National Gold Medal A-Level Competition Textbook. Grade 9. English

Author: Liu Jixian, Editor-in-Chief
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2005-03-01
Features: The subject Olympiad for primary and secondary schools (briefly referred to as the subject Olympiad) is a competition activity for primary and secondary school students in China that covers the widest scope, has the largest number of participants, and has the greatest influence. The subject Olympiad draws inspiration and extends from the International Mathematical Olympiad (briefly referred to as IMO), the International Physics Olympiad (briefly referred to as IPHO), the International Chemistry Olympiad (briefly referred to as ICHO), and other influential subject competitions for secondary school students worldwide, which are eagerly anticipated and followed by millions of young students every year. The reason for such widespread attention lies in the Olympiad's strong innovation, flexibility, comprehensiveness, and emphasis on cultivating students' exploration skills and inspiring their innovative awareness, which are precisely the core elements of quality education. This is also the need for future development. Based on years of meticulous research on this activity both domestically and internationally, as well as a vast number of outstanding books in this category, the Editorial Department of the Subject Olympiad for Primary and Secondary Schools has invited outstanding educators dedicated to this field from all over the country to compile and publish a series of Olympiad reading materials titled "Gold Medal Olympiad" and "Gold Medal School," covering seven subjects—mathematics, Chinese, English, physics, chemistry, biology, and informatics—with over 200 varieties. In terms of the variety, quantity, and quality of our Olympiad books, we are considered the most influential in both domestic and international peers and hold the greatest charm in the hearts of primary and secondary school teachers and students. The purpose and characteristics of the "Gold Medal Olympiad" and "Gold Medal School" series are as follows:
1. High: Derived from the curriculum but exceeding it. Derived from the curriculum means it is compiled in accordance with the new [curriculum standards] of the Ministry of Education; exceeding the curriculum means it closely aligns with the competition syllabi of various levels, ensuring comprehensive alignment in content, question types, and ability requirements, thereby fostering interest, developing intelligence, and enhancing skills.
2. Accurate: Scientifically precise and well-structured. Each book is designed according to the characteristics of the subject, scientifically organized, and follows a progressive principle, offering in-depth yet accessible analysis and detailed problem-solving methods.
3. Innovative: The book features novel and engaging question types. It collects the essence of recent Olympiad, middle school, and high school exam questions from both China and abroad, representing the highest level of the current Olympiad and reflecting new concepts in curriculum reform, as well as the latest trends, ideas, and methods in competition question-setting.
4. Exquisite: Carefully selected examples that are challenging yet logical, flexible, and achievable. The focus is on generalizing from specific cases and applying knowledge to different scenarios; it emphasizes multi-solution, multi-variable, and multi-question approaches to problems, with an emphasis on training thinking skills rather than rote memorization, making learning an interest and hobby.
5. Renowned: Gathered are distinguished professors from prestigious universities, elite teachers from key secondary schools, senior teachers, subject leaders, and famous Olympiad gold medal coaches.
6. Comprehensive: This series includes the following 12 sets, totaling over 200 varieties:
1. Introduction to the Gold Medal Olympiad in Primary School Mathematics (ABC Edition): 2 pre-school textbooks, 2 lower-grade textbooks, and 2 lower-grade ABC editions. Illustrated with images and fun activities, it aims to cultivate interest and a sense of mathematics in pre-school and lower-grade students, guiding them into the magical world of mathematics.
2. Gold Medal Olympiad Textbooks (General Version): 8 volumes of primary school Chinese and mathematics, and 12 volumes of junior high school mathematics, physics, chemistry, Chinese, and English. This series combines the commonalities of the new curriculum standards, old textbooks, and Olympiads while catering to the needs of students with special talents. Each book is divided into sections such as key knowledge points, example analysis, thought analysis, typical exercises, and answer hints.
3. Gold Medal Olympiad ABC Editions: 8 volumes of primary school Chinese and mathematics, and 12 volumes of junior high school mathematics, physics, chemistry, Chinese, and English. These books provide testing based on the "Gold Medal Olympiad Textbooks." Each book includes A, B, and C versions of tests, ranging from easy to difficult, allowing students to choose targeted training.
4. Gold Medal Olympiad Practice Tests: 4 volumes of primary school mathematics and 12 volumes of junior high school mathematics, physics, chemistry, Chinese, and English. These are part of the "Gold Medal Olympiad Textbooks" series, serving as comprehensive practice tests for real competition simulations.
5. Gold Medal Olympiad Question Bank: 1 volume of primary school mathematics and 4 volumes of junior high school mathematics, physics, and English. This series records the history of national primary and secondary school competitions over the past five years, documenting the glorious achievements of subject education, celebrating the collective wisdom of teachers, and showcasing the talents of students across the country.
6. Gold Medal Olympiad Hot Topic Question Bank with Full Solutions: 2 volumes of primary school mathematics and informatics, and 12 volumes of junior high and high school mathematics, physics, chemistry, English, biology, and informatics. This series selects recent hot topic questions from Olympiads, organizes them by chapter and knowledge point, and provides detailed explanations, making it very convenient for students to study.
7. Gold Medal Exam Hot Topic Question Bank with Full Solutions (tentative title): 12 volumes covering junior high and high school mathematics, physics, chemistry, Chinese, English, and biology. This series compiles the exam papers from 10 key education provinces in China over the past five years, categorizing them by subject and knowledge point with detailed solutions. Each book includes sections such as exam knowledge point explanations, hot topic question analysis, summary of patterns, and simulation training.
