What if our babies could somehow tell us what they’re thinking about, what they want, and what makes them unhappy? Robyn Holt, researcher for Baby Talk New Zealand, says they can. Holt heard about baby sign language through an advertisement and decided to go along to a workshop (研討會).

“Sign language is something that’s always interested me, and I thought, it could be really cool to try this with a baby because we are always guessing all the time what they actually want.”

Holt started using baby sign language with her baby son Benjamin, now 12, and within two weeks he started to sign the sign for milk. She has since used it with her two younger sons Dominic, 8, and Matthew, 3.

Baby sign language is nothing new: the practice (which is based on adult sign language) has been out in America for more than 30 years. But it is enjoying a rebirth in New Zealand.

The idea behind baby sign language is that babies do have the ability to communicate their needs if they are given the right tools to do so. Although many mothers develop an intuition (直覺) about whether their baby’s crying is from hunger, tiredness, or pain, baby sign language creates a direct form of communication that unlocks the mystery.

When babies are between 6-months and 12 to 13-months, parents can begin to teach them sign language: use the sign for milk while feeding, and also talk about milk, so that the child begins to make the link (關(guān)聯(lián)) in their brain. Then they can begin to add other signs, i.e. food, sick or pain.

“I know of one parent. Her child was signing the sign for hurt by his mouth, and she realised his first teeth were growing. It makes life so much easier,” said Holt.

1.Why did Holt go to the baby sign language workshop?

A. To entertain her own children.

B. To better understand babies’ needs.

C. To help babies with language problems.

D. To develop a new system of sign language.

2.According to the text, baby sign language _____.

A. has been used in New Zealand for 30 years

B. can easily make the parents understood

C. has developed from adult sign language

D. was designed by Robyn Holt

3.What does the underlined part “the mystery” in Paragraph 5 refer to?

A. The ability to communicate.

B. Mothers’ intuitions.

C. The cause of the baby’s crying.

D. Baby sign language.

4.Holt mentioned a parent and her child to show baby sign language is _____.

A. helpful B. difficult

C. interesting D. special

I was born in Thailand, where I feel at home. I am used to jumping on to a song taow (red taxi), and squeezing (擠過) in between two strangers. I am used to bargaining at the market to get a shirt that I like. I love telling bilingual (雙語的) jokes and I am used to the surprised looks I get from the Thais when I can speak their language fluently.

Every two years my family goes to America for the summer, and every two years my world is turned upside down. The prices of everything are three times what they were in Thailand, but there is the sweet drink Dr. Pepper! And Bluebell Ice-cream! And everything you could imagine! I am amazed at it all, but the biggest change for me is the people. There are white people everywhere. I am not tall but average (中等的), my yellow hair is no longer out of place, and speaking English no longer draws looks. I should feel comfortable. I’m not out of place anymore, and nobody is looking at me, but I feel like they are. Now I feel out of place and different. I’m not used to giving people handshakes and hugs when I meet them for the first time. I get looks when I have trouble figuring out how much money to pay. I know different music, different places, and different fashion. I can’t understand these people who have never left their town or city.

Still, there are quite a few perks about living overseas. I get to meet people from all over the world, and I know how to adjust to (適應) different cultures and places. I have been to places most people see only in geography books. Still, being so different makes it hard to know who you are. I’m not Thai, but I am not American either. I am a mix of both cultures, a third culture kid.

1.When the Thais give the author surprised looks, she feels _____.

A. upset B. strange

C. normal D. different

2.When the author returns to America, _____.

A. she makes more friends

B. she becomes more polite

C. she can’t find what she needs

D. she is like a fish out of water

3.The underlined word “perks” in the last paragraph can be replaced by _____.

A. reasons B. problems

C. advantages D. suggestions

4.In this text, the author mainly wants to describe _____.

A. her different lifestyles

B. a kind of culture shock

C. a feeling of loneliness

D. her ability to face difficulties

Everyone knows that fish is good for health. 1. But it seems that many people don’t cook fish at home. Americans eat only about fifteen pounds of fish per person per year, but we eat twice as much fish in restaurants as at home. Buying, storing, and cooking fish isn’t difficult. 2.This text is about how to buy and cook fish in an easy way.

