江苏省年度高中英语口语等级测试纲要

2010年江苏省高中英语口语等级测试纲要（试行）附录二高中学生英语口语等级测试训练材料第一部分朗读短文并回答问题用正确的语音语调朗读下面的短文并回答问题1I had many teachers in the past year and they each taught only one subject. Mr Heywood was my class teacher. My favourite teacher was Miss Burke. She was the teacher who taught us English Literature. In our class there were 29 students. This is about the average size for British schools. We had to move to different classrooms for different classes. We also had different students in some classes, so it was difficult to remember all the faces and names.I found the homework was not as heavy as what I used to get in my old school, but it was a bit challenging for me at first because all the homework was in English. I felt lucky as all my teachers were very helpful and I enjoyed all my subjects: English, History, English Literature, Computer Science, Maths, Science, PE, Art, Cooking and French.Questions:[1] Who was the speaker’s favourite teacher?[2] Why was it difficult to remember all the faces and names?[3] Why did the speaker feel lucky?[4] How many students were there in the speaker’s class?[5] What were the subjects the speaker had at school?2Early in the 18th century, Captain Cook, a famous explorer of Australia, unexpectedly caught sight of an unusual animal during his first visit to Australia. The animal had a large mouse-like head and jumped along on its large legs. To his great surprise, the unusual animal carried its young in a special pocket of flesh. Captain Cook pointed to the animal which was eating grass in the distance and asked his native guide what the animal was. The guide seemed not to know what he was pointing at and finally said “kangaroo”, which Cook carefully wrote down as the animals name in his word book. The Europeans who later got to Australia were anxious to see the unusual animal “kangaroo”, but their requests were met with puzzled looks from the native people. Before long they discovered that the native guide who had answered Cook’s question really meant, ‘I don’t know what you are pointing at.” Funnily enough, the name “kangaroo” stuck and it is still in use today.生词：kangaroo 袋鼠Questions:[1] Who was Captain Cook?[2] When did Captain Cook reach Australia?[3] What did he unexpectedly see during his first visit to Australia?[4] What was the animal like?[5] How did the kangaroo get its name?3Dear Mr ZhuI am writing to your magazine’s ‘Teenagers Now” column to ask for some help with my 16-year-old son. At the moment, he refuses to do almost everything his mother and I ask him to do. He is our only child. His mum and I treat him very well, and his grandparents buy him many things. Yet he is still rude to us. He refuses to spend time with us or do as we tell him. Sometimes he acts as though he doesn’t even love us at all.Now he refuses to do his homework, and instead insist on wasting his time watching DVDs and listening to foreign music. I cannot un derstand this music, but I don’t like it. He also spends too much time in Internet cafes, where he either plays games or chats online. He is wasting valuable time during this important period in his life!What am I to do? At present, to prevent upsetting his mother with an argument, I am allowing him his freedom. However, I am worried that if I keep allowing him to do what he wants, he may fail at school, or worse.How can I help my son without harming our relationship?Yours sincerelyLiu Zhen huaQuestions:[1] Who do you think Mr Zhu is?[2] Why does Liu Zhen hua write to Mr Zhu?[3] What is his son’s problem?[4] How does he behave now?[5] What is Liu Zhenhua worried about?4Dear Zhou LingThings change so quickly! I’m now in hospital recovering fro m liver failure. I regret taking those weight-loss pills. They contain a harmful chemical that cause my liver to fail. The doctor told me that I would die if I couldn’t get a new liver. My mother is a match, but she is too old for such a long operation. I thought I was going to die.Then the doctor found that someone in your country, whose name is Li Dong, was an exact match for me.. He donated more than half of his liver to save my life. I was very lucky, wasn’t I?I’m feeling better now. I follow my doctor’s advice and exercise for at least half an hour every day, and eat lots of fruit and vegetables. People should look after their bodies. My mother is right: don’t damage your health for a slim and attractive figure. It isn’t worth it. We shouldn’t be ashamed of the way we look, should we?I hope to hear from you soon.LoveAmy生词：liver 肝Questions:[1] What's wrong with Amy?[2] What caused her liver to fail?[3] Why did she think she was going to die?[4] How was she saved?