Sam, an unemployed piano tuner, said it was only the second thing he had ever won in his life. The first thing was an Afghan blanket at a church raffle when he was 25 years old. But this was much bigger: it was $120,000! He had won the Big Cube, a state lottery game. To win, a contestant must first guess which number a spinning cube will stop on. The cube has six numbers on it: 1X, 10X, 50X, 100X, 500X, and 1000X. If he is correct, the contestant must then guess which of two selected variables is going to be greater. So, just guessing which number appears on the cube does not guarantee that you will win any money. Sam correctly guessed 1000X, but he still had to choose between two variables. One variable was the number of cars that would run the stop sign at Hill Street and Lake Avenue in six hours. The other variable was the number of times that a teenage boy would change TV channels in a three-hour period. This was a tough decision.

Finally, Sam flipped a coin. It came up heads, so Sam picked the teenager. He picked right. The stop sign was run only 76 times, but the teen clicked 120 times. Sixty-year-old Sam jumped for joy, for he had just won 1000 times 120, or $120,000. Sam dreamily left the lottery studio. Talking excitedly on his cell phone while crossing the street, he got hit by a little sports car.

Sam is slowly getting better. He was in the hospital for a month. His hospital bill was $110,000. And the insurance company for the little sports car's owner sued Sam for $9,000 worth of repairs. Also, Sam still has to pay federal taxes on his winnings. Sam doesn't play the state lottery any more. He says it's better to be unlucky.

1.When Sam won the second thing that he’d won in his life, he was ______.  

A. 25 years old

B. six years old

C. 76 years old

D. sixty years old

2.To win the game, the contestants had to make ______ guesses.    

A. three           B. two         C. six             D. four

3.Sam won the lottery because ______.

A. he was lucky     B. he was good at math

C. he was smart     D. he was tough

4.Sam’s experience shows that ______

A. everything has its time and that time must be watched.

B. he who risks nothing, gains nothing.

C. everything comes to him who waits.

D. he who laughs on Friday will weep on Sunday.

Dan Bebber is a senior research fellow at the University of Exeter in Britain. He says research has shown that wild plants and animals are moving toward Earth's North and South poles as the planet warms.

Mr Bebber wanted to know if the same thing was happening with organisms that attack agricultural crops. He examined reports of first sightings of new insects and diseases around the world. The records came from CABI - the Centre for Agricultural Bioscience International. He says the group began collecting information from developing and industrialized countries years ago.

Dan Bebber and his research team studied 612 different organisms - from viruses and bacteria to insects like beetles and butterflies. They found that since 1960, crop pests and diseases have been moving toward the poles at an average rate of about 3 kilometers each year. Mr Bebber says this puts the most productive farmland in the world in danger.

"As new species of pests and diseases evolve and potentially the environment for them becomes more amenable at higher latitudes, the pressure on the breadbaskets of the world is going to increase."

Farmers face other threats. Invasive species passed through trade are also causing problems. Gene Kritsky is an Entomologist at the College of Mount St. Joseph in Ohio. He specialises in the study of insects. He says climate change may improve conditions for some invasive species.

“It means that species in other parts of the world that might do well in warmer temperatures can now do well in the breadbasket of America.”

Another Entomologist Christian Krupke of Purdue University says the effects of these changes will depend very much on the crop, the insect and the disease. But he says the research is a warning sign that people should care about climate change and do something about it.

1.The purpose of Dan Bebber’s research was to find ______.

A. if farmland could be moved to colder places thanks to global warming

B. if diseases and insects harmful to crops were going towards colder areas

C. if organisms were moving to the north and south poles

D. if the number of crop pests was increasing

2.According to Dan Bebber, if crop pests keep moving towards the poles, ______.

A. it will be hard for farmers to kill them

B. the most productive farmland will produce more crops

C. the earth will not produce enough food to support the world

D. the conditions for some crops may be improved

3.Which of the following is not a threat that farmers have to face?

A. Climate change helps crop pests to adapt to new environment.

B. Foreign species are brought in by trade.

C. Invasive species doing well in warmer places might do well in America.

D. The impacts of the climate and species changes on crops are not easy to determine.

4.The underlined word “amenable” in the fourth paragraph most probably means ______.

A. agreeable     B. terrible      C. unfriendly     D. changeable 

In the United States and several other countries, 2.5 million children play baseball in an organization called Little League. They play on teams in their hometowns. Their parents and other adults in the community coach or instruct them and serve as umpires to make sure that everyone follows the rules. Local businesses give money for the ball fields and the uniforms. Local teams compete against each other and the winners get to play teams that are more distant. Eventually, the top teams go to the Little League World Series.

One hundred years after Abner Doubleday invented baseball in Cooperstown, New York, in 1839, Little League got started in Pennsylvania. Three men started the game for neighborhood boys with a smaller playing field and fewer innings than adult baseball. Little League became popular after World War II when the game spread across the United States. By 1955 it was played throughout North America and within five years it had spread to Europe. Children’s baseball really caught on in Japan and Taiwan of China and teams from those areas won the World Series seven out of eight years. After this, the organization tried banning foreign teams from the World Series, but the ban came to an end after one year.

At first, Little League was only for boys aged nine to twelve. However, in 1974, the parents of girl baseball players brought a law suit. The courts ruled that Little League had to include both boys and girls. Later Little League added on softball and other games for teenagers up to age eighteen. Occasionally a Little Leaguer becomes a professional player. For example, Gary Carter went from Little League to play nineteen seasons in the Major Leagues, ten of them as an All-Star player. But, by and large, youngsters play baseball for fun and because their parents are proud of them.

