A kindergarten teacher decided to let her class play a game. The teacher told each child in the class to bring along a plastic bag containing a few potatoes. Each potato will be given a name of a person that the child hates, so the number of potatoes that a child will put in his/her plastic bag will depend on the number of people he/she cannot forgive（宽恕）.
So when the day came, every child brought some potatoes with the name of the people he/she hated. Some had 2 potatoes; some 3, while some had up to 5 potatoes.
The teacher then told the children to carry the potatoes with them wherever they go (even to the toilet) for one week. With days passing by, the children started to complain because of the unpleasant smell let out by the rotten (腐烂) potatoes they were carrying.
Those children who have 5 potatoes really began to feel the weight of the heavier bags. After one week, the children were happy to hear that the teacher had finally ended the game. The teacher asked: "How did you feel while carrying the potatoes with you for one week?" The children started complaining of the trouble that they had to carry the heavy and smelly potatoes wherever they go.
Then the teacher told them the hidden meaning behind the game. The teacher said: "This is exactly the situation when you carry your hatred（仇恨）for somebody inside your heart. The burden（负担）of hatred will pollute your heart and you will end up carrying an unnecessary burden with you wherever you go.
If you cannot tolerate the smell of rotten potatoes for just one week, can you imagine what a burden it would be to have the hatred in your heart for your lifetime?"
【小题1】According to the teacher, if a Child hates three persons, he or she needs to carry ________.

A kindergarten teacher decided to let her class play a game. The teacher told each child in the class to bring along a plastic bag containing a few potatoes. Each potato will be given a name of a person that the child hates, so the number of potatoes that a child will put in his/her plastic bag will depend on the number of people he/she cannot forgive（宽恕）.

So when the day came, every child brought some potatoes with the name of the people he/she hated. Some had 2 potatoes; some 3, while some had up to 5 potatoes.

The teacher then told the children to carry the potatoes with them wherever they go (even to the toilet) for one week. With days passing by, the children started to complain because of the unpleasant smell let out by the rotten (腐烂) potatoes they were carrying.

Those children who have 5 potatoes really began to feel the weight of the heavier bags. After one week, the children were happy to hear that the teacher had finally ended the game. The teacher asked: "How did you feel while carrying the potatoes with you for one week?" The children started complaining of the trouble that they had to carry the heavy and smelly potatoes wherever they go.

Then the teacher told them the hidden meaning behind the game. The teacher said: "This is exactly the situation when you carry your hatred（仇恨）for somebody inside your heart. The burden（负担）of hatred will pollute your heart and you will end up carrying an unnecessary burden with you wherever you go.

If you cannot tolerate the smell of rotten potatoes for just one week, can you imagine what a burden it would be to have the hatred in your heart for your lifetime?"

1.According to the teacher, if a Child hates three persons, he or she needs to carry ________.

A．one potato        B．two potatoes       C．three potatoes     D．four potatoes

2.The underlined word “tolerate ” in the last paragraph probably means _____________.

A．carry             B．hate              C．receive           D．stand

3.In fact, the teacher wants to ______________.

A．play a game with the students              B．teach the students a lesson

C．make the students more tired              D．play jokes on the students

4.What is the main idea of the story?

A．It’s best to learn to forgive and forget.

B．Students should love people around them.

C．Children should carry less rotten potatoes.

D．Rotten potatoes are really a heavy burden.

C

       In the United States, when one becomes rich, he wants people to know it．And even if he does not become very rich, he wants people to think that he is．That is what “keeping up with the Joneses” is about．It is the story of someone who tried to look as rich as his neighbours．

       The expression was first used in 1913 by a young American called Arthur Momand．He told this story about himself．He began earning $ 125 a week at the age of 23．That was a lot of money in those days．He got married and moved with his wife to a very wealthy neighbourhood outside New York City．When he saw that rich people rode horses, Momand went horseback riding every day．When he saw that rich people had servants, Momand and his wife also hired a servant and gave big parties for their new neighbours．

       It was like a race, but one could never finish his race because one was always trying to keep up．The race ended for Momand and his wife when they could no longer pay for their new way of life．They moved back to an apartment in New York City．

       Momand looked around him and noticed that many people do things just to keep up with rich lifestyle of their neighbours．He saw the funny side of it and started to write a series of short stories．He called it “Keeping up with the Joneses” because “Jones” is a very common name in the United States．“Keeping up with the Joneses” came to mean keeping up with rich lifestyle of the people around you．Momand’s series appeared in different newspapers across the country for over 28 years．

