American schools begin in September after the long summer holidays. There are two terms in a school year, the first term is from September to January, and the second is from February to June. Most American children go to public schools.
High school students study only four or five subjects at a time. They usually go to the same classes every day, and they have an assignment(课外作业) for every class. After class they have many activities.
After high school, many students go to college. They can go to a small one or a large one. They usually have to pay a lot of money for college education (教育). But there are scholarships (奖学金) for good students, and many college students work part time in order to get money for their education.
【小题1】How long do American students study in school every year?

In some western countries, many children do chores (家务) to get pocket money. They usually start to do this when they are ten years old.

School students have to do homework and study for tests.  They don't have much free time on weekdays. They often do chores on weekends.

Young kids only do easy chores. So they don't get much money. But that's enough. Many of them only want to buy candy. And candy is cheap! They often help do the dishes, sweep the floor, or feed the pet cat or dog.

When they get older, they want to buy more and more things. They want things that are more expensive than candy. So they have to work harder! They often help their parents wash the family car, cut the grass, or cook meals.

Some jobs are a good way for kids to learn new things. For example, they can learn how to use a lawnmower ( 割草机) or how to cook. Of course, their parents help them at first.

1.How do many children get pocket money in some Western countries?

        A. By studying hard.                      B. By doing chores at home.

        C. By doing part - time jobs.                D. By asking their parents for it.

    2.Mary wants to get more pocket money to buy something expensive. She may _________

A. do the dishes                          B. feed the pet cat

         C. cook meals                            D. sweep the floor

   3.Which of the following is not true?

    A. Young kids do easy chores because they can get much money from their parents.

    B. School students often do chores on Saturdays and Sundays.

    C. If kids get older and want something more expensive, they can help wash their family car.

    D.  Kids can learn how to cook with the help of their parents.

   4.The passage mainly tells us how children in some Western countries_________

        A. find jobs     B. get pocket money    C. study at school      D. do chores

What do you usually do to get pocket money from your parents? In western countries, many children do chores to get pocket money. They usually start to do this at 10 years old.

School students have to do homework and study for tests. They don’t have a lot of free time in the week. They often do chores at the weekend.

Young kids only do easy chores. So they don’t get much money. But that’s all right. Many of them only want to buy candy. And candy is cheap! They help wash up after dinner and feed the family cat or dog.

When they get older, kids want to buy more and more things. They want things that are more expensive than candy. Then they have to work harder! They often wash the family car, cut the grass, walk the dog and cook dinner.

Some jobs are a good way for kids to learn new things. For example, they can learn to use a lawnmower(割草机) or how to cook. Of course, their parents help them at first.

1.How do the children in western countries get pocket money?

2.When do they usually start to get pocket money?

3.Why do the school students usually do chores at the weekend?

4.Why do the elder kids have to work harder?

5.How do they do the chores at the beginning?

Audrey is a Chinese-American student. She has found many value differences between Chinese and Americans.

About money

Americans would like to spend more than they have, so many of them are always in debt(欠债). Chinese usually spend less than they have, so many of them have money left in the bank.

American kids love to make money by themselves. Chinese kids always ask their parents for money.

American parents think it is not useful to send their children to an expensive university. Chinese parents would do anything to send their children to a good university and that might make them very poor sometimes.

About school

Many American girls take part in sports, dancing and singing groups while Chinese girls take part in academic groups.

Some American students think that “B” is a gift while Chinese students think that “B” is terrible.

American parents and Chinese parents

American parents allow their daughters or sons to go out to have some part-time jobs in their free time or at the weekends. Chinese parents usually don’t allow their children to do so in middle or high schools.

1.What would a Chinese middle school student probably NOT do at the weekends according to the passage?

A．Study at home                          B．Do part-time jobs

C．Take part in sports groups                 D．Do chores

2.Some Chinese people have money left in the bank because _______.

A．they usually spend less than they have

B．they spend more than they have

C．they don’t like spend money at all

D．they make a lot of money

3.Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the passage?

A．Chinese parents usually give their kids money.

B．American children love to make money by themselves.

C．The reason why Chinese parents would do anything to send their children to good universities.

D．Americans usually spend more money than they have.

4.The underlined word “academic” probably means _________ in Chinese.

A．学术的           B．娱乐的           C．运动的           D．休闲的

5.The best title for the passage would probably be _______.

A．Differences between Chinese and Americans.

B．Chinese students and Americans

C．Chinese parents and American parents.

D．Chinese values and American values

Dear Peter,
How about you study? It’s Sunday today I’m writing a letter to you. I’m going to tell you .I’m going to tell you about things in Beijing.
Beijing is different from London. In our country, we drive on the left side of the road, but here people drive on the right side. Most people go to work by bus or by bike. The rush hours(高峰时间) are from seven to nine in the morning and five to seven in the afternoon. People in China work around eight hours a day, five days a week. They usually begin to work at eight in the morning, and rest on Saturday and Sunday.
I have Chinese classes every morning from Monday to Friday. The students in our class are from many countries. We’re all working hard and friendly. The Chinese students are ready to help us with our Chinese .We also help them a lot with their English. We’re getting along very well（相处的融洽）
That’s all for today. Please write tome soon.
Yours,
Susan
【小题1】Susan is probably from_____