Certainly, a well-rounded education is the foundation from which all of us spring forth. I am grateful to the many incredible teachers who have inspired me to do greater things, and have fired my enthusiasm for everlasting learning!
I have also been honored to have the most amazing teachers in all of my children's lives. These are extraordinary people who not only teach our children, but love them, challenge them, and provide an environment where a child learns how to learn.
But, sometimes I wonder if the outline of our educational plan is lacking something. I watched the movie Easy A with my older daughter. The main character's parents were loving, supportive, and built great confidence in their daughter and developed her ability to handle her own problems.
There was a scene where the mother was speaking to the younger child and he announced that he received an "A" on his spelling test. She replied, "That' s great, honey, but everything has spell check these days. " It was funny --- but TRUE ! I don't mean that we shouldn't teach our children how to spell, but maybe some of our time should be spent educating them about the dangers of posting things on Facebook.
Maybe we might want to spend time showing them how real life works - the credit card isn't free money - you will have to pay it back at sometime. Oh, and get this - they charge you for borrowing that money. Perhaps, we should spend some time on interpersonal relationships. I worry that our kids do not know how to relate to one another.
Choosing a career (职业) is a daunting task. My daughter is in her second year in college and has changed her major twice. It' s not that she didn't know what she wanted to do. What she "wanted to do" and the degree she chose did not match.
I have learned many college students do not know what they want to do because they haven' t seen what it looks like in the real world. Being a journalist in the real world looks very different from writing stories. Maybe if we spent some time exposing them to real life experience - maybe two or three courses m areas of interest in high school that give them a "feel" for what that particular field would look like, they might be better prepared. I do not know the solution, but it seems that it should at least be a topic of discussion.
The underlined word "daunting" in Paragraph 6 probably means_____
| A．discouraging | B．specific |
| C．rewarding | D．regular |
America is growing older. Fifty years ago, only 4 out of every 100 people in the United States were 65 or older. Today, 10 out of every 100 Americans are over 65. The aging of the population will affect （影响） American society in many ways --- education, medicine, and business. Quietly, the graying of America has made us a very different society - one in which people have a quite different idea of what kind of behavior （行为）is suitable （合适） at different ages.
A person’s age no longer tells you anything about his/her social position, marriage or health. There’s no longer a particular year in which one goes to school or goes to work or gets married or starts a family. The social clock that kept us on time and told us when to go to school, get a job, or stop working isn’t as strong as it used to be. It doesn’t surprise us to hear of a 29-year-old university president or a 35-year-old grandmother, or a 70-year-old man who has become a father for the first time. Public ideas are changing.
Many people say, ‘I am much younger than my mother - or my father - was at my age.’ No one says ‘Act your age’ anymore. We’ve stopped looking with surprise at older people who act in youthful ways.From the passage, we know in America____.
| A．they used to go to school or stop work at a certain age |
| B．people won’t tell you their social position |
| C．the children no longer go to school. |
| D．people hold the old ideas about the age as before |
It can be learnt from the text that the aging of the population in America .
| A．has made people feel younger |
| B．has changed people’s social position |
| C．has changed people’s understanding of age |
| D．has slowed down the country’s social development |
The underlined word ‘one’ refers to .
| A．a society | B．America | C．a place | D．population |
‘Act your age’ means people should _______ .
| A．be active when they are old |
| B．do the right thing at the right age |
| C．show respect for their parents young or old |
| D．take more physical exercise suitable to their age |
If a 25-year-old man becomes general manager of a big firm, the writer of the text would most probably consider it .
| A．normal | B．wonderful | C．unbelievable | D．unreasonable |
During the summer holidays there will be a revised(修改过的) schedule(时刻表) of services for the students. Changes for dining-room and library service hours and for bus schedules will be posted on the wall outside of the dining-hall. Weekly film and concert schedules, which are being arranged, will be posted each Wednesday outside of the student club.
