One of my wonderful memories is about a Christmas gift． Unlike other gifts，it came without wrap（包装）．
On September 11 ^th , 1 958，Mum gave birth to Richard．After she brought him home from hospital，she put him in my lap，saying, “I promised you a gift, and here it is．” What an honor! I turned four a month earlier and none of my friends had such a baby doll of their own．I played with it day and night． I sang to it, I told it stories．I told it over and over how much I loved it!  
One morning, however，I found its bed empty． My doll was gone! I cried for it．Mum wept and told me that the poor little thing had been sent to a hospital．It had a fever． For several days，I heard Mum and Dad whispering such words as “hopeless”，“pitiful"，and “dying”, which sounded Ominous．
Christmas was coming, “Don’t expect any presents this year,” Dad said, pointing at the socks I hung in the living room． “If your baby brother lives, that’ll be Christmas enough．” As he spoke，his eyes filled with tears． I’d never seen him cry before．
The phone rang early on Christmas morning．Dad jumped out of bed to answer it．From my bedroom I heard him say, “What? He’s all right?” He hung up and shouted upstairs． “The hospital said we can bring Richard home!” “Thank God!” I heard Mum cry．
From the window upstairs，I watched my parents rush out to the car．I had never seen them so happy． And I was also full of joy． What a wonderful day! My baby doll would be home． I ran downstairs． My socks still hung there flat．But I knew they were not empty: they were filled with love !
【小题1】What happened to the author on September 11^th,1958?

I’ll call my father tomorrow which is Father’s Day． Every other  1  I call，Morn answers and Dad quietly picks up the  2  and listens in to our conversation．But  3  Father’s Day, we will talk a little about my job，my family and the weather． Then Dad will say，“Thanks for 4    ,son ,”and hang up．

       5  it is almost summer, every year after our Father’s Day talk，I’m left with images of my father and the cold．As a boy I watched him out of the kitchen window  6  our lane（道） of snow with the first snow blower（旋转式清雪机）． First，he’d do our walk and then he’d blow the lanes of the shut-ins（不能出门的病人），the single morns，and poorer folks，  7  could not seem to get it together．

    I  8  him and learned from him，but I  9  not remember my father and me ever having much of a conversation．Nothing that he  10  shared、vim me in a heart-felt way showed that he may be  11 ，upset or ready to climb the wall．

 The last time I saw my father, I asked him to go out for a  12  with me．The sun was setting over the lake and I said，“Come on．We don’t  13   much time together any more． Let’s go． ”Father looked at me meaningfully and said，“  14  ． ”

 That visit to my father was about a week before September 11 th．I was near Ground Zero on that day and for five hours  15  the first plane struck, my family did not know of my whereabouts（下落）． 16   for me I arrived back at our home in Brooklyn．My biggest  17    was that my wife told me my father was  18  to drive from his home on Lake Huron to Ground Zero to find me．

    To love the remote father is to face this paradox（矛盾）：to accept his refusal of my  19 for a sunset walk with his worry that I might have died with thousands of others last September； to deeply know, if not accept，that is his way, the way a man of  10  words，snowblower of shut-ins and lonely hearts，can best show a father’s love．

1． A．day                     B．time                     C．year                      D．summer

2． A．pen                     B．paper                  C．extension                      D．directory

3． A．on                       B．at                        C．during                    D．after

4． A．coming                 B．inviting                C．calling                    D．giving

5． A．As if                 B．Even though           C．As though              D．Ever since

6． A．washing               B．clearing                C．appreciating            D．playing

7． A．who                    B．which                  C．they                      D．whom

8． A．saw                     B．noticed                C．watched                 D．realized

9． A．can                     B．must                    C．need                      D．shall

10． A．still                    B．even                    C．ever                      D．never

11． A．straight forward  B．afraid                  C．innocent                 D．authentic

12． A．walk                  B．swim                  C．meal                      D．picnic

13． A．spend                B．waste                         C．save                             D．cost

14． A．Yes                    B．No                      C．A moment              D．After you

15． A．until           B．unless                  C．before                    D．since

16． A．Properly             B．Luckily                C．Unfortunately        D．Shortly

17． A．success             B．objection              C．surprise                 D．drawback

18． A．prepared           B．forbidden             C．persuaded              D．urged

19． A．worry                B．pleasure               C．desire                    D．curiosity

20． A．many                 B．few                     C．several                   D．enough

When I walked into the house after school, the first thing I noticed was a box with items I recognized from my dad’s office.

