A Groundbreaking Event

It was an unforgettable field trip. Twenty-six fifth-graders from George Bancroft Elementary School, in Washington, D.C., went to the White House on Friday. They used shovels, rakes and wheelbarrows to help First Lady Michelle Obama break ground on a new vegetable garden.

This White House garden is the first since World War Ⅱ. In the 1940s, First lady Eleanor Roosevelt planted a White House “Victory Garden” to encourage Americans to grow gardens at home. Mrs. Obama’s new garden is an L-shaped patch near the fountain on the South Lawn. Vegetables to be planted include lettuce, peas, collard greens, onions and spinach. A herb garden will grow garlic, sage and cilantro. These herbs are used in Mexican food, an Obama family favourite. White House chefs will prepare meals for the First Family with food from the garden and some of the produce will be donated to Miriam’s Kitchen, a soup kitchen near the White House.

Health food is important to Mrs. Obama. She said that the purpose of the garden is to make sure that her family, the White House staff, and guests eat fresh vegetables. Mrs. Obama has also said that she hopes the new White House garden will help educate Americans about the importance of fresh, nutritious food at a time when obesity is a national crisis. A diet high in natural, unprocessed foods helps people maintain a healthy weight.

Mrs. Obama said she has found that her daughters, Malia, 16, and Sasha, 13, like vegetables more if they have been involved in growing them. “If they have been involved in planting and picking the vegetables, they are much more curious about giving them a try,” she said. When Bancroft students go back to the White House this summer they will get to taste the vegetables they helped to grow. After they help to harvest the crops, they will cook them in the White House kitchen and then eat them.

1.What did the Bancroft students do outside the White House?

A. They gave shovels, rakes and wheelbarrows to the First Lady.

B. They did research on what life is like for the First Lady.

C. They helped First Lady Michelle Obama to plant a garden.

D. They gave fruit and vegetables to the First Lady.

2.The reason why First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt planted a “Victory Garden” was that _________.

A. she did it just for fun.

B. she wanted other citizens to follow her example.

C. she wanted to please her husband.

D. she wanted to get some gardening experience.

3.Why did Mrs. Obama plan to plant the garden?

A. Because she wanted her children to become gardeners.

B. Because she wanted to know what gardening is like.

C. Because she wanted to become a second Eleanor Roosevelt.

D. Because she wanted people in the white house to eat a healthy food.

The film stars out as a normal day at a typical American high school. Friends chat in the dining room and boys play football. But there's big surprise when the movie ends with two students going crazy in the school-shooting and killing people.

This is Elephant. It stars real school kids. American director Gus Van Sant had no ready-made lines. The student actors made up their own dialogue, with Van Sant asking them to base their characters on their own lives.

Although it may not sound very high quality, the film won the Palme d'Or (金棕獎) for Best Film and the award for Best Director at the Cannes film festival.

The film is based on the shootings at a high school in the US, where two boys killed 13 people and then themselves in 1999.

The title of the movie refers to the old expression about a problem that's as hard to ignore as an elephant in the house.

The film takes a close look at a few hours in the lives of the victims and the killers. It shows how high school is a different experience for everyone---fun and friendly, or hard and lonely.

In many ways, the two boys, who carry out the shooting, act like ordinary kids. They joke around with one boy's mother as she serves them cakes and play the piano.

But there're hints of the anger they feel inside. One of the boys is bullied (欺負(fù)) at school. The other plays violent video games. But Van Sant isn't blaming their killings on either bullying or violent games. In fact, the film doesn't offer any reason for why school violence happens.

"I didn't want to explain anything. It's up to the audience to draw its own conclusions," said the 51-year-old director.

1.The lines of the film were ________.

A. given by the director

B. created by student actors

C. thought out by the director during the acting

D. carefully designed by professional people

2. The film doesn't tell why school shootings happen________.

A. so as to leave room for the audience to think and judge

B. because life itself is the problem maker

C. because the mental problems of students are hard to explain

D. but there are some hints of the reasons

3.The film is named Elephant because ________.

