As a child, I was really afraid of the dark and of getting lost. These fears were very real and caused me some uncomfortable moments.
Maybe it was the strange way things looked and sounded in my own room at night that scared (使惊恐) me so much. There was never complete darkness, but always a streetlight or passing car lights, which made clothes on the back of a chair take on the shape of a wild animal. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the curtains (窗帘) seem to move when there was no wind. A very low sound in the floor would seem a hundred times louder than in the day. My imagination would run wild, and my heart would beat fast. I would lie very still so that the “enemy” would not discover me.
Another of my childhood fears was that I would get lost, especially on the way home from school. Every morning I got on the school bus right near my home. That was no problem. After school, though, when all the buses were lined up along the street, I was afraid that I would get in the wrong one and be taken to some other strange places. On school or family trips to a park or a museum, I wouldn’t let the leaders out of my sight.
Perhaps one of the worst fears of all I had as a child was that of not being liked or accepted by others. Being popular was so important to me then, and the fear of not being liked was a serious one.
One of the processes (过程) about growing up is being able to realize and overcome (克服) our fears. Understanding the things that scared us as children helps us achieve greater success later in life.
would scare the writer at night.
| A．Streetlight and car lights |
| B．Wild animals and enemies |
| C．Moving curtains and wind |
| D．Strange sights and sounds |
When she went to some other places, she would .
| A．walk away without others |
| B．take a bus by herself |
| C．follow others closely |
| D．make sure not to take a wrong bus |
Which of the following statements would be possibly TRUE when she was a child?
| A．She thought being popular among people was important. |
| B．She was always the leader of the others. |
| C．She always got poor grades. |
| D．She was not at all liked by others. |
The nine-year-old Marc Yu is called Little Mozart. He is too short to reach the pedals (踏板) of a piano. Marc, from California, USA, says, “The problem is that my legs aren’t straight enough, so I have to get very close to the piano.”
Marc’s 34-year-old mother played Beethoven’s CDs to him when she was pregnant . Marc started playing the piano at a birthday party when he was only two. While the other children were singing “twinkle, twinkle, little star …”, he walked over to the piano and started playing the song. It astonished his mother, because that was the first time he’d been near a piano. Marc gave his first public performance, playing Beethoven, at six, the same age as Mozart. After that concert, Marc won a ￡225,000 university scholarship.
At present he practices the piano eight hours a day. He also studies part-time at the famous Colbum Music School in Los Angeles, and flies once a month to China for lessons at Shanghai Music School. Marc says, “I like playing the piano because it makes me have a lot of different feelings —sadness, excitement, happiness and so on. I like playing difficult pieces, especially those that my teacher says I shouldn’t.”The nine-year-old Marc Yu is from .
| A．China | B．France | C．Canada | D．the United States |
Marc played the piano at the age of for the first time.
| A．two | B．five | C．six | D．nine |
According to the passage, the underlined word “astonished” means “” in Chinese.
| A．使……理解 | B．使……担心 |
| C．使……惊奇 | D．使……难过 |
At present Marc practices playing the piano .
| A．once a month | B．eight hours a day |
| C．in his free time | D．only on weekends |
What Marc says in the last paragraph tells us that .
| A．he likes challenges | B．he doesn’t like challenges |
| C．he is afraid of challenges | D．he wants to be happy and famous. |
There is one word you must learn before you visit the USA. That is “Freeze”. Remember it has a special meaning besides the usual one. It means “stand still and don’t move”. Often policemen use it when they are ready to use their guns. If one doesn’t obey the order and moves, he or she will be shot to death.
One evening in Los Angeles, someone rang the bell of a house. It was a dangerous area at night, so the owner of the house took his gun with him when he answered the door. He opened the door and saw a strange man. But the man turned round and started walking away from the house. The owner cried: “Freeze”, but the young man went on walking without obeying the owner’s order. The owner thought he was trying to run away, so he shot at the young man and he was killed.
Later, police found that the dead man was a Japanese student who was studying in Los Angeles University. He went to visit a friend, but unluckily could not remember the number of the house. When he realized he went to the wrong house he turned round and left. He didn’t know much English and so didn’t understand the word “Freeze”. What a lesson we should get for this!According to the article, what does the word “Freeze” mean?
| A．It means “be covered with ice”. | B．It means “very cold”. |
| C．It means “dangerous”. | D．It means “Stand still, or I will shoot you”. |
The meaning of the word “owner” here means _________.
| A．a policeman | B．a man with a gun |
| C．a person who possesses something | D．a dog of a house |
Which of the following is right?
| A．When you hear the police or someone say “Freeze” in the USA, you must stop moving. |
| B．Don’t ring the bell of anyone’s house in the USA at night. |
| C．At last, the police found the dead man was a thief. |
| D．The owner of the house was put into prison. |
Which of the following is NOT true according to the article?
| A．Police say “Freeze” when they are going to use their guns. |
| B．The story happened in Los Angeles in the morning. |
| C．The dead man was a Japanese student. |
| D．The dead man couldn’t understand the meaning of “Freeze”. |
What’s the best title of the article?
| A．A Japanese Student | B．American Police |
| C．Freeze | D．The Owner of a House |
The right name is important in the business world. All you have to do is think of the names for some of the products you buy every day and you’ll agree that the name and the product are connected in everyone’s mind.
