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Rowena and Billy Wrangler are model high school students. They study hard and do extremely well on achievement tests. And next year，Rowena will be attending Harvard University．Billy，her younger brother，hopes to go to Cornell．What makes Rowena and Billy different from most students is that they don't go to school．In fact，they've never been to school．Since kindergarten，they've studied at home．Like many of more than one million people who receive home schooling in the United States, they feel as if they've gotten a good education．
The home-schooling trend began in the U.S．in the 1980s with parents keeping their children out of public schools so they could provide religious education at home. Today，as the home-schooling trend continues to grow，parents are more likely to consider home schooling as an option because they believe schools don't do a very good job of teaching and are occasionally dangerous places．But can parents really do a better job?
The answer in many cases is yes．In many studies，students taught at home ranked average or above average when compared to students who went to public schools．More importantly，these students were often more self-directed and have a greater depth of knowledge．They were well prepared for academic challenges．
One such student，Robert Conrad, now a sophomore at university, claims he really learned how to study and schedule his time during his eight years of home schooling．Still, not every student is as successful as Robert．
“For every home-schooling success story，there are an equal number of failures．”states Henry Lipscomb，an educational researcher．“There are just so many disadvantages that students taught at home have to overcome.” For example，they have fewer chances to get in touch with others of their own age．Consequently，they sometimes lack the usual social skills．“No matter what，though，”states Lipscomb，“home-schooling is a growing trend．I think we'll be seeing more and more of this．”
Compared with other students, Rowena and Billy are most different in the fact that ___________.

A．they preferred to teach themselves

B．they do extremely well on achievement tests

C．they don't go to school as other teenagers

D．they feel they have gotten a good education

According to the article, what is NOT the advantage of being educated at home?

A．Home is a safer place for children．

B．Students taught at home are more self-directed．

C．Students taught at home have a greater depth of knowledge．

D．Students taught at home can go to good universities．

The writer thinks __________ .

A．parents can do a better job than schools

B．home-schooling will be more and more useful

C．home-schooling is good in some aspects

D．students taught at home make greater achievements

The best title of this text might be ________ .

A．Home-schooling：A Growing Trend

B．Home-schooling：A Better Choice

C．Home-schooling：A Way to Success

D．Home-schooling：A New Method of Education

James Arruda Henry, a 98-year-old retired lobsterman, has written and published his first book, "In a Fisherman's Language", after learning to read at the incredible age of 91．
Mr. Henry spent most of his life without even his closest family members knowing he was illiterate (文盲）．Forced to quit school in the third grade to take some jobs, he kept the secret close to his chest - only telling to his late wife．
A family problem in his 90s sparked his encourage to restart his education．"He signed a document he could not read," Mr Henry's granddaughter said. And then, after hearing about George Dawson, a son of slaves who learned to read at the age of 98 and went on to write a book of his own, entitled "Life Is So Good" at the age of 101, Mr. Henry took up reading．
"If he can do it．I'm going to try," Mr. Henry said．Starting with his name, he eventually moved on to ABC’s and children's books. He put them down for four years after the tragic loss of his wife. But eventually he went back to reading and with the help of his tutor began to record his life．
He wrote about his family’s voyage from Portugal to the U.S. his many journeys at sea and how he was unable to save another fisherman who had fallen overboard. He became a carpenter and even a professional boxer - and eventually built his own home in Stonington Borough．
His life stories have become so popular, in fact, nearly 800 copies were sold in the first two weeks of the book's release last month．One thousand more have since been printed as requests for the book flood in from as far as Germany．And now even Hollywood producers have approached Mr. Henry about optioning the rights to his life story for a big screen adaptation．
Which of the following is true of Mr. Henry?

A．He couldn't read when he was retired．

B．He was not a good student at school．

C．Only his family members knew he was illiterate．

D．He published his book at the age of 91．

Mr. Henry made up his mind to study because he．

A．had some trouble with his granddaughter

B．couldn't sign the document he was given

C．wanted to share his own experience with others

D．was inspired by George Dawson's story

In his book, Mr. Henry didn't mention ____．

A．his family story	B．his school education
C．his journeys at sea	D．his work experiences

What's the main idea of the last paragraph?

A．Nearly 800 copies of the book were sold．

B．The book was sold well in Germany．

C．His book was popular both at home and abroad．

D．Hollywood has planned to adapt his book for a movie．

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The best-selling Reader’s Digest travel book has 40% new content including over 200 new sites, over 200 new full-color photographs, and all-new, up-to-date maps. It spotlights over l, 000 of the United States’ most overlooked must-see destinations.
Name: Container Gardens by Number
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Choose from 80 unique ideas to create an extraordinary living space. The projects are practical, as well as attractive, and will improve your home and yard and can be made in a weekend. These 80 well-designed projects are presented in a clear, easy-to-follow style that addresses readers in an accessible, user-friendly tone.
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Plenty of health complaints can be handled at home. Each and every remedy will be tested by a doctor to make sure it is safe and sound.
Dozens of conditions are covered, from headaches, sunburn, bad breath, and blisters to allergies, and hiccups.
You can most probably read the passage in a ___________.

