Pottery is the name given to all kinds of useful or artistic objects made from clay. Pottery can be plates or water pots or baskets. Pottery can be large or small, fancy or plain. Pottery is part of the large family of ceramics（陶器）.Ceramics are synthetic materials. For example, bricks and tiles (瓦片) are both ceramics.
How is pottery made? First, a potter takes some clay. Clay is a soft, red material from the earth. It looks a little like red dirt, but it's very different. Clay is thick and rich. Wet clay can be worked into any shape. When the clay dries, it will keep that shape. The potters takes some clay and pushes and squeezes（挤压）it until it is soft and smooth. After that, the clay can be shaped into anything. There are several ways to shape clay. Sometimes potters use their hands. Sometimes they use a special wheel. They place the clay in the center of a round, flat wheel. The wheel moves very fast, and the potter shapes the clay.
After the potter has shaped the clay, it can be decorated(装饰). Potters use glaze, which is a kind of paint, to decorate their work. Some glazes are very simple. Other glazes have beautiful colors and designs. The glaze is not just beautiful. It is also useful. The glaze makes the pottery smooth and waterproof. Potters also make some decorative lines and designs on the surface. After it is decorated, the clay must be baked, or fired, in a special oven.
Baking the clay at very high temperature makes it hard and strong. Firing also makes the glaze stick to the pottery. When the firing is over, the potter carefully removes the pottery from the oven and lets it cool slowly. If it cools too quickly, it could crack and break.
Since pottery is waterproof, it is very popular for dishes. You can find examples of pottery in almost any home. But pottery can also be found in museums. Some pieces of pottery are valuable and beautiful pieces of art.
【小题1】It is possible that ceramics are materials of . A．metalB．plasticC．woodD．earth【小题2】The word waterproof means . A．能盛水的B．防水的C．溶解于水的D．吸水性强的【小题3】Which statement is NOT true according to the passage? A．Plates, water pots and bowls are all examples of pottery. B．Wet clay can be made into anything of different shapes by the hands or a special wheel. C．The clay bees smooth and waterproof because of the glaze. D．After the firing in high temperature, pottery is easy to break.D
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(答案→)D
解析：本文主要介绍了陶器是怎样制成的。作者对于陶器的制作工艺流程进行了详细的介绍。
【小题1】细节题，根据How is pottery made? First, a potter takes some clay. Clay is a soft, red material from the earth.可知陶器是泥土材料， 故选D。
【小题2】猜词题，根据Other glazes have beautiful colors and designs. The glaze is not just beautiful. It is also useful. The glaze makes the pottery smooth and waterproof.以及Since pottery is waterproof, it is very popular for dishes.可以猜出waterproof意思是防水的，故选B。
【小题3】推理题。根据Baking the clay at very high temperature makes it hard and strong. Firing also makes the glaze stick to the pottery. When the firing is over, the potter carefully removes the pottery from the oven and lets it cool slowly. If it cools too quickly, it could crack and break. 可知如果冷却太厉害，陶器才会爆裂。故选D。