No one knows when the first kite was made. The first record of a kite was more than 2,000 years ago in China. Han Xin, the leader of an army, wanted to bring down a king. He decided to dig a tunnel (隊道）into the king’s palace. He flew a kite over the wall of the palace to make sure the length (长度）of its string (线).In this way, he could determine how long the tunnel should be.His men in the tunnel took the kite string with them. When they reached the end of the string, they knew to dig up.
Kites have been flown in Japan for hundreds of years. In the 1700s, kites were flown in autumn to give thanks for a good harvest. They were also flown to send good wishes to couples who had their first son. Today in Japan, kites are often flown as part of a celebration, such as the beginning of a new year. And kite festivals are held each year in many parts of the country.
Kites have been used for scientific purposes in the western world. In 1752，Benjamin Franklin tied a key to a kite and flew it in a storm to find out that lightening was a form of electricity. In the 1890s，Lawrence Hargrave invented the box kite to test ideas about flight. From 1898 until 1933，the United States Weather Bureau (气象局） used box kites to collect weather data. The Wright brothers also experimented (试验）with kites. What they learnt helped them make the first airplane flight in 1903.
1.Why did Han Xin want to dig a tunnel?
A. To pull down the palace. B. To fight against the king.
C. To search for the king’s treasure. D. To find out the length of the kite string.
2.What does the underlined word “determine” in Paragraph 1 probably mean in Chinese?
A. 测定 B. 选择 C. 了解 D. 考察
3.One of the purposes of flying kites in Japan is_.
A. to give thanks for a good harvest in summer
B. to express good wishes to the first-born daughter
C. to celebrate the beginning of a new year
D. to hold kite festivals all over the country
4.When did the United States Weather Bureau begin to use box kites?
A. In 1752. B. In 1898. C. In 1903. D. In 1933.
5.What would be the best title for the text?
A. The History of Kites B. The Experiments of Kites
C. The Invention of a Kite D. The First Record of a Kite
There were two men who lived next to each other. One of them was a teacher and the other was a doctor. Both of them had planted many different plants in their gardens. The teacher seldom watered his plants and didn’t pay a lot of attention to them. But his neighbor was very careful with his plants and watered them often.
The teacher’s plants were small, but still looked okay, while the doctor’s plants were much bigger and greener. One night, there was heavy rain and wind. The next morning, both of the neighbors came out to check on their gardens. The doctor saw that his plants had been ripped from the ground and were destroyed. But the teacher’s plants were not damaged at all but stood firmly.
The doctor was surprised. He went to ask the teacher. “We both grew the same plants and I cared for my plants better than you did. How could your plants still be okay?” The teacher smiled and said, “Because I gave my plants just a little bit of water, so their roots had to grow deeper to absorb(吸收) more water. That is why my plants didn’t die.”
1._______ was very careful with his plants and watered them often.
A.The teacher B.The doctor C.Nobody D.Both A and B
2.What did the teacher’s plants look like?
A.Big B.Green C.Small D.Beautiful
3.The underlined word “firmly” in Paragraph 2 probably means__________.
A.摇摇欲坠地 B.稳固地 C.更高地 D.歪倒地
4.The doctor was_______ to see that his plants were destroyed.
A.surprised B.happy C.excited D.sad
5.What is the main idea of the story?
A.Growing a garden is not as easy as it looks.
B.A storm can destroy all the plants in your garden.
C.Plants know how to protect themselves from storms.
D.Too much care can make us become weak.
Long long ago, there was a beautiful little girl. She was alone because she had no family and no home. She only had her clothes and some bread. But she was very kind.
A man asked her if she had something to eat. She gave him her bread A child cried and told her that his head was very cold. So she gave him her hat. Then, she met a child with no coat. She gave him her coat.
One day, in the cold dark forest, she met another child who asked for her dress. The little girl thought that it was dark and nobody could see her, so she gave her dress away. At last, she had almost nothing: no family, nowhere to live, nothing to eat and little to wear.
Suddenly, stars fell from the sky. These stars became pieces of money and a beautiful dress.
The little girl was rich for the rest of her life and she still helped the people in need with her money.
1.The beautiful little girl was because she had no family and no home.
A. lazy B. alone C. rich D. thin
2.When she met a child with no coat, she gave him her .
A. bread B. hat C. coat D. money
3. , she gave her dress away.
A. In an old house B. In the forest C. In the sky D. At home
4. fell from the sky became pieces of money and a beautiful dress.
A. The hat B. The coat C. The bread D. The stars
5.The little girl was rich for the rest of her life because of her .
A. kindness B. family C. beauty D. dress
Li Wen is a 15-year-old boy. He works hard and does well in school. It is hard to believe that he used to have difficulties in school. When his parents moved to the city to work, they could not be at home to take care of him. So he became less interested in studying and was absent from classes. Then his parents made a decision to send him to a boarding school. He found life there difficult. One day he told his teacher he wanted to leave the school. His teacher advised his parents to talk with their son in person. This conversation changed his life. He realized that his parents would always love him, and they would be proud of everything good that he did. Now he is much happier and more outgoing than he used to be.
1.Li Wen works hard and he is good at his lessons.
2.Li Wen used to have difficulties in school.
3.Li Wen became more interested in studying after his parents moved to the city.
4.Li Wen’s teacher advised Li Wen to talk with his parents himself.
5.Li Wen becomes much happier and more outgoing now.
Last year, we took a trip to New York City. When we________ our hotel, it was around 2 a.m. My son, Joseph, looked out at the lights of Times Square and said he wanted to go ______. I told him it was too ______ to go out, but he kept looking out of the window and said, “Just for two minutes.”
My wife and I just looked at each other, smiled and said, “Two minutes.” We got dressed and walked into the center of Times Square. _______ we got there, my son pointed at the lights and said, “Dad, _______!” And then he started to fall asleep. So we had to go back to the hotel.
It took us 20 minutes to _____ for the 20 seconds we spent outside, but it made our son ________ and that meant a lot to us. That night, I learned a lesson about happiness. We sometimes have chances to create happy moments in our lives, but we often find an excuse(借口) to do________.
Because of my son, I learned that I am the biggest _______to my own happiness. Because happiness is a door that is always open, we are the ones ________ have to decide if we are going to walk through the door.
1.A.arrived in B.arrived C.got D.arrived at
2.A.inside B.outside C.back D.home
3.A.hot B.early C.late D.cold
4.A.If B.Unless C.Because D.When
5.A.listen B.touch C.look D.smile
6.A.make rules B.get ready C.do sports D.have dinner
7.A.sad B.happy C.bored D.patient
8.A.something else B.else something C.nothing else D.else nothing
9.A.friend B.teacher C.enemy D.father
10.A.who B.which C.what D.where
—Could you tell me how to pay for the food by QR(二维码) on the smart phone?
—
A.Take it easy. B.It doesn’t matter. C.You’re welcome. D.Sure, I’d love to.
