First Days

       First days are milestones in our lives．They mark the beginning of a new experience or journey．They are also filled with mixed emotions．They can be a little frightening as we step into the unknown, but they can also inspire us as they give us fresh hope for the future, First days are powerful as we can leave our mistakes and failures in the past and make a new start．

       I want to share a story that perfectly illustrates （说明）this point．It is a story about a little girl named Trisha．Trisha was born into a family of teachers who had taught her that reading was the key to knowledge．She watched her older brother as he read his schoolbooks and could hardly wait for the day when she would learn to read．

       But when Trisha finally started school, she found that she was not able to understand the words like the other boys and girls．No matter how hard she tried, the letters mixed up together, and she saw only confusion．Trisha fell further behind, the other children laughed and made fun of her, and she began to believe that she was not smart．By the time Trisha entered fifth grade, she had lost all confidence in herself．That was the year she met Mr．Falker．He was different．He praised Trisha’s talents, and he wouldn’t tolerate（容忍） the other children teasing her．Mr．Falker realized that Trisha didn’t know how to read, but he knew she could with some help．

       He recruited（招聘）a reading specialist, and together they worked with Trisha after school．They helped her to write letters and hear the sounds until one day Mr．Falker handed her a book and she read it all by herself．She didn’t even notice the tears in his eyes．

       This is a true story．The little girl is Patricia Polacco, the famous children’s author, and Thank you Mr．Falker is the twenty-sixth book that she has written．

       Mr．Falker gave her a fresh new start when she walked into his fifth grade class on that first day of school．And he made a difference in her life．

       We can all make a difference in the world —one student at a time by using “first days” with wisdom and grace（仁慈）, and giving each individual the chance to start over and become the best that they can be．

1.Trisha fell far behind in school because she _______．

       A．was not confident                           B．was not smart enough

       C．did not know how to read                 D．did not try her best

2.The passage is probably intended for _______．

       A．teachers                                            B．students           

       C．children’s authors                               D．reading specialists

3.How does the writer make his point?

       A．By giving an example．B．By making suggestions．C．By arguing．D．By persuading．

4.The passage mainly conveys the message that first days are _______．

       A．frightening as we step into the unknown

       B．inspiring as they give us fresh hope for the future

       C．turning points from where we can make a new start

       D．chances when we can forget our mistakes and failures

The Yuhang District People’s Court in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, recently handled the divorce case of a young couple. The reason for their divorce was pretty simple: the couple couldn’t agree on whose surname should their daughter take, the Economic Information Daily reported.

       According to Chinese marriage law, children can take their surname either from the mother side or from the father side. However, in China, it has become a tradition that a child is usually given the father’s surname.

       At present, the single-child generation, who were born during the 1980s， are at their marriageable age now. Since most of them are the only child in their families, their babies now face a new problem: whose surname should these babies take, the father’s or the mother’s? This might not seem like a big problem; however, the problem does bother many young couples.

       Should China change its tradition of following father’s surname? In a survey, the reporter found that most fathers were usually conservative on this matter. They said that their children should take their surnames.

       Ms. Zhou is a public servant. In her mind, women and men have a fair chance on this matter. “In China, women go out to earn money, just like men do. If this is the case, why shouldn’t women have the same rights as men? On the whole, people who have the same obligations should also enjoy the same rights. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be fair. I think the old tradition should be changed now,” she said, adding that when she plans to marry, she will first raise this question to her future husband.

       As the single-child generation now start to give birth to babies, they will soon meet some problems that their parents have never met before. This only shows that the old tradition, which has existed in China for thousands of years with the male taking a most important role in the family, is now being challenged in a changing society, some experts said.

1．The couple referred to in the news got divorced because       .

      A．they couldn’t agree on some of their family affairs

       B．their daughter refused to take her father’s surname

       C．their family were facing problems in economy

       D．they couldn’t agree with each other on the right of baby’s surname

2．We can learn from the passage that       .

