There are only two reasons people cannot achieve their goals: The goals aren't important to them; or
people don't break them into small enough pieces. So all we need to do is to try our best...
     Have you ever watched a quitter in a boxing match-a man who just gives up and walks away? The
whole crowd boos. They throw drink bottles and bits of hot dog into the ring. They don't throw things
because he lost. They throw things because he quit. In our hearts we all believe that we should do our
best.
     Eric Moussambani swam for Equatorial Guinea (赤道幾內(nèi)亞) at the 2000 Olympics. This was the
first time Eric had swum a 100-metre race. He swam with his head out of the water and he barely kicked
his legs. In the first lap he was really struggling (掙扎). In the second he was nearly drowning (沉沒).
But Eric was fighting with everything he had.
     At the turn, the large audience began to shout and with every stroke (劃水) the noise got louder and
louder. Twenty meters from the finish, Eric was hardly moving but the crowd was crazy. When he finally
hit the wall, the cheering and stamping all but lifted the roof off the stadium. His time of 1 minute 52
seconds was about a minute slower than all the other competitors. Who cared? Eric Moussambani had
done his best.
     When you make an honest effort, people support you. You feel happier when you do your best. Think
about what it feels like walking to school on those days when you have done all of your homework and
done it as well as you can. Don't you feel just a bit more interested about school? Why? Because you are
always happier when you make a 100 percent effort, whether it's for an essay or a basketball game.
     Your teachers will tell you"Work hard!" and your parents will probably tell you "Work hard." But you
don't work hard to please your parents and teachers. The big reason you do it is for you. If you get good
marks, that's a prize. If other people notice, wonderful! But the main reason is how you feel about yourself.
     Even when you do your best, it is not certain that you will succeed. You may do your best, and still
be criticized. You may do your best, and still have people laugh at you. But when you do your best, the
reward is that feeling that says, "I did everything I could."

1. The audience would get unhappy with a quitter because ______.

A. the quitter loses the match
B. the match ends earlier than expected
C. the match is not wonderful
D. the quitter fails to show sportsmanship

2. People shouted when Eric was swimming because ______.

A. he swam too slowly
B. they wanted to cheer him on
C. he was the last one in the competition
D. he had not mastered basic swimming skills

3. Which of the following is true according to the passage?

A. You work hard only to make your parents and teachers happy.
B. The audience was very angry when Eric lost the 100 meter race.
C. If you have done your school work, you will surely get high marks.
D. When you make an effort in a basketball game, you'll feel happier.

     Sure, it's good to get along with your teacher because it makes the time you spend in the classroom
more pleasant.
     And yes, it's good to get along with your teacher because, in general, it's smart to learn how to relate to
the different kinds of people you'll meet throughout your life.
     But really, there's one super-important reason why you should get along with your teacher. When you do,
"learning bursts right open," says Evelyn Vuko, a longtime teacher who writes an education column called
"Teacher Says" for the Washington Post newspaper.
     In fact, kids who get along with their teachers not only learn more, but they're more comfortable asking
questions and getting extra help. This makes it easier to understand new material and do your best on tests.
When you have this kind of relationship with a teacher, he or she can be someone to turn to with problems,
such as problems with learning or school matters, such as bullying (欺凌弱小者). 
     As a kid in a primary or middle school, you're at a wonderful period in your life. You're like a sponge
(海綿), able to soak up lots of new and exciting information. On top of that, you're able to think about all
this information in new ways. Your teacher knows that, and in most cases, is very excited to be the person
who's giving you all that material and helping you put it together. Remember, teachers are people, too, and
they feel great if you're open to what they're teaching you. That's why they wanted to be teachers in the
first place---to teach!
     Some kids may be able to learn in any situation, whether they like the teacher or not. But most kids are
sensitive (敏感的) to the way they get along with the teacher, and if things aren't going well, they won't
learn as well and won't enjoy being in class.

1. What does the writer mainly talk about in the passage?

A. How much the students are expected to get along with teachers.
B. How to make the time in the classroom more pleasant.
C. How important to have a good relationship with teachers.
D. How to get a long well with teachers.

2. What does "turn to" in the fourth paragraph really mean?

A. get help from
B. take hold of
C. look for
D. think about

3. According to the passage, which of the following can be inferred?

A. If you have a good relationship with your teacher, you can get more help and learn more knowledge.
B. If you find it comfortable to ask questions, you can build a good relationship with teachers.
C. If you are getting on well with your teachers, you have more problems than others.
D. If you do your best on tests, you can build a good relationship with teachers.

