Philip was a nine-year-old boy in a Sunday school class of 8-year-old girls and boys. Sometimes the third graders didn’t welcome Philip into their group and usually tricked him. This was not because he was older, but because he was “different”. You see, Philip suffered from a condition called Downs’s Syndrome. This made him “different”, with its facial characteristics, slow responses and mental problems.
One Sunday after Easter, the Sunday school teacher gathered some plastic eggs that pulled apart in the middle. The teacher gave one to each child. On that beautiful spring day, the children were to go out and discover for themselves some symbol of “new life” and place it inside the plastic eggs.
After the children returned to the classroom, the teacher opened their eggs one by one, asking each child to explain that symbol of “new life”. The first opened egg contained a flower. Everyone cheered. In another was a butterfly…. When the teacher opened the last egg, it was empty. “That’s stupid,” said someone. The teacher felt a pull at his shirt. It was Philip. Looking up, Philip said, “It’s mine. I did it. It’s empty. I have new life, because the tomb is empty.” Not a sound was heard in class at all. From that day on, Philip became a real part of the group. They welcomed him, and whatever made him different was never mentioned again.
Philip’s family knew he wouldn’t live a long life, for there were too many things wrong with him.The underlined word “condition” in the 1st paragraph probably means __________.
| A．grade | B．status | C．health | D．disease |
It can be inferred from the first paragraph that _______.
| A．the 8-year-olds were sometimes cruel. |
| B．The 8-year-olds were friendly to Philip. |
| C．Philip was really different in school. |
| D．Philip was older and more sensitive. |
The teacher gave each child one plastic egg to let them ______.
| A．play around on that beautiful spring day. |
| B．put some symbol of “new life” into it. |
| C．try to pull it apart in the middle. |
| D．go out and discover themselves. |
After Philip explained his new life, _________.
| A．the class thought he was clever. | B．The class fell silent. |
| C．He began to study in the class. | D．He felt dying. |
We learn from the passage that _________.
| A．the teacher used to have classes outdoors |
| B．Philip was healthy as a whole. |
| C．The Philip’s new life wish was empty |
| D．Philip was accepted by his classmates in the end |
One day, a brave jackal (豺) came to the river to drink some water. He saw a lion looking weak and tired, and asked, "What is the matter, King of the Jungle?"
The lion told the jackal his story. The jackal felt sorry for the lion. He pulled and pulled at the lion’s tail until the lion became free. The lion was very happy and said, "Thank you so much for helping me. I thought I would die! You are my friend for life! I would like you to come and live with me. From now on, I will hunt and share my food with you."
The jackal moved in with the lion’s family and had a wonderful time.
Soon, the lion had children of his own and so did the jackal. The lioness was not happy about the friendship. She complained to her children. Her children complained to the jackal’s children; the jackal’s children complained to their mother and their mother complained to the jackal.
The jackal was upset and told the lion, "You told me to live with you. If you don’t like it any more, you should have said so yourself." The lion was shocked and said, "This is not true. I’ve never complained about you. I still want you to continue staying with me."
The jackal said, "We understand each other. But our families don’t. Perhaps it is better for us to live apart, but continue meeting each other when we are free. We can even hunt together!"
The two families parted, but the lion and the jackal met often and remained friends for the rest of their lives.
From the above paragraphs, we can conclude that in order to keep our good friendship, we have to give something up or give in in some particular cases. However, we can never give up or destroy our families. What do you think of it?How was the lion when the jackal first met him?
| A．Strong and happy. | B．Fierce and cruel. |
| C．Kind and friendly. | D．Weak and tired. |
The lion thanked the jackal for saving his life by .
| A．serving the jackal dinner | B．inviting the jackal to live with him |
| C．offering the jackal a house | D．protecting the jackal |
When both the lion and the jackal had family, .
| A．the two families still lived happily together |
| B．the two families often quarreled with each other |
| C．the lioness began to complain about the friendship |
| D．the lion’s children laughed at the jackal’s children |
What was the jackal’s advice for the two families’ problem?
| A．Live apart and stop meeting each other. |
| B．Live together and hunt apart. |
| C．Live apart but continue meeting each other. |
| D．Teach the children to learn to share. |
We can learn from the text that .
| A．we should try to value true friends without giving up our family |
| B．family relationship is more important than friendship |
| C．it is easy to give up a friendship |
| D．we should not make friends with those who refuse to help you |
A friend asks you to be a volunteer. Your husband asks you to glance over an e-mail he is writing to his boss. You say you’d love to. Really! But..."I don’t have time".
