Dear David,
My daughter will be five years old. She is happy, well-mannered, loving and pretty. She has attended a Montessori school since she was 16 months old and has made two friends. The three girls are always together, or talking with each other.
But recently the girls told my daughter that they would not play with her if she kept playing with the boy who was disliked by most of the class. My daughter always finds good things in others and insisted they play with him, too. Then one of the friends told my daughter she didn’t have straight hair and shouldn’t play with them. Then she started ignoring my daughter. My mother-in-law decided to iron my girl’s beautiful curly hair(卷发).
With her birthday coming, my child decided to invite her friends to her party. When I asked her why, she said because they were always together, but I know one of the girls will not attend her party. 
I’m concerned about her. I feel lost, not knowing how to help my child.
Jenny
Dear Jenny,
It’s always painful to a mother when someone hurts her child. Your daughter’s friends weren’t nice to her, but little kids are still learning how to get along with others. As a result, young friendships are often fleeting, even changing from day to day. Your daughter seems to be remarkably loving, outgoing and mature(成熟的) beyond her years. Perhaps you need to be proud of the way she treats people.
Ironing your daughter’s hair won’t send your daughter or the other girls a good message. It implies that there is something wrong with the way she is. You have no choice but to let your daughter know that one of the girls won’t be attending her birthday party. If she seems upset, remind her that other friends will be there. My guess is that she will rise to the occasion.
Hope this helps.
David

  1. 1.

    What’s the mother’s problem?

    1. A.
      Her daughter doesn’t respect other kids
    2. B.
      Her daughter seems to be losing her friends
    3. C.
      Her daughter cares too much about her friends
    4. D.
      Her daughter doesn’t know how to deal with others
  2. 2.

    When the daughter was asked not to play with that boy, she probably ____

    1. A.
      thought her friends were right
    2. B.
      felt lucky to have such good friends
    3. C.
      thought her friends shouldn’t have said that
    4. D.
      realized her friends were not popular with others
  3. 3.

    David used the underlined word“fleeting”to show that  _____

    1. A.
      kids value friendship
    2. B.
      young friendships don’t last long
    3. C.
      young friendships are very important
    4. D.
      kids are good at dealing with others
  4. 4.

    In David’s opinion, ironing the daughter’s hair _____

    1. A.
      is the right thing to do
    2. B.
      will make her more popular
    3. C.
      will make her doubt the way she is
    4. D.
      will help her win back her friends

Americans like to travel on their yearly holiday. Today, more and more travelers in the United States are spending nights at small houses or inns(客栈)instead of hotels. They get a room for the night and the breakfast the next morning.
Rooms for the night in private(私人的)homes with breakfast have been popular with travelers in Europe for many years. In the past five to ten years, these bed-and-breakfast places have become popular in the United States. Many of these America’s bed-and-breakfast inns have only a few rooms; others are much larger. Some inns do not provide telephones or televisions in the rooms, others do.
Staying at a bed-and-breakfast inn is much different from staying at a hotel. Usually the cost is much less. Staying at an inn is almost like visiting someone’s home. The owners are glad to tell about the areas and the interesting places to visit. Many vacationers say that they enjoy the chance to meet local families

  1. 1.

    Americans take a holiday trip______.

    1. A.
      all the year round
    2. B.
      for years
    3. C.
      every year
    4. D.
      every other year
  2. 2.

    According to the passage, which of the following is NOT true?

    1. A.
      Some Americans like to stay at bed-and-breakfast homes instead of at hotels
    2. B.
      The bed-and-breakfast inns are private homes open to vacationers
    3. C.
      The bed-and-breakfast inns have been popular in America for a long time
    4. D.
      The bed-and-breakfast inn owners provide a morning meal for their visitors and a room for the night
  3. 3.

    Staying at the bed-and-breakfast inns, ______.

