IV.ReadingComprehension(40poin-优题课

阅读理解部分（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A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项。
Education is required and free for every child in the United States. Most children start school by the age of six. They attend eight years of elementary school and four years of high school (or secondary school ).The money for free public schools comes from taxes, and each state is responsible for its own educational system .State legislatures (立法机关) set the educational requirements but leave the management of the schools in the hands of the local communities .Most states require their children to go to school until a certain age. This age varies from 16 to 18 years according to the laws of the individual state. The Federal government contributes funds to the states for additional schools and schools services.
After graduation from high school, a student can start his higher education in two –year college, a four-year college, a university or a specialized professional school----either public or private. Most colleges admit students on the basis of their high-school records. The cost of a college education is expensive in private universities, but it is much less in those supported by states and cities. Many students receive scholarships from the schools, the government, or private foundations and organizations. More than 50 percent of the college students work to help pay their college expenses.
Only 2 percent of the population of the country cannot read and write.
1、Where does the money for public schools come from ?
A. From the Federal government. B. From the state legislatures.
C. From taxes. D. From the parents of the school children.
2、What is the educational system in the United States based on ?
A. The Federal governmentB. Individual school
C. Individual state D. Local communities
3、What percentage of the population is illiterate (文盲) ？
A. 50 B. 2 C. 4 D. 6
4、How are college expenses of most students paid ?
A. They won earnings from part-time work .
B. Scholarship from the schools, the government or private foundations.
C. Taxes .
D. Both A and B.

For more than six million American children, coming home after school means coming home to an empty house. Some deal with the situation by watching TV. Some may hide. But all of them have something in common. They spend part of each day alone. They’re called latchkey children. They’re children who look after themselves while their parents work and their bad condition has become a subject of concern（关心）。
Lynette Long was once the principal（校长）of an elementary school. Said, “We had a school rule against wearing jewelry. A lot of the kids had chains around their necks with keys attached（附带）。 I was often telling them to put them inside their shirts. There were so many keys that it never came to my mind what they meant.” Slowly, she learned they were house keys.
She and her husband began talking to the children who had them. They learned of the effect working couples and single parents had on their children Fear is the biggest problem faced by children at home alone. One in each three latchkey children the Longs talked to reported being scared（害怕）.Many had nightmares and were worried about their own safety.
The most common way latchkey children deal with their fears is by hiding. It might be in a shower stall, under a bed, in a closet. The second is TV. They’ll often play it high volume.
It’s hard to get statistics（统计数字）on latchkey children, the Longs learned. Most parents are slow to admit they leave their children alone.
1. The main idea about “latchkey” children is that they ______.
are growing in numbers
are also found in middle-class neighborhoods
watch too much TV during the day
suffer problems from being left alone
2. Which sentence in the second paragraph is the topic sentence?
We had a school rule against wearing jewelry.
A lot of kids had chains around their necks.
I was often telling them to put them inside their shirts.
She learned they were house keys.
3. The main feeling these children have when they are at home by themselves is ______.
A. tiredness B. freedom C. loneliness D. fear
4. The word “nightmare” in the third paragraph probably means______.
A. night suit B. night habit
C. terrible dream at night D. staying up at night
5. We may draw a conclusion that_______.
latchkey children enjoy having such a large amount of time alone
latchkey children try to hide their feeling
latchkey children often watch TV with their parents
it’s difficult to find out how many latchkey children there are

The following table shows some results of a survey （调查）in which 800 Japanese school pupils were asked to give their impressions（印象）of their classroom teachers. The pupils’ impressions were found to differ depending on whether the teacher was new (with less than three years’ experience), middle-standing(ten to twenty years), or veteran（有经验的）（twenty to thirty years）. The numbers in the table show the percentage of the pupils who answered “very satisfied” or “extremely satisfied” for each question item （项目）

Question Items	New	Middle-standing	Veteran
1.Shows sense of humor in class 2.Explains clearly 3.Teaches in a relaxed（放松的）manner. 4. Writes neatly on the blackboard 5. Lets pupils ask questions in class 6. Makes checks in notebooks 7. Speaks loudly and clearly 8. Treats pupils equally 9. Cares about pupils opinions 10. Spends time with pupils between classes	42 33 30 9 18 22 45 43 47 25	56 58 46 43 30 30 85 58 43 10	70 68 65 56 47 43 54 42 17 6

