Abby Subark is a mother of two from Boston. “For my kids, I’m nervous. I don’t know if they’ll be able to achieve their American dream.” She may be right. More than hard work or education, the best way to get rich in America is to be born rich.
It is the case that somebody who is in the upper third of income, poor scores, in the bottom on tests when they are in eighth grade, is more likely to go to college and finish college than a poor kid with the top scores. That’s what the working persons’ children are faced with.
The Economic Policy Institute finds it would take a poor couple with 2 children 9 or 10 generations to achieve middle class status. That’s about 200 years. The typical feature of American opportunity has always been the ability to do better than your parents. But compared with similar developed countries, the United States ranks fifth out of six for so-called intergenerational mobility (变动).
If you look at the mechanisms (机制) for upward mobility that were so readily available 50 years ago, they are becoming out of reach, like plentiful factory jobs with good wages and affordable education and health care.
White families are twice as likely as blacks to be upwardly mobile. For most people in America today, where you end up depends on where you start.
If you started in the middle-income class, about 40 to 45 percent of what you are making right now is due to the fact that your parents were in the middle-income class. The rest is up to you.
But for the millions of people who find themselves below the poverty line and the millions more who are the working poor, their starting point for the American dream leaves them painfully far away from the middle class.
71. The main idea of the passage is _______.
A. How the middle class comes about in the U.S.
B. It’s hard to realize the American dream for the poor.
C. Wealth and social status depend on family background.
D. Upward mobility in America is never easy.
Which of the statements is NOT TRUE according to the passage?
A. People used to have job opportunities and welfare for upward mobility.
B. A great many poor people can hardly realize their American dream.
C. You can make all your dreams come true in America if born rich.
D. Rich kids are more likely to go to college than poor kids.
73. The underlined sentence “where you end up depends on where you start” most probably means _______.
A. Your starting point cannot determine your destination.
B. Only a high goal can ensure success.
C. One’s birth has nothing to do with his fate.
D. One’s family lays solid foundation for his future achievements.
Why is Abby Subark nervous?
A. Her kids don’t want to compare with other rich kids in achievements.
B. Her kids don’t want to achieve success at all.
C. Her kids can achieve success through hard work and education.
D. Her kids can’t reach their goal without a rich family.
What can we infer after reading the passage?
A. Poverty causes people much pain.
B. People below the poverty line can never be in the middle class.
C. Lower starting point makes it hard for people to realize their dream.
D. Poor people’s starting point is too low.

B
Wild Blue is a none-of-a-kind, geography-oriented exploration and adventure center for children aged 3 through 10．Our mission is to immerse(使沉浸于)children and their families in experiences that relate to the people，places and natural elements of the wonderful planet we live on．All our programs are developed and led by our own world-class team of explorers and educators．The following is a brief introduction to some of our classes：   
Global Kitchen
All over the world，people gather together to share meals．In this class, children will learn about the cuisine of a foreign country or region while they create a delicious snack． Recipes will be kid-friendly, and use ingredients(原料)from the country of origin．Your child will learn healthy，easy-to-create recipes he can bring home to share!
Documentary Filmmaking
This 50-minute video documentary film class is specially designed for our 6and 7 years old explorers．Classes will concentrate on the basics of visual storytelling and include subject discovery, story development, storyboard, filming，editing and presenting．Participants will work as a team to produce their own documentary, which will then be screened for friends and family at the course’s conclusion．
Exploring the Wonders of Earth
Designed specifically with our youngest explorers in mind, this semester-long program will expose your child to a wide variety of exciting scientific events that occur on our planet，from chocolate melting，to volcanoes erupting，to seeds sprouting．Through this course children will begin to develop an awareness of the science that makes the earth a marvelous place．
A World of Arts and Crafts
Whether you are seeking to simply extend your child’s time at Wild Blue or looking for a favorite pastime，we offer our own unique version of arts and crafts．Focusing on using found objects，this course encourages children to draw creative inspiration from cultures around the world．This course is available，upon request, as an additional class in your child’s schedule．
55. The passage is mainly about ______.
A. an interesting exploration to the outer space
B. various tips on how to explore
C. an exploration program designed for children
D. a vivid description to an exploring experience
56. In the “Global Kitchen” class, children will _____.
A. learn to create a delicious snack of his own country or region
B. focus on learning complex recipes
C. enjoy the food over the process of making
D. mainly use ingredients that are unpolluted and good to children’s health
57. Those who sign up for thedocumentary filmmaking class     ．
A. should be children with advanced filmmaking ability
B. can do filmmaking with his partner as wellas his families
C. can work both individually or as a pair
D. will present their works in the end
58. If one parent intends to develop his child’s love for science, which course can he take?
A. Global Kitchen                      B. Documentary Filmmaking
C. Exploring the Wonders of Earth D. A World of Arts and Crafts

