According to US research, it can take up to ten years to become a near-native English speaker. Asian and Spanish students took between five and ten years to reach native speaker performance in English-only schools. Fluency obviously doesn’t happen overnight. But time can definitely make you a better speaker.
After testing his own memory, German psychologist Hermann Ebbinghaus discovered that humans forget most of what they learn in the first 20 minutes.
So cramming right before a speaking exam is not likely to be as effective as practicing regularly over time. The more you practice, the more familiar new words will become. In the classroom, studies have also shown that repeating oral tasks improves a speaker’s performance.
One of the best repetition exercises is the 4/3/2 technique. Speakers give the same talk to three different listeners with a progressive decrease in delivery time, starting at four minutes, then three, and finally two minutes. This exercise has been proven to help learners speak faster. It can also result in less hesitation and more grammatical accuracy. While time dose make a difference when it comes to speaking perfect English, it would not hurt to brush up on your other language skills.
Studies have also shown that reading can increase your speaking vocabulary. After one month of an extensive reading program, a 27-year-old student of French became more familiar with 65 percent of the new words.
Aside from choosing the right learning methods, having certain personality traits may also help. US linguistics expert Stephen Krashen believes those with high motivation, self-confidence and a low level of anxiety are better equipped for speaking success.
Krashen says students who don’t have these qualities are more likely to have a “mental block”. “Even if they understand the message, the input will not reach the part of the brain responsible for language acquisition,” he writes in his book Principles and Practice in second Language Acquisition.
小題1:According to the passage, if you want to be a near-native speaker, you need _____.
A．long-term speaking practice and much reading
B．speaking practice for ten years only
C．long-term speaking practice, much reading and certain qualities
D．cramming new words every day
小題2:The author put forward the 4/3/2 technique just to show that _____.
A．you should speak to 3 different people
B．you should speak to 3 different people at 3 different times
C．it can prevent you from making grammar mistakes
D．it is really a good way to make you a better speaker
小題3:The example of a 27-year-old student of French in the passage mainly means that _____.
A．reading can enlarge your vocabulary for your speaking
B．reading can make you memorize just 65 percent of the new words
C．the 27-year-old student of French is very clever
D．in one month, you can improve your speaking ability
小題4:The underlined phrase “l(fā)inguistics expert” means a person who is quite expert at _____.
A．languagesB．spoken language
C．scientific researchD．teaching English

小題1:C
小題2:D
小題3:A
小題4:A
本文告訴我們學(xué)好英語(yǔ)的幾種方法。
小題1:C 考查細(xì)節(jié)題。根據(jù)According to US research, it can take up to ten years to become a near-native English speaker. Asian and Spanish students took between five and ten years to reach native speaker performance in English-only schools.
小題2:D 細(xì)節(jié)題解題。根據(jù)This exercise has been proven to help learners speak faster. It can also result in less hesitation and more grammatical accuracy.可知答案為：D。
小題3:A 考查細(xì)節(jié)題。根據(jù)Studies have also shown that reading can increase your speaking vocabulary.然后舉了那個(gè)例子，說(shuō)明舉例就是為了說(shuō)明這個(gè)道理。故答案為A。
小題4:A 猜測(cè)詞意題。本文講述的是跟學(xué)習(xí)語(yǔ)言有關(guān)的，故應(yīng)該是語(yǔ)言學(xué)家。
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科目：高中英語(yǔ) 來(lái)源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

