1、Using language.阅读理解ASmall talk has a reputation for being uninteresting, and for good reason.Pointing out the fact that its raining seems as ridiculous as pointing out the fact that you have a head youre fully aware of both things, and dont require an outsider to confirm them.But despite being evide
2、nt and often painfully dull, small talk has an important role to fulfil, enabling us to leap over a number of social obstacles towards improved, meaningful interaction.Humans can be sensitive souls.We each have our boundaries and lists of potential upsets, which when broken, cause us to either gentl
3、y back away to an alternative position in the room, or become cross at the person.Small talk is first a way to test the waters with an unfamiliar person, so that you may better understand their personality.When finding yourself positioned closely to a person who you know little about, its much safer
4、 to point out the rainy sky than to share your political views on a sensitive topic.Until you know the person better, heavier topics should probably be kept under wraps, so you wont find yourself on the receiving end of a cold stare.Though insignificant, small talk still has great power.When talking
5、 with fellow humans, much of our soul is exposed through nonverbal communication.A response to “how was your weekend” can unveil much about the persons character.The length of their response might indicate their level of selfconfidence; the tone of speaking might show how agreeable a person is; thei
6、r slightly lowered head, as if protecting themselves from attack, a possible sign of a regrettable history of bullying.As more of a persons character is revealed, we have the insight needed to determine whether to broach more significant topics the things that we actually want to talk about.Conversa
7、tion is a great educator, and deep conversation establishes lasting bonds with our fellow humans, forming precious friendships that paint our lives with vibrant colors.Such friendships begin with small talk.语篇解读：本文是一篇说明文。文章主要说明了闲聊的重要性。1What is described in the first paragraph?AThe first stage of hum
8、an interaction.BRidiculous human behavior in communication.CAbsence of communication between strangers.DThe difficulty of having deep conversations.解析：选A段落大意题。根据第一段可知，闲聊是跨越许多社会障碍、改善互动的方式，由此可知，第一段讲述的是：闲聊是人类互动的第一步。故选A。2Why do people find themselves “on the receiving end of a cold stare”？ABecause they
9、are fond of heavy subjects.BBecause they are enthusiastic about politics.CBecause they are too sensitive about topics.DBecause they fail to manage interpersonal distance.解析：选D推理判断题。根据第二段可知，如果和聊天的对象不熟悉，闲聊的话题没有控制住敏感度是不“安全的”，提起敏感话题的人将会被冷眼相待，故选D。3What might be a sign of friendliness according to Paragra
10、ph 3?AThe length of the answer.BThe quality of the voice.CThe position of the head.DThe distance between speakers.解析：选B细节理解题。根据第三段中的the tone of speaking might show how agreeable a person is可知，体现一个人友好、和蔼的标志是说话的语气。故选B。4What might be the best title for the text?AReputation of Small TalkBWays of Underst
11、anding PersonalityCSignificance of Small TalkDChallenges of Deep Conversation解析：选C标题归纳题。根据第一段中的But despite being evident and often painfully dull, small talk has an important role to fulfil, enabling us to leap over a number of social obstacles towards improved, meaningful interaction.和最后一段中的Convers
12、ation is a great educator, and deep conversation establish lasting bonds with our fellow humans, forming precious friendships that paint our lives with vibrant colors.Such friendships begin with small talk.可知，文章主要在说明闲聊的重要性。故选C。BMany rich parents drive their kids to special activities after school.Be
13、sides the trips to soccer practices and games or piano lessons, they increasingly make one more stop a trip to their local afterschool tutoring (辅导) center.Its becoming a more common activity within and outside of American schools.Parents pay tutoring businesses around $200 per month for each child