“What are you doing home already?” I asked casually.[来源:ZXXK]

“Andrew, I was laid off today.” he answered quietly.

I was sure he was joking. “No, you weren’t. Why are you really home?”

Then I noticed his seriousness and realized he was telling the truth. My father has always been a hard worker and prided himself on his career. Providing for our family has been his joy, and I guess I had taken his work for granted.

My father’s unemployment created many changes in our lives. For starters, he was home all the time, which meant my bed had to be made, my room cleaned up, and my homework done right after school. I would come home every day to find him at the computer searching for jobs. I began to notice how down he seemed, and how losing his job had affected his self-esteem, though he tried to be optimistic. For the first time, I saw my dad as vulnerable. He asked my brother and me to spend less. I gave up my allowance, which even though it wasn’t much, felt like the right thing to do. I also found a part-time job.

After several difficult months of searching, my dad decided to go in a totally different direction. He explained that he never wanted to be laid off again, so he was going to start his own business. Day by day, I watched him build it, and I admired how much time and energy he expended.

One evening I asked if he needed help.

“Only if it doesn't interfere with school,” he said.

I showed up at his office the next afternoon, and most afternoons after that for two months. I always knew he was a hard worker, but watching him in action really impacted me. Although this was one of the worst experiences for our family, it taught me a lot about dealing with adversity. Now I know that through creative problem-solving, I can always find Plan B, ask for help, and take risks. What I have learned from my dad’s understanding of business and his work ethic are two of the most important lessons I will ever learn, and will be my foundations for success.

1. The author’s father stayed at home because ________.

A. he had to help with the author’s lesson

B. he had been unemployed by his company

C. heavy housework was waiting for him to do

D. he wanted the author know the truth?

2. What made the author know the truth?

   A. The box from his dad’s office                         B. His father’s words

   C. His father’s expression                                          D. Being informed by his family

3. The author’s attitude toward his father’s former job was ________.

   A. unconcerned                      B. sympathy                 C. doubt                D. tolerance

4. By saying “Only if it doesn't interfere with school”, the author’s father seemed ________.

   A. to refuse the author’s advice on the new business

   B. to show his discontent with the author’s schoolwork

   C. to have said yes to the author’s offer of help

   D. to be looking forward to the author’s good behavior at school

5. It can be inferred from the text that ________.

   A. the author’s father was more optimistic to stay at home

   B. the author couldn’t put up with his dad’s own business

   C. the author’ s father offered little allowance to the author

D. the author benefited from his father on how to deal with adversity

When a dirty and untidy orange cat showed up in the prison yard，I was one of the first to go out there and pet it．I hadn’t touched a cat or a dog in over 20 years．I spent at least 20 minutes，knelt down behind the kitchen as the cat rolled around，relaxed．What he was expressing outwardly, I was feeling inwardly．It was an amazing bit of grace to feel him under my hand and note that I was reaching a life or another creature with something as simple as my care．

 Over the next few days，there were other prisoners responding to the cat．Every yard period，a group of prisoners gathered there．They stood around talking and taking turns petting the cat．These were guys you wouldn’t usually find talking to each other．Several times I saw an officer in the group，not chasing people away, but just watching and seeming to enjoy along with the prisoners．Bowls of milk and water appeared along with bread, wisely placed under the edge of the dustbin to keep the birds from getting it．