In many countries, successful trade or brand(商标) names are protected by law so that other companies cannot make the same product by copying. Businesses register(注册) a company or a product name with the government. In fact, more than 1,000 product and company names are registered every hour. Many companies spend a lot of money to find the right name for their products. A good example of this is in the car industry. Some successful names for cars have powerful associations(联系). The Ford Mustang and the Jaguar are only two examples of choosing the names of animals that are fast and strong.
When a U. S company decides to sell its product in another country, it has to make sure that the product name translates(翻译) properly. When Coca-Cola introduced its soft drink to China, it looked for the right name. It wanted a name that would do two things. One was to present its image in Chinese and the second was to be close to its first brand name—Coke. It took some efforts before finding the right word — which sounds similar and translates as “happiness in the mouth”. Asian company names are not new to the United States. The brand names of Samsung and Sony have been successful. Finding the right brand name is a big business. Asian companies that sell to foreign markets pay to find a name that will connect with its customers. There are even naming companies that offer help in inventing product names. These companies can charge up to $100,000 a word for their good names. But it’s worth it. Successful companies know how important the right brand names are for their development.Why are trade names protected by law in many countries?
| A．To make companies pay for naming service. |
| B．To help people choose the best products. |
| C．To present good images of the products. |
| D．To prevent good images from being copied. |
What can we learn from the passage?
A. Many companies care about the cost of finding the right names.
B. Creative trade names can help companies to have a larger sale.
C. The government often does business with naming companies.What’s the best title for the passage?
| A．The Importance of Right Brand Names | B．The Development of Names |
| C．The Rules of Naming | D．The Methods of Choosing Names |
Have you heard about “Survival Holidays”? It is for children to go into the lonely place for exciting activities. Now about 1,100 companies are allowed to take children into the great outdoors without their parents.
The reason why people like “Survival Holidays” is that they think being close to nature is good for children. Many children in big cities spend all time watching TV and playing computer games. “Survival Holidays” gives them an important change.
Is “Survival Holidays” a wonderful idea? Maybe it is. Children need more free time to play. They need to be left on their own, without adults disturbing them. Parents care too much about their children. They like to see the children being busy with activities that are controlled by adults, which causes many problems. Children don’t know what to do when they are in danger. Even something like crossing a small river seems to be a hard challenge(挑战). Children are not comfortable with danger. Even slight danger like getting their feet wet or falling down seems very terrible to them.
Many people think the survival activities are good for children. Even years later, they will still remember what they have learned. Some have learned to stay calm in dangerous times. Some have learned how to keep safe. Others have learned how to work in a team. All these skills will help them a lot in their lives. What does “Survival Holidays” mean according to the passage? ________.
| A．Holidays to escape from danger |
| B．Winter holidays for survival challenge |
| C．Summer holidays in the great outdoors |
| D．Holidays in lonely places for exciting activities |
Which children may take part in “Survival Holidays”?
| A．Poor children. | B．Rich children. |
| C．Children from cities. | D．Children from the countryside. |
In a “Survival Holidays” , children can NOT learn ________.
| A．how to get good grades |
| B．how to stay calm in different times |
| C．how to keep safe when they meet danger |
| D．how to work in a team |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．No companies can hold “Survival Holidays”. |
| B．Parents can take part in “Survival Holidays” with their children. |
| C．Parents like to keep their children busy with activities controlled by adults. |
| D．Children don’t listen to their parents any more after “Survival Holidays”. |
This morning, I went camping along a path in Green Natural Park with my friends. We were happy because it was a sunny day. We were expecting an enjoyable two-day holiday. On the way, we kept singing and making jokes.
However, in the afternoon, when we finished our picnic at one o’clock, it was dark and windy. Soon, there was a shower. Unluckily, none of us brought an umbrella. We ran about but we could find no place to hide.
Twenty minutes passed and it was still raining. There were hours to go before we reached the campsite (野营地). It was even worse that our small compass (指南针) showed that we went to the wrong way. We had lost our way!
We had to make a quick decision as it was raining heavily. Chris said we could set up a tent to hide in, so Mary and Tom helped to set up the tent. Chris and I tried to make a fire to keep us warm. But we were unable to light the fire, as everything was wet. We dried ourselves, chatted and waited inside the tent. At about five o’clock, it stopped raining. We decided to give up the camping trip because all of us had been very tired.
This camping trip may not be very successful but we know each other better. And the most important thing I’ve learned from this trip is the importance of team spirit.The writer with his friends went camping in Green Natural Park ______.
| A．to have a picnic | B．to have a shower |
| C．to enjoy a two-day holiday | D．to make jokes |
The writer thought it even worse that they ______.
| A．had no picnic | B．lost their way |
| C．couldn’t light the fire | D．couldn’t know each other |
Which of the following is NOT true？
| A．It was sunny in the morning. | B．None of them had an umbrella. |
| C．They gave up the camping at last. | D．They ran about to dry themselves. |
The writer has learned the importance of ______ from the trip.
| A．making a decision | B．working together |
| C．enjoying holidays | D．taking a compass |