Sitting on exercise balls brings more than a smile to students and teachers.
     Some fourth-graders at Conrad Weiser West Elementary School in Womelsdorf love their new
chairs--probably because they're not really chairs at all. The kids are sitting on the air-filled balls. But
different from those just for exercise, these have small legs that keep them from rolling. Sitting on a chair
all day in school can make anyone want to move around. So, more and more teachers are letting students
have a ball. By using exercise balls instead of common chairs, teachers find students' posture (姿勢(shì)) and
attention improved.
     Dotti Pownall, a fifth-grader teacher in West Virginia, has been using balls as chairs since December
2008."The students love them." she says. Pownall took a survey of her students. She found that 80 percent,
thought sitting on the balls helped them concentrate (專注) better: "Besides, they're fun," says Pownall.
     According to WittFitt,  a company that has sold balls to more than 200 schools, they can improve kids'
posture and classroom behavior.
     Exercise ball chairs are getting popular in classrooms, from preschool to college. Some adults (成人)
even use them at work. Lisa Witt felt so strongly about the use of balls as chairs that she started WittFitt.
She said the company not only encourages the use of balls but also educates teachers and students on how
to use them."We sell balls in 24 states in America, three provinces in Canada and Japan." says Witt.

1. Sitting on exercise balls can ______.

A. improve students' attention
B. make students smarter
C. keep students moving around
D. help students become fit

2. According to the passage, the company WittFitt ______.

A. began to produce balls in 2008
B. sells balls in 24 countries
C. was set up by Lisa Witt
D. is famous around the world

3. It can be seen from the passage that ______.

A. exercise balls have no legs
B. Pownall works as a teacher
C. students hate exercise balls
D. exercise balls are filled with sand

4. The passage mainly tells us about ______.

A. the shape of exercise balls
B. the use of exercise balls
C. the number of exercise balls
D. the inventor of exercise balls

     There are about 80.000.000 mines under the ground in more than 60 countries. It is difficult and dangerous
to clear these mines. About 50 people including many children were killed or hurt each day. In 2003, APOPO,
a Duch research company that trains the animals, came up with the idea of using rats to search for the mines.
     The animal trainers found that a kind of rats from Africa were clever and had a sharp sense of smell. The
rats were about 75 cm long and weighted about 1.35 kg. light enough to run across a minefield without setting
off the mines.
     In January 2004, the APOPO startec this preject. First, the trainers let the 4-week-old baby rats get familier
with humans. A few weeks later, the rats were no longer afraid of people and the things around them. Then they
were trained to connect a click sound with food. After the rats had learned that, the trainers then taught them to
tell the different between the smell of mines and other smells.When the rats could do it, the click was sounded
and they were given a bit of bananas. The method was called clicker training. "The training isn't easy." said the
trainer Adulish Mebomvu. "You have to be patient.Sometimes I get angry,but then again.I tell myself these are
animals."
     After nine months' training, the rats were taken to 4 minefield. They ran across the minefield, stopped, sat
and searched the ground to tell the deminers that they smelt out a mine. Then the mine was cleared.It had taken
two deminers a day to clear a 200 m2 minefield. But with the help of two rats they could finish it in two hours.
     The rats and the deminers saved thousands of lives. "The rats did this job much better than we expected. So
far they have helpde to make almost 2.000.000 m2 of land safe. They are heroes." said Bart Woetjcds, the head
of the APOPO.

1. The APOPO trained the rats to search for _____.

A. children
B. animals
C. minea
D. bananas

2. While training the rats,the trainers have to be _____.

A. patient
B. clever
C. brave
D. serious

3. How long did the training last?

A.Two hours
B. One day
C. Four weeks
D. Nine month

4. Which of the following is NOT TRUE acorrding to the passage?

A. Each day about 200 people were killed or hurt by minea.
B. The APOPO started to train the rats is January 2004.
C. The trainers gave the rats food after they smelt out a mine.
D. The rats and the deminres saved thousands of livers.

     Many students ask for advice about improving their English. There are three basic questions.
     The first question is about real English. Li Hao from Hubei wrote, "I enjoy watching English films and
listening to real English songs. But it takes a long time. What do you think?"
     This is a great way to learn English! Talk about the film or song with your friends, and guess the meaning
of the new words. Just enjoy yourself!
     The second question is about speaking. Sam, from Suzhou wrote, "Our school has a foreign teacher. But
I'm shy and can't speak to her. What should I do?"
     When I visit China, lots of people in the street say, "Hello! How are you? Where are you from? Do you
like China?" These are good questions to start a conversation. Many people are shy when they speak English,
so before you begin, take a deep breath and smile! Smiling always helps.
     The third question is about vocabulary. Olive, from Anhui wrote, "I want to remember all the new words.
I wrote them down, but I forget them quickly. What should I do?"
     Try to remember eight or nine words a day. Write them on pieces of paper and place them in your
bedroom. Say the words when you see them, and change them every day. And when you're shopping, how
about counting the English words, or saying the English names for everything you see?

1. How many basic questions do the students often ask?

A. Two.
B. Three.
C. Four.
D. Five.

2. What should you do if you are shy to speak English?

A. Watch English films.
B. Write down the words first.
C. Listen to real English songs.
D. Take a deep breath and smile before you begin?

3. What is Oliver's problem?

A. He's too shy to talk with others.
B. He's not able to count English words.
C. He can't remember new words.
D. He doesn't know what real English is.

