Nancy Tillman’s wonderful On the Night You Were Born is one of my very favorite books. Its celebration of the uniqueness of each and every child told in lyrical language makes it the gift I choose most often for expectant or adoptive parents. I also read it regularly with my grandchildren and talk with them about how special they are.
Tillman feels that the most important message for children to receive is simply, “You are loved.” And it’s that message that is the focus of this, her newest book, Wherever You Are: My Love Will Find You. Once again, it is her turn of phrase that most fascinates me: In the green of the grass ... in the smell of the sea ... in the clouds floating by ... at the top of a tree ... in the sound crickets make at the end of the day ... “You are loved. You are loved. You are loved,” they all say. Phrases encourage children to grow, to try new things, to “march to the front” of their “own parade” and assures them that, no matter how far they go or what they do, they will be loved.
Though the words alone would convince me to buy, share and recommend this book, Tillman is also a gifted artist and her lovely work makes this book a visual treasure as well. Through the pages, a child rides hippos, splashes in the surf with elephants, plays hide and seek with rabbits, shares a trampoline(蹦床) with a kangaroo and enjoys some quiet time with a pair of pandas. My favorite drawing has the child walking away along a wide path that runs between trees covered in mist. In all of the drawings, swirls of sparkling lights wrap around the child--the love that will always be with him/her.
I’ve read On the Night You Were Born dozens of times and with every single reading, I am incredibly touched. Wherever You Are: My Love Will Find You creates the same feeling of wonder, peace and happiness in me. It’s a keep-forever book and I’m so happy to have it in my collection to share with the children I love most.The purpose of this passage is to __________.
| A．encourage people to buy Nancy Tillman’s books for their children |
| B．recommend Tillman’s new book--Wherever You Are: My Love Will Find You |
| C．advocate the theme of love among family members |
| D．Let children know they are loved and educate them to love others |
Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?
| A．Nancy Tillman’s book On the Night You Were Born encourages children to try new things. |
| B．The most important focus of Tillman’s books is for children to know they are loved. |
| C．The writer considers Tillman a gifted artist for her vivid use of words and rich imagination. |
| D．The writer has bought and read both of Tillman’s books mentioned in this passage. |
Pick out the true statements according to the passage.
| A．The words alone makes Tillman’s books the writer’s favorite. |
| B．Wherever You Are: My Love Will Find You is published earlier than On the Night You Were Born. |
| C．My favorite drawing shows the feeling of wonder with the child swirling in sparkling lights. |
| D．The drawings in Wherever You Are convey love with pictures involving animals. |
Some people bring out the best in you in a way that you might never have fully realized on your own. My mother was one of those people.
My father died when I was one-year-old. While I was growing up, we led a very hard life, but my mom gave me a lot of love. Each night, she seated me on her lap and spoke the words that would change my life, "Kemmons, you are sure to be a great man and you can do anything in life if you work hard enough to get it. "
At fourteen, I was hit by a car and the doctors said that I would never walk again. Every night my mother spoke to me in her gentle, loving voice, telling me whatever those doctors said, I could walk again if I wanted to. She drove that message so deep into my heart that I finally believed her. A year later, I walked on my own to school!
When the Great Depression broke out, my mother lost her job. Then I left school to support the two of us. At that moment I decided never to be poor again.
Over the years, I experienced a lot of business success. But the real turning point happened on a vacation I took with my wife and five kids in 1951. I was dissatisfied with the second-class hotels available for families and was very angry that they charged an extra $2 for each child. That was too expensive for an ordinary American family. I told my wife that I was going to open a motel （汽车旅馆）for families that would never charge extra money for children. Many people did not believe me at that time.
Not surprisingly, mom was my strongest supporter. As in any business, I experienced a lot of difficulties. But with my mom's words in my heart, I never doubted I would succeed. Fifteen years later, I had the largest hotel system in the world—Holiday Inn. In 1979 my company had 1,759 inns in more than fifty countries with an income of $l billion a year.
You may not have started out life in the best situations. But if you find a task in life worth working for and believe in yourself, nothing can stop you.What Kemmon's mother often told him during his childhood was____.
| A．caring | B．moving |
| C．encouraging | D．interesting |
Who played the most important role in making the author walk back to school again?
| A．Doctors. | B．Nurses. |
| C．His friend. | D．His mom. |
What caused Kemmon to start a motel by himself?
| A．His terrible experience in the hotel. | B．His wife's suggestion. |
| C．His previous business success. | D．His mom's support. |
Which of the following best describes Kemmon's mother?
| A．Modest, helpful and hard-working. |
| B．Loving, supportive and strong-willed. |
| C．Careful, beautiful and helpful. |
| D．Strict, sensitive and supportive. |
. Which of the following led to Kemmon's success?
| A．Self-confidence, hard work, higher education and a poor family. |
| B．Mom's encouragement, clear goals, self-confidence and hard work. |
| C．Clear goals, mom's encouragement, a poor family and higher education. |
| D．Mom's encouragement, a poor family, higher education and opportunities. |
The United States will introduce a new exam system for students who want to study in the USA and other English-speaking countries, Xinhua News Agency reported from New York.
