— Not very good. Long lines of cars are on roads especially during rush hours.
—Because Jack did his homework ____ and the teacher asked him to do it again.
—I'd rather take a taxi.It's____.
—I'm sorry, but I ____ when to meet.
When I moved to America in the 7th grade, I did not speak any English. I had no choice but to keep working hard. Although I made 1 when I reached the 9th grade, people still found it difficult to understand me because of my accent (口音).
One day, at a party, I was invited to play a guessing game. When it was my turn, I tried to 2 the object that I had in mind. Suddenly someone said with a laugh, "What did she say?" I felt 3 . Out of kindness, a girl gently advised me to repeat it, but I got stuck on the word "purple"—I couldn't 4 it. This time, everyone laughed while I was trying hard to get the word out of me. This 5 had its own influence on me. When opportunities were opened up for the summer program I had been looking forward to, I 6 to attend (参加) the interview. Luckily, I got tons of encouragement from people around me. So I decided to 7 .
At the interview, the other students in my group spoke very 8 but I didn't speak that much. I knew that I could hardly be understood because of my accent. Besides when I was nervous, it would be even more 9 for me to pronounce words clearly. After the interview, I stayed, said "10 " and explained to the teachers. I didn't want them to think I wasn't interested or I was being unfriendly. But they appreciated (欣赏) that I expressed 11 . "It's OK. You don't have to say sorry. Your accent does not make you less than others," said one of the teachers.
Surprisingly, I was accepted into the 12 . Imagine how I felt!
Up to now, I still feel 13 that I took that step. It is a sign that I have changed. I did not let my accent 14 me. I'm sure I will continue to feel nervous about speaking English with strangers. 15 that's OK. It will not stop me from trying to be better.
their, look, poor, widely, when, buy, product, also, continue, future, popular |
Imagine walking around a fashion store. You see a beautiful leather bag and want it. But in fact, it's made from recycled fruit and food waste. Would you still buy it?
Song Youyang, a 30-year-old material designer, works on developing products. She studied material design at a university in Germany and now lives in China. she was designing some new products, she couldn't find any suitable biomaterials (生物材料) to work with. So, she and her team decided to develop own new material from fruit waste.
The resulting material a lot like leather. It keeps the fruits' texture (质地), sense of touch and nice smell. Song and her team have used this new material to make fashion , such as bags, lamps and so on.
The designer thought these products would be . But in fact, not many customers have bought them. "Many people have their old ideas about biomaterials," said Song. "They think these materials are too expensive or of quality." As a result, it's quite difficult for these materials to become used. But Song still believes biomaterials will shape the . She and her team will working on new types of "green" materials and products.
Besides Song's team, many other fashion companies are working towards the same goal. They are showing us that fashion can be environmentally friendly.
Children's games in ancient China | |
Flying kites | Kites have quite a long history. The earliest kites were made of wood. Now in China, the three most famous kites are the Beijing kite, Tianjin kite and Weifang kite, each of which has its own characteristic (特征). |
Playing diabolo | Diabolo is always made of wood or bamboo and is hollow (空心的) in the center. When juggled (抛接) on ropes, the high-speed rotating (旋转的) diabolo will make a sound. Playing diabolo is a very interesting game. |
Watching shadow plays | The closest thing to watch a film or television during ancient times was watching a shadow play. People control puppets (木偶) behind the screen while singing with music to tell a story. Shadow play was listed as a national intangible cultural heritage (非物质文化遗产) in 2006. |
Setting off firecracker | Firecrackers have a history of more than 2,000 years. It is said that people burnt bamboo joints (节) to make it blast (爆炸) to drive away the beast named Nian in ancient China. Firecrackers are still set off during Spring Festival to symbolize hope and luck. |
Along with firewood (柴), rice, oil, salt, sauce and vinegar, tea is considered one of the seven necessities for life in China. Now, it has also won global (全球的) attention as a shared cultural treasure of mankind.
Since ancient times, Chinese people have been planting, picking, making and drinking tea. More importantly, China's tea culture has developed social custom. It is Chinese tradition that a host should welcome visiting guests with boiled tea. A poem by Song poet Du Lei reads: I offer tea, not wine, to a guest on a cold night:
Boiling tea is one of the oldest Chinese tea brewing (煮沏) methods, dating back (追溯) to the Tang Dynasty (618-907). Tea leaves were boiled for a long time and sometimes they were cooked together with different kinds of herbs (草药) and fruits. During this process, people can enjoy a quiet time. Later in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), a faster and more convenient method become more popular—steeping (冲泡).
However, the old method is now making a comeback among Chinese young people. On the app Xiaohongshu, here are over 40,000 posts on the topic of "stove-boiled" tea (围炉煮茶). They roast tea leaves before boiling them in a teapot on a stove. People sit around the stove in a natural setting and have snacks with their hot tea. Some also wear traditional hanfu as if it could take them back to those ancient times.
