Robert is nine years old and Joanna is seven. They live at Mount Ebenezer. Their father has a big property. In Australia they call a farm a property.

Robert and Joanna like school very much. At school they can talk to their friends but Robert and Joanna cannot see their friends. They live 100, perhaps 300 miles away and like Robert and Joanna, they all go to school by radio.

     Mount Ebenezer is in the centre of Australia. Not many people live in “The Centre”. There are no schools with desks and blackboards and no teachers in “The Centre”. School is a room at home with a two-way radio. The teacher also has a two-way radio. Every morning she calls each student on the radio. When all students answer, lessons begin .... Think of your teacher 300 miles away!

59. The children in “The Centre” do not go to school because _____.

A. they live too far away from one another    B. they do not like school

C. they are not old enough to go to school     D. their families are too poor

60. In order to send their children to school, parents in ‘The Centre” of Australia must have _____.

A. a property      B. a car  C. a school room at home    D. a special radio

61. When children are having a lesson, they can hear their teacher _____.

A. but their teacher cannot hear them   B. and their teacher can hear them too

C. but cannot hear their schoolmates    D. and see him or her at the same time

62. A “property” in Australia is a_______.

A. house     B. school     C. farm     D. radio

Mount Ebenczer is in the center of Australia. Not many people live in “The Centre”. There are no schools with desks and blackboards and no teachers in “The Centre”. School is a room at home with a two-way radio. The teacher also has a two-way radio. Every morning she calls each student on the radio. When all the students answer, lessons begin. Think of your teacher 300 miles away!

1. The children in “The Centre” do not go to a school because_______.

A. they live too far away from each other

B. they do not like school

C. they are not old enough to go to school

D. their families are too poor

2. In order to send their children to school, parents in “The Centre” of Australia need to provide_______.

A. a desk　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. a car

C. a school room at home　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. a special radio

3. Teachers in “The Centre” of Australia teach_______.

A. not in a classroom but at the homes of the students

B. by speaking only and not showing anything in writing

C. without using any textbooks or pictures

D. without knowing whether the students are attending

4. When children are having a lesson, they can hear their teacher, _______.

A. but their teacher cannot hear them

B. and their teacher can hear them too

C. but cannot hear classmates

D. and see him or her at the same time

Robert and Joanna like school very much. At school they can talk to their friends but Robert and Joanna cannot see their friends. They live 100, perhaps 300 miles away and like Robert and Joanna, they all go to school by radio.

Mount Ebenczer is in the center of Australia. Not many people live in “The Centre”. There are no schools with desks and blackboards and no teachers in “The Centre”. School is a room at home with a two-way radio. The teacher also has a two-way radio. Every morning she calls each student on the radio. When all the students answer, lessons begin. Think of your teacher 300 miles away!

1. The children in “The Centre” do not go to a school because_______.

A. they live too far away from each other

B. they do not like school

C. they are not old enough to go to school

D. their families are too poor

2. In order to send their children to school, parents in “The Centre” of Australia need to provide_______.

A. a desk　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. a car

C. a school room at home　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. a special radio

3. Teachers in “The Centre” of Australia teach_______.

A. not in a classroom but at the homes of the students

B. by speaking only and not showing anything in writing

C. without using any textbooks or pictures

D. without knowing whether the students are attending

4. When children are having a lesson, they can hear their teacher, _______.

A. but their teacher cannot hear them

B. and their teacher can hear them too

C. but cannot hear classmates

D. and see him or her at the same time

Ammie Reddick from East Kilbride, Lanarkshire, was only 18 months old when she had the accident that has scarred her for life. While her mother was away for a moment, the inquisitive baby reached up to a hot kettle in the family kitchen and poured boiling water all over her tiny body.

An ambulance was called and rushed the baby to a nearby hospital. Twenty percent of Ammie's body had been burned and all of her burns were third-degree. The doctors could tell immediately that Ammie's best chance of survival was a specialized burns unit(科) some miles away at Glasgow Royal Infirmary. There, using tissue taken from unburned areas of Ammie's body, surgeons performed complex skin grafts（移植）to close her wounds and control her injuries, an operation that took about six hours. Over the next 16 years, Ammie had 12 more operations to repair her body.

When she started school at Maxwelton Primary at age four, other pupils made cruel comments or simply wouldn't play with her. “I was the only burned child in the street, the class and the school,”she recalls. “Some children refused to become friends because of that.”

Today, age 17, Ammie can only ever remember being a burned person with scars; pain is a permanent part of her body. She still has to have two further operations. Yet she is a confident, outgoing teenager who offers inspiration and hope to other young burns victims.

Ammie's parents Ruby, a funeral director and Gibby, a policeman, have been a great support. “They told me if people had a problem with my burns, the problem was theirs not mine,” says Ammie. “They taught me to cope with other people's reactions and constantly reminded me I was valued and loved." Ammie's positive philosophy（人生观） means she is now in demand with burns organizations, helping younger patients build their self-esteem  to live with permanent scars.

“Now she is a member of the Scottish Burned Children's Club, which a charity set up last year.” says Donald Todd, chairman of the club and a senior burns nurse at Edinburgh's Royal Hospital for Sick Children, “Ammie provides so much encouragement for younger ones. She is upbeat and outgoing and a perfect role model for them.”

This month, Ammie will be joining the younger children at the Graffham Water Centre in Cambridgeshire for the charity's first summer camp . "I'll show them how to shrug off  unkind stares from others," she says. Ammie loves wearing fashionable sleeveless tops and she plans to show the youngsters at summer camp that they can too. "I do not go to great lengths to hide my burns scars," she says. “I gave up wondering how other people would react years ago.”

Ammie was taken to Glasgow Royal Infirmary because ____________ .

  A. it was the nearest hospital away from her home

  B. it was a hospital specializing in childhood disease

  C. only there can skin grafts be performed

D. it has more advanced and specialized techniques to cure burns

How many operations will Ammie have to receive altogether?

  A. 12                 B. 13                   C. 14               D. 15

The underlined phrase “shrug off” in the last paragraph is closest in meaning to ______ .

  A. perform        B. ignore               C. accept           D. tolerate

Which of the following best describes Ammie’s?

  A. Strong-minded, optimistic and helpful

B. Shy, pessimistic and discouraged

  C. Fashionable, sensitive and easygoing

  D. Careful, confident and intelligent