The British aren’t having as many children as they used to. One reason is that people are having children much older than before, meaning they have fewer years in which they can have them. After years at university, they need a few years of work experience before they can get the job they want. They might then get married, but it’s incredibly expensive to buy a house in the UK.
The above explains why young British people now don’t move out of their parents’ home until they are around 30 years old on average. It is not until they are 30 that they can afford their own home. Increasingly, it is not until that age that they can afford to get married and start a new life in a new home. It’s only after this age that many young people start thinking about having a child.
So a British person manages to get a job, get a home and get married. Why isn’t he or she then having at least two children on average? The main reason is that it is quite expensive to bring up a child in the UK. Why is it expensive? Well, these days, both parents need to work just to pay for their home and living expenses. Because both parents are at work, that means they then need to pay someone to look after their child during the day. Paying for this childcare is nearly always expensive.
The recent financial crisis is making things even harder for families, since unemployment is rising and even fewer people can afford to have children. With so much pressure on families, is it any surprise that the divorce rate is so high?
So what is Britain doing to try and save the British family? The government is trying to make it cheaper to have children. For example, there have been increases in money families can claim from the state each month. Also, there are increasing government subsidies for nursery schools, so that parents do not need to pay so much for child care.
The government is also trying to reduce the number of hours British parents have to work to earn enough money to pay their bills. If parents didn’t have to work so many hours, they’d have more time to spend with their children and wouldn’t need to spend so much on childcare. On average, a Briton works 49 hours a week, which is the most in Europe. The state is now considering introducing laws to encourage companies to improve their employees’ work-life balance. Let’s hope they’re not too late to save the British family. Otherwise, the British will always be too tired, and won’t have enough time and money, to have children.
小題1:Young British people live in their parents’ home until around 30 because         .
A．They are allowed to get married at 30
B．they can’t find jobs to support themselves
C．they can’t afford a house of their own until then
D．they enjoy family life with their parents
小題2:The British are now having fewer children than before for all the following reasons EXCEPT that         .
A．they have fewer years to have children
B．they live much shorter lives than before
C．it is more expensive to bring up a child
D．people are losing their jobs because of the recent financial crisis
小題3:To make it cheaper to have children, the British government is         .
A．bringing down prices
B．raising the salaries of parents
C．reducing family income tax
D．increasing subsidies for families and nursery schools
小題4:It can be inferred from the text that         .
A．with long work hours, it is hard for British parents to balance life and work
B．more and more families in Britain are breaking up because they are having fewer children
C．a(chǎn)mong Europeans, British people work hardest and earn the least
D．childcare takes up too much energy and time for the British
小題5:The underlined word “subsidies” in Paragraph 5 means _________.
A．food paid by the government
B．school buildings for poor students
C．free transportation
D．money from the government to benefit the public

