How do you get to Carnegie Hall? “Practice, p...

How do you get to Carnegie Hall? “Practice, practice, practice” is the well-known answer. But for some inspirting young musicians from the Afghanistan National Institute of Music in Kabul, the road to the famous concert ball was more difficult.

The Afghan Youth Orchestra(AYO) is made up of young people who study at the Afghanistan National Institute of Music. It was the first orchestra created in Afghanistan in 30 years.

Gulalai Norestani, 14, plays a traditional string instrument. Like many students, Gulalai became an orphan when her parents were killed during the ongoing war. Music is her salvation. “Music for me is a language of peace,” Gulalai said. “It connects people.”

Milad Yousufi, 18, is a piano student. “Music is my life,” he said. Milad also lost many of his family members during the war. When music was banned, he couldn’t even touch a piano. So as a 12-year-old boy, he started painting and drawing. “I used to draw a piano,” he said. Finally, Milad was free to play a real piano. “Our dream came true,” he said, “It is everyone’s dream to play in Carnegie Hall.”

And he has more dreams. “I have a dream to continue my education in America,” he explained. “I am working hard to make that happen. Then I have a dream to come back to Afghanistan and teach and serve people.”

Because of continuing limits in Afghanistan, Gulalai and Milad listen mostly to the kind of classical music they played at Carnegie Hall. But Gulalai says she’s heard a bit of Jennifer Lopez and Shakira and she likes them. Milad says he has heard of Lady Gaga and Justin Bieber, but hasn’t yet had a chance to listen to them.

Before Milad went onstage that night with the band of Afghan kids who had survived a war, I asked him if he had ever experienced true peace. “No, not yet,” he answered, adding, “I hope I will be able to.”

Later during the performance, as he played one of Carnegie Hall’s famous grand pianos, the look of pure joy on his face convinced me that he found peace in music.

1.In the opinion of Gulaai, music __________ .

A. makes people understand each other

B. calms her down in the war

C. is a kind of violent language

D. saves her from the killing at war

2.What is Milad’s final goal?

A. To play a real piano.

B. To be a teacher.

C. To play in Carnegie Hall.

D. To be educated in America.

3.According to the passage, __________.

A. classical music is not played in Afghanistan

B. Gulalai knows Lady Gaga and Justin Bieber well

C. the music Gulalai and Milad can hear is limited

D. Milad likes Jennifer Lopez and Shakira

4.What may be the best title for the text?

A. Traditional Afghan Music

B. Young Musicians

C. A Better Performance

D. A Peace in Music

高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

—I want to get a license. What do you think I should do?

—Only with enough practice ______ the driving test, I think.

A. you can pass     B. can you pass      C. can pass you  D. that you can pass

高二英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析

It’s well-known that meditation (冥想) has many benefits, but do you know how to practice it for a beginner?

Set a proper scene

Find a space for meditation．It should be private and quiet．Make sure the temperature is comfortable．Sit on a cushion (垫子) if the floor is uncomfortable．You may play soft music if you like.

Take a moment to loosen up．Remember that the goal of meditation is to relax．Loosen your clothing, remove your shoes and have a good stretch．Do your best to ease any muscle tension that might keep you from achieving relaxation．Make an effort to relax your facial muscles．

Focus on your breath

Sit down in the space you’ve prepareD． Close your eyes and breathe．Each time you breathe in, count “one”．Each time you breathe out, count “one”．The idea is to strengthen being in the moment — the last breath doesn’t matter, and the next one doesn’t matter; only this one matters．

Feel your breath inflate (胀大) your lungs and push on your diaphragm (隔膜)．Feel how sweet it is to inhale the fresh air．As you do this, your body will gradually begin to relax and all of your attention will be centered within your minD．

Return to real life

Once you feel fully centered in your mind, allow yourself to gradually drift back to real life．Move your fingers and toes and slowly wake your body up．Open your eyes and remain there for a few minutes until your senses come back, and then slowly stand up．

Even if you can’t make it fully into your mind, you still get some benefits from it．If you want to feel better, you just need to practice．Set about 10 minutes around the same time every day and repeat this exercise.

