In the middle of the first term of school, the entire seventh grade was tested for basic skills. Steve hurried through his tests, and continued to dream of other things. His heart was not in school, but in the woods.
One day, Miss White’s impatient voice broke into his daydreams. “Steve! Pay attention!” Steve turned to look at her, fixing his eyes on Miss White, as she began to go over the test results for the seventh grade.
“You all did pretty well,” she told the class, “except for one boy, and it breaks my heart to tell you this, but...” She hesitated, her eyes searching his face. “...The smartest boy in the seventh grade is failing my class!” She just stared at Steve. Steve dropped his eyes.
After that, it was war! Steve still wouldn’t do his homework. Even as the punishments became more severe, he remained stubborn.
“Just try it! ONE WEEK!” He was unmoved.
“You’re smart enough! You’ll see a change!” Nothing touched him.
“Give yourself a chance! Don’t give up on your life!” Nothing.
“Steve! Please! I care about you!”
Wow! Suddenly, Steve got it! Someone cared about him? Steve went home from school, thoughtful, that afternoon. Walking into the house, both parents were out. He, quickly, gathered up a jar of peanut butter, a loaf of bread, a bottle of water, and this time...his schoolbooks.
The following Monday he arrived at school on time, and he waited for Miss White to enter the classroom. She walked in, all smiles! God, she was beautiful!
Miss White, immediately, gave a quiz on the weekend homework. Steve hurried through the test and was the first to hand in his paper. With a look of surprise, Miss White took his paper. Obviously puzzled, she began to look it over. Miss White’s face was in total shock! The smartest boy in the seventh grade had just passed his first test!
From that moment nothing was the same for Steve. Life at home remained the same, but life still changed. He discovered that not only could he learn, but he was good at it!
He discovered that he could understand knowledge and translate the things he learned into his own life. Steve began to go ahead!Steve used to be bad at his lessons because _______.
| A．the teacher blamed him from time to time |
| B．he was not a smart boy in his class |
| C．the test for the seventh grade challenged his confidence |
| D．he hadn’t put his heart into his studies |
The underlined word “stubborn” in the passage probably refers to “_______”.
| A．completely unchanged |
| B．severely punished |
| C．careless with the homework |
| D．lost in the test |
It was the _______that made Steve begin to work hard at his lessons later.
| A．his parents | B．his classmates |
| C．the teacher | D．failure in the test |
Which of the following descriptions is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．Steve often helped his parents work in the woods instead of going to school. |
| B．The teacher punished Steve for his failure in the test for the seventh grade. |
| C．Steve not only made progress but finally became a good student of the class. |
| D．Steve was actually a clever boy, but Miss White hadn’t realized it at first. |
Which of the following words best describes Steve’s teacher?
| A．Hardworking. | B．Caring. |
| C．Outstanding. | D．Strict. |
Stanley was a person who loved singing to himself in the bath． One cold winter night， he went into the bathroom to have a hot bath． He took off his clothes and turned on the tap， but there was no hot water ﹣ the water from the tap was cold．
Stanley didn't know what was wrong， but he finally decided to take a bath without hot water． He started to sing as usual， one song after another． Stanley was surprised that the water felt warm this way． So he kept singing， louder and louder， until he finished his bath．
The next moming when Stanley was going to work， he saw a piece of paper on his door：
Please do not sing so loud! Every time you sing I get a headache，and my baby cries．
The poor mother next door．
（1）What did Stanley like to do when he had a bath？
A． He likes dancing．
B． He likes singing．
C． He likes whistling．
（2）What season was it in when the story about Stanley happened？
A． In spring．
B． In summer．
C． In winter．
（3）What can we tell Stanley would do next time when he had a bath？
A． He would not sing aloud again．
B． He would cry at the top of his voice．
C． He would keep on singing with a loud voice．
I was jogging with my dog this morning when I saw John at a street corner． He was sitting on a bike with one of his feet on the ground． "He's waiting for someone，" I thought． John and I were both in the ninth grade． He was a basketball player on our school team and was very popular with many girls． But I never talked to him before． He was not my type．
John saw me， too． He smiled． For a moment I thought he was smiling at someone else． But he was not． "Hi， Mary，" he said to me． "You have a cute little dog．" I smiled but did not say anything， because I did not know what to say． "I'm here waiting for you． Would you …would you like to go to the movies with me？ " he asked． I was very surprised． I never thought he would do this， and I never thought about going out with him．
I said "No"， of course． But he seemed nice and friendly． Maybe I would go to watch him play basketball someday．
注解： jog 慢跑 type 类型
（1）What was John doing on the street when Mary saw him？
A． Talking to a girl．
B． Jogging．
C． Riding a bicycle．
（2）What does the underlined word "this" mean in the second paragraph？
A． Asking Mary to go to a movie．
B． Playing basketball with Mary．
C． Being surprised to see Mary．
（3）What do we know about John and Mary？
A． They both enjoy jogging in the morning．
B． They like each other very much．
C． They are in the same school
The first time my wife Linda gave birth was in a hospital．
When Linda got pregnant（怀孕） for the second time， we wanted a home birth， not just for ourselves， but for our daughter． We are very open with our daughter． We want to teach her respect and awe（敬畏） for the things of bodies． So she was part of the process from the very beginning．
