Topic On Foreign Language Learning at An Early Age For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write a short essay entitled On Foreign Language Learning at An Early Age following the outline given below. You should write at least 120 words but no more than 180 words. 1．如今，很多家长让低龄孩子学习外语 2．对此现象，人们看法不一 3．你的观点是……

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When families gather for Christmas dinner, some will stick to formal traditions dating back to Grandma's generation. Their tables will be set with the good dishes and silver, and the dress code will be Sunday-best. But in many other homes, this china-and-silver elegance has given way to a stoneware (粗陶)-and-stainless informality, with dresses assuming an equally casual-Friday look. For hosts and guests, the change means greater simplicity and comfort. For makers of fine china in Britain, it spells economic hard times. Last week Royal Doulton, the largest employer in Stoke-on-Trent, announced that it is eliminating 1,000 jobs—one-fifth of its total workforce. That brings to more than 4,000 the number of positions lost in 18 months in the pottery (陶瓷) region. Wedgwood and other pottery factories made cuts earlier. Although a strong pound and weak markets in Asia play a role in the downsizing, the layoffs in Stoke have their roots in earthshaking social shifts. A spokesman for Royal Doulton admitted that the company "has been somewhat slow in catching up with the trend" toward casual dining. Families eat together less often, he explained, and more people eat alone, either because they are single or they eat in front of television. Even dinner parties, if they happen at all, have gone casual. In a time of long work hours and demanding family schedules, busy hosts insist, rightly, that it's better to share a takeout pizza on paper plates in the family room than to wait for the perfect moment or a "real" dinner party. Too often, the perfect moment never comes. Iron a fine-patterned tablecloth? Forget it Polish the silver? Who has time? Yet the loss of formality has its down side. The fine points of etiquette (礼节) that children might once have learned at the table by observation or instruction from parents and grandparents ("Chew with your mouth closed." "Keep your elbows off the table.") must be picked up elsewhere. Some companies now offer etiquette seminars for employees who may be competent professionally but clueless socially.

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Topic Is A Tutor Necessary? For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write a short essay entitled Is A Tutor Necessary? following the outline given below. You should write at least 120 words but no more than 180 words. 1．许多中小学生都请家教 2．这种做法有人赞同，有人反对 3．我认为……

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从那时起他在中国游历17年，访问了中国的许多城市。

For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write an essay based on the problems of shared bicycles and the countermeasures. You should write at least 120 words but no more than 180 words.

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去商店买东西

中国有着悠久的扇子文化。最早的扇子出现在3000年前，由羽毛制成。如今，扇子的制作材料已变得多样化，最常用的是纸和真丝。扇子的用途很广泛，除了能使人凉快之外，还可用于舞蹈、装饰等。在中国文化里，与其说扇子是个工具，不如说它是一个艺术品。扇面上的 书法 (calligraphy)、绘画和诗歌为扇子增添了艺术价值，使扇子为历代收藏家所珍爱。

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请勿在此喧哗。

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城镇化 (urbanization)是指农村人口向城市迁移的过程。衡量一个国家城镇化水平的一个重要指标是农村和城镇地区的人口分布。去年，中国的城镇化率超过了50%。这标志着我国步入了一个全新的“城市型社会”。城镇化已经成为我国社会和经济发展的重要组成部分。它为城市居民提供了更好的教育和更多的就业机会，不但提高了人们的生活水平，也丰富了人们的文化体验。

布达拉宫(Potala Palace)是一座举世闻名的建筑群。它是世界上最高的古代宫殿，最高点达到3700米。布达拉宫占地总面积为36万平方米，主楼高117米，共13层。整座宫殿具有鲜明的藏式风格(Tibetan style)。布达拉宫堪称是一座各种艺术的博物馆，它收藏的无数珍宝对于研究西藏的政治、经济、历史和文化都具有重大的价值。1994年，布达拉宫被列为世界文化遗产(world cultural heritage)。

杭州市拥有世界上最大的 公用自行车系统 (bike sharing system)。目前杭州市共有2700个公用自行车租赁站点，共计66500辆车。计划至2020年，公共自行车的数量将增至175000辆。租用自行车需要 智能卡 (smart card)，可在任意站点租车、在任意站点还车。租车骑行1小时内免费，1小时以上则按每小时1元收费。公用自行车系统对缓解杭州市的交通 拥堵 (congestion)起到了很大的作用。

过去十年中国房地产(real estate)行业高速发展。