School in the USA are a little different (不同的) from schools in China. Usually, there is no school
uniform (校服) in the USA. In many Chinese schools, students have school uniforms. Classes start at
8:30 each morning and the school day ends (结束) at 3:30 or 4 o'clock in the USA. In China, classes
usually start at 8:00 in the morning and the school day ends at 5:30 in the afternoon. Students have one
hour for lunch and two 20-minutes (分钟) breaks (休息) each day in the USA. One break is in the
morning, and the other is in the afternoon. In China, students have two hours for lunch and a ten-minute
break after each class. In the USA, students often go to the school cafeteria (食堂) at lunchtime or at a
break. They buy food and drinks (饮料) there. But in China, students often play games on the playground
(操场) or have a break in the classroom after lunch or at a break.

1. Is there uniform in the schools in the USA?
    ____________________________________.
2. When do the students in the USA end their school?
     ____________________________________.
3. How long do Chinese students can have break each day?
     ____________________________________.
4. How many breaks do the students in the USA have?
     ____________________________________.
5. Which kind of school do you like ?
    ____________________________________.

     The first newspaper was written by hand and put up on walls. The earliest daily newspaper was
started in Rome in 59 BC.  In the 700's, the world's first printed newspaper was published. In 1609 in
Germany the first regular (定期的) newspaper was started.
    The first regular published newspaper in English was printed in Amsterdam in 1620.ln 1621, an
English newspaper was started in London and was published once a week. The first daily English
newspaper was the Daily Currant.lt came out in March 1702.
     In 1690, Benjamin Harris printed the first American newspaper in Boston. But not long after it was
first published, the government stopped the paper .In 1704,John Campbell started the Boston
Newsletter, the first newspaper published daily in America. By 1760,America had more than thirty
daily newspapers. There are now about l,800 daily papers in the USA.
     Today, as a group, English language newspapers have the largest circulation(发行量) in the world.
But the largest circulation for a newspaper is that of the Japanese newspaper Asahi Shimbun.lt sells
more than eleven million copies every year.

l. When was the earliest daily newspaper started?    

A. In 59 BC.          
B. In 1620.
C. In l621.            
D. In 1702.

2. Where was the first regular published newspaper in English printed? 

A. In Rome.            
B. In Amsterdam.
C. In London.          
D. In Boston.

3. _____ printed the first American newspaper in Boston.   

A. Benjamin Harris      
B. John Campbell
C. Tom                
D. Thomas Edison

4. How many more newspapers are there in America  now than that in 1760? 

A. 1,700.  
B. 1,750.  
C. 1,770. 
D. 1,800.

5.  _____ have the largest circulation.     

A. Chinese language newspapers
B. English language newspapers
C. Japanese newspapers
D. Asahi Shim bun

     New York, London,Paris and other big cities are exciting places to l     1     in.There are many i     2     things to see and to do. You can go to different k__3   of museums and see plays and films. You can also go to s     4    to buy things from all o      5      the world.
     But there are many problems in big c      6     ,too. There are to many people move to cities to find
jobs,and to study at good schools. But sometimes these people can't f      7       work in a good place to
live i      8      Also,too many people in a small place make it hard to keep the cities safe and clean. So
before peoplehave to move t_    9      big cities,they Should think a      10      the problems of living there.

     People all know that December 25th is Christmas for Americans and other westerners. Yet not all
the people know Boxing Day.
    Boxing Day is a holiday observed on December 26,or the first weekday after Christmas. And it is a
festival only for those service persons such as postmen, newspaper boys, milkmen, etc.  On that day,
families traditionally give Christmas boxes to those service workers. It is a custom, but nobody is certain
how it was originated.
    A popular legend tells the story. There was once a rich lady called Chatter in England. One morning
many, many years ago, it snowed very heavily. Chatter was waiting anxiously for a very important letter
from her boyfriend. Then a post boy came and gave her the letter. She was so pleased that she gave him
a box with presents. Later on, more and more people followed her example. As time went by, giving
boxes with presents to service persons became a custom in Great Britain. Later the custom spread to
America. In the USA, some people give their employees money instead of boxes nowadays.

1. Boxing Day is observed _____.

A. on December 25
B. on December 26
C. on the first weekday after Christmas
D. either B or C

2."The first weekday" refers to _____.  

