When I was growing up, I had an old neighbor named Dr. Gibbs. He didn’t look like any doctor I’d ever known. He never yelled at us for playing in his yard. I remember him as someone who was a lot nicer than most of the adults in our community.

When Dr. Gibbs wasn’t saving lives, he was planting trees. His house sat on ten acres, and his life’s goal was to make it a forest.

The good doctor had some interesting theories concerning plant care and growth. He never watered his new trees, which flew in the face of conventional wisdom. Once I asked why. He said that watering plants spoiled them so that each successive tree generation would grow weaker and weaker. So you have to make things rough for them and weed out(淘汰) the weaker trees early on. He talked about how watering trees made for shallow roots, and how trees that weren’t watered had to grow deep roots in search of moisture. I took him to mean that deep roots were to be treasured.

So he never watered his trees. He planted an oak and, instead of watering it every morning, he beat it with a rolled-up newspaper. Smack! Slap! Pow! I asked him why he did that, and he said it was to get the tree’s attention.

Dr. Gibbs passed away a couple of years after I left home. Every now and again, I walked by his house and looked at the trees that I’d watched him plant some twenty-five years ago. They’re extremely tall, big and robust since they have deep roots now. However, the trees in my garden trembled in a cold wind although I had watered them for several years.

It seems that adversity(逆境) and suffering benefit these trees in ways comfort and ease never could. I stood there deep in thought.

Every night before I go to bed, I check on my two sons. I stand over them and watch their little bodies, the rising and falling of life within. I often pray for them. Mostly I pray that their lives will be easy. But I think that it’s time to change my prayer(祷词) because now I know my children are going to encounter hardship.

According to Dr. Gibbs’ theories, trees will become weaker if they _________.

A. are lack of care　　　　　B. are watered      C. are weeded out　　　　　D. are beaten

According to Para.3 and Para.4, we can infer that Dr. Gibbs’ motto(座右铭) may be       .

A. “Seeing is believing”                                    B. “Put everything in proper use”

C. “Practice makes perfect”                               D. “No pain, no gain”

The underlined word robust in Para.5 most probably means _________.

A. strong　　                      B. strange　　       C. deep　　                        D. old

Which of the following may be the author’s best prayer for his two sons now?

A. I wish them strong wings, with which they can fly higher and touch the sky.

B. I wish them nice fortune so that they can meet people like Dr. Gibbs in the future.

C. I wish them deep roots into the earth since the rains fall and the winds blow often.

D. I wish them great shades under the tree since the sunlight is always sharp and bitter.

Which of the following can be the best title of this passage?

A Nice Doctor  B. The Deep Roots  C. Adversity and Suffering  D. My Childhood Memory

Polly Townsend
PART THREE  READING COMPREHENSION
Directions: Read the following three passages. Each passage is followed by several questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are 4 choices marked A,B,C and D. Choose the one that fits best according to the information given in the passage. (20%)
A
“Mummy, I don’t know what to play with. ” Steve interrupts his mother, who is talking to a friend, for the fourth time. “You’ve got a room full of toys!” his mother says, impatiently, In fact it is the jumble of toys which is to blame for four -year-old Steve's lack of interest in his dolls, cars and stuffed （packed）animals. Each morning he tips out three washing baskets of toys all over his floor, listlessly pulls out something and shortly after is standing at his mother’s desk or following her into the kitchen saying: “Mummy, I am bored.”
A family therapist（治疗专家）explains why children lose interest when they have a whole “toy shop” at home : “According to their brain development, little children are not in a position to judge the quality of a variety of things at once. There is always just one favorite toy for the moment. All the rest is left lying about.” What can parents do to stop their children from being oversupplied with toys? Under no conditions simply make something disappear without the child’s knowledge. If he/she takes no more notice of a toy, a parent can ask if it can be stored or given away. Be warned though the child will help. Lyn is the mother of four-year-old Jessie, and holds the toys and books that are the current（at present）favorites. When it seems to her that her daughter is tired from a cupboard in another room. The box of “old” toys goes into the cupboard. When her child says she is “bored”, they also get something from her cupboard—it may be something she has had for some time but because she hasn’t seen it for a while it is almost like a new toy.
　　Some favorite toys stay out all the time, and there is collection of dolls which sits in the comer, but in this way Lyn has found that she has fewer toys to put away at the end of the day and her daughter always has something “fresh” to play with.
66. Steve interrupted his mother several times because________.
　　A. he felt uninterested in his toys       　      B. he disliked his mother’s guest
　　C. he didn't have enough toys to play with　       D. he hoped his mother would play with him
67. According to the therapist, children often complain that they have nothing, to play with because________.
　　A. they can’t play alone for a long time
　　B. they are too young to play with so many toys
　　C. they are too lazy to pick out their favorites
　　D. they lack the ability to value too many things at a time
68. Which of the following can be used in place of the underlined word “jumble ”？
　　A. Simple choice.                   　      B. Mixture in disorder.
　　C. Ordinary appearance.　                   D. Same shape.
69. Which is the advice given to parents in the text?________.
　　A. Buy fewer toys for their children  　     
B. Form good habits for their children
　　C. Spare some time to play with their children   
D.Put some toys away without telling their children

Robert Moody, 52, is an experienced police officer. Much of his work involves dealing with __1__，an gang (团伙)problems in the schools of his community. Knowing that many kids often __2__ trouble, he decided to do something about it. So in 1991 he began to invite small groups of kids to go fishing with him on his day __3__.

