Arthur sat at the desk in his room, pencil in hand. He had to write a story for his English class by Friday. "! don't know what to write about, " he complained to his dog Toby, who was asleep at his feet. Arthur was talkative when speaking to his friends, yet he had trouble finding words when he had to write.
By bedtime Arthur had drawn a picture of Toby smiling. He had drawn a tree with its branches blowing in the strong wind. He had also written a note asking his friend Lee to go to the movies on Saturday. But he had not written a single word of his story.
On Wednesday, Mrs. Solomon, Arthur's English teacher, asked the class to turn in the first draft of their stories. His heart sinking, Arthur turned in the only work he had—the page with his name, the drawings and the note.
Arthur wasn't surprised when Mrs. Solomon asked him to stay after class the next day. But he was surprised by what she said to him. “ This is an attractive story, Arthur. The dog, the movie, the tree in the wind—I can't wait to find out how they all fit together. "
"That isn't my story, Mrs. Solomon, " Arthur admitted. "I haven't been able to think of one yet. "
"Oh, I think you have the seed (种子) of a story there, " Mrs. Solomon replied, "Look at your note and the pictures and see if a story comes to you. "
That night Arthur sat at his desk, and this is what he wrote: "One Saturday Mike went downstairs to meet his friend Julio at the cinema. It looked as if it might rain, so Mike carried his umbrella. Suddenly a big storm blew in, bending the trees. The noise of the wind sounded like the barking of Mike's dog Toby. Toby really hated storms and barked whenever he wanted to be let inside. Then Mike realized that it wasn't the sound of the wind. It was Toby. The dog was running after him down the busy street, barking. The sound was filled with blame. Mike felt guilty because he had left Toby outside. He turned and headed home with Toby running beside him. Mike let Toby in the door just as the rain started to pour down. "
Arthur had a story in the end. The last thing he did was to write his name proudly at the top of the page.What can we know from the first paragraph?
| A．It was very quiet in the house. |
| B．Arthur was talking to his friends. |
| C．Arthur was doing his homework at school. |
| D．Arthur was a little pleased with his story. |
Why did Arthur turn in the page with only his name, the drawings and the note at first?
| A．Because he had no time to fit them together. |
| B．Because he had difficulty in writing a story. |
| C．Because he wasn't willing to do his homework. |
| D．Because he wanted to show his talent for drawing. |
What does the underlined sentence in Paragraph 6 probably mean?
| A．Toby is an imaginative and lovely dog. |
| B．The small tree will grow into a big one. |
| C．His friend Lee can give him a lot of support. |
| D．He can develop his story based on the first draft. |
What kind of teacher do you think Mrs. Solomon is?
| A．She is a strict teacher. |
| B．She is a wise teacher. |
| C．She is an honest teacher. |
| D．She is an energetic teacher. |
What can we infer (推断) from the story?
| A．Arthur is a shy and quiet student. |
| B．Arthur isn't very satisfied with his story. |
| C．There will be a storm on Saturday. |
| D．Encouragement is important in teaching. |
What’s On Stage
An acrobatic show: To celebrate its 50th anniversary, the China Acrobatic Troupe (剧团) will present “The Soul of China”, where the seemingly impossible is made real. Chills will run down your spine(脊柱) as you watch breathlessly as performers take their art and their bodies to the edge.
Time: 7:30 p.m., September 13-19
Place: Capital Theatre, 22 Wangfujing Dajie, Dongcheng District
Exhibitions
Joint Show: A group ink painting exhibition is running at the Huangshicheng Art Gallery in Beijing. About 50 works by 25 young artists including Ge Yun and Yu Yang are on display.
Time: 9:00 a. m.-5:00 p.m. until September 10
Place: Huangshicheng Art Gallery, 136 Nanchizi Dajie, Dongcheng District
Oil paintings: The Wanfung Art Gallery will host a joint show of oil painting by 10 young and middle-aged artists. On display are more than 30 of their latest works, which capture the wondrous variety of life in unique styles.