[5] What does she say about health?5When it was finished, it was the largest and most comfortable ship ever built. People thought it would never sink. However, this passenger ship surprised everyone when it sank on its first journey.The Titanic was built in Ireland in 1912.Its makers spent a great deal of money building the ship. The Titanic set sail on the 10th of April. On the 13th, it was sailing at full speed towards New York. The captain received warnings about icebergs all day, but he paid little attention to them.At 2.20 a.m., the Titanic sank into the sea. It had hit an iceberg just over two hours before. Of the 2200 people on the ship, only 705 survived.Explorer Robert Ballard searched for the Titanic for more than 20 years before he found it. ‘When new technology was developed, we used it to send cameras down into the sea. Finally, we found the ship.” With his cameras, he was able to find the hole along the side of the ship which had caused it to fill with water and sink.生词：1.Tatanic 泰坦尼克号游轮2.iceberg 冰山Questions:[1] What kind of ship was the Titanic?[2] When did it set sail?[3] What happened on its first journey?[4] How long had Robert Ballard searched for it before he found it?[5] How did he find the ship?6Many people wonder if our senses have something to do with our overall health. Scientists say that making the most of our senses when we are young can keep us healthy later on in life.One reason why we become stressed and have high blood pressure is that we misuse our senses in our everyday life. One study says that about 90% of our time is spent watching television or using computers. It adds that although our sense of sight is overused, our senses of touch and smell have been ignored.People often ask whether or not we should develop all our senses.The answer is yes. Scientists suggest that we do the following things more often. While having dinner, listen to some enjoyable music rather than watch TV. While relaxing at home, have some flowers next to you that smell nice. Before going to bed, turn the lights down. While sleeping, wear a nightshirt that is pleasant to touch--it will make you sleep deeply. Whether we sleep well is important because good sleep gives us the chance to dream and dreams keep us young and healthy.Questions:(1) Do scientists think our senses have something to do with our overall health? How?(2) What is one of the reasons why we become stressed and have high blood pressure?(3) What do scientists suggest?(4) Why should we wear nightshirts that are pleasant to touch while sleeping?(5) What is the main idea of this passage?7Trailwalker has been one of Hong Kong's largest fundraising event since1981.It is organized to raise money to help poor people in Aisa and Africa. Since1981. More than $ 91 million dollars have been raised to help improve the living standards of these poor people. Trailwalker is held in November every year. People over 18 who are interested in the event can form a team of four people to take part in this charity walk.Trailwalker is a tough hike which requires partticipants to complete100 kilometres within 48 hours. It means you may have to walk two days and nights without sleep. It is challenging to walk through eight country parks and over twenty mountains and hills. It is an excellent opportunity for participants to learn team spirit. Since only the team's finishing time will be recorded, it is necessary for them to support and help each other to finish the course.生词：1：trailwalker n.毅行者2：charity n.慈善3：participant n.参加者Questions:(1) Where is Trailwalker held?(2) When has trailwalker been held every year?(3) Who can join trailwalker?(4) What's the aim of trailwalker?(5) Is trailwalker a difficult walk? Why?8Body language shows all kinds of feeling, wishes and attitudes and is sometimes more important than spoken language.A smile is the universal facial expression—it is intended to put people at ease. It does not alwaysmean that you are happy, however, A smile can hide other feelings, like anger, fear or worryIn most countries, nodding the head up and down shows agreement, while shaking the head means that you do not agree, or that you refuse to do something.If you look away from a person or yawn, they may think you are not interested in them. If you stand holding your arms across your chest, you may be protecting yourself---just from a conversation you do not want! If you sit looking at and turn toward, the person you are talking to, it shows that you are interested. If you roll your eyes and turn your head away, most likely you do not believe what you are hearing, or you do not like what you hear.There are some differences in body language between cultures. It is important to give them attention.生词：ficial a.面部的ywan v.