3. Fresh fish should smell sweet: you should feel that you’re standing at the ocean’s edge. Any fishy or strong smell means the fish isn’t fresh. 4.When you have bought a fish and arrive home, you’d better store the fish in the refrigerator if you don’t cook it immediately, but fresh fish should be stored in your fridge for only a day or two. Frozen fish isn’t as tasty as the fresh one.

There are many common methods used to cook fish.5. First, clean it and season it with your choice of spices（調(diào)料）.

Put the whole fish on a plate and steam it in a steam pot for 8 to 10 minutes if it weighs about one pound. (A larger one will take more time.) Then, it’s ready to serve.

A. Do not buy it.
B. The easiest is to steam it.
C. This is how you can do it.
D. It just requires a little knowledge.
E. The fish will go bad within hours.
F. When buying fish, you should first smell it.
G. The fats in fish are thought to help prevent heart disease.

閱讀下面短文，掌握其大意，從每題所給的 A、B、C、D 四個選項中，選出最佳選項，并在答題卡上將該項涂黑。

A couple of weeks ago, my friend offered to sell some of our things for us. I thought it was a good opportunity to ________ my 7-year-old son’s room and ________ some toys that were no longer suitable for him to play with. We ________ that all the money we got from selling the toys would be his money.

The night before the ________, we loaded up the truck with toys and a little bike that was too ________ for him. In the yard he ________ the bike for the last time and then happily put it onto the truck. This little bike had at least two previous owners as far as we ________. It wasn’t in the best ________ and was certainly not new, but the tires were ________ good.

We put a price of $10 on it, but it didn’t sell. So, after the sale was ________, my friend put it on the sidewalk with a sign that ________ “FREE BIKE”. Within five minutes her doorbell rang. A little boy was ________ there. In poor English he asked whether the bike was ________ free. She said yes and that he could have it for ________. He smiled, got on the bike and rode away.

Later that evening when I told my son how much money he had made at the sale, he was very ________, shouting happily. He asked about a few of his things, wondering ________ they had been sold. When he asked about the bike, I told him about the little boy and that made him ________. He was much happier than when I told how much he had ________. He was so happy to ________ that someone else would make good ________ of that little bike.

1.A. cleanB. checkC. displayD. design

2.A. look forB. go throughC. show offD. deal with

3.A. refusedB. agreedC. wroteD. lied

4.A. tripB. showC. saleD. decision

5.A. weakB. smallC. newD. thin

6.A. rodeB. foundC. watchedD. felt

7.A. doubtedB. knewC. toldD. thought

8.A. timeB. chanceC. placeD. shape

9.A. alsoB. neverC. stillD. hardly

10.A. aheadB. onC. nearD. over

11.A. saidB. repeatedC. copiedD. expressed

12.A. jumpingB. standingC. walkingD. shouting

13.A. barelyB. usuallyC. reallyD. always

14.A. somethingB. anythingC. everythingD. nothing

15.A. calmB. scaredC. excitedD. disappointed

16.A. whenB. ifC. whyD. where

17.A. smileB. worryC. leaveD. cry

18.A. enjoyedB. lostC. boughtD. made

19.A. hearB. understandC. rememberD. think

20.A. interestB. moneyC. useD. price

閱讀下面短文，按照句子結(jié)構(gòu)的語法性和上下文連貫的要求，在空格處填入一個適當?shù)脑~或者括號中詞語的正確形式填空，并將答案填寫在答題卡上。

Many people travel during the holiday season but do not make sure that their houses and homes 1._________ (protect). Crime goes up2.________ (rapid) during the winter and summer holiday seasons. Here are some things that you should keep in mind when you go on a holiday.

Always give 3.________ (strange) the feeling that you are at home. Have the snow 4.______(clean) off your stairs or out of your driveway during the winter season. You might ask someone to park 5.______ car in your driveway.

Tell your newspaper deliverer that you are not at home. 6.________(have) a pile of newspapers and other mail on your doorsteps tells people that are not at home, so you could also have a neighbor 7._______ a relative get your mail every day.

Fix a timer in some of your rooms 8.________ turns lights on and 9. ______ during different time of the day. Some TVs also comes with a timer that you could set to be turned on during certain time. Have a sensitive light outside your house that 10._______ (keep) thieves away when you are not at home.

