阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，然后从36—55各题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上涂黑。

　 You wake up in the morning, the day is beautiful and the plans for the day are what you have been looking forward to for a long time．Then the　 36　 rings, you say hello, and the drama starts．The person on the other 　37　 has a depressing （令人沮丧的） tone in his voice as he starts to tell you how 　38　 his morning is and that there is nothing to look forward to．Are you 　39　 in a wonderful mood? Impossible!

　 Communicating with negative people can wash out your　 40 ．It may not change what you think, but doing this long enough with them will make you 　41　 depressed for a moment or a long time．

　 Life brings ups and downs, but some people 　42 the wrong idea that life has no happiness to offer．They only feel glad when they make others feel 　43　 ．No wonder they can hardly win others' pity or respect．

　 When you　 44 with positive people, your spirit stays happy and therefore more positive things are attracted． 45　 the dagger （匕首） of a negative person is put in you, you feel the heavy feeling that brings you　 46 ．

　 Sometimes we have no　 47　 but to communicate with negative people．This could be a co-worker, or a relative．In this case, 　48 what needs to be said as little as possible．Sometimes it feels good to 　49　 your anger back to the negative person,　 50 all this does is to lower you to that same negative level and they won't feel　 51 of themselves about that．

　 Negativity often 52　 happiness without even being realized．The negative words of another at the start of the day can attach to you throughout the 53　 of your day, which makes you feel bad and 　54 your happiness．Life is too 55 to feel negative．Stay positive and avoid negativity as much as possible．

36．A．bell　　　　 B．door 　　　 C．telephone　 D．voice

37．A．way　　　　 B．corner 　　 C．part　 D．end

38．A．terrible　　 B．cheerful 　 C．amazing D．exciting

39．A．almost　　　 B．still 　　　 C．never　 D．ever

40．A．belief　　　 B．relief 　　 C．sadness D．happiness

41．A．look　　　　 B．remain 　　 C．feel　 D．Sound

42．A．are stuck in B．are accused of 　　　　 C．are pleased with D．are concerned about

43．A．glad　　　　 B．bad 　　　　 C．sorry　 D．content

44．A．quarrel　　 B．fight 　　　 C．work　 D．communicate

45．A．Since　　　 B．Before 　　 C．When　 D．After

46．A．down　　　　 B．up 　　　　 C．in　　 D．out

47．A．need　　　　 B．choice 　　 C．chance D．hope

48．A．describe　　 B．say 　　　　 C．mind　 D．write

49．A．find out　　 B．make out 　 C．let out D．try out

50．A．but　　　　 B．or 　　　　　　　　　　 C．for　　　　　 D．and

51．A．ashamed　　 B．afraid 　　 C．tired　 D．proud

52．A．affects　　 B．gains 　　　 C．buys　 D．decides

53．A．length　　　 B．rest 　　　 C．beginning　 D．middle

54．A．shares　　　 B．hides 　　　 C．sells　 D．steals

55．A．long　　　　 B．short 　　　 C．easy　 D．uncertain

In a time of low academic achievement by children in the United States, many Americans are turning to Japan, a country of high academic achievement and economic success, for possible answers. However, the answers provided by Japanese preschools are not the ones Americans expected to find. In most Japanese preschools, surprisingly little emphasis is put on academic instruction. In one investigation, 300 Japanese and 210 American preschool teachers, child development specialists, and parents were asked about various aspects of early childhood education. Only 2 percent of the Japanese respondents (答问卷者) listed “to give children a good start academically” as one of their top three reasons for a society to have preschools. In contrast, over half the American respondents chose this as one of their top three choices. To prepare children for successful careers in first grade and beyond, Japanese schools do not teach reading, writing, and mathematics, but rather skills such as persistence(坚持不懈), concentration, and the ability to function as a member of a group. The vast majority of young Japanese children are taught to read at home by their parents.

　　In the recent comparison of Japanese and American preschool education, 91 percent of Japanese respondents chose providing children with a group experience as one of their top three reasons for a society to have preschools. Sixty-two percent of the more individually oriented (强调个性发展的) Americans listed group experience as one of their top three choices. An emphasis on the importance of the group seen in Japanese early childhood education continues into elementary school education.

　　Like in America, there is diversity in Japanese early childhood education. Some Japanese kindergartens have specific aims, such as early musical training or potential development. In large cities, some kindergartens are attached to universities that have elementary and secondary schools. Some Japanese parents believe that if their young children attend a university-based program, it will increase the children’s chances of eventually being admitted to top-rated schools and universities. Several more progressive programs have introduced free play as a way out for the heavy intellectualizing（知识化） in some Japanese kindergartens.

1.We learn from the first paragraph that many Americans believe ________.

　  A．Japanese parents are more involved in preschool education than American parents

　　B．Japan’s economic success is a result of its scientific achievements

　　C．Japanese preschool education emphasizes academic instruction

　　D．Japan’s higher education is superior to theirs

2.Most Americans surveyed believe that preschools should also attach importance to ________.

　　A．problem solving

　　B．group experience

　　C．parental guidance

　　D．individually-oriented development

3.Free play has been introduced in some Japanese kindergartens in order to        .

    A．broaden children’s horizons

    B．encourage children’s creativity

    C．lighten children’s study load

    D．increase children’s knowledge

4.Why do some Japanese parents send their children to university – based kindergartens?

    A．They can do better in their future studies.

    B．They can accumulate more group experience there.

    C．They can be individually – oriented when they grow up.

    D．They can have better chances of getting a first – rate education.

In a society such as the united States or Canada , which has many national , religions （宗教）and cultural differences, people highly value individualism ---the differences among people．Teachers place a lot of importance on the qualities that make each student special．The educational systems in these countries show these values ．Students do not memorize information．Instead, they work on their own and find answers themselves．There is often discussion in the classroom．At an early age , students learn to from their own ideas and opinions．

In most Asian societies , by contrast , the people have the same language , history and culture ．Perhaps for this reason , the educational system in these Asian countries reflects society’s belief in group goals and purposes rather than individualism ．Children in China , Japan , and Korea often work together and help one another on assignments （作业）．

There are advantages and disadvantages to both of these systems of education ．For example , one advantage to the system in Japan is that students there learn much more maths and science than American students learn by the end of high school ．They also study more hours each day and more days each year than North American do．The system is difficult but it prepares students for a society that values discipline and self—contro．There is , however , a disadvantage．Memorization is an important learning method in Japanese schools．Yet many students say that after an exam , they forget much of the information that they have memorized．

The advantage of the educational system in North American , on the other hand , is that students learn to think for themselves ．The system prepares them for a society that values creative ideas．There is , however , a disadvantage ．When students graduate from high school , they haven’t memorized as many basic rules and facts as students in other countries have ．

1．American teachers attach much importance to individualism because ________ .

　 A．they are required to do so

　 B．their students do not memorize information

　 C．the United States is a country of different cultures

　 D．their students always work individually

2．Which of the following is most likely a description of Asian method of education ?

　 A．Each child in a classroom draws a different picture

　 B．Students have to find information themselves

　 C．Students are prepared for a society that values discipline

　 D．Teachers serve as a guide in discussion

3．We can learn from the passage that the author might believe ________

　 A．different educational systems are based on the development level of different country

　 B．students from Western countries are creative but selfish

　 C．Asian students are merely interested in maths and science

　 D．The two different educational systems could be combined（结合） together

4．In this passage the author mainly discusses ______

　 A．how Western school systems mirror the value of individualism

　 B．the advantage and disadvantage of the two educational systems

　 C．what Asian schools should do to make students more creative

　 D．the differences in culture , religion , etc ．between the East and West