When the evening is coming, my dear son and I are preparing for the tape time. “Shoes on,” I remind 9-year-old Sam. “Snakes are always waiting for the chance to kiss you. But with our feet stepped into my car, we are safe.” We take blankets and cups of milk and head out to the shelter that serves as our garage. This has become our bedtime habit.

I press “play.” A motherly voice fills the car. My mother and my aunt send us books on tape obtained from secondhand shops or rescued from the back of drawer. Maybe no one in England lays cassettes anymore, but I still love them.

Sam rests on his seat. He’s sitting in the front seat. I am listening to the cassette. But I am also thinking. In a month’s time, my boy will be 10. Next year, he will be 11. And so it will go on, until he leaves me and his father and his sister to live out his own stories---as it is only right and proper he should.

Will he think back to the times when he sat in the dark in a car in Africa, listening to tales of Wales in World War Ⅱ, the finest lady detective of Botswana, or a country he has visited, and tells me he finds them “very interesting”? Will he think , when he is grown-up, the poor mum always makes the ancient tape player which is out of date work?

I like to believe that he will recall those wonderful moments. By then, perhaps, my child will realize a deep love of sharing and understanding by listening to the old tape player. I hope Sam will think that these evenings we spend in the car are a story themselves. It is his own first chapter. In time my boy will ease off the hand brake and roll out into the world. Until then, I’ll keep pressing “play”.

1.What habit did the writer and her son develop?

A. To play outside in the evening

B. To listen to tapes in a car

C. To drive in the evening

D. To read books together at night

2.How does the author think about Sam’s leaving the family in the future?

A. Interesting. B. Common and natural.

C. Absurd. D. Unbearable.

3. In paragraph4, the two questions can prove that ________.

A. playing with children is fun for parents

B. listening to stories is a good way to enjoy life

C. children need to ask questions in reading

D. Listening experiences will be part of Sam’s life

4.The best title for the passage may be “_______”.

A. A gift of a story player

B. A childhood full of love and story

C. Deep love for the tape player

D. The future life of our children

完形填空

The town of Pressure and the town of Pleasure were neighbors but they had nothing in common. Residents built walls to influence from the other town.

In Pressure, everyone struggled to be the very . For instance, when women birth, they would compete to have the baby with the loudest cry. There was violent competition in every aspect of life. Because was the symbol of success, people were busy making money, with no time for . Some young people couldn't bear the intensity and chose to drive to escape.

, in Pleasure, the motto was “As long as you like it, do it.” People without pressure and do anything they liked. Children played computer games day and night. At school, teachers didn't care students came or not. Workers might sit around the office drinking coffee and doing nothing. the lack of regulations, nobody worried about losing their jobs. It was that mattered. No one had the slightest thought of moving , either for themselves or for the town. The computers they used were the old models from the town of Pressure.

Some of the young were addicted to because of the emptiness of their lives. Then, people in the two towns began asking themselves. “What is for?” But just before life in the two towns completely , there came a great person--Mr.Reason. He went from door to door, with people and giving advice. People in Pressure learnt to be content with what they had, ________ people in Pleasure began to make plans. They the wall between them and built a road to connect the two. People in the two towns came to realize the truth---there is no gap between Pressure and Pleasure if they don't go to extremes.

1.A. connect B. contact C. prevent D. arrange

2.A. worst B. best C. least D. most

3.A. took B. gave C. offered D. brought

4.A. health B. power C. wealth D. status

5.A. sometimes B. hardly C. seldom D. always

6.A. relaxation B. intension C. standard D. starvation

7.A. Furthermore B. Therefore C. However D. Moreover

8.A. got up B. went up C. grew up D. set up

9.A. must B. could C. need D. should

10.A. who B. where C. what D. whether

11.A. all day long B. all night C. all alone D. all the way

12.A. Regardless of B. Due to C. According to D. As for

13.A. pleasure B. time C. money D. pressure

14.A. backward B. downward C. upward D. forward

15.A. drugs B. food C. work D. books

16.A. money B. life C. pleasure D. pressure

17.A. failed B. improved C. lived D. succeeded

18.A. to talk B. talking C. talked D. talks

19.A. when B. as C. while D. since

20.A. went down B. put down C. pulled down D. wrote down

Since my family were not going to be helpful about my taking a cooking job, I decided I would look for one all by myself and not to tell them about it till I’d got a permanent one.