打哈欠Questions:1. What can body language show?2. What feelings can a smile hide besides happiness?3. How do people show agreement or disagreement in most countries?4. If a man stands holding his arms across his chest, what does he mean?5. If someone rolls his eyes and turns his head away from a reporter, what can you guess about his feelings?9In many parts of the world, university students work in the summer. They need money, and they can get some working experience. Traditionally, they get jobs as servers, cashiers, and lifeguards at swimming pools.These days, however, more and more students are wording at dotcoms. Dotcoms are Internet-based companies which offer goods and services online. Today，s young people already know a lot about computers, and they can quickly learn more. The pay is also usually much better than that at traditional summer jobs.There are other advantages besides the pay. Students see dotcom jobs as a good start on their futures. In addition to providing good experience, the work is also enjoyable for most. On top of this, their co-workers treat them with respect.Dotcoms are new and need new ways of thinking. Imagination and enterprise are more important than formal qualifications. So some students are even leaving school to start their own dotcoms.生词：1. cashier n.出纳员2. enterprise n.进取心Questions:1. Why do the university students work in the summer?2. What kind of jobs do they do traditionally?3. What are dotcoms?4. What are the advantages of working at dotcoms?5. What qualifications are important for working at dotcoms?10The day she won the lottery was the greatest day of her life. Or so she thought. As she took the cheque for one million dollars, Mary started making plans. A new house. A new car. A vacation in the sun. And, of course, she could stop working-give her life a total makeover!Eight years later, Mary was broke. The money was all gone. So were her friends. The new life was over, but how could she go back to her old one ?Winners of sudden wealth often stop working, and then don't know what to do with their time. They may find that close friends grow distant, and that it’s difficult to make new ones .The new house in the new surroundings often only leads to more loneliness. What seemed to be wonderful luck turns out to be just the opposite.It se ems that winning a fortune doesn’t guarantee happiness. Just ask Mary. She now has a new job and new friends but she would probably still say, “Money isn’t everything…”生词：1. loter n.彩票2. makeover n.改变3. guarantee v.保证4. broke a.不名一文的；破产的Questions:1. How did Mary get one million dollars one day?2. What do you think Mary did with the money?3. What happened eight years later?4. Why does what seemed to be wonderful luck turn out to be just the oppcsite?5. What does Mary think about money?11For hundreds of years, the people of a Scottish town believed that a dinosaur-like monster lived in a nearby lake called Loch Ness. Many said they saw the creature, but no one could prove it was real.In 1934,a London doctor, Robert Kenneth Wilson, gave a newspaper a photo of the monster. He took the picture, the news travelled around the world. People came from everywhere to see this creature now called the“ Loch Ness Monster”. Then in 1993,a man named Christian Spurling surprised everyone. He said the photo of the Loch Ness Monster was a fake .He and some friends had created the famous picture themselves, then Wilson had given it to the newspaper as a practical joke.Today tricks and jokes like this are common, and many are spread using e-mail. Some can be funny, but others can cause trouble.生词：1. monster n.怪物 2. Loch Ness 尼斯湖3. fake n.假货；赝品Questions:1．What does the monster in Loch Ness look like?2．What did Robert Kenneth Wilson do in 1934?3．How did Christian Spurling surprise every one?4．How are many tricks and jokes spread today?5．What do you think of tricks and jokes like this?12Today about 15 percent of the population is left-handed. But why are people left-handed ? The answer is in the way the brain works.The brain has two halves-the right half and the left half .The right half controls the left side of the body, and the left controls the right side the body. So right-hanged people have a strong left brain, and left-handed people have a strong right brain.The two halves of the brain are about the same size. But each side controls different things. The left side controls language, mathematics, and logic. When you memorize the spelling of words, or when you put things in order, you use your left side. The right side of the brain controls your love of art, colour, music. It is also good at recognizing fact.This does not mean that all artists are left-handed and all accountants are right-handed. There are actually many exceptions. Some right-handers have a strong right brain, and some left-handers have a strong left brain.生词；1. logic 逻辑 2. accountant 会计，会计师Questions:(1) What percentage of the population is left-handed today?(2) Why are people left-handed?