Happy birthday! Do birthday really make people happy? Of course they do．Birthday celebrate the day when we were born．Besides, that extra candle on the cake suggest another year of growth and maturity（成熟）—or so we hope．We all like to imagine that we are getting wiser and not just older．Most of us enjoy seeing the wonder of growth in others, as well．For instance, seeing our children develop and learn new things makes us feel proud．For Americans, like people in most cultures, growing up is a wonderful process．But growing old? That is a different story．
Growing old is not exactly for people in youth-oriented（以年轻人为中心）American culture．Most Americans like to look young, act young and feel young．As the old saying goes, “You’re young as you feel．” Older people joke about how many years young they are, rather than how many years old．People in some countries value the aged as a source of experience and wisdom．But Americans seem to favor those that are young, or at least “young at heart”．
Many older Americans find the “golden years” to be anything but golden．Economically, “senior citizens” often struggle just to get by．Retirement at the age of 65 brings a sharp decrease in personal income．Social security benefits usually cannot make up the difference．Older people may suffer from poor nutrition, medical care, and housing．Some even experience age discrimination（歧视）．American sociologist Pat Moore once dressed up like an older person and wandered city streets．She was often treated rudely--even cheated and robbed．However, dressed as a young person, she received much more respect．
Unfortunately, the elderly population in America is increasing fast．Why? People are living longer．Fewer babies are being born．And middle-aged “baby boomers” are rapidly entering the group of the elderly．America may soon be a place where wrinkles（皱纹）are “in”．Marketing experts are ready noticing this growing group of consumer．
Title: Different Opinions About 1._____________Old.
| Items / Aspects |
Descriptions / Details |
|
| General idea |
Growing older, being mature and 3.__________ |
|
| Positive attitude |
4. About ________ |
A wonderful process: children 5.__________ and learning new things, enjoying another birthday party |
| About the old |
Being respected by the young |
|
| 6. Being _______ as a source of experience and wisdom |
||
| Living happily in the “golden years” |
||
| 2.________ |
Never being young again |
|
| Feeling lonely in a youth-oriented culture |
||
| 7.___________ problem: personal income 8.___________ sharply |
||
| Health problem: suffering from poor nutrition and other diseases |
||
| Housing problems: poor and simple |
||
| 9._________ problems: being ill-treated --- experiencing age discrimination, cheating and robbery |
||
| Solution |
Improving 10._________________ benefits |
|
| The young caring for and respecting the old |
In Canada you can find dogs, cats, horses, etc. in almost every family. These are their pets. People love these pets and have them as their good friends. Before they keep them in their houses, they take them to animal hospitals to give them injections(注射) so that they won't carry diseases. They have special animal food stores, though they can get animal food in almost every kind of stores. Some people spend around two hundred Canadian dollars a month on animal food.
When you visit people's houses, they would be very glad to show you their pets and they are very proud of them. You will also find that almost every family has a bird feeder in their garden. All kinds of birds are welcomed to come and have a good meal. They are free to come and go and nobody is allowed to kill any animal in Canada. They have a law against killing wild animals. If you killed an animal, you would be punished. If an animal happened to get run over by a car, people would be very sad about it.
People in Canada have many reasons to like animals. One of them might be: Their family ties are not as close as ours. When children grow up, they leave their parents and start their own life. Then the old will feel lonely. But pets can solve this problem. They can be good friends and never leave them alone.The passage mainly talks about ______.
| A．how to keep diseases from pets |
| B．Canadians have pets as friends |
| C．how to take good care of pets |
| D．life of the old in Canada |
Pets are given injections in animal hospitals ______.
| A．in order to keep them safe |
| B．after being taken home |
| C．because they carry diseases |
| D．because they are sick |
The word "bird feeder" in the second paragraph probably means ______.
| A．a person who gives food to birds |
| B．a container that has food for birds |
| C．something that catches birds |
| D．an animal that eats birds |
In Canada, children leave their parents when they grow up because ______.
| A．they don't love their parents any more |
| B．they can only find jobs far from their parents |
| C．their parents' houses are too small |
| D．they wouldn't depend on their parents any more |
Which of the following is TRUE?
| A．People buy animal food only at the animal food stores. |
| B．Pets eat better than people. |
| C．Every family has a birdcage(鸟笼) in his house. |
| D．Any bird can come to the bird feeders to eat. |
Years ago, I lived in a building in a large city. The building next door was only a few feet away from mine. There was a woman who lived there, whom I had never met, yet I could see her seated by her window each afternoon, sewing or reading.