I had seen an agency advertised in a local paper, so as soon as there was no one about to say “Where are you going?” I rushed out of the house in search of it. I was wildly excited, and as nervous as if I were going on the stage. Finding the place quite easily, I tore up three flights of stairs, and swung breathlessly through a door which said “Enter without knocking, if you please.”

The simple atmosphere of the office calmed me, and I sat down on the edge of a chair. The woman at the desk opposite looked carefully at me. Then she questioned me in a low voice. I answered softly and started to feel helpless. She wondered why I was looking for this sort of job, so I felt I had to give her the idea of a widowed mother struggling against poverty. But I felt more helpless when she told me that it would be difficult to get a job without experience or references. Suddenly, the telephone on her desk rang. While having a mysterious conversation, she kept looking at me. Then I heard her say:

“In fact, I’ve got someone here who might suit.” She wrote down a number, and my spirits rose as she held out the paper to me, saying: “Ring up this lady. She wants a cook immediately. Cook a dinner for ten people tomorrow. Could you manage that, I wonder?”

“Oh, yes,” say I—never having cooked for more than four. Then I rushed out and called the lady, Miss Cathy. I said confidently that I was just what she was looking for. “Are you sure?” she kept saying. Anyway she decided to employ me and a permanent position if I carried out the promise of my self-praise. I asked her what tomorrow’s menu was to be.

“Just a small, simple dinner: lobster cocktail, soup, turbot Mornay, fruit salad and a savory.” In a rather shaken voice I promised to turn up in good time tomorrow and rang off.

1.What did the author feel on her way?

A. Excited but worried.

B. Nervous and excited.

C. Easy and curious.

D. Helpless but excited.

2.Why didn’t the woman give the author the job at first?

A. Because the woman found that the author didn’t respect her.

B. Because the woman realized that the author made up a story.

C. Because the author hadn’t been a cook before or got a reference.

D. Because the woman had already hired a more suitable cook.

3.According to the passage, what would the author most probably do after the call?

A. Read some cookery book.

B. Call her family and tell them the news.

C. Go to the woman’s house.

D. Buy what the woman told her at once.

Some American high schools are for students with special interests, like science or the arts. New York City even has a program for those interested in the food service industry, called Food and Finance High School.

New York also has what are called international high schools, or internationals, for immigrant students. They must be new learners of English who have been in the United States less than four years. The first school opened in nineteen eighty-five. The city will begin the new term next month with ten.

New York works with a nonprofit organization, the Internationals Network for Public Schools. Support from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has helped the network expand. The network says the graduation rate was seventy percent last year in the four New York schools open long enough to have graduating classes. That, compared with twenty-three percent for English language learners in all of the city schools.

Over all, New York officials recently reported that the city’s four-year graduation rate, reached fifty-two percent last year. At the same time, they reported that the city’s dropout rate fell below fifteen percent. The Internationals Network says its schools have an average dropout rate of just five percent.

Claire Sylvan is the executive director of the group. She says students drop out mainly because their families need them to work or because parents arrange marriages for girls.

The Internationals Network mainly helps find teachers and trains them in the teaching method of the internationals. Claire Sylvan says the teaching approach is to have students use their different strengths to help each other. They work in small groups, but she says they are not grouped by ability. She says the students discuss issues, then produce a product like a paper, a play, a poster or a report. They learn English as they work.

1.The international high school in New York is __________

A. for immigrant students with special interests

B. for new immigrant students who have been living in New York less than four years

C. for new learners of foreign language from around the world

D. for new young learners of English language living in the US less than four years

2.The international high schools in New York _______

A. have been opened for less than 20 years and set a good example

B. can bring great profit for the Internationals Network for Public Schools

C. will expand from having one school to having ten

D. have given great support to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation

3.Which of the following shows the graduation rate of the schools of the International Networks last year in the four New York schools?

