People in the United States honor their parents with two special days: Mother’s Day,on the second Sunday in May, and Father’s Day, on the third Sunday in June.
Mother’s Day was proclaimed a day for national observance by President Woodrow Wilson in 1915. Ann Jarvis from Graffon, West Virginia, had started the idea to have a day to honor mothers. She was the one who chose the second Sunday in May and also began the custom of wearing a carnation.
In 1909, Mrs Dodd from Spokane, Washington, thought of the idea of a day to honor fathers. She wanted to honor her own father, William Smart. After her mother died, he had the responsibility of raising a family of five sons and a daughter. In 1910, the first Father’s Day was observed in Spokane. Senator Margaret Chase Smith helped establish Father’s Day as a national commenortative day , in 1972。
These days are set aside to show love and respect for parents. They raise their children and educate them to be responsible citizens. They give love and care.
These two special days are celebrated in many different ways. On Mother’s Day people wear carnations. A red one symbolizes a living mother. A white one shows that the mother is dead. Many people attend religious services to honor parents. It is also a day when people whose parents are dead visit the cemetery. On these days families get togher at home as well as in restaurants. They often have outdoor barbecues for Father’s Day. These are days of fun and good feelings and memories.
Another tradition is to give cards and gifts. Children make them in school. Many people make their own presents. These are valued more than the ones bought in stores. It is not the value of the gift that is important, but it is “ the thought that counts”. Greeting card stores, florists, candy makers, bakeries, telephone companies, and other stores do a lot of  business during these holidays.

  1. 1.

    When are Mother’s Day and Father’s Day?

    1. A.
      the second Sunday in May and the third Sunday in June
    2. B.
      the second Sunday in June and the third Sunday in May
    3. C.
      the third Sunday in May and the second Sunday in June
    4. D.
      the third Sunday in June and the second Sunday in May
  2. 2.

    Who started Mother’s Day and Father’s Day?

    1. A.
      Woodrow Wilsson and Margaret Chase Smith
    2. B.
      Margaret Chase Smith and Woodrow Wilsson
    3. C.
      Ann Jarvis and Mrs Dodd
    4. D.
      Mrs Dodd and Ann Jarvis
  3. 3.

    Which word can replace the underlined word “observed”?

    1. A.
      established
    2. B.
      celebrated
    3. C.
      symbolized
    4. D.
      attended
  4. 4.

    People celebrate these two special days in many ways except____________.

    1. A.
      People wear red or white carnations on these two days.
    2. B.
      People have outdoor barbecues and have fun.
    3. C.
      With people making their own presents, stores do less business during these holidays.
    4. D.
      To honor parents, people attend religious services or get together at home.
  5. 5.

    What’s the purpose of writing this passage?

    1. A.
      To introduce American culture.
    2. B.
      To persuade us to respect and love our parents.
    3. C.
      To introduce two traditional festivals.
    4. D.
      To tell us something in history.

When I was a child of seven years old, my friends, on a holiday, filled my pocket with coppers. I went at once to a shop where they sold toys for children. Being charmed with the sound of a whistle that I had seen by the way, in the hands of another boy, I handed over all my money for one. I then came home, and went whistling all over the house, much pleased with my whistle, but disturbing all the family. My brothers and sisters and cousins, when I told of the bargain I had made, said I had given four times as much as the whistle was worth. They put me in mind of what good things I might have bought with the rest of the money, and laughed at me so much for my folly that I cried with vexation(烦恼). Thinking about the matter gave me more chargrin than the whistle gave me pleasure.
This, however, was afterwards of use to me, for the impression continued on my mind, so that often, when I was tempted to buy something I did not need, I said to myself, “Don’t give too much for the whistle, ” and I saved my money. As I grew up, came into the world, and observed the actions of men, I thought I met with many, very many, who “gave too much for the whistle.” When I saw some men too eager for court favor, wasting his time at court gatherings, giving up his rest, his liberty, his virtue, and perhaps his friends, for royal favor, I said to myself---“This man gives too much for the whistle.” When I saw another fond of popularity, constantly taking part in political affairs, neglecting his own business, and ruining it by neglect, “He says, indeed,” said I, “too dear for his whistle.”
If I knew a miser(守财奴) who gave up every kind of comfortable living, all the pleasure of doing good to others, all the esteem of his fellow citizens and the joys of friendship, for the sake of gathering and keeping wealth--- “Poor man,” said I, “ you pay too dear for your whistle.” When I met a man of pleasure, who did not try to improve his mind or his fortune but merely devoted himself to having a good time, perhaps neglecting his health, “ Mistaken man, you are providing pain for yourself, instead of pleasure; you are paying too dear for your whistle.” If I saw someone fond of appearance who has fine clothes, fine houses, fine furniture, fine earrings, all above his fortune, and for which he had run into debt, and ends his career in a prison. “Alas,” said I, “he has paid dear, very dear, for his whistle.” In short the miseries of mankind are largely due to their puffing a false value on things --- to giving “too much for their whistle.”