4. Which is Not True on teachers and their work according to the passage?

A. There are some students who can learn even if they don't like the teacher.
B. Having a bad relationship with teachers does some harm to your studies.
C. Teachers are excited even if you wouldn't like to accept their teaching.
D. Teachers sometimes have the same feelings as students do.

     Millions of young people are writing blogs. Millions of others are reading them. The word "blog" is a
short way of saying Web log.
     Many popular Web sites now offer free, easy ways to create personal Web pages and fill them with
writings and pictures. Web sites called "Facebook" and "My Space" are some of the most popular blog sites
for young people. Many young adults use their blogs to write about daily activities and events in their lives.
They also provide a place for people to write their ideas and opinions and how they think of others' ideas.
     Blogs offer young people a place to show their writings and feelings. They can also be helpful to connect
young people with others. But blogs can become dangerous when they are read on the Internet by millions
of people all over the world.
      Recent studies show that young people often provide their names, age and where they live on the Internet.
That may not be safe for them. This personal information puts them at risk of being searched out by dangerous
people who want to hurt them. Many students do not know about privacy and are surprised to learn that adults
can read their personal daily records easily. Students can also get into trouble when they put information about
others on their blogs.
      As a result, many schools have banned the use of blogging web sites on school computers. Many schools
have also begun teaching parents about the web sites. Parents should know what their children are doing online
and should read their blogs to make sure they are not giving out private information. One way to keep away
from these problems is to use programs so that blogs can be read by "friends only". People can read the
website only if they know a secret word chosen by the blogger.

1. Blogs may be dangerous because _______.

A. they get in the way of studies
B. they are not allowed for school students
C. surfing the Internet is bad for eyes
D. personal information can be found in blogs easily

2. The underlined word"banned" in Paragraph 5 may mean _______.

A. allowed
B. encouraged
C. refused to allow
D. tried

3. This passage is mainly about _______.

A. the safety of children's blogs
B. how to search the internet
C. students' behavior at school
D. communicating with parents at home

     Sorry to say, our brains naturally start slowing down at the young age of 30. It used to be thought that
this couldn't be helped, but new studies show that people of any age can train their brains to work faster.
"Your brain is a learning machine," says University of California scientist Dr. Michael Merzenich. Given the
right tools, we can train our brains to act like they did when we were younger. All that's required is the
practice designed just for the purpose: a few exercises for the mind.
     Merzenich has developed a computer-based training method to speed up the process (過程) in which the
brain deals with information (positscience.com). Since much of the data we receive comes through speech,
the Brain Fitness Program works with language and hearing to better speed and accuracy (準(zhǔn)確性). Over the
course of training, the program starts asking you to distinguish (tell) sounds (between "dog" and "bog", for
example) at an increasingly faster speed. It's a bit like tennis instructor, says Merzenich, hitting balls at you
faster and faster to keep you challenged. You may start out slow, but before long you're pretty quick.
     The biggest finding in brain research in the last ten years is that the brain at any age is highly plastic. If
you ask your brain to learn, it will learn. And it may even speed up while in the process. To keep your brain
young and plastic you can do one of a million new activities that challenge and excite you:playing table tennis
or bridge, doing crossword puzzles, learning a language...."When it comes to preventing ageing, you really do
'use it or lose it'," says Barbara Sahakian, professor at Cambridge University.

1. People's brains _______ according to the new studies.

A. will not start slowing down until the age of 30
B. will start working slowly after the age of 30
C. can work as well as at a young age through certain exercises
D. can not be improved once they start to slow down

2.What can we learn from the text?

A. Using right tools is important for brains' work.
B. Brain research deals with information from the Internet.
C. Dr. Merzenich is a scientist in computer.
D. Many activities can keep our brains young.

3. Which of the following agrees with the writer's idea?

A. The train methods work better for the old.
B. People should use the brain to stop it from ageing.
C. The training of the brain should start at an early age.
D. It is necessary to take part in as many activities as possible.

