When William Stidger taught at Boston University, he once thought about the people he hadn’t thanked in his life. They taught him, encouraged him or cared a lot about him.
One was a teacher. She once taught William geography, and William loved geography all his life. So he wrote a letter of thanks to her.
He got the teacher’s letter later. It began, “My dear Willie.” He was very happy. Now over 50, he didn’t think someone would call him “Willie”. Here is that letter.
My dear Willie,
I can’t tell you how much your letter meant to me. I am in my eighties, living alone in a small room and cooking my own meals. You will be interested to know that I taught school for 50 years and yours is the first letter of appreciation(感激)I ever got. It came on a cold morning and it made me feel very warm.
…
William cried when he read the letter. She was one of the people that William hadn’t thanked in his past. She helped him to believe in himself. He would never forget her.
There are some people we should always remember, because they helped to shape our life. William Stidger found a way to show his appreciation—he wrote them letters.
Who are some of the people that you need to say thank you to in your past? It may not be too late to say “Thanks”.William thought about the people that he hadn’t thanked in his past when he ________.
A.was in a hospital | B.worked in a library |
C.was over 50 years old | D.studied at a university |
The teacher ________when William was young.
A.got her first letter of appreciation |
B.helped him to believe in himself |
C.encouraged him to be active |
D.made friends with him |
What can we learn about the teacher?
A.She was over 80 years old. |
B.She lived with her children. |
C.She taught geography for 40 years. |
D.She got the letter on a warm afternoon. |
William _______when reading his teacher’s letter.
A.laughed | B.cried |
C.felt disappointed | D.felt calm |
How did William show his appreciation to the people that he hadn’t thanked?
A.He called them. | B.He visited them. |
C.He wrote them letters. | D.He sent them gifts. |
When I was about 12, I had an enemy, a girl who liked to point out my shortcomings(缺点). Sometimes she said I was thin. Sometimes she said I was lazy. Sometimes she said I wasn’t a good student. Sometimes she said I talked too much, and so on. I tried to put up with(忍受) her as long as I could. At last, I became very angry. I ran to my father with tears in my eyes.
He listened to me quietly, and then he asked, “Are the things she said true or not? Mary, didn’t you ever wonder what you’re really like? Go and make a list of everything she said and mark the points that are true. Pay no attention to the other things she said.”
I did as he told me and to my surprise, I discovered that about half the things were true.
I brought the list back to my dad. He refused to take it. “That’s just for you,” he said. “You know better than anyone else the truth about yourself. When something said about you is true, you’ll find it will be helpful to you. Don’t shut your ears. Listen to them all, but hear the truth and do what you think is right.”
Many years have passed. The situation often appears in my mind. In our life we often meet with some trouble and we often go to someone and ask for advice. For some advice you will treasure(珍惜) all your life!What did the writer’s father do after he heard her complaints(抱怨)?
A.He agreed with her “enemy”. |
B.he let her continue to put up with her “enemy”. |
C.He told her to write down all her “enemy” had said about her. |
D.He told her not to pay attention to what her “enemy” had said. |
The writer felt________ when she did the things as her father had told her.
A.surprised | B.angry | C.disappointed | D.sad |
Which of the following can we know from the passage?
A.The “enemy” thought the writer was pretty. |
B.The “enemy” thought the writer studied hard. |
C.The writer and her “enemy” became best friends at last. |
D.The writer is grateful to her father. |
Which of the following can be the best title of the passage?
A.My Parents |
B.A Serious Criticism(批评) |
C.What People Say About You Is Always Right |
D.The Best Advice I Ever Had |
Some teenagers think that newspapers are boring and only for adults. But that's not true. There are many interesting stories in the paper. You just need to make clear what you are looking at. “I spend about half an hour reading newspapers every day,” said 15-year-old Gao Ming from Beijing. “I'm interested in things happening at school.” School news is just one kind of news story in newspapers. There's also world news: from international problems to pop stars.
Read the newspaper carefully, we'll find different types of articles on the pages:
News stories — these stories are about events. Reporters try to show all points of a story to help readers understand what happened. Reporters try to speak to as many people as possible. They also use pictures and numbers to show the readers that the stories are true. The newspaper Teenagers has lots of news stories on the news page and front page. When we read them, we learn more about the facts, not the writers’ ideas.
Opinion writing — opinion writing is usually about something happening right now. But it isn't just facts. Here writers add their own opinions to the news. Writers pick only the facts that help back up their ideas. They make readers believe that they are telling the truth. This is usually the kind of story that gets people thinking. Go to “Speak Out” on Page Two for an example of opinion writing in Teenagers.
Advertisement — Don’t get happy too early when you read them. Those sweet words and lovely pictures are just ways to get us interested in their products! People have to pay to put advertisements in newspapers! The underlined sentence means that the readers "_______".
A.should understand interesting news stories |
B.ought to know which kind of things to read |
C.need to look at the school news first |
D.must know the contents of all the news |
This passage mainly discusses how_______.
A.reporters write different kinds of news |
B.teenagers get interested in newspapers |
C.readers can read newspapers in better ways |
D.readers can’t read different news in newspapers |
Santi's big brother Len had told him never to push all the remote control buttons at the same time. He said that something terrible would happen if he did. Santi didn't really believe this. While Len was out of the room, Santi jumped down on the sofa with the remote control in his hand. For a while, he changed from channel to channel, looking for something interesting to watch. Bored, Santi decided to see what Len could have meant.
