B
The Frog and The Crane
In the heart of the woods there lay a cool, green pond. The shores of the pond were set with ranks of tall bulrushes(芦苇) that waved crisply in the wind, and in the shallow bays there were fleets of broad water lily leaves. Among the rushes and reeds and in the quiet water there dwelt a large tribe of Frogs.
On every warm night of spring, the voices of the Frogs arose in a cheerful chorus. Some voices were low and deep---these were the oldest and wisest of the Frogs; at least, they were old enough to have learned wisdom. Some were high and shrill, and these were the voices of the little Frogs who did not like to be reminded of the days when they had tails and no legs.
"Kerrump! kerrump! I'm chief of this pond!" croaked（哇哇叫） a very large frog, sitting in the shade of a water lily leaf.
"Kerrump! kerrump! I'm chief of this pond!" replied another voice from the opposite bank.
"Kerrump! kerrump! I'm chief of this pond!" boasted a third old Frog from the furthest shore of the pond.
Now a long-legged white Crane was standing near by, well hidden by the coarse grass that grew at the water's edge. He was very hungry that evening, and when he heard the deep voice of the first frog ,he made a quick pass under the broad leaf with his long, cruel bill. The old Frog gave a frightened croak, and kicked violently in his efforts to get away.
The Crane almost had him, when something cold and slimy wound itself about one of his legs. He drew back for a second, and the Frog got safely away! But the Crane did not lose his dinner after all, for about his leg was curled a large black water snake, and that made a fair meal.
Now he rested awhile on one leg, and listened. The first Frog was silent, but from the opposite bank the second Frog croaked boastfully:"Kerrump! kerrump! I'm chief of this pond!"
The Crane began to be hungry again. He went round the pond , trying to catch the second frog..
Just as he drew closer to the frog, the Crane saw something that made him let go. a mink(水貂) had crept very close to the Crane, hoping to seize him at his meal! So the second Frog got away too; but he was so dreadfully frightened that he never spoke again.
After a long time the Crane got over his fright and he became very hungry once more. The pond had been still so long that many of the Frogs were singing their pleasant chorus, and above them all there boomed the deep voice of the third and last Bullfrog, saying: "Kerrump! kerrump! I'm chief of this pond!"
The Crane determined to silence him once for all. He croaked and struggled in vain. But just then a Fox crept up behind the Crane and seized him! The Crane let go the Frog and was carried off screaming into the woods for the Fox's supper. So the third Frog got away; but he was badly lamed by the Crane's strong bill, and he never dared to open his mouth againWhy didn’t the crane catch the first frog?
| A．Because the frog kicked too violently. |
| B．Because something would itself around the crane’s leg. |
| C．Because the crane was distracted by another frog. |
| D．Because the frog was frightened away by the noise of the crane. |
According to the passage, the crane ______.
| A．ate nothing that night |
| B．got hurt three times |
| C．let all the three frogs get away |
| D．didn’t dare to catch the frogs in the end |
What can we infer from the passage?
| A．It is dangerous living in the woods. |
| B．A wise person always keeps silent. |
| C．Be careful when you are close to your goal. |
| D．Never be proud, even if you have done well. |
Where can we probably find this passage?
| A．In a children’s book |
| B．In an introduction to animals |
| C．In a book about dangers in the woods |
| D．In a book full of information about ponds. |
The Man Who Never Put a Foot Wrong
Some people do not like anything to be out of place: they are never late for work, they return their books to the library on time, they remember people’s birthdays, and they pay their bills as soon as they arrive. Mr. Dodds is such a person.
Mr. Dodds works in a bank, and lives on his own. The only family he has is in the next town: his sister lives there with her husband, and her son, Mark. Mr. Dodds does not see his sister, or her family, from one year to the next, but he sends them Christmas cards, and he has not forgotten one of Mark’s birthdays.
Last week Mr. Dodds had quite a surprise. He drove home from the bank at the usual time, driving neither too slowly nor too fast. He parked his car where he always parked it, out of the way of other cars, and he went inside to make his evening meal. Straight away, there was a knock at the door. Mr. Dodds opened the door to find a policeman standing on the door-step.
“What have I done wrong?” Mr. Dodds asked himself. “Have I driven on the wrong side of the road? Has there been some trouble at the bank? Have I forgotten to pay an important bill?”
“Hello, Uncle,” said the policeman. “My name is Mark.”From the passage we know that his sister .
| A．lives in the next town with her husband and son |
| B．is the only member of the family that he knows |
| C．never writes back to him |
| D．has a small family: a son and Mark, her husband |
“He has not forgotten one of Mark’s birthdays” means .
| A．he has forgotten Mark’s birthdays |
| B．he didn’t send Mark anything on his birthdays |
| C．he always sent Christmas cards on Mark’s birthdays |
| D．he always sent Mark something on his birthdays |
There was a knock at the door when Mr. Dodds was .
| A．driving home from the bank |
| B．parking his car |
| C．ready to make his evening meal |
| D．just about to shut the front door |
The policeman was there .