假定英語課上老師要求同桌之間交換修改作文，請你修改你同桌寫的以下作文。文中共有10處語言錯誤，每句中最多有兩處，每處錯誤僅涉及一個單詞的增加、刪除或修改。

增加：在缺詞處加一個漏字符號（∧），并在其下面寫出該加的詞。

刪除：把多余的詞用斜線（\）劃掉。

修改：在錯的詞下劃一橫線，并在該詞下面寫出修改后的詞。

注意：1.每處錯誤及其修改均限一詞。

2.只允許修改10處，多者（從第11處起）不計分。

Here is my idea about how a friend is like. Firstly, a friend is someone you can share your secrets. If you tell him a secret, never will he talks about it with anybody else. Besides, a friend is always good listener when you need one. After hear your sad stories, he will say some words that is nice and warm. Still, your happiness makes him happily too. What’s more, a good friend is willing to offer the help to which you need, or can at least give you some advices. In a word, friends are those you like and trust, and you will enjoy every minute that you spent with them.

假定你是李華，與留學生朋友Bob約好一起去書店，因故不能赴約。請給他寫封郵件，內(nèi)容包括：1.表示歉意；2.說明原因；3.另約時間。

注意：

1.詞數(shù)100左右；

2.可以適當增加細節(jié)，以使行文連貫。

Dear Bob,

I’m sorry to say that _________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

Yours,

Li Hua

The Opening of The Book Nook

Saturday, October 4 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.

You will not want to miss the opening of your new neighborhood bookstore! Located at 2289 Main Street, the Book Nook is within walking distance of schools and many homes and businesses. Come and check out the Book Nook on Saturday!

Activities will include:

• Live music by local musicians

• One Book-of-the-Month Club membership giveaway

Wide Selection

The Book Nook has three floors with books of all kinds — any kind you could want. If we do not have the book you are looking for, we can specially order it for you. You will have it in your hands within two days!

Reading Nooks

We are proud of our children’s reading area on the first floor, as well as our teenagers’ nook on the second floor. Come for the activities and stay a while! Settle in one of these inviting reading areas; take a seat with a good book and a free cup of hot chocolate. You will discover the perfect way to spend a few hours.

Book Events

The Book Nook will be featuring (以…為特色) monthly book signings by different authors, giving you a chance to meet and speak with well-known writers. Do not miss the experience of hearing these authors read aloud from their own books!

The Book-of-the-Month Club

Our Book-of-the-Month Club will feature 12 books each year. As a member, you will be able to select one new book each month. The membership fee is only $10.00 per month. That is a great price for 12 books each year!

So please join us on Saturday and learn about all that the Book Nook has to offer. You can come anytime between 10 a.m. and 10 p.m. — our activities last all day long!

1.According to “Reading Nooks”, a nook is _____.

A. a club that children may join B. a space for a certain purpose

C. a program for teenage readers D. a prize in a national competition

2.What can we learn about the Book Nook?

A. It is a well-located bookstore.

B. Any books can be found right there.

C. It is open from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. every day.

D. The third floor is specially designed for children.

3.As a member of the Book-of-the-Month Club, you _____.

A. can buy any books in the Book Nook at a low price

B. may borrow as many as 12 books every week

C. need to pay 120 dollars every year

D. should be over the age of 12

4.The purpose of the text is to get more people to _____.

A. give away books

B. visit the bookstore

C. learn from famous writers

D. read different kinds of books

It was an autumn morning shortly after my husband and I moved into our first house. Our children were upstairs unpacking，and I was looking out of the window at my father moving around mysteriously on the front lawn. “What are you doing out there?” I called to him.

He looked up, smiling. “I’m making you a surprise.” I thought it could be just about anything. When we were kids, he always created something surprising for us. Today, however, Dad would say no more, and caught up in the busyness of our new life , I eventually forgot about his surprise.

Until one gloomy day the next March when I glanced out of the window，I saw a dot of blue across the yard. I headed outside for a closer look. They were crocuses (番紅花）throughout the front lawn — blue, yellow and my favorite pink，with little faces moving up and down in the cold wind. I remembered the things Dad secretly planted last autumn. He knew how the darkness and dullness of winter always got me down. What could have been more perfectly timely to my needs?

