A student newspaper reports that most students go to sleep at 1:30 am. Even if that’s an overstatement (夸张), it’s close to the truth. Scientists say teens should sleep nine hours each night. But that’s hard. Some are even “pulling all-nighters” (开夜车). These students must hand in their homework the next day but they haven’t done it. In the morning they don’t look healthy and you can tell who’s been doing it. One of my classmates did a survey on the topic. She found that most kids pull all-nighters to finish homework, but some do it for other reasons, such as playing computer games!
Maybe our lack(缺乏) of sleep is because of laziness — I think I’m a rather lazy student — or maybe it’s because we have too much to do in American high schools. I usually go to bed around midnight. If I stayed up past 1:30 am, I wouldn’t get any work done. I’d be falling asleep at my computer. My classes begin at 7:30 am. I’m partly awake in my first class. By the second, I’m a little sleepy. By my third class, I’m sleepy. By midday I’m finally fully awake. But by 3:00 pm, I’m slowing down again. Yet I get more sleep than usual students.
Most American high schools seem to have a similar(相似的) problem with sleepy students. High school classes start at 7:30 am, so students have to get up one and a half hours before that to get ready and catch the bus. It’s believed that lack of sleep can be bad for both grades and health. Some schools are paying attention. Classes in those schools start at 8:30 am.
【小题1】What does the underlined sentence “it’s close to the truth” mean?

A．It doesn’t tell the truth.	B．It is quite true.
C．It is impossible.	D．I don’t think it’s right.

【小题2】Why do most of the teens have to stay up late?

A．They play computer games.	B．They watch videos late.
C．They have to do a lot of housework.	D．They have to do a lot of homework.

【小题3】When do students in most American high schools have to get up?

A．At 7:30 am.

B．At 6:00 am.

C．At 9:00 am.

D．At about 7:00 am.

【小题4】Which of the following is TRUE according to the reading?

A．The writer usually stays up past 1:30 am.

B．The writer usually goes to bed around midnight.

C．The writer usually does a survey.

D．Many American students don’t get enough sleep, so they can have high grades.

【小题5】What’s the main idea of the passage?

A．Something has to be done to solve the problem of students’ lack of sleep.

B．Many American high school students are sleepy in class.

C．Many kids have too much homework to do.

D．Students can’t play computer games.

A desert is a very dry land where there is hardly any rain. In the day, it can be so hot that you could fry an egg on the ground. But during the night it is sometimes so could that water would turn into ice.






Many desserts are covered in sand. But some have mountains, rocks, or lakes that have dried up in the heat. The Great American Dessert has cliffs(悬崖) that have been made into amazing and beautiful shapes by the wind. The Sahara Desert in Africa is mostly sand. The Australian Desert has red sand.
Sometimes it does not rain for a whole year in the desert. But there is water deep under the ground and some plants have roots that go very deep to find it. Other plants have roots that spread out(延伸) a long way so they can suck up the rain as soon as it falls.
One desert plant is the cactus, which has long, spreading roots. The cactus stores water inside its hard skin. This skin protects it from heat and cold.
Camels are a bit like cactus plants! They store water too—inside their bodies. They have special fur which protects them from the sun during the day and keeps them warm at night.
Some other animals live in deserts, too. They have to be very good at seeing and hearing because most of them only come out at night. This is why many desert animals have extra big eyes or ears.
A desert fox has bigger ears than a normal for. A gerbil has huge eye, so that it can see at night. It stays cool in the day by staying underground, like most desert animals.
Some people live in the desert but they always make their homes near an oasis. An oasis is where water comes from an underground river. Near an oasis, people can grow lots of plants and keep animals.
Life is hard in the desert, for people, animals and plants. But desert people like to live there.
【小题1】A desert is very dry because__________.

A．it is sandy	B．there is so little rain
C．the wind is strong	D．there is no water deep under the ground

【小题2】What does the underlined phrase"suck up"in paragraph 3 mean_________?

A．围堵

B．讨好

C．释放

D．吸收

【小题3】Some desert animals have extra big eyes or ears because__________.

A．the sunlight is too strong in the day	B．they need to see and hear well at night
C．it is very cold at nigh	D．they store water in them.

【小题4】Most desert animals stay cool in the day by_________.

A．storing water in side their bodies	B．drinking water as much as they can
C．staying underground	D．growing lots of plants

【小题5】Which of the following is true?

A．Desert people like to live in the desert though life is hard.

B．People in the desert usually fry eggs on the ground.

C．Camels have special fur to store water.

D．All the deserts are covered in sand.

A sign is another kind of language. Here are some of them that you see on the roads.

Number one is a sign with the number thirty on it. When drivers see this sign , they must not go at more than thirty kilometers can hour. We see this sign when we are getting near a town. Number two is a sign that we're near a crossing. We must drive carefully. Number three is a sign that there is a bend in the road. Again, we must drive slowly and carefully. It is not safe to go round a bend very fast. Number four is a sign that there is another road coming in from the right. There is a junction at this place. Number five is a sign that there is a hill and number six is a sign that the road gets narrow. Drivers must go slowly and carefully. Number seven has the word “ SCHOOL” on it. This is a sign that there is a school at the side of the street or the road. Perhaps there are children going to or leaving school. So drivers must look carefully and go slowly. Number eight is a sign with the letter “ P ” on it. The letter “ P ” means “ Parking ”. At some places, there're the signs “ No parking ” or “ No waiting”. If a driver leaves his car near one of these signs, a policeman may come and write down the number of his car.
【小题1】At the places where you see Sign 1,        .