    1. A.
      the travelers needn’t pay anything
    2. B.
      the travelers don’t have to pay for the telephone or television
    3. C.
      the travelers can meet and talk with the local people
    4. D.
      the owners will show the travelers around the area
  4. 4.

    Which is TRUE according to the passage?

    1. A.
      European and American vacationers like staying at bed-and-breakfast inns
    2. B.
      All Americans enjoy traveling
    3. C.
      These bed-and-breakfast inns are all old historic buildings
    4. D.
      Staying at a bed-and-breakfast inn is just like at the traveler’s home

If you want to teach your children how to say sorry, you must be good at saying it yourself, especially to your own children. But how you say it can be quite tricky.
If you say to your children "I'm sorry I got angry with you, but...", what follows that "but" can make the apology ineffective:"I had a bad day" or "your noise was giving me a headache" leaves the person who has been injured feeling that he should be apologizing for his bad behavior in expecting an apology.
Another means by which peaple appear to apologize without actually doing so is to say "I'm sorry you're upset"; this suggests that you are somehow at fault for allowing yourself to get upset by what the other person has done.
Then there is the general, all-covering apology, which avoids the necessity of identifying a specific act that is particularly hurtful or insulting, and which the person who is apologizing should promise never to do again. Saying "I'm useless as a parent" does not commit a person to any specific improvement.
These pseudo-apologies(假道歉) are used by people who believe saying sorry shows weakness. Parents who wish to teach their children to apologize should see it as a sign of strength, and therefore not take these pseudo-apologies.
But even when presented with examples of real apology, childfen still need help to become aware of the complexities of saying sorry.  A three-year-old might need help in un- derstanding that other children feel pain just as he does, and that hitting a playmate over the head with a heavy toy requires an apology. A six-year-old might need reminding that spoiling other children's expectations can require an apology. A 12-year-old might need to be shown that destroying the biscuit tin without asking permission is acceptable, but that
borrowing a parent's clothes without permission is not

  1. 1.

    If a mother adds "but" to an apology, ________

    1. A.
      the child may find the apology easier to accept
    2. B.
      the child may feel that he owes her an apology
    3. C.
      she promises never to do it again
    4. D.
      she does not realize that the child has been hurt
  2. 2.

    According to the author, saying "I am sorry you are upset" most probably means “_______”

    1. A.
      You have good reason to get upset
    2. B.
      I apologize for hurting your feelings
    3. C.
      I am at fault for making you upset
    4. D.
      I am aware you are upset, but I am not to blame
  3. 3.

    It is not advisable to use the general, all-covering apology because _______

    1. A.
      it is not clear and ineffective
    2. B.
      it is hurtful and insulting
    3. C.
      it may make the other person feel faulty
    4. D.
      it gets one into the habit of making empty promises
  4. 4.

    We learn from the last paragraph that in teaching children to say sorry_______

    1. A.
      the complexities involved should be ignored
    2. B.
      parents need to set them a good example
    3. C.
      their ages should be taken into account
    4. D.
      parents should be patient and tolerant
  5. 5.

    It can be inferred from the passage that apologizing properly is________

    1. A.
      a sign of social,progress
    2. B.
      not as simple as it seems
    3. C.
      not necessary among family members
    4. D.
      a social issue calling for immediate attention

It's an annual argument. Do we or do we not go on holiday? My wife says no because we have no savings to save us. I say you only live once and we work hard and what's the point if you can't go on holiday. The joy of a recession (不景气) means no argument next year - we just won't go.
Since money is known to be one of the things most likely to bring a relationship to its knees, we should be grateful. For many families the recession means more than not booking a holiday A YouGov survey of 2, 000 people found 22% said they were arguing more with their partners because of concerns about money. A recent research shows arguments about money were especially damaging to couples.　
Kim Stephenson, an occupational psychologist, believes money may be different things to men and women. “People can say the same things about money but have different ideas of what it's for.” he explains. “They'll say it's to save, to spend, for security, for freedom, to show someone you love them.” He says men are more likely to see money as a way of buying status and of showing their parents that they've achieved something.
“The biggest problem is that couples assume each other know what's going on with their finances, but they don't. There seems to be more of a taboo (禁忌) about talking about money than about death. But you both need to know what you're doing, who's paying what into the joint account and how much you keep separately. In a healthy relationship, you don't have to agree about money, but you have to talk about it.”

