J. K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter book series, began writing at age 6. In her biography（传记）, she well remembers her good friend, Sean, whom she met in secondary school, helped build her confidence in becoming a very good writer. “He was the first person to know my serious dream to be a writer. He was also the only person who thought I was certain to be a success at it, which meant much more to me.”
Rowling met many difficulties in her writing, especially fantasy(幻想) stories. It wasn't until l990 that she first got the idea about Harry Potter. As she recalls, it was on a long train journey from London to Manchester that “the idea of Harry Potter simply fell into my head. I didn't have a pen with me, and I was too shy to ask anybody if I could borrow one. I think, now, that this was probably a good thing, because I simply sat and thought, for four(delayed train) hours, and all the details appear in my brain, and this thin, black-haired, glasses-wearing boy who didn't know he was a wizard (男巫) became more and more real to me.”
That same year, her mother passed away after a ten-year illness, which deeply affected her writing. She went on to marry and had a daughter, but separated from her husband shortly afterwards.
During this time, Rowling suffered from depression(抑郁症). She, out of work,completed her first novel in the cafes, where she could get her daughter to fall asleep. After being refused by l2 publishing houses, the first Harry Potter novel was sold to a small British publishing house.
Now with seven books sold nearly 400 million copies in 64 languages, J. K. Rowling is the highest earning novelist in history. And it all began with the confidence of a friend!
Which of the following could be the best title of the passage?
| A．Confidence of a Friend Helped the Success of Harry Potter |
| B．J.K.Rowing’s Hard Life and the Success of Harry Potter |
| C．J.K.Rowing---author of the Harry Potter book series |
| D．How J.K.Rowing Firstly Got the Idea of Harry Potter |
According to the passage, we know J.K.Rowing_______.
| A．had a happy family |
| B．had a ten-year illness |
| C．earned a lot from her novels |
| D．published 12 books in 64 languages |
Where did J.K.Rowing first have the shape of Harry Potter?
| A．in the cafes | B．on a train |
| C．in a secondary school | D．in a publishing house |
What can we learn from the passage?
| A．Harry Potter’s friends didn’t know he was a wizard until he graduated. |
| B．J.K.Rowing wrote down her idea while she was on the train by borrowing a pen. |
| C．It’s lucky that J.K.Rowing didn’t have a pen while she got the idea of Harry Potter. |
| D．Harry Potter was a thin, yellow-haired handsome boy with a pair of glasses on his nose. |
It was unusually quiet in the emergency room on December 25.
I was the nurse on duty that day. I didn’t think there would be any patients, sighing about having to work on Christmas. Just then five bodies showed up at my desk, a pale woman and four small children.
“Are you all sick?” I asked.
“Yes,” she said weakly and lowered her head.
But when it came to descriptions of their problems, things got a little unclear. Two of the children had headaches, but the headaches weren’t accompanied by the normal body language of holding the head or trying to keep it still. Two children had earaches, but only one could tell me which ear was affected. The mother complained of a cough but seemed to work to produce it.
Something was wrong, but I didn’t say anything but explained that it might be a little while before a doctor saw her. She responded, “Take your time; it’s warm here.”
Then I checked the chart after the admitting clerk had finished registering the family. No address—they were homeless. The waiting room was warm.
I looked out at the family gathering close together by the Christmas tree. The little one was pointing at the television and saying something to her mother. The oldest one was looking at something on the Christmas tree.
I went back to the nurses’ station and mentioned we had a homeless family in the waiting room. The nurses, complaining about working on Christmas, began to feel pity for a family just trying to get warm on Christmas. The team went into action, much as we do when there’s a medical emergency. But this one was a Christmas emergency.
We were all offered a free meal in the hospital cafeteria on Christmas Day, so we claimed that meal and prepared a banquet for our Christmas guests. We needed presents. We put together oranges and apples in a basket. We collected from different departments candies, crayons and other things available that could be presents. As seriously as we met the physical needs of the patients that came to us that day, our team worked to meet the needs of a family who just wanted to be warm on Christmas Day.