 The cat was obviously homeless and in pretty bad shape．People said that the cat came to the right place．He's getting treated like a king．This was true．but as I watched I was also thinking about what the cat was doing for us．There was a lot of talk about what's wrong with prisons in America．We need more programs．We need more psychologists or treatment of various kinds．Some may even talk about making prisons more kind．But I think what we really need is a chance to practise our own kindness．Not receive it，but give it．After more than two decades here，I know kindness is not a value that's encouraged．It's often seen as a weakness．

Instead，the culture encourages keeping your head down，minding your own business，and never letting yourself be weak．

The cat did my heart good to see the effect he had on me and the men here．By simply saying，”I need some help here”，he did something important for us．He needed us．And we needed to be needed．I believe we all do．

1.From the passage，we can learn that the author was            ．

A．an animal protector   B．the cat owner   C．a prison officer        D．a prisoner

2.Which of the following statements is true?

A．The cat was dirty because it was kept in prison．

B．The officer in the prison enjoyed petting the cat．

C．The prisoners prepared food for both the cat and birds．

D．The author realized the importance of practising kindness．

3.We can infer from the third paragraph that               ．

A．showing love to others can make prisoners strong

B．the American prison culture will be improved

C．the author is not content with the prison culture

D．caring for others is encouraged in American prisons

4.What is the best title for the passage?

A．Caring Makes Us Human．          B．Prison Culture is Important．

C．Animals Need Care．              D．Everyone Needs to be Cared for．

5.In Paragraph 2，the author mentioned that “Several times I saw an officer in the group，not chasing people away, but just watching and seeming to enjoy along with the prisoners．”to               ．

A．show us the officer and prisoners get along well with each other

B．show us the American prison culture does need improvement

C．show us the officer and prisoners all like cat

D．show us the American prison culture is great

第二部分       阅读理解(共两节，满分50分)  

第一节    阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。(共20小题；每小题2分，满分40分)

Mickey’s Goal

Last night was the last game for my eight-year-old son’s soccer team. It was the final quarter. The score was two to one, my son’s team in the lead. Parents surrounded the playground, offering encouragement.

       With less than ten seconds remaining, the ball suddenly rolled in front of my son’s teammate, Mickey O’ Donnel. With shouts of “Kick it!” echoing（回响）across the playground, Mickey

turned around and gave it everything he had. All around me the crowd erupted （沸腾）. O’ Donnel

had scored!m

       Then there was silence. Mickey had scored all right, but in the wrong goal, ending the game in a tie. For a moment there was a total hush. You see, Mickey has Down syndrome（综合症）and for him there is no such thing as a wrong goal. All goals were celebrated by a joyous hug from Mickey. He had even been known to hug the opposing players when they scored.

       The silence was finally broken when Mickey, his face filled with joy, hugged my son tightly and shouted, “I scored! I scored. Everybody won! Everybody won!” For a moment I held my breath, not sure how my son would react. I need not have worried. I watched, through tears, as my son threw up his hand in the classic high-five salute and started chanting, “Way to go Mickey! Way to go Mickey!” Within moments both teams surrounded Mickey, joining in the chant and congratulating him on his goal

       Later that night, when my daughter asked who had won, I smiled as I replied, “It was a tie. Everybody won.

 1．What was the score of the soccer matchm

       A．Two to two, equal to both the teams.        

B．Three to one in Mickey’s team’s favor.

       C．Two to one in the opposite team’s favor. 

D．Everybody won because of Mickey’s goal.

2．What did the author worry about when Mickey scored and hugged his son?

       A．The result of the match would fail his son. 

B．His son would shout at Mickey for his goal.

       C．Mickey would again hug the opposing players.

       D．His son would understand Mickey’s wrong goal.

3．It can be inferred from the passage that________.

       A．both teams liked and respected Mickey. 

B．both teams were thankful to Mickey for his goal.

       C．Mickey didn’t mind though his goal was wrong

       D．Mickey was a kind-hearted boy and hoped everybody won.

4．The purpose of the author in writing the passage is _______.

       A．to tell a joke to make readers laugh.  

B．to suggest we should not mind losing .

       C．to show enjoying a game is more than winning a game

       D．to present his son’s fine qualities of understanding others