What is it that makes a house a home ? A home is a place of companionship with people in it who love each other , who are harmonious and closer inside with one another than they are outside with those in the workplace or with classmates at school . A home is a place of companionship that it’s difficult to leave. In a home there is love , sharing and appreciation , and the members help each other .
I have seen families on the street. But if they live , sleep , talk , and eat together , they are a family, even if they are poorly off. You don’t need a roof to make a home. The truly homeless are some of the rich people who build multi-million-dollar houses and are too busy to live in them . The truly homeless are those who have turned their home into a hotel lobby . The parents work. The children do wrong . They don’t talk and eat together every day . They rarely see each other . The truly homeless people are those with babysitters , caretakers , gardeners and maids. Parents are unaware , too busy making money outside the home that they don’t live in . This is another way of looking at the rich and the homeless . Who is to be pitied ?
Control of the computer and the Internet is also important to make a house into a home. If the computer is on all the time , the house turns into an office, even if everyone is at home . Many homes these days are just offices. Human communication has stopped . The computer eats up the time that one should be giving to others within the home . Using the computer moderately gives us time for gentleness , play and communication , not with a screen , but with a human being

1. 1.

   The purpose of the first paragraph is to______.

   1. A.
      tell us that where there is home there is love
   2. B.
      tell us what people think home is
   3. C.
      show the author’s concept of home
   4. D.
      tell people how to have a happy home
2. 2.

   The underlined word those  in the second paragraph refers to______.

   1. A.
      people who build multi-million-dollar houses
   2. B.
      people who have lost their family members
   3. C.
      people who don’t spend time with the family
   4. D.
      homeless families living on the street in America
3. 3.

   Which statement is Not True according to the passage ?

   1. A.
      A home is a place where you are willing to stay
   2. B.
      Even the poorest person can have a happy home
   3. C.
      Computers and the Internet are important for a happy family
   4. D.
      Sometimes it’s the rich that should be pitied
4. 4.

   Which of the following may serve as the best title of the passage ?

   1. A.
      How to make a house a home
   2. B.
      What makes a house a home
   3. C.
      Who are homeless , the poor
   4. D.
      What’s a home for

A severely handicapped teenager who cannot walk, talk or hold a

paintbrush has won a place at Oxford to study fine art. Hero Joy Nightingale, 16, who communicates through hand movements, is to be given assistants to paint and sculpt(雕塑) in place of her .Her mother Pauline Reid “translated” for her daughter during interviews for the place at Magdalen College.

The teenager is the most severely handicapped student ever to be given a place at Oxford. She suffers from a terrible disease caused by brain damage that makes her unable to speak and her body useless.

She is unlikely ever to be able to walk, feed or care for herself but, thanks to the efforts of her mother. She can communicate. When Hero was four, Pauline designed a system of hand gestures that is equal to the alphabet.

By dictating to the her mother , Hero has created an internet magazine, From the window, which contains by George Carey, Melvyn Bragg, Margaret Atwood and Kofi Annan — all of whom are invited to write for her.

A spokesperson for Oxford said, “The university welcomes applications from students with disabilities. In cases where students are profoundly disabled, there may be many issues(问题) that need to be carefully talked about before an individual can take up a place, such as fixing firmly how the student can best be taught and examined.”

Hero, who suffers almost daily epileptic fits and has a hole in her heart, has not attended school since she was six. She has been taught at home by her mother and father, who work at Kent University.

Peter Giles, her art tutor until last year, said she has a gift for art. “She is ferociously gifted. We would sit together and her mother would grab her daughter’s hand and then we would begin work,” he said.

Together, they www..combuilt several modern sculptures from plaster and metal. “The instructions would talk a while to decipher(解释，解密). But finally, they would come, and finally make sense.”

Hero’s classes will be held at the Ruskin School Drawing and Fine Art.

According to the passage, which of the following statement is NOT TRUE?

A. Oxford University has taken in other handicapped students besides Hero.

B. Hero’s mother is the only person who can understand her fairly well.

C. Hero can not create any art works without her fairly well.

D. Only through her hand movement, is Hero able to paint and sculpt.

In the sentence: “But finally, they would come and finally make sense.”, the word “they” refers to _______.

A. the assistants              B. the mother and the assistants

C. Hero’s instructions          D. the mother’s instructions

Which would be the best title for the passage?

A. Disabled Hero and her Mother

B. Disabled Hero Wins Oxford Place

C. Oxford University Welcome Disabled Students

D. Disabled Students Living in Oxford University

A severely handicapped teenager who cannot walk, talk or hold a paintbrush has won a place at Oxford to study fine art. Hero Joy Nightingale, 16, who communicates through hand movements, is to be given assistants to paint and sculpt(雕塑) in place of her .Her mother Pauline Reid “translated” for her daughter during interviews for the place at Magdalen College.

The teenager is the most severely handicapped student ever to be given a place at Oxford. She suffers from a terrible disease caused by brain damage that makes her unable to speak and her body useless.

She is unlikely ever to be able to walk, feed or care for herself but, thanks to the efforts of her mother. She can communicate. When Hero was four, Pauline designed a system of hand gestures that is equal to the alphabet.

By dictating to her mother , Hero has created an internet magazine, From the window, which contains by George Carey, Melvyn Bragg, Margaret Atwood and Kofi Annan — all of whom are invited to write for her.

A spokesperson for Oxford said, “The university welcomes applications from students with disabilities. In cases where students are profoundly disabled, there may be many issues(问题) that need to be carefully talked about before an individual can take up a place, such as fixing firmly how the student can best be taught and examined.” w.w.w.k.s.5.u.c.o.m