It seems plausible( 有道理的). We’re all busy these days, right? But there are reasons not to use these four words, at least with yourself.
Here’s the big one: it is not true. You tell yourself "I don’t have time" to exercise, but we all have 168 hours a week. If someone offered to pay you $100,000 a week to go to the gym for 5 of those 168 hours, you would probably find the time to do it. Since that isn’t going to happen, this is a more exact description: " It’s not a priority(优先考虑的事)."
There are a million things we could be doing with our time; some are priorities and some are not, even if it’s wrong to say so. Try it. "I’m not going to read to you tonight, sweetie, because it’s not a priority. Daddy’s present priority is to check my e-mails."
Using the words "I don’t have time" keeps us from admitting to the fact that how we spend our time is a choice. It puts the responsibility for our lives on someone else: a boss, a client or a family member.
Better to be truthful: "I have another volunteer job on which I am focusing my energy right now. It is the cause that is most important to me." Or, to your husband "I wish you had mentioned this earlier. Right now, my priority is to get our children dressed and out of the door for school. I will be available around lunch time if you would like to talk".What does the word "it" in the third paragraph refer to?
| A．Saying "I don’t have time". |
| B．Saying "We are all busy today". |
| C．Checking your husband’s e-mail. |
| D．Telling your friend you won’t be a volunteer. |
From the third paragraph we can learn that .
| A．it is enough to exercise for five hours a week |
| B．we are too busy to exercise these days |
| C．we can earn $100,000 a week by exercising |
| D．we don’t often regard exercise as a priority |
Which would be the best answer if your friend asks you to be a volunteer?
| A．I have to check my e-mails first. |
| B．I already have a volunteer job that I enjoy. |
| C．I cannot find any time to do it. |
| D．I have a million things to do. |
What is the text mainly about?
| A．How to be responsible for our lives. |
| B．How to get time to do exercise. |
| C．How to say no to others without saying "I don’t have time". |
| D．How we should spend our time reasonably these days. |
You can find this text in the section of a newspaper.
| A．sports | B．entertainment | C．culture | D．science |
（London）—If it really is what’s on the inside that counts, then a lot of thin people might be in trouble.
Some doctors now think that the internal fat surrounding important organs like the heart or liver could be as dangerous as the external fat which can be noticed more easily.
“Being thin doesn’t surely mean you are not fat,” said Dr Jimmy Bell at Imperial College. Since 1994, Bell and his team have scanned nearly 800 people with MRI machines to create “fat maps” showing where people store fat.
According to the result, people who keep their weight through diet rather than exercise are likely to have major deposits of internal fat, even if they are slim.
Even people with normal Body Mass Index scores can have surprising levels of fat deposits inside. Of the women, as many as 45 percent of those with normal BMI scores (20 to 25) actually had too high levels of internal fat. Among men, the percentage was nearly 60 percent.
According to Bell, people who are fat on the inside are actually on the edge of being fat. They eat too many fatty and sugary foods, but they are not eating enough to be fat. Scientists believe we naturally store fat around the belly first, but at some point, the body may start storing it elsewhere.
Doctors are unsure about the exact dangers of internal fat, but some think it has something to do with heart disease and diabetes. They want to prove that internal fat damages the body’s communication systems.
The good news is that internal fat can be easily burned off through exercise or even by improving your diet. “If you want to be healthy, there is no short cut. Exercise has to be an important part of your lifestyle,” Bell said.What is this piece of news mainly about?
| A．Thin people may be fat inside. |
| B．Internal fat is of no importance. |
| C．Internal fat leads to many diseases. |
| D．Thin people also have troubles. |
Doctors have found _____.
| A．the exact dangers of internal fat |
| B．internal fat is the cause of heart disease and diabetes |
| C．being slim is not dangerous at all |
| D．being slim doesn’t mean you are not fat inside |
According to the passage, which of the following is WRONG?
| A．Exercise can help to reduce the internal fat. |
| B．People can get rid of internal fat by improving diet. |
| C．Men are more likely to have too much internal fat. |
| D．People with heart disease all have internal fat. |
From the last paragraph, we can find that _____.
| A．whether internal fat can lead to disease has been proved |
| B．exercise plays in important role in people’s life for keeping healthy |
| C．thin people usually have internal fat even if they are slim |
| D．it is easier to burn off internal fat than external fat |
Tim Richter and his wife, Linda, had taught for over 30 years near Buffalo, New York—he in computers, she in special education. “Teaching means everything to us.” Tim would say. In April 1998, he learned he would need a heart operation. It was the kind of news that leads to some serious thinking about life's purpose.
