Dear Santa Claus,
My name is Amy. I am 17 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. I just want one day when 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 Content. When Amy’s letter arrived at the radio station, Manager Lee Tobin read it carefully. He thought it wound be good for the people in Fort Wayne to hear about this special girl 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 stations reported the story of the 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. Some of the writers had disabilities; some had been teased as children. Each writer had a special message for Amy. Through the cards and letters from strangers, Amy saw a world full of people who truly cared about each other.
Many people thanked Amy for being brave enough to speak up. Others encouraged her to ignore teasing and to hold her head high.
Amy did get her wish of a special day without teasing at South Wayne High School. Teachers and students talked together about how bad teasing can make others feel.
That year, the Fort Wayne mayor officially declared 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,” he said, “wants to and should be treated with respect, dignity and warmth.”Amy’s letter showed that______.
| A．she wanted to win Christmas Wish Contest |
| B．she is more independent than before |
| C．she is often ignored in and out of class |
| D．her schoolmates can’t understand her disability |
We may infer from Amy’s story that_____.
| A．the disabled hate those who laugh at them |
| B．the news media played a key role in helping Amy |
| C．Amy will still be made fun of by her classmates |
| D．there are few disabled people in Amy’s country |
The mayor officially declared Amy Jo Hagadorn Day _______.
| A．to tell how bad teasing can make others feel |
| B．to encourage people to hold their heads high |
| C．to explain how brave Amy was by making her wish |
| D．to call on the public to treat everyone properly |
“A thousand-mile journey begins with a single step,” as the saying goes. However, 36 it doesn’t tell us is that once the journey is started, it might be hard to stop.
That’s the 37 for Tang Renli, a senior at Nanjing University of Technology, who has backpacked to more than 200 cities in China during four years of college. To 38 his experiences, Tang has hosted a photo exhibition Play Hooky, Go Travel at the Beijing 798 Art Zone. On __39_ are over 300 photos of his travels. The 22-year-old never 40 going to so many places when he 41 his first trip to Yangzhou during the Tomb Sweeping Day holiday in his freshman year. _42 he was hooked on travel. You may 43 how Tang could find the time, being a full-time college student. Did he really skip classes to go travel, like the 44 of his exhibition suggests? “I gave myself one to two weeks every month for travel. But I always took care of my class and 45__ first,” Tang said. Tang, who is a city planning major, has never ___46_ a compulsory course at college.
“I spent more time and effort on my study, 47 during the finals’ weeks,” Tang said. Schoolwork was not the only 48 Tang had to face. His travel budget was 49 so Tang had to 50 what he had. He usually took the cheapest form of transport and stayed at youth hostels ___51 less than 50 yuan per night. There were also times when he walked, hitchhiked, and slept in train stations, police offices and vans.
“Sometimes I felt 52 , helpless and even found myself in _53 ,” Tang said. “But now that I look back, these setbacks _54 my journey, and my life. Don’t think too much about the ___55 because you’ll cross that bridge when you get to it. And once you take your first step, the feeling is amazing and addictive.”
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MySpace, the social networking website, is different from other websites which only provide stories about other people. MySpace is a place that allows you to broadcast your own stories and personal information to as many people as you like. Started two years ago, it is a big source of information for and about American kids.
Teenagers and their parents feel very differently about it. Teens are rushing to join the site, not sharing their parents' worries. It signals yet another generation gap in the digital era.（数字时代）
For teenagers, it is reliable network to keep in touch with their friends. They will often list their surnames, birthdays, afterschool jobs, school clubs, hobbies and other personal information.
“MySpace is an easy way to reach just about everyone. I don't have all the phone numbers of all my acquaintances （熟人）. But if I want to get in touch with one of them, I could just leave them a message on MySpace.” said Abby Van Wassen. She is a sixteen year old student at Woodland Hills High of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Parents on the other hand are seriously concerned about the security problems of MySpace.
“Every time we hold a parents meeting, the first question is always about MySpace，” said Kent Gates, who travels the country doing Internet safety seminars (研讨会)．The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children has received at least 288 MySpace related complaints, according to Mary Beth Buchanan, a lawyer in Pittsburgh.
“Your profile on MySpace shows all your personal information to anyone on the Web. And MySpace even lists this information by birthplace and age. It's like a free checklist（清单）for troublemakers and it endangers children，” Buchanan said.From the passage we can learn that MySpace ________.
| A．brings about the generation gap |
| B．is very careful about people's privacy |
| C．encourages you to list your personal information |
| D．lists the telephone numbers of your friends |
Why are some parents against MySpace?
| A．Because MySpace has a bad influence on their children. |
| B．Because they don't want to pay so much money for MySpace. |
| C．Because it takes up too much of their children's spare time. |
| D．Because troublemakers can easily approach their children through the site. |
The writer's attitude towards MySpace is ________.
| A．negative | B．positive | C．optimistic | D．objective |
Which of the following can be the best title of the passage?
| A．Internet safety | B．MySpace | C．Generation gap | D．The digital era |
It was June 15, and in two days I would be turning thirty. I was not sure about entering a new decade of my life and feared that my best years were now behind me.
