A habit is any action that we have performed so often that it becomes something that we do almost without thinking. Some of them are thought to be bad habits. People spend countless hours and dollars each year trying to get rid of these bad habits but often fail. Why? Change is hard work and there is no shortcut to achieve it. However, there is still some advice for you to follow.
First, look at why you do it. In other words, what’s the result of doing this thing? If your bad habit is shouting at people when you are unhappy or under pressure, what do you get from it? It may make you feel a little better for the moment. Or maybe you have a bad habit of leaving your homework undone. The result could be that you get more time to spend on the Internet!
Next, take a look on the other hand. What are you losing because of your habit? Shouting at other people is a bad habit because it makes people around you feel bad and unhappy. Leaving your homework undone is a bad habit because you may be punished by your teacher. Having more Internet time means that you are losing the chance to learn the things that you need to learn. When you think that way, you’ll find that it’s not wise to keep your bad habit! Now it is time to make a decision. What will you choose? I’m sure you will choose to do what you think is more important.
【小題1】From the first paragraph we know that __________.

A．a(chǎn) habit is a terrible thing that we can never change

B．people take countless hours and dollars to get rid of habits

C．none of the people who try to break bad habits are successful

D．though it is difficult, we can still do something about our bad habits

【小題2】The underlined sentence “there is no shortcut to achieve it” means that ____.

A．it is not easy to get rid of bad habits

B．there is a long way and a short way

C．something dangerous may happen

D．we must cut it in a short time.

【小題3】Which does NOT happen because of a bad habit according to the reading?

A．You are punished later.

B．Making people around you feel unhappy.

C．You feel a little better after shouting at others.

D．You leave your homework at home by accident.

【小題4】The main purpose of this passage is to __________.

A．introduce and describe	B．complain and disagree
C．explain and advise	D．discuss and argue

A year ago，I paid no attention to English idioms (習(xí)語), though my teacher told us the importance again and again. But soon, the importance of English idioms was shown in an amusing experience.
One day, I happened to meet an Englishman on the road, and soon we began to talk. As I was talking about how I was studying English, the foreigner seemed to be surprised. Gently shaking his head，shrugging his shoulders, he said，“You don’t say!” “You don’t say!” I was puzzled. I thought , perhaps this is not a right topic. “Well, I’d better change the topic.” So I said to him. “Well, shall we talk about the Great Wall? By the way, have you ever been there?” “Certainly, everyone back home will laugh at me if I leave China without seeing it. It was wonderful.” He was deep in thought when I began to talk like a tourist guide. “The Great Wall is one of the wonders in the world. We are very proud of it.” Soon I was interrupted (打斷) again by his words: “You don’t say!” I couldn’t help asking, “Why do you ask me not to talk about it?” “Well, I didn’t ask you to do so,” he answered, greatly surprised. I said, “Didn’t you say ‘you don’t say’？” Hearing this, the Englishman laughed to tears. He began to explain, “ ‘You don’t say’ actually means ‘really!’ It is an expression of surprise. Perhaps you don’t pay attention to English idioms.” I realized I had made a fool of myself. Since then I have been more careful with idiomatic expressions. Remember: what the English teachers said is always right to us students.
【小題1】A year ago, I paid no attention to English idioms because       .

A．I had no interest in them

B．English idioms were very difficult

C．I did not realize the importance of them

D．my teacher didn’t tell us the importance of them

【小題2】At first, on hearing “You don’t say,” I thought the foreigner meant       .

A．I had talked too much

B．I had to stop talking

C．he was not interested in the topic

D．he was only interested in the Great Wall

【小題3】“… was shown in an amusing experience.” The word “amusing” probably means       .

A．interesting

B．important

C．terrible

D．unlucky

【小題4】Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A．The Englishman wanted me to act as his guide.

B．The Englishman left China without seeing the Great Wall.

C．The Englishman wanted to see the Great Wall after I talked about it.

D．The Englishman visited the Great Wall and thought it worth visiting.

【小題5】After the Englishman explained the idiom, ___________.

A．I felt very silly

B．the Englishman became a real fool

C．I became more carefully in everything

D．I thought the Englishman had made me a fool

When an animal helps another animal, it usually gets something valuable in return. For a long time, many scientists thought that only people could act generously just because it feels good.
However, a new study in Germany suggests that chimpanzees (黑猩猩)also do good things for no real reason. And so do children who are as young as 18 months of age. Maybe it is because humans and chimpanzees share an ancestor(祖先) about 6 million years ago.
People and chimpanzees appear to develop such features(特征) without any other training, says Warneken, a scientist in Germany. Warneken and his partners worked on adult chimpanzees that live on an island in the African country of Uganda. They also worked with 18-month-old children in Germany. The researchers performed three experiments on the adult chimpanzees and two experiments on the kids. In the first animal experiment，a person tried to reach his arm into a cage to get a stick，but he couldn’t reach it. A chimpanzee was in the cage，and it could reach the stick if it wanted to.
Thirty-six chimpanzees took part in this experiment one by one, and no chimpanzee saw what the other chimpanzees had done. Even though the animals hadn’t met the person before, they usually took the stick and gave it to the person. What’s more, they did this whether or not the person offered them bananas as a reward. In a similar experiment, 36 children acted in a similar way. They helped the person reach the stick, whether or not they were offered toys for their help.
Researchers did other experiments on chimpanzees and babies. No rewards were offered in either experiment. And still, both the chimpanzees and children went out of their way to help. Still, the new study is different from earlier findings. Researchers have found that chimpanzees don’t give rewards of food to other chimpanzees, even if it costs them nothing to be generous.
【小題1】Warneken and his partners worked with ________.

