Skipping Stones It is a nonprofit(非盈利的) children’s magazine. It provides a playful place for sharing ideas and experiences among children from different countries and cultures. Skipping Stones welcomes art and original writings in every language and from all ages. Non-English writings are accompanied(伴有) by English translations to encourage the learning of other languages
Creative Kids It includes stories, games, opinions, poems and drawings by and for kids. Students from all over the world write for the magazine. It is recommended for kids ages 8 to 14. Published by Prufrock Press, which aims to encourage the creativity of readers and invites children to display their creative work.	New MoonIt is an international magazine designed for every girl who wants her voice heard and her dreams taken seriously. It is for girls aged 8-14. The magazine includes stories, poems, artwork, personal profiles and a variety of good articles. It provides a place for girls to express themselves and communicate with other girls around the world.
Calliope Discover the mysteries of the past with CALLIOPE! This magazine can bring young people face to face with history-makers in places and cultures from around the world. It is designed to help readers of grades 5-9 to know more about historical events.	Ranger RickIt is a monthly magazine for children aged 7-12. It features colorful animal photos, funny drawings, and exciting stories. Ranger Rick is published by the National Wildlife Federation and focuses on teaching young kids about wildlife, nature and the environment.

【小题1】The magazine published by Prufrock Press aims to encourage children to          .
A. learn from others          B. read more classic books       C. be more creative
【小题2】New Moon is a little bit special because         .
A. it is a magazine only for girls                         
B. it is for children aged 8-14. 
C. it has many good stories for children.
【小题3】 Sally is twelve years old. Her favorite subject is history. She may like         .
A. Skipping Stones                 B. Calliope                       C.New Moon
【小题4】 What do we learn about the magazine Skipping Stones?
A. It makes money for poor children.                
B. You may find Chinese articles in it.
C. It mainly displays writing from adults
【小题5】 Mrs Smith’s eight-year-old son is interested in nature, so she would choose          for him.
A.Ranger Rick                   B.Creative Kids                   C. New Moon

Ellie lived with her six children in a small house. One winter, there was a big flood and quite a few houses were washed away, but Ellie’s house was high enough to keep them safe.
Many families lost everything in the flood. And Ellie took in one of the families. She shared her home with them until the family could build their own new house. Ellie’s friends could not understand why she did so because she already had so many children to look after.
“Well,” Ellie said to her friends, “At the end of World War I, there was a poor woman in a town in Germany. Her husband had been killed in the war and she had a lot of children, just like me now.”
“The day before Christmas, this woman said to her children, ‘We will not be able to have much for Christmas. I am going to get just one present for us all. Now I will go and get it.’ She came back with a little girl who had no parents, ‘Here is our present,’ she said to her own children.”
“The children were very excited to get such a present. They welcomed the little girl warmly, and she grew up as their sisters. I was that Christmas present.”
【小题1】How many children did Ellie had in total?

A．Five.

B．Six.

C．Seven.

D．Eight.

【小题2】What happened in the winter?

A．There was a flood.

B．There was an earthquake

C．There was a rain storm.

D．There was a fire.

【小题3】What did Ellie do to help other families?

A．She gave them food.

B．She bought many Christmas present for them.

C．She took in one of the families.

D．She took in a girl.

【小题4】What did the poor woman in German bring to her children for Christmas?

A．Many beautiful presents.	B．Nothing.
C．A girl.	D．A daddy.

【小题5】What do we learn about Ellie in the passage?

A．She had no children.

B．Her husband was killed.

C．She had no parents.

D．She gave much money to others.

Train-spotting
Many people around the world have seen Danny Boyle’s movie Train spotting starring Ewan McGregor, but how many of us really know what train-spotting is all about? Now this is not considered cool in town and the word “train-spotter” in Britain is related to “geek” or “nerd” (someone who seems very ridiculous). But is this reputation really deserved?
First of all, let’s see what train-spotting is. It is said that there are some 100,000 train spotters in the UK. Exactly as the title suggests, they spot trains, that is, they stand in train stations, look at the number of each train that leaves and arrives and write it down. The eventual aim is to have seen every train in the country.
Being crazy about railways and trains is not modern and it dates back to 1804. As the number of trains grew and they got faster and faster, so did the interest in them grow? Is this any stranger than people who love cars?
So, what do you need to be a train-spotter? Well, all you really need is a pen or pencil and a notebook to write down the train numbers. Other equipment(装备) includes hot tea in a thermos, a camera and some sandwiches for those long afternoons spent on train platforms when you don’t want to risk the delights of railway station food.
It’s interesting to note that despite the “bad name” of train-spotting, there have been famous railway lovers in history, such as Alfred Hitchcock, who filmed them regularly, especially The 39 Steps. There is evidence, too, that being a train-spotter is not necessarily a strange phenomenon（现象）in Britain.
One glance at the US train stations should be enough to convince you that train-spotters there are alive and well. In America, they try to call rail lovers “train-fans” and talk of “train-fanning”. Don’t let this fool you—these people are train spotters and there are a lot of them. Each month, two million pages are visited on the website TrainWeb.org.                     
340words
【小题1】What is train-spotting according to the passage?

