Question

My father was a foreman of a sugar-cane plantation in Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico. My first job was to drive the oxen that ploughed the cane fields. I would walk behind an ox, guiding him with a broomstick. For $ 1 a day, I worked eight hours straight, with no food breaks.

It was very tedious work, but it prepared me for life and taught me many lasting lessons. Because the plantation owners were always watching us, I had to be on time every day and work as hard as I could. I’ve never been late for any job since. I also learned about being respectful and faithful to the people you work for. More important, I earned my pay; it never entered my mind to say I was sick just because I didn’t want to work.

I was only six years old, but I was doing a man’s job. Our family needed every dollar we could make because my father never earned more than $ 18 a week. Our home was a three-room wood shack with a dirty floor and no toilet. Nothing made me prouder than bringing home money to help my mother, father, two brothers and three sisters. This gave me self-esteem(自尊心), one of the most important things a person can have.

When I was seven, I got work at a golf course near our house. My job was to stand down the fairway and spot the balls as they landed, so the golfers could find them. Losing a ball meant you were fired, so I never missed one. Some nights I would lie in bed and dreamt of making thousands of dollars by playing golf and being able to buy a bicycle.

The more I dreamed, the more I thought. Why not? I made my first golf club out of guava limb(番石榴树枝) and a piece of pipe. Then I hammered an empty tin can into the shape of a ball. And finally I dug two small holes in the ground and hit the ball back and forth. I practiced with the same devotion and intensity. I learned working in the field — except now I was driving golf balls with club, not oxen with a broomstick.

The writer’s first job was _______.

A. to stand down the fairway at a golf course

B. to watch over the sugar-cane plantation

C. to drive the oxen that ploughed the cane fields

D. to spot the balls as they landed so the golfers could find them

The word “tedious” in Paragraph 2 most probably means _______.

A. difficult            B. boring        C. interesting  D. unusual

The writer learned that_______ from his first job.

A. he should work for those who he liked most

B. he should work longer than what he was expected

C. he should never fail to say hello to his owner

D. he should be respectful and faithful to the people he worked for

_______ gave the writer serf-esteem.

A. Having a family of eight people

B. Owning his own golf course

C. Bringing money back home to help the family

D. Helping his father with the work on the plantation

Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?

A. He wanted to be a successful golfer.

B. He wanted to run a golf course near his house.

C. He was satisfied with the job he got on a plantation.

D. He wanted to make money by guiding oxen with a broomstick.

Answer 1

【小题1】C

【小题2】B

【小题3】D

【小题4】C

【小题5】A

解析:

本文主要介绍作者小时候的工作经历：6岁时在一家甘蔗种植园耕地，7岁时在离家不远的一家高尔夫球场找到看球。

【小题1】语义理解题。第 1 段第 2 句话My first job was to drive the oxen that ploughed the cane fields 和题干几乎完全相同。

【小题2】词义猜测题。从第 2 段第 2 句话中的I had to be on time every day and work as hard as I could 可以推知 tedious 的正确词义。

【小题3】语义理解题。看到文章第 2 段第 4 句话 I also learned about being respectful and faithful to the people you work for，答案不言自明。

【小题4】语义理解题。从文章第 3 段最后两句话 Nothing made me prouder than bringing home money to help my mother, father, two brothers and three sisters. This gave me self-esteem (自尊心)… 不难肯定答案为C。

【小题5】判断题。从最后一段内容不难看出他想当一名高尔夫球员的迫切之心。