The exam, which means a great change from the current English level test, was introduced by Theresa Jen, associate director of the International Service of the USA College Board, America's leading educational organization.
"The Advanced Placement International English Language （APIEL） will be offered for the first time all over the world on May 10, 2012," said Jen.
However, the APIEL is a strange title to most Chinese students, and it is unlikely to soon gain the similarity(相似点) of other already existing exams, such as the TOEFL （Test of English as a Foreign Language）, the GRE （Graduate Record Examination）, or the IELTS （International English Language Testing System）.
"I have never heard of such a test and I would prefer the IELTS if I need another exam," said Xu Jingyan, a graduating student from Beijing University, who wants to study in England and has already taken the TOEFL.
Most of Xu's classmates have never heard of the APIEL. "The APIEL is made for international students who wish to get university studies in English-speaking countries, including the United States, Britain, Canada and Australia. " Jen said.
"The APIEL will be used," said Jen, "because the TOEFL can no longer perfectly show the students' abilities of using English. " Xinhua reported that a large number of foreign students who had high scores in TOEFL exam turned out to be very ordinary educational performers after being admitted.
"Compared with the TOEFL, the APIEL measures a student's ability to read, write, speak and understand 'English through testing his or her skills in listening comprehension, speaking with fluency, and writing in an organized way. " Jen said.The underlined word "current" in the second paragraph means .
| A．high | B．present | C．low | D．formal |
We can learn from the passage that .
| A．the TOEFL is more popular with the Chinese than the IELTS |
| B．it will take quite a period of time for people to accept the APIEL |
| C．Chinese students will prefer the IELTS rather than the APIEL even in the future |
| D．a student will have to take the APIEL if he/ she wants to study in English-speaking countries from 2012 |
The APIEL is designed for students who want to study in English-speaking countries, such as .
| A．the United States and Canada | B．Canada and Ireland |
| C．Australia and India | D．Britain and France |
According to the passage, the United States will introduce a new exam because .
| A．it will bring the US government quite a lot of money |
| B．more and more students want to get further education in the USA |
| C．the existing exam systems can no longer perfectly show the students' abilities |
| D．the Chinese pay special attention to English studies with China's entry into the WTO |
Which of the following would be the best title for this passage?
| A．A New Exam Designed for Students |
| B．The Four Skills in Learning English |
| C．The Key to English-speaking Countries |
| D．TOEFL, IELTS and GRE to Be out of Date |
Diary of a Do – It – Yourself Book
This book based on Greg Hefley’s own “diary” lets kids express themselves in an exciting way. In the book, kids will be asked: What was the best dream you have ever had? The worst thing you have ever eaten? The best secret you have ever heard? This Do – It – Yourself Book is unique and special because it has blank pages for readers to write their own stories and keep their own diaries.
Author: Jeff Kinney
List Price: $10.95
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Train to Somewhere
Marianne, heading west with fourteen other children on a train, is sure her mother will show up at one of the stations along the way. Stop after stop goes by, and there is no sign of her mother in the crowds that come to look over the children. No one shows any interest in adopting shy Marianne, either. But that is all right. She has to be free for her mother to claim her. Then the train stopped at its final stop, a town called Somewhere…
Author: Eve Bunting
List Price: $6.95
Price: $6.95 Buy it on Amazon.com.
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Chinese Children's Favorite Stories
This volume of beloved Chinese stories contains a delightful(令人高兴的) selection from the rich store of Chinese legend. Discover many delightful animal characters as well as Chang’e and Guan Yin. Retold for an international audience, the stories with beautiful pictures will give children aged six to ten in other countries a chance to learn about both the tradition and culture of China.
Author: Mingmei Yip
List Price: $18.95
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The Way Science Works
The perfect introduction to show how science explains the world around us! Eye-opening experiments and extraordinary photography bring science to life. Discover science in action from the principles that explain everyday facts to the theories behind the technology in today’s fast-moving world. Full of facts about famous scientists, technology news and more.
Author: Robin Kerrod
List Price: $24.99
Price: $16.49 Buy it on Amazon.com.
