If Confucius（孔子）were still alive today and could celebrate his September 28 birthday with a big cake，there would be a lot of candles．He'd need a strong wind to help him put them out．
While many people in China will remember Confucius on this special day，few people in the United States will give him a passing thought．It's nothin g personal．Most Americans don't even remember the birthdays of their own national heroes．
But this doesn't mean that Americans don't care about Confucius．In many ways he has become a bridge that foreigners must cross if they want to reach a deeper understanding of China．
In the past two decades，the Chinese studies programs have gained huge popularity in Western universities．More recently，the Chinese government has set up Confucius Institutes in more than 80 countries．These schools teach both Chinese language and culture．The main courses of Chinese culture usually included Chinese art，history and philosophy（哲学）．Some social scientists suggest that Westerners should take advantages of the ancient Chinese wisdom to make up for the drawbacks（缺点） of Westerners philosophy．Students in the United States，at the same time，are racing to learn Chinese．So they will be ready for life in a world where China is an equal power with the United States．Businessmen who hope to make money in China are reading books about Confucius to understand their Chinese customers．
So the old thinker's ideas are still alive and well．
Today China attracts the West more than ever，and it will need more teachers to introduce Confucius and Chinese culture to the West．
As for the old thinker，he will not soon be forgotten by people in the West，even if his birthday is．
1.The opening paragraph is mainly intended to ______
A. provide some key facts about Confucius
B. attract the readers'i nterest in the subject
C. show great respect for the ancient thinker
D. prove the popularity of modern birthday celebrations
2.We can learn from Paragraph 4 that American students ______
A. have a great interest in studying Chinese
B. take an active part in Chinese competitions
C. try to get high scores in Chinese exams
D. fight for a chance to learn Chinese
3.What is t he best title for the passage？ ______
A. Forgotten Wisdom in America B. Huge Fans of the Chinese Language
C. Chinese Culture for Westerners D. Old Thinker with a Big Future
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
One of the greatest contributions to the first Oxford English Dictionary was also one of its most unusual． In 1879， Oxford University in England asked Prof．James Murray to serve as editor for what was to be the most ambitious dictionary in the history of the English language． It would include every English word possible and would give not only the definition but also the history of the word and quotations （引文） showing how it was used．
This was a huge task， so Murrary had to find volunteers from Britain， the United States， and the British colonies to search every newspaper， magazine， and book ever written in English． Hundreds of volunteers responded， including William Chester Minor． Dr． Minor was an American surgeon who had served in the Civil War and was now living in England． He gave his address as "Broadmoor， Crowthorne， Berkshire，" 50 miles from Oxford．
Minor joined the army of volunteers sending words and quotations to Murray． Over the next 17 years， he became one of the staff's most valued contributors．
But he was also a mystery． In spite of many invitations， he would always decline to visit Oxford． So in 1897， Murray finally decided to travel to Crowthorne himself． When he arrived， he found Minor locked in a book-lined cell at the Broadmoor Asylum （精神病院） for the Criminally Insane．
Murray and Minor became friends， sharing their love of words． Minor continued contributing to the dictionary， sending in more than 10，000 submissions in 20 years． Murray continued to visit Minor regularly， sometimes taking walks with him around the asylum grounds．
In 1910， Minor left Broadmoor for an asylum in his native America． Murray was at the port to wave goodbye to his remarkable friend.
Minor died in 1920， seven years before the first edition of the Oxford English Dictionary was completed． The 12 volumes defined 414 825 words， and thousands of them were contributions from a very scholarly and devoted asylum patient．
1.How did Dr．Minor contribute to the dictionary?
A. He helped Murray to find hundreds of volunteers．
B. He sent newspapers, magazines and books to Murray．
C. He provided a great number of words and quotations．
D. he went to England to work with Murray．
2.Which of the following best describe Dr．Minor?
A. Brave and determined. B. Cautious and friendly.
C. Considerate and optimistic. D. Unusual and scholarly.
3.What does the text mainly talk about?