小題1:C
小題2:B
小題3:D
小題4:A
小題5:D

試題分析：本文介紹了英國(guó)人的孩子越來越少，生孩子的年齡越來越大。文章中分析了具體的原因，也提及了英國(guó)政府為了解決這個(gè)問題做出了很多的努力。
小題1:C 細(xì)節(jié)題。根據(jù)第二段3，4行Increasingly, it is not until that age that they can afford to get married and start a new life in a new home可知直到30歲左右，英國(guó)人才買得起房子，才能搬出去住，故C正確。
小題2:B 細(xì)節(jié)題。根據(jù)1,3,4段meaning they have fewer years in which they can have them.和The recent financial crisis is making things even harder for families,以及The main reason is that it is quite expensive to bring up a child in the UK.可知ACD三項(xiàng)都是原因。B項(xiàng)文章沒有提及。
小題3:D 細(xì)節(jié)題。根據(jù)文章倒數(shù)第二段The government is trying to make it cheaper to have children. For example, there have been increases in money families can claim from the state each month. Also, there are increasing government subsidies for nursery schools, so that parents do not need to pay so much for child care. 說明D項(xiàng)是英國(guó)政府所采取的措施。
小題4:A 推斷題。根據(jù)文章最后一段前3行The government is also trying to reduce the number of hours British parents have to work to earn enough money to pay their bills. If parents didn’t have to work so many hours, they’d have more time to spend with their children and wouldn’t need to spend so much on childcare.說明工作時(shí)間太長(zhǎng)，英國(guó)人很難能夠照顧孩子。所以英國(guó)政府就減少人們的工作時(shí)間，讓人們有更多的時(shí)間來照顧孩子。故A正確。
小題5:D 推理題。根據(jù)本句there are increasing government subsidies for nursery schools, so that parents do not need to pay so much for child care.說明有越來越多的政府補(bǔ)貼，讓父母親在照顧孩子方面不要付太多的錢了。故該詞是指D項(xiàng)。
點(diǎn)評(píng)：本文介紹了英國(guó)人的孩子越來越少，生孩子的年齡越來越大。文章中分析了具體的原因，也提及了英國(guó)政府為了解決這個(gè)問題做出了很多的努力。本文要求考生在閱讀理解整體語篇的基礎(chǔ)上，把握文章的真正內(nèi)涵。要吃透文章的字面意思，從字里行間捕捉有用的提示和線索，這是推理的前提和基礎(chǔ);要對(duì)文字的表面信息進(jìn)行挖掘加工，由表入里，由淺入深，從具體到抽象，從非凡到一般，通過分析、綜合、判定等，進(jìn)行深層處理，符合邏輯地推理。不能就是論事，斷章取義，以偏概全。要忠實(shí)于原文，以文章提供的事實(shí)和線索為依據(jù)。
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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

Chinese people are now spending more time surfing the net than watching TV, according to results of a survey by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) published Thursday.
The survey, of citizens of five Chinese cities, found that 79 percent of interviewees use the internet for information, and 55.1 percent to read news on the internet. About 63 percent of the interviewees use e-mail. The average times spent surfing the net and watching TV were 2.73 hours and 1.29hours, respectively.
Only 10.4 percent reported use the internet primarily to send and receive email; 65.9 percent read online news; 62.2 quite often play games on-line. More and more people have taken an interest in the entertainment opportunities online. Up to 56.5 percent of interviewees quite often download music, and 53.5 percent get entertainment messages from the internet.
Yet the survey found that television is still the dominant mass medium. Seventy-nine percent of interviewees choose to watch TV to get information, and another 75 percent take newspapers as important as TV.
Five major web sites in the Chinese language, namely Sina, Sohu, Netease, Baidu and Yahoo are still ranked top ones by web users, and those that voted for Sina as the best among them were 30.9 percent.
Authorized statistics showed that web users in China have already exceeded 100 million, second to that of the United States.
小題1:Which of the following is not true?
A．Chinese people are now spending more time surfing the net than watching TV.
B．There are more Chinese people using the internet for information compared with those reading news on the internet.
C．There are more people using e-mail compared with those searching information on the internet.
D．There are more people using e-mail compared with those reading news on the internet.
小題2:The survey shows that     .
A．Only 10.4% reported use the internet to send and receive email.
B．Less than half of the people use the internet for enter fain-ment.
C．All of the people reported like to play games on-line.
D．Most of the people reported read online news.
小題3:Which will you choose if you want to chat with your friends on the internet?
A．TVB．SinaC．telephoneD．QQ
小題4:The underlined word “exceeded” means        .
A．increased to B．increased byC．risenD．decreased

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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