  1. 1.

    What does the author say about going on holiday in Paragraph 1?

    1. A.
      It will cost them too much money
    2. B.
      Few people can afford it without working hard
    3. C.
      It makes all the hard work worthwhile
    4. D.
      It is the chief cause of family quarrels
  2. 2.

    According to the text, what does Kim Stephenson believe?

    1. A.
      Money is often a symbol of a person's status
    2. B.
      Money means a great deal to both men and women
    3. C.
      Men and women spend money on different things
    4. D.
      Men and women view money in different ways
  3. 3.

    The author suggests that couples should ______

    1. A.
      put their money together instead of keeping it separately
    2. B.
      discuss money matters to maintain a healthy relationship
    3. C.
      make efforts to reach agreement on their family budgets
    4. D.
      avoid arguing about money matters to remain romantic

Christmas is long gone. and Valentine’s Day is a distant memory. That means it's a slow time for jewelers, and a good time for you to make a purchase. Whether you’re out shopping for gold, or silver, here fife a few things you need to know:
What determines price?
The purity of the metal is one of the elements that determines the price. Gold purity is indicated with a stamp of 10K, 14K, 18K, or 24K. And different countries have their own standards. For example, for a piece to be considered gold in the US, it must be at least 10K. In Britain and Canada: 9K. In Italy and France: l 8K. Anything over l 8K is really too soft for everyday wear. That’s why jewelry stores in the US sell mostly 14K.
How much can you expect to pay?
That depends on the weight of the metal and the gemstone(宝石). So keep that in mind, especially when buying online. To keep yourself from getting ripped off, ask yourself the following:
●How long has the company been around?
●What is its return policy?
● Is the jewelry featured on the website visible from all directions?
● Is the company transparent with the gram weights and the size of the gemstones?
Yellow gold? White? Rose?
Yes, it's confusing, and while this is largely a personal decision, there fife a few things to keep in mind. For starters. white or rose gold costs about l 0% more than yellow gold. If you want the “look for less”, consider gold. plated jewelry. “Gold plated” and “gold overlay” mean the same thing and guarantee a thicker layer of finish than “vermeil” which is a flash finish that is thinner and less consistent, but more affordable. Buy vermeil finished pieces you want for a season or two just to follow the fashion. For pieces you want to wear for a lifetime, solid gold is best.
What about sterling silver(标准纯银)?
Sterling silver has been。an alternative for white gold during the difficult economy, and while it used to be more popular with just the younger these days it has much more mass appeal. So much so that retailers are now offering fine gemstones with silver--something you used to see only with gold.
Keep in mind that in the US. the sterling silver standard is 92.5% real silver. Don’t buy it if there isn’t a “925” stamp on it. And keep in mind that the lower price you’re paying for silver means more maintenance. To keep silver jewelry from becoming less shiny, consider keeping a piece of chalk in your jewelry box

  1. 1.

    According to the passage, the underlined phrase “getting ripped off” in Paragraph 3 probably means “_______”

    1. A.
      being charged
    2. B.
      being cheated
    3. C.
      being affected
    4. D.
      being attracted
  2. 2.

    Which of the following is relatively good for only wearing a short time?

    1. A.
      A 14K necklace
    2. B.
      A gold-plated ring
    3. C.
      A vermeil ear ring
    4. D.
      A gemstone necklace
  3. 3.

    We call infer from the last paragraph that silver jewelry should be kept ________

    1. A.
      in a dry place
    2. B.
      in a cold place
    3. C.
      in a wet place
    4. D.
      in a hot place
  4. 4.

