If you’re like most students, you may find it challenging to learn a foreign language. However, there are a few tips you can use in order to earn a top grade —— as well as actually use the skills you’ve learned.
One of the most important and basic lessons in dealing with a foreign language is to learn and understand each concept and lesson before moving on to the next one. If you don’t understand one concept but move on to the next chapter anyway, you’re less likely to understand the new material.
Learning a new language is not only an academic tool, but can help you in your everyday life as well. Being good at another language can help you communicate with other people, and help you when traveling to foreign countries, and even make your resume look better.
And it is important to learn correct pronunciation as soon as possible for poor pronunciation can be hard to break. Native speakers of the language as well as others fluent in the language you are learning will appreciate your efforts to learn correct pronunciation.
Gather outside materials such as books, study guides, books on tape, and travel books to aid you in learning the language. Your textbooks can’t possibly teach you everything you need to know, so seeking outside sources is generally a good rule of thumb to keep in mind.
A significant motivator in learning a foreign language is traveling to the country where the language is spoken. That way, you can see firsthand how the language is used, learn the culture, and meet native speakers of the language. Native speakers appreciate sincere attempts of others who take the time to learn their language.
Seek out native speakers of your new language in your school or neighborhood. They can help you with many skills, including pronunciation, and they can provide immediate feedback on your progress.
小題1:This passage is written to        .

A．explain why learning a foreign language is challenging

B．tell us the importance of learning foreign languages

C．tell us some ways of earning a top grade

D．give us some tips on learning foreign languages

小題2:Which of the following can best summarize the main idea of Paragraph 3?

A．Think beyond academics.

B．Learn each concept.

C．Plan a trip to use your skills.

D．Consider a language as a tool.

小題3:We can learn from the passage that           .

A．textbooks are not good for us when learning a foreign language

B．learning pronunciation well from the very beginning is very important

C．poor pronunciation can be easy to break with the help of native speakers

D．seeking too many outside sources will be more harmful than beneficial

小題4:What is suggested doing in the last paragraph?

A．Going on a trip abroad.

B．Practicing with native speakers.

C．Asking for feedback from our teachers.

D．Finding a motivator in learning language.

小題5:In which part of a website would this text probably appear?

A．Entertainment.

B．History.

C．Education.

D．Nature.

The earth is the only planet that scientists are certain has life .What does the earth have that the other planets don’t ? For one thing , the earth has just the right temperature . As the third planet from the sun , the earth seems to be just the right distance away . The planets that are closer to the sun are so hot that their surfaces bake in the sun . The farthest planets are cold balls .
When the earth developed— which scientists believe may have happened about billions of years ago , many gases covered the earth . The gases caused the earth to be hot . But something wonderful happened . The temperature was just right for thick clouds to form . It rained very hard for a very long time . This gave the earth its oceans . Water made it possible for plants to grow . The plants created oxygen in the atmosphere . Oxygen is the gas that humans and animals breathe .
Only one other planet in the solar system seems to be something like the earth . That planet is Mars . Mars is smaller than the earth , and it is quite a bit cooler . But it is not too cold for humans . On some days , the temperatures are as cold as a winter day in the northern United States . If you wore a special spacesuit , you could walk around on Mars . You would have to bring your own air to breathe , though . The air on Mars is too thin to breathe . Mars has the largest volcano in the solar system . It is sixteen miles high . The highest volcano on the earth is five miles high . The most unexpected sight on Mars is dried-up river beds . Scientists believe that Mars was once much wetter that it is now . Does this mean there could have been living things on Mars ? Scientists are not sure , but there has been no sign so far .
小題1:It is the       on the earth that makes life possible .

A．temperature

B．water

C．oxygen

D．temperature , water and oxygen

小題2:The underlined phrase “ the third planet ” means       .

A．the sun

B．the earth

C．the moon

D．Mars

小題3:Which planet in the solar system is most like the earth ?

A．Mars .

B．Moon .

C．Sun .

D．Mars and Moon .

小題4:Which of the following is TRUE ?

A．The earth has a history of about 4 million years .

B．There is no air on Mars .

C．The largest volcano on Mars is over three times higher than the highest one on the earth

D．Scientists believe there are living things on Mars .

小題5:The best title for the passage should be        .

