As Amy Hagadorn rounded the corner across the hall from her classroom, she crashed with a tall boy from the fifth grade running in the opposite direction．
“Watch it, Squirt,”the boy yelled, as he dodged around the little third grader． Then, with an unfriendly smile on his face, the boy took hold of his right leg and mimicked the way Amy limped（跛行）when she walked．
Amy closed her eyes for a moment． ―Ignore him,‖ she told herself as she headed for her classroom．
But at the end of the day, Amy was still thinking about the tall boy‘s mean teasing． It wasn‘t as if he were the only one． Amy was tired of it． Sometimes, even in a classroom full of other students, the teasing about her speech or her limping made her feel all alone．
Back home at the dinner table that evening Amy was quiet． That‘s why Patti Hagdorn was happy to have
some exciting news to share with her daughter．
“There‘s a Christmas Wish Contest on the radio station,” she announced． “Write a letter to Santa and you might win a prize． I think someone at this table with blond curly hair should enter．”
Amy giggled． The contest sounded like fun． She started thinking about what she wanted most for Christmas．
A smile took hold of Amy when the idea first came to her． Out came pencil and paper and Amy went to work on her letter． ―Dear Santa Claus,‖ she began．
While Amy worked away at her best printing, the rest of the family tried to guess what she might ask from Santa． Amy‘s sister, Jamie, and Amy‘s mom both thought a 3-foot Barbie Doll would top Amy‘s wish list． Amy‘s dad guessed a picture book． But Amy wasn‘t ready to reveal her secret Christmas wish just then． Here is Amy‘s letter to Santa, just as she wrote it that night:
Dear Santa Clause,
My name is Amy． I am 9 years old． I have a problem at school． Can you help me, Santa? Kids laugh at me because of the way I walk and run and talk． I have cerebral palsy（大脑性瘫痪）． I just want one day where no one laughs at me or makes fun of me．
Love,
Amy
At radio station WJLT in Fort Wayne, Indiana, letters poured in for the Christmas Wish Contest． The workers had fun reading about all the different presents that boys and girls from across the city wanted for Christmas．
When Amy‘s letter arrived at the radio station, manager Lee Tobin read it carefully． He knew cerebral palsy was a muscle disorder that might confuse the schoolmates of Amy who didn‘t understand her disability． He thought it would be good for the people in Fort Wayne to hear about this special third grader and her unusual wish． Mr． Tobin called up the local newspaper．
The next day, a picture of Amy and her letter to Santa made the front page of the ．News Sentinel‖． The story spread quickly． All across the country, newspapers and radio and television station reported the story of the little girl in Fort Wayne, Indiana, who asked for such a simple, yet remarkable Christmas gift – just one day without teasing．
Suddenly the postman was a regular at the Hagadorn house． Envelopes of all sizes addressed to Amy arrived daily from children and adults all across the nation． They came filled with holiday greetings and words of encouragement．
During that unforgettable Christmas season, over two thousand people from all over the world sent Amy letters of friendship and support． Amy and her family read every single one． Some of the writers had disabilities; some had been teased as children． Many people thanked Amy for being brave enough to speak up． Others encouraged her to ignore teasing and to carry her head high． Each writer had a special message for Amy． Through the cards and letters from strangers, Amy glimpsed a world full of people who truly cared about each other． She realized that no amount or form of teasing could ever make her feel lonely again．
Amy did get her wish of a special day without teasing at South Wayne Elementary School． Additionally, everyone at school got an added bonus． Teachers and students talked together about how bad teasing can make others feel．
That year, the Fort Wayne mayor officially proclaimed December 21st as Amy Jo Hagadorn Day throughout the city． The mayor explained that by daring to make such a simple wish, Amy taught a universal lesson．
“Everyone,” said the mayor, “wants and deserves to be treated with respect, dignity and warmth．” The underlined word ―mimicked‖（Paragraph 2）can probably be replaced with ___________．
| A．struck | B．copied |
| C．blocked | D．declined |
According to Paragraph 4, the message is conveyed that ___________．
| A．Amy was often made fun of at school and she disliked the fact |
| B．loneliness always accompanied Amy because of the tall boy |
| C．some other students teased Amy made her think of the mean boy． |
| D．Amy hated being laughed at in the classroom full of other students． |
Amy‘s mother shared the news of a Christmas Wish Contest that day because she knew ___________．
| A．her daughter was teased by a fifth grader． |
| B．Amy‘s disease went much worse than before． |
| C．the contest would change Amy‘s life． |
| D．things weren‘t going well with Amy at school． |
The postman suddenly became a regular because ___________．
| A．he wanted to comfort Amy regularly． |
| B．a number of letters needed delivering there． |
| C．he used to be teased alike at school． |
| D．holidays greetings were asked to give to Amy． |
Amy learned through strangers‘ cards and letters that ___________．
| A．the world was filled with care and love． |
| B．she would take teasing as a present in life． |
| C．some people were being teased similarly． |
| D．everyone should be treated with kindness． |
The passage talks about ___________．
| A．Everyone can do something remarkable． |
| B．A small act makes a difference． |
| C．A girl who was brave to speak her wish up． |
| D．The disabled deserve respect． |
A student is learning to speak British English. He wonders: Can I communicate with Americans? Can they understand me? Learners of English often ask: What are the differences between British and American English? How important are these differences?