    The author writes the passage mainly to ________

    1. A.
      encourage young people to buy fashionable jewelry
    2. B.
      tell people the best time to purchase gold and silver
    3. C.
      introduce the real value and popularity of gold and silver
    4. D.
      inform people of the factors to consider in buying jewelry

In Canada and the United States, there is a new group of children called “satellite kids”, who live in one place but whose parents live in another place.
Asians are immigrating (移民) to Canada and the United States in larger numbers than ever before. Most Asians immigrate because they believe that they can give their children a better education in the West. In Asia, especially in China, Japan, and Korea, it is difficult to go to university. Students must first pass the strict national examination. However, in Canada and the United States, it is easy to go to university, and anyone who wants to go can go. As a result, Asian parents decide to leave their countries so that their children can go to university.
The problem is that when Asians arrive, they discover that finding a job and making money are more difficult in the West than in the East. Also, they find that they are very lonely, and that they miss their homes. For these two reasons, most Asian parents decide to go back to work while their children study in the West. Therefore, these children become “satellite kids”, and most of their parents do not know how sad it is to be a “satellite kid”.
Only until now are Canadians and Americans discovering the “satellite kid” problem. Because these children do not speak English and because their parents are not there to take care of them, they are often absent from school. To be a “satellite kid” means to grow up in a country where you know you are different and where you cannot make friends because you do not speak English well. Also, it means to grow up lonely, because your parents are elsewhere. What these “satellite kids” will probably say to their parents is that it’s better to have parents around than to have a university education

  1. 1.

    Some Asian parents send their kids abroad because ________

    1. A.
      they hope their children may easily find a job there
    2. B.
      all foreign universities are better than the ones in their own countries
    3. C.
      the kids may not be accepted by universities in their own countries
    4. D.
      the kids want to improve their English and make foreign friends
  2. 2.

    “Satellite kids” refer to Asian kids ________

    1. A.
      without parents
    2. B.
      speaking no English
    3. C.
      with university education
    4. D.
      living abroad alone
  3. 3.

    Some Asian immigrant children become “satellite kids” because their parents ________

    1. A.
      want to leave their own country
    2. B.
      want them to go to university
    3. C.
      return to their countries to work
    4. D.
      want them to be independent
  4. 4.

    What is the main idea of the passage?

    1. A.
      Parents want better education for their kids
    2. B.
      Parents feel lonely and miss their families
    3. C.
      Kids in foreign countries alone are badly in need of care from family
    4. D.
      Canadians and Americans begin to notice the “satellite kids” problem

It was a quiet village in which there was a military camp (军营). It was far from the towns and cities and there were some high mountains around. Of course it was a good place for training the new soldiers. But it was difficult for the young men to go outside. Mr. White, an officer of forty, was strict with them and he hardly let them leave the camp.
Once Mr. White was ill in bed. He couldn’t work and a young officer, Mr. Hunt, began to train the new soldiers instead of him. He knew the young men well and let nine soldiers go to the nearest town to have a holiday. But night fell and none came back to the camp. He was worried about it and stood at the gate. It was five to twelve when Mr. Hunt decided to go to the town and see what was happening to the young men. He started the car quickly and set off. At that moment the nine soldiers came back. It seemed they drank wine. Of course they found the officer was angry.
“I’m sorry, sir,” said the first soldier. “I left the town on time. But something was wrong with my bus on my way here. I had to buy a horse and made it run fast. Bad luck! It died and I had to run back.”
And the other seven soldiers said they were late for the same reasons. It was the last soldier’s turn. He said, “I’m sorry, sir. I got on a bus on time, but....”
Having heard this, the officer became even angrier and stopped him at once. He called out, “If you say something was wrong with your bus, I’ll punish you at once!”
“No, no, sir,” said the young man. “My bus was all right, but the dead horses were in its way!”

  1. 1.