Through "stove-boiled" tea, people can taste a slower life and find their inner peace (内心平). As is written in one Xiaohongshu post, "It is very relaxing to drink hot tea and chat with best friends."
① Animal behavior is an interesting and attractive study. Scientists research the ways animals use to look for food. They study how animals protect themselves from their predators, and which animals kill other animals for food. All of this helps us understand how useful animals can be.
② Each country or culture raises some animals for food. In the United States, people mainly eat meat from cows, chickens and pigs. In some other countries, people might raise sheep or buffalo for meat. These differences come in part from weather and other environmental conditions (状况). People around the world eat al kinds of fish and shellfish from oceans and rivers. In some countries, people don't always choose some animal groups, such as dogs, for food while in other countries such animals may become people's favorite food.
③ In West Africa, animals provide humans with more than food. They have been helping people do daily work for thousands of years. Horses, oxen, and other work animals pull heavy things. Elephants, camels and other animals carry people and things from place to place. Carrier pigeons (信鸽) have been used to send messages.
④ People also receive health benefits (利益) from animals. For example, dogs and cats can help calm people down. This is helpful for people fighting illnesses. Animals can also reduce stress, helping people to draw their attention to learning new information, such as reading. When people are walking their dogs or horses, it encourages exercise.
⑤ Animals and humans share space on Earth, so keeping a healthy relationship with animals around us is in our best interest.
a. Pull heavy things. b. Carry people. c. Send messages. d. Look for food.
B . 
C . 
D . 
Imagine that you have woken up on the first day of your vacation. You enjoy a delicious breakfast, take a walk on the beach, and read the morning newspaper as you drink coffee. You are feeling happy and relaxed. But you may start to feel bored by the time the late afternoon comes around!
If you have ever felt like this, you're not alone. It turns out that having unlimited (无限的) free time is not always as great as we expected. What is the best amount (数量) of free time for our happiness?
Researchers tried to answer this question by surveying tens of thousands of people, collecting data (数据) on how they spent their time and how happy they were. After looking at the data, the research team found that having less than two hours of free time a day, was not enough to be happy. People with under two hours of free time a day usually had more stress. It means that they were simply too busy with work to get their happiness.
The fact that being too busy cuts happiness is true. It might lead to the answer that more free time is simply better. Surprisingly, having a lot of free time is not a panacea (灵丹妙药) for happiness. People surely get a certain sense of joy from finishing tasks. Having more than five hours of free time a day makes us lose the sense of joy. It is in fact cutting our happiness. But I think it is how we spend our free time that matters. When free time is used in more active ways, like playing a team sport, then five or more hours a day can keep of even produce happiness. However, spending five or more hours of free time alone can stop happiness.
You're chatting with a friend and want to suggest a good book. All of a sudden, you can't remember the title! The harder you try to remember, . the more it eludes (使不记得) you. We've all been there, and everyone knows how hard it is to remember all the information in your head.
● Repeat important information out loud. When you repeat something out loud, you aren't technically memorizing it. You're actually creating a pattern (方式) and sound that will make the information easier to remember in the future.
● Turn the TV off while you study and put down the phone while you're driving. When you do different activities at the same time, your attention is divided, which will make it hard to process (处理) the information necessary to remember what you're doing.
● Take notes and write things down. Taking notes will help you memorize the information, even if you never look at your notes again! So you'd better use pens and paper if you really want to remember your friend's birthday or an important meeting.
● Take a short walk. Studies show that taking a walk will increase your memory. If you're trying to remember something, spend a few minutes walking around your neighborhood to see if it helps. At best, you'll remember the name of that life-changing book from primary school!
A. Pay attention to one thing at a time. B. Remember to find a good neighborhood. C. Never watch TV or use mobile phone too much. D. At worst, you'll get some exercise and relax a little. E. Say that address, phone number, or date over and over again. F. Luckily, there are some things you can do to improve your memory. G. Research shows that it's hard to achieve the same result by writing on your phone. |
A: Hello, this is Jinan Care Volunteer Center. Can I help you?
B: Sure. This is a student from No. 1 Middle School. I want to be a volunteer at your center.
A: Welcome!
B: My name is Li Hua.
A:
B: Well, maybe I can help to clean up the city parks. I like working outside.
A: OK.
B: When is the interview?
A: On July 10th.
B: Where is the Jinan Care Volunteer Center?
A:
B: OK. I've got it, Thanks.
A: You are welcome.
A. What's your name? B. What's your hobby? C. What can you help with? D. But we need to interview you first E. It's in Hongxing Business Building. F. Working out side is very interesting. G. If it's OK, you can come to the center. |
Activities | go jogging (慢跑), have a picnic, … |
Points for attention | stay in formation (队形), take away the rubbish, … |
Benefits (益处) | keep fit, … |
注意：1. 短文必须包含你所选活动项目的所有信息，并适当发挥；2. 文中不得出现与你身份相关的信息；3. 词数：80～120。短文开头已给出，不计入总词数。
There will be a school trip day on next Friday in our school.
