Taking part in charity is not just for adult people. Kids can do it too! Melvin Sheppard, 14, an American student, has done charity work for 8 years. He has also encouraged his classmates to join him.

Melvin studies at William Allen Middle School in Philadelphia. Recently, he collected $ 1,500 by himself and $487 from his classmates to donate to Cooper University Hospital.

Melvin was born nine weeks premature (早产的) in Cooper University Hospital, weighing 2.6kg. His father told him how Cooper saved his life, so he feels thankful to the hospital.

Melvin's classmates joined him once they found out about his kind behavior. Their teacher, Michael Bemer, also held a class with them about helping others. "It wasn't really about the money," Bemer said. "It was about the fact that they were doing something good."

"It feels great, helping someone that I know." said Jordan, Melvin' s classmate. Melvin's neighbors also helped out.

Since Melvin was 6, he and his parents have given money to Cooper University Hospital every year. This year, Gray E. Stahl, the head of Cooper's division of neonatology(新生儿科学部门), went to Melvin's school to accept the money.

The money goes to a part of the hospital that helps about 500 young patients every year.

"When they leave, we call them graduates," Stahl said, "my co - workers and I are pleased when our graduates and their families do well, like Melvin and his family."

1.When did Melvin start to do charity work?

A. When he was 14 years old.

B. When he was 8 years old.

C. When he was 6 years old.

D. When he was born.

2.Why did Melvin donate to Cooper University Hospital?

A. He was a doctor in Cooper University Hospital.

B. His father worked in Cooper University Hospital.

C. He was thankful to Cooper University Hospital.

D. He used to volunteer in Cooper University Hospital.

3.Where did Gray E. Stahl accept the money?

A. At Melvin's school.

B. At Melvin's house.

C. At Cooper University Hospital.

D. At Cooper's division of neonatology.

4.Which of the following is TRUE?

A. Many college graduates accept the money every year.

B. The money helps about 500 0ld patients every year.

C. Melvin does the charity work alone for many years.

D. Melvin's teacher thinks it is a great thing to learn to help others.

Carmen Arace Middle School is situated in the pastoral town of Bloomfield, Conn., but four years ago it faced many of the same problems as inner-city schools in nearby Hartford: low scores on standardized tests and dropping enrollment（入学注册）. Then the school’s hard-driving headmaster, Delores Bolton, persuaded her board to shake up the place by buying a laptop computer for each student and teacher to use, in school and at home. What’s more, the board provided wireless Internet access at school. Total cost: $2.5 million.

Now, an hour before classes start, every seat in the library is taken by students who cannot wait for getting online. Fifth-grade teacher Jen Friday talks about different kinds of birds as students view them at a colorful website. After school, students on buses pull laptops from backpacks to get started on homework. Since the computer arrived, enrollment is up 20%. Scores on state tests are up 35%.

Indeed, school systems in rural Maine and New York City also hope to follow Arace Middle School’s example. Governor Angus King had planned using $50 million to buy a laptop for all of Maine’s 17,000 seventh-graders – and for new seventh-graders each fall.

In the same spirit, the New York City board of education voted on April 12 to create a school Internet portal（入口）, which would make money by selling ads and licensing public school students. Profits（盈利）will also provide e-mail service for the city’s 1.1 million public school students. Profits will be used to buy laptops for each of the school system’s 87,000 fourth-graders. Within nine years, all students in grades 4 and higher will have their own computers.

Back in Bloomfield, in the meantime, most of the kinks have been worked out. Some students were using their computers to visit unauthorized（非法的）websites. But teachers have the ability to keep an eye on where students have been on the Web and to stop them. “That is the worst when they disable you,” says eighth-grade honors student Jamie Bassell. The habit is rubbing off on parents. “I taught my mom to use e-mail,” says another eighth-grader, Katherine Hypolite. “And now she’s taking computer classes. I’m so proud of her!”

1.The example of Carmen Arace Middle School in the passage is used to ______.

A. show the problems schools are faced with today

B. prove that a school without high enrollment can do well

C. express the importance of computers in modern education

D. tell that laptops can help improve students’ school performance

2.According to the writer, students in New York City’s public schools will ______.

