When other nine-year-old kids were playing games, she was working at a petrol station. When other teens were studying or going out, she struggled to find a place to sleep on the street. But she overcame these terrible setbacks to win a highly competitive scholarship and gain entry to Harvard University. And her amazing story has inspired a movie, “Homeless to Harvard：The Liz Murray Story” , shown in late April.

Liz Murray , a 22-- year-- old American girl, has been writing a real--life story of willpower and determination. Liz grew up in the shadow of two drug--addicted parents. There was never enough food or warm clothes in the house. Liz was the only member of the family who had a job. Her mother had AIDS and died when Liz was just 15 years old. The effect of that loss became a turning point in her life. Connecting the environment in which she had grown up with how her mother had died, she decided to do something about it.

Liz went back to school. She threw herself into her studies, never telling her teachers that she was homeless. At night, she lived on the streets. “What drove me to live on had something to do with understanding, My understanding was that there was a whole other way of being. I had only experienced a small part of society,” she wrote in her book Breaking Night.

She admitted that she used envy to drive herself on. She used the benefits that come easily to others, such as a safe living environment, to encourage herself that "next to nothing could hold me down". She finished high school in just two years and won a full scholarship to study at Harvard University. But Liz decided to leave her top university a couple of months earlier this year in order to take care of her father, who has also developed AIDS. "I love my parents so much. They are drug addicts. But I never forget that they love me all the time."

　　Liz wants moviegoers to come away with the idea that changing your life is "as simple as making a decision".

1. The word “setback” in the first paragraph most probably means___________?

2.What’s the best title of the passage?

3.What actually made Liz throw herself into her studies ?

4. According to the passage, which is NOT true about Liz?

Until the 1980s, the American homeless population comprised mainly older males. Today, homelessness strikes much younger part of society. In fact, a 25-city survey by the U. S. Conference of Mayors in 1987 found that families with children make up the fastest growing part of the homeless population. Many homeless children gather in inner cities; this transient and frequently frightened student population creates additional problems — both legal and educational — for already overburdened urban school administrators and teachers.

Estimates of the number of homeless Americans range from 350,000 to three million. Likewise, estimates of the number of homeless school children vary radically. A U.S. Department of Education report, based on state estimates, states that there are 220,000 homeless school-age children, about a third of whom do not attend school on a regular basis, But the National Coalition for the Homeless estimates that there are at least two times as many homeless children, and that less than half of them attend school regularly.

One part of the homeless population that is particularly difficult to count consists of the “throwaway” youths who have been cast of their homes. The Elementary School Center in New York City estimates that there are 1.5 million of them, many of whom are not counted as children because they do not stay in family shelters and tend to live by themselves on the streets.

Federal law, the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act of 1987, includes a section that addresses the educational needs of homeless children. The educational provisions of the McKinney Act are based on the belief that all homeless children have the right to a free, appropriate education.

1.It is implied in the first paragraph that ____.

A. there is a serious shortage of academic facilities.

B. homeless children are denied the opportunity of receiving free education.

C. the writer himself is homeless, even in his eighties.

D. many older homeless residents are going on strike in 25 cities.

2.The National Coalition for the homeless believes that the number of homeless children is _____.

A. 440,000    B. 110,000   C. 350,000　D. 1,500,000

3.One part of the homeless population is difficult to estimate. The reason might well be ____.

A. the homeless children usually stay outside school.

B. some homeless children are deserted by their families.

C. the homeless children are too young to be counted as children.

D. the homeless population is growing rapidly.

4.The McKinney Act is mentioned in this passage in order to show that ___.

A. the address of grade-school children should be located.

B. all homeless people are entitled to free education.

C. the educational problems of homeless children are being recognized.

D. the estimates on homeless children are hard to determine.

5.The passage mainly deals with ____.

A. the social status of older males.

B. estimates on the homeless population.

C. the legal problems of the homeless children.

　　D. the educational problems of homeless children.

Claude and Louris are “giraffes”.So are police officers Hankins and Pearson.These men and women don’t look like giraffes；they look like you and me.Then，why do people call them “giraffes”？

　 A giraffe，they say，is an animal that sticks its necks out，can see places far away and has a large heart.It lives a quiet life and moves about in an easy and beautiful way.In the same way，a “giraffe” can be a person who likes to “stick his or her neck out” for other people，always watches for future happenings，has a warm heart for people around，and at the same time lives a quiet and beautiful life himself or herself.

　 “The Giraffe Project” is a 10?year?old group which finds and honors “giraffes” in the US and in the world.The group wants to teach people to do something to build a better world.The group members believe that a person shouldn’t draw his or her head back；instead，they tell people to “stick their necks out” and help others.Claude and Louris，Hankins and Pearson are only a few of the nearly 1,000 “giraffes” that the group found and honored.

　 Claude and Louris were getting old and they left their work with some money that they saved for future use.One day，however，they saw a homeless man looking for a place to keep warm and they decided that they should “stick their necks out” and give him some help.Today，they lived in Friends’ House，where they invite twelve homeless people to stay every night.

　 Police officers Hankins and Pearson work in a large city.They see crimes every day and their work is sometimes dangerous.They work hard for their money.However，these two men put their savings together and even borrowed money to start an educational center to teach young people in a poor part of the city.Hankins and Pearson are certainly “giraffes”.

1.Which of the following is true?

　 A.Some of the people around us look like giraffes.

　 B.Giraffes are the most beautiful animal in the world.

　 C.“Giraffes” is a beautiful name for those who are ready to help other people.

　 D.A “giraffe” is someone who can stick his neck out and see the future.

2.“The Giraffe Project” is a group 　　　　.

　 A.of police officers　　　　　　　 B.which appeared ten years ago

　 C.of ten?year?old children　　　　 D.which takes care of children

3.People call Claude and Hankins “giraffes” because they 　　　　.

　 A.do what is needed for a good world

　 B.are not afraid of dangerous work

　 C.found a home for some homeless people

　 D.made money only for other people

4.What does “The Giraffe Project” do?

　 A.It tells people how to live a quiet life.

　 B.It helps the homeless and teaches the young people.

　 C.It tries to find 1,000 warm?hearted people in the US.

　 D.It shows people what their duty is for a better world.

5.The passage mainly tries to tell us 　　　　.

　 A.what giraffes are like

　 B.what the Giraffe Project is

　 C.why Claude，Louris，Hankins and Pearson are called “giraffes”

　 D.what we should do for a better world