23.Which program favors the disabled?
A.Jobs for Youth. B.Summer Company.
C.Stewardship Youth Ranger Program. D.Summer Employment Opportunities.
B
Dragon Head Raising Day: time for a haircut
China is a country with many colorful days and festivals. The Dragon Head Raising Day (Longtaitou) is one of them.
This special day is on the second day of the second month in the Chinese lunar calendar (阴历). It stands for (代表) the
start of spring and farming. This year, the day fell on March 14.
The dragon is important in Chinese culture. We Chinese people call ourselves the “descendants (传人) of the dragon”.
Therefore, people celebrate the Dragon Head Raising Day with many customs about dragons.
On the day in ancient times, people put ashes (灰) in the kitchen. This was to “lead the dragon into the house”. People
believed that with the help of the dragon, they could have a good harvest (收成) in autumn.
Also, people eat special foods on that day. The foods are usually named after dragons. For example, people eat “dragon
whisker (细须)” noodles and dumplings called “dragon teeth”.
Today, many customs have faded away (消退). But one that has remained is the cutting of hair. It was said that a haircut
during the first lunar month may bring bad luck to the mother’s brothers. So many people have their hair cut on the Dragon
Head Raising Day.
24.Which country celebrates the Dragon Head Raising Day?
A.Britain. B.France.
C.The United States. D.China.
25.______ was the Dragon Head Raising Day this year.
A.March 14 B.February 2 C.March 4 D.March 8
26.On the day in ancient times, why did people put ashes in the kitchen?
A.Because the dragon liked the ashes.
B.Because the ashes led the dragon into the house.
C.Because the ashes stood for the harvest.
D.Because the ashes could bring good luck.
27.Which custom has remained according to the passage?
A.The dragon boating. B.To eat zongzi.
C.The cutting of hair. D.To eat mooncakes.
C
Emperor penguins are considered the most beautiful and the largest of all penguins. They are amazing birds. They are
good survivors, excellent swimmers and great parents. Do you know where we can see them?
You are absolutely right! Antarctica. Only Antarctica!
Antarctica is the continent which is the most southern area of land on the Earth and is mostly covered with ice. It is
colder, drier and windier than any other place on the Earth. The lowest temperature can reach -89.2℃. In order to survive the
extremely tough environment, emperor penguins have to cooperate. They crowd together to protect themselves from the
wind and keep warm. Meanwhile, they take turns to move to the relatively warm inside.
Emperor penguins live on a diet which consists of different types of fish and other kinds of sea life. To find food, these
birds, which are unable to fly, can dive much deeper than any other kind of penguin. Their dives often reach about 244
meters, and they can even dive to more than 535 meters when necessary. They can remain under water for almost 18 minutes,
longer than any other kind of penguin.
Emperor penguins have a very hard time bringing up their babies. They have to go to great lengths to care for their
children. After laying an egg, the tired female emperor penguin will leave the family behind to feed at sea, while the male is
left to take care of the egg. For two months, the father, whose duty is to keep the egg safe and warm, carries his egg around
on his feet and will give up eating until the mother returns. He does not sit on the egg like many other birds, but stands and
balances it on his feet. Thus he is at the mercy of the Antarctic weather. When the mother returns from the sea, sometimes up
to 60-80 kilometers away, she throws up some of the food for the chick and takes the male's place to look after it. The father
then takes his turn to feed at sea. Cooperative parenting at its finest.
By December, during the Antarctic summer, when the ice begins to break up and open water appears, the young emperor
penguins are now ready to be excellent survivors, good swimmers and great parents on their own. What an amazing cycle it
is!
28. The underlined word "cooperate" in the third paragraph means ___________.
A. work together B. fight against cold
C. protect themselves D. move to warm places
29. Emperor penguins ___________.
A. feed on only certain types of fish
B. live in the most terrible weather conditions
C. are amazing birds that can both fly and swim
D. stay in water 18 minutes longer than other penguins
30. From the passage, we know that emperor penguins are ___________.
A. great parents who sit on eggs to keep them warm
B. the most beautiful and the largest birds in the world
C. good survivors and they move to warm places in winter
D. excellent swimmers and they can dive deeper than other penguins
31. We can learn from the passage that ___________.
A the chicks break up the eggshells in summer
B. an Emperor Penguin lays several eggs at a time
C. the male Emperor Penguins hatch the eggs in winter
D. the chicks are ready to live on their own one year later
D
Strangers Under the Same Roof
Does every dinner with your parents seem to turn into an argument? Have your once warm and open conversations
become cold and guarded? Do you feel that you just cannot see eye to eye with them on anything? You are not alone. Heated
arguments and cold silences are common between teenagers and their parents.
Teenagers' physical changes may result in such family tensions. You may feel anxious that you are developing at a
different rate to your friends, shooting up in height or getting left far behind. You might worry about your changing voice,
weight problems or spots(粉刺).When it all gets too much, your parents are often the first targets of your anger.
It can be a big headache to balance your developing mental needs too. You enter a strange middle ground --- no longer a
small child but not quite an adult. You have both a new desire for independence and a continued need for your parents' love
and support. You feel ready to be more responsible and make decisions on your own. Unfortunately, your parents do not
always agree and that makes you feel unhappy. "Why can't they just let me go?" you may wonder. On the other hand, when
you are struggling to control your feelings, you wish they could be more caring and patient---sometimes they forget that
growing up is a rough ride. It can be difficult when your parents treat you like a child but expect you to act like an adult. All
of this can lead to a breakdown in your relationship.
Although sometimes it may seem impossible to get along as a family, you can take action to improve the situation. The
key to keeping the peace is regular and honest communication. When you disagree with your parents,take a minute to calm
down and try to understand the situation from their point of view. Perhaps they have experienced something similar and do
not want you to go through the same pain. After you have thought it through, explain your actions and feelings calmly, listen
carefully,and address their concerns. Through this kind of healthy discussion, you will lean when to back down and when
to ask your parents to relax their control.
Just remember that it is completely a common thing to struggle with the stress that parent child tensions create, and that