Many years ago, I had my first chance to visit Russia. "Russians are a very polite people," I had been told before my arrival. One of my friends explained that a gentleman will pour the lemonade for the ladies and show other good manners.
Toward the end of my three-week trip, I was invited by my Russian friend Nicolai Vasilevich and his wife Yulya out to dinner. At the end of a wonderful meal, Yulya asked if I would like a banana. I politely declined(婉谢) and thanked her, and explained I was most satisfied with the meal. But my mind was racing: "What should I do? Should I offer her a banana though they are as close to her as they are to me? What is the polite thing to do?"
"Would you like a banana?" I asked Yulya.
"Yes," she smiled, but didn't try to take any of the three bananas in the fruit basket.
"Which one would you like?" I asked again.
"That one," she pointed at one of the bananas. So thinking about Russian politeness, f picked the banana Yulya had pointed at. Then I peeled it half way and handed it to her.Smiles on Yulya's and Nicolai's faces told me I had done the right thing. Alter this experience, I spent much time letting the world know that in Russia, the polite thing was to peel bananas for ladies.
However, sometime during my third trip i learned I was wrong.
"Oh no, David," a Russian politely corrected me. "In Russia, when a man peels a banana for a lady, it means he has a romantic interest in her." How embarrassed (尴尬) I felt.
So to communicate properly with people of different cultures, we should watch carefully how people of the same culture communicate with each other. Besides, don’t be afraid to ask questions about their culture.Before his first visit to Russia, the writer learned Russian gentlemen are polite to____.
| A．foreigners | B．strangers | C．friends | D．women |
The underlined word "peeled" in Paragraph 6 means "_________".
| A．took the skin off something |
| B．put something hack |
| C．made something clean |
| D．cut something in two |
Which of the following seems to be true according to the passage?
| A．The writer's third trip lasted about three weeks. |
| B．Russian gentlemen never peel bananas for ladies. |
| C．The writer tried to follow Russians~ behavior in Russia. |
| D．Yulya was pleased with the writer's behavior but Nicolai wasn't. |
The writer wrote the passage mainly to___________.
| A．show us how polite Russian people are |
| B．tell us his funny experience in Russia |
| C．ask us to care about cultural differences |
| D．remind us what we should do in Russia |
Nature is amazing! Take a close look at the world of insects （昆虫） and you will discover many unbelievable things． Consider butterflies， for example． They have beautiful， colorful wings，and strong，steady flying skills． On summer days， we see them flying gracefully over flower gardens and wild fields．
But， do you know that butterflies live three separate lives before they become the flying insects we all know？ They begin their lives as one thing， change into another， and then another．
Finally， they change into beautiful flying insects． It's true． And it's one of the wonders of nature．
In the beginning， there is an egg， it's usually small and colorful． A female butterfly lays an egg on a leaf of a plant． When you look at this tiny egg， it's hard to believe that in a few days， it will become something completely different．
In time， it changes into a new life． No longer the small egg becomes a walking insect． This insect is called a caterpillar． It now has legs， eyes， a mouth and a large body． A new life has begun．
The caterpillar eats， and eats， and eats． It can walk． It can see．But it is still not a butterfly．Soon，after growing big， the caterpillar makes a cover for itself． It wraps （包裹） itself in this nice protective blanket and goes to sleep． This stage （阶段） of a butterfly's life is known as the "pupa" stage．
What happens next is truly amazing!
After a period of time， the blanket breaks and a wet， weak butterfly appears．It now has six legs，a mouth， eyes and wings． Soon， the wings fill with blood，and the beautiful，colorful butterfly spreads its wings and flies away．
After a few weeks pass， this adult butterfly lays her eggs， and the cycle begins all over again．
This is just one example of the wonders of nature． Look around the natural world， and you will learn many truly amazing things．
（1） is a "caterpillar"．
（2）According to the passage， it's clear that butterflies ．
A． have three separate lives in all
B． have colorful wings with no legs
C． can be seen in flower gardens in summer
D． are small eggs with no color at the beginning
（3）The last paragraph means we should ．
A． take a close look at the insect world
B． protect all kinds of animals and plants
C． discover the different forms of different things
D． go into the nature and enjoy the wonders of the world
The Way Out
By Ming﹣da Wang
﹩450→﹩199 Buy it now!
