A lot of teenagers are good at art at school, but how would you feel if people called you “the new Picasso(毕加索)” or if presidents and other famous people collected your paintings?
Alexandra Nechita was ten when her paintings became famous all over the world. She visited Britain, France, Italy, Japan, Australia, New Zealand and her family’s native place (祖籍) Romania where 5,000 fans came to see her at the airport. Alexandra said, “When it all started, I was moved. It was very exciting and I loved the traveling, but I got very tired. And I missed home.”
Alexandra is a good student. Her studies always come first. She only starts painting after she’s done her homework. She works on two or three paintings at a time. The paintings sell for thousands and Alexandra’s parents have given up their jobs to work for their daughter. Life for the Nechita family is very different from what it was like a few years ago.
Alexandra’s father Niki left Romania for political reasons in 1985. At first he tried his best to learn English and had different kinds of low-paid jobs. In 1987, he brought his wife and Alexandra, who was then 18 months old, to America. The family was very poor. Alexandra began to draw at the age of three.
She was drawing for four or five hours a day. Soon people offered to buy her paintings and she had her first art show at the age of eight. Stories about this child appeared in the newspapers and television. They now live in a large house with a swimming pool. Her mother said, “We started without anything, but thanks to Alexandra, we have everything we ever dreamed of.”Alexandra became well-known all over the world for her paintings at the age of _______.
A.18months | B.three | C.eight | D.ten |
Which country does Alexandra live?
A.America. | B.Britain. | C.Romania. | D.France. |
Alexandra’s painting _________.
A.took her a lot of time at school |
B.made her drop out of school |
C.didn’t influence her studies at school |
D.made her fall behind others in studies at school |
When her family arrived in America in 1987, _________.
A.their life was very hard |
B.they lived by selling Alexandra’s paintings |
C.Alexandra began to draw her painting |
D.her parents left their jobs and worked for her |
From the passage, we can learn ________.
A.Alexandra was not interested in travelling |
B.Alexandra’s success changed her family’s life |
C.Alexandra’s parents were good at English |
D.Alexandra’s stories appeared often on the radio and TV |
Tom lived by himself a long way from town. He hardly went to town, but one day he went into town to buy a few things. After he bought them, he went into a restaurant and sat down at a table. When he looked around, he saw some old people put glasses on before reading their newspapers. So after lunch he decided to go to a shop to buy himself one pair, too. He walked along the road, and soon found a shop.
The man in the shop let him try on a lot of glasses, but Tom always said, "No, I can't read with these."
The man became puzzled (迷惑的) , and he said, "Excuse me, but can you read?"
"No, of course I can't!" Tom said angrily. "If I could read before, do you think I would come here to buy your glasses?" Tom lived ______.
A.with his family | B.near town | C.in the country | D.in town |
Tom didn't go to town______.
A.never | B.often | C.sometimes | D.sometime |
Why did Tom decide to buy a pair of glasses?
A.Because he thought if he bought them, he could read. |
B.Because they were very bright. |
C.Because they were cheap. |
D.Because he could read newspaper. |
Tom went to the shop to ______.
A.have a rest | B.have dinner | C.wear glasses | D.buy a pair of glasses |
What do you think of Tom?
A.He is foolish. | B.He is clever. | C.He is tall. | D.He is beautiful. |
Mr. and Mrs. Turner live outside a small town. They have a big farm and they are always busy working on it. Their son, Peter, studied at a middle school. The young man studied hard and did well in his lessons. It made them happy.
Last month Peter finished middle school and passed the entrance examination (升学考试). Mrs. Turner was very happy and told the farmers about it.
Yesterday morning the women went to the town to buy something for her son . on the bus she told one of her friends how clever and able her son was. She spoke very loudly. All the people in the bus began to listen to her.
“Which university will your son study in?” a woman next to her asked.
“In the most famous university in our country!” Mrs. Turner said happily.
“The most famous university?”
“Oxford University(牛津大学).”
Most of the passenger looked at her carefully. Some of them said to her, “Congratulations!(祝贺)”
A woman said , “I’m sure he will know Fred Smith.”
“Who is Fred Smith?”
“He is my son.”
“Does he study in the university, too?”
“No.” said the woman. “He is one of the professors(教授)”The story happened in ________.
A.America | B.France | C.Germany | D.England |
Mr. and Mrs. Turner were happy because ________.
A.their son did well in his lessons |
B.they have a big farm |
C.they have a good harvest |
D.their son studied at a middle school |
Mrs. Turner wanted everyone to know
A.her son finished middle school |
B.her son was handsome |
C.her son was going to study in a university |
D.her son was very friendly to others. |
Mrs. Turner spoke so loudly in the bus that .