Welcome to your future life!
You get up in the morning and look into the mirror. Your face is firm and young-looking. In 2035, medical technology is better than ever. Many people your age could live to be 150, so at 40, you’re not old at all. And your parents just had an anti-aging(抗衰老的) treatment. Now, all three of you look the same age !
You say to your shirt, “Turn red.” It changes from blue to red. In 2035, “smart clothes” contain particles(粒子) much smaller than the cells in your body. The particles can be programmed to change your clothes’ color or pattern.
You walk into the kitchen. You pick up the milk, but a voice says, “You shouldn’t drink that!” Your fridge has read the chip (芯片) that contains information about the milk , and it knows the milk is old . In 2035, every article of food in the grocery store has such a chip.
It’s time to go to work. In 2035, cars drive themselves. Just tell your “smart car” where to go. On the way, you can call a friend using your jacket sleeve(袖子). Such “smart technology” is all around you.
So will all these things come true? “For new technology to succeed,” says scientist Andrew Zolli , “it has to be so much better that it replaces what we have already.” The Internet is one example --what will be the next?
小題1:We can learn from the text that in the future__________.
A．people will never get old
B．everyone will look the same
C．red will be the most popular color
D．clothes will be able to change their pattern
小題2:What can be inferred from Paragraph 4?
A．Milk will be harmful to health.
B．More drinks will be available for sale.
C．Food in the grocery store will carry electronic information.
D．Milk in the grocery store will stay fresh much longer.
小題3:What is the text mainly about?
A．Food and clothing in 2035.
B．Future technology in everyday life.
C．Medical treatments of the future.
D．The reason for the success of new technology.

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科目：高中英語(yǔ) 來(lái)源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

“It hurts me more than you” and “This is for your own good” — these are the statements my mother used to make years ago when I had to learn Latin, clean my room, stay home and do homework.
That was before we entered the permissive period in education in which we decided it was all right not to push our children to achieve their best in school. The schools and the educators made it easy for us. They taught that it as all right to be parents who take a let-alone policy. We stopped making our children do homework. We gave them calculators, turned on the television, left the teaching to the teachers and went on vacation.
Now teachers, faced with children who have been developing at their own pace for the past 15 years, are realizing we’ve made a terrible mistake. One such teacher is Sharon Klompus who speaks of her students “so passive” and wonders what has happened. Nothing is demanded of them, she believes. Television, says Klompus, contributes to children’s passivity. “We’re talking about a generation of kids who've never been hurt or hungry. They have learned somebody will always do it for them, instead of saying  'go and look it up’, you tell them the answer. It takes greater energy to say no to a kid.”
Yes, it does. It takes energy and it takes work. It’s time for parents to end their vacation and come back to work. It's time to take the car away, to turn the TV off, to tell them it hurts you more than them but it's for their own good. It's time to start telling them no again.
小題1:Children are becoming more inactive in study because _______.
A．they watch TV too oftenB．they have done too much homework
C．they have to fulfill too many dutiesD．teachers are too strict with them
小題2:By “permissive period in education” (L.1, Para. 2) the author means a time _______.
A．when everything can be taught at school
B．when every child can be educated
C．when children are permitted to receive education
D．when children are allowed to do what they wish to
小題3:The main idea of the passage is that _______.
A．parents should leave their children alone
B．kids should have more activities at school
C．it's time to be more strict with our kids
D．parents should always set a good example to their kids

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科目：高中英語(yǔ) 來(lái)源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

Many parents watch the news or other shows as children play nearby. But new research shows that even when the television is just background noise，it may be disruptive to a child’s normal development.
It’s estimated that 75 percent of very young children in the United States live in homes where the television is on most of the time，even though the kids often aren’t watching it. The University of Massachusetts researchers recently studied how TV background noise might affect young children. The study looked at 50 1­，2­and 3­year­olds. Each child came to a lab with a parent and was allowed to play for an hour with various toys. For half the time，a television was on in the room，showing the adult game show as well as advertisements. During the other half hour，the TV was turned off.
As expected，the children paid little attention to the adult television show，glancing at it for less than a few seconds at a time，and less than once a minute. Even so，the distraction (分心) of the background noise had a significant effect on how children at every age played. When the television was on，the children played with each toy for far shorter periods of time，and focused attention during play was also shorter compared to how they played when the TV was off.
Researchers said that even though the children aren’t interested in the show，background TV affects their ability to do various types of play. The finding is important because many well­meaning parents who wouldn’t let their young children watch television may not realize that even adult programs that don’t interest children still can have an effect.
“Background TV is potentially a chronic (長(zhǎng)期的) environmental risk factor affecting most American children，” said the lead author of the study. “Parents should limit their young children’s exposure (接觸)．”
小題1:We know from the passage that________.
A．background TV noise has little effect on adults
B．most young children in America live in homes exposed to TV noise
C．the effect of background TV noise on children is immediate
D．most parents in America wouldn’t let their children watch TV
小題2:The underlined word “disruptive” in Paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to________.
A．harmfulB．importantC．similar D．related
小題3:In the study，the children________.
A．were all 3­year­oldsB．were asked to watch adult TV shows
C．played for an hour while the TV was onD．played with more than one toy
小題4:What does the study show?
A．Children pay much attention to adult TV shows.
B．Children should be allowed to watch TV for kids only.
C．The background TV noise affects children’s ability to focus.
D．The more toys a child has，the shorter time he plays with each one.

