If you want your land to keep fertile, you must try to stop soil from being carried away by water or wind. When soil is taken away by flowing water or blowing winds we call it soil erosion. Ways have been found to stop soil erosion, and this is known as soil conservation. One way of stopping soil erosion is to grow small plants such as grass. These plants are referred to a cover crops, whose roots hold the soil tightly together. The rain water can not wash away the soil. When trees and tall bushes are planted at the edges of an open field, soil erosion by strong winds can not take place. The trees and bushes, which act as a very big and firm wall, protect the open land from the winds. The way to stoop soil erosion on slopes is to build terraces on the slope of hillside and mountainside. When the slope of a hillside is cut into “step”, water carrying soil can not run straight down the terraces, which are used to slow down the speed of the flowing water containing much soil in it. In this way most of the soil in the water is left behind on the terraces, much soil in it.
小題1:What takes place in soil erosion?

A．Flood happens to the fertile land

B．A large quantity of the soil loses away gradually.

C．Terraces are built on the slope of hillside or mountainside.

D．Plants are grown to protect the open land

小題2:“Cover crops” in this passage means _________.?
A. grass        B. trees and bushes     C. plants life and an area
E.   covering plants that produce grain or vegetables
小題3:Besides growing small plants, another method to fight against soil erosion is to ___________.

A．build terraces

B．build walls

C．plant trees

D．plant tall bushes

小題4:According to the passage, trees and tall bushes are planted around an open field ________________.

A．because their roots hold soil tightly

B．to stop soil from being blown away by winds.

C．Because soil erosion causes terrible damages to crops

D．To keep the balance of nature

小題5:Which of the following is the best title of the passage?

A．What Causes Soil Erosion

B．The Importance of Erosion

C．Rain Erosion and Wind Erosion

D．Erosion and the Way of Tight against Erosion

When families gather for Christmas dinner, some will stick to formal traditions, that is, their tables will be set with the good dishes and silver bowls. But now in many other homes, this china-and-silver elegance (優(yōu)雅)has given way to a stoneware (粗陶) and informality, with dresses in an informal and ordinary look. For hosts and guests, the change means greater simplicity and comfort. For makers of fine china in Britain, it means economic hard times.
Last week Royal Doulton, the largest employer in Stoke-on-Trent, announced that it is removing 1,000 jobs -- one-fifth of its total workforce. That brings to more than 4, 000  the number of positions lost in 18 months in the pottery (陶瓷) field. Wedgwood and other pottery factories made cuts earlier.
Although a strong pound and weak markets in Asia play a role in the downsizing, the layoffs（失業(yè)） in Stoke have their roots in great social changes. A spokesman for Royal Doulton admitted that the company "has been somewhat slow in catching up with the trend(潮流)" toward informal dining. Families eat together less often, he explained, and more people eat alone, either because they are single or because they want to eat in front of television. Even dinner parties, if they happen at all, have gone informal. In a time of long work hours and busy family schedules, busy hosts insist, rightly, that it's better to share a takeout pizza on paper plates in the family room than to wait for the perfect moment or a "real" dinner party. Too often, the perfect moment never comes. Iron a fine-patterned tablecloth? Forget it. Clean the silver bowls ? Who has time?
Yet the loss of formality has its down side. The fine points of etiquette (禮節(jié)) that children might once have learned before at the table by observation or instruction from parents and grandparents (" Chew with your mouth closed." "Keep your elbows off the table. ") must be picked up else-where. Some companies now offer etiquette courses for employees who may be able professionally but inexperienced socially.
71. In many homes nowadays, people tend to ______________________
A. stick to formal traditions when they dine
B. set their tables with the good dishes and silver bowls
C. have dinner informally
D. buy many sets of fine china
72. Why do people tend to follow the trend towards informal dining?
A. Family members need more time to relax.
B. Busy schedules leave people no time for formality.
C. People prefer to live a comfortable life.
D. Young people won't follow the etiquette of the older generation.
73. It can be learned from the passage that ‘Royal Doulton’ is              .
A. a store of steel tableware                 B. a store of stoneware
C. a store of pottery chain                 D. a producer of fine china
74. The main cause of the layoffs in the pottery industry is              .
A. the increased value of the pound          B. the worsening economy in Asia
C. the change in people's way of life         D. the fierce competition at home and abroad
75. In the last paragraph, we can find that formal table manners, though less popular than before in present social life,               .
A. are still a must on certain occasions       B. are certain to return sooner or later
C. are still being taught by parents at home   D. can help improve personal relationships

