Have you ever stayed in a hotel? Most Chinese hotels often provide guests(客人) with things like disposable (一次性的) toothbrushes, toothpaste, shampoo and slippers. Many guests like the idea because they don't have to bring their own. But, if you travel to Beijing, remember to bring your own things. Starting from June, some hotels in Beijing will no longer provide guests with these disposables. They want to ask people to use less disposable things.
Many disposable things are made of plastic. People throw them away after only using them once. It is a waste of natural resources (资源) and is very bad for the environment. Do you know, one Chinese person makes as much as 400kg of waste a year! Most of that waste comes from disposable things. In Beijing, people throw away about 19,000 tons of plastic bags and 1,320 tons of plastic lunch bowls every year! Plastic can take between 100 and 400 years to break down. So the less plastic we throw out, the better. So, wherever you travel, bring your own things and use them again and again.
Back at home and school, you can also do something to make our world a better place. Try to do these things in your daily life:  Use cloth shopping bags, not plastic ones. After using a plastic bag, wash it out and let it dry. Then you can use it over and over again. Do not use paper cups. At your school dining-room, use your own bowl and chopsticks instead of disposable ones.
To protect our environment and our home, it is very necessary and important for us to save natural resources.
(   ) 11. Why do many hotels provide guests with some disposable things?
A. Let their guests be convenient during their traveling.
B. Hope their guests use less disposable things.
C. Wish their guests to save money.
D. Want their guests to use more disposable things.
(   ) 12. Some Beijing hotels will no longer provide guests with _________.
A. cheap food and drink    B. disposable things 
C. good service           D. free TV programs
(   ) 13. Which of the following is NOT true?
A. Many disposable things are made of plastic.
B. Throwing disposable things away is a waste of natural resources.
C. Plastic is very bad for the environment.
D. Plastic breaks down easily.
(   ) 14. What can we do to make our world a better place at home and school?
A. Use shopping bags made of plastic.       
B. Do not throw away paper cups.
C. Use disposable plates, bowls and chopsticks.
D. Don’t forget to reuse daily necessities（日用品）.
(   ) 15. We can tell from the story that ________.
A. people don't like disposable things at all
B. we can't use paper or plastic bowls at school
C. we should use less plastic things and protect our environment
D. hotels won't provide disposable things because they want to save money

Have you ever wondered why birds sing? Maybe you thought that they were just happy.  After all，you probably sing or whistle when you are happy.
Some scientists believe that birds do sing some of the time just because they are happy. However，they sing most of the time for a very different reason. Their singing is actually a warning to other birds to stay out of their territory.
Do you know what a 'territory' is? A territory is an area that an animal，usually the male，claims(声称)as its own. Only he and his family are welcome there. No other families of the same kind are welcome. Your garden and house are your territory where only your family and friends are welcome. If a stranger should enter your territory and threaten(威胁)you，you might shout. Probably this would be enough to frighten him away.
If so，you have actually scared the stranger away without having to fight him. A bird does the same thing. But he expects an outsider almost any time，especially at nesting(筑巢)season. So he is screaming all the time，whether he can see an outsider or not. This screaming is what we call a bird's song，and it is usually enough to keep an outsider away.
Birds sing loudest in the spring when they are trying to attract a mate and warn others not to enter the territory of theirs..
You can see that birds have a language of their own. Most of it has to do with attracting mates and setting up territories.
【小题1】 Some scientists believe that most of the time bird's singing is actually _______.

A．away of warning	B．an expression of happiness
C．an expression of anger	D．away of greeting

【小题2】What is a bird's "territory"?.

A．A place where families of other kinds are not accepted.

B．A place where a bird may shut at the top of its voice

C．An area for which birds fight against each other.

D．An area which a bird considers to be its own.

【小题3】 Why do birds keep on singing at nesting season?

A．Because they want to invite more friends.

B．Because they want to find outsiders around.

C．Because their singing helps frighten outsiders away.

D．Because their singing helps remove their fears.

【小题4】How does the writer explain bird's singing?

A．By comparing birds with human beings.	B．By reporting experiment results.
C．By describing birds' daily life.	D．By telling a bird's story.

Have successful people ever felt sad? Do they have any "secrets" to success? The answers to these questions can be found in US president Barack Obama's "back to school" speech. Here is a small part of his speech.
I know that sometimes, after watching TV, you may feel that you can be rich and successful without any hard work--that your ticket to success is through rapping (饶舌音乐) or basketball or being a TV star. But when chances come, you may not succeed.
The truth is, being successful is hard. And you may not succeed at everything the first time you try. That's OK. Some of the most successful people in the world have had the most failures. JK Rowling's first Harry Potter book was rejected(退稿)12 times before it finally came out. Michael Jordan lost hundreds of games and missed thousands of shots during his career (职业生涯). But he once said, "I have failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed."
These people succeeded because they understand that you can't let your failures beat you--you have to let them teach you. You have to let them show you what to do differently next time.
No one's born being good at things. You become good at things through hard work. Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Don't be afraid to ask for help when you need it.
And even when you're struggling(挣扎), even when you're discouraged(泄气), and you feel like other people have given up on you--don't ever give up on yourself. Because when you give up on yourself, you give up on your country.
【小题1】Why does Barack Obama talk about JK Rowling and Michael Jordan in the second paragraph?

