an hour when I finally found his place. He was standing there, waiting for me. It seemed Milly had died. “She meant more to me than anyone… even my own wife!” he said. I could see that he had been crying. I thought something terrible had taken place, a possible scandal (丑闻) . I was even more shocked when he told me he had put her in the barn. “I wouldn’t leave her out in the cold!” he said.

Milly had clearly been a secret lover of his. I was about to tell him he could not expect me to cover anything up when he opened the barn door. He lifted his candle and I saw a dark figure on the ground. “She was such a good cow! I wouldn’t let anyone but a doctor touch her !” he said, and burst into tears again.

1.The underlined phrase “make out” in the first paragraph means____.

A. expect B. understand

C. see clearly D. hear clearly

2.What do we know about Milly from the story?

A. She had met with an accident B. She had caused a scandal.

C. She was seriously ill. D. She was hidden somewhere.

3.The farmer wished that the writer might ____.

A. look into the matter B. bring Milly back to life

C. free him from a scandal D. keep the whole thing a secret

4.The person who told the story is probably a ____.

A. farmer B. policeman

C. country doctor D. newspaper reporter

Eighth-grader Victoria Bills is talking about money with her classmates. She is worried that a company’s stock (股票) price could fall. It may be an unusual topic of conversation for a 13-year-old. But at Bills’ school in Chicago, US, you hear it all the time.

The Chicago school’s 420 students learn about economic(经济学). They also get a chance to make money. Each 1st grade and 5th grade, students learn the basics of economics and investing(投资).

Then in 6th grade, they put what they’ve learned to work. Students join a junior group that manages the $20,000. The group, made up of 12 to 14 students, decides which stocks to buy.

After graduating, students pass on $20,000 to the next 1st grade class. They keep half of the rest of the money; the other half goes toward improving the school. They can choose to put their money in a college-savings program or take the cash.

In 2007, Bills suggested that her class buy the stock of the Apple computer company. This was just before the iPhone came out. “We bought stock just at the right time,” she says. The kids bought Google stock as it reached $400 a share. It is now worth over $500. “It was a good buy,” says Myles Gate, 13. He hopes to be a banker one day. The school’s two graduating classes of 2005 and 2006 have each earned about $10,000 in profits(利润).

1.At Bills’ school, students can’t .

A. learn the basics of economics

B. learn how to invest money

C. get a chance to make money

D. share all the money they make

2.Who manages the $20,000 in the class?

A. The teachers. B. The school.

C. The students. D. The parents.

3.According to Paragraph 5, we know that .

A. Bills’ class bought the Apple stock after the iphone came out

B. it was a mistake for the class to buy Google stock

C. the students get some investing experience in the school

D. the class bought the two kinds of stocks at the same time

4.What’s the passage mainly about?

A. How students make money in the US.

B. Students learn economics and investing at school.

C. Myles Gage hopes to be a banker one day.

D. What US students hope to do after graduation.

根据中英文提示或句意，写出单词的正确形式，使句子通顺。

1.David hasn’t ______________(连接) the keyboard to the computer properly.

2.We all know that learning foreign languages _____________(need) time and effort.

3.China is famous for its_____________(belonging to a time long ago in history) inventions.

4.Is your uncle a _____________(总的) manager of a big company?

5.Millie ______________(like better) singing to dancing in the past.

1.My deskmate is very friendly and helpful but sometimes she is a little ____________.

2.Think twice before you make important ______________.

3.Kitty is my true friend. I often share my joy and ______________ with her.

4.Next Saturday is my son’s ______ birthday. He wants a party in our house.

5.It is the ___________ time of the day. You should protect yourself from the strong sunlight.

请根据句意从方框中选择合适的动词，并用其适当时态填空，使句子通顺。

1.―Excuse me, are you Mr Brown?―No. Mr Brown ______ the grass over there.

2.It’s just not my day. My watch was broken and I ________ to catch the last train home.

3.―I went to the shop and found that the comic book was sold out.

―Don’t worry. My father ______ one for me. You can have it now.