A. Monday      
B. Sunday
C. Saturday      
D. Friday

3. _____  on Boxing Day.  

A. Those service persons would box each other
B. Service workers would give boxes from service workers
C. The employers receive boxes from service workers
D. Service workers receive boxes from the employers

4. According to the popular legend story, Boxing Day originated from _____. 

A. America      
B. Australia
C. England      
D. Canada

5. On Boxing Day in the USA nowadays, _____. 

A. all the service workers receive money instead of boxes from their employers
B. people give the service workers boxes only
C. some people give money to the service workers, while others still give boxes
D. people do not give boxes or money to the service workers

       When people go to England, they must leam something about transportation there.
       In England,cars,buses and bikes must keep to the left side of the street. If a person wishes to cross
a street,  he must stop and either look at the traffic lights or look both ways down the street. And instead
of looking left first,as we do in China,they look right first.
       To get about in London, vis]tors should leam to use buses and the underground'. First of all they
must know which direction(方向)they are going to and which bus underground train they must take. At
the bus stop they wait for buses to come. As soon as they get on the bus, they must pay for their
tickets.                    

根据短文内容判断正“T”，误“F”。

(     )1. In England,people go along the left side of the road as we do in China.

(     )2. When they want to cross a street,people in England look right first.

(     )3. To go about in London,visitors should learn to drive.

(     )4. First of all,visitors must know where to go..

(     )5. After people get on a bus,they don-t have lo pay for their tickets at once.

     When (当……时候) the Spring Festival comes, boys and girls are very happy. They put on their beautiful clothes
and spend the days with their family. They can also receive red packets and presents. People like to have a big family
dinner at New Year.   There is a lot of food. It's very nice.   And they usually eat jiaozi at New Year.   They go to their
friends' house and say"Happy New Near"to them. 

1. Boys and girls can receive _____ during the Spring Festival.     

A. red packets    
B. presents
C. red packets and presents   

 2. Chinese like to eat _____ at New Year.      

A. yuanxiao        
B. moon cakes
C. jiaozi   

 3. People usually have a big dinner with their _____ at New Year.  

A. friends    
B. workmates(同事)
C. family 

4. People usually go to see their friends and say "______" to them during the Spring Festival.  

A. Happy New Year  
B. Happy Birthday    
C. Happy Christmas

5. The Spring Festival usually comes in _____.   

A. February
B. August
C. October

     Do you like this happy man? He gives presents to children on Christmas Eve (平安夜).   What's his name?   Why
does he wear red clothes?
     He is Father Christmas. There is a man in the 4th century (四世纪). His name is Saint Nicholas. His family has lots
of money. But there are many poor people. So Nicholas wants to give them all his money. But he doesn't want people
to know his name. So he comes onto the roofs (房顶) of their houses on Christmas Eve. He puts bags of money down
their chimney (烟囱).   

1. The name of this happy man is ______.He is always in ______.

2. What's the meaning (意思) of "poor"? ______    

A. 穷的  
B. 富的  
C. 吝啬的 

3. Nicholas gives people his money on ______.   

4. Nicholas puts his money down people's ______. 

5. Is Saint Nicholas Father Christmas?
   ___________________

Edinburgh Festival
    Every year, thousands of people come to Edinburgh(爱丁堡),the capital(首都) city of Scotland, to be 
  part of the Edinburgh Festival. For three weeks every August and September the city is filled with actors
and artists from all over the world. They come to Edinburgh for the biggest arts festival in Britain.During
this time the streets of the city are alive with music and dance from early morning until late at night. You
can even see artists painting pictures on the streets. One of the best  parts  of  Festival  is  the "Fringe",
where students do comedy shows in small halls and cafes.
    Tens of thousands of tourists come to the Festival to see new films and plays and hear music played by
famous musicians.This year,you can see over five hundred perfor-mances with  actors  from  more  than
forty countries.
    The tickets for these performances are quite cheap and it isusually easier to see your favorite star  in
Edinburgh than it is in London. So come to Edinburgh next summer, but remember it can be  difficult to
find a room, so why not book your hotel now?

True or False.
(   )1. The Edinburgh Festival is a month long.
(   )2. You can hear music all day during the Festival.
(   )3. More than ten thousand students come to the Edinburgh Festival every year.
(   )4. It is usually more difficult to see famous actors in London than in Edinburgh.
(   )5. It is expensive to see a play in Edinburgh.