Time: 9:00 a.m. -4:00 p.m. until September 15
Place: 136 Nanchizi Street, Dongcheng District
Literature museum: The National Museum of Modern Chinese Literature offers an in-depth study of the evolution of Chinese contemporary literature from 1919 to 1949.
Time: 9:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m., daily
Place: 45 Anyuan Donglu, Chaoyang District (Shaoyaoju area)
Concerts
Beijing rocks: “The Fashion Night of Chinese Rock” is set to bring rock fans out by the thousands next month. Nine Chinese rock bands will perform at the concert, including older generation bands, middle generation and some recent arrivals. The audience will be given a chance to decide what songs they want to hear, which is sure to bring a storm.
Time: September 16
Place: The Olympic Center
Belgium orchestra：La Petite Bande, the Baroque Orehestra of Belgium, will perform in Beijing at the Grand Theatre of the Cultural Palace of Nationalities as part of activities across the world in memory of the 250th anniversary of Bach’s death.
Time: 7:30 p.m. September 11-14
Place: Grand Theatre of the Cultural Palace of Nationalities What do you think of the acrobatic show mentioned above?
| A．When you watch it, you will certainly feel cold. |
| B．Unexpected things will make you excited and surprised. |
| C．Something strange will puzzle everyone, including scientists. |
| D．Even the bravest ones will be too frightened to go on watching. |
The most characteristic thing about the Fashion Night of Chinese Rock is that ______.
| A．it will certainly cause a rock storm throughout China |
| B．it is to bring thousands of rock fans out of their homes |
| C．it is to be held in memory of one of the greatest musicians |
| D．it will let the audience choose the performers and the music |
Suppose it is September 14 today, how many activities can people choose to attend?
| A．2. | B．3. | C．4. | D．5. |
On the whole, we can conclude ______.
| A．we can enjoy a large variety of cultural activities in Beijing |
| B．people in Beijing prefer modern culture to something traditional |
| C．most of the cultural activities in Beijing are for foreign visitors only |
| D．there are usually more cultural activities in September than in any other month |
Slow parenting means parenting children in the contact of nature without any interference (干预) of materialistic influence. We can also term it as “self-raising”. In slow parenting children are allowed to do what they think proper and parents just keep a watch over the child. Curiosity of the child leads to exploring and discovering things. Parents provide little help only when it’s too necessary, otherwise keep themselves away from the child and just have a look on him/her: This brings about a feeling of self-dependency and they are encouraged to solve their problems.
This is a natural way of learning. When a child is left to learn in a natural environment, the child’s natural development takes place. Influence of any materialistic way doesn’t let the mind develop naturally. Watching TV, playing video games or joining classes of dance, swimming or any other sports will not let the mind develop naturally.
Here creativity of their mind is developed. They explore ideas. The logic behind this is that the kids of animals learn by nature, so can our kids. So let our children play in the garden, to watch flowers, plants, birds, butterflies and other gifts of nature. In the classes of dance, swimming etc. their creativity is influenced and their natural creativity is suppressed (压制). In these classes they are overburdened and can’t train their creativity. So let them play in the open air or garden without any burden instead of joining classes.
Generally parents give toys to their children and explain how to operate them. But those parents who believe in slow parenting give toys and observe how the children are managing them. Their skill to learn and understand comes out. Maybe the process is slow, but it will be their exploration, which will make them self-dependent, and self-capable to learn.In slow parenting, parents ______.
| A．set limits to what their children do |
| B．keep a close watch over their children |
| C．give the whole directions to what their children do |
| D．give their children freedom to do what they think proper |
What is the main advantage of slow parenting according to the passage?
| A．Arousing children’s curiosity. |
| B．Helping children to be independent. |
| C．Making children interested in exploring nature. |
| D．Keeping children away from materialistic influence. |
We can infer from the third paragraph that______.
| A．children should join some classes |
| B．slow parenting should be done in a logical way |
| C．exploring nature is a good way of slow parenting |
| D．children can’t learn by nature like the kids of animals |
What is the passage mainly about?
| A．Slow parenting and its advantages. | B．Different parenting styles. |
| C．The requirements of slow parenting. | D．The author’s opinion on slow parenting. |
Dr Asim Syed, 32, has performed more than 100 operations at London’s Hammersmith Hospital in the country’s busiest transplant unit, but never imagined that he would one day become a donor himself.