| A．to ask Mr. Dodds to go to see his uncle |
| B．to ask Mr. Dodds to park his car not too near to other cars |
| C．to meet Mr. Dodds, his uncle |
| D．to see Mr. Dodds about some trouble at the bank |
We often hear people talking about a generation gap (代沟)． The name is new, but the idea is old． Young people and th eir parents don’t understand each other． The world has always kept changing． During the second century after Christ a wise man said, “Bury me on my face because in a little while everything will be turned upside down．”
There has always been a gap between generations, but more people talk about it now． Old Mr． Ellis thinks he understands what has happened．
“When I was a boy, I thought the world was a beautiful place． My life was very pleasant． But when I was older, I learned about people who were treated badly, people who didn’t have enough to eat． I wanted to help them, and I married a girl who wanted to help them, too． We went to meetings and talked a lot, but it didn’t seem to make much difference． ”
“Our children grew up in a world at war． They didn’t know when the fighting would stop． They wanted their children to have nice clothes and toys． They didn’t want to think about the future． They thought nothing could be done about it．”
“Now I have grandchildren, and they have their own ideas． They are trying to make the world better． They are trying to help other people． They’re making people listen to them． I am proud of their generation．”The wise man mentioned in the text told people to bury him on his face so that when everything is turned upside down he will _____．
| A．lie on his stomach |
| B．lie on his back |
| C．stand quietly |
| D．sit in peace |
Which generation did NOT want to do anything to make the world a better one?
| A．Mr． Ellis’ generation |
| B．His children’s generation |
| C．His grandchildren’s generation |
| D．None of the above． |
Which generation is/was more efficient in making the world better one?
| A．Mr． Ellis’ generation． |
| B．His children’s generation． |
| C．His grandchildren’s generation． |
| D．None of the above． |
What is the writer’s attitude towards the generation gap?
| A．Unacceptable． |
| B．Awful． |
| C．Funny． |
| D．Common． |
Once there was a poor farmer and his farm belonged to(属于) a rich man． One day he brought a basket of apples to the rich man’s house． On the doorsteps, he met two monkeys dressed like children． They jumped onto the basket to eat the apples and threw some on the grounD． The farmer politely took off his hat and asked the monkeys to get off． They obeyed(服从) and the farmer went into the house． He asked to see the rich man． A servant took him to the room where the rich man was sitting．
"I have brought you the basket of apples you asked for," he saiD．
"But why have you brought a half-empty basket?" the rich man askeD．
"I met your children outside, and they stole(偷) some of the apples．"Why did the farmer bring apples to the rich man? Because
| A．he was poor |
| B．he liked the rich man |
| C．his farm belonged to the rich man |
| D．the rich man’s children liked apples |
What did the monkeys do when the farmer was on the doorsteps?
A． They jumped and jumpe
B． They playeD．
C． They ran away．
D． They ate some of the apples．The monkeys left the basket because
| A．they had thrown apples on the ground |
| B．the farmer had politely asked them to get off |
| C．they were afraid of the hat |
| D．the farmer wa s angry wit h them |
How did the rich man feel when he saw the basket? He felt 。
| A．pleased |
| B．unhappy |
| C．excited |
| D．moved |
Algae(水藻) are very simple plants． They grow in fresh water or salty water． Seaweed is algae that grow in salty water． Seaweed is red or brown in color． The Japanese people use these plants from the sea in many ways． From it, they make a food called Kombu． Kombu is seaweed that has been dried, cooked and pressed together． Then it is dried again and cut into long pieces． The Japanese eat a lot of Kombu and like it very much．
Japanese farmers often use seaweed as fertilizer． It makes their plants grow better． Many farmers also find seaweed makes a fine food for their animals．
From seaweed the Japanese also get iodine(碘), which they sell to other countries． Iodine is used in many ways all over the worlD． It is used in making medicine． It is added to the salt we use at the table． Scientists even use one form of iodine to “ seed clouds” when they want rain to fall．Kombu is a kind of ____ according to the text．
| A．plant |
| B．medicine |
| C．food |
| D．fertilizer |
In the last sentence of the text, “seed clouds” means ____．
| A．clouds spreading like seeds |
| B．the seeds like clouds |
| C．to make rain fall with human power |
| D．dropping seeds by clouds |
The main idea of the story is that ____．
| A．The Japanese eat seaweed when they want rain to fall． |
| B．Kombu is made into medicine for farmers． |
| C．The Japanese use seaweed in many ways． |
| D．The Japanese eat a lot of Kombu． |
The clock struck eleven at night． The whole house was quiet． Everyone was in bed except me． Under the strong light, I looked sadly before a huge pile of troublesome stuff they call “books”．
I was going to have my examination the next day． "When can I go to bed?" I asked myself． I didn’t answer, in fact I dared not．
The clock struck 12"Oh, dear!" I cried, "ten more books to read before I can go to bed!” We pupils are the most wretched creatures in the worlD． Dad does not agree with me on this． He did not have to work so hard when he was a boy ．"
The clock struck one． I was quite ho peless now． I forgot all I had learnt． I was too tired to go on． I did the only thing I coulD． I prayed, “Oh, God, Please help me pass the exam tomorrow． I do promise to work hard afterwards, Amen．” My eyes were heavy, so heavy that I could hardly open them． A few minutes later, with my head on the desk, I fell asleep．When the author was going over his lessons, all the others in the house were_____ ．
| A．asleep |
| B．working in bed |
| C．outside |
| D．quietly laughing at him |
Reviewing his lessons didn’t help him because ________．
| A．it was too late at night |
| B．he was very tired |
| C．his eyes l ids were so heavy that he couldn’t keep them open |
| D．he hadn’t studied hard before the examination |
What do you suppose happened to the author？
| A．He went to a church to pray again |
| B．He passed the exam by luck |
| C．He failed in the exam |
| D．He was punished by his teacher |
The best title for the passage would be __________ ．
| A．The Night Before the Examination |
| B．Working Far into the Night |
| C．A Slow Student |
| D．Going Over My Lessons |