After several months had gone by, I began to notice that her window was dirty. Everything was unclear through the dirty window. I would say to myself, "I wonder why that woman doesn't wash her window. It really looks terrible."
One bright morning I decided to clean my flat, including washing the window on the inside.
Late in the afternoon when I finished the cleaning, I sat down by the window with a cup of coffee for a rest. What a surprise! Across the way, the woman sitting by her window was clearly visible. Her window was clean!
Then it dawned on me. I had been criticizing (批评) her dirty window, but all the time I was watching hers through my own dirty window.
That was quite an important lesson for me. How often had I looked at and criticized others through the dirty window of my heart, through my own shortcomings?
Since then, whenever I wanted to judge someone, I asked myself first, “Am I looking at him through my own dirty window?”
Then I try to clean the window of my own world so that I may see the world about me clearly.The writer couldn't see everything clearly through the window because_____.
| A．the woman's window was dirty | B．the writer's window was dirty |
| C．the woman lived nearby | D．the writer was near-sighted |
The writer was surprised that_____.
| A．the woman was sitting by her window |
| B．the woman's window was clean |
| C．the woman did cleaning in the afternoon |
| D．the woman's window was still terrible |
The underlined sentence "It dawned on me" probably means _______.
| A．I began to understand it | B．it cheered me up |
| C．I knew it grew light | D．it began to get dark |
It's clear that _____.
| A．the writer had never met the woman before |
| B．the writer often washed the window |
| C．they both worked as cleaner |
| D．they lived in a small town |
From the passage, we can learn ______.
| A．one shouldn't criticize others very often |
| B．one should often make his windows clean |
| C．one must judge himself before he judges others |
| D．one must look at others through his dirty windows |
AAAGH! The Generation 90s is coming!
Wearing earphones, using complex Net language and constantly text messaging friends, the Gen-90s following the Gen-80s begin to make their world debut （初次登台）.
Each generation or age group has its own symbols and lifestyle. Read on and judge for yourselves if you fit the Gen-90s group.
Earphones
These little devices seem to grow on the heads of the Gen-90s. They might lead to MP3, MP4 or MP101 players, giving these young people a plugged-in, cool and perhaps self-addicted look, of course, life is not always music to the ears.
Martian(火星的) language
They have created their own code-like online language. It’s a mixture of English, Japanese and Chinese that perhaps only Martians can understand. This is an imaginative generation, though they need to be careful to keep it out of their term papers.
Self-Portrait
Saying “cheese” to their own digital cameras is usual for this generation. A little bit of narcissism （自恋） never hurts anyone. It helps them reflect a little on their own lives. But be aware of the risks of posting private photos online.
Text-messaging
They can type their mobile phones as fast as they can speak. This is a generation that respects efficiency(效率). However, oral communication is important and will never go out of style.Whodoyouthinkwouldmostlikelybethereadersofthepassage?
| A．Teenagers | B．Educators | C．Socialists | D．Parents |
According to the passage, if you belong to the Gen-90s , you will ____________ .
| A．just appreciate yourself and ignore others’ strengths. |
| B．have your own symbols and lifestyle. |
| C．have the same symbols and lifestyle of the Gen-80s. |
| D．like music and dance very much. |
According to the text, the writer will choose ______ as a good example to the Gen-90.
| A．Li Hua likes music and always wearing ipod |
| B．Zhang Chao is not only an imaginative boy but do everything efficiently. |
| C．Lily is a shy girl and she doesn’t like making friends. |
| D．Fangfang likes being taken photos and often posting them on line. |
According to this passage, which is WRONG?
| A．Not all teens are careful about posting photos online. |
| B．They type their mobile phones so fast that it can catch the speed of speaking. |
| C．The Gen-90s have a preference for some music players, and even regard them as a necessary part of life. |
| D．They don’t use the cool and complex online language in formal writing. |
The main idea of the passage is about________.
| A．the Gen-90s’ happy life |
| B．the difference between the Gen-80s and the Gen-90s |
| C．the Gen-90s’ unique lifestyle and some practical warnings |
| D．the similarities between the Gen-80s and the Gen-90s |
What Is a Boy?
Between the innocence of babyhood and the seriousness of manhood we find a delightful creature called a “boy”. Boys come in different sizes, weights, and colors, but all boys have the same belief: to enjoy every second of every minute of every hour of every day and to fill the air with noise until the adult males pack them off to bed at night.
Boys are found everywhere –on top of, under, inside of, climbing on, swinging from, running around, or jumping to. Mothers spoil them, little girls hate them, older sisters and brothers love them, and God protects them. A boy is TRUTH with dirt on its face, BEAUTY with a cut on its finger, WISDOM with chocalate in its hair, and the HOPE of the future with a snake in its pocket.
