Because earthquakes happen without warning, it’s important to take steps now to prepare.
Because you don’t know where you will be when an earthquake happens, prepare some supplies for your home, workplace, and car.
1. Water.
A person needs at least 1 or 2 gallon of water daily just for drinking. Store at least 1 gallon of water per person per day and be prepared for a 72-hour period. It is suggested that you buy bottled water. Keep bottled water and do not open it until you need to use it. Also, do check the “use by” date.
2. Food.
It’s always a practical idea to keep food that can be stored easily. Have an enough supply of canned food, powdered milk, dried fruits, non-salted nuts and canned juices for at least 72 hours.
3. Flashlights(手电筒) and spare batteries.
Keep a flashlight beside your bed, at your place of work, and in your car. Do not use matches or candles after an earthquake. Maybe it’s dangerous. Prepare a battery-powered radio and spare batteries. Most telephones will be out of service, so radios will be your best thing of information.
4. Clothes.
If you live in a cold place, you must think about warmth. You might not have heat after an earthquake. Think about your clothing and bedding supplies.
【小题1】Why should people prepare themselves for an earthquake?

This Sunday is grandpa’s 70th birthday．The Smart family are going to celebrate it，so they will have a busy weekend.

Tuesday, 1^st September
I had mixed feelings today, nervous, worried, happy, excited… My heart went down when Miss Chan, our head teacher, said that Matthew and Beth, two students from England, would spend three months with us! I was worried that I had to speak English so much! But at the end of the school day, I was happier than I thought: the morning with them today was more enjoyable than I expected.
Today is the most unforgettable first day I have had! Matthew is fantastic! His English is clearer and easier to listen to than I thought. The other English student, Beth, is the most helpful girl I’ve ever met. There were lots of things to do on the first day. Beth offered to help Miss Chan put up all the notices. Of course, some of the credit (功劳) should also go to ME because I translated some of the notices for her. Miss Chan praised us!
We finished all the preparations 10 minutes earlier than expected, then Beth and I talked for a while, Matthew sang several English songs and did some stand-up comedy (单人喜剧表演) at the party. We all praised him. When the bell rang to end the first school day, none of us wanted to leave.
When I went back home, I had a little headache. I have probably spoken more English today than the whole of last year.
It was really a happy day! I hope our friendship can continue, even after they gone back to England!
【小题1】The writer felt ______ when he heard the news from Miss Chan.

I will never forget one day in my first year in high school. I was sitting on the stairs, putting my head in my hands and crying out to my parents because I would never be able to save enough money for college. My parents tried to comfort me, but it seemed impossible to save＄64,268, the cost for the private college that I wanted to enter.
Now let me tell you the amazing story of how I saved this sum of money. It all began with a newspaper route in Ankeny, IA. I hated delivering newspapers that route, but decided to continue for six months until my family moved to Wausau. With a few dollars from my newspaper route, a small nest egg began to develop. My next job was working in an athletic company. The money continued to grow very slowly. Half a year later, I worked for a fruit store. Then, when I was in junior high school, I began to be a waitress at Denny’s restaurant. It was hard work, but the money began to roll.
By the time my senior year arrived, I had saved a large sum of money. This was encouraging, but I knew that I would also need some help, so I began to apply for scholarships. Sometimes I got upset because I was rejected again and again. Then, my first scholarship offer came in,＄2,000 a year to play tennis. This is only a small sum of money at a school that costs about＄14,000 a year, but it was a start. Several other scholarships also came and soon I was up to have＄9,050 in scholarships. With scholarships and savings, I saved enough money for my first year.
Several years later, I was off to college. Because of careful saving, I did not have to work during the school year.

【小题1】How much should the writer pay for college?

(B) What are you going to do if you are in a burning house?
Escaping(逃离) a fire is a serious matter. Knowing what to do during a fire can save yourself. It is important to know the ways you can use and to show them to everyone in the family, such as stairways (楼梯) and fire escapes, but not lifts（电梯）.
From the lower floors of the building, escaping through windows is possible, learn the best way of leaving through windows with the least chance of serious injury (伤害).
The second floor windows are usually not very high from the ground. An average (普通的) person, hanging by the finger-tips will have a drop of about six feet to the ground. It is about the height of an average man. Of course, it is safer to jump a short way than to stay in a burning building.
Windows are also useful when you are waiting for help. Be sure to keep the door closed, or smoke and fire may be drawn into the room. Keep your head low at the window to be sure you get fresh air rather than smoke that may have leaked (渗入) into the room.
On a second or third floor, the best windows for escaping are those which open onto a roof . From the roof a person can drop to the ground more safely, dropping onto stones might end in injury.
【小题1】From the beginning, we know that it is important to       .

(A) Have you ever had an embarrassing（尴尬的）experience?
Tony: I had just started teaching in a Liverpool secondary school. One morning my alarm clock didn't ring. I woke up at half past eight and school began at nine. I quickly washed, dressed, jumped into my car and rushed to school. When I arrived, the students had already gone into class. I went straight into class. After two or three minutes the students began laughing and laughing! Why? Suddenly I looked down and understood. I had put on one black shoe and one brown shoe!
Henry: After seeing a film, we decided to walk along the street. The street was very busy and we started holding hands. Suddenly my wife saw a dress that she liked in a shop window, and stopped. I started looking at some watches in the next window. After a minute or two I reached for my wife's hand. There was a loud scream(尖叫), and a girl slapped(掴) my face！I hadn't taken my wife's hand. I'd taken the hand of a girl!
James: I had decided to buy a new house, and I'd made an appointment (约定)to see our bank manager. I'd never met him before. I was lucky enough to find a parking space outside the bank. I'd just started reversing(倒车) into the space when another car made its way into it. I was so angry! I shouted at the man in the car. He ignored(不理) me and walked away. It took me twenty minutes to find another place. I was ten minutes late for my appointment. I went to the manager's office, knocked and walked in. The manager was sitting behind his desk. He was the man who had taken my parking space!
【小题1】Tony is ______.