A. enjoy e-mail service in the near future

B. make money by selling ads on websites

C. all have their own laptops within nine years

D. become more interested in their studies with laptops

3.The underlined word “kinks” in the last paragraph most probably means ______.

A. plans         B. projects       C. problems      D. products

4.From the passage we learn that ______.

A. a school Internet portal is the key to a laptop program

B. the laptop program also has a good influence on parents

C. students slowly accept the fact their online activities controlled

D. the laptop program in public school is mainly for the eighth-graders

Carmen Arace Middle School is situated in the pastoral town of Bloomfield, Conn., but four years ago it faced many of the same problems as inner-city schools in nearby Hartford: low scores on standardized tests and dropping enrollment（入学注册）. Then the school’s hard-driving headmaster, Delores Bolton, persuaded her board to shake up the place by buying a laptop computer for each student and teacher to use, in school and at home. What’s more, the board provided wireless Internet access at school. Total cost: $2.5 million.
Now, an hour before classes start, every seat in the library is taken by students who cannot wait for getting online. Fifth-grade teacher Jen Friday talks about different kinds of birds as students view them at a colorful website. After school, students on buses pull laptops from backpacks to get started on homework. Since the computer arrived, enrollment is up 20%. Scores on state tests are up 35%.
Indeed, school systems in rural Maine and New York City also hope to follow Arace Middle School’s example. Governor Angus King had planned using $50 million to buy a laptop for all of Maine’s 17,000 seventh-graders – and for new seventh-graders each fall.
In the same spirit, the New York City board of education voted on April 12 to create a school Internet portal（入口）, which would make money by selling ads and licensing public school students. Profits（盈利）will also provide e-mail service for the city’s 1.1 million public school students. Profits will be used to buy laptops for each of the school system’s 87,000 fourth-graders. Within nine years, all students in grades 4 and higher will have their own computers.
Back in Bloomfield, in the meantime, most of the kinks have been worked out. Some students were using their computers to visit unauthorized（非法的）websites. But teachers have the ability to keep an eye on where students have been on the Web and to stop them. “That is the worst when they disable you,” says eighth-grade honors student Jamie Bassell. The habit is rubbing off on parents. “I taught my mom to use e-mail,” says another eighth-grader, Katherine Hypolite. “And now she’s taking computer classes. I’m so proud of her!”
【小题1】The example of Carmen Arace Middle School in the passage is used to ______.

Kyra Komac，28 years old，now has 25 furniture stores all over the country．The new store，in London’s Camden High Street，takes her back to where it all started．She tells us about how the business began．

    When I was little，my mother began selling flowers in Camden Market．She couldn’t leave me at home on my own，so I had to go to the market with her．

    To begin with，I didn’t have to do anything．I just sat there，and my mum told me jokes and stories so I didn’t get bored．When I got older，I gave my mum a hand and I really enjoyed it．

    Then，one year，my grandma gave me a book for Christmas．It was all about making candles and I loved it．I was 14．and I didn’t have to go to the market any more because mum could leave me at home on my own．I spent my free time making candles of all shapes and sizes．I made hundreds of them．

    One day，my mother was ill so I had to go to the market on my own．I decided to take some candles with me and see if I could sell them．They were sold out in twenty minutes !The next week，my mum gave me some money to buy some wax （蜡） to make more candles．They sold out really quickly，too．

    Nine months later，we decided to stop selling flowers．My mum and I couldn’t make enough candles during the week，so some of my school friends started to help us．I paid them one pound for every candle，and we used to sell them for three or four times that．It was fun and my friends worked with me in the market．

    At the age of 22，my uncle lent me some money and I opened my first shop in Portobello Road．Since then，I’ve never looked back，even in difficulties．In the first store，we only sold candles，but now we sell everything from designer furniture to paintings．Oh，and candles，of course．

1．How many furniture stores does Kyra Komac have now?

2．Where did Kyra’s mother sell flowers?

3．What did Kyra do in her free time when she was fourteen?

4．Did the candles sell well on the first day in the market?

5．Who helped Kyra and her mum when they couldn’t make enough candles during the week?

6．How did Kyra’s uncle help her to open her first shop?

 He helped her ________________________________

7．What do you think of this story? 

    I think ______________________________