【2015·福建】B
Papa, as a son of a dirt-poor farmer, left school early and went to work in a factory, for education was for the rich then. So, the world became his school. With great interest, he read everything he could lay his hands on, listened to the town elders and learned about the world beyond his tiny hometown. "There's so much to learn," he'd say. "Though we're born stupid, only the stupid remain that way. " He was determined that none of his children would be denied ( fll^fe) an education.
Thus, Papa insisted that we learn at least one new thing each day. Though, as children, we thought this was crazy, it would never have occurred to us to deny Papa a request. And dinner time seemed perfect for sharing what we had learned. We would talk about the news of the day; no matter how insignificant, it was never taken lightly. Papa would listen carefully and was ready with some comment, always to the point.
Then came the moment—the time to share the day's new learning.
Papa, at the head of the table, would push back his chair and pour a glass of red wine, ready to listen.
"Felice," he'd say, "tell me what you learned today. "
"I learned that the population of Nepal is .... "
Silence.
Papa was thinking about what was said, as if the salvation of the world would depend upon it. "The population of Nepal. Hmm. Well . . . . " he'd say. "Get the map; let's see wrhere Nepal is. " And the wThole family
went on a search for Nepal.
This same experience was repeated until each family member had a turn. Dinner ended only after we had a clear understanding of at least half a dozen such facts.
As children, we thought very little about these educational wonders. Our family, however, was growing together, sharing experiences and participating in one another's education. And by looking at us, listening to us, respecting our input, affirming our value, giving us a sense of dignity, Papa was unquestionably our most influential teacher.
Later during my training as a future teacher /1 studied with some of the most famous educators. They were imparting what Papa had known all along—the value of continual learning. His technique has served me well all my life. Not a single day has been wasted, though I can never tell when knowing the population of Nepal might prove useful.What do we know from the first paragraph?
| A．The author's father was born in a worker's family. |
| B．Those born stupid could not change their life. |
| C．The town elders wanted to learn about the world. |
| D．The poor could hardly afford school education. |
The underlined word "it" in the second paragraph refers to "______.
| A．one new thing |
| B．a request |
| C．the news |
| D．some comment |
It can be learned from the passage that the author______ .
| A．enjoyed talking about news |
| B．knew very well about Nepal |
| C．felt regret about those wasted days |
| D．appreciated his father's educational technique |
What is the greatest value of "dinner time" to the author?
| A．Continual learning. |
| B．Showing talents. |
| C．Family get-together. |
| D．Winning Papa's approval. |
The author's father can be best described as ______.
| A．an educator expert at training future teachers |
| B．a parent insistent on his children's education |
| C．a participant willing to share his knowledge |
| D．a teacher strict about everything his students did |
“Mum, what does it mean when someone tells you that they have a skeleton（骨骼）in the closet（衣橱）?” Jessica asked. “A skeleton in the closet?” her mother paused thoughtfully. “Well, it’s something that you would rather not have anyone else know about. For example, if in the past, someone in Dad’s family had been arrested for stealing a horse, it would be ‘a skeleton in his family’s closet’. He really wouldn’t want any neighbor to know about it.”
“Why pick on my family?” Jessica’s father said with anger. “Your family history isn’t so good, you know. Wasn’t your great-great-grandfather a prisoner who was transported to Australia for his crimes?” “Yes, but people these days say that you are not a real Australian unless your ancestors arrived as prisoners.” “Gosh, sorry I asked. I think I understand now,” Jessica cut in before things grew worse.
After dinner, the house was very quiet. Jessica’s parents were still quite angry with each other. Her mother was ironing clothes and every now and then she glared at her husband, who hid behind his newspaper pretending to read. When she finished, she gathered the freshly pressed clothes in her arms and walked to Jessica’s closet. Just as she opened the door and reached in to hang a skirt, a bony arm stuck out from the dark depths and a bundle of white bones fell to the floor. Jessica’s mother sank in a faint（晕倒）, waking only when Jessica put a cold, wet cloth on her forehead. She looked up to see the worried faces of her husband and daughter.