In the summer holidays, buses going to the town center will leave the main hall every hour on the half hour during the day. The dining-room will serve three meals a day from 7: 00 am to 7: 00 pm during the week and two meals from noon to 7: 00 pm on weekends. The library will continue its usual hours during the week, but have shorter hours on Saturdays and Sundays. The weekend hours are from noon to 5: 00 pm.
All students who want to use the library borrowing services must have a new summer card. This announcement will also appear in the next week’s student newspaper. The main purpose of this announcement is to _________.
| A．tell students of important schedule changes | B．tell students of new bus and library services |
| C．show the excellent services for students | D．ask students to renew their library cards |
At which of the following times will the bus leave the main hall?
| A．8: 00, 9: 00, 10: 00, 11: 00 | B．8: 00, 9: 30, 10: 30, 11: 30 |
| C．8: 30, 9: 00, 9: 30, 10: 00 | D．8: 00, 9: 30, 11: 00, 12: 30 |
Times for films and concerts are not listed in this announcement because _________.
| A．they are not to be announced | B．they are hard to arrange |
| C．the full list is not ready | D．the full list is too long |
In the summer holidays, the library will have _________.
| A．no special hours | B．special hours on weekdays |
| C．special hours on weekends | D．special hours both on weekdays and weekends. |
We may infer that during the summer holidays _________.
| A．the student newspaper will sell more copies | B．there will be a concert or a film once a week |
| C．many students will stay in the university | D．no breakfast will be served on weekends |
“Can I see my baby？” the happy new mother asked. When the bundle was in her arms and she moved the fold of cloth to look upon his tiny face, she gasped. The doctor turned quickly and looked out of the tall hospital window. The baby had been born without ears.
Time proved that the baby’ s hearing was perfect. It was only his appearance that was imperfect. When he rushed home from school one day and threw himself into his mother’s arms, she sighed(叹息), knowing that his life was to be misfortunate. He cried to his mum “A boy, a big boy... called me a freak (怪人)．”
He grew up, handsome. A favorite with his fellow students, he might have been class president, but for that. He developed a gift, a talent for literature and music. “But you might communicate with other young people，” his mother blamed him, but felt a kindness in her heart.
Two years went by. One day, his father said to the son, “You’ re going to the hospital, son. Mother and I have someone who will donate the ears you need. But it’ s a secret.” The operation was a great success, and a new person appeared.
Later he married and became a lawyer. One day, he asked his father, “Who gave me the ears? Who gave me so much? I could never do enough for him or her.” “I do not believe you could，” said the father, “but the agreement was that you are not to know... not yet.”
The years kept their secret, but the day did come. He stood with his father over his mother’ s casket棺材. Slowly, tenderly, the father stretched forth a hand and raised the thick, reddish brown hair to show the mother had no outer ears.
“Mother said she was glad she never let her hair be cut，” his father whispered gently, “and nobody ever thought Mother less beautiful, did they？”Why did Mother gasp when she saw her newborn baby?
| A．Because her son had a tiny face. | B．Because she saw her son crying. |
| C．Because her son was born imperfect. | D．Because her son was in her arms. |
Which word can describe Mother’ s feeling when the son threw himself into her arms?
| A．Nervous. | B．Sympathetic. | C．Proud. | D．Angry. |
We can infer that the person who donate the ears is_____.
| A．A doctor. | B．His father. | C．His mother. | D．A stranger. |
From the passage we know the followings are True except________
A, the mother felt sorry for the son without ears B. the doctor didn’t like the baby
C. the boy meant everything to the mother D. the father kept the secret until mother diedThe best title for the passage would be ________.
| A．Mother’s hair | B．An unforgettable memory |
| C．Who gave me the ears? | D．Who is my best respectable person? |
A new generation addiction is quickly spreading all over the world. Weboholism, a twentieth century disease, affects people from different ages. They surf the net, use e-mail and speak in chat rooms. They spend many hours on the computer, and it becomes a compulsive habit. They cannot stop, and it affects their lives.
Ten years ago, no one thought that using computers could become compulsive behavior that could affect the social and physical life of computer users. This obsessional behavior has affected teenagers and college students. They are likely to log on computers and spend long hours at different websites.