       People never seem to get tired of keeping up with the Joneses．And there are “Joneses” in every city of the world．But one must get tired of trying to keep up with the Joneses because no matter what one does, Mr．Jones always seems to be ahead．

64．Some people want to keep up with the Joneses because they ________．

       A．want to be as rich as their neighbours

       B．want others to know or to think that they are rich

       C．don’t want others to know they are rich

       D．want to be happy

65．It can be inferred （推断） from the story that rich people like to ________．

       A．live outside New York City      B．live in New York city

       C．live in apartments                 D．have many neighbours

66．Arthur Momand used the name “Jones” in his series of short stories because “Jones” is ________．

       A．an important name               B．a popular name in the United States

       C．his neighbour’s name             D．not a good name

67．According to the writer, it is ________ to keep up with the Joneses．

       A．correct    B．interesting      C．impossible      D．Good

It was a warm April day when a big fat envelope came in the mail from the only college I had ever imagined attending. I tore open the packet. My eyes were fixed on the word “congratulations. ”I don’t remember ever smiling so wide.
Then I looked at my financial（财政的）package.
The cost of Dream School’s tuition（学费）, room and board was around $ 40,000- an impossible sum! How could I afford to attend? What good reasons did I have to go there when three other fine colleges were offering me free tuition? My other choices were good, solid schools even if they weren’t as famous as my first choice.
In my mind, attending my dream university would be the only way to realize my dream of becoming a world-class writer. My parents understood how I felt. They told me that even though it would be a financial problem, I could go wherever I would be happiest. But as I was always careful with money, I wasn’t sure what to do.
One of the schools that offered me a full ride had an informational dinner one night in the spring. Considering my parents’ financial difficulties, I decided to drive the 45 minutes and attend. At first, all I had planned to do was smile politely, eat free food, listen quietly. But I surprised myself.
At dinner the president of the university talked about the wonderful activities on campus （校园）including guest lectures and social gatherings. He also made it perfectly clear that free food would be offered at all future events. He continued with explanations of professors, class sizes, activities, and sporting events on campus. As he spoke, I began to realize that this school, though not as good as my first choice, might be the best one for me. It seemed small yet with many great programs. It seemed challenging yet caring.
As the president ended his speech, we clapped politely and pushed back our chairs. As I walked out that door, a feeling of comfort washed over me. Looking at the campus that night, I realized that I would be spending the next four years right there.
In all honesty, my university is not as well-known as my “dream”university. However, it turned out to be the right choice of schools for me.
【小题1】How did the author feel when he started to read the letter?

It was a warm April day when a big fat envelope came in the mail from the only college I had ever imagined attending. I tore open the packet. My eyes were fixed on the word “congratulations. ”I don’t remember ever smiling so wide.
Then I looked at my financial（财政的）package.
The cost of Dream School’s tuition（学费）, room and board was around $ 40,000- an impossible sum! How could I afford to attend? What good reasons did I have to go there when three other fine colleges were offering me free tuition? My other choices were good, solid schools even if they weren’t as famous as my first choice.
In my mind, attending my dream university would be the only way to realize my dream of becoming a world-class writer. My parents understood how I felt. They told me that even though it would be a financial problem, I could go wherever I would be happiest. But as I was always careful with money, I wasn’t sure what to do.
One of the schools that offered me a full ride had an informational dinner one night in the spring. Considering my parents’ financial difficulties, I decided to drive the 45 minutes and attend. At first, all I had planned to do was to smile politely, eat free food, listen quietly. But I surprised myself.
At dinner the president of the university talked about the wonderful activities on campus （校园）including guest lectures and social gatherings. He also made it perfectly clear that free food would be offered at all future events. He continued with explanations of professors, class sizes, activities, and sporting events on campus. As he spoke, I began to realize that this school, though not as good as my first choice, might be the best one for me. It seemed small yet with many great programs. It seemed challenging yet caring.
As the president ended his speech, we clapped politely and pushed back our chairs. As I walked out that door, a feeling of comfort washed over me. Looking at the campus that night, I realized that I would be spending the next four years right there.
In all honesty, my university is not as well-known as my “dream”university. However, it turned out to be the right choice of schools for me.
【小题1】How did the author feel when he started to read the letter?