Certainly, there are some differences between British and American English. There are a few differences in grammar. For example, speakers of British English say “in hospital” and "Have you a pen?” , Americans say “in the hospital” and ‘Do you have a pen?’.Pronunciation is sometimes different. Americans usually sound theirs in words like “bird” and “hurt”. Speakers of British English do not sound theirs in these words. There are differences between British and American English in spelling and vocabulary. For example, “colour” and “honour” are British, “color” and “honor” are American.
These differences in grammar, pronunciation, spelling and vocabulary are not important, however. For the most part, British and American English are the same language.According to this passage, a student who is learning to speak American English might be afraid that __________.
| A．British people cannot understand him | B．American people cannot understand him |
| C．the grammar is too hard for him | D．the spelling is too hard for him |
American English and British English are different in __________.
| A．spelling | B．pronunciation | C．grammar | D．all of the above |
What is NOT mentioned(提及) in the passage?
| A．Whether there are differences between British English and American English. |
| B．Whether British English and American English are one language or two. |
| C．How the differences between British English and American English came about. |
| D．How important the differences are. |
Most __________ say “Do you have a watch?”
| A．British people | B．Americans | C．children | D．teachers |
According to this passage, British people and Americans have __________ difficulty in understanding each other.
| A．little | B．much | C．some | D．great |
While success is surely sweeter than failure, it seems failure is a far better teacher, and organizations that fail spectacularly often flourish more in the long run, according to a new study by Vinit Desai, assistant professor of management at the University of Colorado Denver Business School. Researchers have found that people missing their goals perform much better in the long run. That is because they gain more knowledge from their failures than their successes and the lessons are more likely to stay longer in their minds.
“We found that the knowledge gained from success was often fleeting while knowledge from failure stuck around for years,” said professor Desai, who led the study. “But companies often ignore failure. Managers may fire people or turn over the whole workforce while they should treat the failure as a learning opportunity.”
Prof Desai compared the flights of the space shuttle Atlantis and the Challenger. During the 2002 Atlantis flight, a piece of insulation (绝缘体) broke off and damaged the left solid rocket booster (助推火箭) but didn’t influence the program. There was little investigation. The Challenger was launched next and another piece of insulation broke off. This time the shuttle and its seven–person crew were destroyed. The disaster led to a major investigation resulting in 29 changes to prevent future disasters.
The difference in response in the two cases came down to this: Atlantis was considered a success and the Challenger a failure.
“Despite crowded skies, airlines are extremely reliable,” he said. “The number of failures is extremely small. And past researches have shown that older airlines, those with more experience in failure, have a lower number of accidents.”
Prof Desai doesn’t recommend finding out failure in order to learn. Instead, he advises organizations to analyze small failures to collect useful information rather than wait for major failures.Why did experts pay little attention to the problem of Atlantis?
| A．Because it worked perfectly. |
| B．Because the right booster was still OK. |
| C．Because nothing serious happened then. |
| D．Because fewer people died in the flight. |
Fewer accidents happen to older airlines in that _____.
| A．their planes couldn’t fly high in the sky |
| B．they gained much from experience in failure |
| C．their planes were often checked by the experts |
| D．they were unpopular among passengers |
The passage is written mainly to _____.
| A．show failure is a better teacher than success |
| B．explain why Challenger failed |
| C．introduce something about Prof Desai |
| D．tell managers how to achieve success |
Which writing strategy is NOT used in developing the passage?
| A．Giving definitions. | B．Making comparisons. |
| C．Analyzing causes. | D．Providing different examples. |
When many people see birds cleaning their feathers, they attribute it to vanity on the part of the bird. But, in reality, what they are doing is maintaining their wings, the instruments that they depend on for safe flight. If a bird’s wings are not in perfect condition, the bird either won’t be able to fly or won’t be able to control its flight. That is why after a long flight and even throughout the day, you will see them cleaning their feathers.
Most birds, if they get a chance, will take a bath at least once a day. They do this to get rid of the dust that has accumulated in their feathers throughout their flight s during the day. In dry or desert areas, birds will not always be able to find water in which to bath, but they still need to clean their feathers. What many birds will do is to take dust baths. They will roll around in dust until it covers their feathers. They will stand up, shaking the dust out, and then clean their feathers with their beaks (鸟嘴) as usual.
Baths are important for another reason. During the course of the day and night, many parasites (寄生虫) are attracted to birds. Bugs, mites, fleas and so on will try to reach birds and suck from their blood. Daily baths help to keep the parasites to a minimum.
Some birds, especially those that spend a lot of time in or around water, have skin glands (皮肤腺) that produce oil. After bathing, these birds will squeeze the glands to spread the oil over their wings to keep them free of water.