    The military camp was built in the village to ________

    1. A.
      stop the soldiers from going to towns
    2. B.
      stop the soldiers from meeting their friends
    3. C.
      train the new soldiers
    4. D.
      make the young men live quietly
  2. 2.

    Mr. Hunt let the nine soldiers have a holiday because ________

    1. A.
      he was kind to them
    2. B.
      they felt lonely
    3. C.
      they had something important to do
    4. D.
      they were the best of all
  3. 3.

    The young officer was worried because ________

    1. A.
      a traffic accident had happened
    2. B.
      he was afraid something happened to the nine soldiers
    3. C.
      the nine soldiers would come back
    4. D.
      the nine soldiers drank too much in the town
  4. 4.

    Which of the statements do you think is true?

    1. A.
      You’ll believe only the last soldier
    2. B.
      The officer believed the nine soldiers
    3. C.
      You’ll believe none of the nine soldiers
    4. D.
      The officer wouldn’t punish his soldiers

Long working hours,the fewest holidays and the high cost of living mean the big salaries on offer（可使用的）in the UK do not go as far as those earned in other countries,making Britain and Ireland the worst places to live in Europe．
France and Spain are the two countries topping the European Quality of Life Index（指数）out today,according to the place comparison website Switch．com．
The French enjoy longer lives,better healthcare,more holidays and cheaper prices．In contrast Britons work three years longer and die two years younger after paying above the European average for fuel,food,alcohol and cigarettes．The amount we spend on healthcare and education is below the European average．
Only Ireland and Poland spend less,but Ireland has more doctors and hospital beds and Poland has more beds than the UK．People in Germany,Spain,France,Italy,the Netherlands and Sweden all enjoy longer life expectancy than Britons．And while we may be giving up work earlier,the average age at which we retire is still the fourth highest in Europe——and the UK state retirement age is set to rise．
Ann Robinson,of Switch．com,said:“There’s more to good living than money and this report shows why so many Britons are giving up on （对……不再抱希望）the UK and heading to France and Spain．We earn substantially more than our European neighbors,but this level of income is needed just to keep a roof over our heads,food on the table and our homes warm” ． “It’s giving us a decent standard of living,but it’s not helping us achieve the quality of life that people in other countries enjoy．For too long the focus in the UK had been on standard of living rather than quality of life．”

  1. 1.

    In Europe,to enjoy the best quality of life,you’d better live in _______．

    1. A.
      Britian and Ireland
    2. B.
      Spain and France
    3. C.
      Ireland and Poland
    4. D.
      Britian and Italy
  2. 2.

    Which of the following about the UK is TRUE according to the passage?

    1. A.
      People in the UK pay more than the European average for fuel,food,alcohol and cigarettes．
    2. B.
      People in the UK enjoy the highest quality of life．
    3. C.
      People in the UK spend most on the healthcare and education．
    4. D.
      People in the UK die two years older than in France．
  3. 3.

    The underlined word“decent”in the last paragraph means “_______”

    1. A.
      good enough
    2. B.
      bad enough
    3. C.
      ordinary
    4. D.
      neither bad nor good
  4. 4.

    What do you think would be the best title for the passage?

    1. A.
      Money is a must to make you live a good life．
    2. B.
      High standard of living means good quality of life．
    3. C.
      High standard of living is one thing and good quality of life is another．
    4. D.
      To live a good life,go to Britian．