14、to get math, reading and other kinds of lessons once or twice a week with their own lessons and homework intended to be more challenging than what is offered by the schools.They aim at students not only struggling in school work but also those who are already ahead in courses.It seems that there no
15、child is too young to start.They teach these little kids how to recognize letters, numbers, patterns and shapes.Children in afterschool centers can get confused about which kind of learning matters more, but parents keep their kids in tutoring for years if they think its getting results.“We just kep
16、t her in the program, because it was working，” the mother of a fifth grader told me.A fourthgrade student mentioned that her regular teacher counted her private math center tasks as satisfying her school homework.Troublingly, educators believe that the growth of private tutoring in the US is leading
17、 to a sense of pressure that can result in emotional (情感的) problems.“The students who take classes outside of school make other kids feel bad, because theyre brighter and they do more, and they can do it faster，” a Bostonarea elementary school headmaster told me.Not that much, whats more frightening
18、 is happening.A growing education arms race is going among families.They feel pressured to make sure their kids learn enough to be above their grade level and ranked at or near the top of their classes.Many parents told me they kept their children in afterschool education simply to keep up with thos
19、e who do.Tutoring education is seriously changing what it means to go to school.语篇解读：本文是一篇议论文。作者通过对美国家长热衷让孩子上课外辅导课这一现状的分析表达了自己的担忧。5What can we learn about tutoring centers from Paragraph 2?ATheir charges are relatively cheap.BThey serve children of different levels and ages.CThey mainly provide cour
20、ses related with exams.DTheir teaching content keeps pace with that of schools.解析：选B推理判断题。根据文章第二段They aim at .struggling in school work .ahead in courses .no child is too young to start.可知，这些辅导中心既针对补差的学生，也针对培优的学生，既接收在校学生，也接收学前的孩子。由此可知，他们接收各种层次各个年龄段的孩子。6What does the author intend to tell us in Parag
21、raph 3?AStudents benefit a lot from private tutoring.BTutoring takes up a lot of students spare time.CParents try to raise kids interest in private tutoring.DTutoring is recognized by some parents and school teachers.解析：选D推理判断题。根据第三段整段可知，本段作者列举了一些家长和老师的例子，他们都对孩子在辅导中心的辅导结果感到满意，由此可知作者想要表达的是这些辅导机构得到了一些
22、家长和学校老师的认可。7Whats the more serious problem caused by the growth of private tutoring in the authors view?AStudents are tired of schooling under great pressure.BParents pay little attention to their childrens mental health.CThe public become less satisfied with the school education systems.DThe focus
23、on competition affects peoples understanding of education.解析：选D推理判断题。根据最后一段内容可知，作者认为课外辅导带来的更严重的后果是家长开始为了竞争名次而让孩子去辅导中心学习，这种对于竞争的关注影响了人们对于教育的理解。8Whats the writing purpose of the text?ATo advertise for tutoring businesses.BTo show concerns about private tutoring.CTo stop parents spending much money in
24、tutoring centers.DTo remind parents to create a relaxing childhood for children.解析：选B写作意图题。根据文章内容可知，作者对美国家长热衷让孩子上课外辅导课这一现状进行了分析，并表达了自己的担忧。.完形填空Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “You can never do a kindness too soon, for you never know how soon it will be too late.”How many times have we said, “Oh Ill d
25、o that 1 .” Sometimes tomorrow never comes and we find ourselves saying, “Boy, I wish I hadnt put that 2 .”Our family has been friends with Betty for many years.Over the years we 3 phone calls and birthday cards.Betty sent our youngest son Brandon a(n) 4 card with $50 in it every year until he gradu
26、ated.We 5 each other quite often when we lived not far away.Then we moved to New York.However, the distance did not cut off the 6 we kept in with each other.This past November I called Betty to see 7 she was and what she had done on her birthday.I was quite 8 when Betty didnt answer the phone.Instea
