第三部分：阅读理解（共20小题；每小题2分；满分40分）
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C、D）中选出最佳选项。
A
The first time I saw Carlos, I had my arms full of books and I was tearing into the classroom when I ran into something solid．It was Carlos．
"My, you're tall," he exclaimed． Of course, the class began to laugh．Annoyed, I walked to my seat without a word．
I glanced back to see if Reed Harrington was laughing with the rest．That would be the last straw．To my relief．Reed was studying and did not seem to be aware of it．I didn't know why I considered Reed my friend．Maybe just because he was a good two inches taller than I．
"Take that seat," Mr．McCarthy told the newcomer, pointing to the only empty one, in the back of the room．
Carlos smiled broadly．"But I need a couple of dictionaries．" Again the class laughed, but now they were laughing with Carlos, not at him．He had been here only 10 minutes and already he had them on his side．
It was the school election that made me think of Carlos again．Reed Harrington was voted president and Carlos vice-president．"How come?" I kept asking myself．"How come this shrimp （虾） who's only been in town for a little over a month gets to be so popular?"
So when I met Carlos this morning, I said to him, "It doesn't seem to bother you — being short, I mean．" He looked up at me．"Of course I mind being short．But there isn't anything I can do about it．When I realized I was going to have to spend my life in this undersized skin, I decided to make the best of it．My motto is — don't be afraid to be yourself．"
56．This passage is mainly about a short boy who ____________．
A．won the school election B．is ashamed of his height
C．has learned to accept his size D．is embarrassed by the class
57．From the story, we can see that Carlos is ________．
A．shy but diligent B．humorous and confident
C．proud and popular D．honest but sensitive
58．Paragraph 4 suggests that the author ______．
A．cared much about Reed's attitude
B．thought Reed was the same as the others
C．couldn't stand Carlos playing tricks on her
D．hoped Reed was laughing with the others
59．According to the passage, what happened after the election?
A．Carlos and the author argued with each other．
B．Carlos and Reed became very good friends．
C．The author changed her attitude toward Carlos．
D．Carlos was elected president of the student committee．
I still remember --- my hands and my fingers still remember --- what used to lie in store for us on our return to school from the holidays. The trees in the school yard would be in full leaf again and the old leaves would be lying around like a muddy sea of leaves.
“Get that all swept up!” the headmaster would tell us. “I want the whole place cleaned up, at once!” There was enough work there, to last over a week. Especially since the only tools with which we were provided were our hands, our fingers, our nails. “Now see that it’s done properly, and be quick about it,” the headmaster would say to the older pupils, “or you’ll have to answer for it!”
So at an order from the older boys we would all line up like peanuts about to cut and gather in crops. If the work was not going as quickly as the headmaster expected, the big boys, instead of giving us a helping hand, used to find it simpler to beat us with branches pulled from the trees. In order to avoid these blows, we used to bribe(贿赂) the older boys with the juicy cakes we used to bring for our midday meal. And if we happened to have any money on us, the coins changed hands at once. If we did not do this, if we were afraid of going home with an empty stomach or an empty purse, the blows were redoubled. They hit us so violently and with such evil enjoyment that even a deaf and dumb person would have realized that we were being whipped so much not to make us work harder, but rather to beat us into a state of obedience(服从) in which we would be only too glad to give up our food and money.
Occasionally one of us, worn out by such calculated cruelty, would have the courage to complain to the headmaster. He would of course be very angry, but the punishment he gave the older boys was always very small --- nothing compared to what they had done to us. And the fact is that however much we complained, our situation did not improve in the slightest. Perhaps we should have let our parents know what was going on, but somehow we never dreamed of doing so; I don’t know whether it was loyalty or pride that kept us silent, but I can see now that we were foolish to keep quiet about it, for such beating were completely foreign to our nature.The statement “my hands and my fingers still remember” (Para.1) means that___________.
| A．the author’s hands were severely injured in the cleaning up |
| B．the author seldom did such hard work as the cleaning up |
| C．the author was bullied by the big boys in the cleaning up |
| D．the author’s hands were his only tool for the cleaning |
The headmaster asked the older boys to_____________.
| A．beat those who worked slowly |
| B．treat the small boys as peanuts |
| C．take charge of the process of the cleaning |
| D．do the cleaning all by themselves |
According to Para. 3, if the author had any money on him, he most probably_________.
| A．gave it to the big boys so as to please them |
| B．gave it as a bride to the headmaster |
| C．spent it all on his midday meal |
| D．spent it buying midday meals for the big boys |
When receiving complaints, the headmaster would deal with the big boys by means of _________.
| A．slight punishment | B．strict criticism |
| C．complete indifference | D．good beating |
There is a wonderful story about a young girl who had no family and no one to love her. One day， feeling very sad and lonely， she was walking through a grassland when she noticed a small butterfly caught in a thorn （荆棘） bush. The young girl carefully released the Butterfly. Instead of flying away， the little butterfly changed into a beautiful fairy. The young girl rubbed her eyes in disbelief.
“For your wonderful kindness，” the good fairy said to the girl， “I will give you any wish you would like.” The little girl thought for a moment and then replied， “I want to be happy.” The fairy leaned toward her and whispered in her ear. Then the fairy disappeared.
As the little girl grew up， there was no one in the land as happy as she. Everyone asked her secret of happiness .She would only smile and answer， “The secret of my happiness is that I listened to a good fairy when I was a little girl.”