A．To show that these two famous persons are different.

B．To show that writing and sports are difficult skills.

C．To show that the two persons were treated unfairly.

D．To show that being successful is hard.

【小题2】Barack Obama believes ____________ in his speech.

A．you can be rich and successful without any hard work

B．you may succeed at everything the first time you try

C．you can't let your failures beat you

D．you shouldn't ask other people for help

【小题3】What does the underlined sentence mean?

A．If you're discouraged, you should give up on yourself.

B．You should believe in yourself no matter how difficult it is.

C．When you're struggling, you'll feel like other people have given up on you.

D．If you are not struggling or discouraged, you can give up on yourself.

【小题4】What's the best title of this small part of Mr. Obama's speech?

A．The way to succeed	B．Failures can help you
C．Don't give up on yourself	D．Barack Obama's success

No Car Day was first started by 34 cities in France on September 22, 1998. It was started to protect the environment. By now, more than 1,000 cities around the world have had a No Car Day.
The first No Car Day in China was in Chengdu in 2001. Other cities including Taipei, Shanghai and Wuhan, also support the day.
In Beijing, more and more people are taking part in the activity. It asks drivers to leave their cars at home for one day each month and walk or ride a bike to work. It also calls on Beijingers not to use cars on June 5th (World Environment Day). The slogan(口号) for the day is, “ If we drive for one less day, we can have one more nice day.”
So far, more than 200,000 drivers have shown their support. “We can’t control the weather, but we can choose not to drive,” said Wu Zhonghua, a car club chairman. Beijing is trying to have 238 blue sky days this year. In the first quarter of 2007, Beijing only had 52 blue sky days. This was 11 days less than the number for the same period last year. Much of the dust comes from the desert, but cars cause most of the air pollution. We must do more for No Car Day.
【小题1】No Car Day was started _______.

A．to save money	B．to control the weather
C．to make the air cleaner	D．to keep out dust from the desert

【小题2】The No Car Day activity asks Beijing drivers _______.

A．to work hard to get fewer blue sky days

B．not to work on World Environment Day

C．to ride a bike or walk instead of driving to work once a month

D．to leave their cars at home for a week each month

【小题3】When is World Environment Day?

A．On July 5th.	B．On June 5th.
C．On September 22nd.	D．On February 2nd.

【小题4】Which of the following about No Car Day is WRONG?

A．It was started in France in September, 1998.

B．It was first started in China in 2001.

C．It is supported by over 1,000 cities around the world.

D．It was first started by a car club chairman in Beijing.

【小题5】What can we infer(推断) from the passage?

A．More and more people in Beijing are joining car clubs.

B．People will have one more World Environment Day each month.

C．More and more people won’t drive on No Car Day in Beijing.

D．The car club chairman Wu Zhonghua won’t drive any more.

Have you ever heard of a famous charity called Operation Smile? We hope we can help you understand how we are trying to help children all over the world.
Operation Smile was started by a doctor and his wife. In 1982, together with some volunteers, they went to Philippines to help children who had holes in their lips or inside their mouths. It was very difficult for them to eat and drink. These volunteers worked very hard. But they worried that they could not carry on with the work because they were short of money. Then they decided to start a charity so that they could help these needy children. They called it Operation Smile.
Operation Smile works in more than twenty developing countries and has cured over 10,000 children who have problems with their mouths. Operation Smile has won many prizes for its work and in 1999 they even started a special event called“The World Journey of Hope”. 5,000 children in 18 countries are cured during the event.
On the other hand, Operation Smile trains local doctors and nurses in developing countries so that they can continue to help children when Operation Smile has left. As to the children with much more serious problems, they will send them to America for further treatment.
So show your kindness and generosity to the needy children now. You can send your donation to Operation Smile at local banks. Many thanks from the children who can smile now will come to you.
【小题1】Operation Smile is a famous _____, which was started by a doctor and his wife.

A．school

B．charity

C．building

D．person

【小题2】Operation Smile helps the children by _____.

A．curing the children who have problems with their mouths

B．helping poor children go back to school

C．helping blind children to see again

D．offering houses to homeless children

【小题3】 Five thousand children from _____ countries are cured during the event “The World Journey of Hope”.
A. ten                 B sixteen          C. eighteen            D. twenty
【小题4】Why did they worry that they could not carry on with the work?
Because  _____.

A．there were no more volunteers

B．they went to America for further study

C．they didn’t have enough money

D．the doctors were too busy

【小题5】What does the writer ask us to do to show our kindness and generosity to the needy children?

A．To donate money at local banks.

B．To be a volunteer in Philippines.

C．To send cards to the needy children.

D．To be a doctor of Operation Smile.