Carrots are grown on farms and in small family gardens all over the world. They are easy to grow and easy to harvest. They have a pleasing taste.

    When people think about carrots, a picture of a long, thin, orange—coloured vegetable usually comes to mind. But carrots come in many different sizes and shapes, and not all carrots are orange.

    Carrots should be grown in sandy soil that does not hold water for a long time. The soil also should have no rocks. Weather, soil, and age affect the way carrots taste. Experts say warm days, cool nights, and the right soil temperature are the best conditions for growing great carrots. Most people do not know that carrots can be grown during the winter months. If the winter is not cold enough to freeze the ground, yon can grow and harvest carrots the same way as you do during the summer months. If the ground does freeze ill your part of the world, just cover your carrot garden with some plant leaves or straw. This will prevent the ground from freezing.

    Carrots need time to produce and develop their sugar. This gives them their taste. If they are harvested too early, they will not have enough sugar. However, carrots become wood-1ike and lose their sweetness if you wait too long to harvest them from the ground. The best way to decide if a carrot is ready to be harvested is by its colour. Usually, the brighter the colour, the better the taste.

1. Carrots are a kind of            .

    A. vegetable            B. fruit          C. orange          D. drink

2. Why are carrots widely grown in the world?

    A. Because carrots come in many different sizes and shapes.

    B. Because carrots can only be grown during winter months.

    C. Because carrots are easy to grow and harvest and taste good.

    D. Because carrots have bright colours.

3. If carrots are harvested too late,             .

   A. they’11 become wood-like and lose their sweetness

    B. they will not have enough sugar

    C. their colour will become brighter

    D. they’11 have a more pleasing taste

4. Which of the following is true?

    A. Carrots grow better in rocks than in sandy soil.

    B. Carrots will freeze in winter even though they are covered by straw.

    C. The taste of carrots has something to do with the weather, the soil and their age.

    D. Carrots need much water to grow well.

5.The best title of the passage would be            .

   A. How to Harvest Carrots                  B. How to Cook Carrots

   C. Different Weather, Different Size           D. Carrots

When you make a mistake，big or small，cherish（珍惜）it like it is the most valuable thing in the world．

Most of us feel bad when we make mistakes．That is only natural：most of us have been taught from a young age that mistakes are bad，and that we should try to avoid（避免）mistakes．We've been blamed when we make mistakes at home，school and work．

Yet without mistakes，we could not learn or grow．

If you think about it that way，mistakes should be cherished anti celebrated for being one of the most amazing things in the world：they make learning possible，and they make growth and improvement possible．

Think about how you learn：you don't just read about painting，or writing，or computer programming．．．and know how to do them right away．

Instead，you get information about something，from reading or from another person or from watching carefully．．．then you have a model in your mind．．．then you try it in the real world．．．then you make mistakes．．．then you revise（修改）the model．．．and repeat，making mistakes，learning from those mistakes，until you have learned how to do something．

Mistakes ate how we learn to do something new--because if you succeed in something，it is probably something you already knew how to do．You haven't really grown much from that success--at most it is the last step on your journey，not the whole journey．Most of the journey was made up of mistakes，if it is a good journey．

So if you value learning，if you value growing and improving，then you should value mistakes．

Cherish your mistakes．Smile．

1．According to the passage，people usually think that _________．

A．it is bad to make mistakes                         B．it is natural to make mistakes

C．it is easy to avoid mistakes                          D．it is hard to correct mistakes

2．The passage tells us that people could not learn or grow without _________．

A．making plans                                           B．doing research

C．making mistakes                                        D．doing experiments

3．The proper title for the passage is _________．

A．Why YOH Should Realize Your Mistakes

B．Why You Should Correct Your Mistakes

C．Why Yon Should Avoid Making Mistakes

D．Why YOH Should Cherish Your Mistakes

How hard we have all prayed(祈祷) to grow up quickly, and looked forward to the pappy days of being a grown-up and enjoying the many interests that a youth should have.

At last, you have grown up. At least you are no longer a child. They call you ‘young lady’. You then enjoy the pleasure of being a young lady. You are proud of being a grown-up teenager. People welcome you—this young lady heartily. You are glad that your prayer has been answered.

But this is always something that troubles you a lot. You say, “Papa and Mama, give me some money please. My pocket money is all gone already.’

‘No,” they say, “Your age is a dangerous age. If you have too much money to spend, it won’t do you any good.’ Then you have to stay at home because you dare not go out with an empty pocket.

Another time you tell your grandma, ‘Grandma. See, I am a grown-up now.’

‘Good, now, you can sit here and knit(编织) this for me while I go and have a rest.’ To show that you are no more a child, you have to sit there the whole afternoon doing the work, which only a grown-up can do. After an hour, you find it hard to do, and give the knitting basket back to your grandma. Your grandma criticizes your work. You hear what she says, “Such a bad girl can’t do such easy work.’ You wish then you were a child again.

(　　 )51. The passage is told about ________ problem.

　　　 A. a grown-up boy’s　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. a teenage girl’s

C. an old woman’s　　　　　　　　　　　 D. an old man’s

(　　 )52. It is clear that the writer, as a teenager, ________.

　　　 A. is pleased with the present life　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. is unhappy about growing up

　　　 C. doesn’t think her present life happy enough　　 D. is sad about being a kid

(　　 )53. How does she know her prayer had been answered?

　　　 A. People treat her as a young lady.

B. She doesn’t need to play with kids now.

C. People begin to call her teenager.

D. She can join women in all kinds of activities.

(　　 )54. From what her parents say, we know ________.

　　　 A. the girl always has much money in her pocket

　　　 B. it’s dangerous for a girl to spend money

　　　 C. they love her more than before

　　　 D. they still regard her as a child

(　　 )55. Why does he promise to help her grandma do some knitting?

　　　 A. Because she likes doing knitting

　　　 B. Because she wants to show that she has grown up.

　　　 C. Because she has much more free time.

　　　 D. Because her grandma is very tired.