When she was very old and on her deathbed， the neighbors all gathered around her， that her unbelievable secret of happiness would die with her. “Tell us， please，” they begged， “Tell us what the good fairy said.” The lovely old woman simply smiled and said， “She told me that everyone， no matter how secure they seemed， no matter how old or young， how rich or poor， had need of me.”Noticing the butterfly was caught by the thorn， the orphan girl ______.
| A．helped the butterfly escaped from the thorn |
| B．felt sorrow，but she didn’t go up to help it |
| C．fell down on it too |
| D．failed to help it release from the thorn |
The butterfly ______ after it was saved by the little girl.
| A．flied away | B．still died |
| C．changed into a fairy | D．was more beautiful than before |
The only thing that the little girl wanted was________.
| A．to be rich | B．to have her own parents |
| C．to have a lot of friends | D．happiness |
The neighbors all gathered around the old happy woman when she was dying， because ______.
| A．they loved this woman deeply and they didn‘t wanted her to die |
| B．the woman had lots of money to be shared as soon as she died |
| C．they wanted to know the secret of her lifetime happiness |
| D．they wanted to pray for her after her death |
Cats are very smart. They are one of the smartest animals. The brain of a cat is large. It is highly developed. This may be why cats have good memories. Cats remember kindness and cruelty. It is a good idea to treat a cat well. Cats can “speak” too. They meow for attention. Often they stand by a door. Then they meow. Then they look over their shoulders. They want to see if their owners are coming. Cats make other noises also. They purr(猫发出的咕噜声)when they are happy. They hiss when they are angry.
Cats have a lot of pride. They don’t usually do silly tricks. Almost all cats want to have their own way. They are mostly true to only one person. They don’t switch loyalty easily. Cats were free in the wild. They want to stay that way. They like to be their own masters. When a cat is left alone, it can go back to caring for itself. It can live in the wild again. This is different from dogs. Dogs will switch their loyalty. At one time dogs were loyal to the leaders of their packs. Now, they will transfer allegiance(忠诚)to their owner. They do not like to be alone.
With kindness, a cat can be trained. Cats can learn to do many things. Some cats can learn to open doors. Some can ring doorbells. Some can even turn on water tap. Then they take a drink. Cats are very smart. Before drinking, they put a paw in the water. They test whether the water is hot or cold.What is the best title for this passage?
| A．The Difference Between Dogs and Cats. | B．The Characteristics of Cats. |
| C． Loyal Animals. | D． How to Keep Cats? |
It’s interesting to have cats around ourselves because ________.
A.they always switch their loyaltyB. they like to do silly tricks
C. they will hiss when they are happy D they are smart and have good memoriesThe last paragraph mainly shows that ________.
| A．cats can test whether the water is cold or not |
| B．cats know how to turn on the water tap |
| C．cats are smart |
| D．cats know how to open a door |
Many teenagers feel that the most important people in their lives are their friends. They believe that their family members, and in particular their parents, don’t know them as well as their friends do. In families, it is quite often brothers and sisters to fight with each other and then they can only go to their friends for advice.
It is very important for teenagers to have one good friend or a circle of friends. Even when they are not with their friends, they usually spend a lot of time talking among themselves on the phone. This communication is very important in children’s growing up, because friends can discuss something difficult to say to their family members. However, parents often try to choose their children’s friends for them. Some parents may even stop their children from meeting their good friends. The question of “choice” is an interesting one. Have you ever thought of the following questions?
Who chooses your friends? Do you choose your friends or your friends choose you?Many teenagers think their _____ know them better than their parents do.
| A．friends | B．teachers | C．brothers and sisters | D．family members |
Which of the following is right according to the passage?
| A．Parents should like everything their children enjoy. |
| B．In all families children can choose everything they like. |
| C．Parents should try their best to understand their children better. |
| D．Teenagers can only go to their friends for help. |
Which is the best title for this passage?
| A．Only Parents Can Decide | B．Parents and Children |
| C．Teenagers Need Friends | D．A strange Question |
Jenny went to visit her friends in New York last weekend. Her friends met her at the airport on Friday afternoon and drove her to the hotel. They had dinner at a Chinese restaurant and went to see a film after that.
Jenny and her friends set out early on Saturday morning for a farm and stayed there until Sunday morning. During their stay, they went fishing and swimming in the small river on the farm. They played football in the field and enjoyed a big meal around a camp fire（篝火）, singing and dancing till late into the night．
Nobody could get up early on Sunday morning． So when they got back to New York City, it was about three o’clock in the afternoon. They drove right to the airport because Jenny didn’t want to miss her plane back home. Jenny only stayed in New York for two nights but she had a great time with her friends．Jenny went to New York ____________ .
| A．to do some shopping | B．to see her friends |
| C．to spend her summer holiday | D．to find a job |
How did Jenny get to New York?
| A．By train. | B．By bus. | C．By plane. | D．On foot. |
Where did Jenny and her friends go on Saturday?
| A．To the farm. | B．To the Chinese restaurant. |
| C．To the airport. | D．To the railway station. |
When did Jenny go back home?
| A．On Saturday afternoon. | B．On Sunday morning. |
| C．On Saturday evening. | D．On Sunday afternoon. |
How long did Jenny stay in New York?
| A．One night. | B．Two nights. | C．Three nights. | D．Four nights. |