If you watch British television on Friday March 15, you might be surprised to see celebrities wearing funny red noses and joking around. But don’t worry, they’re not mad, it’s all part of a biennial fund-raising event called Red Nose Day.
Organized by the charity Comic Relief, founded in 1985 by two British comedians, the aim of the event is to raise money to fight poverty and injustice in the UK and Africa.
Celebrities and public figures support the event by making appearances on comic TV shows broadcast by the BBC. This year, for example, UK Prime Minister David Cameron appeared in a music video by One Direction, which the band produced for the event.
But Britons don’t just raise money for charitable causes on one day a year, they do it all year round. One way of doing so is by shopping in charity shops.
These small, inconspicuous shops sell clothes, books and household goods just like any other shop. But there’s one big difference—it’s all secondhand.
There are nearly 10,000 charity shops in the UK, according to the Charity Retail Association. Their business model is simple: Anybody who has things they don’t want anymore can donate them to a charity shop, where they are checked for damage, cleaned and priced. Most items go back on sale at a small part of their original price and the money that is made by selling them is used for a charitable cause.
The idea of buying used clothes may sound off-putting, but for shoppers who have less spending money, such as the elderly or those in low-paying jobs, it has been a welcome option for years.
Now, “thrifting”—shopping at charity shops— is also becoming popular with young people looking for alternative fashion.
“I love shopping at thrift stores. You can find very unique clothes for a very cheap price. It doesn’t bother me that other people may have worn them, I simply wash them before I wear them,” said Anne Marie, a 19-year-old Internet user from the US, in a comment on a Yahoo forum.
So next time you spot a charity shop, why not go inside? Who knows, you might find a lovely dress for just a few pounds. Even better, you can enjoy wearing it in the knowledge that your money helped a good cause.
小題1:What do famous people in Britain do in support of the Red Nose Day event?
A．Appear on comic TV shows.
B．Donate large sums of money.
C．Donate expensive clothes to charity shops.
D．Play in a music video with the Prime Minister.
小題2:What do we learn from the passage about Comic Relief?
A．It was founded in 1985 by two British comedians in Africa.
B．It organizes the Red Nose Day fund-raising event.
C．It runs nearly 10,000 charity shops in the UK.
D．It is financially supported by the UK government.
小題3:One reason for the popularity of the thrift shops is that __________.
A．they sell a wide variety of goods
B．their business model is simple
C．their goods are carefully checked, cleaned and priced
D．they provide things, sometimes special, at low prices
小題4:The passage is written mainly to __________.
A．inspire more people to join in charitable causes in the UK
B．introduce the traditions of the Red Nose Day
C．a(chǎn)nalyze why charity shops are popular in the UK
D．explain how charity shops work in the UK

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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

Let’s say you have a piece of wood, a nail, and a hammer. Pretend the wood is a person, and the nail is a mean rumor(謠言) about that person. If you hammer in the nail, you’re obviously hurting him or her. If you then pull out the nail, there’s still a hole in the wood, and the damage has been done.
There are many reasons why that nail of a rumor can be so harmful. Rumors are, quite simply, a form of bullying(欺侮). When a person or a group makes up a rumor about someone or decides to spread gossip, it’s usually to hurt someone, break up a friendship, or make someone less popular. It’s the same thing as teasing, only it’s done behind someone’s back instead of to his or her face.
When you spread a rumor about someone, you’re sending a signal that the person is outside of the group, and somehow less worthy of friendship than others. You’re making fun of that person or pointing out negative things about him or her. This can let others think that it’s okay to make the person feel bad, and make him or her an outsider.
We need to be able to trust our friends, and gossip and rumors can break this trust. If you tell a personal secret to a friend, and he turns around and tells it to someone else, you might feel like you will get burned if you ever get close to him again.
Letting a rumor influence your behavior is like letting someone else make a big decision for you. Let’s say you hear that the teacher plans to call a Snow Day tomorrow because a blizzard (暴風(fēng)雪) is coming. Expecting a day off, you don’t do your homework. The next morning, the blizzard turns out to be nothing more than a drizzle(毛毛雨), and school isn’t off after all. You get zeroes on your work.
小題1:To tell a rumor and a tease apart, you depend on ______.
A．whether it is done behind someone
B．whether it is painful or not
C．whether it is a kind of bullying
D．whether it is spread fast.
小題2:If a rumor is spread about someone, others may_______.
A．point out his or her advantages
B．keep away from him or her
C．not feel he or she is an outsider
D．be hurt if getting close to him or her again.
小題3:The purpose of this passage is to _______.
A．a(chǎn)dvise on how to deal with rumors
B．teach us how to judge a rumor
C．find out why rumors spread fast
D．explain why rumors hurt

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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