A.her friend could hear her |
B.all the people could hear her |
C.she hoped to make all the people happy |
D.she hoped they would say congratulations to her |
Which of the following is true? __________.
A.The woman wasn't interested in Mrs. Turner's words |
B.Mrs. Turner knew nothing about the famous university |
C.The woman wanted to stop Mrs. Turner from showing off |
D.The woman next to Mrs. Turner wanted to show off her son, too |
The Simpsons is a famous cartoon (卡通片). It tells about the happy life of an American family. What chores does each of them like and dislike?
Tom is the father of the family. He likes sweeping the floor. He often weeds (除杂草) in the garden and washes the car. He never feeds their dog or cooks the meals for his family. |
Mary is the mother of the family and she is very busy. She always cooks the meals, does the laundry and cleans the house. She never washes the car and changes light bulbs (灯泡). |
Lisa is the daughter of the family. She likes making her bed. She cleans the table and does the dishes every day. She can’t cook the meals but she is a good helper for her mother. |
Bill is the son of the family. He only likes feeding the dog and walking it outside. He never cleans his bedroom. |
判断下列句子的正(T)误(F)Simpsons come from Canada.
Tom never feeds the dog or cooks the meals.
Mary cooks the meals in the kitchen.
Lisa doesn’t like making her bed doing.
Bill likes cleaning his bedroom.
Mary is a thirteen-year-old girl. She had a bad cold yesterday. She didn’t want to eat anything. Her mother took her to see the doctor. The doctor gave her a bottle of medicine and told her to take it as the instruction(说明) says. Here is the instruction:
Cold medicine |
||
Shake it before taking. |
||
Take it three times a day after meals. |
||
Dose(剂量) for each time. |
||
Age |
Over 14 |
2 teaspoons |
8-14 |
1 teaspoon |
|
4-7 |
1/2teaspoon |
|
Keep it in a cold place. Take it before December 31,2015 |
Which of the following is TRUE about Mary?
A.She had a bad fever. |
B.The doctor told her to take the medicine as the instruction says. |
C.She is a fourteen-year-old girl. |
D.Her father took her to see the doctor. |
How much medicine should Mary take each day?
A.Half a teaspoon. | B.One teaspoon. |
C.Two teaspoons. | D.Three teaspoons. |
What should Mary do before she takes the medicine?
A.Wash the bottle. | B.Shake the bottle. |
C.Drink some tea. | D.Do some exercise. |
Where should Mary put the medicine?
A.In the water. | B.In the box. |
C.In a cold place. | D.In a warm place. |
Who can’t take the medicine according to this instruction?
A.A six-year-old boy. | B.A nine-year-old boy. |
C.An eleven-year-old girl. | D.A three-year-old girl. |
When something goes wrong, it can be very satisfying to say, “Well, it’s so-and-so’s mistake.” or “I know I’m late, but it’s not my mistake; the bus was late.” It is probably not your mistake, but once you form the habit of blaming somebody or something else for a bad situation, you are a loser. You have no power and could do nothing that helps change the situation. However, you can have great power over what happens to you if you stop paying attention to whom to blame and start paying attention to how to improve the situation. This is the winner’s key to success.
Winners are great at overcoming(克服) problems. For example, if you were late because the bus was late, maybe you need to leave home early. Or, you might call a taxi or call friends for help when in need. For another example, if your workmate causes you problems on the job for short of responsibility(责任心) or ability, find ways of dealing with his irresponsibility or inability rather than simply blame the person. Ask to work with a different person, or leave this person with some simple jobs. You should accept that the person is not reliable(可靠的) and find creative ways to work successfully regardless of how your workmate fails to do his job well.
This is what being a winner is all about—creatively using your skills and talents so that you are successful no matter what happens. Winners don’t have fewer problems in their lives; they have just as many difficult situations to face as anybody else. They are just better at seeing those problems as challenges(挑战) and chances to develop their own talents. So, stop paying attention to “whose mistake it is.” Once you are confident about your power over bad situations, problems are just stepping stones for success.According to the passage, winners .
A.have responsible and able workmates |
B.meet with fewer difficulties in their lives |
C.blame themselves rather than others |
D.deal with problems rather than blame others |
When your workmate brings about a problem, you should .
A.blame him for his lack of responsibility |
B.find a better way to overcome the problem |
C.tell him to find the cause of the problem |
D.ask a more able workmate for help |
When problems happen, winners take them as .
A.excuses for their mistakes |
B.difficulties to greater power |
C.chances for self-development |
D.challenges to their workmates |
Which of the following is the best title for the passage?
A.A Winner’s Secret | B.A Winner’s Problem |
C.A Winner’s Chance | D.A Winner’s Achievement |