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“Happy New Year!” Everyone will greet each other with these words as they meet each other on New Year’s Day. But it wasn’t always January 1 that marked the New Year.

    At least 4,000 years ago, the ancient Egyptians and Babylonians marked the changing of the year. In Egypt, the year started when the Nile River flooded, enriching farmers’ fields. This happened at the end of September.

    The Babylonians held a festival in the spring, on March 23, to kick off the next farming cycle. The Babylonian celebration lasted for 11 days.

    The date January 1 was picked by the Roman Emperor Julius Caesar as the change of the year when he established his own calendar in 46 BC. The month of January originates from the Roman god, Janus. He is pictured with two heads. One head looks forward and the other back. They represent a break between the old and new. The new calendar was in time with the sun and it has been used until the present day.

    In Vietnam, the New Year holiday happens in February. They buy fresh flowers and a peach blossom to put in their house, following the Vietnamese custom.

Thailand has its specific New Year’s date; it’s different from the normal calendar. The Thai New Year is celebrated on April 13. On this day, Thai people play with water, throwing it on each other. It is intended to bring good luck during the New Year ahead.

    In China, the more favorable New Year is usually celebrated in February according to lunar calendar (陰歷). On New Year’s Eve, all family members sit together at table, enjoying lots of auspicious foods such as dumplings, chicken to bring good luck.

Title:  New Year traditions all around the world

When ________ what made him a popular person, he said it was his personality.

    A. asking   B. asked    C. being asked  D. ask

I’m told that the job is open to everyone ____ their previous experience. So it’s a chance for a green hand like you.

 A．a(chǎn)part from      B．due to      C．in case of    D．in spite of

— Honestly, there are too many people who pretend to be beggars to cheat the passers-by.

— That’s true. ________ I see the young and strong beggars, I will pay no attention.

A. Unless                         B. Whether         C. As long as                   D. As far as

The young man insisted that he ____ nothing wrong and ____ free.

A. did; set                        B. had done; be set  

C. should do; should be set          D. had done; must be set

For years scientists have been worried about the effects of air pollution on the earth’s natural conditions. Some believe the air inside many houses may be more dangerous than the air outside. It may be one hundred times worse.

      Indoor air pollution can cause a person to feel tired, to suffer eye pain, headache and other problems. Some pollutants (污染物) can cause breathing disorders, diseases of blood and even cancer. Most scientists agree that every modern house has some kind of indoor pollution.

      People have paid more attention to the problem now. It is said that when builders began making houses and offices they did not waste energy. To do this they built buildings that limited the flow of air between inside and outside. They also began using man-made building materials. These materials are now known to let out harmful gases.

      As the problem became more serious, scientists began searching for a way to deal with it. They discovered a natural pollution control system for building--- green plants. Scientists do not really know how plants control air pollution. They believe that a plant’s leaves absorb or take in the pollutants. In exchange the plant lets out oxygen through its leaves and small organizations on its roots. Scientists suggest that all buildings should have one large plant or several small plants inside for every nine square metres of space. Studies of different plants show that each absorbs different chemicals. So the most effective way to clean the air is to use different kinds of plants. Having green plants inside your house can make it a prettier and more healthy place.

Some kind of indoor pollution can be found in ________.

     A. every modern house     B. every old house       

  C. all kinds of houses        D. all kinds of offices

The indoor air pollution is caused by ________.

A. the limit of the flow of air between inside and outside

B. the building way that the builders want to save energy

C. the building things that are made of man-made materials

D. the man-made building materials and the limit of air-flow

The reason why we should use different kinds of plants to clean the air is that ________.

A. plants can let out all kinds of pollutants indoors

B. plants may take in more oxygen which people need

C. plants can absorb all kinds of harmful indoor chemicals

D. plants can make our houses prettier 

You’re lost in the world of dreams and sleep. You roll over, smiling as you come across a swimming pool filled with chocolate. And then, your wonderful dream becomes a nightmare when someone is screaming, “Get up!” It’s just what every teenager goes through each morning!

Now, there seems to be one school that finally understands that requiring teens to show up at 9 am is not just cruel but also harmful to both the kids and the school.

The Monkseaton High School in North Tyneside, Britain, recently decided to experiment to see if there is any difference in student behavior if they just pushed back the start of their day by one hour, from 9 am to 10 am. And the results are surprising.

Since carrying out the later start, Monkseaton has seen a 28% drop in truancy, even hardly any lateness, and best of all, higher test scores. One of the reasons is that the teenagers are much happier to have the extra hour of sleep, but there is also a scientific reason behind why they need the extra sleep.

The school’s decision to push back the time was based on the research done by Oxford Professor Russell Foster, who pointed out that teenagers and adults have different sleep cycles, explaining why teenagers go to bed late and wake up late.

While adults are wide awake and ready at 8 am, teenagers are not fully awake until 10 am, sometimes even noon. Teachers may argue that their students perform better in the morning, but in fact, it is because they are in the zone while their students are still sleepy, making the students easier to control. Memory tests prove that the more difficult classes should be in the afternoon when teenagers are most wide awake.

The Monkseaton school officials are encouraged by the results and plan on voting to make it a permanent change.

What’s the best title of this passage?

       A. Get up early, teenagers!

       B. Finally, a school understands teenagers.

       C. Why do teenagers stay up late?

       D. Difference between teens and adults.

What’s the meaning of the underlined word “truancy”?

       A. grades                      B. subject       s                    C. absence                    D. classes

What can we learn from the passage?