(3) What dose the left side of the brain control?(4) Which side of brain do you use when you recognize faces?(5) Do you think all artists are left-handed and all accountants are right-handed?13Annette Kellerman was born in Australia in 1887. She had polio and could not walk easily. She had to wear metal supports on her legs to stand up on her own. To make her legs stronger, her mother took her for swimming lessons every week. Swimming made her legs so strong that when she was 15 she was able to throw away her supports.Her family was poor so she got work acting as a mermaid. She wore a long tail and fish swam around her. People paid to come and see her.In 1900Annette swam in Paris Olympics and won two gold medals. The next year she tried to swim across the Channel. She was the first woman to try to do it though she had to stop swimming for six hours.In1915, Annette went to Hollywood and was the star of two films.生词；1.Annette Kellerman (人名)安妮特-凯勒曼2.polio 小儿麻痹症3. mermaid 美人鱼Questions:(1) What did Annette suffer from when she was a child?(2)How did her legs become stronger?(3)How did she help her family?(4)What did she do in the Paris Olympics?(5)What did she do in 1915?14Louis Braille was born near Paris, France. He was a very smart child. He liked to play with his father’s work tools. One day, when he was four, a sharp tool went into his left eye. An infection started and spread to the other. A few weeks later, he was blind.At age ten, Louis went to a school for blind children. One day a soldier, Charles Barbier, visited the school. Barbier had invented a system of night-reading. This system used dots of the letters. Soldiers used this system in times of war. Barbier thought this system could help blind people to read.Barbier’s system was difficult, but it gave Louis an idea. He made Barbier’s system easier. By age fifteen, his new system was ready. But the schools did not want his system. Louis died in 1852 at age forty-three. Two years after he died, schools for the blind began to use his system.Today we call this system Braille after Louis Braille. It is used for all languages, for mathematics, science, writing music, and for computers for the blind.生词：1ouis Braille ( 人名)路易斯-布菜叶2；infection 感染3:charles Barbier (人名) 查尔斯-巴比亚Questions:(1) What do you know about Louis Braille?(2) How did he become blind?(3) What did Barbier invent?(4) What did Louis do to Barbier’s system?(5) Is Braille’s system still used today?15Millions of words have been written about young people in the United Sates. There are reasons for this great interest in the ideas, feelings and actions of youth.Today there are about seven million Americans in colleges and universities. Young persons under 25 make up nearly half of the American population. Many of these will soon be in charge of the nation . Naturally, their ideas are important to everyone in the country, and it is necessary for older people to understand what they think and it is necessary for older people to understand what thythink and feel.College students today have strong opinions about right and wrong. They are deeply interested in making a better life for all people, especially for those who have not been given a fair chance. They see much that is wrong in the old ways of their elders. So they insist on changing them. As a result, there is often trouble in American families.Questions:(1) How many American are there in colleges and universities?(2) Why are young people very important in the USA today?(3) What is necessary for older people to do?(4) What strong opinions do college students today have?(5) What often causes trouble in American families?16Dear AmyMy computer was broken so I couldn’t read your two e-mails until today.I’m so sorry to hear about your problem, but I’m glad you’re feeling better and are recovering.I’m amazed that in China someone’s liver matched yours. This is really a touching story –a stranger who donated part of his liver to a girl he doesn’t even kno w.You’re right. We shouldn’t be embarrassed about our weight. I think you look as great as you are, and you’re a wonderful person. I know that the pressure to stay slim is a problem, especially for an actress. However, your mother knows best: nothing is more important than health.It’s the same in China-many people, some of whom are not overweight at all, are always going on diets or taking weight-loss pills, which are often dangerous. I hope they can learn from your story. Questions:(1) Why couldn’t the speaker read the e-mails until today?(2) Who donated part of his liver to Amy?(3) What is Amy?(4) How do many people stay slim?