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科目：高中英語(yǔ) 來(lái)源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

Scientists in Canada say big ocean fish have almost disappeared from the world since the start of industrial fishing in the nineteen-fifties. The scientists found that population of large fish like tuna; swordfish and cod have dropped by ninety percent in the past fifty years.
The study took ten years. The researchers gathered records from fishing businesses and governments around the world. The magazine Nature published the findings.
The scientists say the common method called longline fishing is especially damaging to populations of large fish. This method involves many fishing lines connected to one boat. These wires can be close to one-hundred kilometers long. They hold thousands of sharp metal hooks to catch fish.
Longline fishing is especially common in the Japanese fishing industry. Records showed that Japanese boats used to catch about ten fish for every one-hundred hooks. The study says longline fishing boats now might catch one fish per hundred hooks.
The scientists say industrial fishing can destroy groups of fish much faster than in the past. The study suggests that whole populations can disappear almost completely from new fishing areas within ten to fifteen years.
Ransom Myers of Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia led the study with Boris Worm of Dalhousie and the University of Kiel in Germany. Mister Worm says the destruction could lead to a complete re-organization of ocean life systems. Mister Meyers says the decreased number of large fish is not the only worry. He says even populations that are able to reproduce do not get the chance to live long enough to grow as big as their ancestors(祖先). He says not only are there fewer big fish, they are smaller than those of the past.
American government scientists say even with the best efforts to protect fish populations, decreases are to be expected.
小題1:Where is the passage probably taken from?
A．A story book.
B．A business magazine.
C．An environment report.
D．An economic survey.
小題2:Big fish have gradually been disappearing especially because ________.
A．longline fishing method is used
B．sea water is getting polluted
C．mankind destroys the environment
D．governments don’t make the best efforts
小題3:Which of the following shows the fact that the populations of large fish have dropped?
A．Today’s “l(fā)arge”fish are smaller than those of the past.
B．Longline boats now might catch fewer fish every one-hundred hooks.
C．Fish even able to reproduce don’t have the chance to live longer.
D．Japanese boats could catch about ten fish for every 100 hooks.
小題4:What can be the best title?
A．Discoveries Canadian Scientists Have Made
B．Japanese Fishing Industry
C．Losses of Big Fish
D．Modern Fishing Methods
小題5:When did the researchers begin to survey the decreasing of large fish?
A．In the 1960s.B．In the 1970s.C．In the 1980s.D．In the 1990s.

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科目：高中英語(yǔ) 來(lái)源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

