Learners report two main difficulties in reading, which may be linked. There are too many unknown words and as a result reading is simply not a pleasure. For some students, even reading in their own language is a chore.
Having a wide vocabulary is essential to making sense of written language. Of course, this is a circular argument, because the more you read the more vocabulary you learn and the more words you know the more easily you can read. Don’t make the mistake of reading with your dictionary beside you, looking up every single new or doubtful word. This is laborious and prevents you from practicing the skill of prediction.
Sometimes in reading you find a word you know but the sense doesn’t seem to fit in. This is not surprising because words have so many meanings and degrees of meaning. What is more, part of their meaning is shaped by the words around them. Keep looking at the surrounding words and asking yourself “what sort of meaning would make sense here?”
The more that people study the reading process, the better they can pass on to language learners a range of advice to choose from. People have learned to read in all kinds of ways. Here is some information that could help you plan to be a better reader in the foreign language you are studying.
1）Work out the general meaning first
When people read in a new language they often feel they must take a detailed approach, focusing on every word, particularly those they don’t know. They read as if they were using a microscope, looking carefully at each of the small pieces（the individual words）, but not necessarily seeing the whole picture at first. This is called the “bottom-up” approach. Other readers try to look first at the big picture（the “top-down” approach）, attending to individual bricks only as necessary, a process that involves some intelligent guesswork. Generally this second approach is recommended by successful learners.
2）Interactive reading
Another way of thinking about reading is to describe it as an interactive process, where the text brings something to you and you bring something to the text. Readers bring together all their knowledge of the world with what they see on the page in front of them. That is why, when reading in our own language, we don’t need to read every word. We add meaning which is not actually stated.
3）From supported reading to independent reading
Language learners start by needing considerable support as they read. Textbooks supply this support in the form of introductions that summaries the contents, glossaries, pictures, explanations of new grammar points. In your reading you need to move gradually from this support to reading more the text itself.. According to the author, ______.
| A．looking up the dictionary is of great help for the understanding |
| B．reading more promotes the gaining of vocabulary |
| C．the more you read, the less useful the dictionary will be |
| D．the amount of vocabulary is the key to reading |
. Successful learners recommend ______.
| A．trying to look first at the big picture |
| B．looking carefully at each of the small pieces |
| C．focusing on every word |
| D．“bottom-up” approach |
. The word “chore” in the first paragraph maybe means ______.
| A．an important aspect | B．a difficult and tiring thing |
| C．an easy question | D．something special |
. You come across a new or doubtful word when you are reading, you can ______.
| A．just miss it and let it be |
| B．keep looking at the surrounding words |
| C．look it up in the dictionary each time |
| D．make sense of it with the help of dictionary |
C
Among the more colorful characters of Leadville’s golden age were H.A.W. Tabor and his second wife, Elizabeth McCourt, better known as "Baby Doe". Their history is fast becoming one of the legends of the Old West. Horace Austin Warner Tabor was a school teacher in Vermont. With his first wife and two children he left Vermont by covered wagon in 1855 to homestead in Kansas. Perhaps he did not find farming to his liking, or perhaps he was attracted by rumors of fortunes to be made in Colorado mines. At any rate, a few years later he moved west to the small Colorado mining camp known as California Gulch, which he later renamed Leadville when he became its leading citizen. "A large amount of lead is sure to be found here." he said.
As it turned out, it was silver, not lead, that was to make Leadville’s fortune and wealth. Tabor knew little about mining himself, so he opened a general store, which sold everything from boots to salt, flour, and tobacco. It was his custom to "grubstake" prospective（预期的） miners, in other words, to supply them with food and supplies, or"grub", while they looked for ore（矿石）, in return for which he would get a share in the mine if one was discovered. He did this for a number of years, but no one that he aided ever found anything of value.
Finally one day in the year 1878, so the story goes, two miners came in and asked for "grub". Tabor had decided to quit supplying it because he had lost too much money that way. These were persistent（坚持的）, however, and Tabor was too busy to argue with them. "Oh help yourself. One more time won’t make any difference," He said and went on selling shoes and hats to other customers. The two miners took $17 worth of supplies, in return for which they gave Tabor a one-third interest in their findings. They picked a barren place on the mountainside and began to dig. After nine days they struck a rich vein of silver. Tabor bought the shares of the other two men, and so the mine belonged to him alone. This mine, known as the "Pittsburgh Mine," made $1,300, 000 for Tabor in return for his $17 investment.
