2. Generally speaking, children’s skills ______.

e from their parents　 　　　B.have nothing to do with their education

C. may be different　　　　　　 D. have something to do with their marks in the exams

1. Parents in China, according to this passage, _______.

A. are too strict with their children　 　　　　B. are too rich to educate their children

C. have some problems in educating their children correctly

D. are too poor to educate their children

5. Mr. Brown had quite a good job in Hong Kong but he thought that if he went to Singapore, he might get a much better job with more money and a larger house. His wife didn’t want him to leave his job in Hong Kong and she reminded him that ______.

　 A. a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush　　　　　　　 B. too many cooks spoil the broth

　 C. you can not get blood out of a stone

G

For the first time in Hong Kong’s history，an entertainer(艺人)has been written into middle school textbooks．He is considered one of the best actors in Hong Kong．Yes，he is Chow Yun fat． 　　 The example of his long hard struggle for success has been used in a chapter in a Hong Kong middle school textbook．Using his experience，students can learn to make the most of their time and to grab(抓住) every opportunity(机会)to succeed． 　　 On hearing about this， Chow said happily， “I really hope that my experiences can make young people understand that one should not be afraid of difficulties and setbacks(挫折)，for they are the only way to success．” 　　 Indeed，Chow has travelled a long and difficult path to reach his success． In 1955，he was born into a poor family in Hong Kong．When he was 17，he had to leave school． He worked in a number of jobs-as a postman，camera salesman and taxi driver．These experiences paved the way for him to play all kinds of roles later in life． 　　 Chow broke into the film industry in the late 1970s．He was one of the hardest working actors and starred in a number of popular TV dramas and films including “Shanghai Bund”(《上海滩》) and “A Better Tomorrow”．Since 1985，he has won many awards including Taiwan’s Golden Horse Awards and Hong Kong Film Awards (香港金像奖)． 　　 In 1995，he went to Hollywood．Although he was already in his 40s，he had to learn English.He even put chopsticks in his mouth to practise pronouncing certain sounds． 　　 His film，“Crouching Tiger，Hidden Dragon”(卧虎藏龙)，began to gain him more fame and recognition around the world．In 1998，the mayor of Chicago set aside January 12 as “Chow Yun fat 　Day．” 1.Chow Yun fat has been written into middle school textbooks mainly because ＿＿＿＿． 　　 A.he plays best in Hong Kong　　　　 　　 B.he keeps on struggling for success 　　 C..his experiences are very special　　 　 D.he is well thought of 2.What can we infer from the passage？　 　　 A.Chow Yun fat is proud of his success．B.Chow Yun fat is popular both at home and abroad． 　　 C.Chow Yun fat prefers to make a living by selling cameras rather than by performing． 　　 D.Chow Yun fat has won more awards than other actors． 3.The author wrote this passage to ＿＿＿＿． 　　 A.introduce Chow’s way to success　　 　　　　B.praise Chow for his excellent performance 　　 C.call on people to learn something from Chow　　 　D.show why Chow is popular

H

Chinese are very generous (慷慨) when it comes to educating their children. Not caring about the money, parents often send their children to the best schools or even abroad to England, the United States or Australia. They also want their children to take extra-course activities where they will either learn a musical instrument or ballet, or other classes that will give them a head start in life. The Chinese believe that the more expensive an education is, the better it is. So parents will spend an unreasonable amount of money on education. Even poor couples will buy a computer for their son or daughter.

　 However, what most parents fail to see is that the best early education they can give their children is usually very cheap.

　 Parents can see that their children’s skills vary, skilled in some areas while poor in others. What most parents fail to realize though, is that today’s children lack self-respect and self-confidence(自信).　

　 The problem is that parents are only educating their children on how to take multiple-choice tests and how to study well, but parents are not teaching them the most important skills they need to be confident, happy and clever.

　 Parents can achieve this by teaching practical skills like cooking, sewing and doing other housework.

