E
I came to live here where I am now between Wounded Knee Greek and Grass Greek. Others came too, and we made these little grey houses of logs that you see, and they are square. It is a bad way to live, for there can be no power in a square.
You have noticed that everything an Indian does is in a circle, and that is because the Power of the World always works in circles, and everything tries to be round. In the old days when we were a strong and happy people, all our power came to us from the respectful circle of the nation, and so long as the circle was unbroken, the people were getting rich. The flowering tree was the living center of the circle, and the circle of the four quarters nursed it. The east gave peace and light, the south gave warmth, the west gave rain, and the north with its cold and strong wind gave strength and continuous power. This knowledge came to us from the outer world with our brief. Everything the Power of the World does is done in a circle. They sky is round, and I have heard that the earth is round like a ball, and so are all the stars. Birds make their nests in circle, for theirs are the same as ours. The sun comes forth and goes down again in a circle. The moon does the same, and both are round. Even the seasons from a great circle in their changing, and always come back again to where they were. The life of a man is a circle from childhood to childhood, and so it is in everything where power moves. Our places were like the nests of birds, and these were always set in a circle, the nation’s a nest of many nests, where the Great Spirit meant for us to nurse our children.
But the Wasichus (Indian word for “white people”) have put us in these square boxes. Our power is gone and we are dying, for the power is not in us any more. You can look at our boys and see how it is with us. Where we were living by the power of the circle in the way we should boys were men at twelve or thirteen years of age. But now it takes them very much longer to be bull-grown.
57. According to the passage, the Indians ____.
A. don’t have modern instruments in their homes
B. refused to move from round places
C. lived in round places, but were forced to live in square houses
D. lived in round places, but then decided to move into square houses
58. Two things being compared in the passage are ____.
A. the Indians’ past and present living conditions   B. the Indians’ past and modern beliefs
C. the Indians’ old and new power              D. people and nature
59. In the second paragraph “ the four quarters” refers to ____.
A. the four rooms of the Indian’s house  B. the four kinds of natural power
C. the four seasons                  D. the four directions
60. According to the author, once the Indians moved into square houses, ____.
A. they had to move to other houses     B. boys took more time to grow into men
C. they forgot the old way of life        D. everyone was not happy

"Beating is a sign of affection, cursing (骂）is a sign of love."
Many may not expect to hear the words of the old Chinese saying in these modern times—with parents wealthier and better educated than they have ever been-but experts say they still ring true.
Today, it seems, Chinese parents are more likely to send their children to pre-college military academies in the United States in the hope that some tough love will pave the way tosuccess.
"Good education doesn't mean letting your child enjoy privileges, especially our boys," said Song Wenming, an entrepreneur(企业家）in Jinhua, East China's Zhejiang province." They should be raised in tough conditions to know what to fight for in the future."
In August, Song sent his 17-year-old son to Valley Forge Military Academy (VFMA) in Pennsylvania. And he is far from alone, even though it takes a lot of money - around $48,000 per year —to send a child to a strict military school.
Statistics shows that an increasing number of Chinese students have been registering with such academies.
A few years ago, there were no Chinese students at Valley Forge. Today, there are 28."All of the Chinese students at Valley Forge came from wealthy families, some of them were spoiled," said Jennifer Myers, director of marketing and communications at the school.
Song's only son, Song Siyu, had a rocky start during his first six weeks at the school. The teenager said he went to the school voluntarily but did not expect it to be as difficult.
Now, three months later, he has perfected the art of taking a bath in 35 seconds, finishing a meal without looking at his food, and making his bed with precision. He can even take criticism, no matter how unreasonable.
"The training is hard but I know it is good for self-development of individuals," said Song Siyu.'The endless training and scolding are just ways to build up our character, they are not personal."
But his enthusiasm is not universal. Ten of the 13 Chinese students who joined the academy this year have transferred to other schools.
But for those who stick with it, there is a reward for all the hard work.
【小题1】From the second paragraph, we can know the old Chinese saying _____.

I came to live here where I am now between Wounded Knee Greek and Grass Greek. Others came too, and we made these little grey houses of logs that you see, and they are square, It is a bad way to live, for there can be no power in a square.

You have noticed that everything an Indian does is in a circle, and that is because the Power of the World always works in circles, and everything tries to be round. In the old days when we were a strong and happy people, all our power came to us from the respectful circle of the nation, and so long as the circle was unbroken, the people were getting rich. The flowering tree was the living center of the circle, and the circle of the four quarters nursed it. The east gave peace and light, the south gave warmth, the west gave rain, and the north with its cold and strong wind gave strength and continuous power. This knowledge came to us from the outer world with our brief. Everything the Power of the World does is done in a circle. The sky is round, and I have heard that the earth is round like a ball, and so are all the stars. Birds make their nests in circle, for theirs are the same as ours. The sun comes forth and goes down again in a circle. The moon does the same, and both are round. Even the seasons form a great circle in their changing, and always come back again to where they were. The life of a man is a circle from childhood to childhood, and so it is in everything where power moves. Our places were like the nests of birds, and these were always set in a circle, the nation’s circle, a nest of many nests, where the Great Spirit meant for us to nurse our children.