Later Tabor bought the Matchless Mine on another barren hillside just outside the town for $117,000.This turned out to be even more abundant than the Pittsburgh, producing $35 000 worth of silver per day at one time. Leadville grew. Tabor became its first mayor, and later became the governor of the state.
49. The word "grubstake" in paragraph 2 means __________ .
A. to supply miners with food and supplies
B. to open a general store
C. to do one’s contribution to the development of the mine
D. to supply miners with food and supplies and in return get a share in the mine, if one was discovered
50.Tabor made his first fortune_________.
A. by supplying two prospective miners and getting in return a one-third interest in the findings
B. because he was persuaded by the two miners to quit supplying
C. by buying the shares of the other
D. as a land speculator（投机商）
51. The underlying（潜在的）reason for Tabor’s successful life career is __________.
A. purely accidental
B. based on the analysis of miner’s being very poor and their possibility of discovering
profitable mining site
C. through the help from his second wife
D. he planned well and accomplished targets step by step
52. If this passage is the first part of an article, who might be introduced in the following part?
A. Tabor’s life. B. Tabor’s second wife, Elizabeth McCourt.
C. Other colorful characters. D. Tabor’s other careers.
B
While still in its early stages, welfare reform has already been judged a great success in many states — at least in getting people off welfare. It’s estimated that more than 2 million people have left the rolls（名册） since 1994.
In the past four years, welfare rolls in Athens Country have been cut in half. But 70 percent of the people who left in the past two years took jobs that paid less than $6 an hour. The result: The Athens Country poverty rate still remains at more than 30 percent — twice the national average.
For advocates（代言人）for the poor, that’s an indication much more needs to be done.
“More people are getting jobs, but it’s not making their lives any better,” says Kathy Lairn, a policy analyst at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities in Washington.
A center analysis of US Census data nationwide found that between 1995 and 1996, a greater percentage of single, female-headed households were earning money on their own, but that average income for these households actually went down.
But for many, the fact that poor people are able to support themselves almost as well without government aid as they did with it is in itself a huge victory.
“Welfare was a poison. It was a toxin（毒素）that was poisoning the family,” says
Robert Rector, a welfare-reform policy analyst. “The reform is changing the moral climate in low-income communities. It’s beginning to rebuild the work ethic（道德观）, which is much more important.”
Mr. Rector and others argued that once “the habit of dependency is cracked,” then the country can make other policy changes aimed at improving living standards.
45. From the passage, it can be seen that the author _______.
A. believes the reform has reduced the government’s burden
B. insists that welfare reform is doing little good for the poor
C. is overenthusiastic about the success of welfare reform
D. considers welfare reform to be basically successful
46. Why aren’t people enjoying better lives when they have jobs?
A. Because many families are divorced.
B. Because government aid is now rare.
C. Because their wages are low.
D. Because the cost of living is rising.
47. From the passage we know that welfare reform aims at _______.
A. saving welfare funds
B. rebuilding the work ethic
C. providing more jobs
D. cutting government expenses
48. According to the passage before the welfare reform was carried out, _______.
A. the poverty rate was lower
B. average living standards were higher
C. the average worker was paid higher wages
D. the poor used to rely on government aid
第二部分阅读理解（共20小题。每小题2分；满分40分）
第一节阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（ABC和D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黒。
A
Long after the 1998 World Cup was won, disappointed fans were still cursing thedisputed refereeing (裁判) decisions that denied victory to their team. A researcher was appointed to study the performance of some top referees.
The researcher organized an experimental tournament (锦标赛) involving four youth teams. Each match lasted an hour, divided into three periods of 20 minutes during which different referees were in charge.
Observers noted down the referees' errors, of which there were 61 over the tournament. Converted to a standard match of 90 minutes, each referee made almost 23mistakes, a remarkably high number.
The researcher then studied the videotapes to analyze the matches in detail. Surprisingly, he found that errors were more likely when the referees were close to the incident. When the officials got it right, they were, on average, 17 meters away from the action. The average distance in the case of errors was 12 meters. The research shows the optimum (最佳的) distance is about 20 meters.
There also seemed to be an optimum speed. Correct decisions came when the referees were moving at a speed of about 2 meters per second. The average speed for errors was 4 meters per second.
If FIFA, football's international ruling body, wants to improve the standard ofrefereeing at the next World Cup, it should encourage referees to keep their eyes on the action from a distance, rather than rushing to keep up with the ball, the researcher argues.
He also says that FIFA's insistence that referees should retire at age 45 may be misguided. If keeping up with the action is not so important, their physical condition is less critical.
