The Mermaid Balloon
"Mum！"little Desiree said，"It's my daddy's birthday．How will I send him a birthday card？"Her mother looked at her and sighed．She didn't know what to say．Desiree's father had died nine months earler．Desiree didn't understand．She was only four years old．
"I have an idea，"her mother said．"Let's write your daddy a letter．We can tie the letter to a balloon and send it up to heaven（天堂）．What should we write？"
Desiree told her mother to write，"Happy Birthday，Daddy．I love you and miss you．Please write me on my birthday in January．"
Desiree's mother wrote the message and their address on a small piece of paper．Then they went to a store to buy a balloon．Desiree looked quickly at the balloons and said，"That one!The one with the mermaid（美人鱼）！"
They bought the mermaid balloon and tied the letter to it．Then Desiree let the balloon go．
Desiree released the balloon in California．The wind caught the balloon and carried it east．Four days later，it came down 3，000 miles away，near a lake in eastern Canada．The name of the lake was Mermaid Lake．
Wade MacKinnon，a Canadian man，was hunting ducks at Mermaid Lake when he found Desiree's balloon and letter．He took them home to his wife．She decided to send Desiree a birthday present．She also wrote her a letter．The letter said：
Dear Desiree，
Happy Birthday from your daddy．I guess you wonder who we are．Well，my husband，Wode，went duck hunting，and guess what he found？A mermaid balloon that you sent your daddy．There are no stores in heaven，so your daddy wanted someone to do his shopping for him．I think he picked us because we live in a town called Mermaid．I know your daddy loves you very much and will always watch over you．
Lots of love，
The MacKinnons
Desiree's mother wrote the Mackinnons to thank them．During the next few weeks，she and the MacKinnons telephoned each other often．Then Desiree and her mother flew to Canada to meet the MacKinnons．The MacKinnons took them to Mermaid Lake and showed them where the balloon landed．
Now，whenever Desiree wants to talk about her father，she calls the MacKinnons．After she talks to them，she feels better．
People often say，"What a coincidence（巧合）﹣the mermaid balloon landed at Mermaid Lake!"Desiree's mother is not sure it was just a coincidence．She says，"I think that somehow my husband picked the MacKinnons．It was his way to send his love to Desiree．Desiree understands now that her father is with her always．"
根据短文内容，将26﹣28小题与所给的A、B、C选项进行句子匹配，请将答案编号涂卡．
26．Desiree wrote her father a letter．
27．Desiree chose a balloon at the store．
28．The balloon came down near a lake．
A．It was in eastern Canada，and its name was Mermaid Lake．
B．It said，"Happy Birthday．I love you and miss you．"
C．It had a picture of a mermaid on it．
根据短文内容，选择正确答案，请将答案编号涂卡．
29．Desiree released the balloon in California．Here"released"means" "．
A．opened her eyes and looked at the balloon
B．opened her hand and let the balloon go
C．mailed the balloon in California
30．What was the coincidence（巧合）in the story？
A．Desiree and her father have the same birthday，January 12．
B．The mermaid balloon came down at Mermaid Lake．
C．The MacKinnons also have a four﹣year﹣old daughter．
阅读填空先通读下面的短文，掌握其大意，然后根据短文内容和所给首字母，在空格内填入一个适当的词，使短文意思完整。所填单词在题后横线上必须完整写出。
Do students in your country go directly to university or college after school or do they have a break first? Taking a gap year (空档年)between high school and university is quite common in the UK, and there are lots of different ways to spend your time.
A gap year is a period of time, usually a year, when a student takes a break before going on to study in university. It is often spent traveling or working.
People used to think that taking a gap year was not acceptable. In the past you took a gap year if you had to retake exams or had problems with your study. But now, universities encourage a gap, and it is more possible for a student who takes a gap year to be offered jobs when they graduate. A gap year can give young people useful learning experiences, help them pick up new skills.
A student often takes a gap year at about eighteen years old, before going to university. It can also be taken at a different time.
Many gap year students choose to do voluntary work. Others want to travel around the world for more experiences. Lots of gap year students just want to see more of the world.
Most students who are planning a gap year take on a part-time job to save up for the trip. Some students travel for three or six months and then work for the rest of the year.
| A gap year in the UK |
|
| What is a gap year? |
It is the time when a student takes a break from formal |
| Advantages（优势） |
Though people didn’t |
| A student take a gap year at about eighteen years old, before going to university or at a different time. |
|
| What to do? |
The gap year is usually |
| How to make money? |
They save up for the trip |
One day I went to a store with a list. “Excuse me,” I said. A lady with glasses looked up, saying, “I’m Miss Bee. Come closer and let me look at you. I want to be able to describe you to the police if something is missing from the store.”
“I’m only a little girl, not a thief (小偷)!” I was surprised.
“But I think you’re potential (有可能的) ,” she said.
“I need these,” I said, holding up my list.
“So what? I am not a person who works for you. Go to get them.” she said.
The store was a puzzle to me. It took me two hours to find everything on the list. “That packet of beans is only 29 cents, but you asked me for 35 cents. ” I corrected her. She didn’t seem unhappy, just looked at me over her glasses.
The following summer I visited Miss Bee some times a week. She always found ways to fool me. Or shortly after I remembered the places of something on the shelf, she arranged (重排) the shelves again and made me hunt for them again. By the end of the summer the shopping trip that had once taken me an hour was done in 15 minutes.
One morning I was to get a packet of chocolate. “Miss Potential, what did you learn this summer?” she said. “That you’re a meanie (刻薄鬼)!” I answered angrily. But she laughed, “Well, I believe my job is to teach every child I meet life lessons to help them. When you get older, you’ll be glad our paths crossed!” Glad I met Miss Bee? Ha! It was absurd.