A．newspaper

B．travel guide

C．reference book

D．textbook

How much money could you save if you want to buy a travel book?

A．$6.46

B．$l0. 20

C．$l3.96

D．$l9.8

Which of the following could help you to deal with common diseases without a doctor?

A．Off the Beaten Path.	B．Container Gardens by Number.
C．l80l Home Remedies.	D．Best Weekend Projects.

What’s the purpose of the passage?

A．To share his opinion about the books with readers.

B．To advise readers to read more in spare time.

C．To share the pleasure of reading with readers.

D．To advise readers to buy their books.

The average person learns most of the 30 000～40 000 words whose meanings he or she recognizes by hearing them or getting familiar with them in the context or simply absorbing them without conscious effort. The best way to build a good vocabulary, therefore, is to read a great deal and to participate in a lot of good talks. There are relatively few words that we learn permanently by purposefully referring to dictionaries or keeping word lists. However, even those extra few are of value, and no one will make a mistake by working on developing a larger vocabulary. Here are some suggestions of how to do it.
Read plenty of good books. When you come across a new word, or a new meaning of an old word, stop and see if you can understand it from its context. If you can't, and if you can manage without interrupting the thought of the book too much, look it up in a dictionary or ask somebody and then repeat its meaning to yourself a couple of times. If you are really conscientious(认真的), write the word and its meaning in a personal vocabulary list － preferably using it in a sentence, or you can keep a special vocabulary notebook. Go over the list from time to time. Further, try to use a new word in writing or conversation a few times over the next several days.
Listen to good talks and be alert to new words you hear or to new meanings of words you already know. Then treat them just as you treat the new words you read.
Learn and be alert to the parts of words: prefixes, suffixes and roots. Knowing them enables you to make intelligent guesses about the meanings of words.
If you are studying a foreign language, be alert to words in that language which relate to words in English. English has inherited(继承) or borrowed much of its vocabulary of 500 000～600 000 words from Latin, Greek, French, Spanish and German.
When you meet a new word in reading, what should you do?

A．Guess its meaning.	B．Ask somebody.
C．Look it up in a dictionary.	D．All of the above.

According to this passage, the best way to build a good vocabulary is ______.

A．to remember a lot	B．to read a great deal
C．to take part in a lot of good talks	D．both B and C

The phrase “be alert to” in the third paragraph may best be replaced by “______”.

A．look at

B．pay attention to

C．write down

D．learn by heart

In the fourth paragraph, the word “them” refers to ______

A．the parts of words

B．prefixes

C．suffixes

D．Roots

Thousands of people in the world are a hundred years old － or more and certain parts of the world are famous for the long lives of their inhabitants: the Vilacamba Valley in Ecuador, and the home of the Hunzas in the Himalayas.
Why do so many people live to a healthy old age in certain parts of the world? What is the secret of their long lives? Three things seem to be very important: fresh air, fresh food and a simple way of life. People work near their homes in the clean mountain air instead of traveling long distances to work by bus, car or train. They do not sit all day in busy offices or factories, but work hard outdoors in the fields. They take more exercise and eat less food than people in the cities of the West. For years the Hunzas of the Himalayas did not need policemen, lawyers or doctors. There was no crime, no divorce and not much illness in their society. They were a happy, peaceful people, famous all over India for their long, healthy lives.
Do you want to live to a hundred years old? Here are some rules for success. First, live in the right place. Second, choose the right kind of job. Doctors, dentists and bus－drivers die young. Farmers, priests and orchestral conductors live much longer. If you are in the wrong kind of job, you can still improve your way of life.
An old man in the Caucasus was talking about his past life. “I was young then，” he said, as he described his 87th year. His secret was: “Think young and stay young.” An old woman from Missouri, the USA, gave this advice, “Drink a little whisky and some warm beer every day.” An English lady just said, “Take a cold bath every morning.” The shortest, simplest piece of advice came from Mr Jim Chapman, aged 103. “Just keep breathing，” he told reporters.
Who is most likely to live a long life?

A．A doctor.

B．A bus－driver.

C．A dentist.

D．An orchestral conductor.

We can see from the passage that long－lived people avoid ______.

A．working hard

B．drinking

C．eating too much

D．taking cold baths

The passage indicates that we can change our ______ to live a long life.

A．jobs

B．places of living

C．ways of living

D．ways of thinking

What is mainly talked about in the last paragraph?

A．Whose advice is the best.

B．Who is the most long－lived person in the world.

C．Lifestyles of long－lived people.

D．How long－lived people think of their life.

A．Cook's Cottage.	B．Westfield Centrepoint.
C．Sydney Tower.	D．Sovereign Hill.

A．11:00 am--2:00 pm.	B．5:00 pm--10:30 pm.
C．9:00 am--5:30 pm.	D．9:00 am--5:00 pm.

A．in Williamstown	B．in the centre of the city
C．in Anchorage	D．in a Cantonese fishing port