The sun was shining as Kevin walked to the old bench(长凳) where he met Mike every afternoon after school. They were good friends and loved to play football. They didn’t have enough money to buy a real football, but Mike had made a ball out of old socks covered with a piece of plastic. It wasn’t beautiful, but it worked well. The two friends didn’t stop kicking and running until very late.

   The next afternoon, Mike and Kevin met again at the old bench. Soon the home-made ball was spinning(旋转) across the grass as the boys laughed and shouted happily. The ball was stopped by a boy wearing a nice pair of sneakers(运动鞋). Kevin was upset when he saw it was Steven.

   The next morning, Kevin’s mother gave him an envelope(信封). “Your uncle sent you a birthday present,” she smiled. Kevin’s eyes grew big when he saw the $100 bill. Later that day, a pair of new sneaker lay next to his chair, and in the corner, a real football.

   The next afternoon, Steven invited Kevin to play football on the field next to the library. Steven did not want Mike to join them only because Mike’s sneakers were dirty and he was not good at football. When the game was over, Kevin and Steven walked past the old bench where Mike was sitting. Steven picked up a stone and threw it at him. Kevin, holding his new football in his hands, walked on and did not look back.

   One afternoon, as Kevin walked past the old bench, he saw something lying under it. He looked closer and saw it was the home-made ball. Kevin was full of sorrow at the sight of his old home-made ball, and he let out a sad sigh(叹气). As his sadness turned to anger, he picked up his new football and kicked it into the air. Kevin kicked it so hard that it flew past the library and over the school gate. Then Kevin walked to the bench and picked up his home-made ball. Holding it in his hands, Kevin sat down and waited.

The best title for this passage is ______.

     A. A Home-Made Football                 B. Playing Football

     C. Two Close Friends                     D. A New Football

A recent Living Social survey showed that Americans may live up to their poor reputation while travelling abroad. But what’s more surprising is that many of those surveyed self-identified themselves as ‘ugly’ Americans and the world’s worst travelers.

Those in the U.S. ranked themselves as the worst travellers by a shocking 20 per cent, followed by 15 per cent saying the Chinese were the most substandard tourists.

Americans topped the list as being the worst-behaved travelers in a survey of 5,600 respondents, 4,000 of whom were Americans. Other respondents were in Australia, Canada, Ireland and the United Kingdom. But even American respondents considered their compatriots(同胞) as the worst travelers from a list of 16 nationalities.

Canadians and Australians also put Americans in the No. 1 spot. Irish respondents pointed to U.K. residents and U.K. respondents gave Germans the nod. On the other hand, 37% of Americans opted for "none of the above" in answer to the worst-tourists question, displaying more tolerance and open-mindedness than the other nationalities.

Other survey questions had respondents admitting pilfering from hotels. Four in ten U.S. survey-takers said they’d stolen something – mostly towels (28%) and bathrobes (8%). Other popular pinched items included pillows, remote controls, Bibles and sheets.

Not surprising is that Americans have less time off from work than other nationalities. Americans reported getting 16 days off, compared with 28 days for the Irish, 27 days for Australians, 23 days for U.K. workers; and 21 days for Canadians.

In the travel mishaps department, the most common travel disaster reported by Americans was lost luggage on an airline (21%)； bad weather (21%)； and getting very lost (16%).

As for places Americans most want to see, Disney World and Las Vegas made the top 10, but they weren't at the top of the heap. And New York didn't make the cut.

1.What percentage of American respondents is in the survey?

2.The underlined word “pilfering” in Para. 5 most probably means ________.

3.According to the survey, what kind of things are most taken away by Americans?

4.What’s the best title of this passage?

It was a hot summer day. My dad and I were getting ready to go out for a ride on the boat with my friend Katie and the dog when the phone call came, the call that made that bright, beautiful day a cold, dark, gloomy one.

I had just put on my suit, shorts, and tank top, and packed my bag with sunscreen and everything else I would need for the day. I ran into my parents' room to find Dad. When I saw him on the phone, he was crying. I'd never seen my dad cry before. My heart sank. What possibly could have happened?

"Max, I'm so sorry," I heard him say. That's when it hit me. I knew that Suzie had died.Max has been my dad's best friend for years. Suzie, his daughter, had a rare disease that mainly affected her body. Her brain was OK. She knew what was going on; she knew that shehad problems and was different from other kids. Once she told her dad that she wished she could die and be born in a different body. Yet although she couldn't live a normal life ，she was still happy.

When Suzie and I were little, we spent quite a bit of time together. As we grew up, we grew apart. She lived in New York, and I lived in the Midwest. When Suzie was ten she had to live ina hospital in Virginia. About eight months before she died, Max gave us her number at the hospital and we talked at least twice a week until the end. Suzie was always so excited to talk to us and wanted to know every detail about my life. She wanted to know everything I did and every thing I ate. In a way, she lived through me.

    After we found out about her death, we made our plans to go to New York for the funeral. When she was alive, I sent her a Beanie Baby and she sent one back to me. I had bought her another one but never had the chance to send it to her, so I took it to put in her casket(棺材).

Her funeral was very different from any funeral I'd ever been to. After they lowered her casket, each one of us put a shovelful of dirt over her. I remember crying so hard, I felt weak. My cheeks burned from the tears. My whole body was shaking as I picked up the shovel, but I'm glad I did it.