A．Living Things on Our Earth	B．The Moon
C．Living Things on the Moon	D．Mars Is Most Like the Earth

Back those photos up
The images were striking．Homes on the East Coast were washed away by Superstorm Sandy. People were in tears, picking up faded photographs, among their only remaining possessions．
If that doesn't move you to get serious about safekeeping your lifetime of memories, what will? The digital age offers tools never imaginable before—including one-click access to a lifetime of family photos．
Here is a brochure (手冊) on how to back up (存) your photos and save them online, where they can live forever and be accessible in good times and bad．
Scanning
The first step for those old photos is to scan them and save them to a digital format (格式)．Most，printers come with scanners these days, so that's an easy but extremely time-consuming step．
Storing the photos
With your scans in place, import the photos into your computer, and back them up．
You could make multiple copies of the disks and spread them to loved ones．Or you could choose external (外接的) hard drives or USB thumb drive, and add your photo and video collection from your computer．
Online backup
If you need lots of space, look at a pure online backup service, Caronite．
Caronite backs up 300 million files daily．Once you sign up, it starts to pick up everything you have on your hard drive．But photo collection on your computer's main hard drive charges for $ 59 a year．
Cloud Storage
For folks who don't need automatic backup, but instead want to take a more active approach, Dropbox, Google Drive and Microsoft's SkyDrive let you store files online by yourself, share and instantly access them．All offer free options—2GB of free storage for Dropbox, 5GB for Google and 7GB for SkyDrive．But if you want more, you need to pay．
Bottom Line
The hard drive or flash drive is the cheapest and easiest．But drives can fail．Online services are more expensive, but more secure．With more of us switching back and forth between our computers, such services are the best way to get access to our data from wherever we are．
小題1:What can we know from the passage?

A．Scanning photos takes little time but costs a lot．

B．The hard drive or flash drive is the cheapest and safest．

C．Google Drive offers unlimited free photo storage on line．

D．Caronite charges for backing up photos from hard drive．

小題2:Which of the following allows storing files automatically?

A．Caronite．

B．Dropbox．

C．SkyDrive．

D．Flash drive.

小題3:The main purpose of the passage is to ______．

A．tell real stories about storage services

B．introduce some of the storage services

C．describe the functions of storage services

D．a(chǎn)rgue about the advantage of storage services

Across countryside, non-food crops are growing alongside wheat．Some are used in new alternatives to plastics and other materials, but others will simply be burned．
Burning crops is becoming more popular because it is good for the planet．Doing so is also cheaper than burning fossil fuels．As more land is devoted to non-food crop production, the economics of crops for fuel are likely to become even more favorable．
Humans have been burning such biomass—organic materials from plants or animals— since they discovered fire．But that burning fossil fuels could have catastrophic consequences has brought biomass back into fashion．
Even allowing for emissions (排放) of carbon dioxide from fuel used in planting, harvesting, processing and transporting biomass fuel, replacing fossil fuel with biomass can typically reduce greenhouse gas emissions by more than 90 percent．
Power stations around the world are experimenting with forms of biomass to add to their coal or oil, with encouraging results．Indeed, power companies could profit by turning to biomass, especially when the subsidies (補助) many governments offer for using renewable energy are taken into account．
Farmers can benefit from growing biomass．In Europe, the reduction of subsidies for certain crops is exposing farmers to market forces．Instead of being paid for whatever they produce, farmers must seek a clear demand for their product．Many believe that the demand for alternatives to fossil fuels could be just such a driver．
But while biomass offers a variety of potential alternatives, the world's infrastructure (基礎(chǔ)設(shè)施） has developed around burning fossil fuels to such a stage that switching to biomass involves a change in conception that many companies have not accepted．
Also, there are problems with using biomass．Although most coal-fired power stations could take a small amount of their fuel from biomass without significant adjustment, few are built to run on biomass alone．Burning some forms of biomass also causes environmental problems．Oils and waste can be smelly, while wood produces smoke unless burned properly．
The supply chains for fossil fuels are set up well, but those for biomass are just the beginning. Sources of supply for biomass rely on farm production and can therefore be less reliable. They are necessarily limited and it wouldn't make sense to turn a very large amount of valuable agricultural land away from food crops．But as the world adjusts to the need to control greenhouse gas emissions, these problems may receive more attention．
小題1:What do we know about biomass?