II. 完形填空
Coming home from school that dark winter day so long ago, I was filled with excitement of having the weekend off. But I was   31   into stillness by what I saw. Mother, seated at the far end of the sofa, was    32   , with the second--hand green typewriter on the table. She told me that she couldn't    33    fast and then she was out of work. My shock and embarrassment at finding Mother in tears was a perfect proof of how    34    I understood the pressure on her. Sitting beside her on the sofa, I began very slowly to understand. "I guess we all have to   35   something," Mother said quietly. I could   36    her pain and the tension of   37   the strong feeling that were interrupted by my   38    . Suddenly, something inside me lit up. I reached out and put my arms around her. She broke then. She put her face    39   my shoulder and sobbed. I held her   40   and didn't try to talk. I knew I was doing what I should, what I could and that was   41   . At that moment, feeling Mother's   42    with feelings, I understood for the first time her being easy to   43   . She was still my mother,   44   she was something   45    : a person like me, capable of fear,   46   and failure. I could feel her pain as she must have felt mine on a thousand occasions when I sought   47   in her arms.
A week later Mother took a job selling dry goods at half the salary the radio station   48   .
"It's a job I can do, though." She said simply. But the evening practice on the green typewriter continued. I had a very   49   feeling now when I passed her door at night and heard her  50   away across the paper. I knew there was something more going on in there than a woman learning to type.
31. A. fooled  B. tricked       C. puzzled      D. shocked
32. A. crying  B. smiling      C. thinking     D. whispering
33. A. write    B. type    C. run     D. wash
34. A. eagerly B. worriedly   C. hurriedly    D. happily
35. A. fail      B. win     C. forget D. gain
36. A. realize  B. understand  C. sense   D. recognize
37. A. holding back       B. putting away      C. holding on  D. stopping from
38. A. pain     B. laughter     C. arrival D. cry
39. A. by     B. upon   C. beside D. against
40. A. tightly  B. rudely C. carefully    D. politely
41. A. enough B. little   C. all      D. nothing
42. A. hand     B. face    C. hair    D. back
43. A. content B. break  C. fall     D. shout
44. A. therefore      B. although     C. yet      D. however
45. A. more    B. excellent    C. strange       D. huge
46. A. wound  B. pride   C. success       D. hurt
47. A. kindness      B. memory     C. comfort      D. support
48. A. supplied       B. offered       C. paid    D. contributed
49. A. different      B. hard    C. pleasant      D. serious
50. A. crying  B. laughing     C. tapping      D. sewing