But the Wasichus (Indian word for “white people”) have put us in these square boxes. Our power is gone and we are dying, for the power is not in us any more. You can look at our boys and see how it is with us. Where we were living by the power of the circle in the way we should, boys were men at twelve or thirteen years of age. But now it takes them very much longer to be bull - grown.

According to the passage, the Indians _______.

A. don’t have modern instruments in their homes

B. refused to move from round places

C. lived in round places, but were forced to live in square houses

D. lived in round places, but then decided to move into square houses

Two things being compared in the passage are _______.

A. the Indians’ past and present living conditions

B. the Indians’ past and modern beliefs

C. the Indians’ old and new power

D. people and nature

In the second paragraph “the four quarters” refers to _______.

A. the four rooms of the Indian’s house

B. the four kinds of natural power

C. the four seasons

D. the four directions

According to the author, once the Indians moved into square houses, _______.

A. they had to move to other houses   

B. boys took more time to grow into men

C. they forgot the old way of life           

D. everyone was not happy

I came to live here where I am now between Wounded Knee Greek and Grass Greek. Others came too, and we made these little grey houses of logs that you see, and they are square, It is a bad way to live, for there can be no power in a square.

You have noticed that everything an Indian does is in a circle, and that is because the Power of the World always works in circles, and everything tries to be round. In the old days when we were a strong and happy people, all our power came to us from the respectful circle of the nation, and so long as the circle was unbroken, the people were getting rich. The flowering tree was the living center of the circle, and the circle of the four quarters nursed it. The east gave peace and light, the south gave warmth, the west gave rain, and the north with its cold and strong wind gave strength and continuous power. This knowledge came to us from the outer world with our brief. Everything the Power of the World does is done in a circle. The sky is round, and I have heard that the earth is round like a ball, and so are all the stars. Birds make their nests in circle, for theirs are the same as ours. The sun comes forth and goes down again in a circle. The moon does the same, and both are round. Even the seasons form a great circle in their changing, and always come back again to where they were. The life of a man is a circle from childhood to childhood, and so it is in everything where power moves. Our places were like the nests of birds, and these were always set in a circle, the nation’s circle, a nest of many nests, where the Great Spirit meant for us to nurse our children.

But the Wasichus (Indian word for “white people”) have put us in these square boxes. Our power is gone and we are dying, for the power is not in us any more. You can look at our boys and see how it is with us. Where we were living by the power of the circle in the way we should, boys were men at twelve or thirteen years of age. But now it takes them very much longer to be full - grown.

1..

According to the passage, the Indians _______.

2..

Two things being compared in the passage are _______.

3..

. In the second paragraph “the four quarters” refers to _______.

4..

According to the author, once the Indians moved into square houses, ______________.

In the Harry Potter films, Hermione Granger is better than her male friends and is considered the brightest pupil in her grade. Isn’t it often the same in schools of our real world?

“It’s surprising but true that most of the top students have been girls since primary school. Girls are class leaders, club presidents and the top ones in exams,” said Wang Feixuan, 15, who studies at a Chengdu school. By any measure, Wang herself is a high-achiever. She is a top student, a team leader in her school’s sports club and a winner in national English and IT competitions.

But why do so many girls outperform their male peers?

In Sun Yunxiao’s latest book Save Our Boys, he points out that the education system is “more suited to girls, who are good at memorizing and like to sit quietly and read.” Yet he also says that girls have to do so much more when they compete with males for honors, top universities and later good jobs. They can feel great pressure nearly every day.

This seems to be the same in most countries in the world. Young women in the United States are also reported to feel the same pressure to be perfect.

“Let’s look at what we ask of our teenage girls,” says Professor Stephen Hinshaw in an interview. He thinks that it’s no longer enough that a girl does well in school and is a caring friend. On the TV, on the Internet and everywhere, girls see images of impossible perfection.

Today’s young women must be good learners, good athletes, and fill their after-school lives with other activities. But they are also asked to have the styles and looks of popular stars. “Be pretty, sweet and nice. Be athletic, competitive and get straight. Be impossibly perfect.” Stephen Hinshaw sums up.

1.The passage suggests that              .

2. According to the passage, it is true that              .

3.The underlined word “outperform” means              .

4.What is the best title for the passage?