       A. Teenagers and adults have the same sleep cycle.

       B. Teenagers are fully awake at 10 am.

       C. Teenagers are much happier to sleep than study.

       D. Teenagers need the extra sleep also for a scientific reason.

Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?

A. The Monkseaton school is satisfied with the result of experiments.

       B. It is cruel for the teenagers to show up at 9 am.

       C. The Monkseaton school plans to change the school time forever.

       D. Teenagers perform better in the morning than in the afternoon.

A recent report on online education, made by SRI International for the Department of Education, has a serious academic (學(xué)術(shù)的) title, but a most interesting conclusion: “ Students in online learning conditions performed better than those receiving face-to-face instruction.”

The report examined the research on online and traditional classroom teaching from 1996 to 2008. Some of it was in K-12 settings, but most of the studies were in colleges and adult continuing education programs.

Over the 12 years, the report found 99 studies in which there were comparisons of online and classroom performance for the same courses. The result of the Department of Education’ s research showed that usually, students doing some or all of the course online would rank a little higher than the classroom students with little but meaningful difference.

“The importance of the study lies in showing that online learning today is not just better than nothing — it actually tends to be better than traditional instruction.” said Barbara Means, the study’ s lead author and an educational psychologist at SRI International.

This hardly means that we’ll be saying goodbye to classrooms. But the report does suggest that online education could be set to develop sharply over the next few years.

Until fairly recently, online education totaled to little. That has really changed with the arrival of webbased video, instant (即時(shí)的) messaging and teamwork tools.

The real promise of online education, experts say, is providing learning experiences that are more suitable for individual (個(gè)體的) students than is possible in classrooms. That allows more “l(fā)earning by doing,” which many students find more attractive and useful.

“We are at a turning point in online education,” said Philip R. Regier, the leader of Arizona State University’ s Online and Extended Campus program.

The biggest near-term growth, Mr. Regier predicts, will be in continuing education programs.

What do we know from the passage?

Most of the studies were done in high schools.

The report was based on more than 100 studies.

The studies were carried out for more than 20 years.

The difference between online and traditional teaching is not big.

We can learn from the passage that __________.

traditional education will come to an end

traditional education is not popular any longer

online education didn’ t develop rapidly until recently

middle schools are facing the choice between online and traditional teaching

Which is NOT the reason why many students prefer online learning?

Online teaching is more suitable for individuals.

Classroom teaching is not practical and useful.

Students can learn by doing in online courses.

Online teaching is more interesting.

Which do you think is the best title for the passage?

Study finds that online education beats the classroom

Why is online education on the rise?

A report on online education

Classroom teaching is out

Life gets noisier every day. Very few people can be free from noise of some sort or another. It doesn’t matter where you live, in the middle of a modern city, or a faraway village--- the chances are that you’ll be disturbed by jet aeroplanes, transistor radios, powered engines, etc. We seem to be getting used to noise, too. Some people feel quite lonely without background music while they’re working.

Scientific tests have shown that total silence can be a very frightening experience for a human being. However, some people enjoy listening to pop music which is very loud and this can do harm to their eardrums(耳鼓). The noise level in some discos is far above the usual safety level for heavy industrial areas.

One recent report about noise and concentration(專心) suggested that although a lot of people say that any noise disturbs their concentration, what really influences their ability to concentrate is a change in the level of noise. It goes on to say that a background noise which doesn’t change too much (music, for example) may even help people to concentrate.

According to this passage, the noise pollution______.

   A. has become the worst in the countryside         B. has become better in big cities

   C. has spread from cities to villages                   D. has been controlled in modern cities

What does background music refer to?

   A. Music played while people are working.

   B. Music played in the backyard.

   C. Noise that continues while you’re listening to other noises.

   D. Music used to help people to concentrate.

Some people have their hearing harmed______.

   A. while listening to pop music                        B. in complete silence

   C. when speaking loudly                            D. while watching TV

Which of the following isn’t included among the things causing noise?

   A. Rivers                                                B. Transistor radios           

C. Powered engines                                         D. Jet planes

Scientist have discovered that what prevents people from concentrating on something is_____.

   A. all kinds of noise                                      B. great changes in the level of noise

   C. background noise                                  D. popular music

Maybe you are an average student. You probably think you will never be a top student. This is not necessary so, however. Anyone can become a better student if he or she wants to. Here is how.　　

1). Plan your time carefully. When you plan your week, you should make a list of things that you can have to do. After making the list, you should make a schedule of your time. First time for eating, sleeping, dressing, etc. Then decide a good, regular time for studying. Don’t forget to set aside enough time fro entertainment. A weekly schedule may not solve all your problems, but it will force you to realize what is happening to your time.　　

2). Find a good place to study. Look around the house for a good study area. Keep this space, which may be a desk or simply a corner of your room. Free from everything but study materials. No games, radios, or television. When you sit down to study, concentrate on the subject. 　　

3). Make good use of your time in class. Take advantage of class time to listen to everything the teachers say. Really listening in class means less work later. Taking notes will help you remember what your teachers say.　　

4). Study regularly. When you get home from school, go over your notes. Review the important points that your teachers mentioned in class. If you want to know what your teacher is going to discuss the next day, read the material in advance. This will help you understand the next class. If you do these things regularly, the material will become more meaningful, and you will remember it longer.　　

5). Develop a good attitude about tests. The purpose of a test is to show what you have learned about a subject. They help you remember your new knowledge. The world won’t end if you don’t pass a test, so don’t be overly worried.　

There are other methods that might help you with your studying. You will probably discover many others after you have tried these.　　

How to Become A Better Student?