1．Many English words and phrases have stories behind them.Sometimes these stories can help us look back into old Western history.Let's take a look at some of the common English words and phrases：
OK "OK" was an American who lived in the 19th century.His name was"Old Kinderhook".In one year he was trying to take the place of the leader of his town.His supporters went around the town shouting， "OK!OK!" The supporters thought their future leader was "all right".The expression caught on，and now if something is"all right"，people like to say，"OK!"
Boss Is your boss nice to you？If not，just be glad you are not living in the old times.Back to that time，bosses could do anything bad to their men and could even beat（打） them!That explains why the word"boss" comes from an old German word meaning"to beat" .
A piece of cake A famous American writer named Ogden Nash lived in the 1930s.Many readers enjoyed his poems and wrote them down in their notebooks.In one of his poems，Nash wrote， "Her picture's in the papers now，and life's a piece of cake." His readers found these words interesting and quickly wrote them down.They thought that if one picture in a newspaper could make you famous，wouldn't life be easy？For nearly 80 years， "a piece of cake" has meant any task or activity that is easy. （244 words）

（1）The best title of the passage is .
A．How to learn English well
B．Stories behind some English expressions
C．The history of English language
D．Learning English is a piece of cake
（2）What did Old Kinderhook's supporters do for their future leader？
A．They shouted "OK!" around the town.
B．They gave new meaning to the old word"OK".
C．They called the old leader of the town"OK".
D．They fought with policemen in the town.
（3）The word "boss" in English might be borrowed from .
A．Chinese
B．German
C．French
D．Greek
（4）In this passage "a piece of cake" means .
A．a(chǎn)n easy task or activity
B．a(chǎn)n interesting poem in a notebook
C．a(chǎn) simple newspaper to read
D．a(chǎn) famous picture in a newspaper
（5）You can find this passage most probably in .
A．a(chǎn) poster
B．a(chǎn)n email
C．a(chǎn) cartoon
D．a(chǎn) magazine

2．Have you ever wondered what an American high school is really like？This article will describe a typical （典型的） high school and its students．
A typical American high school has several large buildings and enough space for about 1，500 students．Every student is given a locker．When students first arrive at school，they go straight to their lockers to put away or get their textbooks and to hang up their outdoor clothes．As American textbooks are expensive，students would rather loan（租借） than buy them．Students must pay back if they lost any of them．
American students have different types of school transport．They usually take a yellow school bus or walk to school if they live close enough．Sometimes their parents drive them to school．When they turn 16 years of age，most take a free driving class at school for one term．If students earn passing grades in the class and also pass their state driver's exam，they can begin driving themselves to school．
Each day，students take six or seven classes．They must take science，math，English and social studies．They can choose art，homemaking，fashion design and other classes．In some schools students are required to take one or more of the following special classes：health education，physical education or foreign language studies．Students move to different classrooms for each subject．This is because each teacher has their own classroom．There is a five-minute break between classes，to give the students the time to hurry to their next class．
The regular school day usually ends early in the afternoon．After school more than half of the students are involved in after-school activities．These activities include sports-especially football，basketball，baseball and soccer or clubs，such as yearbook，speech，school newspaper，photograph or student government．
Title：（46）in an American High School

Outline	Details
Introduction	◇It gives an overview of a typical American high school and its（47） ．
Lockers and textbooks	◇Every student has a locker for textbooks and（48） clothes． ◇They prefer loaning textbooks to（49） them．
（50） transport	◇Students usually go to school by bus or on foot．Sometimes their（51） send them to school by car． ◇They can（52） themselves to school when they are over 16 and have passed the required tests．
Classes and classrooms	◇Students have to take main classes，elective classes and sometimes one or more （53） classes． ◇They go to（54） classrooms for each subject．
After-school activities	◇After school most of the students take （55） in their favorite activities，including sports and clubs．

3．In Britain．Boxing Day is usually celebrated on December 26^th，which is the following day after Christmas Day．However，strictly speaking．Boxing Day is the first weekday after Christmas．Like Christmas Day．Boxing Day sing a public holiday．This means it's a non-working day in the whole of Britain．When Boxing Day falls on a Saturday or Sunday，the following Monday is the public holiday．
   The exact origin（起源）of the holiday is unclear．One of the thoughts is that during the Middle Ages，when great sailing ships were setting off to discover new land，a Christmas Box was placed by a priest （神父）on each ship．Those sailors who wanted to ensure a safe return would drop money into the box．It was sealed up and kept on board until the ship came home safely．Then the box was handed over to the priest in the exchange for the saying of a Mass of thanks for the success of the sailing．The priest wouldn't open it to share the contents with the poor until Christmas．
    One more thought is about the"Alms Box"placed in every church on Christmas Day．Worshippers （做禮拜的人）put gifts for the poor into it．These boxes were always opened the day after Christmas，that is why that day became know as Boxing Day．
   Today，many businesses，organizations and families try to keep the traditional spirit of Boxing Day alive by donating（捐贈(zèng)）their time，services and money to aid Food Banks，providing gifts for the poor，or helping families in need．Besides，spending time with family and shopping are popular Boxing Day activities now．

（1）If Christmas Day is on a Saturday，Boxing Day will be celebrated on ．
A．December 25^th
B．December 26^th
C．December 27^th
D．December 28^th
（2）Sailors dropped money into the Christmas Box in order to
A．save the poor
B．pay for the priest
C．discover new land
D．pray for sailing safely
（3）What does the underlined phrase"sealed up"mean？
A．密封
B．懸掛
C．歸還
D．傳遞
（4）The following activities can show the traditional spirit of Boxing Day EXCEPT ．
A．offering gifts to the poor
B．supporting families in need
C．spending time with family
D．giving money to aid Food Banks
（5）The purpose of the passage is ．
A．to praise the kindness of priests
B．to introduce the origins of Boxing Day
C．to call on people to help the poor
D．to compare Boxing Day with Christmas Day