A. an elephant is always gentle and never causes trouble

B. an elephant is a symbol of big problems in American schools

C. elephant is used to suggest that the school crime is a big problem

D. the two boys liked elephants when alive

4.What’s the passage mainly about？

A. It shows American school life.

B. It introduces the film Elephant.

C. It tells people to be careful while in peace.

D. It reports a school killing in a US school.

根據(jù)短文內(nèi)容，從短文后的選項中選出能填入空白處的最佳選項。選項中有兩項為多余選項。

How to get teenagers to read

Getting teenagers to read sounds like a hard task. The latest Xbox or PSP has got them addicted, or the homework seems to last forever. 1. Here is a guide on how to get your teenagers to read.

2. You could look at their school homework timetable and work out which evening they have the least amount of work to do. Make sure that your teenager is not going to an out-of-school club that evening.

Buy your teenagers a new set of books. Research the book lists for teenagers. The Chaos Walking Trilogy and The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy are suited for both boys and girls. If your teenager will never sit down to read a book, consider buying them an electronic reader like an Amazon Kindle Paperwhite to encourage them to read. Make sure that the electronic reader you buy can only be used to read. 3.

Seize opportunities. If they seem unimpressed then whenever you see them not doing anything constructive, encourage them to pick up one of the books you bought. If they say they don’t want the book then take them out to buy some in a bookstore. 4.

Consider punishments. 5. This doesn’t work for everyone but some people find that when your teenager messes up, you can tell them to go to their room and read. They might start to really enjoy the book.

A. Don’t be afraid of wasting money.

B. Electronic readers are harmful to teenagers’ eyesight.

C. Figure out what time is best for your teenager to read.

D. If they still refuse then you could use reading as a punishment.

E. But getting them to pick up a book is a lot easier than it sounds.

F. You’re sure to pick out a book that they really want to read there.

G. You know they could pretend to read and actually play video games.

短文改錯

假定英語課上老師要求同桌之間交換修改作文，請你修改你同學(xué)寫的以下作文。文中共有10處語言錯誤，每句中最多有兩處。錯誤涉及一個單詞的增加、刪除或修改。

增加；在缺詞處加一個漏字符號（∧），并在其下面寫出該加的詞。

刪除；把多余的詞用斜線（＼）劃掉。

修改：在錯的詞下劃一橫線，并在該詞下面寫出修改后的詞。

注意；1．每處錯誤及其修改均僅限一詞；

2．只允許修改10處，多者（從第11處起）不計分。

Tom and Alice were both patient in a Mental Hospital. One day they were walking by the swimming pool of the hospital while Tom suddenly jumped into the deep end. He sank to the bottom. Alice promptly jumped in to save him with any hesitation. She swam to the bottom and pull him out. When the medical director became aware Alice’s heroic act, he immediate reviewed her file and called her into his office. “Alice, I have a good news and bad news for you. The good news is that you’re being discharged because since you were able to save the life of other patient, I think you’ve gained your senses. The bad news is that Tom, that you saved, hanged himself with his bathrobe（浴衣）belt in the bathroom, and he was dead.”

Alice replied, “He didn’t hang him. I hung him up to dry.”

書面表達

假如你是李華，你的好友John熱愛繪畫，從小夢想成為一名畫家。但他的家人極力反對，他有些猶豫不決，于是寫信向你征求建議。請你給他寫一封英文回信，要點如下：

1. 支持他的夢想； 2. 原因（比如：要堅守夢想，畫家不一定沒有好的收入，繪畫是一種高尚的事業(yè)等）；3. 盼望回復(fù)。

注意：1. 詞數(shù)100 左右； 2. 信的格式和開頭語已為你寫好，不計入總詞數(shù)。

Dear John,

I hear that you are not sure about becoming an artist because of your family’s objections.

______________________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________

Yours

Li Hua

China’s rich civilization ________ the world with a happy surprise at the opening ceremony of the 2008 Olympic Games.

A. showed B. attracted C. presented D. performed

He tried to go away without being noticed by the teacher, but luck ________ him.

A. went with B. went against

C. went along D. went over

However much money you have, it can not ________ a healthy body.

A. compare B. earn C. defeat D. match

He ________ into the habit of smoking at the age of 14.

A. formed B. fell C. went D. came

John ________ Joan at least for ten years.

A. has married B. has married with

C. has got married to D. has been married to