They become hooked on computers and gradually their social and school life is affected by this situation. They spend all free time surfing and don’t concentrate on homework, so this addiction influences their grades and success at school. Because they can find everything on the websites, they hang out there. Moreover, this addiction to websites influences their social life.
They spend more time in front of computers than with their friends. The relation with their friends changes. The virtual life becomes more important than their real life. They have a new language that they speak in the chat rooms and it causes cultural changes in society.
Because of the change in their behavior, they begin to isolate themselves from the society and live with their virtual friends. They share their emotions and feelings with friends who they have never met in their life. Although they feel confident on the computer, they are not confident with real live friends they have known all their life. It is a problem for the future. This addictive behavior is beginning to affect all the world. The author’s attitude towards weboholism is that of being______.
| A．optimistic | B．positive | C．oppositive | D．acceptable、 |
The main idea of the passage is about__________.
| A．the cause of weboholism | B．the advantage of weboholism |
| C．the popularity of weboholism | D．the influence of weboholism |
The underlined word “obsessional” in the second paragraph most probably means “________”.
| A．attractive | B．addictive |
| C．professional | D．potential |
We can infer from the passage that_______.
| A．weboholism has the greatest effect on teenagers |
| B．students can hardly balance real and virtual life |
| C．people are addicted to games on the Internet |
| D．virtual life is more vivid and attractive anyway |
Which of the following is NOT true of weboholism?
| A．It contributes to the development of the web. |
| B．The chat room language may change social culture. |
| C．The problem will be getting more and more serious later. |
| D．People addicted to the web often become inactive in real life. |
Finally, I got a part – time job working at the local coffee shop. I had figured that the job would be easy. However, the actual situation was not what I had expected. The customers were hard to please. There was always too much sugar, too little ice, or not enough skimmed milk. However, I kept at it.
One rainy day, Hank, one of my regular customers, came in looking sad and defeated. I asked what the problem was sand if we could help, but Hank wouldn’t tell me any details. He just said he felt like going to bed, pulling the sheets up over his head, and staying there for a few years. I knew exactly how he felt.
Before he left, I handed him a bag of his favorite type of doughnuts along with his iced coffee. He looked at me skeptically because he hadn’t ordered anything else except iced coffee.
“It’s on me,” I told him. “Have a nice day.”
He smiled and thanked me before turning around and heading back out into the rain.
The next day was a horrible one. The rain kept pouring down and I spent my afternoon hanging out the window, handing people their orders. What’s worse, no one felt like tipping that day.
However, around 7:00 pm, Hank drove up to the window. Instead of ordering anything, he handed me a single pink rose and a little note. He said that few people take the time to care about others nowadays and he was glad there we still people like me in the world. I was speechless and very touched; I hadn’t thought that I had done anything incredible.
The note read:
Christine,
Thanks for being so sweet, kind and thoughtful yesterday. I was sincerely touched by you. It is so nice to meet someone that’s nice, warm, sensitive and unselfish. Please don’t change your ways because I truly believe that you will excel. Have a great day!
Hank
Later, I did come across more complaining customers. But anytime I felt sad or just sick of coffee, I thought of Hank and his kindness. Then I would smile, hold my head up high, clear my throat and ask politely, “How can I help you?”How did the author feel after he began to work at the coffee shop?
| A．Excited. | B．Confused. | C．Disappointed. | D．Satisfied. |
What happened to the regular customer of the author?
| A．He was very sick and had to stay in bed for some days. |
| B．He was not satisfied with the coffee served to him. |
| C．He was anxious to stay at home for a long time. |
| D．He was not feeling himself for some reasons. |
．What does the underlined word “skeptically” probably mean in the passage?
| A．questioningly | B．hopefully | C．anxiously | D．excitedly |
．It was Hank who helped the author realize the importance of .
| A．patience in one’s work | B．being kind to regular customers |
| C．taking time to care about others | D．sticking to one’s own career |
What is the best title of the passage?
| A．A Warm – hearted Man | B．Coffee Shop Kindness |
| C．My Part – time Job | D．A Horrible Raining Day |