When we look at the sky and see a bright light moving quickly across it or coming towards the earth, we talk about seeing a “shooting star” or a “falling star”. These moving lights are not, in fact, stars at all. They are small pieces of matter from outer space, which burn up as they enter the Earth’s atmosphere. The correct name of them is meteoroids. Any pieces that make it to the Earth’s surface without completely burning up are known as meteorites. A meteor is actually the name given to the light we see when a meteoroid is burning up.
When a meteorite hits the Earth at speeds between 11 and 72 kilometers a second, it can do amazing damage. A very large meteorite could knock the earth out of its orbit. If this happened, all life on Earth would probably become extinct（滅絕）. The path we follow around the Sun would change and as a result the Earth would become either much hotter or much colder. This change in temperature would affect sea levels and the amount of water in rivers. There would either be huge floods, which would cover most of the land with water, or the oceans would dry up and there would be a drought, which means a long period of time without rain. Either way, nothing could survive. If a large meteorite landed in the sea it would almost certainly cause tsunamis, which would race towards the land, destroying everything in their paths.
Although it is unlikely the Earth will be struck by a meteorite large enough to do that kind of damage, there is evidence of fairly large meteorites hitting the Earth in the past. In 1908 a large area of forest in Tunguska, Siberia was destroyed by a meteorite that came apart just before it hit the ground. The moon, however, has about three billion craters隕石坑caused by meteorites impacting影響 its surface. The reason more meteorites have reached the surface of the moon than the surface of the Earth is that the moon does not have enough atmosphere for the meteorites to burn up in. some of the meteorites that have reached the Earth’s surface have done considerable damage. Some scientists believe it was a change of climate caused by meteorites hitting the Earth that resulted in the extinction of the dinosaurs and other large prehistoric animals.
Scientists are especially interested in meteorites because they contain information about the solar system. It is widely believed by scientists that most meteorites are produced by collisions（碰撞） between asteroids (small planets). These collisions probably happened many billions of years ago. This means the physical and chemical structure of a meteorite can give scientists information about the early days of the universe.
小題1:The story is about ___.     
A．floods caused by meteors
B．matter from outer space
C．life on Earth millions of years ago
D．meteorites that have damaged the moon
小題2:The Earth has ___.                    
A．three billion craters
B．fewer craters than the moon
C．more craters than the moon
D．a(chǎn) thinner atmosphere than the moon
小題3:Some scientists believe the dinosaurs became extinct because ___.     
A．they were hit by meteors
B．meteorites landed on their nests
C．meteorites landed and changed the climate
D．they could no longer breathe the atmosphere
小題4:Meteors are ___.                                         
A．small planets
B．the same as asteroids
C．from broken parts of asteroids
D．the light we see when meteoroids hit our atmosphere

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科目：高中英語(yǔ) 來(lái)源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

If we were asked exactly what we were doing a year ago，we should probably have to say that we could not remember. But if we had kept a book and had written in it an account of what we did each day，we should be able to give an answer to the question.
It is the same in history .Many things have been forgotten because we do not have any written account of them .Sometimes men did keep a record of the most important happenings in their country，but often it was destroyed by fire or in a war．Sometimes there was never any written record at all because the people of that time and place did not know how to write．For example，we know a good deal about the people who lived in China 4，000 years ago, because they could write and leave written records for those who lived after them．But we know almost nothing about the people who lived even 200 years ago in central Africa, because they had not learned to write．
Sometimes, of course，even if the people cannot write，they may know something of the past．They have heard about it from older people，and often songs and dances and stories have been made about the most important happenings，and these have been sung and acted  and told for many generations, for most people are proud to tell what their fathers did in the past．This we may call  “remembered history”．Some of it has now been written down. It is not so exact or so valuable to us as written history is，because words are much more easily changed when used again and again in speech than when copied in writing．But where there are no written records，such spoken stories are often very helpful．
小題1:Which of the following ideas is not suggested in the passage?
A．“Remembered history”，compared with written history，is less reliable
B．Written records of the past play the most important role in our learning of the human history．
C．A written account of our daily activities helps US to be able to answer many questions．
D．Where there are no written records．there is no history．
小題2:We know very little about the central Africa 200 years ago because ___
A．there was nothing worth being written down at that time
B．the people there ignored the importance of keeping a record
C．the written records were perhaps destroyed by a fire
D．the people there did not know how to write
小題3:“Remembered history” refers to ___．
A．history based on a person’s imagination
B．stories of important happenings passed down from mouth to mouth
C．songs and dances about the most important events
D．both B and C
小題4:“Remembered history”is regarded as valuable only when ____.
A．it is written downB．no written account is available
C．it proves to be timeD．people are interested in it
小題5:The passage suggests that we could have learned much more about our past than we do now if the ancient people had _____
A．kept a written record of every past event
B．not burnt their written records in wars
C．told exact stories of the most important happenings
D．made more songs and dances

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科目：高中英語(yǔ) 來(lái)源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