When Suzie and I first started calling one another, I thought it would be more of a burden on me, but I was completely wrong. I learned so much from her. She gave me more than I could ever give to her. I will never forget her or the talks we had. I now know that I must never take anything for granted especially my health and the gift of life.

1.The author's family cancelled their ride because______.

    A．Katie couldn't join them for the ride

    B．the weather was too terrible for a ride

    C．they couldn't find their dog

    D．Max's daughter passed away

2.What does the underlined part “In a wav, she lived through me.” mean?

    A．Suzie got to know what life outside hospital was like by sharing my experience.

    B．Suzie was financially dependent of me.

    C．Suzie managed to pull through her illness with the help of my family.

    D．Suzie was too weak to live her own life.

3.Which of the following is TRUE according to the text?

    A．Suzie was the only person helping the author with difficulties.

    B．The author feared that she might also get the same disease as Suzie.

    C．The author benefited a lot from talking on the phone with Suzie.

    D．The author didn't understand Suzie was her true friend until Suzie's death.

4.What is the most important lesson the author learned from Suzie's death?

    A．Never let go of a friend even if you are apart.

    B．Be thankful for what we have in our life.

    C．Talking with a friend can cure your illness.

    D．We can learn more from our friends than they do from us.

A car drew up outside the Swan Hotel and a young man got out.Pausing only for a moment to see that he had come to the right place，he went into the hotel and rang the bell on the counter of the bar.
Mrs.Crump，the landlady，who was busy in the kitchen at the time，hurried out，wiping her hands.The young man raised his hat.
“Excuse me，”he said.“I’m looking for my uncle，Mr.White.I believe he is staying here.”
“He was staying here.”Mrs.Crump corrected him.“But I’m afraid that he went back to London yesterday.”
“Oh，dear，”said the young man，looking disappointed.“I understood that he was going to stay here until the end of the month.At least that is what his servant told me when I rang up his house.”
“Quite right，”said Mrs，Cramp.“He planned to stay here the whole of July，as he always does. But yesterday he got a telegram to say that his relative was ill.So he caught the train back to London immediately.”
“I wish he had let me know, ”The young man said.“I wrote him a letter saying that I was coming.I’ve had all this trouble for nothing.Well，since he isn’t here，there’s no point in waiting.”
He thanked Mrs.Grump and went out.Mrs.Grump went to the window and watched him drive off.When his car was out of sight，she called out：“You can come out now, Mr.White. He’s gone.”
Mr.White came out of the kitchen，where he had been waiting.
“Many thanks，Mrs.Grump，”he said，laughing，“you did that very well.These nephews of mine never gave me any peace.That young man is the worst of them all.As you see，when he needs money, he even follows me into the country.Well，perhaps next time he won’t warn me by writing a letter!”

1. 1.

   This story is about a man         .

   1. A.
      who was very much loved by his nephews
   2. B.
      whose nephew went to visit him at the hotel
   3. C.
      who was not willing to meet his nephew
   4. D.
      whose nephew is always asking him for help
2. 2.

   When his nephew came to the hotel，Mr.White            .

   1. A.
      took the train back to London
   2. B.
      left to visit a sick relative
   3. C.
      went to pick up a telegram
   4. D.
      hid himself in the kitchen
3. 3.

   Mr. White didn’t like his nephews because         .

   1. A.
      they always follow him around
   2. B.
      they frequently disturb their relatives
   3. C.
      they won’t write to him often
   4. D.
      they usually visit him in hotels

People say teenagers are no good. They make too much noise in shopping malls; they drive carelessly up and down America’s main streets. And at least some of the time those things are true. But we shouldn’t forget that there are hard moments in the life of a teenager too.

I watched such a moment not long ago at a woman’s funeral which happened in a church. A teenage grandson stepped forward. Softly he began:“ I want to share a few values that Nana taught me. She never failed to see light in any situation. When our family dog would attack her, what would Nana say? ‘Oh, what beautiful markings that dog has.’ That was Nana.

“She was a strong woman who often lived in the shadow of my grandpa, who was a successful businessman in this city. But she was the one behind the scenes who provided the strength and support for Grandpa’s career,” he said, with a voice now trembling. “That was Nana’s way.”

Finally, in a voice breaking free of sorrow, he looked up and said, “Nana taught me courage. She put up a fight to the end, when she died peacefully, which is how she lived her life. That was Nana’s way, and I hope I can carry on in the same manner.”

There are no hearts as sensitive as those of teenagers, because everything is happening to them for the first time. The trouble with teenagers is that they haven’t learned to be controlled. When that boy rose to speak about the woman who had been his dearest friend, his honest voice dragged each of us out into the open where we could no longer hide. I was moved and learned a lot.

According to the first paragraph, ______.

A. young people are living a hard life 

B. people don’t think highly of the teenagers

C. people shouldn’t forget the young people

D. young people should keep quiet before the public

From the boy’s speech, we know his grandmother ______.

A. was a weak woman living in the shadow of his grandpa

B. liked dogs very much even if they often attacked her

C. could see everything around her though she was old

D. had great influence over the boy when she was alive

We can infer from the passage that the boy ______.

A. was filled with sadness and gave up finishing his talk

B. was always very good at expressing himself

C. practiced a lot in order to give a moving speech

D. had great difficulty in accepting the loss of Nana

The writer wanted to tell the readers ______.

A. the young people were too weak to face certain facts

B. the young people have learned to control themselves

C. the adults could learn something valuable from the young

D. the adults should teach the young how to deal with the death