In modem society there is a great deal of argument about competition．Some value it highly，believing that it is responsible for social progress and prosperity．Others say that competition is bad, that it sets one person against another and that it leads to unfriendly relationship between people．
I have taught many children who held the belief that their self-worth relied(依賴)on how well they performed at tennis and other skills．For them，playing well and winning are often life-and-death affair. In their single-minded pursuit(追求)of success，the development of many other human qualities is sadly forgotten．
However，while some seem to be lost in the desire to succeed，others take an opposite attitude．In a culture which values only the winner and pays no attention to the ordinary players，they strongly blame competition．Among the most vocal are youngsters who have suffered under competitive pressures from their parents or society．Teaching these young people，I often observe in them a desire to fail．They seem to seek failure by not trying to win or achieve success .By not trying，they always have an excuse：“I may have lost，but it doesn’t matter because I really didn’t try.’’ What is not usually admitted by themselves is the belief that if they had really tried and lost，that would mean a lot．Such a loss would be a measure of their worth．
Clearly，this belief is the same as that of the true competitors who try to prove themselves．Both are based on the mistaken belief that one’s self-respect relies on how well one performs in comparison with others．Both are afraid of not being valued．Only as this basic and often troublesome fear begins to dissolve(緩解)can we discover a new meaning in competition．
小題1:What does this passage mainly talk about?
A．Competition helps to set up self-respect．
B．Opinions about competition are different among people．
C．Competition is harmful to personal quality development．
D．Failures are necessary experiences in competition．
小題2:Why do some people favor competition according to the passage?
A．It pushes society forward．
B．it builds up a sense of duty．
C．It improves personal abilities．
D．It encourages individual efforts．
小題3:The underlined phrase “the most vocal” in Paragraph 3 means________．
A．those who try their best to win
B．those who value competition most highly
C．those who are against competition most strongly
D．those who rely on others most for success
小題4:What is the similar belief of the true competitors and those with a “desire to fail”?
A．One’s worth lies in his performance compared with others’．
B．One’s success in competition needs great efforts．
C．One’s achievement is determined by his particular skills．
D．One’s success is based on how hard he has tried．
小題5:Which point of view may the author agree to?
A．Every effort should be paid back．
B．Competition should be encouraged．
C．Winning should be a life—and—death matter．
D．Fear of failure should be removed in competition．

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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

Over three million people will do their Christmas shopping entirely online this year without once visiting an actual shop, a poll (民意調(diào)查) has found. Overcrowding and long queues in shops are forcing people away from the high street as the hassle (煩擾) of Christmas shopping becomes too much.
The number of people turning their backs on the high street is almost one million higher than it was last year, according to the poll by YouGov. Last Christmas 2.4 million shoppers did not do any of their shopping in actual shops. The figure this year is predicted to be around 3.4 million, equal to around 7 percent of the adult population.
Over a third of people said that the main turn-off about shopping on the high street is 0ver-crow-ding. Meanwhile almost a quarter said that long queues at the cheek-out are the worst thing about it.
Of the 2.065 people pored, even those who are stir taking to the shops plan to spend less time in them this Christmas. Around 31 percent of shoppers who plan to spend at least some time on the high street will spend less than half of their shopping time in actual shops, using the rest of the time to shop remotely via the internet. This compares to 28 percent of people last year. Meanwhile the proportion of people spending over half of their shopping time in high street shops has dropped from 41 percent last year to 39 percent this year. Just 2 percent of people said that they are looking forward to dealing wi.th store staff this festival season.
Guy Boxall, senior product marketing manager at Casio Business Solutions Division, which commissioned the research from YouGov, said that despite the fall in people visiting the high street,humans are "social creatures" who actually like spending time together.
"Although the high street is facing a big challenge Christmas, retailers (零售商) should see this research as a challenge to improve the in-store shopping experience, rather than the nail in the coffin. We are social creatures, and the desire to spend time with each other, particularly at Christmas, is never going to go away," said Mr. Boxall.
小題1:According to the poll, in this year's Christmas       
A．a(chǎn)bout 7 % of the population will do both online and actual shopping
B．a(chǎn)bout 31% of shoppers will do half of their shopping in actual shops
C．a(chǎn)bout 39% of shoppers will do more than half of their shopping in actual shops
D．over three million shoppers will quit actual shopping just because of the long queues
小題2:What's the meaning of "turn-off" in Para.5?
A．Something that makes people lose heart
B．Something that makes people lose face
C．Something that makes people lose interest
D．Something that makes people lose courage
小題3:It can be inferred from Mr. Boxall's words that                                                                                                   
A．retailers should reduce their in-store goods.
B．retailers wiR be pessimistic about the result of this research.
C．retailers should focus on the advantage of in-store shopping.
D．retailers will make more profits this Christmas than last Christmas
小題4:Wheat's the writer's attitude towards Christmas online shopping?
A．Concerned.B．Doubtful.C．Approving.D．Objective.

