In a nice house there lived an old man. Behind the house there was a big garden. He planted many plants there. He took care of his   41  all the time, watering and fertilizing (施肥) them.
One day a young man went by the   42 . He looked at the beautiful flowers, imagining how happy he could be   43  he lived in such a beautiful place. Then, suddenly he found the old gardener was   44 . He was very surprised about this and asked, “You can’t see these flowers.   45  are you busy taking care of them every day?”
The old man smiled and said, “I can tell you four   46 . First, I was a gardener when I was young, and I really like this job. Second,   47  I can’t see these flowers, I can touch them.   48 , I can smell the sweetness of them. As to the last one, that’s   49 .”
“Me? But you don’t know me,” said the young man.
“Yeah, it’s   50  that I don’t know you. But I know that flowers are angels that everybody   51 . We enjoy the happiness these flowers have brought us.”
The blind man’s work opened our eyes and   52  our heart, which also made his life   53 . It was just like Beethoven, who became deaf in his later life and wrote many great musical words. Beethoven himself couldn’t   54  his wonderful music, but his music has   55  millions of people to face their difficulties bravely. Isn’t it one kind of happiness?

【小题1】

A．flowers B．trees C．vegetables D．grass

【小题2】

A．balcony B．kitchen C．garden D．study

【小题3】

A．after B．as C．before D．if

【小题4】

A．blind B．famous C．smart D．friendly

【小题5】

A．What B．Who C．Why D．Which

【小题6】

A．stories B．reasons C．excuses D．conclusions

【小题7】

A．although B．since C．because D．unless

【小题8】

A．First B．Second C．Third D．Fourth

【小题9】

A．me B．you C．my mother D．my son

【小题10】

A．true B．hard C．cool D．fair

【小题11】

A．greets B．doubts C．meets D．knows

【小题12】

A．broke B．hurt C．pleased D．treated

【小题13】

A．emptier B．busier C．luckier D．happier

【小题14】

A．write B．hear C．play D．believe

【小题15】

A．changed B．affected C．discovered D．encouraged

In the 1500s, South American fishermen said that the sea became warmer every few years. They gave this special event a Spanish name 'El Nino', meaning 'the baby'. It is called 'the baby' because it arrives around Christmas.
El Nino is a huge area of warm water in the middle of cold water in the Pacific Ocean. It happens every two to seven years. It moves around the ocean and becomes bigger and smaller at different times. This warm water affects the weather. It is always raining over El Nino. El Nino contains a lot of energy. Scientists think this energy is formed when wind comes from the northern half of the world. The winds blow across warm sea water in the south. When the strong wind hits the warm water, violent weather happens. Scientists think that El Nino existed for many thousands of years.
El Nino affects every person in the world because it affects the entire world's weather. It can bring the rain that farmers need. It can bring storms that destroy homes. It can mean that fishermen cannot catch fish, and it can bring floods. There is nothing we can do about El Nino. It is an event of nature. We can help the world's weather by trying to stop the greenhouse effect and air pollution. The most important job for scientists is to learn how to predict when El Nino is going to bring dangerous weather. Then, people can try to prepare for storms, floods and droughts. New technology like satellite pictures and temperature measuring equipment can help. Still, it is very hard to say when or where El Nino will cause damage.
【小题1】El Nino is ______.

A．a storm that hits every two years	B．a huge area of warm water
C．a wind from the south	D．some cold water in the Pacific Ocean

【小题2】 It happens ______.

A．every year	B．every month
C．every seven years	D．every two to seven years

【小题3】El Nino ______.

A．makes the weather better	B．affects the weather
C．gives the weather energy	D．predicts the weather

【小题4】It is always______ over EI Nino.

A．sunny

B．cloudy

C．rainy

D．windy

【小题5】El Nino affects ______.

A．everybody	B．just farmers
C．only fishermen	D．only students

【小题6】 We can help the world's weather by______.

A．finding out more about El Nino	B．being careful during the floods
C．driving cars	D．stopping the greenhouse effect

【小题7】______helps to predict El Nino.