If you are a bird lover and have bird houses in your yard, it can be good to go to the extra step, providing a bird bath. Once the birds in your neighborhood discover it, you will be surprised at how popular it becomes as they periodically stop by to take their daily bath.What’s the passage mainly about?
| A．How birds clean themselves. | B．What birds enjoy doing. |
| C．Why baths matter so much to birds. | D．What bird lovers should do. |
What does the underlined part in Para 1 probably mean?
| A．Most people think it good for birds to clean their feathers. |
| B．Most people show much interest in how birds clean themselves. |
| C．Most people believe that birds’ keeping themselves clean is necessary. |
| D．Most people think birds’ cleaning their feathers of no practical significance. |
According to Para 3, birds’ feather cleaning _____.
| A．helps keep them healthy | B．keeps them free of any parasite |
| C．makes them more attractive | D．helps them relax enough |
In the last paragraph, the author further reminds us that _____ .
| A．we should love birds as much as possible |
| B．birds enjoy cleaning themselves by bathing |
| C．we can be good bird lovers by bathing birds |
| D．birds like to come close to the people in a yard |
Have you ever wanted to feel like you were in a western film? Or maybe you wanted to feel like you were a pioneer traveling the west? It is possible to experience such things during a Wild West vacation! Here are four of the best Wild West vacation locations available:
Walk the Lewis and Clark Trail
Walk some or all of the 3,700 miles trail that was traversed by Mariwether Lewis and William Clark, two of the world’s greatest explorers. Though not all the trails are marked, there are various stops that have been preserved by various historic societies. There is also a coach (长途客车) that makes a 16-day trek following the trail. This begins in St. Louis, Missouri, and ends in Astoria, Oregon.
Venture Route 66
Take a tour or go to see it yourself — ride on the famous Route 66. The road is nearly 2,500 miles long. Harley Davidson offers motorcycle tours that last two weeks. Route 66 will provide an experience that may only be found on the open road. The historic road is still well taken care of.
Visit the Grand Canyon
Visit the greatest canyon in the world, located in Northern Arizona. Raft down the Colorado River, or hike the various trails that run throughout the canyon. If walking is not your thing, there are donkey and horse riding adventures available. In addition, there are motorized boats that float down through the canyon in a week’s time.
Visit Deadwood
Located in South Dakota, Deadwood is a historic landmark. It is the kind of town that comes to mind when one thinks of an old western film. Actors who act as gunslingers (杀手) will often be seen in the streets playing their roles. Winter activities are popular in this old town, and there is always something to do.The underlined word “trek” (Para 2) can be replaced by .
| A．beautiful scenery | B．traveling information |
| C．pleasant holiday | D．long and hard journey |
Which of following riding adventures can tourists take on Route 66?
| A．A horse riding adventure. | B．A coach riding adventure. |
| C．A motorcycle riding adventure. | D．A donkey riding adventure. |
If you want to hike various trails you are advised to .
| A．visit the Grand Canyon | B．visit Deadwood |
| C．venture Route 66 | D．walk the Lewis and Clark Trail |
What do we know from the passage?
| A．A number of historic stops aren’t protected well. |
| B．William Clark was a pioneer who explored the west. |
| C．Western films are the most popular among Americans. |
| D．None of the trails in the west are marked. |
Without any hesitation, he said, “I’d be better off dead.” Hearing those words come out of my best friend’s mouth tore my heart apart. He has repeated that phrase more than once, and my mind continually plays it over like a voice recording.
I met my best friend about three years ago. After knowing me for six months, he told me about his struggles with depression. Sadness was not the only emotion that came over me; I was shocked. He seemed so outgoing and happy all the time. I soon learnt that he was physically and emotionally abused as a young child, causing him to have suicidal (自杀的) thoughts.
He refuses to talk to others about his depression because he now distrusts adults, especially those in his family. In spite of this, he feels as if I understand him and that I know the right words to say. Thus, when it comes to helping him, convenience is not in my vocabulary. It doesn’t matter where I am or what I am doing, for he takes priority. Sometimes he just needs the assurance of my voice telling him that everything is going to be okay and that I will not let him down.
Many students at his school laugh at him when they notice the scars on his arms from cutting. It seems that other kids have every right to make fun of him and to look down on him. But no one holds such a right, so I encourage him to ignore the heartless kids who treat him badly. When he feels the weight of judging eyes or hateful voices, I always remind him that I care about him unconditionally. Just hearing me say I will always be his best friend seems to give him the security he needs to keep on going.
My best friend once told me that if he hadn’t had me, he wouldn’t be alive. He said that my encouraging words convinced him not to take his life. Our friendship has taught me that a single word can impact on someone’s life. With the fragility of life as it is, I believe in the necessity of encouragement.The author’s friend got into depression mainly because _____ .
| A．he lived without his parents | B．he had poor health |
| C．he received little care at school | D．he had a bitter childhood |
We know from the passage that the author’s friend_____.
| A．was better off three years ago | B．thought little of others’ judging eyes |
| C．appreciates the author’s help | D．wants to communicate with his parents |
What is the best title for the passage?
| A．I believe in encouragement. | B．I enjoy friendship. |
| C．My friend and I. | D．The story of my friend. |