8. Gold Medal Olympiad Advanced Textbooks (Improvement Version): 8 volumes of primary school mathematics and Chinese, and 12 volumes of junior high school mathematics, physics, chemistry, Chinese, and English. This book follows the content order of the new textbook from the People's Education Press, compiled by subject and unit. Each book is divided into sections such as key knowledge points and extension, problem-solving skills, example analysis, and pre-competition intensive training, suitable for pre-competition training and students with surplus learning capacity, serving as an extension of classroom knowledge.
9. Gold Medal Olympiad (Gold Medal School) Classic Question Solutions: 4 volumes of primary school mathematics and 29 volumes of junior high, high school mathematics, physics, chemistry, Chinese, English, and biology. This series follows the content order of the People's Education Press textbooks, selecting typical exercises, middle school questions, high school questions, and difficult questions by subject and chapter, arranged from easy to difficult.
10. Gold Medal Olympiad Weekly Tests: 12 volumes of primary school mathematics, Chinese, and English; 15 volumes of junior high school mathematics, physics, chemistry, Chinese, English, and biology; and 17 volumes of high school mathematics, physics, chemistry, Chinese, English, and biology. These books follow the content order of the People's Education Press textbooks, offering tests by knowledge point, unit, or week.
11. Gold Medal Olympiad Classic One-Question-Multiple-Solutions: 1 volume of primary school mathematics and 4 volumes of junior high and high school mathematics and physics. This series selects one-question-multiple-solution problems from recent Olympiad classics, where problems are solved from different perspectives and approaches, making them highly skillful and engaging.
12. International Gold Medal Olympiad Question Solutions: 5 volumes covering mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, and informatics. This series organizes recent international competition questions by subject and year, providing detailed solutions. This series represents the highest level of the current Olympiad and is considered the epitome of Olympiad books.
Instructions for Use:
1. To help students expand their foundational knowledge, develop basic skills in listening, speaking, reading, and writing, cultivate initial English communication and reading abilities, develop intelligence, and enhance thinking, observation, attention, memory, imagination, association, and exam-taking skills, this book strictly adheres to the nine-year compulsory education English teaching, highlighting key and difficult points, and provides guidance and training on problem-solving methods, thinking processes, and techniques for each unit's specific content.
2. Each unit is divided into two parts: Part 1: Olympiad Guide, introducing Olympiad content, question types, and solving techniques; Part 2: Olympiad Sample Test, familiarizing students with various question formats, solving methods, and techniques. The difficulty of the questions is moderate, allowing students to gradually build confidence.
3. Part 1 outlines the following for each unit's specific content:
- Phonetics: Requires students to correctly pronounce words using international phonetic symbols, master pronunciation rules, remember the sounds of vowel letter combinations, and understand the pronunciation rules of consonant letters and combinations. It also covers the pronunciation of word forms when adding suffixes.
- Vocabulary: Requires mastery of word forms, meanings, phrases, synonyms, and antonyms.
- Grammar: Requires understanding of morphology and syntax, including the 10 parts of speech, sentence types, sentence components, five basic sentence patterns, compound sentences, and various forms and uses of verbs.
- Sentence Patterns: Closely related to grammar and communication, it includes analysis of difficult sentences and examples, emphasizing attention and deepening understanding.
- Communication: Lists communication phrases, explaining the language context and scenarios.
4. Introduction to Olympiad Question Types and Solving Techniques:
- Phonetics: Primarily focuses on sound discrimination, generally requiring students to select the correct pronunciation option. Solving technique: Master pronunciation rules, familiarize with the sounds of letters and combinations, and recognize that single-choice questions are comprehensive assessments involving grammar, vocabulary, idioms, and communication. Among the four options, one is the best, two are similar, and one is distracting. This type of question aims to assess students' practical language skills, requiring them to understand the context, interpret the meaning, make inferences, compare and analyze.
- Vocabulary: Typically includes completing words, word substitution, and spelling out missing words in sentences, mainly assessing students' mastery of vocabulary.
- Communication: Often uses situational dialogues, with final exam questions including picture-completion dialogues or completing dialogues based on given words. Solving technique: First, determine the language context and communication task, understand the customs and cultural habits of English-speaking countries, correctly interpret the meaning of sentences, analyze and judge, and select the correct option based on functional meaning and intention.
- Syntax: Assesses sentence transformation, including converting into general questions, special questions, tag questions, synonymous sentences, exclamatory sentences, singular/plural forms, simple/compound sentences. Solving technique: First consider the five basic sentence patterns and transformation rules, then analyze word forms, meanings, functions, and subject-verb agreement.
- Cloze: A key component of final exams, assessing both reading ability and mastery of vocabulary, syntax, and grammar. Among the four options, two or three may seem similar, but it is essential to consider the meaning of the context and the logical connection between sentences.
- Reading Comprehension: Assesses the ability to understand the main idea of a passage and select correct options. Questions after the passage include detailed comprehension, inferential comprehension, direct answer questions, or word form/meaning and sentence transformation questions. Solving technique: Improving reading ability relies on daily accumulation. Good reading habits help expand and consolidate vocabulary, increase reading speed, enhance language intuition, broaden knowledge, and focus on the topic sentence of each paragraph, paying special attention to the first and last sentences of each paragraph. Skim first to grasp the main idea, then read carefully for details, review the entire passage, and compare with questions to make inferences and select the correct answer.
- Final Exam Questions: Often include intelligence tests with diverse, rich, and varied question types, designed to develop intelligence. Here, the focus is on written exams, as listening and speaking sections vary by exam location and will be provided separately.