A．It is a useful way of burning crops．

B．It is plant and animal matter used to provide power．

C．It is a new alternative to be used widely．

D．It is a popular approach to fighting against pollution．

小題2:What are the advantages of using biomass?
a．It gives off less greenhouse gases．
b．It helps farmers receive subsidies for what they produce．
c．It has met the clear demand for energy．
d．It has brought subsidies for some power companies．
e．It is cheaper than burning fossil fuels．

A．a(chǎn), b, c

B．b, c, d

C．c, d, e

D．a(chǎn), d, e

小題3:For coal-fired power stations, ______．

A．more effective ways to use biomass have been tried

B．using renewable energy has become their daily task

C．burning biomass alone would require considerable changes

D．setting up dependable supply channels needs governments' support

小題4:What is the author's attitude towards biomass fuels?

A．Defensive．

B．Doubtful．

C．Negative．

D．Objective

We use an average of 158 liters of water a day in Britain, for which we pay a bargain price of 28p a liter, but much of this is just cash down the drain, according to water companies.
Most are campaigning to cut the amount we use. And the frontline weapon in their campaign is the water meter (計量器). They want us all to have one and one company is seeking powers to make this compulsory.
The Government is anxious for us to use less water, too. Elliot Morley, the Environment Minister, says he is impressed by the savings when a meter is installed. In most homes, consumption drops by 20 percent.
He also thinks consumers get a good deal from meters. He said, “Most people would find that they would either be exactly the same or better off with water meters and it is a fairer way of paying for water.”
At present, only 25% of households have meters and most of those are in East Anglia. They are installed by water companies, and households then have about ￡43 added to each bill to cover the cost of installing and reading the meter.
Barrie Clarke, a spokesman for Water UK, said, “We want everyone to be more water wise—to think about the amount of water they use. But with our climate change and different weather patterns, over time it will make economic and environmental sense to think how we use water. This may mean meters.”
Mr. Clarke believes the easiest way to save water is to use less in the garden. In one hour, a sprinkler uses the same amount of water as the average family of four uses in a day—about 632 liters. He said that gardeners should water in the evening so that it dose not evaporate in the heat of the day and that every household should have a water butt to collect rainwater for use in the garden.
小題1:Which of the following is NOT the advantage of installing water meters?

A．Water consumption drops.

B．It’s fairer to pay for water.

C．They’re installed for free.

D．People are more water wise.

小題2:The passage implies that ________.

A．water meters are welcome by British people

B．people will be better off with water meters

C．everyone has become wiser to use water now

D．saving water is both good to economy and environment

小題3:How many liters of water does an average family of four use in a day after installing a meter in Britain?

A．a(chǎn)bout 126 liters	B．a(chǎn)bout 158 liters
C．a(chǎn)bout 506 liters	D．a(chǎn)bout 632 liters

小題4:The underlined word “evaporate” in the last paragraph means _________.

A．change into steam and disappears

B．a(chǎn)bsorb the heat of the day

C．sink into the soil

D．turn into ice

小題5:According to Mr. Clarke, some good ways to save water are as follows EXCEPT ________.

A．using less on the garden

B．using a sprinkler

C．watering in the evening

D．gathering rainfall for garden use

D
Life is difficult.
It is a great truth because once we truly understand and accept it, then life is no longer difficult.
Most do not fully see this truth. Instead they complain about their problems and difficulties as if life should be easy. It seems to them that difficulties stand for a special kind of suffering especially forced on them or else on their families, their class, or even their nation.
What makes life difficult is that the process of facing and solving problems is a painful one. Problems, depending on their nature, cause sadness, or loneliness or regret or anger or fear.
These are uncomfortable feelings, often as painful as any kind of physical pain. And since life causes a lot of problems, life is always difficult and is full of pain as well as joy.
Yet, it is in this whole process of solving problems that life has its meaning. Problems are the serious test that tells us success from failure. When we want to encourage the growth of human spirit, we encourage the human ability to solve problems, just as in school we set problems for our children to solve. It is through the pain of meeting and working out problems that we learn. As Benjamin Franklin said, “Those things that hurt, instruct(指導(dǎo)).” It is for this reason that wise people learn not to fear but to welcome the pain of problems.
小題1:Which sentence best express the central point of the passage?

A．Problems and difficulties represent a special kind of suffering.

B．We become stronger by facing and solving problems of life.

C．Life is difficult because our problems bring us pain.

D．People like to complain about their problems.

小題2:The writer probably used just one short sentence in the first paragraph to ___.

A．save space	B．persuade readers
C．make readers laugh	D．get readers’ attention

小題3:The main idea of paragraph 3 is that _________.

A．most people feel life is easy

B．the writer feel life is easy

C．the writer likes to complain about his problems

D．most people complain about how hard their lives are

小題4:According to the passage, we give school children difficult problems to solve in  order to ______.