Later, as the family walked to the door to leave, the four-year old came running back, gave me a hug and whispered, “Thanks for being our angels today.”Which of the following would be the best title of the passage?
| A．Working on Christmas Day |
| B．Christmas Day is Coming |
| C．A Happy Family |
| D．A Pale Woman and Four Small Children |
What kind of person do you think the author is?
| A．Hardworking and outgoing |
| B．Serious and careful |
| C．Hardworking and warmhearted |
| D．Serious and stubborn |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．Something was wrong with one of the children’ s head. |
| B．The pale woman forgot to write the address. |
| C．One of the children had a language problem. |
| D．The whole family pretended to be sick. |
It can be inferred from the text that ______.
| A．The author didn’t think there would be any patients on Christmas Day |
| B．The woman was uncomfortable when she lowered her head |
| C．The family appeared in the emergency room on Christmas Eve |
| D．The woman and four small children were satisfied and grateful |
Dear God,
This is Charles. I’m twelve. I’m typing this letter. Sometimes it’s hard for me to write. It’s a disease called dysgraphia. I also have learning disabilities, but my IQ was tested at 140.
I could never hold a pencil in the right way. My brain doesn’t sense what my hand is doing. I can feel the pencil, but the message doesn’t get through right. I have to hold the pencil tighter so that my brain knows I have it in my hand.
It’s much easier for me to explain things by talking than writing. There are so many things I can picture in my mind, but my hands just can’t draw it the way I see it.
It’s OK. I’m not complaining. I’m really doing fine. You see, you gave me a wonderful mind and a great sense of humor. I’m great at figuring things out, and I love to debate. We have some great discussions in class, and that’s where I really shine.
I want to be a lawyer when I grow up. I know I’d be good at it. You have told me that you made me special. You make me believe that you will see me through, and that you have plans for me to give me a future and hope. My parents want to help me, so they buy me a laptop. My teacher is the best this year! I am allowed to do a lot of my work on the computer.
Life’s hard sometimes, but I accept the challenge. Thanks for loving me. Thanks for everything.
CharlesThe second paragraph mainly tells us ______.
| A．the details of his disease |
| B．his feelings about the disease |
| C．how to prevent the disease |
| D．how he holds a pencil in the right way |
The boy wanted to be a lawyer because of the following EXCEPT ______.
| A．he loved to debate |
| B．he was good at explaining things |
| C．he had a great sense of humor |
| D．lawyers don’t have to depend on writing |
The boy wrote the letter in order to ______.
| A．complain about his disease |
| B．show his gratefulness |
| C．show others that he was clever |
| D．talk about his life |
In my thirty years as a time management speaker, I have observed (观察) a lot of what we can not and should not do to increase our daily results. Time management is not necessarily working harder, but rather smarter.
A lot of our time management has to do more with what we are not doing rather than what we are doing. Sometimes our mistakes will keep us from running at a full pace. Here are some time management mistakes we should all avoid to help us increase our daily efficiency:
Start your day without a plan of action. Without a plan, you will have worked hard but may not have done enough right things. Time management is not doing the wrong things more rapidly. That just gets us nowhere faster. Time management is doing the right things.
Work with a messy (凌乱不堪) desk or work area. Studies have shown that the person who works with a messy desk spends, on average, one and a half hours per day in looking for things. That’s seven and a half hours per week. If you have ever visited the office of a top manager, you can easily find that he or she is working with a clean desk environment.
Don’t take a lunch break. Many people do not take a lunch break. They work through that time period in the hope that it will give them more time to finish the task. Studies have shown that it may work just the opposite. After doing what we do for several hours, our mind will become boring. A lunch break, even a fifteen-minute break, gives us a chance to get our batteries all charged up again.With a plan of action, you can ______.
| A．work harder |
| B．do the wrong things more rapidly |
| C．avoid doing wrong things |
| D．get nowhere faster |
Working with a messy desk or work area, you will ______.
| A．waste a lot of time |
| B．find the things you need easily |
| C．become a top manager |
| D．save seven and a half hours per week |
The text mainly tells us ______.
| A．how to avoid wasting time |
| B．we should get our batteries all charged up |
| C．how important time management is |
| D．some time management mistakes |
A group of people decided to climb a mountain together. They thought it was going to be an easy climb, so they laughed and talked among themselves and didn’t notice the sky growing darker. They soon got lost for they couldn’t see very far in front of them. They huddled together that night over a fire.