1. The pupils’ evaluation（评价）can be said to rise at a steady rate（比率）as their teachers’ experience increases in Question Items______.
A. I and 4 B. 3 and 5 C. 6 and 8 D. 9 and 10
2. In contrast（对比）to the new teachers, the middle-standing and veteran teachers seem to have made a remarkable（显著的）improvement in their ability to _______.
A. be fair to any pupil B. evaluate pupils’ progress
C. present materials clearly D. understand and play with pupils
3. Pupils seem to regard the new and the middle-standing teachers as being more_____.
A.relaxed in class than the veterans
B.interested in pupils’ ideas than the veterans
C.neat in appearance than the veterans
D.skilful at explaining than the veterans
4. Which of the following statements is true according to the table?
A.In the new teachers’ classes, pupils seem to ask questions more freely.
B.Pupils seem to be quite satisfied with the amount（量）of time their teachers spend with
them between classes.
C.The evaluation of the middle-standing teachers is lower than that of the veterans in seven
items.
D.Though veterans do not play games with pupils during breaks, their teaching is rated
highly.

Two Englishmen were traveling in France when a policeman stopped their car and gave it a search. He found a bag of white powder, which looked suspicious（可疑的）. “Drogue?” asked the policeman who was sensitive to heroin（海洛因）. “Yes, dog”, the two replied, having the least idea of their misunderstanding of the French word; and in no time they found themselves in prison. Analysis（分析）of the powder disclosed that it was a chemical which gave off a smell, used to discourage dogs from using the sides of the car as a toilet . The two were set free, after promising to take a few French lessons before their next trip in France.
1. The powder found in the car looked very much like______.
A. heroin B. gun-powder C. medicine D. fertilizer
2. The French word “drogue” means______.
A.“dog”, which often used the sides of the car as a toilet
B.“drunk”, a state caused by the effect of drinking
C.“drug”, matter such as heroin and cocaine（可卡因）
D.“medicine”, used to cure people of their illnesses
3. The reason why the two Englishmen misunderstood the word “drogue” was that ______.
A.the words “drogue” and “dog” are more or less alike in pronunciation
B.“drogue” happened to be a word they had learned in their French lesson
C.they knew no French at all, but were shy of showing this
D.they didn’t know this word, but had a habit of taking things for granted
4.The two Englishmen were free_____.
A.directly after the analysis was carried out
B.after they had given a satisfactory explanation of the powder
C.after the police found out that they hadn’t broken traffic rules
D.on condition that they should do something to improve their French

Although man has known about asbestos for many hundreds of years, it was not until 160 years ago that it was mined for the first time on the North American continent. H. W. Johns, owner of a New York City Supply Shop for roofers, was responsible for （对……负责）the opening of that first mine.
Mr. Johns was given a piece of asbestos which had been found in Italy. He experimented with the material and then showed its surprising powers to his customers. After putting a pair of asbestos gloves, which looked much like ordinary work gloves, he took red-hot coals from the fireplace and played with them in his hands. How astonished the customers were to discover that he was not burned at all. You can well imagine that he had increasing business in asbestos roofing materials. However, because it was very expensive to transport(carry) them from Italy to the United States, Mr. Johns sent out a young scientist to seek a source nearer home. This young man found great vein（岩脉）
in the province of Quebec in Canada.
Ever since 1881, Quebec has led the world in the production of this unusual mineral, which is made up of magnesium, silicon, iron, and oxygen. When it is mined, the asbestos is heavy, just as you would expect a mineral to be. When it is separated, a strange thing happens: the rock breaks down into fine, soapy fibers（滑腻的纤维）。
Scientists do not know why the rock can be separated easily into threads（线）,but they have found thousands of uses for this fireproof material, often called the “cloth of stone”.
1. The title that best expresses the main idea of the passage is _____.
A. Asbestos mined in Canada B. Fireproof matter
C. A “wonder” mineral D. A new roofing material
2. Johns proved his ability （能力）as a salesman by_____.
going into the roofing business
carrying asbestos from Italy
sending a trained scientist
showing the use of asbestos gloves
3. Which is the most important character of asbestos that the author wants to show us?
A. It is like thread B. It feels soapy
C. It bums easilyD. It is unusually heavy
4. The author’s main purpose in writing this passage is to______.
show the need for more scientists
compare asbestos with other minerals
increase the sales of asbestos
present facts about asbestos