“What happened? Where am I?” she asked. “You just destroyed the school’s skeleton, Mum,” explained Jessica. “I brought it home to help me with my health project. I meant to tell you, but it seemed that as soon as I mentioned skeletons and closets, it caused a problem between you and Dad.” Jessica looked in amazement as her parents began to laugh madly. “They’re both crazy,” she thought.According to Jessica’s mother, “a skeleton in the closet” means ______.
| A．a family honor | B．a family secret |
| C．a family story | D．a family treasure |
What can we learn about some Australians’ ancestors form Paragraph 2?
| A．They were brought to Australia as prisoners. |
| B．They were the earliest people living in Australia. |
| C．They were involved in some crimes in Australia. |
| D．They were not regarded as criminals in their days. |
Why did Jessica bring a skeleton home?
| A．She was curious about it. | B．She planned to keep it for fun. |
| C．She needed it for her school task. | D．She intended to scare her parents. |
Jessica’s parents laughed madly at the end of the story probably because ______.
| A．they were crazy |
| B．they were over excited |
| C．they realized their misunderstanding |
| D．they both thought they had won the quarrel |
In bringing up children, every parent watches eagerly the child’s acquisition（学会）of each new skill — the first spoken words, the first independent steps, or the beginning of reading and writing. It is common that parents hurry the child beyond his natural learning rate, but this can set up dangerous feelings of failure and states of worry in the child. This might happen at any stage. A baby might be forced to use a toilet too early, and a young child might be encouraged to learn to read before he knows the meaning of the words he reads. On the other hand, though, if a child is left alone too much, or without any learning opportunities, he loses his natural enthusiasm（热情） for life and his desire to find out new things for himself.
Parents vary greatly in their degree of strictness towards their children. Some may be especially strict in money matters; others are severe over time of coming home at night or punctuality（准时）for meals. In general, the controls imposed（强加的）represent the needs of the parents and the values of the community（社区）as much as the child’s own happiness.
As regards the development of moral standards in the growing child, consistency is very important in parental teaching. To forbid a thing one day and excuse it the next is no foundation for morality. Also, parents should realize that “example is better than precept”. If they are not sincere and do not practice what they preach（说教）, their children may grow confused, and emotionally insecure when they grow old enough to think for themselves, and realize they have been to some extent fooled.
A sudden awareness of a marked difference between their parents’ principles and their morals can be a dangerous disappointment.Eagerly watching the child’s acquisition of new skills _____.
| A．should be avoided |
| B．is universal among parents |
| C．sets up dangerous states of worry in the child |
| D．will make him lose interest in learning new things |
When children are learning new skills, parents should _____.
| A．achieve a balance between pushing them too hard and leaving them on their own |
| B．not expect too much of them |
| C．encourage them to read before they know the meaning of the words they read |
| D．create as many learning opportunities as possible |
The second paragraph mainly tells us that _____.
| A．parental restrictions vary, and are not always enforced for the benefit of the children alone |
| B．parental controls satisfy only the needs of the parents and the values of the community |
| C．parents should be strict with their children |
| D．parents vary in their strictness towards their children according to the situation |
The underlined word “precept” （in Paragraph 3） probably means “_____”.
| A．idea | B．punishment | C．instruction | D．behaviour |
In moral matters, parents should _____.
| A．satisfy their children’s needs |
| B．be aware of the marked difference between adults and children |
| C．forbid things which have no foundation in morality |
| D．observe（遵守，奉行） the rules themselves |
Everybody hates it, but everybody does it. A recent report said that 40％of Americans hate tipping. In America alone, tipping is a $16 billion-a-year industry. Consumers acting politely ought not to pay more than they have to for a given service. Tips should not exist. So why do they? The common opinion in the past was that tips both rewarded the efforts of good service and reduced uncomfortable feelings of inequality. And also, tipping makes for closer relations. It went without saying that the better the service, the bigger the tip.
But according to a new research from Cornell University, tips no longer serve any useful function. The paper analyzes numbers they got from 2,547 groups dining at 20 different restaurants. The connection between larger tips and better service was very weak. Only a tiny part of the size of the tip had anything to do with the quality of service.
Tipping is better explained, by culture than by the money people spend. In America, the custom came into being a long time ago. It is regarded as part of the accepted cost of a service. In New York restaurants, failing to tip at least l5% could well mean dissatisfaction from the customers. Hairdressers can expect to get l5%-20%, and the man who delivers your fast food $2. In Europe, tipping is less common. In many restaurants the amount of tip is decided by a standard service charge. In many Asian countries, tipping has never really caught on at all. Only a few have really taken to tipping.
According to Michael Lynn, the Cornell papers’ author, countries in which people are more social or outgoing tend to tip more. Tipping may reduce anxiety about being served by strangers. And Mr. Lynn says, “In America, where people are expressive and eager to mix up with others, tipping is about social approval. If you tip badly, people think less of you. Tipping well is a chance to show off.” This passage is mainly about ________.
| A．different kinds of tipping in different countries |
| B．the relationship between tipping and custom |
| C．the origin and present meaning of tipping |
| D．most American people hate tipping |
Which of the following best explains the underlined phrase “caught on” ?
| A．become popular. | B．been hated. |
| C．been stopped. | D．been permitted |
Among the following situations, in your opinion, who is likely to tip most?