第三節(jié)：閱讀理解 (共10小題，每小題2分，滿分20分)
閱讀下列短文，從每題所給的四個(gè)選項(xiàng)(A、B、C和D)中，選出最佳選項(xiàng)，并在答題紙上將該選項(xiàng)標(biāo)號(hào)涂黑。
Letters to the next president
Dear Mr. President:
I would like to personally thank you for your time and concern for our great country. I would like to take a few minutes to address a few concerns that I have with the United States.
First of all, I would like to address the war. In my opinion, we should have never been involved with Iraq to the extent that we are now. I believe we should pull our troops out. However, I think there should be a time table that we follow but the time table should not be released because the enemy does not need to know when we are going to pull out. Also, the war takes out a ton of our money, which leads me to my next issue.
The economy right now, in the opinion of many Americans is the biggest issue with which we are facing right now. No one can predict what will happen one day or the next. The obvious thing to do is to put 700 billion dollars in the economy, but that bill failed and was rejected by the House of Representatives(眾議院). Instead of putting 700 billion dollars in, I think the money should be equally distributed among Americans to pay off their debts. I'm not sure if this would work, but I think it is a positive alternative we could take.
My final issue I would like to call to your attention is teacher's salaries. The high school students of today are America's future. In a way, America's future depends greatly on the high school teachers of America. Saying this, it is sad that teacher's salaries are where they are. While teachers are working harder and harder every day to teach high school students, CEO's of big companies that are driving our countries economy into the ground are getting bonuses. I'm not saying that teacher's salaries should be the same of CEO's of companies, but I do strongly believe that action should be taken to increase the salaries of teachers because they have one of the most important jobs in America - - preparing our country for the future.
Once again, thank you for your time and your effort you put in to making this great country a better place.
Sincerely, Walker
41. What's the author's attitude the Iraq War?
A. Supportive           B. Objective           C. Negative             D. Positive
42. What's true about the time of pulling the troops out?
A. We should pull the troops out without delay.
B. There is no need to have a time table to follow.
C. The public has the fight to know the time table.
D. We should keep the time secret from the enemy.
43. According to the author, the 700 billion dollars__________
A. is the biggest issue with which we are facing right now.
B. has been accepted by the House of Representatives.
C. should be equally shared among Americans
D. should be put in the economy
44. When talking about high school teachers, the author thinks that____________
A. the teachers' salaries are not high enough.
B. teacher's salaries should be as high as CEO's.
C. the teachers work harder than CEO's of companies.
D. teaching is more important than any other job in America
45. Which of the topics is NOT included in the letter?
A. Election            B. International affair    C. Finance           D. Education,

What does the word “home” mean to you? How do you say the word in English? In Spanish? In your language? Although people usually know what the word means it often has no exact translation. It’s not surprising really, because the idea of home varies from country to country, and from person to person. A home is more than a roof and four walls. It’s the cooking, eating, talking, playing and family living that go on inside, which are important as well. And at home you usually feel safe and relaxed.
But it’s not just that homes look different in different countries, they also contain different things and reveal（顯示）different attitudes（態(tài)度） and needs. For example, in cold northern Europe, there’s a fire in the living room or kitchen and all the chairs face it. In the south, where the sun shines a lot and it’s more important to keep the heat out, there are small windows, cool stone floors and often no carpets. We asked some people about their homes.
How often do people move house in your country?
“In my country many people don’t stay in one place for a very long time. They often move every ten years or so.”
— Cheryl, Boston, USA
What are typical features of homes in your country?
“In Britain, even in town there’s always a garden and sometimes a basement. We have separate bedrooms and living rooms. But we don’t often have balconies.
The weather isn’t warm enough!”
— Pat, Exeter, England
(   )49. The word “home” has no exact translation because ______.
A. people can’t find this word in the dictionary
B. no one really knows what a home looks like
C. it has different meanings in different countries
D. people can’t understand each other very well
(   )50. You can ______ at home according to the passage.
A. cook, talk, and play games          B. eat, play, and teach students
C. swim, eat, and make friends          D. do nothing but cool yourself
(   )51. Why is it important to keep the heat out of the houses in southern Europe?
A. Because they want to breathe fresh air outside.
B. Because there’s a fire in the living room.
C. Because they wear heavy clothing all day long.
D. Because the sun there shines a lot in the daytime.
(   )52. Which one is true according to the passage?
A. People in Britain seldom have balconies because it’s so hot outside.
B. “Home” is a place where people feel safe, relaxed and comfortable.
C. Though homes look different in places, they have the same needs.
D. Houses in Europe always have big windows and cool stone floors.