You save: $8.50（34%） Diary of a Do–It–Yourself Book is different from other books because you can .
| A．ask the author questions |
| B．write your own stories in the book |
| C．have a chance to see beautiful photos |
| D．read many interesting stories about the author |
Amazon. com gives no discount on .
| A．Diary of a Do-It-Yourself Book |
| B．Train to Somewhere |
| C．Chinese Children’s Favorite Stories |
| D．The Way Science Works |
Based on Train to Somewhere, how many children head west on the train.
| A．15. | B．14. | C．13. | D．16. |
Chinese Children's Favorite Stories is written for .
| A．Chinese children aged 6 to 10 |
| B．teenagers in other countries |
| C．junior students in other countries |
| D．foreign children aged 6 to 10 |
Whose book would you like to read if you are interested in science and technology?
| A．Jeff Kinney’s. | B．Eve Bunting's. |
| C．Mingmei Yip’s. | D．Robin Kerrod’s. |
Bend over, take a deep breath and drink some water! This is just one of hundreds of tips you might get if you have the hiccups(打嗝). Hiccups are so mysterious. We really don’t know why they start and why they stop.
Everyone has a favorite cure(治愈方法) for a case of the hiccups. Some people think that a good scare(惊恐) is necessary to get well. Others eat a teaspoon of sugar. Still others drink a glass of water with a knife in it.
An American man named Jack O’Leary said he had hiccupped 160 million times over a period of eight years. He tried 60,000 cures, but none of them worked. At last he prayed to Saint Jude, the saint of Hopeless cases, and his hiccupping stopped immediately.
It took a British plumber eight months to cure his hiccups. People from all over the world wrote him letters with suggestions for getting well. He tried them all, but the hiccups continued. Finally, he drank a “secret” mixture someone had sent him. By that evening his hiccups were gone.
Why did these cures work for these two men? No one really know. But people who have studied many cases of hiccups have an idea – hiccups usually go away if you believe in the cure.. How did Jack O’Leary stop his hiccups?
| A．He took a deep breath. | B．He prayed to Saint Jude |
| C．He ate a teaspoon of sugar. | D．He drank a “secret” mixture. |
. The British plumber spent in stopping his hiccups.
| A．4 hours | B．2 days |
| C．8 months | D．8 years |
. might be the best cure for hiccups according to the passage.
| A．Cold water | B．A spoonful of salt |
| C．Special pills | D．What you believe in |
. From this passage, we can learn .
| A．Saint Jude is an expert in curing the hiccups |
| B．the reason why the hiccups start and why the hiccups stop |
| C．some people think that a good scare is a cure for a case of hiccups |
| D．the British plumber drank a “secret” mixture given by an experienced doctor and then became well |
. What is the main idea of this passage?
| A．Different ways to stop hiccups. |
| B．What makes hiccups happen. |
| C．How to get hiccups. |
| D．Jack O’Leary’s hiccups. |
There are many ways to find a job. It can be as easy as walking into a neighborhood store to look at its announcement board. Local stores often have areas where people can put small signs telling what kind of service they need or can provide. Such services include caring for children or cleaning houses.
Or, job searchers can look in the newspaper. Local newspapers have employment announcements placed by companies seeking workers.
Another popular tool for finding jobs is the Internet. For example, people in four hundred and fifty cities around the world can use the Craigslist Web site to buy objects, meet people or find a job. Craigslist says that it receives two million new job listings each month.
Another useful way to find a job is through a college or university. For example, students at the University of Texas in Austin can go to the Career Exploration Center to get help in finding a job. Of course, looking for a job requires knowing what kind of work you want to do. For example, there is a book called “What Color is Your Parachute (降落伞)?” by Richard Bolles. This book has been helping people choose a career (职业) since it was first published in nineteen seventy.
Some experts also help people find jobs. Susan W. Miller owns a company called California Career Services in Los Angeles. She says her company helps people find jobs by first helping them understand their strengths, goals and interests. Then she provides them with methods and resources to help them find the right job.What is the passage mainly about?
| A．Finding a job. |
| B．College students’ part-time jobs. |
| C．Craigslist Web site. |
| D．The relation between study and work. |
“What Color is Your Parachute?” is a book which gives tips to those who want to _____.
| A．work on the airplane | B．buy a parachute |
| C．publish a book | D．find a suitable job |
It can be learned from the passage that ______.
| A．companies often put job information in local shops |
| B．the Internet is the most popular tool for job hunters in the USA |
| C．Susan W. Miller’s company is helping people choose careers |
| D．California Career Services mainly serves university students |
How many ways of finding a job are mentioned in the passage?
| A．Three. | B．Four. |
| C．Five. | D．Six. |