A．encourage them to learn

B．teach them to fear the pain of solving the problems

C．help them learn to deal with pain

D．teach them how to respect problems

小題5:The saying from Benjamin Franklin “Those things that hurt, instruct” suggests that ______.

A．we do not learn from experience

B．we do not learn when we are in pain

C．pain teaches us important lessons

D．pain cannot be avoided

The concept of solitude (獨處) in the digital world is almost non-existent. In the world of digital technology, e-mail, social networking and online video games, information is meant to be    小題1:  . Solitude can be hard to discover once it has been given up. In this respect, new technologies have    小題2:   our culture.
The desire to be connected has brought solitude to a(an)    小題3:   as we’ve known. People have become so    小題4:   in the world of networks and connections that one can often be contacted even if they’d rather not be. Today we can talk, text, e-mail, chat and blog to share our ideas, not only from our    小題5:  , but from our mobile phones as well.  
Most developed nations have become    小題6:   on digital technology simply because they’ve grown accustomed to it, and at this point not    小題7:   it would make them an outsider.    小題8:  , many jobs and careers require people to be    小題9:  . From this point of view, technology has changed the culture of work. Being reachable might feel like a    小題10:   to those who may not want to be able to be contacted at all times.  
I suppose the positive side is that solitude is still possible for anyone who really wants it. Computers can be shut down and mobile phones can be turned off. The ability to be “connected” and “on” has many    小題11:   , as well as disadvantages. Travelers have ended up    小題12:   on mountains, and mobile phones have saved countless lives. They can also make people feel    【小題13】  and forced to answer unwanted calls or reply to unwanted texts.
Attitudes towards our connectedness as a society    【小題14】   according to different generations. Some find today’s technology a gift. Others consider it a    【小題15】  . Regardless of anyone’s view on the subject, it’s hard to imagine what life would be like without keeping up with the advancements in technology.

小題13:

A．updated B．received C．shared D．collected

小題14:

A．respected B．shaped C．ignored D．preserved

小題15:

A．edge B．stage C．end D．balance

小題16:

A．sensitive B．intelligent C．considerate D．reachable

小題17:

A．media B．computers C．databases D．monitors

小題18:

A．bent B．hard C．keen D．dependent

小題19:

A．finding B．using C．protecting D．changing

小題20:

A．Also B．Instead C．Otherwise D．Somehow

小題21:

A．connected B．trained C．recommended D．interested

小題22:

A．pleasure B．benefit C．burden D．disappointment

小題23:

A．a(chǎn)spects B．weaknesses C．a(chǎn)dvantages D．exceptions

小題24:

A．hidden B．lost C．relaxed D．deserted

小題25:

A．a(chǎn)mused B．excited C．confused D．trapped

小題26:

A．vary B．a(chǎn)rise C．spread D．exist

小題27:

A．present B．tendency C．progress D．curse

A
For many parents, raising a teenager is like fighting a long war, but years go by without any clear winner. Like a border conflict between neighboring countries, the parent-teen war is about boundaries: Where is the line between what I control and what you do?
Both sides want peace, but neither feels it has any power to stop the conflict. In part, this is because neither is willing to admit any responsibility for starting it. From the parents’ point of view, the only cause of their fight is their adolescents’ complete unreasonableness. And of course, the teens see it in exactly the same way, except oppositely. 
In this article, I’ll describe three no-win situations that commonly arise between teens and parents and then suggest some ways out of the dilemma. The first no-win situation is quarrels over unimportant things. Examples include the color of the teen’s hair, the cleanliness of the bedroom, the preferred style of clothing, the child’s failure to eat a good breakfast before school, or his tendency to sleep until noon on the weekends. Second, blaming. The goal of a blaming battle is to make the other admit that his bad attitude is the reason why everything goes wrong. Third, needing to be right. It doesn’t matter what the topic is — politics, the laws of physics, or the proper way to break an egg — the point of these arguments is to prove that you are right and the other person is wrong, for both wish to be considered an authority — someone who actually knows something — and therefore to command respect. Unfortunately, as long as parents and teens continue to assume that they know more than the other, they’ll continue to fight these battles forever and never make any real progress.
小題1:Why does the author compare the parent-teen war to a border conflict?

A．Both can continue for generations.

B．Both are about where to draw the line.

C．Neither has any clear winner.

D．Neither can be put to an end.

小題2:What does the underlined part in Paragraph 2 mean?

A．The teens blame their parents for starting the conflict.

B．The teens agree with their parents on the cause of the conflict.

