On a cold morning at a bus station, a man played six famous pieces of music for about an hour. During that time, about two thousand people went through the station, most of them were on their way to work.

3 minutes later: a middle-aged man noticed there was a musician playing. He slowed down, stopped for a few seconds and went away.

4 minutes later: the musician received his first dollar. A woman threw the money in the box and kept on walking without stopping.

6 minutes later: a young man stopped to listen to him. Then he looked at his watch and started to walk again.

10 minutes later: a 3-year-old boy stopped to look at the musician, but his mother took him away. Several other children did the same as the boy. And nearly all the parents took their children away.

45 minutes later: the musician kept on playing. Only 6 people stopped and stayed for a while. About 20 persons gave him money but left quickly.

After 1 hour, the musician finished playing. In the end, he collected $ 32. No one noticed that he had finished playing.

No one knew this, but the musician was Joshua Bell, one of the best musicians in the world. At that time, he played one of the most wonderful pieces ever written, with a very expensive violin.

If we do not have time to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world playing with the most beautiful violin, how many other things are we missing?

1.Joshua Bell played six famous pieces of music for ________ at a bus station.

A．half an hour       B．an hour           C．fifteen minutes     D．a day

2.__________ gave the first dollar to Joshua Bell for his performance.

A．A mid-aged man    B．A Young man       C．A woman          D．A 3-year-old boy

3.Nearly all the parents ________________ while they went past the musician.

A．took their children away                  B．threw the money into the box

C．stayed with their children listening          D．looked at their watch

4.Joshua Bell was in fact ________________.

A．a very famous pianist                     B．a very popular singer

C．a very poor violinist                      D．a very famous violinist

 

I never wanted a dog, but now I'm so glad I have one. About two years ago, my wife, Cathy, got a little dog with a face only a mother could love. We named her Gertie.

Gertie is the kind of dog that has to grow on you. So I dicided that the dog would be trained. This didn't quite go as planned. At 15 weeks old, she was nearly made to leave the Petsmart Training School. She spent every night lying in our bed-snoring (打鼾)so loudly that I hardly got a good night's sleep.

Then, about six months after she arrived, I felt that something in my heart was taking place, and I was unable to stop it. My behaviour(行为方式)began to change. I began to smile at people when passing them in a street. I returned(招手)from neighbours. I started calling my kids, and to my surprise, they started calling me. I even tried to speak to my grandchildren over the phone once. I even was glad to listen to laughter from a 10-month-old granddaughter. The point is that I was changing.

My wife and I both agree that it is Gertie who has changed my behaviour. Gertie is now nearly two years old and almost fully grown.I have come to like the pet little by little, though she is my wife's dog.

1.What did the man think of the dog at the beginning?

A．It looked very beautiful.

B．It wasn't very lovely.

C．It wasn't necessary to be trained.

D．It could change his life.

2.When did the man's behaviour begin to change?

A．About two years ago.

B．When Gertie was nearly two years old.

C．When Gertie was 15 weeks old.

D．About six months after Gertie arrived.

3.Which of the following is NOT mentioned about the man's change?

A．He began to smile at people

B．He liked helping his neighbours.

C．He started calling his kids.

D．He spoke to his grandchildren over the phone.

4.What can we learn from this passage?

A．The dog has been trained very well.

B．The man has become more confident.

C．The man has become more friendly.

D．The man likes the dog better than his wife.

 

Can you swim? Do you like swimming? Yes? Well, how can you learn to swim? I think the best way is to go into the water and learn. I’m afraid you’ll never learn to swim just by reading books about swimming or looking at others’ swimming. It’s the same with the English study. We must practice, practice and practice.

        Listening and speaking are very important for beginners. The children in English-speaking countries first listen to others. Then they try to imitate and speak. We can listen to English programs on the radio or watch them on TV. You may just understand a few words. It doesn’t matter. Just be relaxed, try to catch every word.

        Somebody may be a good listener. But he doesn’t speak. He’s afraid of making mistakes. You know we sometimes make mistakes when we speak Chinese. Don’t be afraid. We must be brave. If you really want to learn English well, you must try to speak with everyone so long as he knows English. Whether you know him or not is not important. When there’s nobody to talk with, you can talk to yourself in English. It’s interesting and also a good way to practice your spoken English. Remember, the more you speak, the fewer mistakes you’ll make.

        Reading and writing are more important for senior school students. First we must choose the books we’re interested in. A lot of reading will improve your language sense. This is the most important.

        Keep writing English diaries. We can also write English articles. You may even post them to English magazines. Don’t be afraid of failure. Failure is the mother of success.