We had known for along time that flowers of different plants open and close at different time of day. Yet no one really understands why flowers open and close like this at special time. The question is not as simple as we might think, as recent experiments have shown. In one experiment, flowers were kept in constant (持續(xù)的）darkness. We might expect that the flowers ,without any information about the time of the day, did not open as they usually do. In fact, they continue to open at their usual time. This shows that they have some special ways of knowing the time. Their sense(感覺(jué)) time does not depend on information from the outside world. It is inside them: a kind of "inner (內(nèi)部的）clock". This discovery may not seem to be very important. However, it is later found that not just plants but animals have this "inner clock" which control（控制）the working of their bodies and influences their activities. Human beings, then, are also influenced by it. Whether we wish or not, itaffectssuch things in our life as our need for sleep or need for food.
小題1:Before the experiment arrived at a conclusion, people had thought that the flowers would____.
A．never open in constant darkness
B．change their usual time to open
C．open ahead of the time as they usually did
D．continue to open at usual time
小題2:The sense of time that flowers have is connected with_____________.
A．its age and size
B．light and temperature
C．a(chǎn) kind of strange power(力量）inside them
D．some unknown information from the outside world
小題3:What will happen if we make good use of the "inner clock"
A．We'll need less sleep or food.
B．We'll be able to sleep as long as we wish to.
C．We'll be able to change our work time when necessary.
D．We'll have more energy to do our work better.
小題4:What's the Chinese meaning of the underlined word" affects"
A．產(chǎn)生B．影響C．給予D．依賴

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科目：高中英語(yǔ) 來(lái)源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

Nuclear energy has always been controversial. But since the tsunami and nuclear disaster in Fukushima (Japan) last year the issue is back in the headlines. And the world is divided— some countries are planning more nuclear plants, while others have promised to shut theirs down.
After Fukushima, Germany decided to switch off all its nuclear plants by 2022. Switzerland and Italy are also phasing out nuclear power. But France and the United States remain staunch supporters of atomic energy. In fact, almost 80% of France’s electricity comes from nuclear power, the highest percentage in the world. And in the US, the Obama administration said it “continues to support the expansion of nuclear power, despite the crisis in Japan.”
Nuclear supporters claim nuclear power can help the environment. Unlike fossil fuels, nuclear power doesn’t create greenhouse gases. So, pro-nuclear countries argue that nuclear power allows them to generate energy without contributing to climate change. Britain’s chief scientific adviser (John Beddington) supports this view. He recently said that the world doesn’t have the luxury of ignoring nuclear energy.
Nuclear power is also relatively cheap. Renewable energy sources such as solar, hydro and wind power may be clean, but they’re expensive; and right now, they require a lot of investment. This higher cost of using “green energy” is usually passed onto the consumer. So, while many people may prefer their energy to come from a renewable source, not so many are prepared to pay higher energy bills. This is of particular concern while the world economy is in such bad shape.
The main argument against nuclear energy is that it isn’t safe. For a start, nuclear waste is very difficult to dispose of, and remains toxic to humans for thousands of years. And even before Fukushima, there were several high-profile nuclear disasters. The most famous is probably the 1986 Chernobyl disaster, in the Ukraine. The radiation from the meltdown spread all over Europe, affecting thousands.
The nuclear energy issue is very complex. And it doesn’t look like it’ll be resolved anytime soon. As a Japanese commentator recently said, “it’s been a bad year for the ‘nuclear village’, but I don’t think they’re down and out yet.” The battle continues.
小題1:Which of the following may NOT be the advantage of nuclear energy over other energy sources?
A．Nuclear energy doesn’t produce any greenhouse gases.
B．Nuclear energy can help prevent the climate damage.
C．Nuclear energy is more environmental-friendly than other green energy sources.
D．Nuclear energy can save the consumers some money, compared to other renewable energies.
小題2:What does the underlined word “this” refer to in paragraph 4?
A．The fact that many people prefer to use the green energy sources while unwilling to pay higher bill.
B．The cost of using renewable sources
C．The fact that the nuclear power is cheaper.
D．The investment of renewable energy sources
小題3:We can learn from the last paragraph that _______.
A．the Japanese commentator is positive about the future of nuclear energy
B．the nuclear energy issue will be soon settled
C．a(chǎn) battle will break out in the future
D．Japan is considering to build a nuclear village in the future
小題4:What is the author’s purpose of writing the passage?
A．To highlight the danger of using nuclear energy.
B．To introduce some serious nuclear disasters.
C．To show the argument between nuclear supporters and protesters.
D．To give some advice on how to use nuclear energy safely.

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