With a quick glance(扫视) over his shoulder to make sure Len hadn't come back,he pushed all the buttons at once. Santi saw a bright flash,and he dropped the remote control. "I've broken it,"he thought. "Now I'm in trouble!" As he looked around for the remote control,he realized he was in more trouble than he'd thought. He was suddenly only the size of a mouse.
"Oh,no!"Santi shouted. He had to find his parents quickly. Carefully, he climbed down the side of the huge sofa and hurried across the floor. In the kitchen, Santi could see that the sliding door(滑门) had been left open. “If the door is open, then the cat might be in here,” tiny Santi said.
Just then, Santi and the cat saw each other. Santi ran for the door, the cat closing in quickly behind him. Just as the cat reached out to attack Santi, it slipped(打滑) on some water and slid across the kitchen floor. Out of breath, Santi hid behind a flowerpot in the corridor. He could see his mum far away in the garden. “How will I ever get there?” he wondered. As he looked out from behind the flowerpot, there was the huge cat looking right at him! Santi rushed for the garden and then…, he woke up. “It was only a dream!” he said with a relieved smile. “Thank goodness!”Len told Santi something terrible would happen if he _________.
A.changed from channel to channel |
B.tried to pretend(假装)to be a mouse |
C.pushed the buttons at the same time |
D.stayed alone in the living room |
Santi thought the cat might be in the kitchen because ________
A.he heard a moving sound |
B.the cat liked the kitchen |
C.the sliding door was open |
D.he saw the cat came into it |
The word “relieved” can be used to describe Santi’s feeling ______
A.when he was playing with the remote control |
B.when his big brother warned him something |
C.when he was no longer worried about the cat |
D.when he saw his mum far away from him |
The story probably tries to tell that ________
A.what happens if you break a rule |
B.it’s dangerous to stay alone at home |
C.people don’t want to get smaller |
D.sometimes pets are not friendly |
Having Fun “Growing” and “Stealing”?
Recently, an Internet game has become a new fashion among young office workers and students.People can “farm” on a piece of “land” and “grow’’, “sell” or even “steal” “vegetables”, “flowers” and “fruits” on the Net. They can earn some e-money and buy more “seeds”, “pets” and even “houses”.
Joyce interviewed some young people. Here are their opinions.
Harold:I don’t quite understand why they are so mad about the childish game; maybe they are just not confident enough to face the real world.
Allan:I enjoy putting some “bugs” in my friends’ gardens and we’ve become closer because of the game.Having fun together is the most exciting thing about it.
Laura:You know, people in the city are longing for(渴望) the life in the countryside.It reduces my work pressure(压力);besides, it gives me the exciting experience of being a “thief”.
Ivy: Well. it’s just a waste of time.Teenagers playing the game spend so many hours on it that they can not focus on (专注于)their study.Among the people Joyce interviewed,____ likes the game while____ dislikes the game.
A.Laura; Allan | B.Allan; Harold | C.Harold; Ivy | D.Ivy; Allan |
Which is NOT the reason why people like the game?
A.They are longing for country life. |
B.They can have fun with friends. |
C.The game can relax people and give them a new experience. |
D.They are confident enough to face the real world. |
Where can you find this passage?
A.In a car magazine. | B.In an advertisement. |
C.In a newspaper | D.In a science book |
Father’s Day has a very short history. It was started because there was a Mother’s Day, and just because some Americans thought that if we had a Mother’s Day, we should also have a Father’s Day. Father’s Day has become important in North America. And businesses found it was a good way to get people to buy a present for their father from their shops.
By the way, very few countries have a Father’s Day, though some have a Children’s Day, or a special day for boys and another for girls. More and more countries are having Mother’s Day, so maybe Father’s Day will also become popular before too long. Now, what do people in North America do on Father’s Day? The newspapers, radios, and TV tell children what they should do — buy, buy, buy, buy, buy a Father’s Day present for your father. They even tell a wife to buy, buy, buy, and buy a Father’s Day present — not for her father but for her husband, even if he is not yet a father. And they tell grandchildren to buy, buy, buy, and buy a Father’s Day present for their grandfathers.
The important thing to remember about Father’s Day is that American children can show their love to their fathers in a more open way. Father’s Day was started just because _______________.
A.there was a Mother’s Day |
B.there was a Children’s Day |
C.businesses wanted to get a lot of money |
D.people liked their fathers very much |
The word “special” in the second paragraph means ________________________.
A.great | B.nice | C.useful | D.not usual |
In America, people have a Father’s Day to ________________________.
A.buy some presents for their fathers |
B.show their love for their fathers |
C.let their fathers have a good rest |
D.help their fathers do something |
On Father’s Day, businesses always want ________________________.
A.people to buy many more presents |
B.children to buy presents only for their fathers |
C.women to buy presents only for their husbands |
D.people to buy presents only for their parents |
It can be learned from the passage that ________________________.
A.the writer is against Father’s Day |
B.many countries have a Father’s Day |
C.Businesses can get more money on Father’s Day |
D.Father’s Day will become more important than Mother’s Day |