4. What's the best title of this passage?

A. How to learn English
B. Talking about English films
C. Advice about English writing
D. The way of beginning an English conversation

     Today there are 6 billion people on the earth. By the year 2050 there may be 12.5 billion. This means we
need more food.
     One way to produce more food is by growing stronger plants. For thousands of years, farmers have made
plants better. Every season, they pick the best plants for the next season. It works very slowly. Since 1983,
scientists have been able to change plants more quickly by changing their genetic material (遺傳物質(zhì)). Foods
from plants grown in this way are called genetically modified foods (轉(zhuǎn)基因食品), or GM foods.
     By changing the genetic material of a plant, it is possible to make new plants. They make plants which are
strong against plant diseases. They can also help in our diseases: a kind of rice is being prepared (準(zhǔn)備), for
example, which stops people from becoming blind.
     Rich countries produce GM food because they are easy to grow and bring in more money. Poor countries
are interested in them because they help produce more food.
     GM plants are not natural. No one knows how good or bad they are. Making GM foods is only one way
of feeding people in 2050. There are strong feelings against them, because they are unnatural. They may feed
people, then hurt them or their children later. But, both rich and poor countries are very interested in their use,
and they are not going to go away. In 2050 we may think differently about them.

1. GM foods are made by _____.

A. farmers
B. workers
C. scientists
D. plants

2. What are the good things about GM foods?

A. They make plants strong against diseases.
B. They are unnatural.
C. They can help in human diseases.
D. Both A and C.

3. GM foods _____.

A. are a quick way to produce food
B. grow in the wild
C. are safe
D. are grown only in rich countries

4. Why do some people not like GM foods?

A. They are not useful.
B. They are not helpful.
C. They are not natural.
D. They are not cheap.

5. From the reading we know that _____.

A. GM foods will disappear one day in the future
B. GM foods will not disappear in the future
C. people will not be interested in GM food
D. people will have to stop using GM food

     Sitting on a chair all day in school can make anyone want to move around. So, more and more teachers
are letting students have a ball. By sitting on exercise balls instead of chairs, teachers find students' posture
(姿勢(shì)) and attention improve.
     Dottie Pownall, a fifth-grade teacher in West Virginia, USA, has been using balls as chairs since December
2008. "The students love them", she says. Pownall took a survey of her students. She found that 80% of the
students thought sitting on the balls helped them pay more attention to what they were learning.
     The teacher, Pisa Witt, felt so strongly about the use of balls as chairs, she started Witt Fitt. This company
encourages the use of the balls. And the company educates not only teachers but also students on how to use
them. "Our products are used in 24 states, three provinces in Canada, Puerto Rico (波多黎各) and Japan," says
Witt. "Research shows that sitting on the balls makes them sit up straighter. You can slouch (低頭垂肩地坐)
on a ball," says Witt, "but it feels awful." Because the students are moving, their blood (血液) increases. That
carries more oxygen (氧氣 to the brain (大腦), so the kids have more energy and can focus longer.
     "Furthermore, they're fun." says Pownali.

1. What will happen if a student sits on a chair all day in school? The student will _____.

A. pay more attention to his lessons
B. be fun
C. like to move around
D. sit up straighter

2. How long has Dottie Pownall used the balls?

A. About three years.
B. Only one year.
C. In 2008.
D. Since he was a fifth-grade teacher.

3. In how many countries are the balls used as the students' chairs?

A. Four.
B. Three.
C. Two.
D. One.

4. Teachers choose balls instead of chairs because sitting on balls helps the kids _____.

A. improve the students' posture and attention
B. slouch on the chairs
C. have fun
D. Both A and C are correct answers. 

5. Which is better for kids to study in class, sitting on a chair or sitting on a ball?

A. Sitting on a chair.
B. Sitting on a ball.
C. They are the same.
D. We don't know.

        Animals can move from place to place, but plants cannot. When an animal is under attack, it can run away
or fight back. Plants certainly cannot run away, and they have no teeth and claws. But plants can defend (保護(hù))
themselves by using both physical and chemical ways.
        Some plants have their own ways to keep animals away. For example, the leaves of the holly (冬青) plant
have sharp prickles (刺) that stop grass-eating animals. Holly leaves on lower places have more prickles than
leaves on upper places. This is because the lower leaves are easier for most animals to reach.
        Some plants, such as the oak tree (橡樹), have thick and hard leaves that are difficult for animals to eat.
Some grasses may contain a sandy material, eating such grasses wears down the animal's teeth.
        Many plants also have chemical defenses. Some plants produce chemicals that taste bitter or cause an
unpleasant reaction. Some plants may fight against an attack by increasing the production of these chemicals.
When a worm (蟲子) bites a tobacco leaf (煙葉), the leaf produces a chemical smell.
        Many plants depend on both physical and chemical defenses. A certain plant in China, for instance, has
prickly leaves, and each prickle has poisonous water (毒液). Only one experience with this kind of plant will
teach an animals to stay away from it is the future.
1. Can plants move from place to place?
    ____________________________________________________________
2. Can plants defend themselves by physical ways or by chemical ways?
    ____________________________________________________________
3. Why lower holly leaves have more prickles than upper ones?
    ____________________________________________________________
4. How does tobacco defend itself against an attack from a worm?
    ____________________________________________________________
5. What kind of experience will teach an animal to stay away from a plant in the future?
    ____________________________________________________________

     Dogs are very good pets. They are very (1)f             to people and very beautiful, too. Most dogs get
on well with (2)c              and their parents. Others are good watchdogs because they cry loudly when a
strange (陌生的) person (3)a             .
     When you buy a dog, an important thing to think about is its (4)s              -buy a small dog if your
home is small and a bigger one if (5)y              is larger. Many people don't know what to feed their dogs.
Dogs eat (6)a              anything! They like meat, rice and lots of other things. You can buy lots of food
made for (7)d              in shops. Don't let your dog eat too much. Feed it only once a day. Always leave
some (8)c               water for your dog. It can get (9)t              very quickly, especially in summer. 
     Remember that dogs need (10)e             . You should take it for a walk every day. Don't keep your
dog inside all day.