1.The text is about _________.

A． steps in practicing meditation for beginners

B． tips on how to breathe slowly

C． the benefits of practicing meditation

D． the best way to stay relaxed

2.Which of the following can best fill in the blank?

A． Forget yourself.

B． Prepare yourself for it.

C． Avoid being disturbed.

D． Pay attention to your inner self．

3.The underlined word “inhale” in the text can be replaced by “__________”.

A． look for

B． take in

C． keep away

D． think of

4.To gain greater benefits of meditation, beginners are advised to __________.

A． do some exercise in advance

B． listen to some popular music

C． practice it every day

D． spend a long time in practicing it

高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

It’s well-known that meditation (冥想) has many benefits, but do you know how to practice it for a beginner?

Set a proper scene

Find a space for meditation．It should be private and quiet．Make sure the temperature is comfortable．Sit on a cushion (垫子) if the floor is uncomfortable．You may play soft music if you like.

Take a moment to loosen up．Remember that the goal of meditation is to relax．Loosen your clothing, remove your shoes and have a good stretch．Do your best to ease any muscle tension that might keep you from achieving relaxation．Make an effort to relax your facial muscles．

Focus on your breath

Sit down in the space you’ve prepared．Close your eyes and breathe．Each time you breathe in, count “one”．Each time you breathe out, count “one”．The idea is to strengthen being in the moment — the last breath doesn’t matter, and the next one doesn’t matter; only this one matters．

Feel your breath inflate (胀大) your lungs and push on your diaphragm (隔膜)．Feel how sweet it is to inhale the fresh air．As you do this, your body will gradually begin to relax and all of your attention will be centered within your mind．

Return to real life

Once you feel fully centered in your mind, allow yourself to gradually drift back to real life．Move your fingers and toes and slowly wake your body up．Open your eyes and remain there for a few minutes until your senses come back, and then slowly stand up．

Even if you can’t make it fully into your mind, you still get some benefits from it．If you want to feel better, you just need to practice．Set about 10 minutes around the same time every day and repeat this exercise.

1.The text is about _________.

A．steps in practicing meditation for beginners

B．tips on how to breathe slowly

C．the benefits of practicing meditation

D．the best way to stay relaxed

2.Which of the following can best fill in the blank?

A．Forget yourself.

B．Prepare yourself for it.

C．Avoid being disturbed.

D．Pay attention to your inner self．

3.The underlined word “inhale” in the text can be replaced by “__________”.

A．look for

B．take in

C．keep away

D．think of

4.To gain greater benefits of meditation, beginners are advised to __________.

A．do some exercise in advance

B．listen to some popular music

C．practice it every day

D．spend a long time in practicing it

高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

—How do you like his plan?

—It may be so in _ ____ theory, but how will it work in ______practice?

A. the; the         B.／; ／ C. the; ／ D.／; the

高二英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析

From school to band practice, the Venturi Eclectic is an Earth-friendly way to get where you want to go. This battery-powered, zero-emission (meaning it doesn't pollute the air) vehicle runs mainly on renewable energy. Solar panels on the Eclectic's roof absorb sun rays when you're driving. On windy days, you can connect a machine to the car's roof that collects energy from the wind while you're parked. The Eclectic's top speed is 28 miles an hour; the battery lasts for 31 miles before it needs to be recharged. Zipping (迅速行进) around the neighborhood has never been better.

Here's an eco-friendly way to tell time: Simply fill the Bedol Water-powered Clock's tank (箱) with water, add some lemon juice, and the clock will display the time without the need for environmentally harmful batteries. There are two sets of metal electrodes(电极) inside the water tank. Water contains ions (离子) that carry negative and positive charges. These ions complete a charge between the electrodes, creating enough energy to power the clock. Just refill the tank every few weeks, and this clock will keep on ticking.

You’re having a blast at your friend’s birthday party. But when it's time to bring out the cake, everyone crowds around, blocking your view. No worries. Throw the Triops into the air, and this clever camera catches the view from above. The Triops can take three pictures at once, each from different angles. You can also record sounds and command the Triops to start shooting (拍摄)whenever it hears that noise. That's one smart camera.