1.The mothers and fathers of Little League players ______.

A. help run the games          B. travel in coaches

C. give the teams money        D. play in the World Series

2.In what year was Little League established?

A. 1839      B. 1939      C. 1955    D. 1960 

3.Why do most players take part in Little League?

A. To play in the Major League.

B. To have fun and please their parents.

C. They expect a profit from All-Star games

D. They want to learn how to serve as umpires.

4.What is true about players today?

A. Little League is only for neighbourhood boys.

B. Girl players have to buy their suits.

C. Girls and boys can participate to age eighteen.

D. Children can only play until age twelve.

Tree House

The Tree House program is for students with an English or bilingual preschool background. Foreign teachers further develop students’ natural English speaking skills from 1st through 6th grades in a total immersion environment. The program is theme-based with different units or themes per semester. Each unit includes a theme-related storybook, song, dialogue, writing and phonic exercises, grammar component, poem, and integrated activities.

Step Ahead

Step Ahead is a standalone course that takes children in 3rd grade with no prior English knowledge and by 6th grade, transforms them into confident, near-fluent English communicators. Our program has a strategic balance of listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Regular lessons are broken into phonics, reading, grammar patterns, conversation, songs, and homework preview

Jump Into English, Kids World, Kids Club

Our Jump Into English, Kids World, and Kids Club courses are a great way to develop good English habits at younger ages. Jump Into English is for 4-, 5- and 6-year-olds and is a cost-effective alternative to English preschool. Kids Club and Kids World are for students in 1st and 2nd grades and are full of singing, dancing, games, and fun activities to help young children learn English more easily.

Theme-based and Honors Courses

We have theme-based courses to help learners prepare for specific areas of the General English Proficiency Test (GEPT) and to develop the performance skills they will need in some of our exciting activities. When learners graduate from our Tree House and Step Ahead programs, they can continue to excel in English through our Honors programs.

1.A child who hasn’t learned English before can choose _____ to develop confidence and fluency in English communication.

A. Tree House

B. Theme-based and Honors Courses

C. Step Ahead

D. Jump Into English, Kids World, Kids Club

2.One of the advantages of Jump Into English is _____.

A. saving money compared to English preschool     

B. helping learners to get prepared for English tests

C. helping young children to learn English easily

D. that it covers different language skills

3.The purpose of the passage is _____.

A. to introduce an English language school for children

B. to persuade more children to learn English in a fun way

C. to emphasize the importance of after-class activities

D. to introduce English classes of varying degrees for kids

As a child grows out of being an infant and begins to notice and react to the world around him, you may find yourself wondering how you possibly impart all of the things that he needs to become a responsible, respectful adult.   1.      A child who learns to respect all he meets not only receives respect from others, but also learns to respect himself as well.

Show your child respect. This is perhaps the best way to teach your child how to

respect others. Listen to your child by giving him your full attention and he will learn to listen to you, understanding how important this is in communication.

     2.    The more you say “please” and “thank you” to your child, the more likely

he will learn to use them with you and others. Politeness then becomes a normal part of any conversation.

Agree to disagree.     3.   Explain your decision so that he will understand your

reasoning and expect respectful responses. Disagreeing with you doesn’t equate to disobedience.

Control your impulse to overact. When a situation arises between you and your

child that requires calmness, keep in mind that you are supposed to be modelling correct behaviour.   4.     

Praise, praise, praise! So much is focused on what a child does wrong and how to

correct it that the accomplishments are not celebrated enough.     5.   

A. Teach manners by using polite requests and responses.

B. Try to remember that a child won’t always agree with you.

C. Respect is necessary for a meaningful and successful life.

D. If he sees you lose temper, he is more likely to respond that way in future.

E. A child may act like he pleases, but will respect being given limits.

F. When you see your child exhibit respectful behaviour, make sure he knows just how proud you are of him.

G. Setting a good example is the best way to start a child on the path to respect.

My cousin Li Ming is a senior three student, who devoted himself to his lessons every day. Last Saturday, as usual, he went to several class. In the evening, he continued to study at home until deeply into the night. He was too sleepy and tired that he couldn’t work effectively. In Sunday morning, he was about to do his lessons while his father came up and advised him to take a break. Soon they came up a good idea. They decided to go cycling in the countryside. Li Ming enjoyed himself competing and chatting with his father and felt relaxing in the open air. On Monday, Li Ming was energetic and active in class. He spent a whole day in the country, and Li Ming said what he had done was worth.

假定你是李华， 是一位高中生。 ipad 已经成为你们中学生的新宠。 用ipad既可以听音乐，阅读电子书，又可以玩电子游戏。请用英语给某报社写一封信，谈谈中学生使用ipad的情况。信的内容包括以下要点：

1. ipad给中学生带来的好处；

2. ipad给中学生带来的负面影响；

3.你对中学生使用ipad的看法和建议。

注意：

1. 词数100左右；

2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯；

3. 信的开头和结尾已为你写好，不计入总词数。

Dear Editor,

     I am a senior high school student, named Li Hua. ________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

                                                                Yours sincerely,

                                                                       Li Hua

Girls used to take fewer advanced math courses than boys but now they are taking just _______.

A. as much       B. so much          C. as many      D. so many

 Everything on the news ________ a whole new meaning when you have a personal connection with the people.

A. takes up       B. takes on        C. takes away        D. takes off

 In case of fire, stay low to the ground in a smoky room, ________ smoke always rises towards the ceiling.

A. as           B. when            C. while             D. once