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 are called latchkey children. They’re children who look after themselves while their parents work. And their bad condition has become a subject of concern.
Lynette Long was once the headmaster of an elementary school. She said, “We had a school rule against wearing jewelry. A lot of kids had chains around their necks with keys attached. I was constantly telling them to put them inside shirts. There were so many keys, 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 impact(影响) working couples and single parents were having 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. 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 at high volume. It’s hard to get statistics on latchkey children, the Longs learned. Most parents are slow to admit they leave their children alone. The main idea about “latchkey children” is that they _______.
| A．are growing in numbers |
| B．are also found in middle-class neighborhoods |
| C．watch too much television during the day |
| D．suffer problems from being left alone |
Which sentence in the second paragraph is the topic sentence?
| A．We had a school rule against wearing jewelry. |
| B．A lot of kids had chains around their necks. |
C．I was constantly telling them to put inside their  shirts. |
| D．They were house keys. |
The main feeling these children have when they are at home by themselves is _______.
| A．tiredness | B．freedom | C．loneliness | D．fear |
We may draw a conclusion that _______.
| A．latchkey children enjoy having such a large amount of time alone |
| B．latchkey children try to hide their feeling |
| C．latchkey children often watch TV with their parents |
| D．it’s difficult to find out how many latchkey children there are |
You probably know you should say "please" and "thank you" at restaurants. You probably know the rules of a library. You know you should respect and be nice to your classmates. But do you have music manners?
Keep It Down! You have to notice the volume of your music. You should not play your music so loud that everyone around you can hear it. Some people might even get angry. Usually, when you play the music loud on an MP3 player, other people can't hear the words of the song. They just hear a loud sound. No one wants to listen to this. Very loud music can also be bad for your ears. So even if you are alone when listening to your MP3 players, you shouldn't turn it up too high.
Take Them Off! You need to know when to turn your MP3 off and put it away. Libraries and schools don't allow MP3 players. There are other places, like museums, that don't have rules, but it would be rude to have your MP3 player on. Sometimes, it doesn't make sense(无意义）to listen on your MP3 player . Why would you listen to music at a play, a movie or a sporting event? You would miss what is going on and others would wonder why you even came.
Take One Out! Once in a while it's okay just to take out one earphone and not the other. Imagine you are listening on your MP3 player when someone asks you the way. It would not be rude to take out one earphone, tell him the way, and put back the earphone and continue listening. You can also do this when you order food at a fast-food restaurant or when you answer the telephone.
It's Your Choice! There are times when you need to decide what is best. For example, some people can listen to music on their MP3 players when reading books, while others think it is disturbing. In cases like this, you need to do what seems right for you.The underlined word "volume" in Paragraph 2 probably means "_________."
| A．the amount of a sound | B．the length of a song |
| C．the type of music | D．the color of an MP3 player |
We should turn down the music when we are alone because loud music_________.
| A．may annoy others | B．can hurt our ears |
| C．is bad for MP3 players | D．will make us tired |
If we listen to our MP3 player at a play, _________.
| A．the theatre won't allow it |
| B．the actors will get angry |
| C．others won't hear the play well |
| D．we may miss part of the play |
The main idea of this passage is about _________.
| A．music lovers | B．music manners |
| C．music players | D．MP3 earphones |
Kenyon Scudder once told me a story about his friend, Michael. Michael happened to be on a train sitting next to a young man who seemed worried. Finally the young man told the friend that he was a convict (罪犯) returning home from a prison far away. What he did had brought shame (羞耻) on his family, and they had neither visited him nor written to him. He hoped, however, that this was only because they were too poor to travel and too busy to write.
When he was set free he had written to tell them he wanted to go home. To make matters easy for them, however, he had asked them to put up a signal (信号) for him when the train passed their little farm. If the family had forgiven (原谅) him, they were to put up a white ribbon (丝带) in the big apple tree near the railway. If they didn't want him back, they were to do nothing, and he would stay on the train, and go far away.
As the train neared his hometown his suspense became so great that he was afraid to look out of the window. He asked Michael to watch for the big apple tree. They changed seats. In a minute, Michael put his hand on the young convict’s shoulder. "There it is," he said, his eyes filled with sudden tears. "It’s all right. The whole tree is white with ribbons."For which of the following reasons might the young man be worried?
| A．His family might not allow him to go home. |
| B．His family would not remember him. |
| C．His family hadn’t written to him frequently. |
| D．His family hadn’t visited him for a long time. |
According to the passage, the white ribbon in the big apple tree means ________.
| A．pleasure | B．forgiveness |
| C．happiness | D．education |
The word "suspense" underlined in the last paragraph can best be replaced by ________.
| A．pain | B．interest |
| C．worry | D．happiness |
Why did Michael cry at the end of the story?
| A．The young man couldn’t live with his family. |
| B．There were many white ribbons on the apple tree. |
| C．He was moved by the young man. |
| D．The young man was very sad. |
Now, it’s time for some brief news items.