(5) Why is the speaker glad?17Bill Gates was born in Seattle in 1955. Young Gates’ grades weren’t always great. Not until in the eighth grade did he find his passion. In the 1960s, the Mothers’ Club at Gates’ school bought a computer for the students. Gates discovered it and soon became a computer fan. In fact, it was because of his passion programming that he later dropped out of Harvard. He formed a company with his friend Paul Allen.Bill gates started Microsoft Company in 1976 and in the years since then, his company has produced computer technology that has changed the way people work, communicate and play. BillGates was the chief executive officer of Microsoft until 2000 when he became the company’s chief software architect. Because others were helping to run the company, Bill Gates and his wife Melinda had time to spend on projects to improve global health and education. So far, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the largest charity organization in the world, has donated a lot of money to various charities. On 27th June 2008, Bill Gates stopped his full-time work at Microsoft. Bill Gates was married on 1st January 1994. He has three children. He is an avid reader, and enjoys playing golf and bridge.生词：1 passion 激情 2 executive 行政的3 avid 酷爱的Questions: 执行的(1)When was Bill Gates born?(2)How did Bill Gates become interested in computers?(3)Did Bill Gates finish his college education? Why or why not/(4)What kind of new job did Bill Gates take when he stopped being the chief executive officer of Microsoft in 2000?(5)What do we know about Bill Gates’ hobbies?18There is a new kind of addiction called internet addiction. According to researchers, Internet addicts spend at least thirty to forty hours online every week. The use of the Internet can be an addiction like alcoholism or drug use. People are unable to control the time they spend on the internet.For example, one college student was missing for several days. His friends were worried, and they called the police. The police found the student in the computer lab; he had been surfing the net-for seven days straight.Current studies show that about 6to 10 per cent of internet users become addicted. And some researchers worry particularly about young people because the Internet is taking the place of the mall or the playing field for some of them. They spend more time in cyberspace than in the real world of friend and family.What is the cure? There is advice to help Internet addicts-even online. Some experts recommend that people set strict limits on their time for Internet use. You have to control it. The Internet sh ouldn’t control you.生词：1.addiction上瘾 2. addict上瘾者3.alcoholism酒;酒精中毒4.cyberspace网络空间Questions:(1) What is Internet addiction?(2) How much time do Internet addicts spend online every week?(3) What did the missing student do?(4) Who do some researchers worry particularly about? Why?(5) How can people cure Internet addiction?19Most people believe we must not drink sea water. They believe that if we do we shall be very ill because of all the salt in the water. A doctor called Bombard did not believe this. He thought that people could stay alive by drinking sea water and eating animals and plans from the sea. To prove he was right he set out in a small boat to cross the Atlantic Ocean without any food or water with him.Every day Dr Bombard drank just a little sea water. He also caught fish and they had water in them. He drank this water. He could not cook the fish so he ate them as they were. He took small plants from the sea, which gave him more food.He travelled from one side of Atlantic Ocean to the other in 65days. He lost 20kilos but he showed that people can live on sea water and the animals and plants in the sea.Question;(1) What do most people believe about sea water?(2) What did Dr Bombard think about it?(3) What did he do to prove that he was right?(4) How did he live on the sea?(5) What was the result of his experiment?20I am an American student and I want to tell you about some of the things America is famous for. I think these are all important parts of American popular culture.Firstly, America makes lots of amazing films. Films are very popular in America. When a new film is released at the cinema, lots of people go and watch it. Many America actors are world famous. Lots of them have huge houses in a place called Hollywood.Fast food is very popular in America. In a fast food restaurant, you can buy chicken and beef burgers, chips and soft drinks as well as other things. It is great because once you have ordered your food you only have to wait a couple of minutes for your meal to be ready. I think fast food is delicious, but try not to eat it too often because it is unhealthy.My favourite sport is basketball. All my friends like watching it, and many students in America support a team in the NBA. Because I live Chicago, I support the Chicago Bulls. My favourite player is Michael Jordan. He is very famous and earns a lot of money, but he does not play any more because he is retired.Questions:(1) What does the student think of the thing he wants to talk about?