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 |
Swimming is one of those activities that can be learned early in life.Little children can learn to swim as soon as they walk.In fact,you need the same skills in walking as in swimming. However,I believe that five is the best age to learn.By five or six,a child knows fear of water,a very important thing to know.It's wise to be afraid,to recognize true danger.Young ones understand that the water can sometimes be very dangerous.
To really benefit from swimming,every swimmer should learn,as soon as possible,these four basic strokes;butterfly,backstroke,breastroke,and crawl.I feel that one of these-the breaststroke-is different from the others,since some young swimmers use this stroke naturally,without any training.
In swimming there are certain rules every swimmer should follow:
1.Never swim alone!No matter how good you are in the water,don't risk drowning by swimming alone.If you swim by yourself,with no life guards or friends with you,you may get into trouble.
2.Don't go beyond your abilities.Most swimmers know enough not to swim too far from the bank or the beach,Showing off by doing dangerous tricks is no good. Swim safely and you will continue to swim and alive.
3.Don't smoke.Swimming depends on a healthy body;good lungs are part of it.
4.Work at any activity that builds muscles.Little children can learn to swim as soon as _____.
| A．they can talk | B．they start walking | C．they have no fear of the water | D．they are five or six years old |
The author believes that fear of water is_____.
| A．stupid | B．sensible（明智的） | C．dangerous | D．not smart |
According to the passage,you should not swim alone because_____.
| A．the water is too cold | B．your parents would not be happy |
| C．something in the water might attack | D．you might drown |
When did you last see a polar bear?On a trip to a zoo,perhaps?If you had attended a winter activity in New York a few years ago,you would have seen a whole polar bear club.These "Polar Bears" are people who meet frequently in the winter to swim in freezing cold water.That day,the air temperature was 3℃,and the water temperature was a little higher.The members of the Polar Bear Club at Coney Island,New York are usually about the age of 60.Members must satisfy two requirements.First,they must get along well with everyone else in the group;this is very important because there are so many different kinds of people in the club.Polar Bears must also agree to swim outdoors at least twice a month from November through February.
Dcotors don't agree about the medical effects of cold-winter swimming.Some are worried about the dangers of a condition in which the body's temperature drops so low that finally the heart stops.Other doctors,however,point out that there is more danger of a heart attack during summer swimming because the difference between the air temperature and water temperature is much greater in summer than in winter.
The Polar Bears themselves are satisfied with the benefits of cold-water swimming.They say that their favorite form of exercise is very good for the circulatory system(循环系统）because it forces the blood to move fast to keep the body warm.Cold-water swimmers usually turn bright red after a few minutes in the water.A person who turns blue probably has a very poor circulatory system and should not try cold-water swimming.
The main benefits of cold-water swimming are probably mental.The Polar Bears love to swim all year round;they find it fun and relaxing.As one 70-year-old woman says,"When I go into water,I pour my troubles into the ocean and let them float away."The members of the Polar Bear Club must meet the following requirements except that_____.
| A．they must swim outdoors at least 8 times in the four cold months |
| B．they must reach the age of 60 |
| C．they should be easy to make friends with |
| D．they must agree to swim outdoors from November through February |
According to the passage,some doctors believe it is true that_____.
| A．Polar Bears are bears swimming in freezing water |
| B．cold-water swimming can make the body temperature dangerously high |
| C．you are healthy if cold-water swimming turns your skin color blue |
| D．cold-water swimming causes more heart attacks in summer than in winter |
The Polar Bears like to swim year-round,for_____.
| A．it is an easy way ot keep the body warm in winter | B．they can remain young |
| C．they find it enjoyable and interesting | D．they might meet fewer troubles in life |
The passage is mainly about_____.
| A．the requirements of the Polar Bear Club | B．a group of cold-water-swimming livers |
| C．the Polar Bears' life in New York | D．doctors' ideas about cold-water swimming |
Extract（摘要）1
A computer is an "information processor".It is given information,called "data",instructed to do certain things and then show us the results.The data put into the computer is called the"input" and the results which come out are the "output".Some people say the circle of large standing stones at Stonechenge is a kind of computer.Prehistory people worked out their calendar（日历）from the position of the shadows made by the sun shining on the stones.