B
We once had a poster competition in our fifth grade art class.
“You could win prizes，’’our teacher told US as she wrote the poster information on the blackboard. She passed out sheets of construction paper while continuing，“The first prize is ten dollars. You just have to make sure that the words on the blackboard appear somewhere on your poster. ”
We studied the board critically. Some of US looked with one eye and held up certain colors against the blackboard，rocking the sheets to the fight or left while we conjured up our designs. Others twisted their hair around their fingers or chewed their erasers while deep in thought. We had plans for that ten—dollar grand prize，each and every one of US. I'm going to spend mine on candies，one hopeful would announce，while another practiced looking serious，wise and rich.
Everyone in the class made a poster. Some of us used parts of those fancy paper napkins， while others used nothing but colored construction paper. Some of US used big designs，and some of us preferred to gather our art tidily down in one comer of our poster and let the space draw the viewer's attention to it. Some of US would wander past the good students’ desks and then return to our own projects with a growing sense of hopelessness. It was yet another grown-up trick of the soil they seemed especially fond of。making all of US believe we had a fair chance，and then always—always—rewarding the same old winners.
I believe I drew a sailboat，but I can’t say that with any certainty. I made it. I admired it. I determined it to be the very best of all of the posters I had seen，and then I turned it in.
Minutes passed.
No one came along to give me the grand prize，and then someone distracted me，and I probably never would have thought about that poster again.
I was still sitting at my desk，thinking，What poster? When the teacher gave me an envelope with a ten-dollar bill in it and everyone in the class applauded for me.
51.. What was the teacher's requirement for the poster?
A. It must appear in time.
B. It must be done in class.
C. It must be done on a construction sheet.
D. It must include the words on the blackboard.
52. The underlined phrase in paragraph 3 most probably means _____________.
A. formed an idea for        B. made an outline for
C. made some space for      D. chose some colors for
53. After the teacher’s words，all the students in the class _________.
A. 1ooked very serious                 B. thought they would be rich
C. began to think about their designs       D. began to play games
54. After seeing the good students’ designs，some students _________.
A. 1oved their own designs more
B. thought they had a fair chance
C. put their own designs in a comer
D. thought they would not win the prize
55. We can infer from the passage that the author ______________.
A. enjoyed grown-up tricks very much
B. 1oved poster competitions very much
C. felt surprised to win the competition
D. became wise and rich after the competition

One day in 1965，when I worked at View Ridge School in Seattle，a fourth?grade teacher approached me.She had a student who finished his work before all the others and needed a challenge.“Could he help in the library？” she asked.I said, “Send him along.”

Soon a slight，sandy?haired boy in jeans and a T?shirt appeared.“Do you have a job for me？” he asked.

I told him about the Dewey Decimal System(杜威十进分类法) for shelving books.He picked up the idea immediately.Then I showed him a stack(摞) of cards for long?overdue books that I was beginning to think had actually been returned but were misshelved with the wrong cards in them.He said，“Is it kind of a detective job？” I answered yes，and he became working.

