Try reading the following sentences as fast as you can. “She sells seashells by the seashore. The shells she sells are surely seashells. So if she sells shells on the seashore, I’m sure she sells seashore shells.”

Not very easy, was it? What you’ve just read is called a tongue twister (绕口令). It is an exercise made up of sounds that are hard to pronounce(发音，读) in order to help people pronounce words faster and more correctly. Try the next example.

“Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled pepper. Did Peter Piper pick a peck of pickled peppers? If Pete Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers, where’s the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked?”

Tongue twisters usually do not have much meaning. They are just designed to improve people’s ability  to pronounce words. Although they may be very difficult, these exercises are very important to people who are trying to speak English correctly. This is because tongue twisters help people to tell the differences between similar sounds.

So if you wish to pronounce words more smoothly, you’d better try picking out some tongue twisters and practicing them.

1.Tongue twisters are helpful in improving ___________ skills.

A. listening        B. writing      C. pronunciation     D. communication

2.The first tongue twister is hard because ___________.

A. it is very boring to read            B. it teaches us a lot of knowledge

C. we don’t know who “she” is        D. the sounds of “s” and “sh” are similar

3.The passage is probably taken from _________ in a school newspaper.

A. Story Time          B. Study Garden

C. Latest News          D. Lost and Found

 

Food waste has become a big problem in China.
Zhou Jinsong, a canteen(食堂) manager at Central South University, said that students produce over 12 barrels(桶) of leftovers every day — each barrel stands at one meter in height. Zhou’s canteen is just one of several on the campus.
According to Xinhua News Agency, the food wasted by Chinese people equates to about 50 million tons of grain every year, or 10 percent of the country’s total annual grain production. This food could feed another 200 million people. What students waste every year could feed over 10 million people. Students nowadays are well protected by their families and hardly know how hard farmers work to provide them with the food they eat.
“Since the 1980s, when Chinese gradually became richer, food waste has been a subject of debate. But things have hardly changed over the years,” said Yu Changjiang, a sociologist at Peking University. “It’s the Chinese way of showing respect to friends, often referred as Mianzi.”
But rather than tradition, huge public spending on government banquets(宴会) is also causing food waste, said Zhou Xiaozheng from the sociology department at Renmin University of China. “It’s the result of widespread reception meals at government levels. It is also important that everyone thinks about how they can do their best to reduce food waste.”
【小题1】Which of the following statements is not the reasons for food waste?

A．Students hardly know farmers’ hard work on the farm.

B．The government spends a large amount of money on government banquets.

C．Leaving some food after a banquet is the Chinese way to show respect to guests.

D．The food in the college canteen is not delicious.

【小题2】Where can we probably read this passage?

A．In a newspaper.	B．In a traffic report.
C．On a health website.	D．In a story book.

There is a big supermarket（超市） near Mrs. Green’s home. She usually goes there to buy food. The shop assistants are polite(有礼貌的)and helpful. The things are cheap, too.
One day, Mrs. Green goes to the supermarket. She buys some noodles. Biscuits(饼干)are also their children’s favorite food. And she buys some milk. Her children always have milk for breakfast. Mimi likes fish and Tim likes hot dogs. She buys some fish and sausages(香肠)for them, too. Mrs. Green doesn't have any rice at home. So she buys a bag of rice, but she can’t take it. It is very heavy. Her husband, Mr. Green is coming to the supermarket and carry(搬运)the rice.
【小题1】. Where’s the supermarket?

A．In Mrs. Green’s house.	B．Near Mrs. Green’s house.
C．Under the street.	D．In the mall(商业街).

【小题2】. Who likes biscuits?

A．Mrs. Green and Mr. Green.	B．Mrs. Green and Tim.
C．Mrs. Green and Mimi.	D．Tim and Mimi.

【小题3】. Mimi likes _______.

A．fish

B．hot dogs

C．rice

D．vegetable

【小题4】. Does Mrs. Green buy a bag of rice?

A．Yes, she does.	B．No, she doesn't .
C．Yes, she is.	D．We don't know.

【小题5】. Who helps Mrs. Green take the rice?

A．Mr. Green.

B．Mrs. Green.

C．Mimi.

D．Tim.

HOT MOVIES IN THEATERS
Flying swords of Dragon Gate	It’s a great action movie with a lot of stars like Jet Li and Zhou Xun. It’s based on the story of 1992’s New Dragon Gate Inn, a work by Tsui Hark. Ticket: ￥60 （Student Ticket: ￥30）
The Flowers of War	Do you like Zhang Yimou? He likes to play big. His new movie The Flowers of War is China’s most expensive film yet.The film is also aimed to take the international market. It will be on in New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco on December 23.The story begins in the rubble* of Nanjing after the fall of the city to the Japanese on December 13, 1937. Ticket: ￥90 （Student Ticket: ￥45）

【小题1】What kind of movies is Flying swords of Dragon Gate？

A．A documentary.

B．An action movie.

C．A thriller.

D．A comedy

【小题2】Where does the story of the movie The Flowers of War happen?

A．New York

B．Los Angeles

C．San Francisco

D．Nanjing

【小题3】Lindy is a middle school student. She wants to see The Flowers of War with her father.
How much do they need to pay?

A．￥90

B．￥45

C．￥180

D．￥135

We provide summer English courses and you will enjoy learning about American culture and improve your English. The courses last for 4 weeks. They start at the beginning of July and August. Our teachers are very experienced. They teach English classes for 4 hours a day. You can choose between small groups of 2 or 3, or larger groups of up to 15. We provide weekly tests to see the progress you’re making with your language skills. We also provide books and other materials.
As well as learning English, we want you to experience life in the USA. You live with an American family and take part in American life. You have meals with them and do some activities with them, too. This is the most interesting part of the course. Many families create friendships with the students. Of course, if you prefer, we can arrange hotel accommodation.
Of course, you can do many things in Los Angeles. Every day we have activities after class. You can choose to take trips to Hollywood, Disneyland or the famous beaches around LA. You can also go to various shopping centres, sports centres, movies and concerts. There are also weekend visits organized to San Francisco and other places of interest in California.
Well, if you’re interested, please fill in our application form where you will also find our list of prices. The course must be paid for one month before it begins.
【小题1】 How long do the English courses last?

A．4 days.

B．2 weeks.

C．3 weeks.

D．4 weeks.

【小题2】Why do organizers (组织者) advise students to live with American families?
A. Students are not rich enough to live in hotels.
B. Students can have meals with American families.
C. Students can experience life in the USA.
D. Students can teach American how to cook Chinese food
【小题3】What’s the title of Paragraph 3?

A．Teaching

B．Accommodation and Food

C．Sightseeing and Other Activities

D．The Famous Beaches Around LA

【小题4】What’s the passage about?

A．A description of an English book.

B．A description of an English course.

C．A description of life in Los Angeles.

D．A description of weekend visits to San Francisco.