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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

A recent survey shows that the alarming rate of child suicide(自殺) in Hong Kong, raising levels of stress and anxiety among young people, increasing conflicts between children and teachers, and children’s complaints that their parents do not understand their problems—all point to a drop in “emotional quotient” (EQ) (情商), the ability to handle relationships.
EQ is defined as the ability to deal with oneself and others effectively. High EQ, psychologists say, is easy to spot. Some of the greatest humanitarian (人道主義的) leaders have high EQ, along with successful managers and inspirational and respected teachers. The problem is not how to spot high EQ but to improve on low EQ, so society as a whole can benefit.
In the United States, declining EQ among young people is seen as one of the factors behind rising young people’s crime because youths fail to understand others’ feelings—one of the key components of EQ. While the situation in Hong Kong is not so bad, there are warning signs that the levels of anxiety among youth may become critical. Declining EQ among Hong Kong teenagers has been acknowledged by several studies including a key study by the education concern group, the Learning-Teacher Association, which found a high degree of anxiety among students over the future and also that young people lacked confidence in dealing with problems. Parents and teachers will also need to develop their own EQ skills in order to deal with them effectively.
Daniel Goleman cites a number of basic elements of high EQ: first, awareness of your feelings as you experience them which is very important to making good decisions in life; second, feeling or awareness of what others are feeling. “90% of emotional information is expressed non-verbally and people vary in their ability to pick it up,” Dr. Goleman says in his book.
Dr. Goleman argues that without high EQ even highly-educated, highly-intelligent people will not find success in life. Or those with low EQ, even though they may be brilliant, tend to lack feeling and impulse control. They fail easily, and they are easily intolerant and often aggressive in interpersonal relations. Some educational psychologists believe work on EQ may be important in Hong Kong with its high rate of suicide among school children. EQ test may be able to help predict those most at risk, and those least able to deal with their own emotions or unable to deal with others, including parents and teachers.
小題1:According to the passage, children in Hong Kong commit suicide at an alarming rate as a result of _______.
A．parents not understanding their children
B．the rising levels of stress and anxiety among young people
C．the inability of dealing with relationships
D．increasing conflict between children and teachers
小題2:We can infer from the passage that people with low emotional quotient _______.
A．a(chǎn)re least likely to become good leaders
B．can deal with oneself and others effectively
C．a(chǎn)re beneficial to society
D．a(chǎn)re more likely to be respected
小題3:The word “its” in the last paragraph refers to ________.
A．the work on EQ
B．Hong Kong
C．EQ
D．China
小題4:Daniel Goleman believes that _______.
A．one can be just as successful without having a high EQ
B．only people with both high EQ and high IQ will be successful in life
C．people with low intelligence will not get a successful life
D．people not having high EQ may not be successful in life despite being extremely intelligent

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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