A．you are already out of a town

B．you still have thirty kilometers to go

C．there must be many houses and buildings not far away

D．there must be a town thirty k8ilometers away

【小题2】The underlined word bend probably means         here.

A．traffic	B．subway
C．turning	D．danger

【小题3】You have to drive not only slowly but also carefully when you find        .

A．each of the eight signs

B．either of Signs 2 and 3

C．all of Signs 2, 4, 6 and 7

D．any of Signs 3, 5, 6 and 7

【小题4】People put these signs on the road in order to        .

A．teach drivers lesson

B．make drivers even safer

C．stop cars going there

D．learn another kind of language

【小题5】Which can be the best title for this message?

A．Another language.

B．On the road.

C．What to do.

D．Traffic signs.

A sign is another kind of language. Here are some of them that you see on the roads.

Number one is a sign with the number thirty on it. When drivers see this sign , they must not go at more than thirty kilometers can hour. We see this sign when we are getting near a town. Number two is a sign that we're near a crossing. We must drive carefully. Number three is a sign that there is a bend in the road. Again, we must drive slowly and carefully. It is not safe to go round a bend very fast. Number four is a sign that there is another road coming in from the right. There is a junction at this place. Number five is a sign that there is a hill and number six is a sign that the road gets narrow. Drivers must go slowly and carefully. Number seven has the word “ SCHOOL” on it. This is a sign that there is a school at the side of the street or the road. Perhaps there are children going to or leaving school. So drivers must look carefully and go slowly. Number eight is a sign with the letter “ P ” on it. The letter “ P ” means “ Parking ”. At some places, there're the signs “ No parking ” or “ No waiting”. If a driver leaves his car near one of these signs, a policeman may come and write down the number of his car.
【小题1】At the places where you see Sign 1,        .

A．you are already out of a town

B．you still have thirty kilometers to go

C．there must be many houses and buildings not far away

D．there must be a town thirty k8ilometers away

【小题2】The underlined word bend probably means         here.

A．traffic	B．subway
C．turning	D．danger

【小题3】You have to drive not only slowly but also carefully when you find        .

A．each of the eight signs

B．either of Signs 2 and 3

C．all of Signs 2, 4, 6 and 7

D．any of Signs 3, 5, 6 and 7

【小题4】People put these signs on the road in order to        .

A．teach drivers lesson

B．make drivers even safer

C．stop cars going there

D．learn another kind of language

【小题5】Which can be the best title for this message?

A．Another language.

B．On the road.

C．What to do.

D．Traffic signs.

A predator(捕食性动物) kills and eats other animals as prey(猎物).Sometimes it also becomes food for other predators. Polar bears are the largest of all the land predators. They can run across snow and swim in icy water for hours without rest. Their favorite food is seal. Not all big animals live on small animals. Hippos have heavy bodies and huge mouths. But they don’t eat animals. They just eat grass.
Some predators use speed to catch their prey. Cheetahs are the fastest animals on land. They can run up to 70km an hour. Other predators use their senses to find their food. Sharks can see, smell, hear, feel and taste. They can also sense electrical currents(电流 )from other animals’ bodies. Some fish try to hide themselves, but with this sixth sense, sharks can always find them. Sharks have smooth bodies. This helps them swim without using lots of energy. They need to save their energy because they never really sleep and never stop hunting. Flying is a useful skill for many predators in the sky. The butcher bird is the most interesting predator. It has a special way of eating its prey. First it kills its prey. Then it hangs it on a fence or in a tree, just like a butcher hangs meat in his shop. Finally, it eats its prey.
Some people hunt and kill more animals than any other predator. They not only hunt for food. They also hunt for fun. They kill sharks for their fins, and tigers for skins. Those human hunters are the worst predators on Earth.
【小题1】The following statements are about “predators”, which one is true?

A．A predator kills and eats other animals as prey.

B．A predator not only eat animals, but eat grass.

C．A predator can eat other animals, but also can be eaten.

D．A predator can both run across snow and swim in icy water for hours.

【小题2】How many kinds of predators are mentioned in Paragraph 2?

A．Three

B．Four

C．Five

D．Six

【小题3】Why do sharks can find some fish that try to hide themselves?

A．Because sharks can see, smell, hear, feel and taste.

B．Because sharks can sense electrical currents(电流 )from other animals’ bodies

C．Because sharks have smooth bodies.

D．Because sharks never really sleep and never stop hunting.

【小题4】Some people are also predators, they hunt and kill more animals for ________.

A．Sharks’ fins

B．Tigers’ skins

C．food

D．food and fun

【小题5】Among the sharks, the tigers, the polar bears and some people, which are the most dangerous predators on earth?

A．the sharks.

B．the tigers.

C．the polar bears.

D．some people.