(2) What is said about many America actors?(3) Why does the student say fast food is so popular?(4) What suggestion does the student give us about fast food?(5) What do we learn about many students in America?21Tom was on a bus when it happened. He was travelling along when suddenly there was a loud crash. The bus driver had fallen asleep while he was driving, and had driven into a huge building. Everything went black. All Tom could remember was being in great pain.He woke up three days later, with a bad headache. It was then that he realized that he had only one arm. During the accident a sharp piece of metal had cut off his arm. That is why he so much pain. At first he found it difficult to adjust to life without one of his arms. He had to learn to do many things with just one arm instead of two. However, after some time he got used to it and began to be motivated to do many things again.Nowadays，he is back at work and has started running every day. He enjoys running because it keeps him fit and healthy. Also he is very fast, and it doesn’t matter that he has only one arm. It has been hard to adjust to life after the accident, but now he is as happy as he has ever been. Questions:(1) Why did the bus crash?(2) When did Tom wake up and what did he realize?(3) What directly lead to the loss of his arm during the accident?(4) How was his life like shortly after the accident happened?(5) Why does he enjoy running nowadays?22A pyramid is a very large structure with four sides. Each side is shaped like a triangle, and the four sides meet to form a single point on top.Pyramids were built in many parts of the world, but the most famous were located in Egypt. More than four thousand years ago, an Egyptian king named Zoser had the first pyramid built. It was a burial tomb for himself when he died.The later kings had other pyramids built. Every king wanted his tomb to be the best. But Khufu outdid them all. He had the largest pyramid built. It is the Great Pyramid. The Great Pyramid is over 450 feet high today, and it was once higher. Each of the sides of the pyramid is 755 feet long. It takes about twenty minutes to walk all the way around the pyramid. To build the Great Pyramid, 100,000 men worked for twenty years.生词：1. triangle n.三角形2. Zoser (人名) 宙瑟3. Khufu （人名）胡夫Questions:(1) What does a pyramid look like?(2) Were pyramids built only in Egypt?(3) Who had the first pyramid built?(4) How large is the Great Pyramid?(5) How many people and how long did it take to build the Great Pyramid?23What is the most fun you can have in 21 hours and 23 minutes? On 15th October 2003, Yang Liwei answered this question. His journey into space took him 600,000 kilometers into orbit, around the earth 14 times, in just over 21 hours. It made him China’s first astronaut and the 241st person in space. He had worked towards this achievement for many years.Born in 1965, Yang had wanted to fly since he was a young boy. His friends and teachers from Suizhong County in north-eastern Liaoning Province have all said that he loved science and technology from a young age. He always talked of wanting to learn how to fly. His dream was encouraged by his parents as well as his older sister and younger brother.In the end, Yang was indeed successful. His name will go down in history with those of Yuri Gagarin and Alan Shepard, the first Russian and American astronauts. The people of China can be proud of Yang Liwei and young people all over the world can look up to him as an example of a man who managed to live his dream.Questions:(1) When did Yang Liwei fly into space?(2) What did Yang Liwei love from a young age?(3) When was Yang Liwei born?(4) Who encouraged Yang Liwei’s dream?(5) How long did it take Yang Liwei to finish his journey?24There are nearly 400 different types of sharks in total, but only about 30 types have ever been reported as attacking human being. Most people know that the most dangerous shark is the great white shark, mainly because they have seen the movie Jaws. However, there are still two other sharks which are fierce. They are the tiger shark and the bull shark.The chances of being attacked by a shark are very small compared to other dangers. The number of people who drown in the ocean every year is larger than the number of people bitten by sharks. The low number of attacks that happen every year proves that sharks do not feed on humans if they have the choice.Questions:(1) How many types of sharks are reported as attacking human beings?(2) Why do most people know that the most dangerous shark is the great white shark?(3) What are two other fierce sharks?(4) How many types of sharks are there in total?。