In many African countries, the care of orphans has been mainly led by foreign donor organizations. However, Sister Florence has changed all that. Using her own resources, Sister Florence is leading the work of raising orphans from different backgrounds. Sister Florence Wanjala’s biggest motivation to start the orphan program was when she saw a little boy whose parents had died. The boy was living with a cruel grandparent and he would visit the grave of his mother, crying for support. Sister Wanjala wanted to give a helping hand and give him hope. From that time, she started feeling the call to help a larger number of orphans.
She opened an office with a few friends and coordinated (协调)a program to help the orphans. All the registrations were done in the office and the program so far has 8000 children. Sister Wanjala said, “My dream is to help the orphan to live a holistic (完整)life and be a good Kenyan citizen to help this country. Many people think that the way to support orphans is to put them in an institution. Others support them up to the age of eighteen, but here, we do it very differently.” For Sister Wanjala, putting a child in an institution is normally her last choice. She prefers the orphans to live in a foster home.
She said, “I’m so encouraged and happy to see the orphans succeeding. When they come first or second in class, it shows how the program has helped them, and that’s encouraging to me as I continue to coordinate the program.” Through her charity work, more than 1000 orphans have been able to find a home. Sister Wanjala, as a mother, takes care of her own family

  1. 1.

    What inspired Sister Wanjala to start the orphan program?

    1. A.
      Her preference for kids
    2. B.
      Her own similar experience
    3. C.
      A sad story about an orphan
    4. D.
      Her successful charity work
  2. 2.

    Sister Wanjala opened an office mainly to ______

    1. A.
      set up as many institutions as possible for orphans
    2. B.
      start a program to offer orphans a foster family
    3. C.
      provide school education for those orphans
    4. D.
      raise more money for the homeless kids
  3. 3.

    What does the underlined sentence probably mean?

    1. A.
      She didn’t want orphans to live in an institution
    2. B.
      She preferred to put orphans into an institution
    3. C.
      She had no choice but to put orphans in institutions
    4. D.
      She sent orphans into an institution in the end
  4. 4.

    What can we learn from the text?

    1. A.
      Sister Wanjala finally adopted the little boy
    2. B.
      Sister Wanjala found foster homes for 8000 orphans
    3. C.
      Sister Wanjala was too busy to care for her own family
    4. D.
      Sister Wanjala was not alone in helping orphans

We don’t plan to cry, but it just happens. In fact when we feel sad or angry, a good cry is almost impossible to resist. But if you didn’t know what crying was, you’d have to wonder why some strong feelings started water streaming from people’s eyes and why they seemed to feel better afterwards.
Now a US researcher had found there may be more in crying than we think. William H. Frey II, author of “Crying: The Mystery of Tears,” believes it may really be one of the body’s clever self-repair mechanisms. Crying may be a way of getting rid of the by-products of stress, he says.
He has found that tears contain some chemicals which can cause stress. One of these is the hormone prolactin (激素), which is set free when one is feeling stressed. Since women have more of this than men, that might explain why they usually cry more, he suggests.
Unsurprisingly, Dr Frey’s study seemed to prove that most people feel better after a good cry. And sex has nothing to do with it ––– the result was true for women and men. So, next time you feel like bursting into tears, go ahead. If Dr Frey is right, you’ll be doing yourself a favour

  1. 1.

    The best title of this passage would be ________

    1. A.
      Why Do We Cry
    2. B.
      Crying and Tears
    3. C.
      Dr Frey and Crying
    4. D.
      Tears and Chemicals
  2. 2.

    According to the author, we feel like crying because________

    1. A.
      crying is one of our habits
    2. B.
      we can’t control it
    3. C.
      crying is one of the body’s self-repair mechanisms
    4. D.
      we can get the by-products of stress by crying
  3. 3.

    According to the passage, men seem less likely to cry than women because_______

    1. A.
      their bodies contain less hormone prolactin
    2. B.
      their tears contain more chemicals
    3. C.
      they are not so full of feelings as women
    4. D.
      the chemicals in their tears can’t cause stress
  4. 4.

    The author advised us________

    1. A.
      to plan to cry very often
    2. B.
      not to cry any more
    3. C.
      to go outdoors without hesitation
    4. D.
      to cry as we want to
  5. 5.

    Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?

    1. A.
      Good cries can make most people feel better
    2. B.
      Only women can feel better after crying
    3. C.
      It is easy to understand that people feel better after a good cry
    4. D.
      Crying is sometimes impossible to resist
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