Daniel Olin was 11 years old when his parents moved to Canada. He liked his new school and made friends there, but then things at home started to change. His mum and dad began to argue and the arguments got worse and worse until one day, Daniel's mum left. With his father working long hours, Daniel felt very lonely and very unhappy. He wanted to escape, to run away. And that’s what he did.
Very early one terribly cold morning when the snow was deep on the ground, he packed a bag with some clothes, some chocolate and a map of Canada and set off to a forest. He ran and ran until he could hardly breathe.
His feet were heavy with the snow but he still walked on through deep snow, not even watching where he was going.
Then, disaster struck. A rock hidden by the deep snow caught his feet and Daniel fell to the ground. He had broken the bone. He was very cold and was starting to feel tired, but he knew that if he fell asleep in the snow, he would certainly die from the cold.
A tree shook ahead. From within the branches(树枝), a pair of yellow eyes watched Daniel. The puma (美洲狮) had been following him. A puma is a large wild cat with claws that could tear Daniel into pieces. But instead of moving in for the kill, the puma walked up to Daniel and lay across his chest, arms and legs. Daniel was too frightened to move, but soon the warmth of the animal reached Daniel and he began to feel better. From time to time, the puma pressed his muzzle (鼻) against Daniel and rocked his head gently. Clearly, the puma knew that Daniel must not fall asleep. This animal should have been a real danger to Daniel and yet the boy began to feel safe. They remained like that for several hours until Daniel and the puma heard voices.
Daniel ran away from home because ______.
| A．he had a big argument with his father |
| B．he wanted to learn to be independent |
| C．he didn’t get enough care from his parents |
| D．his parents were always arguing at home |
Why didn’t Daniel notice the rock that caused him to fall?
| A．Because it was getting dark. |
| B．Because the rock was hidden by snow. |
| C．Because he was frightened by a puma. |
| D．Because he was too sad to notice it. |
Why did the puma press its muzzle against Dan and rock his head gently from time to time?
| A．To keep Daniel warm. | B．To play with Daniel. |
| C．To kill Daniel. | D．To keep Daniel awake. |
What is the best title for the story?
| A．Puma in Danger | B．A Caring Puma |
| C．A Boy in Need | D．A Homeless Boy |
Volunteers for Halloween
Saturday & Sunday, October 26 & 27
It's time for Prospect Park's ghosts to come out! Join the community tradition of Halloween in Prospect Park and sign up to become volunteers for the events.
We are now looking for 10,000 volunteers to help the Carnival(狂欢节), the Haunted Walk and various other children's activities around the Park. We're counting on your help to make the 2014 celebration the best one in history. You can read each position description below and follow the link to sign up!
Creepy Crawly Halloween at the Boathouse: Help prepare the Audubon Center's educational exhibits and /or assist with children's activities. There are two shifts(轮班) on both Saturday and Sunday. Please sign up for however many shifts you would like to work.
Haunted Carousel: At the Haunted Carousel, assist children on and off horses and direct them to the correct entrance and exit gates. There are two shifts available on each day; please sign up for one or more shifts.
Lefferts Historic House: At Lefferts, Craft Assistants will enjoy encouraging creativity in children by working with crafts. Crowd Control Assistants are expected to help manage the flow of people through the house. There is a shift on Saturday and Sunday; please sign up for one or both.
Halloween Carnival: Game Leaders assist children with games and hand out prizes. Carnival Greeters assist with traffic control and answer questions from the public. The Carnival will take place on Saturday on the Nethermead.
Halloween Haunted Walk: Volunteers will dress up as costumed (戏装的) characters, working as walking guides. The Haunted Walk will take place on Saturday on Lookout Hill.
Volunteer Policies
Every potential volunteer must complete a volunteer application (click below to complete your application form). Please note that some volunteer opportunities may require an interview or additional training due to special skill requirements.
Teenagers under 18 must submit a signed parental agreement form with their online application.
Children under 14 years old may volunteer if they are accompanied by an adult.
Children 14 — 17 years old are welcome to volunteer on their own. However, before they may begin their work, their application must be signed by a parent.At the Haunted Carousel, volunteers are expected to ______.
| A．sign up for two shifts |
| B．dress up as costumed characters |
| C．help children on and off horses |
| D．answer questions from the public |
Before becoming a volunteer, you must ______.
| A．pass an interview |
| B．receive the skill training |
| C．submit a signed parental agreement form |
| D．fill in an application form online |
We learn from the advertisement that a 13year old boy ______.
| A．is not allowed to volunteer in the 2014 celebration |
| B．can become a volunteer in the company of a parent |
| C．is permitted to become a volunteer on his own |
| D．may volunteer with his application signed by a parent |
On April 8th, 2013, the world felt sorry because of the death of former British Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, who died at the age of 87. Besides being the country’s longest leader (1979-1990) in the 20th century, she was the first woman to lead Britain. She worked hard and did well in her work, so she was called “Iron Lady”.
Whatever you think of Margaret Thatcher, the thing everyone does agree on is that she was a woman with great decisions. When she took over Britain in 1979, she led a country that was in economic trouble. She faced a lot of problems because of the poor economic position.
In order to make the country become strong again, Ms. Thatcher had to make some hard and special decisions like raising interest rates and even taxes at a time when most British people were living a hard life. In this way she led Britain to run out of economic troubles.