27、d her daughter Carol did.Carol told me that her mom had gone downhill fast and she was now in hospice (临终安养院) care.Carol 9 the phone to Betty.I talked 10 to her and let her know we love her.As soon as I 11 ， I sent a text to Brandon to let him know Betty wasnt doing well.Little did I know that Brand
28、on 12 what he was doing and at once sent flowers to Betty.You can imagine how 13 I was of Brandon when Carol called the next day letting me know how much Betty loved the flowers Brandon had sent.A few days later, Betty 14 .So, my friends， 15 what Emerson once said: You can never do a kindness too so
29、on, for you never know how soon it will be too late.语篇解读：本文是一篇记叙文。文章讲述了作者一家与好友Betty的故事。1A.tomorrowByesterdayCtoday Dnowadays解析：选A根据下文Sometimes tomorrow never comes可知，此处表示将事情推到明天。故选A。2A.down BupCout Doff解析：选D根据上下文语境推测出，此处wish后面的虚拟语气是对过去发生的事情相反的假设，根据上文内容可知过去将事情进行了推迟。故选D。3A.answered BconductedCrecommen
30、ded Dshared解析：选D根据前一句可知，因为与Betty是许多年的朋友，因此会互相打电话和互送生日卡片。故选D。4A.anniversary BweddingCbirthday Dfuneral解析：选C根据前文birthday cards可知，此处应该是寄送生日卡片。故选C。5A.rescued BvisitedCsupplied Dconcerned解析：选B根据when we lived not far away推测，住得不远可以经常拜访对方。故选B。6A.contact BrelationCfriendship Dtrack解析：选A分析句子可知，we kept in with
31、 each other为空处的定语从句。keep in contact with为固定搭配，意为“与保持联系”，故选A。7A.where BwhenChow Dwhat解析：选C根据上一段Then we moved to New York.可知，作者搬家了，此处表示作者打电话看看贝蒂过得怎么样。故选C。8A.heartbroken BamazedCamused Dfrightened解析：选B根据下一句Instead her daughter Carol did.可知，Betty没有接电话，相反，是她的女儿接了，作者应该是吃惊的。故选B。9A.threw BcastCkicked Dhande
32、d解析：选D根据常识可知，此处应该是女儿Carol将电话递给Betty。故选D。10A.patiently BformallyCbriefly Ddetailedly解析：选C根据上文语境可知，Betty身体不佳；并结合下文As soon as I 11 可知，此处作者应该是简短地和Betty说了几句话。故选C。11A.rang up Bhung onChung out Dhung up解析：选D根据后文I sent a text to Brandon可知，挂完电话才能发信息。故选D。12A.explored BpackedCquitted Dprotested解析：选C根据后文at once
33、 sent flowers可知，此处表示放下手上的事情给Betty送花。故选C。13A.pleased BanxiousCthankful Dproud解析：选D根据后文letting me know how much Betty loved the flowers Brandon had sent可知，当听到Betty非常喜欢Brandon送的花时，我应该是骄傲的。故选D。14A.passed away Bbroke awayCpassed down Dbroke down解析：选A根据上文she was now in hospice(临终安养院)care可知，Betty去世了。故选A。15
34、A.remind BrememberCidentify Dfocus解析：选B句意：所以，朋友们，记住爱默生曾经说过的话：想要做出善举，永远不会为时过早，因为你永远不会知道，何时你将错失行善的机会。故选B。.语法填空阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。What does “barking (犬吠) up the wrong tree” mean？In this article, lets learn the 1 (express)The phrase “barking up the wrong tree” means 2 (follow) a mistaken pl
35、an of action.The phrase comes from the old hunting (捕猎) practice in which dogs would bark to show they have made other animals up trees unable 3 (run) away.Sometimes the dogs were mistaken, and the animals had 4 (actual) run away.When this happened, the dogs were barking up the wrong tree.This phras
36、e first began appearing in 5 (write) works after the 1820s, and was later widely used by western writers.It was used to describe anyone 6 was following a wrong lead.Below is an example of how to use the phrase.Recently 7 friend of mine needed a large amount of money 8 his new business idea.So he wen
37、t to an event to meet possible investors (投资者)However, the people he met 9 (be) those also looking for money.Then we can say that he was barking up the wrong tree!When using the phrase, avoid 10 (mistake) in spelling.For example, dont write it as “barking up in the wrong tree”语篇解读：本文是一篇说明文。文章主要解释了“b
38、arking up the wrong tree”这个习语的来历、意思和用法。1expression根据前面的定冠词the可知，此处应填动词express的名词形式。2following根据语境可知，句中的mean在这里是“意指某事；意思是”，其后用动名词作宾语。3to rununable to do是固定搭配，意为“不能做某事”。4actually此处修饰动词短语run away，故用副词形式。5written此处修饰名词works，需用形容词修饰，作定语，意为“书面的”。6who/that先行词是anyone，定语从句中缺少主语，故填who或that。7a根据句意可知，此处泛指作者的一个朋友，用不定冠词。8for根据句意可知，朋友为了他的新商业理念而需要大笔资金，故用介词for表示目的。9were句子描述的是过去发生的事情，应该用一般过去时；又因为主语people是复数，故谓语动词用复数。10mistakesmistake是可数名词，此处指多种错误，故用其复数形式。