He stepped forward when was told his 64-year-old mother might be dead within months unless she got a new kidney (肾). The worried surgeon brought her to London to be cared for at his hospital. However, it was not all plain sailing. Tests showed Dr Syed was the wrong blood group, so the only way was to go through a special blood-washing process. He consulted colleagues about that, but they didn’t agree, because the risk of rejection is still too high. Dr Syed and his mother were then advised to consider a new way of donating and receiving, called an organ-paired. That is, Dr Syed donated his kidney to an unknown person and another donor in the chain was a successful match for his mother. The chain of three transplants took place at the same time on July 31 with Dr Syed’s kidney going to a recipient in the Midlands and Mrs. Syed receiving her kidney from a person in the south of England.
Just hours after donating his own kidney, Dr Syed found himself recovering in bed next to his mother. Mrs Syed said, “When I came round from my operation Asim was in the next bed and the first thing he said was, ‘Mum now all your worries are over.’ Tears fell down.”
Now mother and son are recovering well with Dr Syed already back at work. Mrs. Syed is staying with him for several months while the hospital monitors her progress.
He said, “I did what anyone would do when they see a relative suffering disease. Although I wasn’t able to help mum directly, by agreeing to be part of a chain, I was also very happy.” Why isn’t it a plain sailing?
| A．No one can treat his mother well. |
| B．Dr Syed was the wrong blood group. |
| C．They didn’t have money to be in hospital. |
| D．Mrs. Syed was unwilling to receive the operation. |
Why didn’t his colleagues agree to the method of blood-washing?
| A．It is very dangerous. | B．It costs too much. |
| C．They didn’t know how to do it at all. | D．They didn’t have the relative equipment. |
What can we learn about Mrs. Syed?
| A．She was touched by his son’s deed. |
| B．She has already recovered completely. |
| C．After operation, she went her own home. |
| D．She was in hospital in London for many years. |
What can be inferred from the text?
| A．The hospital still needs improving. |
| B．Dr Syed has love and devotion to his parents. |
| C．The expense in the hospital is too high to afford. |
| D．Dr Syed donated his kidney to his mother directly. |
Many psychologists in the early twentieth century believed that humans use only 10 percent of their brains, and even the great Albert Einstein once wrote that most people use only a small portion of the grey matter between their ears. It’s a theory that has often been put forward in television documentaries; magazines, advertisements and books over the past century.
But nearly all scientists now agree the 10 percent theory is completely unfounded. In fact, they question how this figure was ever arrived at in the first place and what areas of the brain are supposed to be unneeded. The theory supposes that if 90 percent of the brain were removed, a person would Still be able to function normally, while in reality it is known that damage to even a small area of the brain can result in extremely serious physical injury different activities and that many areas of the brain are used at the same time for some complex activities or thought processes.
Throughout the course of one day, most .areas of the brain are active at some time, even during sleep. The 10 percent theory suggests that certain areas o’ the brain are not used, but scans slow activities throughout the entire brain and not in any separate part. The final argument against the 10 percent theory is the fact that doctors carefully map the brain before removing brain cancers so that they don’t affect other essential areas.