C．The teens accuse their parents of misleading them.

D．The teens tend to have a full understanding of their parents.

小題3:Parents and teens want to be right because they want to ________.

A．give orders to the other	B．know more than the other
C．gain respect from the other	D．get the other to behave properly

小題4:What will the author most probably discuss in the paragraph that follows?

A．Causes for the parent-teen conflicts.

B．Examples of the parent-teen war.

C．Solutions for the parent-teen problems.

D．Future of the parent-teen relationship.

小題5:Where do you think this passage can be found?

A．In a report.	B．In a letter.
C．In a novel.	D．In a textbook.

C
So long as teachers fail to distinguish between teaching and learning, they will continue to undertake everything to do for children that only children can do for themselves. Teaching children to read is not passing reading on to them. It is certainly not endless hours spent in activities about reading. Douglas insists that “reading cannot be taught directly and schools should stop trying to do the impossible”.
Teaching and learning are two entirely different processes. They differ in kind and function. The function of teaching is to create the conditions and the climate that will make it possible for children to devise the most efficient system for teaching themselves to read. Teaching is also a public activity. It can be seen and observed.
Learning to read, however, involves all that each individual does to make sense of the world of printed language. Almost all of it is private, for learning is an occupation of the mind, and that process is not open to public scrutiny.
If teacher and learner roles are not interchangeable, what then can be done through teaching that will aid the child in the quest (探索) for knowledge? Smith has one principal rule for all teaching instructions. “Make learning to read easy, which means making reading a meaningful, enjoyable and frequent experience for children.”
When the roles of teacher and learner are seen for what they are, and when both teacher and learner fulfill them appropriately, then much of the pressure and feeling of failure for both is eliminated. Learning to read is made easier when teachers create an environment where children are given the opportunity to solve the problem of learning to read by reading.
小題1:The problem with the reading course as mentioned in the first paragraph is that
________.

A．it is one of the most difficult school courses

B．students spend endless hours in reading

C．reading tasks are assigned with little guidance

D．too much time is spent in teaching about reading

小題2:The teaching of reading will be successful if ________.

A．teachers can improve conditions at school for the students

B．teachers can enable students to develop their own way of reading

C．teachers can devise the most efficient system for reading

D．teachers can make their teaching activities observable

小題3:The underlined word “scrutiny” most probably means “________”.

A．inquiry

B．observation

C．control

D．suspect

小題4:According to the passage, learning to read will no longer be a difficult task when
________.

A．children become highly motivated

B．teacher and learner roles are interchangeable

C．teaching helps children in the search for knowledge

D．reading enriches children’s experience

小題5: The main idea of the passage is that ________.

A．teachers should do nothing in helping students learn to read

B．teachers should encourage students to read as widely as possible

C．reading ability is something acquired rather than taught

D．reading is more complicated than generally believed

(D)
You can not see any object unless light from that object gets into your eyes. Some of the things you see give off light of their own. The sun, the stars, a lighted lamp are examples that can be seen by their own light. Such things are luminous. Most of the things you see are not giving off light of their own. They are simply reflecting light that falls on them from the sun or some other luminous bodies. The moon, for example, does not give off any light of its own. It is non-luminous. You see it because sunlight falls on it and some of it reflects in our direction. So moon light is only second hand sunlight.
When you look at a book, it sends to your eyes some of the light which falls on it, and you see the book. If light could be kept out from where you are so that there would be no light for the book to reflect, then you could not see the book even with your eyes wide open.
Light travels so fast that the time in which it travels from the book you are reading to your eyes is so short as if there were no time at all. Light reaches us from the moon, which is about 380 000 kilometers away, in only a little more than a second.
小題1:You can see the book because_______.

A．your eyes are close to it	B．it reflects some of the sunlight
C．it has light of its own	D．your eyesight can get to it

小題2:The underlined word “l(fā)uminous” means_______.

A．visible

B．a(chǎn)ll colors

C．giving off light

D．sunlight

小題3:________ have light of their own.

A．The sun and the moon	B．The stars and the earth
C．The sun and the stars	D．The moon and the earth

小題4:Which of the following is true?

A．All the things you can see give off light.

B．Light from the book is much shorter than that from the moon.

C．The moment you open your eyes the light from the book travels to your eyes.

D．Light travels so fast that there is no time for you to read.

小題5:This article is probably from _________ .

A．a(chǎn) science magazine	B．a(chǎn) medical magazine
C．a(chǎn) biography	D．a(chǎn) story book.