In the fall of 1985, I was a bright-eyed girl heading off to Howard University, aiming at a legal career and dreaming of sitting on a Supreme Court bench somewhere. Twenty-one years later I am still a bright-eyed dreamer and one with quite a different tale to tell.

My grandma, an amazing woman, graduated from college at the age of 65. She was the first in our family to reach that goal. But one year after I started college, she developed cancer. I made the choice to withdraw from college to care for her. It meant that school and my personal dream would have to wait.

Then I got married with another dream: building my family with a combination of adopted and biological children. In 1999, we adopted our first son. To lay eyes on him was fantastic---and very emotional. A year later came our second adopted boy. Then followed son No. 3. In 2003, I gave birth to another boy.

You can imagine how fully occupied I became, raising four boys under the age of 8. Our home was a complete zoo---a joyous zoo. Not surprising, I never did make it back to college full-time. But I never gave up on the dream either. I had only one choice: to find a way. That meant taking as few as one class each semester.

The hardest part was feeling guilty about the time I spent away from the boys. They often wanted me to stay home with them. There certainly were times I wanted to quit, but I knew I should set an example for them to follow through the rest of their lives.

In 2007, I graduated from the University of North Carolina. It took me over 21 years to get my college degree!

I am not special, just single-minded. It always struck me that when you’re looking at a big challenge from the outside it looks huge, but when you’re in the midst of it, it just seems normal. Everything you want won’t arrive in your life on one day. It’s a process. Remember: little steps add up to big dreams.

1.When the author went to Howard University, her dream was to be __________.

A. a writer B. a teacher

C. a judge D. a doctor

2.Why did the author quit school in her second year of college?

A. She wanted to study by herself.

B. She fell in love and got married.

C. She suffered from a serious illness.

D. She decided to look after her grandma.

3.What can we learn about the author from Paragraphs 4 and 5?

A. She was busy yet happy with her family life.

B. She ignored her guilty feeling for her sons.

C. She wanted to remain a full-time housewife.

D. She was too confused to make a correct choice.

4.What does the author mostly want to tell us in the last paragraph?

A. Failure is the mother of success.

B. Little by little, one goes far.

C. Every coin has two sides.

D. Well begun, half done.

5.Which of the following can best describe the author?

A. Caring and determined.

B. Honest and responsible.

C. Ambitious and sensitive.

D. Innocent and single-minded.

C

NEWS BRIEF

● "New labels to show calories

The US government ruled that all food establishments(场所) should put the calorie information of their foods on their menus. Within a year chain restaurants, like fast food KFC, will have to say clearly on their menus how many calories their fried chicken wings, fries, and other items contain. Amusement parks, movie theaters and supermarkets will also have to follow the rules. The move is designed to fight against the problem of obesity(肥胖) in the US.

Antibiotics leading to world problem

The entire world is facing this problem; antibiotic resistance. And the resistance will lead to the deaths of 10 million people across the world by 2025, predicted a new report released by the UK government. Antibiotics are used to destroy or slow the growth of harmful bacteria in our bodies. But overuse and misuse of them can encourage bacteria to develop new ways of overcoming antibiotics, which makes it increasingly difficult for humans to fight diseases.

●___________________________________

Australia is the world's most expensive destination for international students, according to a study done by Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC). They have to spend an average of $ 42,000 ( about 258 ,000 yuan) a year to study at Australian universities. Singapore is not far behind, with an average yearly cost of $ 39,229, followed by the US at $ 36,564 and the UK at 35,045. However, Australia's education quality only ranks joint fourth with Canada, well below the US, the UK, and Germany. In addition, international students studying in Germany only have to pay about one-sixth the cost of studying in Australia.

● New Games sports may be added

The International Olympic Committee has canceled the 28-sportcap for future summer Olympics But each summer Games will still only be allowed 10, 500 athletes and 310 events. Countries that could host the games will discuss plans with the committee during a new invitation stage before bidding. They are also allowed to hold events outside their own countries and get financial support from the committee. No changes will be introduced for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

1.The news brief covers ______________.

A. medicine, disaster, finance, events

B. health, medicine, education, sports

C. service, health, education, events

D. business, medicine, economy, sports

2.The underlined word "antibiotics" in Line 7 refers to ___________.

A. serious diseases

B. varieties of resistance

D. harmful bacteria

C. medical drugs

3.Which of the following fits in the blank best in the news brief?

A. Australian study most expensive

B. The cost of studying overseas

C. International students in Australia

D. Australia's education quality

4.Which of the following statements is best supported by the news brief?

A. Some events may be held outside the host country in future summer Olympics

B. It is Australia's best education quality that will cause students to make a wise choice.

C. It is necessary for the UK government to try hard to encourage using lots of antibiotics.

D. Popcorn sold in cinemas in the world will soon have calorie information labels.

A man may usually be known by the books he reads as well as by the company he keeps; for there is a companionship of books as well as of men; and one should always live in the best company, whether it be of books or of men.