1.According to the passage, the Venturi Eclectic ________.

A．is popular with businessmen

B．is suitable for a long trip

C．has only a little gas emission

D．can turn wind into energy

2.What is the common characteristic of the Venturi Eclectic and the Bedol Water-powered Clock?

A．They don't need batteries.

B．They can be powered by water.

C．They are difficult to operate.

D．They are environmentally friendly.

3.The underlined phrase “having a blast” in the last paragraph probably means ________.

A．looking at a picture                      B．recording sounds

C．enjoying yourself                       D．blowing out a candle

高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

How to Write a Story

Writing a detailed story takes patience and practice. 1., though , you can handle the challenge.

Keep the outline short

Avoid complete sentences. 2.. Long outlines with complete sentences end up being unnecessarily wordy. Sometimes they look like full paragraphs rather than brief outlines. Spending too much time and putting too much detail into your outline is effort you could be putting into writing the story itself.

Choose a point of view

Once you've written your outline and thought about the story you want to tell, decide at what point the reader enters the story. For you, and especially for the reader, the experience is a more intriguing one if the reader begins the story in the middle of the action. 3.. It will get your reader's attention immediately. He wants to continue reading surely. A boring opening means a bored reader who has no interest in moving on.

4.

Avoid giving everything away about the character in the first few paragraphs. Instead, consider different ways you can reveal different facets of the characters to your readers without stating them in an obvious way. 5.. If you take on too many, you'll find you won't be able to develop each of them fully in only a few pages.

A. Develop the characters

B. Instead, use short phrases or terms

C. Begin your story in an interesting way

D. If you're motivated and truly love to write

E. Before you write anything, you need an idea for a great story

F. Limit the number of main characters you include in your story

G. Once you've written your outline about the story that you want to tell

高二英语七选五简单题查看答案及解析

When you practice reading with passages shorter than book length, do not try to take in each word separately, one after the other. It is much more difficult to grasp the broad theme of the passage this way, and you will also get the stuck on individual words which may not be absolutely essential to a general understanding of the passage. It is a good idea to skim through the passage very quickly first to get the general idea of each paragraph. Titles, paragraph headings and emphasized words can be a great help in getting this skeleton outline of the passage. It is surprising how many people do not read titles, introductions or paragraph headings. Can you, without looking back, remember the title of this passage and the heading of this paragraph?

Most paragraphs of a passage or chapter have a 'topic sentence' which expresses the central idea. The remaining sentences expand or support that idea. It has been estimated that between 50% and 90% of all expositive（说明的）paragraphs in English have the topic sentence first. Always pay special attention to the first sentence of a paragraph, it is most likely to give you the main idea.

Sometimes, though, the first sentence in the paragraph does not have the feel of 'main idea' sentence. It does not seem to give us enough new information to justify a paragraph. The next most likely place to look for the topic sentence is the last sentence of the paragraph.

Remember that the opening and closing paragraphs of a passage or chapter are particularly important. The opening paragraph suggests the general direction and content of the piece, while the closing paragraph often summarizes the very essence（精髓）.

1. It is a good idea to skim through a passage quickly first ____________.

A. at about 315 w.p.m.（words per minute）

B. to get the general idea of each paragraph

C. so that you can take in each work separately

D. to make sure you get to the end at least once

2.The topic sentence of an expository paragraph in English _____________.

A. usually comes in the middle

B. is most likely to be found at the end

C. is most often at the beginning

D. is usually left out in expository writing

3. Most expository paragraphs in English have a clearly defined topic sentence. In such paragraphs the topic sentence comes first _____________.

A. in about 5% of cases                       B in about 80% of cases

C. in about 20% cases                         D. very rarely

4.Sometimes we know the first sentence is not the topic sentence because ____________.

A. it does not seem to give us enough new information

B. it is not long enough

C. it does not come at the beginning

D. it does not make a complete sentence

5.The closing paragraph of a piece of writing ____________.