My daily routine included going to the gym for a workout（ 锻炼） before going to work. Every morning I would see my friend Nicholas at the gym. He was seventy nine years old and in terrific shape. As I greeted Nicholas on that particular day, he noticed I wasn't full of my usual vitality（活力）and asked if there was anything wrong. I told him I was feeling anxious about turning thirty. I wondered how I would look back on（ 回顾）my life once I reached Nicholas's age, so I asked him, “What was the best time of your life？”
Without hesitation, Nicholas replied, “Well, Joe, this is my philosophical（哲理的）answer to your philosophical question：
When I was a child in Austria and everything was taken care of for me and I was nurtured by my parents, that was the best time of my life.
When I was going to school and learning the things I know today, that was the best time of my life.
When I got my first job and had responsibilities and got paid for my efforts, that was the best time of my life.
When I met my wife and fell in love, that was the best time of my life.
The Second World War came, and my wife and I had to flee Austria to save our lives. When we were together and safe on a ship bound for（开往）North America, that was the best time of my life.
When we came to Canada and started a family, that was the best time of my life.
When I was a young father, watching my children grow up, that was the best time of my life.”
“And now, Joe, I am seventy nine years old. I have my health, I feel good and I am in love with my wife just as I was when we first met. This is the best time of my life.”When was the writer's birthday?
| A．June 13 | B．June 15 | C．June 17 | D．June 19 |
Why was the writer anxious?
| A．He wasn't full of his usual vitality. |
| B．He didn't see his old friend Nicholas. |
| C．He was feeling anxious about turning thirty. |
| D．He didn't like his friend's answer about the best time. |
What does the underlined word “ nurtured ” mean?
| A．brought up | B．developed | C．trained | D．encouraged |
After an earthquake or any similar disaster, parents and teachers need to help children overcome the effects of this frightening and sometimes devastating （ 毁灭性的） experience. Psychologists （心理学家）say that if children go through a disturbing event before the age of ten, they are three times as likely to suffer psychological problems as teenagers. After a disaster children may become easily upset, shy, aggressive , or afraid of wind, rain, noises, or darkness. They may have trouble letting go of their parents and resist going to school or daycare. Some children may even feel guilty thinking that they somehow caused the disaster through their bad behavior. Because of such common reactions, parents and others should begin as soon after the event as possible helping these children.
Some suggestions include talking to the children about what happened, letting the children express their own feelings, spending extra time with them doing activities together and reassuring （使放心）them that you love them and won't leave them. For some children expressing themselves through drawing pictures or writing can be useful. Do everything possible to help children get back to a normal routine; however, don't be afraid to "spoil" these children for a while after the disaster. Let them have extra privileges （特权）and more attention than usual. Encourage the children to grieve （悲痛）after a loss. It should be OK for them to cry. Caring families and friends can do much to heal children victims of disasters.This passage is mainly about_______.
| A．how to help traumatized（心理受到创伤的）children to get over |
| B．the bad effects disasters bring to children |
| C．the psychological problems children before ten are likely to suffer |
| D．the importance of caring families |
According to the passage, a child who has just experienced a devastating disaster may become______.
| A．more mature | B．less dependent | C．willing to help | D．ready to attack |
Which is NOT advisable when dealing with the traumatized children?
| A．Allowing them freedom for some time. |
| B．Asking them to hold their feelings. |
| C．Encouraging them to show their grief. |
| D．Talking them into taking care of others. |
How many people have I met who have told me about the book that they have been planning to write but have never yet found the time? Far too many .This is Life, all right, but we do treat it like a rehearsal（排演）and, unhappily, we do miss so many of its best moments .
We take jobs to stay alive and provide homes for our families, always making ourselves believe that this style of life is merely a temporary state of affairs along the road to what we really want to do. Then, at 60 or 65, we are suddenly presented with a clock and several grandchildren and we look back and realize that all those years waiting for Real Life to come along were in fact real life .
In America they have a saying much laughed at by the English：“Have a nice day!” They speak slowly and seriously in their shops, hotels and sandwich bars. I think it is a wonderful phrase, reminding us to enjoy the moment: to value this very day .How often do we say to ourselves, "I'll take up horse-riding（or golf, or sailing）as soon as I get a higher position," only to do none of those things when I do get the higher position .
When I first became a reporter, I knew a man who gave up a very well paid respectable job at the Daily Telegraph to go and edit a small weekly newspaper. At the time I was astonished by what appeared to me to be his completely abnormal（反常的）mental state. How could anyone turn his back on Fleet Street in central London for a small local area？I wanted to know .
Now I am a little older and possibly wiser, I see the sense in it. In Fleet Street the man was under continual pressure .He lived in an unattractive London suburb and he spent much of his life sitting on Southern Region trains .The first paragraph of the passage tells us that________.
| A．we always try to find some time to write a book |
| B．we always make plans but seldom fulfill them |
| C．we always enjoy many of life's best moments |
| D．we always do what we really want to do |
The man （in paragraph 6）left his first job partly because he was_________.
| A．in an abnormal state | B．under too much pressure |
| C．not well paid | D．not respected |
What is probably the best title for the passage?
| A．Provide Homes For Our Family | B．Take Up Horse-riding |
| C．Value This Very Day | D．Stay Alive |