A．A kind of hobby.	B．A type of sport.
C．A strange phenomenon.	D．A special job.

【小题2】Which of the following about train-spotters is true according to the passage?

A．They number each train they see.

B．They keep a careful path of every train.

C．They count the trains passing in front of them.

D．They produce films about trains with video cameras.

【小题3】The writer writes the passage to        .

A．introduce some famous train-spotters

B．encourage readers to do more train-spotting

C．try to present a true picture of train-spotting

D．describe the necessary equipment in train-spotting

【小题4】 What do we learn from the passage?

A．Train-spotters in the UK want to fool people.

B．Train-spotting is more acceptable in America.

C．Train-spotters are much stranger than car lovers.

D．Train-spotting relates to（与…有关）a dangerous lifestyle.

Train-spotting

Many people around the world have seen Danny Boyle’s movie Train spotting starring Ewan McGregor, but how many of us really know what train-spotting is all about? Now this is not considered cool in town and the word “train-spotter” in Britain is related to “geek” or “nerd” (someone who seems very ridiculous). But is this reputation really deserved?

First of all, let’s see what train-spotting is. It is said that there are some 100,000 train spotters in the UK. Exactly as the title suggests, they spot trains, that is, they stand in train stations, look at the number of each train that leaves and arrives and write it down. The eventual aim is to have seen every train in the country.

    Being crazy about railways and trains is not modern and it dates back to 1804. As the number of trains grew and they got faster and faster, so did the interest in them grow? Is this any stranger than people who love cars?

    So, what do you need to be a train-spotter? Well, all you really need is a pen or pencil and a notebook to write down the train numbers. Other equipment(装备) includes hot tea in a thermos, a camera and some sandwiches for those long afternoons spent on train platforms when you don’t want to risk the delights of railway station food.

    It’s interesting to note that despite the “bad name” of train-spotting, there have been famous railway lovers in history, such as Alfred Hitchcock, who filmed them regularly, especially The 39 Steps. There is evidence, too, that being a train-spotter is not necessarily a strange phenomenon（现象）in Britain.

    One glance at the US train stations should be enough to convince you that train-spotters there are alive and well. In America, they try to call rail lovers “train-fans” and talk of “train-fanning”. Don’t let this fool you—these people are train spotters and there are a lot of them. Each month, two million pages are visited on the website TrainWeb.org.                      

340words

1.What is train-spotting according to the passage?

A. A kind of hobby.             B. A type of sport.

C. A strange phenomenon.        D. A special job.

2.Which of the following about train-spotters is true according to the passage?

A. They number each train they see.

B. They keep a careful path of every train.

C. They count the trains passing in front of them.

D. They produce films about trains with video cameras.

3.The writer writes the passage to        .

A. introduce some famous train-spotters

B. encourage readers to do more train-spotting

C. try to present a true picture of train-spotting

D. describe the necessary equipment in train-spotting

4. What do we learn from the passage?

A. Train-spotters in the UK want to fool people.

B. Train-spotting is more acceptable in America.

C. Train-spotters are much stranger than car lovers.

D. Train-spotting relates to（与…有关）a dangerous lifestyle.

 

A group of swans flew down to a beach where a crow (乌鸦) was jumping around. The crow watched them with disdain (笔试).
“You have no flying skills at all!” he said to the swans. “All you can do is to move your wings. Can you turn over in the air? No, that’s beyond you. Let’s have a flying competition. I’ll show you what real flying is!”
One of the swans, a strong young male, took up the challenge (挑战). The crow flew up and began to show his skills. He flew in circles, performed other flying tricks, and then came down and looked proudly at the swan.
Now it was the swan’s turn. He flew up, and began flying over the sea. The crow flew after him, making all kinds of comments (评价) about his flying. They flew on and on till they couldn’t see the land and there was nothing but water on all sides. The crow was making fewer and fewer comments. He was now so exhausted that he found it hard to stay in the air, and had to struggle to keep himself from falling into the water.
The swan pretended (假装) not to notice, and said, “Why do you keep touching the water, brother? Is that another trick? “
“No,” said the crow. He knew he had lost the competition. “I’m in trouble because of my pride (自大) ! If you don’t help me, I’ll lose my life...”
The swan took pity on him, and took him on his shoulders and flew back to the beach.
【小题1】 What’s the correct order of the following events?
a. The crow followed the swan and got into trouble.
b. The swan felt pity for the crow and saved it.
c. The crow had to ask the swan for help.
d. The swan accepted a challenge of performing flying tricks.

A．a, d, b, c

B．a, b, d, c

C．d, a, c, b

D．d, c, a, b

【小题2】What does the underlined word “exhausted” in Paragraph 4 mean?

A．Tired.

B．Bored.

C．Nervous.

D．Frightened.

【小题3】What do we learn from the passage?

A．Practice makes perfect.	B．The early bird catches the worm.
C．No pains, no gains.	D．Pride goes before a fall.