Teens Go Online
Some 13 million European children under 18 use the Internet for schoolwork, games and music according to research done by Nielsen’s “Net-rating”. The study covered Britain, Germany, France, Italy and Spain. Experts advised parents to limit the time their kids on line and keep them away from chat rooms.
Chat to the magic Mum
British author J.K.Rowling, mother of magic boy Harry Potter, will do an Internet interview about her new book ”Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” on June 26. Before the event, children are invited to send their questions about Harry to the website. The book will hit stores in the US and UK on June 21 and will arrive in China in August.
School Soldiers
Russian school students will have to do basic military training (军训) in their final year of school, the government has decided．The lesson will include learning to fire guns, marching drills and how to deal with a chemical, nuclear or biological attack. The activity is seen as part of a drive toward the education of their love for their country.
_____________________
Is it hard for you to get up early and get ready for classes? Some students at Winter Park High School just roll out of bed in their pajamas(睡衣) and go to class in their own bedrooms. Of course, their teachers and classmates do not see them because all their class work is on the computer. The Florida High School, the state’s only online school, has 250 students who are taking classes at home by computer. Students in this first online program take classes in algebra(代数), American government , chemistry, computer, economics, and web-page design. They also have to go to regular school to attend other classes.Why will Russian school students have basic military training?
| A．To get ready for being a military. |
| B．To learn to protect themselves. |
| C．To gain some military knowledge. |
| D．To develop their love for the country. |
About Florida High School, which of these facts is true?
| A．Some of the students have to attend classes at home instead of in the school. |
| B．There are altogether 250 students who take classes in the classrooms. |
| C．At the online school, 250 students are taking classes not only by computer. |
| D．Students can’t take classes in algebra, chemistry, computer and so on. |
The news from Florida can be given a title “ ” .
| A．Get up Late | B．Online School |
| C．Magical Computers | D．No Teachers |
What is the second news item mainly about?
| A．J.K.Rowling will have an Internet interview. |
| B．Children will meet Harry Potter’s mother. |
| C．The Harry Potter book will be sold on the Internet. |
| D．The Harry Potter book will arrive in China in early June. |
Christian Eijkman, a Dutch doctor, left the Netherlands for the island of Java. Many people on the island had a disease called beri-beri. He was going there to try and find a cure.
At first, Eijkman thought some kind of germ (细菌) caused beri-beri. He raised some chickens. He didn’t eat them, but made experiments on them. The local people were quite surprised at that. One day he noticed that his chickens became sick when they were fed the food most Javanese ate — refined white rice (精炼米). When he fed them with unrefined rice, also known as brown rice, they recovered. Eijkman realized that he had made an important discovery — that some things in food could prevent disease. These things were named vitamins (维生素). The Javanese were not getting enough vitamins because they had actually removed the part that contains vitamins. Later, other diseases were also found to be caused by the lack of vitamins in a person’s food.
Today many people know the importance of vitamins and they make sure they have enough vitamins from the food they eat. If they don’t, they can also take vitamin pills.The underlined word “cure” in Paragragh 1 probably means ______.
| A．a medical treatment | B．a kind of vitamin |
| C．a kind of germ | D．a kind of rice |
Christian Eijkman went to the island of Java to ______.
| A．spend his holiday |
| B．find ways to grow better crops |
| C．do some research about the island |
| D．help the Javanese with their illness |
Why did Christian Eijkman raise some chickens?
| A．To eat them. |
| B．To carry out his experiments. |
| C．To give the Javanese a surprise. |
| D．To make money by selling them. |
If a person doesn’t get enough vitamins in his diet, he’d better ______.
| A．eat more rice | B．eat more meat |
| C．eat some chicken | D．eat vitamin pills |
We can learn from the passage that ______.
| A．beri-beri was caused by chickens |
| B．the Javanese didn’t like vitamins |
| C．Christian Eijkman’s experiment was successful |
| D．the Javanese’s disease was caused by a kind of germ |
| HORSE RACING YEAR ROUND 3pm, every Sunday City Stadium No children allowed |
100 YEARS OF PICTURES THEN AND NOW(Photo Show) February 1~April 30 City Art Museum at 750 High Street 10 am~5pm, Tuesday to Sunday |
| WEEKEND SALES 2pm~6pm, this Sunday EVERYTHING 20%~50% OFF Visit us at Block G, Grandview Mall |
DANCE PARTY Celebrate an important day Brings your friends 7 pm~10pm, Sunday night Country Club ￥10, an adult; ￥2, a child |
Jane can go to to celebrate her birthday with her friends.
| A．City Stadium | B．Country Club |
| C．Grandview Mall | D．City Art Museum |
All people can be allowed to watch the horse races except .
| A．adults | B．women |
| C．children | D．old men |
When will you not be able to see the photo show?
| A．March 8th | B．April 10th |
| C．February 1st | D．May 1st |
What can you do if you only have time between 5 pm to 6 pm on Sunday?
| A．Go to the weekend sales. |
| B．Go to see the photo show. |
| C．Go to the dance party. |
| D．Go to watch the horse racing. |
How much will Mr. Smith pay if he takes his two daughters to the dance party?
| A．￥12 | B．￥14 |
| C．￥30 | D．￥6 |