A. is not really very important

B. is often unnecessary repetition

C. often comes at the end

D. often summarizes the essence of the passage

高二英语阅读理解困难题查看答案及解析

When you practice reading with passages shorter than book length, do not try to take in each word separately, one after the other. It is much more difficult to grasp the broad theme of the passage this way, and you will also get the stuck on individual words which may not be absolutely essential to a general understanding of the passage. It is a good idea to skim through the passage very quickly first to get the general idea of each paragraph. Titles, paragraph headings and emphasized words can be a great help in getting this skeleton outline of the passage. It is surprising how many people do not read titles, introductions or paragraph headings. Can you, without looking back, remember the title of this passage and the heading of this paragraph?

Most paragraphs of a passage or chapter have a 'topic sentence' which expresses the central idea. The remaining sentences expand or support that idea. It has been estimated that between 50% and 90% of all expositive（说明的）paragraphs in English have the topic sentence first. Always pay special attention to the first sentence of a paragraph, it is most likely to give you the main idea.

Sometimes, though, the first sentence in the paragraph does not have the feel of 'main idea' sentence. It does not seem to give us enough new information to justify a paragraph. The next most likely place to look for the topic sentence is the last sentence of the paragraph.

Remember that the opening and closing paragraphs of a passage or chapter are particularly important. The opening paragraph suggests the general direction and content of the piece, while the closing paragraph often summarizes the very essence（精髓）.

1.It is a good idea to skim through a passage quickly first ____________.

A. at about 315 w.p.m.（words per minute）

B. to get the general idea of each paragraph

C. so that you can take in each work separately

D. to make sure you get to the end at least once

2.The topic sentence of an expository paragraph in English _____________.

A. usually comes in the middle

B. is most likely to be found at the end

C. is most often at the beginning

D. is usually left out in expository writing

3.Most expository paragraphs in English have a clearly defined topic sentence. In such paragraphs the topic sentence comes first ________.

A. in about 5% of cases　　　　　　　　　　　　　     B in about 80% of cases

C. in about 20% cases　　　　　　　　　　　　　　     D. very rarely

4.Sometimes we know the first sentence is not the topic sentence because ____________.

A. it does not seem to give us enough new information

B. it is not long enough

C. it does not come at the beginning

D. it does not make a complete sentence

5.The closing paragraph of a piece of writing ____________.

A. is not really very important

B. is often unnecessary repetition

C. often comes at the end

D. often summarizes the essence of the passage

高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

How do actors and actresses memorize hundreds of lines? Memorizing lines takes practice and constant repetition. However, there are a few ways to make the memorization process run smoothly and quickly.

1.

For most performers, there is no quicker way of memorizing lines. To learn lines, an actor must recite the play loud over and over again. Most rehearsals (彩排) encourage this by running through the lines or having a “read through”. By the time opening night arrives, most actors have spoken their lines hundreds of times.

Listen to your cast members.

Sometimes inexperienced actors spend rehearsals just looking at fellow performers, waiting patiently to say their next line. 2.  This will help the actor learn his lines better because the context of the dialogue is absorbed.

3.

Because there is often not enough rehearsal time, many performers find ways to listen to the play’s dialogue during everyday activities. They use a tape recorder or an MP4 player to listen to the lines from each relevant scene (剧情). Some actors prefer to record the lines of all the characters, including their own. 4. Others like recording the lines of fellow cast members (参演人员), and they leave a blank space so that they can insert their dialogue while listening to the recording.

Think positively and don’t panic.

Most actors will experience stage fright before the opening night. Actors forget lines now and then. When it happens, however, most of the time the audience never notice. If you forget a line in the middle of your performance, don’t freeze. Stay in character. Keep the scene going to the best of your ability. If unfortunately you forget a line once, you will probably never forget that line ever again. 5.

A. Record your lines.

B. Practice makes perfect.

C. Read lines loud and repeat them.

D. Read lines loud and remember them in a flash.

E. Sometimes embarrassment is the toughest method of memorization.

F. Then, they not only listen carefully, but they also speak all of the lines.

G. Instead, they should be listening carefully, responding in character at all times.

高二英语七选五困难题查看答案及解析