Extract 2
Teach yourself new subjects and skills at your own pace with a home computer.Use it to help with schoolwork,for self-improvement,even to improve your career skills.Learn touchtyping. Foreign languages or computer programming.A home computer can help children of all ages learn classroom subjects such as spelling,geography and others.In fact it makes learning fun.So if you want to teach yourself,or help your children teach themselves-get a home computer.It can also help you manage your personal finances or help you to work taxes and plan household budgets.You can make business a pleasure with a home computer.The writer introduces the words such as "input" and "output" in order to_____.
| A．introduce people to computer language |
| B．show computer language is the same as English |
| C．help people some scientific language |
| D．give people some scientific language |
Why does the writer talk about Stonechenge in Extract 1?
| A．To give an example of the very first computer. |
| B．To show that computers are older than mankind. |
| C．To tell the difference between the past and the present. |
| D．To give another way of explaining computers. |
If you think of the circle of large standing stones as a computer,_____.
| A．the shadow is the input and the position is the output |
| B．the sunlight is the input and the calendar is the output |
| C．the position is the input and the sunlight is the output |
| D．the calendar is the input and the shadow is the output |
Extract 2 is probably taken from_____.
| A．a computer textbook | B．a company's advertisement |
| C．a teach-yourself computer book | D．a children's guide to computers |
Moscow,Russia(Space news)-"The computer is a better chess player,"insisted Viktor Prozorov,the loser(失败者)." It seemed as if it were laughing after every good move.I know I should have beaten it for the sake of mankind(为人类着想），but I just couldn't win," he announced and shook his head sadly.
Prozorov's disappointment was shared by several grand masters who were present,some of whom were so upset that they shouted at the machine.Many chess players said that this meant the end of chess championships around the world,since the fun had been taken out of the game.
The computer walked－or rather,rolled-away with 5,000 dollars in prize money and limited its remarks to a set of noises and light.Which of the following best gives the main idea of this newspaper article?
| A．5,000 dollars goes to a computer! | B．New invention a laughing computer! |
| C．World's best chess player beaten! | D．Computer defeats man in chess! |
What was it that Prozorov felt most bitter(懊恼)about?
| A．That he didn't win the$5,000. | B．That he hadn't tried his best. |
| C．That he had lost to a machine. | D．That this was the end of the chess game. |
After winning the game,the computer_____.
| A．laughed | B．walked away | C．made some remarks | D．gave out some lights and sounds |
Many chess players felt that playing with a computer would_____.
| A．make the game tougher | B．make the game less interesting |
| C．make man appear foolish | D．make man lose lots of |
A farmer had a cow. He took very good care of this cow and one day when it was ill, he was very worried. He telephoned the vet.
“What’s the problem?” The vet asked him when he arrived.
“My cow’s ill,” the farmer said. “I don’t know what's the matter with her. She’s lying down and won’t eat. She’s making a strange noise.”
The vet looked over the cow. "She’s certainly ill," he said, "and she needs to take some very strong medicine."
He took a bottle out of his box, put two pills into his hand and said, "Give her these. The pills should make her better."
“How should I give them to her?” the farmer asked.
The vet gave him a tube (管子)and said, "Put this tube in her mouth, then put the pills in the tube and blow. That’ll make it."
The next day the vet came to the farm again. The farmer was sitting outside his house and looked more worried.
“How’s your cow?” the vet asked.
“No change,” the farmer said, “and I’m feeling very strange myself.”
“Oh?” the vet said, "Why?"
“I did what you said,” the farmer answered. “I put the tube in the cow’s mouth and then put two pills down it.”
“And?” the vet asked.
“The cow blew first,” the farmer said.In the story, the vet must be _________.
| A．the farmer's friend | B．a milk factory | C．a hospital for cows | D．a doctor for animals |
The farmer asked the vet for help when his cow _______
| A．couldn't lie down | B．didn't eat the pills | C．couldn't make any noise | D．was ill |
What medicine did the vet give the farmer?
| A．Bottle of pills. | B．A long tube. | C．Two pills. | D．A small box. |
The vet taught the farmer how _________.
| A．to blow the tube | B．to make the cow take the pills |
| C．to take the medicine | D．to put the tube in his mouth |
Which of the following is true?
| A．The farmer ate the pills himself. |
| B．The cow got better after taking the medicine. |
| C．The vet came to help the farmer change the cow the next day. |
| D．The farmer waited for the vet outside his house the next day. |