Those fun trips had a(n) __4__ impact. A chance encounter in 2000 proved that. One day, __5__ working security at a school basketball game, Moody noticed two young guys __6__. He sensed trouble between them. __7__ one of them headed toward Moody and gave him a hug.“I __8__ you. You took me __9__  when I was  in fifth grade. That was one of the __10__ days of my life.”

Deeply touched by the boy's word, Moody decided to create a foundation(基金会)that __11__ teenagers to the basics of fishing in camping programs. “As a policeman, I saw __12__  there was violence, drugs were always behind it. They have a damaging __13__ on the kids，” says Moody.

By turning kids on to fishing, he __14__ to present an alternative way of life, “When you're sitting there waiting for a __15__，”he says, “you can't help but talk to each other, and such __16__ can be pretty deep.”

“Talking about drugs helped prepare me for the peer(同龄人)pressures in high school，” says Michelle,17, who __17__ the first program. “And I was able to help my little brother __18__ drugs.”

Moody faces __19__in three years, when he hopes to run the foundation full－time.“I'm living a happy life and I have a responsibility to my __20__ to give back，” Moody says.“If I teach a kid to fish today, he can teach his brother to fish tomorrow.”

1. A. drinking　     B. drug　 　   C. security　　      D. smoking

2. A. ran into        B. got over     C. left behind         D. looked into

3. A．ahead         B. away        C. off           D. out

4. A．immediate     B. damaging    C. limited         D. lasting

5. A．once         B. while               C. since         D. until

6. A．quarreling      B. complaining

C. talking         D. cheering

7. A．Slowly      B. Suddenly     C. Finally         D. Secretly

8. A．understand      B. hear      C.  see         D. remember

9. A．fishing       B. sailing       C. boating        D.  swimming

10. A．quietest       B. longest     C. best          D. busiest

11. A．connects      B. introduces     C. reduces     D. commits

12. A．where       B. unless       C. as           D. whether

13. A．impression     B. burden       C. decision       D. impact

14. A．asked         B. intended     C. pretended        D. agreed

15. A．solution         B. change       C. bite           D. surprise

16. A. concerns          B. interests  

C. conversations       D. emotions

17. A. participated in     B. worked out

C.  approved of     D. made up

18. A. misuse           B. avoid          C.  tolerate      D. test

19. A. unemployment    B. challenge

C.  competition     D. retirement

20. A. team          B. school  C. family         D. community

Today, roller skating is easy and fun．But a long time ago, it wasn’t easy at all. Before 1750, the idea of skating didn’t exist. That changed because of a man named Joseph Merlin. Merlin’s work was making musical instruments. In his spare time he liked to play the violin. Joseph Merlin was a man of ideas and dreams. People called him a dreamer.
One day Merlin received an invitation to attend a fancy dress ball（化装舞会）. He was very pleased and a little excited. As the day of the party came near, Merlin began to think how to make a grand entrance at the party. He had an idea. He thought he would get a lot of attention if he could skate into the room.
　　Merlin tried different ways to make himself roll. Finally, he decided to put two wheels under each shoe. These were the first roller skates. Merlin was very proud of his invention and dreamed of arriving at the party on wheels while playing the violin.
　　On the night of the party Merlin rolled into the room playing his violin. Everyone was astonished to see him. There was just one problem. Merlin had no way to stop his roller skates. He rolled on and on. Suddenly, he ran into a huge mirror that was hanging on the wall. Down fell the mirror, breaking to pieces. Nobody forgot Merlin’s grand entrance for a long time!
1．The text is mainly about ________.
A．a strange man              B．an unusual party
C．how roller skating began     D．how people enjoyed themselves in the 18th century
2．People thought Merlin was a dreamer because he _________.
　　A．often gave others surprises　　　　　 B．was a gifted musician
C．invented the roller skates　　　　　　D．was full of imagination
3．Merlin put wheels under his shoes in order to ________ .
A．impress the party guests　　　　　　B．arrive at the party sooner
C．test his invention　　　　　　　　　D．show his skill in walking on wheels
4．What is the main point the writer is trying to make in the last paragraph?
A．The roller skates needed further improvement. 
B．The party guests took Merlin for a fool.
C．Merlin succeeded beyond expectation.       
D．Merlin got himself into trouble.