My father’s crocuses bloomed each spring for the next five seasons, always bringing the same assurance: Hard times are almost over. Hold on, keep going, and light is coming soon.

Then a spring came with the usual blooms but the next spring there were none. I missed the crocuses, so I would ask Dad to come over and plant new bulbs (植物球莖). But I never did. He died suddenly one October day. My family were in deep sorrow, leaning on our faith.

On a spring afternoon four years later, I was driving back when I felt depressed. It was Dad’s birthday, and I found myself thinking about him. This was not unusual — my family often talked about him, remembering how he lived up to his faith. Suddenly I slowed as I turned into our driveway. I stopped and stared at the lawn. There on the muddy grass with small piles of melting snow, bravely waving in the wind, was one pink crocus.

How could a flower bloom from a bulb more than 18 years ago, one that hadn’t bloomed in over a decade? But there was the crocus. Tears filled my eyes as I realized its significance.

Hold on, keep going, and light is coming soon. The pink crocus bloomed for only a day, but it built my faith for a lifetime.

1.Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?

A. The author usually felt depressed in the season of winter.

B. The crocuses bloomed each spring before her father died.

C. The author often thought about her father after he died.

D. The author’s father planted the crocuses to lift her low spirits.

2.According to the first three paragraphs, we learn that ______.

A. it was not the first time that the author’s father had made a surprise

B. the author was unpacking when her father was making the surprise

C. it kept bothering the author not knowing what the surprise was

D. the author knew what the surprise was because she knew her father

3.The author’s father should be best described as ______.

A. a part-time worker who loved flowers

B. a kind-hearted man who lived with faith

C. a full-time gardener with skillful hands

D. an ordinary man with doubts in his life

4.What can be the best title for the passage?

A. Crocuses — My Source of Faith

B. Crocuses— Father’s Surprise

C. A Pink Crocus — My Memory

D. Crocuses in Blossom — My Favorite

From self-driving cars to carebots (care+robots) for elderly people, rapid development in technology has long represented a possible threat to many jobs normally performed by people. But experts now believe that almost 50 percent of occupations existing today will be completely unnecessary by 2025 as artificial intelligence continues to change businesses.

“The next fifteen years will see a revolution in how we work, and a revolution will necessarily take place in how we plan and think about workplaces,” said Peter Andrew, Director of Workplace Strategy for CBRE Asia Pacific.

A growing number of jobs in the future will require creative intelligence, social skills and the ability to use artificial intelligence.

The report is based on interviews with 200 experts, business leaders and young people from Asia Pacific, Europe and North America. It shows that in the US technology already destroys more jobs than it creates.

But the report states: “Losing occupations does not necessarily mean losing jobs — just changing what people do.” Growth in new jobs could occur as much, according to the research.

“The growth of 20 to 40 person companies that have the speed and technological know-how will directly challenge big companies,” it states.

A 2014 report by Pew Research found 52 percent of experts in artificial intelligence and robotics were optimistic about the future and believed there would still be enough jobs in the next few years. The optimists pictured “a future in which robots do not take the place of more jobs than they create,” according to Aaron Smith, the report's co-author.

“Technology will continue to affect jobs, but more jobs seem likely to be created. Although there have always been unemployed people, when we reached a few billion people there were billions of jobs. There is no shortage of things that need to be done and that will not change,” Microsoft's Jonathan Grudin told researchers.

1.According to the report, _____.

A. people won't necessarily lose jobs

B. big companies will face fewer challenges

C. small companies will win against big companies

D. most people will become interested in technology

2.We can infer from the text that in the future _____.

A. people will face many difficulties

B. people will take up more creative jobs

C. artificial intelligence will threaten people's lives

D. most jobs will be done in traditional workplaces

3.What is the attitude of most experts in artificial intelligence and robotics to the future?

A. Mixed. B. Worried. C. Hopeful. D. Doubtful.

4.Jonathan Grudin's words in the last paragraph suggest that _____.

A. there will be enough jobs for people

B. things will change a lot in a few years

C. many people will become unemployed

D. technology will totally change future jobs