When you are busy, a boy is a trouble maker and a noise. When you want him to make a good impression, his brain turns to jelly or else he becomes a wild creature bent on destroying the world and himself with it.
A boy is a mixture – he has the stomach of a horse, the digestion (消化力) of stones and sand, the energy of an atomic bomb, the curiosity of a cat, the imagination of a superman, the shyness of a sweet girl, the brave nature of a bull, the violence of a firecracker, but when you ask him to make something, he has five thumbs (拇指) on each hand.
He likes ice cream, knives, saws, Christmas, comic books, woods, water (in its natural habitat), large animals, Dad, trains, Saturday mornings, and fire engines. He is not much for Sunday schools, company, schools, books without pictures, music lessons, neckties, barbers, girls, overcoats, adults, or bedtime.
Nobody else is so early to rise, or so late to supper. Nobody else gets so much fun out of trees, dogs, and breezes. Nobody else can put into one pocket a rusty knife, a half eaten apple, a three-feet rope, six cents and some unknown things.
A boy is a magical creature – he is your headache but when you come home at night with only shattered pieces of your hopes and dreams, he can mend them like new with two magic words, “Hi, Dad!”The whole passage is in a tone(调子) of_________.
| A．humor and love | B．respect and harmony |
| C．ambition and expectation | D．confidence and imagination |
The underlined sentence“he has five thumbs on each hand” probably means______.
| A．he has altogether five fingers | B．he is slow, foolish and clumsy |
| C．he becomes clever and smart | D．he cuts his hand with a knife |
According to the writer, boys appreciate everything in the following except________.
| A．ice cream | B．comic books | C．Saturday mornings | D．Sunday schools |
What does the writer feel about boys?
| A．He feels curious about their noise. | B．He is fed up with these creatures. |
| C．He is amazed by their naughtiness. | D．He feels unsafe staying with them. |
It was a Sunday and the heavy storm had lasted all night. The morning after the storm, though, was beautiful: blue skies, warm air and a calm, inviting sea touching the shore gently.
My father realized it was a good day for fishing and invited my sister and me to go with him. I was only 14 and fishing had never been my thing, but I decided to go all the same. I’m so glad I did.
On the road to the harbour we could see the terrible destruction on the coast, but the harbour itself was in fairly good shape. After all, it was protected by the arms of a bay that only one tiny channel to the sea. As we got on board, we noticed two big humps(脊背)in the distance.
On approaching them, we saw it was a mother whale with her baby. We couldn’t believe it—there aren’t any whale along the coast here. The storm must have driven them across the ocean into the bay, in which the still water was so badly polluted that nothing could survive.
The little baby whale actually as big as our boat was obviously stuck and could not move. The mother dived under the water and came up suddenly, making big whirlpools(漩涡)and waves. “She’s trying to help her baby, but on the wrong side,” my father said. At this point, my father moved our boat in a semicircle to the other side and, heading the boat towards the baby whale, pushed it gently. With several gentle pushes the big hump turned over and disappeared under water. Then it swam up right beside its mum. They struggled in their desperate attempts to escape but missed the exit and started heading in the wrong direction. We hurried up to the whales and tried to lead them towards the bay channel. Slowly, they let us lead them, sometimes rising from the water right beside us to breathe and to give us a trusting look with those huge eyes. Once they hit their first part of clean water flowing straight from the sea, the mum gave us a wave with her tail and off they swam into the distance.
In the excitement it had felt like only a few minutes, but we had been with those wonderful animals for almost an hour and a half. That was the simple and lasting beauty of the day. Nearly four decades later, I still look back fondly to that golden day at sea. The author says “I’m so glad I did.”(in Para.2)because_______.
| A．he witnessed the whole process of fishing |
| B．he enjoyed the beauty of the calm sea |
| C．he experienced the rescue of the whales |
| D．he spent the weekend with his family |
The harbour survived the storm owing to ______.
| A．the shape of the harbor | B．the arms of one bay |
| C．the still water in the channel | D．the long coast line |
The mother whale failed to help her baby because _______.
| A．she had stayed in the polluted water for too long |
| B．the whirlpools she had made were not big enough |
| C．she had no other whales around to turn for help |
| D．the waves pushed her baby in the wrong direction |
What is the theme of the story?
| A．Saving lives brings people a sense of happiness. |
| B．Fishing provides excitement for children. |
| C．It’s necessary to live in harmony with animals. |
| D．It’s vital to protect the environment. |