It's such a happylooking library, painted yellow, decorated with palmtree stickers and sheltered from the Florida sun by its own roof. About the size of a microwave oven, it's pedestrianfriendly, too, waiting for book lovers next to a sidewalk in Palm Beach Country Estates, along the northern boundary of Palm Beach Gardens.
It's a library built with love.
A year ago, shortly after Janey Henriksen saw a Brian Williams report about the Little Free Library organization, a Wisconsinbased nonprofit that aims to promote literacy and build a sense of community in a neighborhood by making books freely available, she announced to her family of four, “That's what we're going to do for our spring break!”
Son Austin, now a 10thgrader, didn't see the point of building a library that resembles a mailbox. But Janey insisted, and husband Peter unwillingly got to work. The 51yearold owner of a ship supply company modified a small wooden house that he'd built years earlier for daughter Abbie's toy horses, and made a door of glass.
After adding the library's final touches(装点), the family hung a signboard on the front, instructing users to “take a book, return a book,” and making the Henriksen library, now one of several hundred like it nationwide and among more than 2,500 in the world, the only Little Free Library in Palm Beach County.
They stocked it with 20 or so books they'd already read, a mix of science fiction, reference titles, novels and kids' favorites. “I told them, keep in mind that you might not see it again,” said Janey, a stayathome mom.
Since then, the collection keeps replenishing(补充) itself, thanks to ongoing donations from borrowers. The library now gets an average of five visits a day.
The project's best payoff, says Peter, are the thankyou notes left behind. “We had no idea in the beginning that it would be so popular.”In what way is the library “pedestrianfriendly”?
A.It owns a yellow roof. |
B.It stands near a sidewalk. |
C.It protects book lovers from the sun. |
D.It uses palmtree stickers as decorations. |
Janey got the idea to build a library from ________.
A.a visit to Brian Williams |
B.a spring break with her family |
C.a book sent by one of her neighbors |
D.a report on a Wisconsinbased organization |
The library was built ________.
A.by a ship supply company |
B.on the basis of toy horses |
C.like a mailbox |
D.with glass |
What can we infer from the signboard?
A.It was made by a user of the library. |
B.It marked a final touch to the library. |
C.It aimed at making the library last long. |
D.It indicated the library was a family property. |
The passage tells us that the users ________.
A.donate books to the library |
B.get paid to collect books for the library |
C.receive thankyou notes for using the library |
D.visit the library over 5 times on average daily |
Chuck,unlike other frogs,didn't like catching flies himself. But he did love eating them.
Some frogs thought Chuck was lazy. Some believed he must think he was too good for them. Some thought Chuck was the strangest frog ever.
That didn't matter to Chuck. Each morning,Chuck jumped over and sat under the spider's web. Then when Lady Eightlegs went off to dip (浸) her feet in the pond,Chuck ate flies from her web.
One morning while Chuck was enjoying his fly breakfast,Lady Eightlegs returned and caught him.
“You're the one who keeps eating my flies!”she cried.
Chuck jumped away and into the pond. Now there was an idea!Why not spin (结) his own web?
He collected some vines (葡萄藤) from a nearby farm. Then he began to spin his web. He worked on his web for hours,until very late at night. And then he fell asleep.
When he woke up the next morning,he found that he got caught by the vines.
“Help!”he shouted.
Lady Eightlegs looked up from the edge of the pond. She hurried up to help Chuck out of the vine web.
“No matter how hard I try,I can't spin a spider's web,”Chuck said.
“Of course not,”Lady Eightlegs said. “You're a frog. Frogs can't spin spider's webs any better than spiders can swim,I guess.”
“But I always see you in the water,”Chuck said.
“I only wade in (蹚水) up to my knees,”Lady Eightlegs sighed. “How wonderful it would be to swim in the middle of the pond and float (漂浮) peacefully under the sun.”
Chuck smiled,“I have an idea.”
From that day forward,Chuck carried Lady Eightlegs out to the middle of the pond,where they floated and played together. When they returned to land,they shared a breakfast of flies from her spider's web.
It wasn't exactly an ordinary friendship. But Chuck was not an ordinary frog.The second paragraph is written to show that Chuck ______.
A.was different from other frogs | B.didn't get along well with other frogs |
C.led a lonely life | D.was a proud frog |
What do we know about Chuck's web?
A.Lady Eightlegs helped Chuck spin it. | B.It was successfully spun by Chuck. |
C.It was spun far from the pond. | D.Chuck failed to spin it himself. |
It can be inferred from the text that ______.
A.Chuck had tried to catch Lady Eightlegs | B.Chuck had difficulty collecting vines |
C.Lady Eightlegs was very wise | D.Lady Eightlegs swam well |
What was Lady Eightlegs' attitude towards Chuck in the end?
A.Worried. | B.Friendly. | C.Doubtful. | D.Cold. |
Waste can be seen everywhere in the school. Some students ask for more food than they can eat and others often forget to turn off the lights when they leave the classroom. They say they can afford these things. But I don’t agree with them.
Waste can bring a lot of problems. Although China is rich in some resources(资源), we are short of(缺乏) others, for example, fresh water(淡水). It is reported that we will have no coal(煤) or oil to use in 100 years. So if we go on wasting our resources, what can we use in the future and where can we move? Think about it. I think we should say no to the students who waste things every day. Everybody should stop wasting as soon as possible.