| A．A Frenchman just quarreled with the barber who did his hair badly in New York. |
| B．An American just had a wonderful dinner in a well known restaurant in New York. |
| C．A Japanese businessman asked for a pizza delivery from a Pizza Hut in New York. |
| D．A Chinese student enjoyed his meal in a famous fast food restaurant in New York. |
We can infer from this passage that ________.
| A．tipping is no longer a good way to satisfy some customers themselves |
| B．tipping is especially popular in New York |
| C．tipping in America can make service better now |
| D．tipping has something to do with people’s character |
In our life, we have rarely expressed our gratitude to the one who’d lived those years with us.In fact, we don’t have to wait for anniversaries to thank the ones close to us—the ones so easily overlooked. If I have learned anything about giving thanks, it is this: give it now！While your feeling of appreciation is alive and sincere, act on it. Saying thanks is such an easy way to add to the world’s happiness.
Saying thanks not only brightens someone else’s world, but it also brightens yours. If you’re feeling left out, unloved or unappreciated, try reaching out to others. It may be just the medicine you need.
Of course, there are times when you can’t express gratitude immediately. In that case don’t let embarrassment sink you into silence—speak up the first time you have the chance.
Once a young minister, Mark Brian, was sent to a remote parish of Kwakiutl Indians in British Columbia. He had been told that the Indians did not have a word for thank you. But Brian soon found that these people had exceptional generosity. Instead of saying thanks, it is their custom to return every favor with a favor of their own, and every kindness with an equal or superior kindness. They do their thanks.
I wonder if we had no words in our vocabulary for thank you, would we do a better job of communicating our gratitude? Would we be more responsive, more sensitive and more caring?
Thankfulness sets in motion a chain of reaction that transforms people all around us—including ourselves, for no one ever misunderstands the melody of a grateful heart. In the first paragraph the writer mainly encourages us .
| A．to express our sincere thanks timely to those around us |
| B．never to overlook our close friends in daily life |
| C．to wait for a proper occasion to show our gratitude |
| D．to increase the world’s happiness by saying thanks |
When we say something for what others do for us, it ______.
| A．is good for both us and people who help us |
| B．benefits the people who do something for us |
| C．wastes our and our friends’ time at the same time |
| D．does harm to both us and people who help us |
According to the writer, could be the best way to prevent ourselves from being left out.
| A．seeing a doctor to find the right medicine we need |
| B．expressing our gratitude in an easy way |
| C．speaking up the moment we have the chance |
| D．showing others actively we are willing to help them |
Mark Brain’s story is mentioned in the passage in order to show the fact that .
| A．the Indians didn’t have any words for appreciation |
| B．the Indians were particularly generous to others |
| C．some people may express their gratitude through different approaches |
| D．Mark Brain set the Indians an example to show saying thanks is very important |
237 West Palmdale Boulevard
Fresno, California 93706
AmToy Corporation
Suite 15
TransAm Building
San Francisco, California 94115
November 20,2010
Dear Sirs,
As a concerned parent, I am writing to protest your recent advertisement for Electro-Robo seen in local media in California. Specifically, I am referring to newspaper and magazine ads (attached to this letter) published the week of November 15.
Children respond to your type of advertising in an immature way; that is, they are unable to understand how expensive some toys are for middle class parents. Further, your product is violent in nature. Your advertisement gives children the impression that it’s fine to have “two guns and laser eyes.” You also suggest that children need your toy to protect them “when you go outside.” This is not a healthy attitude for children to have.
I hope you will stop advertising your product in such a way that may harm our children.
Sincerely yours,
(Mrs.) Alma Hernandez
President, Parents for Non violent Toys
Enclosed Advertisement:
| It’s Here! Ready for You, Now! It’s Electro Robo! Every boy dreams of being in control of a robot, and AmToy can make your dream come true! Electro-Robo is the world’s first fully automatic robot with radio control. Standing 80 centimeters tall, Electro-Robo is like a friend at home. He can walk, talk, and even shake your hand! He has two guns and laser eyes to help you defend yourself when you go outside with him. Every boy needs Electro-Robo! Ask your Mom and Dad to buy Electro-Robo for your birthday or for Christmas, which is coming up soon. Imagine that you are in control of your friend for life, Electro- Robo! Available at all toy stores and department stores NOW! |
What is the purpose of the letter?
| A．To complain about a broken toy. | B．To order a gift for Christmas. |
| C．To oppose the advertising. | D．To apply for a job in a toy company. |
Why does the writer of the letter feel that Electro-Robo is violent?
| A．It bears arms. | B．It is expensive to buy. |
| C．It is 80 centimeters tall. | D．It is controlled by radio waves. |
Electro-Robo can do all the following EXCEPT________.
| A．shaking hands | B．sitting down | C．talking | D．walking |