A．Looking out of the window	B．Checking the weather each day
C．Satellite pictures	D．New boats

In the past, large numbers of American people liked to use tomorrow’s money. However, since the economic depression(经济萧条), many have learnt to live  16 . Here is a true story about an American girl, Anna. After graduation, she began to live in Los Angeles on her own. She  17  a job in a publishing house(出版社) and earned  18  $30,000 a year. Her parents thought Anna’s life would be  19 , but Anna was able to live on her money and still  20  $5000 in the first year. How could she do so in  21  expensive city?
Cheap living always starts with keeping the  22  cost small. For people, that  23  housing. So Anna chose to share a flat with three other friends. Her next biggest cost was  24 . When she ate  25 , she went to cheap restaurants.  26  she bought a $9.99 whole chicken at a local restaurant. She then took the chicken bones home and made soup out of them. Today young people often  27  a lot of money on entertainment. But Anna loved going to museums and parks as the  28  for these places were free. Did Anna feel poor by cheap living? Not really. She even  29  to take two trips, one to the Netherlands,  30  to Portland.
“Don’t think of saving money as something hard. It’s a kind of game,” said Anna.

【小题1】

A．happily B．luckily C．hopefully D．cheaply

【小题2】

A．found B．gets C．looked for D．makes

【小题3】

A．more than B．less than C．more D．less

【小题4】

A．dangerous B．hard C．easy D．comfortable

【小题5】

A．made B．gave C．took D．saved

【小题6】

A．so an B．such an C．so D．such

【小题7】

A．expensive B．much C．big D．heavy

【小题8】

A．does B．becomes C．helps D．means

【小题9】

A．food B．clothes C．studying D．traveling

【小题10】

A．away B．out C．up D．inside

【小题11】

A．Soon B．Finally C．Once D．Again

【小题12】

A．pay B．spend C．cost D．take

【小题13】

A．tickets B．seats C．exhibition D．tea

【小题14】

A．tried B．had C．needed D．managed

【小题15】

A．another B．the other C．other D．other

How to Become Fit?
Healthy eating habit along with regular exercise is the only way to become fit. If you have the correct number of calories and exercise regularly, you will lose weight, keep fit, and feel great, too.
During your teenage years, it is important to give your body the energy it needs. If you skip (跳过) meals, you won’t get enough calories, and then you will feel tired. By the way, calorie is just another word for energy. About 50% of your calories should come from rice, bread, vegetables and fruit. You also need to drink a lot of water, 6 to 8 glasses a day. Water helps keep your system clean. Drinking enough water will make your skin better and make you healthy.
Exercise is something that can help to make you look good, feel good and be healthy. Experts suggest that teenagers spend at least 30 minutes exercising, five times a week. That is easy to do! You can walk or ride your bike to school, and do sports at school. However, teenagers often give up sports, saying they have no time left after their studies. In fact, doing exercise can help them sleep better at night and increase their ability to focus on their study.
If you follow the suggestions above, you will look and feel much better and become fit.
【小题1】What’s the main idea of this passage?

A．How to eat food.	B．How to exercise.
C．How to lose weight.	D．How to keep fit.

【小题2】The underlined word “calories” means ________ in this passage.

A．营养

B．能量

C．强壮

D．锻炼

【小题3】Teenagers spend at least _______ minutes exercising a week according to this passage.

A．150

B．50

C．30

D．5

【小题4】If you ________, you will become fit.

A．exercise regularly

B．drink lots of water

C．eat rice, bread, vegetables and fruit

D．have a healthy eating habit along with regular exercise

【小题5】Why do teenagers give up sports in school according to this passage?
Because they _________.

A．are lazy	B．feel great
C．are busy with their studies	D．don’t like sports

How can we help the people who are not as l___【小题1】____ as us? There are lots of things we can do.
A snowstorm hit much of south china one January. And the disaster caused a great l____【小题2】____. Many houses were destroyed and thousands of people became h__【小题3】____. The government did a lot for them. And so did many charities. Millions of people, both young and o___【小题4】___, donated money and clothes to charities.
In fact, we can also do lots of things in our everyday l___【小题5】_____. For example, we can help a b___【小题6】____ people cross the road. It won’t cost anything. I have a cousin she often helps the d___【小题7】__ children to dance to gestures (手势). Both the children and she h__【小题8】____ enjoy it. I think she is doing a great j__【小题9】_____. She says she gets a lot from others, and she can pay back by helping those who need help.
She is right. Everybody can do something for others. And if you feel you’re needed b___【小题10】____ others, you will feel happy.