In our everyday life, we can do many things to prevent waste from happening, for example, turn off the water taps(水龙头) when we finish washing, turn off the lights when we leave the classroom, try not to order more food than we need, and so on. Little by little, everything will be changed. Waste can be stopped one day, if we do our best. From the passage we know that some students often _______ in the school.
A.eat too much | B.don’t work hard | C.waste things | D.throw rubbish everywhere |
Which is not mentioned in this passage?
A.Fresh water. | B.Forest. | C.Oil. | D.Coal. |
What may happen in 100 years?
A.We may still have enough oil. | B.We may still have enough coal. |
C.We may have a little oil. | D.We may have no coal or oil to use. |
Which is the best title of this passage?
A.Stop Wasting | B.School life |
C.Waste in the School | D.Rich Resources in China |
Mary’s plan for next week
Monday |
7:30 go to the cinema with Alice |
Tuesday |
11:00 doctor |
Wednesday |
9:00 table tennis game evening-study for exam |
Thursday |
8:30 concert |
Friday |
Afternoon—help Uncle Sam in his restaurant |
Saturday |
9:00—10:30 art class 14:00 visit grandmother |
Sunday |
8:00 supper with Betty and Ann |
Peter’s plan for next week
Monday |
study group meeting 3:00 p.m. |
Tuesday |
basketball match 4:30 p.m. |
Wednesday |
go to see some friends 2:00 p.m. |
Thursday |
noon, lunch with Larry |
Friday |
2:00—4:00 p.m. volunteer(志愿者) work @ Student Centre |
Saturday |
Shopping 10:00 a.m. |
Sunday |
Basketball team party 9:00 p.m. |
Peter’s study group meeting will be on ______.
A.Saturday morning | B.Monday afternoon |
C.Saturday evening | D.Friday afternoon |
From Peter’s plan we learn that Peter likes ______.
A.table tennis | B.music | C.art | D.basketball |
On Sunday morning Mary will ______.
A.be free | B.be busy | C.see the doctor | D.go shopping |
What will Mary do on Wednesday evening?
A.See her friends | B.Play basketball |
C.Go to her art class | D.Prepare for an exam |
We are already familiar with computers—computers work for us at home, in offices and in factories. But it is also true that many children today are using computers at schools before they can write. What does this mean for the future? Are these children lucky or not?
Many people who do not know about computers think of them as machines that children play with. They worry that children do not learn from experience but just from pressing a button and that this is not good for them. They think that children are growing not knowing about the real world.
But people who understand more about computers say that computers can be very good for children. A computer can help them to learn about the real world more quickly, to learn what they want to learn and think for themselves. And for the future, don’t we need people who can think clearly, who know how to get information quickly and use it well? What do you think?“To be familiar with” means to ______.
A.know nothing | B.know about | C.dislike | D.like |
Does everyone think computers are good for children?
A.Yes, they do. | B.No, not everyone thinks so. |
C.They don’t know. | D.They are not sure. |
What can computers help children to do?
A.To think clearly, to do homework and to write. |
B.To play games, to do math and to copy. |
C.To think clearly, to get information and to use it well. |
D.To count, to clean the house and to get information. |
Christmas Eve means a warm get-together with friends, a candlelight dinner, or perhaps a celebration at a pub(酒馆) for students. But, for Cai Yingjie, the night has a different meaning: helping beggars(乞丐) and the homeless(people without homes).
Cai, who is a student in journalism at Tsinghua, could be found at Beijing’s Wudaokou Light Railway Station that special evening. When she saw an old beggar, she took the cold, rough hands of the woman with her warm, clean hands, and gave the woman some warm bread and helped her put on a pair of new gloves(手套).
The woman was surprised for a few seconds, then burst into tears, saying “for the first time I feel respected(尊重)”.
Cai said, “A beggar’s life is very hard. That’s why I want to help them.”
Cai was one of 14 Tsinghua students spendingChristmas Eve among the poor. They walked in the cold wind along the streets from 4to 7 pm on Friday, visiting 15 beggars in Beijing’s Haidian District.
They brought bread and gloves with them, and stopped to greet beggars and offer them some of the warm food. Each beggar greeted them with a look of surprise.
“I know the activity can’t help much, but it’s meant to show our respect and care for beggars and the homeless who have been neglected for so long,” said Sun, head of the group. “And Christmas is a good time for that.” What does Christmas Eve mean to the 14 Tsinghua students?
A.Taking 15 beggars to Tsinghua. |
B.Getting together with friends. |
C.Showing care to the beggars and the homeless. |
D.Selling bread and gloves to the beggars. |
What does the beggar mean by saying “for the first time I feel respected”?
A.The beggar has been waiting for Cai for long. |
B.The beggar hasn’t been shown care for so long. |
C.The beggar has been respecting Cai for a long time. |
D.This is the first time the beggar has seen Tsinghua students. |
What did each beggar feel when they received greetings?
A.Sad | B.Amazed. | C.Frightened. | D.Proud. |
The word “neglected” in the last passage means _______.
A.protected | B.found |
C.taken care of | D.given no enough care |