He had found three books with wrong cards by the time his teacher opened the door and announced，“Time for break！”He argued for finishing the finding job；she made the case for fresh air.She won.

The next morning，he arrived early.“I want to finish these books，”he said.At the end of the day，when he asked to be a librarian on a regular basis，it was easy to say yes.He worked untiringly.

After a few weeks I found a note on my desk，inviting me to dinner at the boy’s home.At the end of a pleasant evening，his mother announced that the family would be moving to a neighbouring school district.Her son’s first concern，she said，was leaving the View Ridge library.“Who will find the lost books？” he asked.

When the time came，I said an unwilling good?bye.I missed him，but not for long.A few days later he came back and joyfully announced，“The librarian over there doesn’t let boys work in the library.My mother got me transferred back to View Ridge.My dad will drop me off on his way to work.And if he can’t，I’ll walk！”

I should have had an idea such focused determination would take that young man wherever he wanted to go.What I could not have guessed，however，was that he would become a genius of the Information Age：Bill Gates，tycoon(企业巨头) of Microsoft and America’s richest man.

1.What was the author when the story happened?

A．A teacher.? B．A librarian.

C．A detective.? D．A student.

2.Why was the boy sent to the library by the fourth?grade teacher?

A．He failed to finish his work on time.

B．He challenged the teacher in the class.

C．He disturbed all the other students in the class.

D．He needed something to do to challenge himself.

3.What was the boy told to do on his first day in the library?

A．To rearrange the books according to the new system.

B．To put those overdue books back to the shelves.

C．To find out the books with wrong cards in them.

D．To put the cards back in the long?overdue books.

4.The boy got transferred back to View Ridge because ________.

A．he didn’t get along well with the librarian in the new school

B．he was not allowed to work in the new school’s library

C．he missed his old schoolmates and teachers

D．he had to walk a long way to go to school

Michel is a young girl who works for the police ____ a handwriting expert. She has helped ____ many criminals (罪犯) by using her special talents.

　　When she was fourteen, Michel was already  ____ interested in the differences in her friends'  ____ that she would spend hours  ____ them. After  ____ college she went to France for a  ____ two-year class in handwriting at the School of Police Science.

　　Michel says that it is  ____ for people to hide their handwriting. She can discover  ____ of what she needs to know simply  ____ looking at the writing with her own eyes,  ____ she also has machines  ____ help her make  ____ different kinds of paper and ink. This knowledge is often  ____ great help to the police.

        Michel believes that handwriting is a good  ____ of what kind of person the  ____ is. "I wouldn't go out with a fellow  ____ I didn't like his handwriting." She says. But she  ____ she fell in love with her future husband, a young policeman  ____ she studied his handwriting. It is later proved to be  ____, however.

1.A. with           B. by                            C. like                           D. as

2.A. search                 B. follow            C. catch                      D. judge

3.A. so                         B. too                          C. quite                       D. extra

4.A. books                   B. letter                       C. tongues                  D. handwriting

5.A. writing                 B. studying                  C. settling                   D. uncovering

6.A. attending   B. finishing                 C. starting                   D. stepping into

7.A. powerful    B. natural                    C. special                     D. common

8.A. main           B. safe                         C. easy                        D. impossible

9.A. most           B. nothing          C. little                        D. sight

10.A. with          B. by                            C. of                    D. about

11.A. so                       B. for                            C. thus                        D. but

12.A. they                   B. in which                  C. that                         D. those

13.A. up            B. out                           C. for                           D. into

14.A. of                       B. to                             C. with                        D. for

15.A. test           B. sign                          C. means           D. habit

16.A. thief                   B. criminal                   C. writer            D. policeman

17.A. whether            B. unless                      C. if                    D. after

18.A. adds                  B. tells                          C. repeats                  D. cries

19.A. before              B. after                        C. shyly                       D. and

20.A. necessary         B. all right          C. important              D. quite easy