A good book may be among the best of friends. It is the same today that it always was, and it will never change. It is the most patient and cheerful of companions. It does not turn its back upon us in times of adversity or distress. It always receives us with the same kindness; amusing and instructing us in youth, and comforting and consoling us in age.

Men often discover their affinity(亲密) to each other by the mutual love they have for a book just as two persons sometimes discover a friend by the admiration which both entertain for a third. There is an old proverb, ‘Love me, love my dog.” But there is more wisdom in this:” Love me, love my book.” The book is a truer and higher bond of union. Men can think, feel, and sympathize with each other through their favorite author. They live in him together, and he in them.

A good book is often the best urn(瓮)of a life enshrining the best that life could think out; for the world of a man’s life is, for the most part, the world of his thoughts. Thus the best books are treasuries of good words, the golden thoughts, which, remembered and cherished, become our constant companions and comforters.

Books possess an essence of immortality. They are by far the most lasting products of human effort. Temples and statues decay, but books survive. Time is of no account with great thoughts, which are as fresh today as when they first passed through their author’s minds, ages ago. What was then said and thought still speaks to us as vividly as ever from the printed page. The only effect of time have been to sift(筛) out the bad products; for nothing in literature can long survive but what is really good.

Books introduce us into the best society; they bring us into the presence of the greatest minds that have ever lived. We hear what they said and did; we see them as if they were really alive; we sympathize with them, enjoy with them, grieve with them; their experience becomes ours, and we feel as if we were, in a measure, actors with them in the scenes which they describe.

The great and good do not die, even in this world. Embalmed(加以防腐处理) in books, their spirits walk abroad. The book is a living voice. It is an intellect to which one still listens.

1.What’s the meaning of the underlined word “immortality”?

A.difficult to find B.last for a long time

C.very important D.hard to destroy

2.How do we get close to the greatest minds through reading?

A.by talking to them about what we thought

B.by experiencing what they have gone through in life

C.by sharing their feeling and reading their minds

D.by acting with them on the stage

3.What is the best title of this text?

A.Companionship of books

B.Life without books

C.Unforgettable books

D.Sorting out books

4.This passage is mainly developed by __________.

A.analyzing causes

B.making comparisons

C.examining differences

D.following the order of importance

完形填空)

阅读下面短文,从短文后各题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中,选出可填入空白处的最佳选项,并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

Love in a Box

When I was a little girl, I found love in a box all because of a class assignment (课堂作业). On a Friday night I ____________ at dinner table, “My teacher said we have to bring a box, a special box, for our valentines (情人节礼物) on Monday”.

Mother said, “We'll see,” and she continued eating.

What did “We'll see” mean? I had to have that box __________ my second grade Valentine's Day would be a disaster. Maybe they didn't love me enough to help me with my __________.

All Saturday I waited _________ and with Sunday arriving, my concern increased, but I ___________ an enquiry about the box might ___________ anger or loud voice, for in my house children only asked once. More than that_________ trouble.

Late Sunday afternoon, my father called me into the kitchen. The table was covered with colorful ________of different kinds. A(n) ___________ shoebox rested on top of it. _________ flooded through me when Daddy said, “Let's start to work _________ your project.”

In the next hour my father __________ the shoebox into impressive valentine box. Colorful paper covered the ugly cardboard with red hearts ___________ to what I considered all the right places. He sang while he worked. When he finished, he was so delighted that a________smile spread over his face. “What do you think of that?” he asked.

I answered him with a hug.

But inside, __________ danced all the way to my heart. It was the first time that my father devoted so much _________ to me, for his world consisted of work only.

The holiday party arrived, and my classmates put cards, and presents into the valentine boxes. Laughter filled our classroom until dismissal (放学) time ___________.

On the way home, I held out my valentine box for the world to __________. The love that filled it meant more to me than all the valentines inside.

The valentine box became a symbol of his love that __________ through decades of other Valentine's Days. He gave me other gifts through the years, but none ____________ compared with the love I felt within the limits of the old, empty shoebox.

1.A. sat B. appeared C. served D. announced

2.A. and B. or C. however D. so

3.A. project B. plan C. idea D. design

4.A. sadly B. disappointedly C. anxiously D. patiently

5.A. found B. knew C. realized D. imagined

6.A. start B. produce C. mark D. cause

7.A. saved B. took C. invited D. had

8.A. boxes B. gifts C. food D. paper

9.A. new B. empty C. attractive D. big.

10.A. Relief B. Excitement C. Cheer D. Calm

11.A. by B. off C. in D. on

12.A. folded B. changed C. packed. D. pressed

13.A. joined B. attached C. linked D. connected

14.A. broad B. brief C. slight D. confident

15.A. fun B. joy C. interest D. amusement

16.A. money B. hope C. support D. time

17.A. reached B. set C. spent D. came

18.A. accept B. respect C. admire D. recognize

19.A. carried B. lasted C. spread D. kept

20.A. yet B. even C. ever D. still

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