第二部分：閱讀理解（共20小題，每小題2分，滿分40分）
第一節(jié)：閱讀下列短文，然后從所給的四個(gè)選項(xiàng) (A、B、C和D) 中選出最佳選項(xiàng)，并寫在答題紙上.
Every spring scores of people flock to the Buzzard Festival（禿鷲節(jié)） at Hinckley, Ohio. They come to watch for buzzards. Most would be glad just to take a look at a buzzard. If they do see one of these “flying garbage cans”, it will probably be circling high in the sky. From there it can watch the ground for signs of the waste and the dead animals on which it feeds.
The buzzard is the ugliest bird in the United States. In fact, it may well be the ugliest bird in the world. It has a small, bare, pink head. Its thick body is covered with dark, rough feathers.
In spite of its looks, the buzzard is important to the people of Hinckley. It is their first sign of spring. After a winter in the south, buzzards return to their homes in the north. In the Hinckley area, they always return on March 15. No one knows why. But they have come back to Hinckley Ridge on that day, sure as clocks work, for at least forty years.
The excitement starts in February. By the middle of March it has reached a high peak. Bets are placed. Prizes go to the person who sees the first buzzard. Radio stations and newspapers tell of the coming festival. And on the weekend after March 15 the people of Hinckley hold their Buzzard Festival.
The people come and look around. They chat. They eat their pancakes and sausages. Then they drive past Buzzard’s Roost on Hinckley Ridge.
A lot of them stop near the road at the stand set up to give information to visitors. There they can hear, from a recording, the main facts about the buzzard. They can see a stuffed buzzard. They can look at some pictures taken of buzzards in other years. With good luck and a strong pair of field glasses, they may sight one or two live buzzards high in the sky.
Buzzards may be ugly. They may be “flying garbage cans”. But in Hinckley they are just as welcome as the swallows are in Capistrano in California. It would be a sad spring indeed if the buzzards ever failed to come back to Hinckley Ridge.
61．A good title for this story would be _________.
A. The Hinckley Buzzard Festival             
B. Buzzard, the Ugliest Bird
C. Why the Buzzard Has a Pink Head          
D. The Return of “The Garbage Can”
62．The buzzard is called the“flying garbage can”because it _________.
A. is ugly                                  
B. eats waste and dead animals
C. looks like a garbage can                    
D. collect rubbish on the ground
63．The surprising thing about Hinckley’s buzzards is that _________.
A. they spend the winter in the south
B. they come very close to the town
C. they return on the same day each year
D. both buzzards and swallows return to Capistrano on March 15
64．At the information stand, visitors to Hinckley’s Buzzard Festival can _________.
A. feed their pancakes and sausages to buzzards
B. easily see a live buzzard
C. take some pictures with the background of live buzzards
D. learn some facts about the buzzard

                        
Send us your old jeans and other denim (牛仔布)!
What Are We Going to Do with All This Denim?
All the denim will be donated to COTTON FROM BLUE TO GREEN.®. This denim drive is a call-to-action to donate denim and give it "new life" by changing it into UltraTouchtm Natural Cotton Fiber Insulation (纖維隔熱材料), which is used to help build houses in places that have been damaged by hurricanes, tornadoes, and other natural disasters. Your jeans will help set a record, keep clothes out of landfills (垃圾場(chǎng)), and build houses for families to live in! UltraTouehtm is made of 85% recycled fibers and is an environmentally safe, natural cotton fiber insulation.
It's a Fact
It takes about 500 pairs of jeans to recycle enough denim to insulate one average-size U.S. house. So send us lots!
Here's How You Can Get Involved!
1. Get a parent's permission and select as many denim clothes as you like. (Any denim clothing is OK.)   
2. The denim must be used.
3. The denim can be any brand.
4. The denim can be of any color or size but must have been worn by a human (no doll clothes!).
5. Please print out this form and include it with each package!
6. Send as many jeans or denim items as you wish to:
NG Kids P.O. Box 98001 Washington, D.C. 20090-8001
Jeans must be received by June 30, 2009!
61. The activity organizer asks you to send denim clothes to ________.
A. collect old clothes for being reused   B. prevent them from being thrown away
C. provide clothes for the homeless     D. turn them into new clothes for sale
62. The denim clothes that you intend to send_______.
A. can be either new or second-hand    B. can be of any shape or color
C. must be a certain brand            D. Can be worn by dolls
63. We can infer that UltraTouchtm may be the name of_________.
A. a brand of jeans     B. an organization  C. a building material  D. a kind of cloth
64. This activity is probably ________.
A. a charity(慈善) act                    B. a school's homework
C. a building company' s task             D. an environmental act