A. The history of the English language．
B. The friendship between Murray and Minor．
C. Minor and the first Oxford English Dictionary．
D. Broadmoor Asylum and its patients．
难度: 简单查看答案及解析
Holidays are really important． Many of us will have childhood memories of summer holidays where we were taken away from home to experience new environments and learn in different ways．
But holidays are expensive and， for those on low wages or living on benefits， they are often unobtainable． Even the cheapest holidays require travel and other additional costs that are difficult for many families to meet．
For working parents， the long summer break can be a very difficult problem for childcare． When an annual leave allowance amounts to only five weeks， there is a need to spread this across the year． Couples can find themselves taking leave in turn in order to care for children who are on holiday． For some， this makes even an affordable family holiday difficult．
The schools that I visit in Nottingham are full of experienced staff committed to giving our children a caring and inspiring learning environment． The number of children receiving free school meals is quite large in Nottingham and many schools have breakfast clubs to make sure that children get a healthy start to the day． Most schools undertake programs of group or individual educational support． Schools also have an important role in safeguarding children's welfare through the ongoing touch and support with their pupils． During the long summer holidays， much of this is missed．
While teachers are holidaying in the UK， many of their pupils spend the whole six weeks on the street where they live． The lack of free school meals for six weeks can result in pressure on a family budget and an inability to afford the inspiring experiences that help children to continue their learning．
In setting out its plans for a five-term year， Nottingham City Council （委员会） is seeking to reduce the summer holiday down to four and a half weeks， with a more balanced five terms of roughly eight weeks， each followed by a two-week break． We believe this will give real "down time" for school staff and pupils alike but will be short enough not to cause a real break in learning．
We acknowledge that this change may be difficult for some school staff， particularly whose own children are educated in other authorities． However， this must be weighed against the benefits for city children for whom we all have the greatest duty of care．
1.The passage is probably written by ________.
A. an experienced teacher B. a working parent
C. an inspired student D. a city council member
2.The underlined word "they" in the second paragraph refers to "________".
A. environments B. holidays
C. wages D. benefits
3.The plans for a shorter summer holiday will help students ________.
A. obtain the cheapest holidays without additional costs
B. get a chance to spend six weeks a term with teachers in school
C. benefit more from the caring and inspiring learning environment
D. have more school days to receive free school meals
4.It can be inferred from the passage that ________.
A. working parents can enjoy a five-week break to care for their children
B. the suggested plans for a five-term school year can hardly be carried out
C. the long summer holiday gives teachers and students real "down time"
D. some school staff will say "No" to the plans for a shorter summer holiday
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Chinese Kung Fu is a series of fighting styles which has developed over a long historical period in China．1.． Styles， including shaolin， taichi and qigong， have many followers worldwide． Some westerners think that all Chinese people are kung fu masters．2.． But this traditional heritage has its unique existence in modern times and has much influence on the local's lifestyle．
3.， kung fu advocates virtue and peace， not aggression or violence． This has been the common value upheld by martial artists from generation to generation． With a number of movement sets， boxing styles， weapon skills and some unique fighting skills， kung fu keeps its original function of self-defense．4.．
In order to survive in an extremely aggressive environment， our primitive Chinese ancestors developed primary means of defense and attack that including jumping， tumbling（空翻）and kicking． The martial arts we recognize today as kung fu had their origins in the Shang and Zhou Dynasties． During the following Qin and Han Dynasties， wrestling， swordplay and spear skills became well developed and were popular among civilians and troops．5.， various schools， boxing styles， movement sets and weapon skills developed quickly．
A．Although being fighting styles
B．Including various schools
C．Following the Song Dynasty
D．That may not be completely true
E．Kung fu has become a large system
F．Now its value in body-building and fitness is also highly appreciated
G．Nowadays， it is regarded as a traditional sport gaining more and more popularity
难度: 简单查看答案及解析
I used to hate being called upon in class mainly because I didn't like attention drawn to myself．And ______otherwise assigned（指定）a seat by the teacher，I always ______to sit at the back of the classroom．
All this ______after I joined a sports team．It began when a teacher suggested I try out for the basketball team．At first I thought it was a crazy ______because I didn't have a good sense of balance，nor did I have the ______to keep pace with the others on the team and they would tease me．But for the teacher who kept insisting on my" ______for it"，I wouldn't have decided to give it a try．
Getting up the courage to go to the try outs was only the ______of it!When I first started ______the practice sessions，I didn't even know the rules of the game，much ______what I was doing．Sometimes I'd get ______and take a shot at the wrong direction-which made me feel really stupid．_____，I wasn't the only one"new"at the game，so I decided to ______on ieaming the game，do my best at each practice session，and not be too hard on myself for the things I didn't ______"just yet"．
I practiced and practiced．Soon I knew the ______and the"moves"．Being part of a team was fun and motivating．Very soon the competitive ______ in me was winning over my lack of confidence．With time，I learned how to play and made friends in the _____一 friends who respected my efforts to work hard and be a team player．I never had so much fun!