41. The number of refereeing errors in the experimental matches was _______.
A. slightly above average B. higher than in the 1998 World Cup
C. quite unexpected D. as high as in a standard match
42. The findings of the experiment show that _______.
A. errors are more likely when a referee keeps close to the ball
B. the farther the referee is from the incident, the fewer the errors
C. the more slowly the referee runs, the more likely will errors occur
D. errors are less likely when a referee stays in one spot
43. The word "officials" (Line 2, Para. 4) most probably refers to _______.
A. the researchers involved in the experiment
B. the inspectors of the football tournament
C. the referees of the football tournament
D. the observers at the site of the experiment
44. What is one of the possible conclusions of the experiment?
A. The ideal retirement age for an experienced football referee is 45.
B. Age should not be the chief consideration in choosing a football referee.
C. A football referee should be as young and energetic as possible.
D. An experienced football referee can do well even when in poor physical condition.
根据短文内容，从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有多余选项。
Have you ever seen any students whose trousers hang so low you can see their underwear? What do you think of that? Fashionable? Some of today’s teenagers are big fans of such a look. 71. __________
The headmaster of a school in central Italy has asked students to stop wearing low-rise jeans that expose underwear and parts of the body. His request came after a class trip. One day, he saw one boy’s baggy trousers slide to his feet. 72. ____________
But in Italy, a nation that takes fashion very seriously, the suggestion caused a debate among parents, teachers and students. The issue is whether the headmaster's request will limit students' freedom— or whether dress in Italian schools is too casual.
73. _________ “We do not want to kick fashion out,” the headmaster explained, “but extremes (极端) of fashion like this are not right in school.” Many other schools have now requested that their students also stop wearing such trousers.
74._________ Ludovica Gaudio, 14, wore extremely low trousers exposing orange underwear in class. It was cold, so she wore a matching orange scarf. 75._______________ “I don't really feel comfortable in those sort of jeans,” said Sarah Lattanzi, “in winter, when dressed like that, it's quite cold and I am afraid my stomach will ache.”
| A．But recently this trend has been at the center of an argument in Italian middle schools. |
| B．A parents’ group praised the move in favor of good taste, while others advised schools to stop worrying about fashion and fix up old school buildings. |
| C．He pointed out that this way of dressing is not suitable for school. |
| D．Most students have simply ignored the request. |
E. Another 14-year-old said she would probably respect the request, simply for practical reasons.
F. Let us see that Italian students react differently to schools’ requests.
G. Schools should pay attention to things more important than students’ clothes.
B
While still in its early stages, welfare reform has already been judged a great success in many states — at least in getting people off welfare. It’s estimated that more than 2 million people have left the rolls（名册） since 1994.
In the past four years, welfare rolls in Athens Country have been cut in half. But 70 percent of the people who left in the past two years took jobs that paid less than $6 an hour. The result: The Athens Country poverty rate still remains at more than 30 percent — twice the national average.
For advocates（代言人）for the poor, that’s an indication much more needs to be done.
“More people are getting jobs, but it’s not making their lives any better,” says Kathy Lairn, a policy analyst at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities in Washington.
A center analysis of US Census data nationwide found that between 1995 and 1996, a greater percentage of single, female-headed households were earning money on their own, but that average income for these households actually went down.
But for many, the fact that poor people are able to support themselves almost as well without government aid as they did with it is in itself a huge victory.
“Welfare was a poison. It was a toxin（毒素）that was poisoning the family,” says
Robert Rector, a welfare-reform policy analyst. “The reform is changing the moral climate in low-income communities. It’s beginning to rebuild the work ethic（道德观）, which is much more important.”
Mr. Rector and others argued that once “the habit of dependency is cracked,” then the country can make other policy changes aimed at improving living standards.
45. From the passage, it can be seen that the author _______.
A. believes the reform has reduced the government’s burden
B. insists that welfare reform is doing little good for the poor
C. is overenthusiastic about the success of welfare reform
D. considers welfare reform to be basically successful
46. Why aren’t people enjoying better lives when they have jobs?
A. Because many families are divorced.
B. Because government aid is now rare.
C. Because their wages are low.
D. Because the cost of living is rising.
47. From the passage we know that welfare reform aims at _______.
A. saving welfare funds
B. rebuilding the work ethic
C. providing more jobs
D. cutting government expenses
48. According to the passage before the welfare reform was carried out, _______.
A. the poverty rate was lower
B. average living standards were higher
C. the average worker was paid higher wages
D. the poor used to rely on government aid