  1. 1.

    How did the author get the whistle?

    1. A.
      He bought it in a toy shop for children.
    2. B.
      He got it as a birthday present.
    3. C.
      He exchanged all his coppers for it from another boy.
    4. D.
      He got it from his brothers, sisters and cousins.
  2. 2.

    When the author recalled(回忆) the whistle, he felt______________.

    1. A.
      pleased
    2. B.
      charmed
    3. C.
      chagrin
    4. D.
      worth
  3. 3.

    Which situation would not the author say “ too dear for the whistle?”

    1. A.
      People were tempted to buy something they did not need.
    2. B.
      Men were too eager for court favor, wasting his time.
    3. C.
      People were fond of popularity, constantly taking part in political affairs.
    4. D.
      People were devoted to a career he loved so much.
  4. 4.

    Which Chinese equivalent can best describe “ too dear for the whistle”?

    1. A.
      得不偿失
    2. B.
      皆大欢喜
    3. C.
      物超所值
    4. D.
      名副其实
  5. 5.

    What’s the best title of the passage?

    1. A.
      A story in my childhood.
    2. B.
      Too dear for whistle.
    3. C.
      A lesson from a whistle.
    4. D.
      We should have a right attitude towards temptation(诱惑).

While surfing television channels over the weekend,a scene from a family classic of last year portraying the now-so-familiar sorry state of retired parents being ill-treated by their children and families caught my attention. I wondered why the description of this relationship had not changed much over the many years! Even though the same movies and soaps accurately capture several other social changes around us — from value systems to new found economic freedom to the importance of technology and the changing approach to consumerism(消费主义) — are these creative efforts far from the truth in telling us that an average retiree is still struggling?
Look around and you will agree that the post-retired lifestyle for an ex-salaried class people is often a pale shadow of their last working years. Even self employed people, who have handed over the responsibility to the next generation, are no exception. Did the average middle class not save enough through his working years?
Socially, we already know that the Indians are taught the benefits of start saving early on in life. Household savings data supports this social behavior — India has the highest rates of savings among various economies and is far ahead of the west. Yet, tragically, a lifetime of savings does not seem to provide enough for a comfortable retirement!
A closer look at the pattern of what we do with our financial savings may tell us a bit more. Over half of households’ financial savings is put into a “safe” deposit, followed by large portions in insurance, pension, provident funds(福利基金) and the rest in physical currency. Less than a tenth goes into “risky” assets(资产) like stocks. While there might be nothing, in particular, worrisome in this investment pool, one has to consider inflation(通货膨胀). The real value of savings, over a few decades, may actually be lower than the starting point.

  1. 1.

    What had not changed much over the many years according to the passage?

    1. A.
      Value systems
    2. B.
      The poor situation of retirees
    3. C.
      Economic freedom
    4. D.
      Approach to consumerism
  2. 2.

    Which of the following statements about saving in India is right?

    1. A.
      the concept of saving has been well received by Indians.
    2. B.
      the amount of the savings ranks number one across the world.
    3. C.
      long-standing savings can help the retirees live a care-free life.
    4. D.
      saving early can not benefit people at all.
  3. 3.

    What can be inferred according to the last paragraph?

    1. A.
      Half of the financial savings in stocks can be accepted.
    2. B.
      The real value of saving must be lowered in a few years.
    3. C.
      A loss of savings may hardly be avoided.
    4. D.
      Inflation can be avoided on condition that you consume instead of saving.
  4. 4.

    What’s the best title of the text?

    1. A.
      Retirees being treated unfairly
    2. B.
      Is saving enough
    3. C.
      Saving in India
    4. D.
      How to deal with saving

I worked for a short time as a cashier(出纳员) at a restaurant a few months ago. I also helped to clean up the tables when it was very busy. One night, just before  Christmas, I found a large black wallet on the floor near one of the tables. I guessed I should check it to find out who was the owner, but I was very busy at the time. And I imagined that if there was something valuable(有价值的) in the wallet, the   owner would be back. Sure enough, an hour later a man came up to the counter   and asked if anyone had found a wallet. I asked him to describe the lost wallet, and after he described it exactly, I gave him the wallet. He expressed his thanks when I handed it to him. He asked me if I had opened it, and when I told him “no”. At  once he opened it and showed that it had nearly $ 800 in cash(现金). He took out a twenty-dollar bill and handed it to me and I was amazed at this. “A reward(酬劳) for your honesty,” he said and then turned and walked away.
Thinking about it later, I began wondering whether I would have been honest if I had known what was in the wallet! I thought that if I had no way to find the   owner and no one returned to get it, I might keep it. But it also came into my    mind that I actually saved someone’s Christmas plans by finding and returning the wallet. The good feeling it gave me was worth more than anything could buy.