　 Teaching a child to cook will improve many of the skills that he will need later in life. Cooking demands patience and time. It is an enjoyable but difficult experience. A good cook always tries to improve his cooking, so he will learn to work hard and gradually finish his job successfully. His result, a well-cooked dinner, will give him much satisfaction and a lot of self-confidence.

　 Some old machines, such as a broken radio or TV set that you give your child to play with will make him curious and arouse his interest. He will spend hours looking at them, trying to fix them; your child might become an engineer when he grows up. These activities are not merely teaching a child to read a book, but rather to think, to use his mind. And that is more important.　

4. Mrs. Lin wanted to buy a new dress. Her husband suggested that she buy it from a shop near their home. Mrs. Lin disagreed because she had been cheated by that shop. So she said :“I won’t go there again because ______.”　

A. a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush　　　　　　　 B. I am sitting on the fence

C. once bitten, twice shy　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. too many cooks spoil the broth

3. Mr. Wang paid for a new school. Some people didn’t like the design of the school but they didn’t argue with Mr. Wang because ______.

A. he was sitting on the fence　　　　　 　　　　　 B. once bitten, twice shy

C. he who pays the piper calls the tune　　　　 D. a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush

2. Mr. and Mrs. Smith had a quarrel. Their friend, Mr. Brown, want to talk to them. When he came back, he told his wife that he had been trying to help the Smiths by ______.

A. pouring oil on troubled waters　　　　 　　　　 B. getting blood out of a stone

C. being a dog in a manger　　　　　　　 　　　　 D. sitting on the fence

1. Peter has a bicycle which is much too small for him but he does not want to let his younger brother ride on it. His mother is angry and says to him: ______.

　 A. You can’t get blood out of a stone　　 　　　　　 B. Don’t be a dog in a manger

　 C. The early bird gets the worm　　　　　 　　　　 D. To pour oil on troubled waters

3.The passage tells us how to ____________.

　A.be top students　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B.do more at school

　C.care for others　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D.use the Internet

F

Proverbs are quite common in spoken English. We don’t normally put them in a composition or a letter. Sometimes it is helpful if you know what common proverbs mean. Here are a few examples.

1)　 “Once bitten, twice shy.” If a dog bites me, I shall be twice as careful in future when I see it. This proverb is also used to apply to many things and not only to dogs. If you have been cheated at a shop, you will not go the same shop again.

2) “A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.” If I am a hunter, trying to catch birds, it is better to catch one than to see two birds in a bush but not able to catch them. Thus this means that what you have already got is better than the chance of being able to get something bigger in future.

3) “Too many cooks spoil the broth (soup)”. When too many people do something, they get in each other’s way and do a bad job.

4) “To pour oil on troubled waters” is to try to calm things down. Oil is lighter than water. If a ship is in trouble at sea, another ship may come to help it. The second ship can send small boats to rescue people. However, it may first pour oil on the sea to make the sea less rough.

5) “Don’t be a dog in a manger( 槽 )”means“ Don’t be selfish.” In a stable ( 马房 ), the manger is the place where the horse’s food is put. Sometimes a dog will sleep in the manger and bark when a horse comes to get its food. The dog does want to eat the lay in the manger but it will not let the horse eat it.

6) “He is sitting on the fence” means that somebody will not say whether he is in favor of a plan or against it. He is sitting on a fence between two opposing sides, perhaps waiting to see which side will win.

7)　　　 “He who pays the piper calls the tune.” A piper is a musician. The man who employs or pays a musician can say what tunes the man will play. Thus this means that if a man provides the money for a plan, he can say how it will be carried out.

8)　　　 “You can’t get blood out of a stone” means that you cannot get something from a person who has not got any of the things you want. e. g. you cannot get a million dollars from a poor man.

2.The main idea for the fourth paragraph is about _____________.

　A.making the team stronger　　　　　　　 B.working together with others

　C.being a good friend to others　　　　　 D.getting on well with others

1.The school new rules will help kids by telling them ____________.

　A.how they can study well　　　　　　　　 B.what they should do at school

　C.what is right and what is wrong　　　 D.how they can protect themselves