        Easier said than done. Well, let’s do more practice from now on. I’m sure you’ll learn English well in this way.

1.You can learn to swim by_________.

A. reading books about it                B. looking at others’ swimming

C. having lessons on it                  D. going into the river to learn

2.We should learn English by__________.

A. listening and speaking                B. reading and writing

C.  A and B                          D. swimming

3. What will you do with mistakes when you speak?

A. Don’t make mistakes.                  B. Study hard

C. Try not to speak English                D. Don’t be afraid.

4.What’s important for senior school students?

A. Listening     B. Speaking      C. Reading and writing     D. Learning

5. We can listen to English __________, according to the passage.

A. for beginners.                       B. on the radio 

C. by writing English diaries             D. in English-speaking countries

 

I never wanted a dog, but now I'm so glad I have one. About two years ago, my wife, Cathy, got a little dog with a face only a mother could love. We named her Gertie.
Gertie is the kind of dog that has to grow on you. So I dicided that the dog would be trained. This didn't quite go as planned. At 15 weeks old, she was nearly made to leave the Petsmart Training School. She spent every night lying in our bed-snoring (打鼾)so loudly that I hardly got a good night's sleep.
Then, about six months after she arrived, I felt that something in my heart was taking place, and I was unable to stop it. My behaviour(行为方式)began to change. I began to smile at people when passing them in a street. I returned(招手)from neighbours. I started calling my kids, and to my surprise, they started calling me. I even tried to speak to my grandchildren over the phone once. I even was glad to listen to laughter from a 10-month-old granddaughter. The point is that I was changing.
My wife and I both agree that it is Gertie who has changed my behaviour. Gertie is now nearly two years old and almost fully grown.I have come to like the pet little by little, though she is my wife's dog.
【小题1】What did the man think of the dog at the beginning?

A．It looked very beautiful.

B．It wasn't very lovely.

C．It wasn't necessary to be trained.

D．It could change his life.

【小题2】When did the man's behaviour begin to change?

A．About two years ago.

B．When Gertie was nearly two years old.

C．When Gertie was 15 weeks old.

D．About six months after Gertie arrived.

【小题3】Which of the following is NOT mentioned about the man's change?

A．He began to smile at people

B．He liked helping his neighbours.

C．He started calling his kids.

D．He spoke to his grandchildren over the phone.

【小题4】What can we learn from this passage?

A．The dog has been trained very well.

B．The man has become more confident.

C．The man has become more friendly.

D．The man likes the dog better than his wife.

If you have a problem with speaking, you can do several things. Listen to English as much as possible. You can learn a poem(诗) or a song by heart. You can also learn more dialogues（对话）. And practice speaking with your friends as much as you can.
Many people find it difficult to listen to English. The answer is to listen as much as you can. However, don’t do too much at one time. It is better to practice listening for five minutes every day. Don’t sit down and listen for an hour at a time. That’s too much! Do choose listening passages that are interesting and not too difficult. Choose（选择） tapes（磁带） on which the people speak clearly and not too fast. Take it easy， at first. Success with simple tapes at the beginning is the answer. Later on you can practice with tapes that are more difficult.
Finally, how can you learn to write well? How do you use little words like in, on, of and for? There are two answers to this. First, do some study with new words. Keep a list of verbs like look for, look after and so on. Second, read as much English as possible. There are many things that can’t be learnt. You must see them in books many times. Then you’ll be able to use them correctly(正确地) yourself. So, in order to write well, you must first learn to read much.
【小题1】This passage is about English ______ .

A．spelling, listening, grammar and reading

B．listening, speaking, reading and writing

C．taking exams, pronunciation, reading and writing

D．pronunciation, reading, listening and writing

【小题2】If you ______ , you can speak well.

A．learn more dialogues	B．learn a poem or a song by heart
C．practice speaking with your friends as much as you can	D．all above

【小题3】Which of the following is right according to the passage?

A．It’s better to listen to English for a long time every day.

B．At the beginning, you’d better choose the tapes on which the people speak quickly.

C．At first you should begin with simple tapes for listening.

D．Few people think it hard to listen to English.

【小题4】Which of the following ways can help you to improve（提高） your written English? 
A. Buy books of writing practice.        B. Read as much as possible.
C. Do some study with new words.      D. Both B and C.
【小题5】Which of the following is not right according to the passage?

A．Many people find it difficult to listen to English.

B．Sit down and listen for an hour at a time.

C．Learn a poem or a song by heart can improve your speaking.

D．To improve speaking, you can practice speaking with your friends as much as you can.