  1. 1.

    Which of the following is true?

    1. A.
      The owner of the wallet found a twenty-dollar bill gone.
    2. B.
      The writer wasn’t surprised when the man gave her a reward.
    3. C.
      Nothing in the wallet was missing.
    4. D.
      The man was very, very excited when he got his wallet back.
  2. 2.

    The writer returned the wallet to the owner because _______.

    1. A.
      she thought Christmas was coming
    2. B.
      the owner came back too soon
    3. C.
      she didn’t know there was so much money in it
    4. D.
      as an honest person, she didn’t care much about money
  3. 3.

    Which of the following is NOT true?

    1. A.
      The writer accepted a reward of $ 20.
    2. B.
      The writer regretted (后悔) that she had returned the wallet.
    3. C.
      The writer didn’t return the wallet until the owner came back.
    4. D.
      The writer fell very happy after she returned the wallet.

Christmas Eve means a warm get-together with friends, a candlelight dinner, or perhaps a celebration at a pub(酒馆) for students. But, for Cai Yingjie, the night has a different meaning: helping beggars(乞丐) and the homeless(people without homes).
Cai, who is a student in journalism at Tsinghua, could be found at Beijing’s Wudaokou Light Railway Station that special evening. When she saw an old beggar, she took the cold, rough hands of the woman with her warm, clean hands, and gave   the woman some warm bread and helped her put on a pair of new gloves(手套).
The woman was surprised for a few seconds, then burst into tears, saying “for  the first time I feel respected(尊重)”.
Cai said, “A beggar’s life is very hard. That’s why I want to help them.”
Cai was one of 14 Tsinghua students spending Christmas Eve among the poor. They walked in the cold wind along the streets from 4 to 7 pm on Friday, visiting 15 beggars in Beijing’s Haidian District.
They brought bread and gloves with them, and stopped to greet beggars and offer them some of the warm food. Each beggar greeted them with a look of surprise.
“I know the activity can’t help much, but it’s meant to show our respect and   care for beggars and the homeless who have been neglected for so long,” said Sun,  head of the group. “And Christmas is a good time for that.”

  1. 1.

    What does Christmas Eve mean to the 14 Tsinghua students?

    1. A.
      Taking 15 beggars to Tsinghua.
    2. B.
      Getting together with friends.
    3. C.
      Showing care to the beggars and the homeless.
    4. D.
      Selling bread and gloves to the beggars.
  2. 2.

    What does the beggar mean by saying “for the first time I feel respected”?

    1. A.
      The beggar has been waiting for Cai for long.
    2. B.
      The beggar hasn’t been shown care for so long.
    3. C.
      The beggar has been respecting Cai for a long time.
    4. D.
      This is the first time the beggar has seen Tsinghua students.
  3. 3.

    What did each beggar feel when they received greetings?

    1. A.
      Sad.
    2. B.
      Amazed.
    3. C.
      Frightened.
    4. D.
      Proud.
  4. 4.

    The word “neglected” in the last passage means _______.

    1. A.
      protected
    2. B.
      found
    3. C.
      taken care of
    4. D.
      given no enough care

My mother was a household servant. Through her work, she observed that successful people spent a lot more time reading than they did watching television. She announced that my brother and I could only watch two to three pre-selected TV programs during the week. With our free time, we had to read two books each from the Detroit Public Library and write book reports. She would mark them up with check marks. Years later we realized her marks were a ruse. My mother had only received a third-grade education. Although we had no money, between the covers of those books, I could go anywhere, do anything and be anybody.
When I entered high school, I was an A-student, but not for long. I wanted the fancy clothes. I wanted to hang out with the guys. I went form being an A- student to a B- student to a C-student, but I didn’t care.
One night my mother came home and I complained about not having enough shirts. She said, “Okay, I’ll give you all the money I make this week cleaning floors and bathrooms, and you can buy the family food and pay the bills. With everything left over, you can have all the shirts you want.”
I was very pleased with that arrangement but once I got through allocating(分配) money, there was nothing left. I realized my mother was a financial genius to be able to keep a roof over our heads and any kind of food on the table, much less buy clothes.
I also realized that immediate satisfaction wasn’t going to get me anywhere. Success required intellectual(理智的) preparation. I went back to my studies and became an A-student again. I dreamed of becoming a doctor when I was just a kid. And now I have achieved my dream.
Over the years my mother’s changeless faith in God has inspired me, particularly when I found myself faced with my own medical illness. A few years ago I discovered I had a very serious cancer; I was told it might have spread to my spine(脊柱). My mother believed in God very much. She never worried. She said that God would never throw me away forever; there was no way that this was going to be a major problem. The abnormality in spine turned out to be not bad; I was able to have surgery and am cured.
My story is really my mother’s story -a woman little formal education or worldly goods who used her position as a parent to change the lives of her children.