From an evolutionary point of view, it’s highly unlikely butt our comparatively larger brains would have evolved from our ancestors if the extra areas were not needed. In fact, there is absolutely no evidence support the 10 percent theory.How did the 10 percent theory get such widespread popularity?
| A．It was promoted in various types of copular media. |
| B．Albert Einstein argued strongly in support. |
| C．It was proven in scientific research. |
| D．Few people could prove it wrong. |
The underlined word "unfounded" is chest in meaning to _________.
| A．undiscovered | B．unproven | C．unknown | D．unnecessary |
Which of the following is true according to the writer?
| A．We use less than 10% of our brains. |
| B．Most brain disorders affect the same part of the brain. |
| C．The brain is less active during times of sleep. |
| D．The 10 percent theory does not make evolutionary sense. |
What can we infer from the passage?
| A．People today use more of their brain than in the past. |
| B．Scientific opinion about the topic of brain use is equally divided. |
| C．Our understanding of the brain has changed greatly in the past decades. |
| D．Modern scientists have a complete picture of how the brain works. |
What is the main purpose of the passage?
| A．To present two sides of brain theory. |
| B．To criticize the 10 percent theory. |
| C．To explain how brain works. |
| D．To describe the history of brain research. |
The dirty, homeless man sat on the pavement, staring at the atones. He thought back more than twenty years to when he was a boy living in a small red brick house on this very street. He recalled the flower garden, the swing his dad made, and the bike he had saved up for months to buy.
The man shrugged impatiently, for the brightness of those pictures hurt him, and his memory travelled on another ten years. He had a job by then, plenty of friends and started to come home less. He did not really want to remember those years, nor the day when, because o’ debts, he had gone home planning to ask for money. He felt embarrassed, but he knew exactly where his dad kept the money. When his parents stepped out of the room, he took what he wanted and left.
That was the last time he had seen them. Ashamed, he went abroad, and his parents knew nothing about the years of wandering or time in prison. But locked in his cell he often thought of home. Once free, he would love to see his parents again, if they were still alive, and still wanted to see him.
When his prison time was up, he found -a job, but couldn’t settle. Something was drawing him home. He did not want to arrive penniless, so he hitchhiked most of the long journey back. But less than a mile from his destination he started to feel sick with doubt. Could they ever accept this man who had so bitterly disappointed them?
He spent most of that day sitting under a tree. That evening he posted a letter which, although short, had taken him hours to write. It ended with:
I know it is unreasonable of me to suppose you want to see me ... so it’s up to you. I’ll come early Thursday morning. If you want me home, hang a white handkerchief in the window of my old bedroom. If it’s there, I’ll come in; if not, I’ll wave good-bye and go.
And now it was Thursday morning and he was sitting on the pavement at the end of the street. Finally he got up and walked slowly toward the old house. He drew a long breath and looked.
His parents were taking no risks. ________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
The man threw his head back, gave a cry of relief and ran straight through the open front door. Why did the man shrug impatiently (paragraph 2) while he was thinking of his childhood?
| A．The thoughts made him angry. |
| B．He felt he had wasted time. |
| C．He was anxious to go home. |
| D．The sweet memory caused him much pain. |
Why did it take him hours to write the letter?
| A．He doubted if his parents still lived in that house. |
| B．He had much news to tell his parents. |
| C．He felt ashamed to ask for forgiveness. |
| D．He was longing to return home and felt excited. |
In what order did the following events take place?
a. He took the money from his parents.
b. He bought a bicycle with his savings.
c. He was sentenced to prison.
d. He wrote the letter home.
e. He sat on the pavement.
f. He hitchhiked back home.
| A．b, a, c, d, e, f | B．b, a, c, f, d, e |
| C．a, c, b, d, f, a | D．a, d, b, c, e, f |
Which of the following best fits into paragraph 8 ?
| A．Every inch of the house was covered in white. Sheets, pillowcases and table clothes had been placed on every window and door, making it look like a snow house. |
| B．The house before him was just as he remembered: the red bricks, the brown door and nothing else. |
| C．A colourful blanket was over the front door. On it, in large letters, was written, "Welcome home, son |
| D．A police car was parked in the drive way, and two officers stood at the front door. |
The best title of the passage is _______.
| A．Sweet Memory | B．White Handkerchief |
| C．Abandoned Son | D．Leaving Home |