Molly Daniels opened the door so hard that the door nearly broke it. Then she looked through the window at her neighbor across the yard. “ She is in my garden again. Those are my strawberries, not hers. Maybe I should call the police.”
Her friend, Doris, was sitting at the table with a cup of coffee in her hands. “You want to call the police because she picks your strawberries?” she asked.
“Of course,” Molly answered angrily. “What would you do if your neighbor walked into your yard without your permission and picked your strawberries?”
“I would say, better her than the bees.”
“The bees don’t take my strawberries.”
“But the birds do,” Doris continued. “That old lady only picks a few strawberries every year, and the only ones she picks are those you leave to the birds. Why don’t you pick some of your good strawberries and give them to her?”
“Are you crazy? What are you thinking?’
“Don’t you remember what happened when you were in hospital last year? She went to see you and gave you a pot full of chicken soup. When you give her the strawberries you can tell her that you still remember that.”
Molly was shocked. She had almost forgotten that little kindness because she was too angry. Then she picked a basket of good strawberries and went out. Through the window, Doris could see that the anger on Molly’s face changed into a bright smile.
【小题1】Molly opened the door very hard because _____
A. she was very angry        
B. she was very happy      
C. Doris wasn’t friendly
【小题2】Who was in hospital last year?
A. Doris                     B. Molly                C. Molly’s neighbor
【小题3】The underline word “shocked” in the passage means “_____”.
A. angry                     B. surprised                C. upset
【小题4】Which sentence is similar to the sentence “I would say, better her than the bees.”?
A. It’s better to let the neighbor pick the strawberries than to give them to the bees.
B. The bees are better than the neighbor.
C. The bees like strawberries more than the neighbor does.
【小题5】From the last paragraph, we can infer(推断)what Molly did at last with a basket of good strawberries.
A. She called the police to drive the neighbor away.
B. She happily gave a basket of good strawberries to the neighbor.
C. She ate up the strawberries herself.

In today’s world of mobile phones, most people have at least one time-telling tool with them. Since these small machines are so common, will people stop wearing the 500-year-old watches? According to some people, yes. A teenager says it’s unnecessary to wear a watch. Many young people agree-and use their mobile phones to tell time. Louis Galie, apresident, said that fewer young people wear watches today than five years ago.
However, watchmakers say that watches get popular again when people reach their 20s and 30s. By then, they want to spend money on a nice time-telling tool which doesn’t just keep a good time. For this reason, the watch industry has become an accessory business (配件业) in recent years.
Today’s ______ offer a lot of uses that meet the need of almost any personality (个性). They can be used as compasses (指南针), calendars, and even USB drivers…
People are always trying their best to creat new kinds of watches. A certain watchmaker business watches that don’t even look like watches. Their popular model uses different color lights to tell the time. Amother watchmaker business, make a “handless” watch, using a ring of circles to keep time. This watch makes people talk a lot about modern watches.
Whether a watch express fashion sense, creative ability of a love of sports, people want their time-telling tools to be beautiful, fashionable and practical. All in all, a watch has become more important than the time it tells.
【小题1】 Many young people agree that it’s unnecessary to __________________.
【小题2】When do watches get popular again according to watchmakers?
______________________________________________________________
【小题3】 ___________________________________________________________
【小题4】 ___________________________________________________________
【小题5】___________________________________________________________

A great way for teens to cool off during the summer is at water parks. If you live near a water park, you might think about getting a season pass. This way you can go as often as you like.
Check to see if there are any water parks around you. Many are indoor facilities. So even if it isn’t warm enough where you live to swim outdoors, you can enjoy swimming in a temperature controlled area.
The prices are usually good. For example, one ticket to Water World, a water park, is only $5.
Some teens like to get a part time job over the summer to make some pocket money. Older teens shouldn’t have much trouble finding jobs.
An idea is to get some teens together to form your own summer job business. You can walk dogs, bring in the newspapers, feed the cats, collect rubbish, water flowers, etc.
Being that it’s summer, many people go on vacation and could use someone to look after their houses while they’re away. You can also think about other jobs you can do for them.
Teens love freedom. Sure you would like to get to such places as the small, movie theaters, the zoo, the beach, picnic, bowling and local amusement park instead of staying home all summer. Then a summer bus pass will be helpful. Check to see if your area has one for you teens.
Such a pass costs only $10 for the whole summer. The price is reasonable(合乎情理的) and also your parents don’t have to always drive.
【小题1】Who is the text written for?

Once there was a man traveling in a faraway village. As he was passing the elephants, he suddenly stopped. He found that these huge elephants were being held by only a small rope tied to their front leg. No chains(锁链)， no cages. It was clear that the elephants could, at any time, break away from their ropes but for some reason, they did not.
He saw a trainer nearby and asked why these animals just stood there and didn’t try to get away. “Well,” the trainer said, “when they are very young and much smaller we use the same size rope to tie them and, at that rage, it’s enough to hold them. As they grow up, they still believe they cannot break away. They believe the rope can hold them, so they never try to break free.”
How could it be? These animals could at any time break free from their ropes. But because they always stuck right where they were, they believed they couldn’t.
Just like the elephants, how many of us go through life believing that we cannot do something, just because we failed at it once before?
___________________. We should never give up the struggle(挣扎) in life.
根据材料内容选择正确答案。
【小题1】 What did the writer see in the village?