In the 6th century BC, there was a war between the Romans and the Etruscans(伊特拉斯坎人) who lived north of Rome. The Etruscans raised a great army and marched toward Rome. At that time, Rome was just a small town, and the Romans did not have enough fighting men to protect their people.

One morning, thousands of Etruscan horsemen and footmen were seen marching straight toward the wooden bridge over the Tiber River. Rome was in immediate danger!

Among the guards at the bridge was a brave man named Horatius. He ordered the soldiers to cut down the bridge. At the same time, he took two soldiers with him to the far side of it. There, the three brave men kept the enemy from taking the bridge.

The soldiers tried to destroy the bridge as quickly as they could, and soon it was ready to fall. Some of them ran across to call the three men back.

Horatius yelled at the two others to cross first. At that moment the bridge fell with a great crash. Horatius fought the Etruscans by himself, and a dart(标枪) entered his left eye. In great pain, he turned and jumped into the river.

Horatius sank into the deep water but soon came out of the water, halfway across the river. He was greeted with shouts of joy, for he had saved the town. He gained a new name, Horatius Cocles, meaning the "one-eyed Horatius" and is remembered as one of Rome’s greatest heroes.

1.From the first paragraph we learn that Rome ________.

A. did not have many brave soldiers

B. was not large and strong then

C. was under the control of the Etruscans

D. had sent most of its army away.

2.To save the city of Rome, Horatius planned________.

A. To burn the road to Rome.

B. To drive the enemy into the river.

C. To cut down the bridge.

D. To kill the enemy horsemen first.

3.After the two soldiers came back,________.

A. The bridge fell into the water.

B. Horatius was killed by a horseman.

C. The Etruscans won the battle.

D. Horatius defeated the Etruscans by himself.

4.Horatius was renamed "Horatius Cocles" because ________.

A. he was the wisest man in Rome

B. he had saved the town of Rome

C. he had shown great courage against the enemy

D. his left eye had been hurt in the battle

5.Which of the following words could NOT necessarily be used to describe Horatius?

A. Fearless. B. Honest. C. Selfless. D. Bright.

The journey my daughter Cathy has had with her swimming is as long as it is beautiful.

Cathy suffered some terrible ____ in her early childhood. After years of treatment, she finally became healthy.

Two years ago, while Cathy was watching the Olympics, a dream came into her sweet little head—to be a swimmer. Last summer, she wanted to ____ our local swimming team. She practiced hard and finally ____ it. The team practice, however, was a hard start. She coughed and choked and could hardly pull through her first few weeks. Hearing her coughing seriously one night, I decided to ____ her from it all. But Cathy woke me up early next morning, wearing her swimsuit ready to go! I told her she shouldn’t swim after a whole night’s coughing, but she refused to ____ and insisted she go .

From that day on, Cathy kept swimming and didn’t ____ a single practice. She always tried her best to be the best. My ten-year-old was growing and changing right before my eyes, into this determined human being. There were moments of sadness of course: often she would be the last swimmer in the race. It was difficult for Cathy to accept that she wasn’t a ____ -ever. But that didn’t stop her from trying.

Then came the final awards ceremony(颁奖典礼) at the end of the year. Cathy didn’t expect any award but was still there to cheer for her friends. As the ceremony was nearing the end, I suddenly heard the head coach announcing, “The highest honor goes to Cathy!” Looking around, he continued, “Cathy has inspired us with her ____ and warmth. ____ skills and talents bring great success, the most valuable asset(财富)one can hold is the heart.”

It was the greatest ____ of my daughter’s life. With all she had been through in her ten years, this was the hour of true success.

1.A. failure B. pressure C. illness D. danger

2.A. improve B. train C. contact D. join

3.A. broke B. made C. controlled D. found

4.A. fire B. tell C. hide D. pull

5.A. give up B. put off C. take off D. show up

6.A. waste B. drop C. miss D. start

7.A. beginner B. winner C. partner D. learner

8.A. spirit B. satisfaction C. relation D. decision

9.A. Since B. Although C. Once D. Because

10.A. change B. training C. moment D. development

Making a turtle feel welcome

On a cold, rainy day, a boy found a turtle(乌龟) along the river. He was very happy, hoping to raise the turtle as his lovely pet.

He put the turtle on a stone and watched it for a long time. But the turtle didn’t move. Out of curiosity(好奇), the boy started to examine it to find out what was wrong with it. But the turtle pulled in its head and firmly closed its shell. The boy was upset. He grabbed the turtle and began to shake it. But the turtle still stayed in its shell. The boy picked up a stick to try to pry it open.

The boy’s uncle was watching all of this.

“No, that’s not the way,” he yelled.

“In fact, you may kill the turtle before you make it open up with a stick.”

The boy’s uncle took the turtle into the house and set it near the fireplace. The turtle didn’t move at all until it got warm. Then it pushed out its head, stretched out its legs and began to crawl. “Turtles are like that,” said the uncle, “and people, too.”

1.What did the boy do when he couldn’t open the turtle shell?

①He grabbed it and shook it. ②He broke the shell.

③He tried to open it with a stick. ④He put it near the fireplace.

A. ①② B. ①③ C. ①④ D. ③④

2.Which of the following can replace the underlined word “pry” in Paragraph 2?

A. shake B. steal C. force D. close

3.What’s the meaning of the last sentence in the story?

A. Like humans, turtles like to stay in warm places.

B. Turtles will like humans only if they are warm-hearted.

C. Like humans, turtles like to be treated nicely.

D. There are many similarities between humans and animals.

4.Which of the following statement is TRUE?

A. The boy found a turtle in the river when he was swimming.

B. The boy was angry because the shell didn’t open.

C. The boy’s uncle put the turtle into the fireplace.

D. The turtle prefers a warm place to a cold place

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