With my ______self-confidence comes more praise from teachers and classmates．I have gone from" ______"in the back of the classroom and not wanting to call attention to myself，______raising my hand---even when I sometimes wasn't 100 percent ______I had the right answer．Now I have more self-confidence in myself．
1.A. as B. until C. unless D. though
2.A. hoped B. agreed C. meant D. chose
3.A. continued B. changed C. settled D. started
4.A. idea B. plan C. belief D. saying
5.A. right B. chance C. ability D. patience
6.A. going B. looking C. cheering D. applying
7.A. point B. half C. rest D. basis
8.A. enjoying B. preparing C. attending D. watching
9.A. less B. later C. worse D. further
10.A. committed B. motivated C. embarrassed D. confused
11.A. Interestingly B. Fortunately C. Obviously D. Hopefully
12.A. focus B. act C. rely D. try
13.A. want B. do C. support D. know
14.A. steps B. orders C. rules D. games
15.A. role B. part C. mind D. value
16.A. process B. operation C. movement D. situation
17.A. expressed B. improved C. preserved D. recognized
18.A. dreaming B. playing C. relaxing D. hiding
19.A. by B. for C. with D. to
20.A. lucky B. happy C. sure D. satisfied
难度: 简单查看答案及解析
语法填空
There are many things we need to know but do not learn at school． For example， if we want to use our money1.(wise)， we need to shop carefully． We need to know how to compare the prices and quality． We need to know how to make2.best decision when we shop． Knowing how to make such decisions 3.(be) a life skill， and we need these skills if we are to lead useful and happy lives．
Some of the decisions are small． For example， will I take an apple or a pear4.lunch? Will I take the bus to school today or will I walk？ Others are more important． For example， will I eat healthy food 5.will I eat junk food because it is 6.(tasty)？ We make decisions like this every day．7.， making the wrong ones can result 8.unhappiness． We have to realize that the 9.(choose) we make can affect the rest of our lives， and it can also affect other people． Next time you decide 10.(waste) time in class， play a joke on someone or talk loudly at the movies， consider this: who else does your decision affect？
难度: 简单查看答案及解析
假设你是学生李华。为响应今年政府工作报告中提出的“提倡全民阅读，建设书香社会”的号召，你班将举行一次班会，就此话题展开讨论。请你用英语写一篇发言稿。
内容要点：1． “全民阅读”的好处；2． 就开展“全民阅读”活动提出具体的建议。
注意：1．词数80词左右；
2．文章开头和结尾已为你写好，不计入总词数。
参考词汇：书香社会nation of avid readers
Boys and girls，
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
That’s all．
Thank you．
难度: 简单查看答案及解析
Max works as a security guard at a famous museum． As a security guard， Max watches visitors to the museum as they come and go． He often wonders things about them． Where do they come from？ Are they happily married？ What do they do for a living？
One day， Max notices a very pretty woman visiting the exhibit he is guarding． He has seen her before． In fact， she often comes to see the rare jewelry exhibit - sometimes several times a week．
During one of these visits， she starts a conversation with Max． She asks if it is difficult to be a security guard and if he ever gets bored． She introduces herself as Maria， a fashion designer．
When Maria comes to visit， she often talks with Max． "Maybe she likes me，" he thinks．
Max thinks she is very interesting and wants to spend more time with her． During one of their talks at the museum， he finds out that she is studying Italian．
He lies and tells her he has always wanted to learn Italian． He is simply using Italian as a trick． And it works! Max and Maria meet every Saturday afternoon in the museum garden to study Italian．
During the lessons， they also talk about themselves． Maria shares her dreams of one day showing her fashions in a museum． Max tells her many details about his security job， including the security code and the locations of alarms． He jokes that it would be very easy to rob the museum．
Over the passing weeks， they learn more about each other． What Max doesn't learn， however， is that Maria is not as innocent as she looks． Maria is actually an international jewel thief! Police from eight different countries have been searching for her in the past two years!
Her latest goal is to steal the rare Black Diamond! This diamond is the most valuable diamond in the world and it is part of the exhibit that Max is guarding． All her attention on him was a trick to learn more about the museum's security system．
注意：1． 所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2． 应使用5个以上短文中标有下划线的关键词语；
3． 续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好；
4． 续写完成后，请用下划线标出你所使用的关键词语．
Paragraph 1：
One night after the museum closes， Maria appears at the gate of the museum．
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Paragraph 2：
As she holds the diamond in her hands， the lights in the museum go on．
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难度: 中等查看答案及解析