A．young chimpanzee that live on an island

B．18-month-old children who live in Germany

C．kids who are living with adult chimpanzees

D．a(chǎn)dult chimpanzees that live on the African mountain

【小題2】A new study in Germany suggests that ________.

A．people also share information for good reason

B．children know something at the age of 18 months

C．chimpanzees do good things for no real reason, too

D．humans should develop their abilities 6 million years ago

【小題3】 Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage？

A．Thirty-six chimpanzees joined in this experiment one by one

B．No chimpanzee saw what the other chimpanzees had done

C．The animals hadn’t met the person before the experiments

D．Chimpanzee gave the person the stick in order to get a reward

【小題4】From the passage we know that ________.

A．both chimpanzees and children can find their way to help others

B．chimpanzees will reward good food to other chimpanzees

C．children is more generous than chimpanzees in some ways

D．both chimpanzees and children can do the difficult experiments

A man bought a donkey at the market one day and took him home. Now the man owned several donkeys already and he knew each one’s character very well. One of the donkeys was very strong and brave. Another always wanted to make people happy by working quickly but soon got tired. One donkey was very lazy. He hated going to work in the morning and he did as little as he       possibly could all day long. When the other animals were being loaded up(裝載), he always tried to be the last so that he would get the lightest load.
The man led the new donkey into the yard. For a moment the new donkey stood sniffing(聞，嗅) at his new friends. Then, without hesitation, he came up to the lazy donkey and began eating comfortably at his side.
Though it was late in the day, the man immediately led the new donkey out of the yard, straight back to the market.
“You can’t have given him a fair trial yet,” said the seller, “It is only ten minutes since you bought him.”
“I don’t need to try him any more,” replied the man, “I know just what he is like from the friend he chose for himself. Take him away and give me my money back. I can do without donkeys like him.”
【小題1】Why did the man buy a new donkey in the market?

A．Because he liked it.

B．Because he knew the donkey very well.

C．Because he needed another donkey to help him with his work.

D．Because the new donkey wasn’t lazy at all.

【小題2】The man led the new donkey to the yard in order to _______.

A．see if he is lazy

B．let him choose a new friend

C．let the new donkey eat something

D．let him work

【小題3】What’s the meaning of the underline phrase　“without hesitation” ?

A．沒有吃飯

B．未經(jīng)許可

C．毫不猶豫地

D．很不樂意地

【小題4】How did the man know the character of the new donkey?

A．By letting him work

B．By watching how he chose his new friend

C．By leading him to the yard

D．by pleasing people

【小題5】What’s the best title of the story?

A．How To Buy Donkeys	B．The Owner and The Donkeys
C．The lazy Donkey	D． The Man and The Donkey

A year ago, I paid no attention to English idioms（習(xí)語）, though my teacher told us the importance again and again. But soon, the importance of English idioms was shown in an amusing experience.
One day, I happened to meet an Englishman on the road, and soon we began to talk. As I was talking about how I was studying English, the foreigner seemed to be surprised. Gently shaking his head，shrugging his shoulders, he said，“You don’t say!” “You don’t say!” I was puzzled. I thought, perhaps this is not a right topic. “Well, I’d better change the topic.” So I said to him. “Well, shall we talk about the Great Wall? By the way, have you ever been there?” “Certainly, everyone back home will laugh at me if I leave China without seeing it. It was wonderful.” He was deep in thought when I began to talk like a tourist guide. “The Great Wall is one of the wonders in the world. We are very proud of it.” Soon I was interrupted（打斷）again by his words: “You don’t say!” I couldn’t help asking, “Why do you ask me not to talk about it?” “Well, I didn’t ask you to do so,” he answered, greatly surprised. I said, “Didn’t you say ‘you don’t say’?” Hearing this, the Englishman laughed to tears. He began to explain, “ ‘You don’t say’ actually means ‘really!’ It is an expression of surprise. Perhaps you don’t pay attention to English idioms.” I realized I had made a fool of myself. Since then I have been more careful with idiomatic expressions. Remember: what the English teachers said is always right to us students.
【小題1】A year ago, I paid no attention to English idioms because       .

A．I had no interest in them

B．English idioms were very difficult

C．I did not realize the importance of them

D．my teacher didn’t tell us the importance of them

【小題2】At first, on hearing “You don’t say,” I thought the foreigner meant       .

A．I had talked too much	B．I had to stop talking
C．he was not interested in the topic	D．he was only interested in the Great Wall

【小題3】“…was shown in an amusing experience.” The word “amusing” probably means     .

A．interesting

B．important

C．terrible

D．unlucky

【小題4】Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A．The Englishman wanted me to act as his guide.

B．The Englishman left China without seeing the Great Wall.

C．The Englishman wanted to see the Great Wall after I talked about it.

D．The Englishman visited the Great Wall and thought it worth visiting.

【小題5】After the Englishman explained the idiom, ___________.

A．I felt very silly	B．the Englishman became a real fool
C．I became more careful in everything	D．I thought the Englishman had made me a fool