Did Steve Jobs kill the music industry? That’s the question on many people’s lips since rock star Jon Bon Jovi accused the Apple boss of personally destroying the music industry.Bon Jovi centers his criticism on how he believes music downloading has robbed young people of what he calls the “beauty of buying an album”. “Kids today have missed the beauty of taking your pocket money and making a decision based on the jacket (封面), not knowing what the record sounded like,” he said.
But far from killing the industry, many young people today think Jobs has been a blessing (帶來幸運(yùn)的人), offering you instant, and selective access to a whole world of music.
Keith Staskiewicz at Enthertainment Weekly speaks for the feelings of many music lovers. He believes listening to MP3s rather than records or CDs “just save money” and doesn’t “remove the sense of discovery they get from new music”. Staskiewicz also argues that it’s wrong to blame Jobs and Apple for destroying anything. “Change is just part of the business,” Staskiewicz said. “No doubt in 50 years, Justin Bieber will complain about how kids don’t listen to ipods anymore.”
For now, though, it appears that music downloading is set to continue for the near future.
According to Summer Redstone, chairman of media company Viacom, iTunes has “resurrected(復(fù)興) the music industry by creating a legal, affordable purchasing system for fans”.
But recent surveys suggested that, despite the “l(fā)egalizing(合法化)” of music downloading through sites like iTunes, young people are still choosing to download music illegally. A report by Jupiter Research suggested that illegal downloading sites are used three times as much as legal ones. The problem, according to its analyst Mark Mulligan, is how today’s youth grow up viewing music as something they can get for free.
He said, “Unless the musci industry can shift these consumers while they are young away from free consumption to paid music formats(格式), they may never develop music purchasing behavior and the recording industry could suffer long-term harm.”
小題1:Which one is TRUE about young people nowadays?
A．They are music lovers and are willing to save money to enjoy music.
B．The majority of them download music through legal sites like iTunes.
C．They are most likely to go back to the store to buy albums in the near future.
D．They are robbed of the change of enjoying music by Apple.
小題2:According to Mark Mulligan, the best solution to the problem of illegal music downloading is to_______.
A．legalize music downloading through sites like iTunes
B．help young people get used to paying for music
C．offer young people instant and selective access to a variety of music
D．create an affordable purchasing system for fans
小題3:What is the main point of the article?
A．How Steve Jobs and Apple destroyed the music industry.
B．Why young people prefer downloading music to buying albums.
C．The problem of illegal downloading of music.
D．Different opinions on effects of music downloading.

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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

TOKYO (Reuters) – “Who played the father in the movie ‘Kramer versus Kramer’?” That’s one of the 50 questions Japanese men could face in a “daddy exam”, meant to raise awareness about fatherhood in a country where men tend to work long hours and leave their wives in charge of childcare and household work.
Even men who remember Dustin Hoffman struggling as a father in the movie may have a hard time answering questions ranging from baby food to politics.
Tetsuya Ando, director of Fathering Japan, a Tokyo non-profit organization that came up with the test and will offer it to eager dads from next March, said the exam was an attracting way to get fathers into parenting. “There just isn't enough information about parenting for fathers. Through the exam, we want men to realize that they don't know anything about bringing up kids,” he said.
For the price of 3,900 yen ($34), fathers can find out whether they qualify as a “Super Dad,” or are in need of more effort as a “Challenge Dad.”
“We have received inquiries(咨詢) from fathers, single men, to-be-dads, grandfathers ... even an aunt who was concerned that her nephew is too busy with work to notice the fun of parenting,” Ando said. The image of fathers is gradually changing in Japan as younger men eschew their own dads’ hands-off way in favor of closer involvement, and a wave of new parenting magazines for male readers has been hitting newsstands. But it is still hard for Japanese fathers to cut down on their work hours and spend more time with their families. Only 0.5 percent of employed men in Japan took parental leave in 2011, compared with 14 percent in the United States and 12 percent in Britain in 2000.
小題1:The “daddy exam” is intended to          .
A．test to – be – dads’ fatherhood knowledge
B．test Challenge Dad’s parenting knowledge
C．a(chǎn)ttract the whole society’s attention to parenting
D．have fathers realize their responsibility for their families
小題2:In the exam, the Japanese fathers may find that         .
A．they almost know nothing about the questions
B．the questions only make sense to to – be – dads
C．there is ample information about parenting
D．it’s not a good way to get them into parenting
小題3:The underlined word “eschew” in the last paragraph can be replaced by the word “       ”.
A．a(chǎn)voidB．a(chǎn)doptC．improveD．a(chǎn)dmire
小題4:The magazines for male readers are popular most probably because many men        .
A．long to know how to do household chores
B．become more concerned about parenting
C．want to get high scores in the 50 – question test
D．like to know whether they are Challenge Dads
小題5:From the whole report, it can be inferred that        .
A．Japanese fathers show no interest in parenting
B．young Japanese men tend to set about parenting
C．young fathers value parenting less than their fathers
D．Japanese fathers value parenting more than British fathers

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