     Young children don't have the skills or knowledge to stay safe in heavy traffic. The following tips (忠告)
will be helpful for you to keep your children safe in heavy traffic. Children learn about road safety by watching
others. Make sure that you always set good examples. Your children will follow you and think it's OK to do
like you. Teach your children to pay attention to traffic lights when you cross the road together with them.
This helps them understand when it's safe to cross. Make sure that you walk between your children and
traffic, and hold their hands all the time.
     When your children are a little older, you can start to tell them the importance of traffic knowledge. Let
them start to understand the reasons why they need to be so careful. Talk with them about road signs and
traffic rules.
     Ask your children to play in a safe place. Never let them ride bikes on the road without an adult present
at rush hour.
     The most important thing you can do to keep your children from getting hurt is to encourage them to
follow traffic rules. After knowing about traffic rules, they'll volunteer to obey them. In this way, they'll be
careful enough to keep themselves away from danger.

1. Do young children know how to stay safe in heavy traffic?
    _____________________________________________________ 
2. Who should set good examples to young children on roads?
    _____________________________________________________
3. When do young children never ride their bikes alone on the road?
    _____________________________________________________
4. How will children be able to stay safe on the road by themselves? 
    _____________________________________________________
5. What is the passage mainly about? 
    _____________________________________________________

     If you watch the sky about an hour after the sun goes down, you may see some "moving stars". But they
aren't real stars. They're satellites, a machine that has been sent into space and goes around the Earth, moon,
etc. And the biggest of all is the International Space Station (ISS).
     The ISS is the biggest satellite because scientists want to live on it. They think that the best way to learn
more about space is to live there. The space shuttle Discovery has taken off from the Kennedy Space Center
in Cape Canaveral, Florida several times and carried a few groups of astronauts to the International Space
Station.
     When the space station is finished, it will be like a city in space. People will stay and study there with many
of the things they have at home. Laboratories, living rooms and power stations are being built. The ISS is the
most expensive space program ever. Millions and millions of dollars are being spent on it every year.
     Scientists hope that the ISS will be a stepping stone for future space exploration. "The ISS will help us
better understand the human body, explore (know more about) space and study the earth. It can help us make
life on the earth better," said Kathryn Clark, an ISS scientist.
     Sixteen countries are in the program: The US, Russia, Canada, Japan, Brazil and 11 European countries.
China is not an ISS country, but it has helped with some of the experiments. In 2003, China sent some rice
up to the ISS to find out what space would do to it.
      Twenty Chinese students talked directly to an astronaut (spaceman) in the International Space Station (ISS)
on radio in Nanjing, capital of east China's Jiangsu Province on Sunday, 2007. The 20 students, aged 10 to 19
from Shanghai, Guangzhou and Nanjing, began talking to Clayton C. Anderson, a 48-year-old American
astronaut at 18:50 p.m. at Nanjing No. 3 Middle School when the ISS was passing over Nanjing.
     After it's finished, more than 90 percnt of the world's population will be able to see the space station. So
keep looking up, and maybe you'll see it get bigger and brighter.

1. It seems that _______.

A. we can probably see the ISS when the sun goes down
B. some students from Nanjing have been to the ISS
C. China is one of the members in the ISS group
D. the ISS is still in the space but has stopped working

2. Power stations" in the third paragraph infers _______.

A. houses for people to live in, to study and do research work
B. machines that go around the earth, the moon and some stars
C. buildings where electricity is produced to supply a large area
D. some countries which help send the ISS up into space

3. —Why did the scientists send up the International Space Station (ISS)?
    —Because they _______.

A. would send up most of the earth people to live there
B. could talk with some Chinese school students
C. hoped to travel to Mars and Venus some day
D. wanted to live in space and do better research

     When I was at university, I studied very hard. But a lot of my friends did very little work. Some did just
enough to pass exams. Others didn't do quite enough. Fred Baines was one of them. He spent more time
drinking in the Students' Union than working in the library. 　　
     Once at the end of the term, we had to take an important test in chemistry. The test had a hundred
questions. In my room the night before the test, Fred was watching TV. Fred usually worried a lot the night
before a test. But on that night he looked perfectly calm. Then he told me of his plan. "It's very simple. There
are a hundred questions and I have to get fifty correct to pass the test. I'll take a coin into the examination
room. I haven't studied a chemistry book for months, so I'll just toss the coin. That way, I'm sure I'll get half
the questions right." 　　
     The next day, Fred came happily into the exam room. As he sat tossing a coin for half an hour he marked
down his answers. Then he left, half an hour before the rest of us. 　　
     The next day, he saw the chemistry professor in the corridor. "Oh, good," he said, "Have you got the result
of the test?" The professor looked at him and smiled, "Ah, it's you, Baines. Just a minute." Then he reached
into his pocket and took out a coin. He threw it into the air, caught it in his hand and looked at it. 　　
     "I'm terribly sorry, Baines," he said, "You failed!"

