A desert is a very dry land where there is hardly any rain. In the day, it can be so hot that you could fry an egg on the ground. But during the night it is sometimes so could that water would turn into ice.






Many desserts are covered in sand. But some have mountains, rocks, or lakes that have dried up in the heat. The Great American Dessert has cliffs(悬崖) that have been made into amazing and beautiful shapes by the wind. The Sahara Desert in Africa is mostly sand. The Australian Desert has red sand.
Sometimes it does not rain for a whole year in the desert. But there is water deep under the ground and some plants have roots that go very deep to find it. Other plants have roots that spread out(延伸) a long way so they can suck up the rain as soon as it falls.
One desert plant is the cactus, which has long, spreading roots. The cactus stores water inside its hard skin. This skin protects it from heat and cold.
Camels are a bit like cactus plants! They store water too—inside their bodies. They have special fur which protects them from the sun during the day and keeps them warm at night.
Some other animals live in deserts, too. They have to be very good at seeing and hearing because most of them only come out at night. This is why many desert animals have extra big eyes or ears.
A desert fox has bigger ears than a normal for. A gerbil has huge eye, so that it can see at night. It stays cool in the day by staying underground, like most desert animals.
Some people live in the desert but they always make their homes near an oasis. An oasis is where water comes from an underground river. Near an oasis, people can grow lots of plants and keep animals.
Life is hard in the desert, for people, animals and plants. But desert people like to live there.
【小题1】A desert is very dry because__________.

A．it is sandy	B．there is so little rain
C．the wind is strong	D．there is no water deep under the ground

【小题2】What does the underlined phrase"suck up"in paragraph 3 mean_________?

A．围堵

B．讨好

C．释放

D．吸收

【小题3】Some desert animals have extra big eyes or ears because__________.

A．the sunlight is too strong in the day	B．they need to see and hear well at night
C．it is very cold at nigh	D．they store water in them.

【小题4】Most desert animals stay cool in the day by_________.

A．storing water in side their bodies	B．drinking water as much as they can
C．staying underground	D．growing lots of plants

【小题5】Which of the following is true?

A．Desert people like to live in the desert though life is hard.

B．People in the desert usually fry eggs on the ground.

C．Camels have special fur to store water.

D．All the deserts are covered in sand.

A sign is another kind of language. Here are some of them that you see on the roads.

Number one is a sign with the number thirty on it. When drivers see this sign , they must not go at more than thirty kilometers can hour. We see this sign when we are getting near a town. Number two is a sign that we're near a crossing. We must drive carefully. Number three is a sign that there is a bend in the road. Again, we must drive slowly and carefully. It is not safe to go round a bend very fast. Number four is a sign that there is another road coming in from the right. There is a junction at this place. Number five is a sign that there is a hill and number six is a sign that the road gets narrow. Drivers must go slowly and carefully. Number seven has the word “ SCHOOL” on it. This is a sign that there is a school at the side of the street or the road. Perhaps there are children going to or leaving school. So drivers must look carefully and go slowly. Number eight is a sign with the letter “ P ” on it. The letter “ P ” means “ Parking ”. At some places, there're the signs “ No parking ” or “ No waiting”. If a driver leaves his car near one of these signs, a policeman may come and write down the number of his car.
【小题1】At the places where you see Sign 1,        .

A．you are already out of a town

B．you still have thirty kilometers to go

C．there must be many houses and buildings not far away

D．there must be a town thirty k8ilometers away

【小题2】The underlined word bend probably means         here.

A．traffic	B．subway
C．turning	D．danger

【小题3】You have to drive not only slowly but also carefully when you find        .

A．each of the eight signs

B．either of Signs 2 and 3

C．all of Signs 2, 4, 6 and 7

D．any of Signs 3, 5, 6 and 7

【小题4】People put these signs on the road in order to        .

A．teach drivers lesson

B．make drivers even safer

C．stop cars going there

D．learn another kind of language

【小题5】Which can be the best title for this message?

A．Another language.

B．On the road.

C．What to do.

D．Traffic signs.

A sign is another kind of language. Here are some of them that you see on the roads.

Number one is a sign with the number thirty on it. When drivers see this sign , they must not go at more than thirty kilometers can hour. We see this sign when we are getting near a town. Number two is a sign that we're near a crossing. We must drive carefully. Number three is a sign that there is a bend in the road. Again, we must drive slowly and carefully. It is not safe to go round a bend very fast. Number four is a sign that there is another road coming in from the right. There is a junction at this place. Number five is a sign that there is a hill and number six is a sign that the road gets narrow. Drivers must go slowly and carefully. Number seven has the word “ SCHOOL” on it. This is a sign that there is a school at the side of the street or the road. Perhaps there are children going to or leaving school. So drivers must look carefully and go slowly. Number eight is a sign with the letter “ P ” on it. The letter “ P ” means “ Parking ”. At some places, there're the signs “ No parking ” or “ No waiting”. If a driver leaves his car near one of these signs, a policeman may come and write down the number of his car.
【小题1】At the places where you see Sign 1,        .

A．you are already out of a town

B．you still have thirty kilometers to go

C．there must be many houses and buildings not far away

D．there must be a town thirty k8ilometers away

【小题2】The underlined word bend probably means         here.

A．traffic	B．subway
C．turning	D．danger

【小题3】You have to drive not only slowly but also carefully when you find        .

A．each of the eight signs

B．either of Signs 2 and 3

C．all of Signs 2, 4, 6 and 7

D．any of Signs 3, 5, 6 and 7

【小题4】People put these signs on the road in order to        .

A．teach drivers lesson

B．make drivers even safer

C．stop cars going there

D．learn another kind of language

【小题5】Which can be the best title for this message?

A．Another language.

B．On the road.

C．What to do.

D．Traffic signs.

A farmer had a cow. He took very good care of this cow and one day when it was ill. He was very worried. He telephoned the vet (兽医).
“What’s the problem?” The vet asked him when he arrived.
“My cow is ill.” the farmer said. “I don’t know what’s the matter with her. She’s lying down and won’t eat. She’s making a strange noise.”
The vet looked over the cow. “She’s certainly ill, ” he said, “and she needs to take some very strong medicine.”
He took a bottle out of his box, put two pills into his hand and said, “The pills should make her better.”
“How should I give them to her?” the farmer asked.
The vet gave him a tube (管子) and said,“Put this tube in her mouth, then put the pills in the tube and blow. That’ll make it.”
The next day the vet came to the farm again. The farmer was sitting outside his house and looked more worried.
“How’s your cow?” the vet asked.
“No change,” the farmer said. “and I’m feeling very strange myself.”
“Oh?” the vet said. “Why?”
“I did what you said,” the farmer answered. “I put the tube in the cow’s mouth and then put two pills down it.”
“And?” the vet asked.
“The cow blew first.” the farmer said.
【小题1】The farmer asked the vet for help when his cow ________.

A．couldn’t make any noise	B．didn’t eat the pills
C．was ill	D．couldn’t lie down

【小题2】The vet taught the farmer how ________.

A．to blow the tube	B．to make the cow take the pills
C．to take the medicine	D．to put the tube in his mouth

【小题3】Which of the following is true?

A．The farmer ate the pills himself.

B．The cow got better after taking the medicine.

C．The vet came to help farmer change the cow the next day.

D．The farmer waited for the vet outside his house the next day.