Not long after the surgery, Tim saw a brochure describing Imagination Library, a program started by Dolly Parton's foundation (基金会) that mailed a book every month to children from birth to age five in the singer's home town of Sevier, Tennessee. “I thought, maybe Linda and I could do something like this when we retire.” Tim recalls. He placed the brochure on his desk, “as a reminder”．
Five years later, now retired and with that brochure still on the desk, Tim clicked on imaginationlibrary.com. The program had been opened up to partners who could take advantage of book and postage discounts.
The quality of the books was of great concern to the Richters. Rather than sign up online, they went to Dollywood for a looksee. “We didn't want to give the children rubbish.” says Linda. The books—reviewed each year by teachers, literacy specialists, and Dollywood board members—included classics such as Ezra Jack Keats's The Snowy Day and newer books like Anna Dewdney's Llama Llama series.
Satisfied, the couple set up the Richter Family Foundation and got to work. Since 2004, they have shipped more than 12,200 books to preschoolers in their area. Megan Williams, a mother of four, is more than appreciative：“This program introduces us to books I've never heard of.”
The Richters spend about $400 a month sending books to 200 children. “Some people sit there and wait to die.” says Tim. “Others get as busy as they can in the time they have left.”What led Tim to think seriously about the meaning of life?
| A．The news from the Web. | B．His love for teaching. |
| C．The influence of his wife. | D．His health problem. |
What did Tim want to do after learning about Imagination Library?
| A．Give out brochures. |
| B．Write books for children |
| C．Do something similar.. |
| D．Retire from being a teacher. |
According to the text, Dolly Parton is ________.
| A．a wellknown surgeon |
| B．a singer born in Tennessee |
| C．a mother of a fouryearold |
| D．a computer programmer |
What can we learn from Tim's words in the last paragraph?
| A．He considers his efforts worthwhile. |
| B．He wonders why some people are so busy. |
| C．He tries to save those waiting to die. |
| D．He needs more money to help the children. |
Life is difficult.
But life is no longer difficult once we truly understand and accept it.
Most do not fully see this truth. Instead they complain about their problems and difficulties as if life should be easy. It seems to them that their difficulties represent a special kind of suffering especially forced upon them or else upon their families, their class, or even their nation.
What makes life difficult is that the process of facing and solving problems is painful. Problems, depending on their nature, cause us sadness or loneliness or regret or anger or fear. These are uncomfortable feelings, often as any kind of physical pain. And since life causes an endless series of problems, life is always difficult and is full of pain as well as joy.
Yet, it is in this whole of solving problems that life has its meaning.
Problems are the serious test that tells success from failure. When we desire to encourage the growth of the human spirit we encourage the human ability to solve problems just as in school we set problems for our children to solve. It is through the pain of meeting and working out problems that we learn. As Benjamin Franklin said, “Those things that hurts, instruct.” It is for this reason that wise people learn not to fear but to welcome the pain of problems.From the passage, it can be inferred that ______.
| A．not everybody has problems |
| B．we become stronger by facing and solving the problems in life |
| C．life is difficult because our problems bring us pain |
| D．people like to complain about their problems |
The writer uses just one short sentence in the first paragraph probably to ______.
| A．save space | B．persuade readers |
| C．make readers laugh | D．get readers’ attention |
According to the passage, we give school children difficult problems to solve in order to ______.
| A．encourage them to learn |
| B．make them suffer |
| C．help them learn to deal with pain |
| D．help them understand life is difficult |
“Those things that hurt, instruct.” From Benjamin Franklin suggests that ______.
| A．we do not learn from experience |
| B．we do not learn when we are in pain |
| C．pain teaches us important lessons |
| D．pain cannot be forgotten |