Early in her second term, just as things were looking a little better, she faced another problem — a strike by the British Miners Union. Once again, the Iron Lady stood her ground to stop the longest strike in the country’s history.
In 1982, Argentina said that they had owned the Falkland Islands since the 19th century. Britain, however, considered the islands to be one of their overseas dependent territories (领土). Margaret Thatcher tried to talk about the problem with Argentines. But Argentines didn’t agree with her ideas, so Ms. Thatcher did what any strong leader would do — send in the British Army. It took 74 days, and on 14th June 1982, the Argentine army finally failed and Britain controlled the Falkland Islands again.
When Ms. Thatcher resigned in 1990, she left behind a country that was very strong. Unluckily, during the last few years of her life, something was wrong with her mind. She hardly remembered anything that was happening around her and even what she had done during her wonderful lifetime.Why did Margaret Thatcher decide to raise interest rates?
| A．Because English people were very rich and happy. |
| B．Because she needed money to fight against Argentina. |
| C．Because Britain needed to run out of economic troubles. |
| D．Because people stored too much money in the banks. |
How did Margaret Thatcher make her country control the Falkland Islands again?
| A．She paid a lot of money for the islands. |
| B．She helped people on the islands a lot. |
| C．She sent many workers to the islands. |
| D．She sent in the British Army to the islands. |
What was the matter with Ms. Thatcher after she resigned?
| A．She couldn’t say anything at all. |
| B．She almost couldn’t remember anything. |
| C．She couldn’t walk at all. |
| D．She couldn’t hear anything at all. |
It can be inferred from the passage that Ms. Thatcher was ________.
| A．determined | B．sensitive |
| C．humorous | D．generous |
As is known to all, in daily conversation people often use simple words and simple sentences, especially elliptical(省略) sentences. Here is an interesting conversation between Mr Green and his good friend Mr Smith, a fisherman. Do you know what they are talking about?
Mr Green: Going?
Mr Smith: Been.
Mr Green: Any?
Mr Smith: Some.
Mr Green: Big?
Mr Smith: Small.The underlined word “conversation” in the text means ______.
| A．fishing | B．story | C．text | D．dialogue |
Which of the following is true to the text?
| A．Mr Smith has just been fishing and caught some small fish. |
| B．Mr Green caught some big fish and wanted to give some to Mr Smith. |
| C．Mr Smith didn’t catch any small fish. |
| D．Mr Smith wanted to buy some big fish from Mr Green. |
The text is mainly about _______.
| A．how to catch fish | B．how to spend a Sunday |
| C．ellipsis in conversations | D．joy in fishing |
Johnny Smith was a good math student at a high school. He loved his computer. He came home early every day, then he worked with it till midnight. But Johnny was not a good English student, not good at all. He got an F in his English class. One day after school Johnny joined his computer to the computer in his high school office. The school office computer had the grades of all the students: the math grades, the science grades, the grades in arts and music, and the grades in English. He found his English grade. An F! Johnny changed his English grade from an F to A. Johnny' parents looked at his report card. They were very happy. "An A in English!" said Johnny's Dad. "You're a very clever boy, Johnny."
Johnny is a hacker. Hackers know how to take information from other computers and put new information in. Using a modem(调制解调器), they join their computers to other computers secretly.
School headmasters and teachers are worried about hackers. So are the police, for some people even take money from bank computer account(账户) and put it into their own ones. And they never have to leave home to do it! They are called hackers.
(210w)Johnny changed his English grade with the computer in _______.
| A．the classroom | B．the school office |
| C．a bank near his house | D．his own house |
When Johnny's parents saw the report, they were happy because _______.
| A．Johnny was good at math |
| B．Johnny loved computers |
| C．Johnny could join one computer to another |
| D．they thought Johnny was not poor in English any longer |
Who are worried about hackers in the text?
| A．Johnny's parents. |
| B．School headmasters, teachers and the police. |
| C．The police. |
| D．School headmasters and teachers. |
What should the hackers know well, do you think, after you read this story?
| A．Information. | B．Bank computer accounts. |
| C．Computers. | D．Grades. |
One day an ant was drinking at a small stream and fell in. She made great efforts to reach the side, but made no progress at all. The poor ant almost exhausted(精疲力竭的)was still bravely doing her best when a dove(鸽子) saw her. Moved with pity, the bird threw her a blade of grass, which supported her like a raft, and thus the ant reached the bank again. While she was resting and drying herself in the grass, she heard a man come near. He was walking along barefooted with a gun in his hand. As soon as he saw the dove, he wished to kill it. He would certainly have done so, but the ant bit him in the foot just as he raised his gun to fire. He stopped to see what had bit him, and the dove immediately flew away. It was an animal much weaker and smaller than herself that had saved her life.
(163w)The dove saved the ant because _______.
| A．she was the ant's friend |
| B．she took pity on the poor ant |
| C．the ant was almost exhausted |
| D．the ant had been struggled in the water for a long time |
The ant succeeded in getting on the bank with the help of _______.
| A．a leaf | B．a piece of wood |
| C．a blade of grass | D．a raft |
Just as the man shot at the dove, _______.
| A．the dove immediately flew away |
| B．the dove hid himself in the grass |
| C．the ant told the dove to leave at once |
| D．he felt something biting him in the foot |
In writing the story, the writer wants to show _______.
| A．how clever the ant was |
| B．how kind the dove was |
| C．how the ant and the dove helped each other |
| D．we often need help from others, therefore we should help others as much as we can |