  1. 1.

    The underlined word “ruse” in the first paragraph probably means           .

    1. A.
      discovery
    2. B.
      success
    3. C.
      trick
    4. D.
      pleasure
  2. 2.

    When the author asked his mother to buy him shirts, she           .

    1. A.
      advised him to earn money by himself
    2. B.
      asked him to try to manage their money
    3. C.
      persuaded him not to buy them patiently
    4. D.
      agreed to buy them for him immediately
  3. 3.

    What do we learn about the author?

    1. A.
      He now works as a doctor.
    2. B.
      He disliked watching TV as a kid.
    3. C.
      He received little formal education.
    4. D.
      He often did housework when young.
  4. 4.

    The underlined word “this” in the last but one paragraph refers to        .

    1. A.
      God’s throwing me away
    2. B.
      my own medical illness
    3. C.
      the operation on my spine
    4. D.
      my mother’s changeless faith in God
  5. 5.

    In writing the passage, the author mainly shows us         .

    1. A.
      the happy relationships in his family
    2. B.
      the benefits of reading for young children
    3. C.
      the importance of formal education for adults
    4. D.
      his mother’s great influence on his development

Apple Inc co-founder and former CEO Steve Jobs, counted among the greatest American CEOs of his generation, died on Wednesday at the age of 56, after a-year-long and highly public battle with cancer. Jobs' death was announced by Apple in a statement late on Wednesday. The Apple.com homepage featured a black-and-white picture of him with the words "Steve Jobs, 1955-2011".
A message on the site read, "Apple has lost an imaginary and creative genius, and the world has lost an amazing human being. Those of us who have been fortunate enough to know and work with Steve have lost a dear friend and an inspiring leader."
"His greatest love was for his wife, Laurene, and his family. Our hearts go out to them and to all who were touched by his extraordinary gifts."
"Steve leaves behind a company that only he could have built, and his spirit will forever be the foundation of Apple." The Silicon Valley hero who gave the world the iPod and the iPhone had resigned as CEO of the world's largest technology corporation in August, handing the position to current chief executive Tim Cook.
Two years before the iPhone that forever transformed the way people around the world access and use the Internet, Jobs talked about how a sense of his death was a major driver behind that vision.
"Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever got to help me make the big choices in life," Jobs said during a Stanford commencement ceremony in 2005. "Because almost everything-all others' expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure-these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important."
"Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart."

  1. 1.

    According to the passage, which statement of Steve Jobs is RIGHT?

    1. A.
      Steve Jobs was the present CEO of Apple.
    2. B.
      Steve Jobs was thought to have great talent.
    3. C.
      Steve Jobs had no idea about his death before.
    4. D.
      Steve Jobs fought against cancer for a year secretly.
  2. 2.

    What can we learn about iPhone from the passage?

    1. A.
      People can use it to do anything they want.
    2. B.
      It can teach people how to surf the Internet.
    3. C.
      People can learn the spirit of Apple from it.
    4. D.
      It can change the way people use the Internet.
  3. 3.

    In Jobs's speech in Stanford, we can learn that                         .

    1. A.
      to make great achievements, you must lose everything
    2. B.
      people should try to achieve everything regardless of death
    3. C.
      people who will be dead soon must make big choices in life
    4. D.
      in the face of death, nothing is truly important except to follow your dream
  4. 4.

    What’s the main idea of the passage?

    1. A.
      Steve Jobs changed the world.
    2. B.
      Steve Jobs died on Wednesday.
    3. C.
      Who will be the next Steve Jobs?
    4. D.
      Steve Jobs, the greatest American CEO.