No one walked too far away from the group by themselves because it would surely lead to death. They sat close to each other throughout the dark hours not just for warmth, but for the fact that staying with the group was their only hope for survival. After what felt like a century, the sun started its slow climb up the sky. They were now able to see as far ahead of them as they liked, so they began to go down the mountain.
They still remained as a group at this time even though there was no real need. A bond (凝聚力) had formed throughout the group that could not be broken or ignored. They knew each other just as well as they knew themselves. As they reached the place where they had started their journey, they knew it was time to say goodbye. Feeling at peace, they bowed (鞠躬) deeply to each other. All of them kept the love they created as a group close to their hearts as they made their way out into the world alone.What was the difficulty the group of people met in the mountain?
| A．Damaged roads. | B．Animals’ attack. |
| C．Losing their way. | D．Running out of food. |
What does the underlined word “huddled” in the first paragraph probably mean?
| A．Talked a lot. | B．Sat close to each other. |
| C．Played happily. | D．Explored the mountain. |
What was the most important thing they did in order to survive?
| A．They kept close to each other. |
| B．They told stories to encourage others. |
| C．They made a fire to keep warm. |
| D．They sent some people to find the way. |
They remained as a group when going down the mountain because ______.
| A．the way was still not clear |
| B．they enjoyed being in a group |
| C．they needed others to pull them |
| D．the way became difficult to walk on |
What should you think about when trying to find your career? You are probably better at some school subjects than others. These may show strengths that you can use in your work. A boy who is good at mathematics can use that in an engineering career. A girl who spells well and likes English maybe good at office work. So it is important to know the subjects you do well in at school. On the other hand, you may not have any specially strong subjects but your records show a general satisfactory standard. Although not all subjects can be used directly in a job, they may have indirect value. A knowledge of history is not required for most jobs but if history is one of your good subjects you will have learned to remember facts and details. This is an ability that can be useful in many jobs.
Your school may have taught you skills, such as typing or technical drawing, which you can use in your work. You may be good at metalwork or cookery and look for a job where you can improve these skills. If you have had a part-time job on Saturdays or in the summer, think what you gained from it. If nothing else, you may have learned how to get to work on time, to follow instructions and to get on with older workers. You may have learned to give correct change in a shop, for example. Just as important, you may become interested in a particular industry or career you see from the inside in a part-time job.
Facing your weak points is also part of knowing yourself. You may be all thumbs when you handle tools; perhaps you are a poor speller or cannot add up a column of figures. It is better to face any weakness than to pretend they do not exist. Your school record, for instance, may not be too good, yet it is an important part of your background. You should not ignore it but instead recognize that you will have a chance of a fresh start at work.What is the passage mainly about?
| A．The importance of working hard at school. |
| B．Choosing a career according to one’s strengths. |
| C．How to face one’s weakness. |
| D．The value of school work. |
The writer thinks that a student’s part-time job is probably_____.
| A．a good way to find out his weak points |
| B．one of the best ways of earning extra money |
| C．of great use for his work in the future |
| D．a waste of time he could have spent on study |
From the passage we learn that if a student’s school performance is not good, he ______.
| A．should pay more attention to learning skills and developing abilities |
| B．will be regretful about his bad results |
| C．may also do well in his future work |
| D．should restart his study at school |
The underlined phrase “be all thumbs” (in Para.3) probably means “______”.
| A．be clumsy at doing things |
| B．be skillful in doing things |
| C．be not interested in certain things |
| D．be easily bored in doing things |