In the morning the midwives came just as Linda was climbing into the birth tub（盆）．Our daughter offered her mom water and food while she rested． When she found the noise and activity of birth， she was too nervous to stay long， so she spent a few minutes next to the tub， then went into another room to play． The midwives called her back in time to see her brother come into the world． As Linda pulled our tiny newborn son up， our daughter and I rushed to her side， all four of us hugging and crying and very excited．
That night， and many times since then， our daughter said， "I' m so proud of Mom for having a baby． "She has seen and admired the effort it takes to bring a new person into the world． It's a part of her life， something that can happen in the same room where she colors and watches movies．
It was crucial that our daughter was part of that experience， not just for her， but for Linda and me as well． Everything we wanted for her﹣trusted care providers； a very familiar environment continuing support； good food﹣were things we needed but didn't have the first time Linda gave birth．We crossed this threshold（门槛） together，as a family，and it was messy and scary and painful and unusual and mysterious and really perfect．
（1）The writer of this passage is probably ．
A．a father
B． a mother
C． a daughter
D． a son
（2）What does the under lined word "midwives" probably mean ．
A． carefully hardworking cooks
B． specially trained nurses
C． truly talented singers
D． very friendly drivers
（3）From the last paragraph， we can see in fact the writer ．
A． didn't want her wife Linda to give birth in the family
B． didn't want their family to cross the threshold together
C． thought it was crucial that their daughter was not part of the experience
D． wanted her daughter to know that she was trusted and needed in the family
（4）According to the passage we can see ．
A． the writer's first child is a son
B． there are five people in the writer's family now
C． the writers daughter saw her brother come into the world
D． the writer wanted a home birth， only just for their daughter
（5）Which is the best title（标题） for this passage？
A． My First Child Was Born in a Hospital．
B． The Second Child in My Happy Family
C． A Messy and Painful and Unusual Family
D． Why Did We Choose a Home Birth for Our Second Child？
Sore necks are very common these days． How to avoid a sore neck？ Here are the things you should know．
Take precautions（预防措施） after an unusual activity． Many people report having a pain in their necks after doing something that they don't often do， such as a new exercise or packing and moving．
If you know you've done something that puts you a risk， massage（按摩） your neck， do it with different exercises and take a warm bath before bed．
Make sure your workstation is correct． If you work long hours at a desk， you may want to make sure that your work environment is set up to be the most relaxing． Make sure that your body is being treated right．
Keep your feet on the floor． This will often depend on how high your chair is， so adjust（调整）it in time to achieve good results．
Change your posture often． Sitting in one position for long periods of time is not healthy Sit with your back straight for most of the time． Take a 5﹣minute break if you can and walk around every hour．
Exercise． Find something﹣swimming， running or climbing﹣ that makes you excited and feel alive． Make it into a usual way． Your body will feel better and your mind will feel more relaxed．
（1）In Paragraph 5， the underlined word"it"refers to（指） ．
A． the desk
B． the chair
C． your neck
D． your body
（2）The underlined word"posture"in Paragraph 6 probably means " " in Chinese．
A．姿势
B．方向
C．方式
D．状态
（3） can avoid a sore back according to the passage．
A． Making your work environment be quiet
B． Sitting with back straight for a moment
C． Packing and moving for a long time
D． Exercising often like swimming or running
（4）After doing something unusual， you may do the following things except ．
A． doing it with different exercises
B． massaging your neck
C． taking a warm bath before bed
D． looking at your phone for too long
（5）This passage mainly tells us ．
A． how to do exercise well
B． exercising often is good for people
C． how to avoid a sore neck
D． being healthy is the most important
A middle﹣aged man， Xu Shijie， from Kaifeng is a pedicab（三轮车） driver， or rather， a tour guide． Over the past 15 years， he has served hundreds of foreign tourists． He told them stories about Kaifeng in English．
（1） With the help of a dictionary， he read English magazines and books in his spare time． He also kept a diary in English． Thus， he could learn more new words and grammar．
He first talked to a foreign tourist in 2003． He was nervous and not sure whether the tourist could understand him or not． Luckily， the tourist understood him and they talked happily that day．
Since then， Xu has studied English even harder． He practiced listening and speaking skills every night． In order to provide a better introduction to Kaifeng， he has also read lots of books about the city's history and culture． Xu is now better known as Jason， his English name． He has become the most popular pedicab driver in Kaifeng．（2） He often helps tourists buy train tickets or medicine． Sometimes， he also helps them find quality hotels． Many people call Xu a culture ambassador． XU said he would try his best to live up to the praise and make Chinese culture known to the world．
练习一：下面四个选项中选出能填入文中（1）和（2）处的最佳选项．
A． Xu has learned English all by himself．
B． At first， people laughed at Xu's poor pronunciation of English．
C． Foreign tourists don't care about Xu's best service．
D． This is not only because he can speak English， but also because he is warm﹣hearted．
练习二：Translate the underlined sentences into Chinese．
练习三：What does the passage mainly talk about？