Some people think that they have an answer to the problems of automobile crowding and pollution in large cities. Their answer is the bicycle, or bike.

In a great many cities, hundreds of people ride bicycles to work every day. In New York City, some bike riders have even formed a group called “Bike for a Better City”. They claim that if more people rode bicycles to work there would be fewer automobiles in the downtown section of the city and therefore less dirty air from car engines.

For several years this group has been trying to get city government to help bicycle riders. For example, they want the city to paint special lanes—for bicycles only—on some of the main streets, because when bicycle riders must use the same lanes as cars, there may be accidents. “Bike for a Better City” feels that if there were special lanes, more people would use bikes.

    But no bicycle lanes have been painted yet. Not everyone thinks it is a good idea. Taxi drivers don't like the idea—they say it will slow traffic. Some store owners on the main streets don't like the idea—they say that if there is less traffic, they will have less business. And most people live too far from downtown to travel by bike.

The city government has not yet decided what to do. It wants to keep everyone happy. On weekends, Central Park—the largest open place in New York—is closed to cars, and the roads may be used by bicycles only. But “Bike for a Better City” says that this is not enough and keeps fighting to get bicycle lanes downtown. Until that happens, the safest place to bicycle may be in the park.

    Elephants are the largest living animals on land. More than 5001 kinds of elephants were found on the earth over the last 55 million years. Only  2   kinds are still alive today: the African elephant and the Asian (or Indian) elephant. These elephants can only be found in  3   places. However, the older kinds lived in cold places a long time  4 . An example is the mammoth (猛犸象) — the largest hairy elephant.

    The mammoth was the largest living elephant, which was about seven tons. 5  the elephants today, mammoths had black or dark brown hairs 6 their bodies. All the mammoths had tusks (长牙).

    Scientists found most of the extinct (灭绝的) animals by 7  the fossils,  8  their bones and teeth that could be found. However, mammoths are quite different. During the Ice Age, mammoths died and were covered  9 in the ice. The ice kept them very well. So scientists could find the  10  body of the mammoth.

    Natural resources are things that we use that come from the earth. Our natural resources are limited(有限的). This means that they will not1forever. Some are renewable, like when you plant a new tree when you cut one down. Others are not renewable, like when you dig coal(煤) out of the 2Once it is used, it is gone.

    People realize the 3 that the earth's natural resources are limited, and can do things to help conserve(节约) those resources.4you try to conserve a natural resource, you try to use less of it, so it does not get used up so5One way that people conserve fuel, like gasoline, is by riding a bicycle or walking when the6is short instead of driving everywhere.

    Water is a very important natural resource because we all need it to stay 7We can conserve water8making sure that our pipes and taps do not leak(泄露). We can also make wise choices to conserve water, like only using the dishwasher or washing machine when they are full. Everyone can make contributions to protecting natural resources.

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' exam 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 cache 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 take part in after-school activities. These activities include sports, specially football, basketball, baseball and soccer or clubs, such as yearbook, speech, school newspaper, photograph or student government.

Title: {#blank#}1{#/blank#} in an American High School

提示词:Chinese club, read aloud, as much as possible, make mistakes

Many studies about language learning ask the question: What makes a good language learner? Here is some of the most {#blank#}1{#/blank#} (use) advice from studies.

*Don't be afraid- of making mistakes. People often get things wrong. Good language learners don't worry about making mistakes. {#blank#}2{#/blank#},they learn from them.

* Do group activities. People use the language {#blank#}3{#/blank#} (communicate) with others. A good language learner always {#blank#}4{#/blank#} (look) for opportunities to talk with others.

* {#blank#}5{#/blank#}(take) notes every day.Write down just five to ten new words and phrases each day. Review {#blank#}6{#/blank#} (they) from time to time.

* Practice {#blank#}7{#/blank#} (speak) daily. Speak to real people, if possible. 'They can be your teachers or friends. But if you have nobody to speak to, you can watch films and repeat what the actors say.

* Spend some time {#blank#}8{#/blank#} (think) in the language you learn. A good first step is to think in words.Try to name each object around you.Then think in simple sentences. {#blank#}9{#/blank#}example, if you are sitting in a park, you can say, "It's such a beautiful day." Then you can move to think in conversations.Imagine yourself {#blank#}10{#/blank#} (talk) to someone else. You are asking the questions and thinking of replies(回答). The secret to developing a habit of thinking in the language is doing it every day, over and over again.