Graduation rateDropout and other

A B C D

4.One of the reasons why some students drop out of school is that _____.

A. their parents can’t afford to pay for the education

B. they have to help their parents with the work

C. girls are forced to make money for their families

D. they have trouble in passing all kinds of exams

5.Claire Sylvan would agree with all the following statements EXCEPT _____.

A. with the help of the network, the students can find right teachers.

B. students use their different strengths to help each other

C. students can be divided into different classes according to their ability

D. students can discuss with each other and finish their work by themselves

请认真阅读下面短文,并根据所读内容在文章后表格中的空格里填入最恰当的单词。注意:请将答案写在答题卡上相应题号的横线上。每个空格填1个单词。

The job of raising children is a tough one. Children don’t come with an instruction handbook. And each child is different. So parents sometimes pull their hair out in frustration, not knowing what to do. But in raising children----as in all of life---what we do is influenced by our culture. Naturally then, American parents teach their children basic American values.

To Americans, the goal of parents is to help children stand on their own two feet. From infancy, each child may get his or her own room. As children grow, they gain more freedom to make their own choices. Teenagers choose their own forms of entertainment, as well as the friends to share them with. When they reach young adulthood, they choose their own careers and marriage partners. Of course, many young adults still seek their parents’ advice and approval for the choices they make. But once they “leave the nest” at around 18 to 21 years old, they want to be on their own, not “tied to their mother's apron strings.”

The relationship between parents and children in America is very informal. American parents try to treat their children as individuals─ not as extensions of themselves. They allow them to fulfill their own dreams. Americans praise and encourage their children to give them the confidence to succeed. When children become adults, their relationship with their parents becomes more like a friendship among equals. But contrary to popular belief, most adult Americans don’t make their parents pay for room and board when they come to visit. Even as adults, they respect and honor their parents.

Most young couples with children struggle with the issue of childcare. Mothers have traditionally stayed home with their children. In recent years, though, a growing trend is to put preschoolers in a day care center so Mom can work. Many Americans have strong feelings about which type of arrangement is best. Some argue that attending a day care center can be a positive experience for children. Others insist that mothers are the best caregivers for children. A number of women are now leaving the workforce to become full-time homemakers.

Disciplining children is another area that American parents have different opinions about. Many parents feel that an old-fashioned spanking(一顿打) helps youngsters learn what “No!” means. Others prefer alternate forms of discipline. For example, “time outs” have become popular in recent years. Children in “time out” have to sit in a corner or by a wall. They can get up only when they are ready to act nicely. Older children and teenagers who break the rules may be grounded, or not allowed to go out with friends. Some of their privileges at home like TV or telephone use may also be taken away for a while. Although discipline isn't fun for parents or children, it’s a necessary part of training.

Being a parent is a tall order. It takes patience, love, wisdom, courage and a good sense of humor to raise children. Some people are just deciding not to have children at all, since they're not sure it's worth it. But raising children means training the next generation and preserving our culture. What could be worth more than that?

Paragraph outline

1._________ details

Introduction

It is no easy task to bring up children. Parents sometimes feel very 2.______, not knowing what to do.

The goal of parents

They help children to learn live 3._______ from infancy on.

The relationship between parents and children

An informal relationship exists between American parents and children.

Children are praised and 4.______ to realize their dreams.

●Children are treated equally more like friends.

The issue of childcare

Most young couple struggle with this issue.

●5._______, mothers stayed at home with kids.

●Recently, a day care center is 6.______ preschoolers are put.

●There is an argument over whether attending a day care center is a positive experience for children.

7._____to discipline children

American parents have different opinions.

● “Time outs” have gained 8._____ in recent years.

●9.________ away some privileges is a way to punish some older children and teenagers.

Conclusion

Raising children takes patience, love, wisdom, courage etc, but it is 10.________ it.

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