Until one day my daughter said, “ Could you finish my math problems for me?” “How will you ever learn to do it yourself if I do it for you?” I said. Suddenly, I was back at that store where I had learned the hard way to check my bill. Now I have known what Miss Bee did for me. She is my good teacher.Why did Miss Bee arrange the shelves again and again?
| A．To laugh at the writer. |
| B．To teach the writer some skills. |
| C．To think about other customers’ need. |
| D．To avoid her things being stolen. |
What does the underlined word “absurd” mean?
| A．开心的 | B．令人兴奋的 |
| C．令人费解的 | D．荒谬的 |
Which word can best describe the writer’s feelings for Miss Bee in the last paragraph?
| A．Thankful. | B．Hateful. |
| C．Uncomfortable. | D．Unkind. |
The purpose of writing the text is to tell us _________.
| A．the facts about a kind person－Miss Bee |
| B．how to teach your children life lessons |
| C．people should check everything carefully |
| D．the good teacher isn’t only in the school |
I travel a lot, and I find out different “style” of directions every time I ask “How can I get to the post office?”
Foreign tourists are often puzzled in Japan because most streets there don’t have names; in Japan, people use landmarks (地标) in their directions instead of street names. For examples, the Japanese will say to travelers, “Go straight down to the corner. Turn left at the big hotel and go past a fruit market. The post office is across from the bus stop.”
In the countryside of the American Midwest, there are not usually many landmarks. There are no mountains, so the land is very flat; in many places there are no towns or buildings within miles. Instead of landmarks, people will tell you directions and distances. In Kansas or Iowa, for example, people will say, “Go north two miles. Turn east, and then go another mile.”
People in Los Angeles, California, have no idea of distance on the map; they measure (估量) distance in time, not miles. “How far away is the post office?” you ask. “Oh,” they answer, “it’s about five minutes from here.” You say, “Yes, but how many miles away is it?” They don’t know.
It’s true that a person doesn’t know the answer to your question sometimes. What happens in such a situation? A New Yorker might say, “Sorry, I have no idea.” but in Yucatan, Mexico, no one answers “I don’t know.” people in Yucatan believe that “I don’t know” is impolite. They usually give an answer, often a wrong one. A tourist can get very, very lost in Yucatan!When a tourist asks the Japanese the way to a place, they usually _________.
| A．tell him the names of the streets |
| B．show him a map of the place |
| C．describe the place carefully |
| D．refer to (意指)clear buildings and places |
What is the place where people show distance in time?
| A．New York. | B．Los Angeles. | C．Kansas. | D．Iowa. |
Usually, People in Yucatan give a tourist a wrong answer _________ instead of saying “I don’t know”.
| A．to save time | B．as a test |
| C．to be polite | D．for fun |
What can we learn from the text?
| A．It’s important for travelers to understand cultural differences. |
| B．It’s useful for travelers to know how to ask the way properly. |
| C．People have similar understandings of politeness. |
| D．New Yorkers are generally friendly to visitors. |
An excerpt (节选) from The Card
Edward Henry Machin first saw daylight on the 27th of May, 1867, in Brougham Street in Bursley, the oldest of the Five Towns. Brougham Street goes down a hill to the canal (运河).The rent (租金) for one of these houses was not high — only about twenty-two pence (便士) a week.
Edward Henry’s mother (his father was dead) lived by making and washing clothes for fine ladies. She did not often laugh. She was a woman of few words, and saved time every day by calling her son Denry, instead of Edward Henry.
Denry did not work hard at school, and boys who were lazy and not very clever usually just found jobs in the potbanks. Luckily, at the age of twelve, he won a place at the best school in Bursley. It happened like this. On the second day of the examination, Denry arrived a little early. As he walked around the examination room, he came to the teacher’s desk, where he saw a list of names with marks for the first day of the examination. The highest possible mark was 30, but next to his name he saw the number 7. The numbers were written in pencil, and the pencil was on the desk. He picked it up, looked around the empty room, and at the door, and them wrote a 2 in front of the 7. Of course, this was not honest, but how many truly honest schoolboys are there? Denry was no worse than most of them.What was Edward Henry’s mother like?
| A．Patient. | B．Dishonest. |
| C．Hard-working. | D．Kind. |
What was the mark Edward Henry got in the end?
| A．30. | B．7 | C．2 | D．27 |
Are you always unwilling to do housework and cleaning for no reason? Well, you will be happy today. Today is No Housework Day. It’s time to forget about housework and be relaxed.
No Housework Day is always on April 7th. It is your chance to do anything, except housework. Better still, have someone else do housework for a day. Housework is a daily and endless job and most people think it’s boring to do housework. I have many friends and their wish is to stay away from housework. In fact, their wish can never come true.
Do you know how to celebrate No Housework Day? Well , there are two different ways.
If you usually do the housework around the house, forget it on this day. Instead, kick back and enjoy the day. Relax and do anything, except housework.
If you never do housework, you can do it for your family. It gives your parents a break from the housework. And, you just might get a chance to know how much housework your parents need to do every day.The writer has many friends and their wish is _________.
| A．not to do any housework any more |
| B．to ask others to do their housework |
| C．to celebrate No Housework Day |
| D．to ask all the family members to do housework |
If Lisa never does housework, the writer thinks she can _________ on No Housework Day.
| A．forget housework | B．do housework |
| C．feel relaxed | D．do anything except housework |
What’s the main idea of the passage?
| A．It’s about the daily housework. |
| B．It’s about our duty and right. |
| C．It’s about No Housework Day. |
| D．It’s about some national holiday. |