閱讀下面短文，掌握其大意，然后從21—30各題所給的A、B、C和D項(xiàng)中，選出最佳選項(xiàng)，并在答題卡上將該項(xiàng)涂黑。
Wouldn't it be great if we didn't have to remember passwords (密碼) ever again？If we could just sit in front of our computers and be   21   logged in (登錄? Crave mentions how NECSoft BiodeLogon system uses face recognition technology to log you on to Windows, rather than using a  22 All you need is a webcam and your pretty face to   23  your PC. No more 24  , confusing passwords to remember or change every few months.
After doing a little research, I found this type of  25  already available to consumers via a relatively   26  application called FaceCode. The  27 requires the use of a webcam to recog- nize and log PC users into their systems. You can add as many  28 as you want, provided they each have a Windows account. If the system   29  to recognize your  30 , you can recall the Windows user name and password by using a hot-key combination.

小題1:	A．a(chǎn)utomatically B．personally C．correctly D．occasionally

小題2:	A．face B．password C．software D．system

小題3:	A．a(chǎn)ccess B．connect C．recognize D．remember

小題4:	A．simple B．complicated C．special D．useful

小題5:	A．computer B．technology C．password D．a(chǎn)pplication

小題6:	A．independent B．infrequent C．inexpensive D．instant

小題7:	A．a(chǎn)ccount B．consumer C．designer D．software

小題8:	A．users B．passwords C．systems D．computers

小題9:	A．begins B．tries C．fails D．stops

小題10:

A．a(chǎn)ccount B．name C．password D．face

When you want to go shopping, you’d better decide how much money you can spend on new clothes.
Think about the kind of clothes you really need. Then look for those clothes you really need. Then look for those clothes on sale.
There are labels(標(biāo)簽) inside all new clothes. The labels tell you how to take care of your clothes. The label for a shirt may tell you to wash it in warm water. A sweater label may tell you to wash in cold water. The label on a coat may say “dry clean only”, for washing may ruin this coat. If you do as the directions(說(shuō)明) on the label, you can keep your clothes looking their best for a long time.
Many clothes today must be dry cleaned. Dry cleaning is expensive. When buying new clothes, check to see if they will need to be dry cleaned. You will save money if you buy clothes that can be washed.
You can save money if you buy clothes that are well done. Well-made clothes last longer. They look good even after they have been washed many times. Clothes that cost more money are not necessarily(不一定) better made. They do not always fit better. Sometimes less expensive clothes look and fit better than more expensive clothes.
小題1:The label inside the clothes tell you           ．
      

A．how to keep them looking their best.

B．how to save money.

C．whether they fit you or not.

D．where to get them dry cleaned.

小題2:If you want to save money, you had better buy clothes that__________.

A．don’t fit you

B．don’t last long

C．need to be dry cleaned

D．can be wash

小題3:We learn from the passage that cheaper clothes         ．

A．a(chǎn)re always worse made

B．must be dry cleaned

C．can not be washed

D．can sometimes fit you better

小題4:Give the best title(標(biāo)題)for this passage．

A．Buy Less Expensive Clothes

B．Taking Enough Money When Shopping

C．Being a Clever Clothes Shopper

D．Choosing the Label inside New Clothes

A new law helps people with disabilities. The law says that people with disabilities must be able to get into and out of all public buildings. It also says that business must offer special services to people who have special needs. Companies can not refuse to hire disabled workers. Many businesses may have to change their buildings and services.
—Ramps (坡道) must be built so people can get into buildings.
—Movie theatres must have space for people in wheelchairs and seats for their friends to sit near them.
—Elevators (電梯) must have floor number in Braille.
This law will help millions of people. One woman who has been in a wheelchair for many years said,“It is like a dream.”
小題1:According to the passage we can see that     .

A．it will be difficult for the normal persons to get into the public buildings

B．the buildings of all the businesses will have to be changed

C．Most businesses used to offer special services to people who have special needs

D．it was difficult for the disabled workers to find jobs in the past

小題2: Ramps can help people     .

A．with hearing problems

B．who have difficulty in using their hands

C．who have difficulty in using their legs or feet

D．who don’t like stairs

小題3:The fact that the new law has been passed shows that______.

A．the government has paid no attention to the disabilities

B．the government wants to help these disabilities

C．normal people show mercy to the disabilities

D．companies will hire millions of disabled people