However important we may regard school life to be, there is always the fact that children spend more time at home than in the classroom. Therefore, the teacher should realize that parents have a great influence on their children. Parents can become strong allies (助手) of the school or they can get in the way of the school education.
Experts have realized the need to keep parents informed of the newer methods used in schools. Many headmasters have conducted workshops explaining such matters as the reading readiness, program writing and mathematics to parents.
Moreover, the classroom teacher, with the permission of the supervisors(管理者), can also play an important part in giving more knowledge to reporting pupils progress, teachers can help parents a lot in educating their children and parents can give much help to teachers.
Suppose that a father has been drilling Junior arithmetic lessons night after night. In a friendly talk between the teacher and the father, the teacher can help the parent to make Junior interested in it. He might be persuaded to let Junior join in discussing the family budget, buying the food, using a ruler or measuring cup at home, setting the clock, calculating the distance of a trip and engaging in scores of other activities that have a mathematical basis.
If the father follows the advice, it is reasonable to say that he will soon realize that his son is making satisfactory progress in mathematics, and at the same time, enjoying the work.
Too often, however, teachers’ talks with parents are devoted to small accounts of children’s misdemeanors(不良行为). They talk about the laziness and poor work habits of the children.
What is needed is a more creative way in which the teacher, as an adviser, plants ideas in parents’ minds to make sure that the child spends the many hours out of the classroom learning something useful.
In this way the school and the home join forces in educating children.

  1. 1.

    The main idea of the passage is that ____.

    1. A.
      home training is more important than school training
    2. B.
      parents should help their children to do their homework
    3. C.
      there’re many ways in which the mathematics program can be carried out at home
    4. D.
      teachers can and should help parents to use better ways to teach their children
  2. 2.

    From this passage we can know that the writer ____.

    1. A.
      is satisfied with the relationship between school and home
    2. B.
      feels that parent-teacher talks can be made much more constructive
    3. C.
      believes that schools can’t teach pupils well
    4. D.
      calls on parents to teach their children mathematics at home
  3. 3.

    What way that the writer doesn’t talk about can improve the present situation?

    1. A.
      Classes for parents.
    2. B.
      New type of report card.
    3. C.
      Parent-teacher talk.
    4. D.
      Dinner or party.
  4. 4.

    The writer implies that ____.

    1. A.
      interesting activities can improve one’s achievement
    2. B.
      too many children are lazy and have poor work habits
    3. C.
      teachers should often make home visits to parents
    4. D.
      headmasters do more than teachers in this area
  5. 5.

    We can infer from the passage that the writer does not favor ____.

    1. A.
      father’s helping his son with his study
    2. B.
      written reports to the parents from the teachers
    3. C.
      talking about children’s shortcomings
    4. D.
      having the parents help their children with their lessons

How does a place become a World Heritage Site? It takes a lot of people to decide.
1)If a country wants one of its places to be on the World Heritage List, it has to ask UNESCO. The place must be important and special. UNESCO put the Great Wall on the list in 1987 because, it said, it was a great part of Chinese culture and beautifully made to go with the land.When a country asks, it must also make a plan for taking care of the place.
2)The World Heritage Committee of UNESCO talks about different places and decides whether to put them on the list. The committee meets every June. Many experts help the committee to decide.
3)After a new place goes on the list, UNESCO gives money to help keep it looking good.If a place is in serious danger, it may be put on the List of World Heritage Sites in Danger. UNESCO gives special care and help to those places.
4)Countries have to give UNESCO regular reports about places on the list. If UNESCO thinks a country isn’t taking good enough care of a place, the site will be taken off the list.

  1. 1.

    The passage implies that _____.

    1. A.
      becoming a world heritage site takes hard work
    2. B.
      a place with beautiful scenery is often on the World Heritage List
    3. C.
      a place which was taken good care of is often on the World Heritage List
    4. D.
      the Great Wall became a World Heritage Site for its long history.
  2. 2.

    If a place successfully becomes a World Heritage Site, the country _____.

    1. A.
      can ask UNESCO for more money and help
    2. B.
      should continue to take special care of it
    3. C.
      won’t take trouble of caring for it
    4. D.
      will try to put it on the List of World Heritage Sites in Danger
  3. 3.

    The passage mainly discusses ______.

    1. A.
      how the World Heritage Committee of UNESCO decides a World Heritage Site
    2. B.
      how the World Heritage Committee of UNESCO protects a World Heritage Site
    3. C.
      how the Great Wall becomes a World Heritage Site
    4. D.
      how a place becomes a World Heritage Site
  4. 4.

    The purpose of putting a place on the World Heritage List is _____.

    1. A.
      to attract more tourists from other countries
    2. B.
      to get more money and help from other countries
    3. C.
      to have it taken better care of
    4. D.
      to make it known to other countries
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