       A．Chinese law provides that children should take their fathers’ surnames

       B．it is easily accepted in China that children take their mothers’ surnames

       C．Chinese tradition gives people equal rights to take their surnames.

       D．there is a long way for Chinese to take their surnames freely

3．The underlined word “obligations” in paragraph 5 probably means       .

       A．positions                 B．duties                     C．abilities                   D．salaries

4．We can conclude from the passage that       .

      A．more couples will divorce because of the surname problems

       B．men will have a lower position than women in the near future

       C．there will be more children who take their mothers’ surnames

       D．the old Chinese tradition will be get rid of completely

5．The best title for this passage should be       .

       A．Surname problem for single-child families

       B．Chinese traditions are being challenged

       C．More divorces appear in China

       D．Problems for the new generation

I used to watch her from my kitchen window. She seemed so small as she muscled her way through the crowd of boys on the playground. The school was across the street from our home and I would often watch the kids as they played during break. I remember the first day I saw her playing basketball. I watched in wonder as she ran circles around the other kids. She managed to shoot jump shots just over their heads and into the net. The boys always tried to stop her but no one could. I began to notice her at other times, basketball in hand, playing alone.

One day I asked her why she practiced so much. Without a moment of hesitation she said, “I want to go to college. The only way I can go is to get a scholarship. I am going to play college basketball. I want to be the best. My Daddy told me if the dream is big enough, the facts don’t count.” Well, I had to give it to her—she was determined. I watched her through those junior high years and into high school. Every week, she led her school team to victory.

One day in her senior year, I saw her sitting in the grass, head in her arms. I walked across the street and sat down in the cool grass beside her. Quietly I asked what was wrong. “Oh, nothing,” came a soft reply, “I am just too short.” The coach told her that at 5’5” she would probably never get to play for a top ranked team—much less offered a scholarship—so she should stop dreaming about college. She was heartbroken and I felt my own throat tighten as I sensed her disappointment. I asked her if she had talked to her dad about it yet. She told me that her father said those coaches were wrong. They just did not understand the power of a dream. He told her that if she truly wanted a scholarship and that nothing could stop her except one thing — her own attitude.

The next year, as she and her team went to the Northern California Championship game, she was offered a scholarship and on the college team. She was going to get the college education that she had dreamed of.

The author was probably the girl’s        .

A．neighbor       B．friend              C．mother       D．teacher

Why was the girl heartbroken?

A．She was considered too short to be a top player.

B．Her coach stopped her training because of her height.

C．She couldn’t be on a college basketball team.   

D．She wouldn’t be admitted by an ideal college.

We can learn from the passage that        .

A．her family wouldn’t like to pay her college fee  

B．her father forced her to play basketball in collage

C．being a top basketball player can win you a scholarship for college

D．she wouldn’t like to turn to his father for help when in difficulty

Which word can best describe her father?

A．Encouraging.      B．Optimistic.        C．Stubborn.       D．Cruel.

Which proverb best matches the story?

A．Practice makes perfect.                     B．Rome was not built in a day.

C．Where there is a will, there is a way.           D．Pride comes before a fall.

I used to watch her from my kitchen window. She seemed so small as she muscled her way through the crowd of boys on the playground. The school was across the street from our home and I would often watch the kids as they played during break. I remember the first day I saw her playing basketball. I watched in wonder as she ran circles around the other kids. She managed to shoot jump shots just over their heads and into the net. The boys always tried to stop her but no one could. I began to notice her at other times, basketball in hand, playing alone.

One day I asked her why she practiced so much. Without a moment of hesitation she said, “I want to go to college. The only way I can go is to get a scholarship. I am going to play college basketball. I want to be the best. My Daddy told me if the dream is big enough, the facts don’t count.” Well, I had to give it to her—she was determined. I watched her through those junior high years and into high school. Every week, she led her school team to victory.