http://www．mingdawang books．net/thewayout/
I couldn't put the book down after I read some pages at my friend's home． I borrowed it and read it over that night． I think it can help someone who is afraid to face family problems．
﹣Sam Lee
The book saved my life． It opened a door that led me into a world of true love． I was able to look at the world around me with fresh new eyes．
﹣Candy Vigor
The first part of the book really touched my heart and made me want to read on．However， I was getting bored when I came to the second part． In fact， I didn't finish the book．
﹣Rod Green
The book helped me forget about my worries． I laughed and cried with those people in the book． With its simple and clear language， people of all ages can enjoy it．
﹣Vivian Lu
（1） thinks the second part of the book is boring．
A． Rod Green
B． Candy Vigor
C．Sam Lee
D． Vivian Lu
（2）The book is probably about ．
A． school education
B． website safety
C． travel lines
D． family problems
（3）We can know from the passage that ．
A． Ming﹣da Wang tells his family stories in the book
B． everyone can find the ways of solving problems from the book
C． it's the right time to buy the book because of the price at present
D． the book is only written for children with simple and clear language
Once my mother told me a story． In Africa， when an antelope （羚羊） wakes up every morning， the first thing it thinks about is， "I must be able to run faster than the fastest lion， or I will be killed．"（1） the first thing the lion thinks about is，"I must be able to catch the slowest antelope， or I will starve to death．" So， almost at the same time， they get up and start running toward the rising sun．
This is life： full of chances and challenges．（2） For students， it is just the same． If we do not study hard， sooner or later， we will fall behind the other students． At first， I did not know what the word "exam" meant． Later， I knew an exam was a kind of competition． In competitions， there are always winners and losers． As I grew up，I got to know competition well．（3） ．
Each time I saw children playing games，and heard their laughter，I wished I were that age again．（4） So I picked up my pen and began to study hard again．
I was still not sure what competition really meant． One day， I was taking part in an English﹣speaking competition． When I went to the stage， I saw other students looking at me kindly．（5） It is not as cruel as my teacher and parents told me． In fact， competition is the opposite： it is kind and necessary．
|
A． When a lion wakes from his dream B． I suddenly knew what competition was C． There must be competitions in one' s life， so people can improve D． However， I remembered my parents' words， "You must work very hard in order to have a good future．" E． Whether you are an antelope or a lion， you must go ahead when the sun rises |
Anger （愤怒） often makes us uncomfortable． Seeing your child's anger can be especially uncomfortable． In order to relieve （缓解） this feeling， parents often encourage children to "stop crying" and say things like "It's nothing to cry about．" It's moments like those that plant the seeds of unhealthy anger． The "stop crying" parents are just doing what they were taught by their own parents， who were probably taught that by their parents on and on． However， we should learn how to create healthy anger in our kids．
If a child never sees his or her parents express anger， he or she should never express anger， either． But if parents always express their anger loudly， their child may start to think of anger as something that is always frightening．
The first thing you can do to create healthy anger in your children is to practice creating healthy anger in yourself． Once you're better at experiencing anger and expressing it in a healthy way， you'll be able to set a good example for your kids．
Stopping kids from expressing their feelings is wrong． You may feel bad when you believe you are wrong． When children express their feelings and are told that it's nothing to cry about， they come to know that they themselves are bad．
We need to raise them in an environment where it's safe to express feelings． Once you feel more comfortable with your own anger， you can teach your children why anger is a helpful feeling． When your kids express anger， help them examine what it is that has made them angry． Why did it make them angry？ How did it do that？ Then， you can teach them that those feelings are never wrong and our expressions of feelings are in our control．
Anger is natural and normal， and it can be experienced and expressed in a healthy way．
（1）Why do parents say "It's nothing to cry about" to their children？
A． To encourage them to stop crying．
B． To make them uncomfortable．
C． To relieve their anger．
D． To plant the seeds of unhealthy anger．
（2）From the second paragraph we can infer （推断） ．
A． parents have a great influence on their children
B． parents should get angry with their children
C． expressing anger loudly is right， not wrong
D． children should express their anger like their parents
（3）Parents should set a good example for children by ．
A． stopping them from expressing their anger
B． expressing their own anger in a healthy way
C． letting them know they are right or wrong
D． raising them in a safe environment
（4）The writer thinks that anger is a kind of feeling that is always ．
A． wrong
B． uncomfortable
C． harmful
D． helpful
（5）What's the main idea of the passage？
A． Anger often makes us and our children uncomfortable．
B． Parents should create healthy anger in themselves．
C． Parents should create healthy anger in their kids．
D． Parents should never express their anger．
There was a story many years ago of a school teacher﹣ ﹣Mrs． Thompson． She told the children on the first day that she loved them all the same． But that was a lie． There in the front row was a little boy named Teddy Stoddard． He didn't play well with the other children and he always needed a bath． She did not like him．
Then Mrs． Thompson got to know that Teddy was actually a very good boy before the death of his mother． Mrs． Thompson was ashamed （羞耻） of herself． She felt even worse when， like all her other students， Teddy brought her a Christmas present too． It was his mother's perfume （香水）．
Teddy said， "Mrs． Thompson， today you smell just like my Mom used to．" After the children left she cried for at least an hour．On that very day，she stopped teaching reading，writing and math．Instead，she began to teach children． Mrs． Thompson paid much attention to Teddy． The boy's mind seemed to come alive． The more she encouraged him， the faster he improved． By the end of the sixth grade， Teddy had become one of the smartest children in the class．
Six years went by before she got a note from Teddy． He wrote that he had finished high school，second in his class， and she was still the best teacher he ever had in his whole life．He went to college．Mrs．Thompson got two more letters from him with the last one signed， Theodore F． Stoddard， M． D． （医学博士）
The story doesn't end there． On his wedding （婚礼） day， Dr． Stoddard whispered in Mrs． Thompson's ear， "Thank you， Mrs． Thompson， for believing in me． You made me feel important and showed me that I could make a difference．"
Mrs． Thompson， with tears in her eyes， whispered back， "Teddy， you have it all wrong． You were the one who taught me that I could make a difference． I didn't know how to teach until I met you．"
（1）What did Mrs． Thompson do on the first day of school？
A． She made Teddy feel ashamed．
B． She told the class something untrue about herself．
C． She changed Teddy's seat to the front row．
D． She asked the children to play with Teddy．
（2）In what way did Mrs． Thompson change？
A． She taught more school subjects．
B． She became stricter with her students．
C． She no longer liked her job as a teacher．
D． She cared more about educating students．
（3）Why did Teddy thank Mrs． Thompson at his wedding？
A． Because she had written to him．
B． Because she had encouraged him．
C． Because she had sent him Christmas presents．
D． Because she had taught him how to play well with other children．