1. This story mainly wants to tell us ________.

A. chemistry is really hard to learn
B. there were too many questions for students to prepare for
C. good exam results needs hard study
D. tossing a coin can not always decide the result

2. Fred Baines was one of those who ________.

A. did just enough to pass the exam
B. didn't work hard enough for their studies
C. had too much other work for the Students' Union
D. were quite good at passing exams

3. Fred came happily into the exam room because ________.

A. he had got ready for the exam
B. he knew the answers already
C. the other students would be behind him
D. he had his way to finish the exam

4. The chemistry exam in fact ________.

A. was not very hard
B. took the other students an hour to finish
C. had more than one hundred questions
D. needed to be done by tossing a coin

5. The professor tossed the coin to tell Baines that ________.

A. he was satisfied with his way for the exam
B. he wanted to make friends with him
C. his way for the exam would never work
D. the exam result depended on the coin

     We know that many animals do not stay in one place. Birds, fish and other animals move from one
place to another place at a certain time. They move for different reasons: most of them move to find food
more easily, but others move to get away from places that are too crowded.
     When cold weather comes, many birds move to warmer places to find food. Some fishes give birth in
warm water and move to cold water to feed. The most famous migration is probably the migration of fish,
which is called "salmon"(鮭魚).This fish is born in fresh water but it travels many miles to salt water. There
it spends its life. When it is old, it returns to its birthplace in fresh water. Then it gives birth and dies. In
northern Europe, there is a kind of mouse. They leave their mountain homes when they become too crowded.
They move down to the low land. Sometimes they move all the way to the seaside, and many of them are
killed when they fall into the sea.   
     Recently, scientists have studied the migration of a kind of lobster (龍蝦). Every year,when the season
of the bad weather arrives, the lobsters get into a long line and start to walk across the floor of the ocean.
Nobody knows why they do this, and nobody knows where they go. So, sometimes we know why humans
and animals move from one place to another place,but at other times we don't. Maybe living things just like
to travel.

1. The reason for most of the animals to move is ____________.
2. Find the word in the passage which means "the movement from one place to another of
    a large group of animals" and write it down here: ____________.
3. The underlined word "There" in the second paragraph refers to (指的是) ____________.
4. The salmon comes back to its birthplace in order to ____________.
5. The lobsters begin to move to another place when ____________.

     Do you know why different animals or insects have their special colors? Colors are used mainly to protect
themselves.
     Why can't some birds easily catch locusts (蝗蟲)? It is because locusts change their colors together with
the change of the colors of crops. When crops are green, locusts look green. But as autumn comes, locusts
change to the same brown color as crops have. Some other insects with different colors from plants are easily
found and eaten by others. So they have to hide themselves for lives in the day and appear only at night.
      If you study the animal life, you'll find the main use of coloring is to protect themselves. Bears, lions and
other animals can't be easily seen by hunters. This is because they have the colors much like the trees.
     Have you ever noticed an even more strange thing? A kind of fish in the sea can send out black liquid when
it faces danger. While the liquid spreads over, its enemies can't find it. And it quickly swims away. So it has
lived up to now though it is not strong at all.

1. From the article we learn that locusts __________.

A. are dangerous to their enemies
B. are easily found by birds
C. change their colors to protect themselves
D. are small animals

2. How can insects with different colors from plants keep out of danger?

A. They have to move quietly.
B. They hide themselves in the day and appear at night.
C. They have the colors much like their enemies.
D. They run away quickly.

3. Bears and lions can keep safe because __________.

A. they live in forests
B. they like brown and grey colors
C. they move quietly
D. they have the colors similar to the trees

4. What does the word "liquid" mean in the last paragraph?

A. 氣體
B. 固體
C. 液體
D. 水蒸氣

5. Which is the best title for this passage?

A. The Main Use of Colors for Animals and Insects
B. Colors of Different Animals and Insects
C. The Change of Colors for Animals and Insects
D. The Change of Different Animals and Plants