One day in her senior year, I saw her sitting in the grass, head in her arms. I walked across the street and sat down in the cool grass beside her. Quietly I asked what was wrong. “Oh, nothing,” came a soft reply, “I am just too short.” The coach told her that at 5’5” she would probably never get to play for a top ranked team—much less offered a scholarship—so she should stop dreaming about college. She was heartbroken and I felt my own throat tighten as I sensed her disappointment. I asked her if she had talked to her dad about it yet. She told me that her father said those coaches were wrong. They just did not understand the power of a dream. He told her that if she truly wanted a scholarship and that nothing could stop her except one thing — her own attitude.

The next year, as she and her team went to the Northern California Championship game, she was offered a scholarship and on the college team. She was going to get the college education that she had dreamed of.

41．The author was probably the girl’s        .

A．neighbor                 B．friend                     C．mother              D．teacher

42．Why was the girl heartbroken?

A．She was considered too short to be a top player.

B．Her coach stopped her training because of her height.

C．She couldn’t be on a college basketball team.

D．She wouldn’t be admitted by an ideal college.

43．We can learn from the passage that        .

A．her family wouldn’t like to pay her college fee

B．her father forced her to play basketball in collage

C．being a top basketball player can win you a scholarship for college

D．she wouldn’t like to turn to his father for help when in difficulty

44．Which word can best describe her father?

A．Encouraging.          B．Optimistic.              C．Stubborn.               D．Cruel.

45．Which proverb best matches the story?

A．Practice makes perfect.

B．Rome was not built in a day.

C．Where there is a will, there is a way.

D．Pride comes before a fall.

　I used to watch her from my kitchen window. She seemed so small as she muscled her way through the crowd of boys on the playground. The school was across the street from our home and I would often watch the kids as they played during break. I remember the first day I saw her playing basketball. I watched in wonder as she ran circles around the other kids. She managed to shoot jump shots just over their heads and into the net. The boys always tried to stop her but no one could. I began to notice her at other times, basketball in hand, playing alone.

One day I asked her why she practiced so much. Without a moment of hesitation she said, “I want to go to college. The only way I can go is to get a scholarship. I am going to play college basketball. I want to be the best. Daddy told me if the dream is big enough, the facts don’t count.” Well, I had to give it to her—she was determined. I watched her through those junior high years and into high school. Every week, she led her school team to victory.

One day in her senior year, I saw her sitting in the grass, head in her arms. I walked across the street and sat down in the cool grass beside her. Quietly I asked what was wrong. “Oh, nothing,” came a soft reply, “I am just too short.” The coach told her that at 5’5” she would probably never get to play for a top ranked team—much less offered a scholarship—so she should stop dreaming about college. She was heartbroken and I felt my own throat tighten as I sensed her disappointment. I asked her if she had talked to her dad about it yet. She told me that her father said those coaches were wrong. They just did not understand the power of a dream. He told her that if she truly wanted a scholarship and that nothing could stop her except one thing — her own attitude.

The next year, as she and her team went to the Northern California Championship game, she was offered a scholarship and on the college team. She was going to get the college education that she had dreamed of.

66. The author was probably the girl’s______.

A. brother or sister          B. friend       

C．mother                D．teacher

67.   Why was the girl heartbroken?

A. She was considered too short to be a top player.

B. Her coach stopped her training because of her height.

C. She couldn’t be on a college basketball team.

D. She wouldn’t be admitted by an ideal college.

68.   We can learn from the passage that.

A. her family wouldn’t like to pay her college fee

B. her father forced her to play basketball in collage

C. being a top basketball player can win you a scholarship for college

D. she wouldn’t like to turn to his father for help when in difficulty

69.   Which word can best describe her father?

A. Encouraging.   B. Optimistic.     C. Stubborn.     D. Cruel.

70.   Which proverb best matches the story?

A. Practice makes perfect.             B. Rome was not built in a day.

C. Where there is a will, there is a way.  D. Pride comes before a fall.