4.We ______ in a great restaurant as soon as we pick him up this evening.

5.The telephone rang while we _____ the fantastic programme. Nobody liked to answer it.

句型转换

1.He has to walk to school every day. (改为否定句)

He to walk to school every day.

2.Mr Zhang told us not to play football in the street. (改为直接引语)

“________ ________ football in the street.” Mr Zhang said to us.

3.Do they grow rice in South China? (改为被动语态)

_______ rice ________ in South China?

4.Tom asked Alice, “Can you help me with the work today or tomorrow?” （改为间接引语）

Tom asked Alice she help him with the work today or tomorrow.

5.Tom doesn’t like music. His brother doesn't like music, either. ( 合并成一句)

_______ Tom _________ his brother likes music.

Reading books is a good hobby for all kinds of reasons.First, reading books is f1.__ .You can always keep yourself i____2.____ and help you to have an enjoyable time if you like reading. This is especially useful when the weather is bad. It is a relaxing hobby too. You can really become lost in a book. Next, you can read a book a3. : in a car, in a waiting room, on a plane, in bed even in the bath. All you n _4._ is a book! Reading is a convenient hobby as it is easy to stop and then start again.

A5. good reason for reading books is that it is useful. If you read as a hobby you will get better and better at it. This m __6. that you will read faster and will become better at understanding what you read. As your reading improves, you will probably find your schoolwork becomes much e7. . Many school subjects depend on good reading and, as you read, you learn more and more. Some people say that reading is out of date. This is not t8._ . You have to be able to read to use a computer and, the better you read , the better your computer skills will be. Reading is never out of date! Good readers are most likely to be good w9. , too. They are usually good at spelling as well, and have more things to write about.

Reading books is a wonderful hobby, one of the best. W10. other hobby could be more useful, or more enjoyable?

Sixteen is a special age in the United States.There’s often a special celebration for a girl’s 16th birthday---a big party called Sweet-16. It is like a wedding reception(结婚晚宴) in the number of guests and gifts handed out.

About a month before the party, the girl’s family sends out invitations to the guests. They must buy a special present for the birthday girl and the girl guests find good dresses to wear. A sweet-16 present usually costs $40 to $60. This is about $20 more than the usual-cost of a birthday present.

The party itself is not held at someone’s house. The hostess rents(租赁) a reception hall for the event. Food, cake and a DJ are provided. Around 6’clock, guests arrive and meet the birthday girl. Then the girl and her father have a special father-daughter dance. After that, guests dance for about 30 to 45 minutes.

Then there is the most important part of the Sweet-16 party, the candle-lighting ceremony.

The sweet-16 hostess stands behind 16 unlit(未点燃的) candles and dedicates(献给) each candle to her friends, family, and anything that she feels is important to her. A lot of crying and hugging goes on at this time.

Afterwards, people sit and eat. Most guests begin leaving around 11 o’clock.

This school year, I have been to two Sweet-16s. I am one of the youngest students in my grade (My birthday is in December). I’ll have to wait another year before I can have my own special Sweet-16 party. I can’t wait for it!

1.Why is sixteen a special age for an American girl?

2.How much does a usual birthday present for a teenager cost in the USA?

3.What is the most important part of the Sweet-16 party?

4.How old is the writer?

5.What do you think of the Sweet-16 party in the USA? (请自拟一句话作答)

新学期开始了，九年级三班正在推荐新的班长。Millie向Mr White推荐Simon.以下是她陈述的理由：

1. 自信，从不害怕在全校师生前发言。

2. 乐于助人，经常帮助缺席的学生学习功课。

3. 聪明，总能想出好办法, …

4. (请再说明一优点，并举例说明，例子1--2个)

注意：

1. 表达中必须包括所给要点，可以适当发挥，不要简单翻译。

2. 词数90左右。开头已经写好，不计入总词数。3. 表达中请勿提及真实校名及姓名。

Dear Mr White,

I’m writing to ___________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

Yours sincerely,

Millie