My teachers suggested that I see a speech specialist (专家) in school.

I never really gave much thought to my speech. If other people understood what I was saying, then that was good enough. I didn’t mind repeating myself many times.

Before testing me, the speech specialist asked me what I thought of having good speech. I told her I thought it was not important.

“Well, when you are in an interview for a job, and they don’t know what you are saying, what are they going to say to you? Nice meeting you, bye,” she said.

Maybe good speech was important. I took part in 20-minute classes each week with the specialist.

After she tested me, she told me that I spoke too fast, and didn’t give enough eye contact (眼神交流). I learned that when I made eye contact with someone, it meant that I was talking to that person, and I could also see what he or she thought about what I was saying.

When my first speech class started, I found that I had been speaking too fast to be understood. Every time I spoke too fast, the specialist stopped me and told me to start again. At first, I got stopped after almost every other sentence. After a while, I felt my speech slow down. I wasn’t sure if people could understand me better, but my friends stopped asking me to repeat myself.

Speech is an important skill to have. If you do have good speech, that’s a good thing, but if you don’t have it, it is never too late to improve.

1.The article is probably taken from       .

 A. a newspaper    B. an advertisement  C. a detective story    D. a science book

2.What did the writer think of having good speech before the classes?

A. It was very useful.

B. It was nothing important.

C. It was impossible.

D. It was good for interviewing.

3. What were the writer’s problems when he was speaking?

a. He spoke too quickly.                 b. He never stopped once he started talking.

c. He seldom kept eye contact with people.  d. He didn’t give others time to ask questions.

A. a, b            B. b, c             C. a, c              D. b, d

4. From the sentence “but my friends stopped asking me to repeat myself,” we know that _____.

A. the writer’s friends couldn’t understand him

B. the writer still couldn’t make eye contact

C. the writer improved a lot

D. the writer didn’t slow down

5.Through the passage, the writer wants to tell us that _____.

A. seeing a speech specialist is necessary

B. speech is an important skill to have

C. good speech can help you make friends

D. good speech gets good affect

When my first wartime Christmas came, I was in basic training in New Jersey and not sure if I could make it home for the holidays. Only on the afternoon of December 23 was the list of men who would have three-day passes (通行证) posted. I was one of the lucky soldiers.

??? It was Christmas Eve when I arrived, and a light snow had fallen. Mother opened the front door. I could see beyond her, into the corner of the living room where the tree had always stood. There were lights, all colors, and ornaments (装饰物) shining against the green of a pine.

??? “Where did it come from？” I asked.

??? “I asked the Gates boy to cut it,” my mother said. “I wouldn’t have had one just for myself, but when you called--- oh, such a rush! He just brought it in this afternoon…”

??? The pine reached to the proper height, almost to the ceiling, and the Tree Top Krystal Star was in its place. A few green branches reached about a little awkwardly (难看地) at the side, I thought, and there was a bit of bare trunk showing in the middle. But the tree filled the room with warm light and the whole house with pleasant smell of Christmas.

??? “It’s not like the ones you used to find,” my mother went on. “Yours were always in good shape. I suppose the Gates boy didn’t know where to look. But I couldn’t be picky.”

??? “Don’t worry, ” I told her. “It’s perfect.”

??? It wasn’t, of course, but at the moment I realized something for the first time: all Christmas trees are perfect.

1.When the writer got home, ________.

A. it was December 23?????????????

B. it was snowing heavily

C. he found a Christmas tree in the living room????????????? ???

D. the Gates boy was cutting a Christmas tree for his mother

2.From the passage, we can conclude推断 that ________.

A. the writer used to cut very beautiful Christmas trees??? ????????????? ?????????????

B. his mother didn’t like perfect trees????????????? ????????????? ?????????????

C. his mother didn’t want to have a tree???

D. the writer wouldn’t have a tree cut by someone else

3.“All Christmas trees are perfect”, because they can remind you of ________.

A. the wartime????????????? ? B. the green of a pine????????????? C. the pleasant smell??? D. the sweet home

4.The best title for this passage would be “________”.

A. How to Choose a Christmas Tree??? ????????????? ????????????? B. How Soldiers Spent Christmas??? ?????????????

C. The Perfect Christmas Tree????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? D. The Christmas Without a Tree

We were doing the best to control the fire of the burning garage (车库). Outside, I heard the sounds of cats crying. I couldn’t stop—I would have to look for the cats after the fire was put out.

??? It took a long time to finally bring the big fire under control. No one inside was hurt. At that point I was free to find out where the cat noises were from. There was still a lot of smoke and heat coming from the building. I followed the meowing to the sidewalk in front of the garage. There, crying and huddled (挤作一团) together, were five frightened kittens (小猫). They must have been inside the building, as their fur was badly hurt.

??? I wanted to find the mother cat. It was clear that she had gone into the burning garage and carried out all her babies, one by one—unbelievable.

??? We finally found her. Her paws and face were blackened, and her fur was burned all over. You could even see her reddened skin under the burned fur. She could hardly move. I picked her up, and she relaxed in my arms as much as her pain would allow. I decided to save this brave little cat and her family.

??? The vet told me they would watch the kittens and their mother for the night, but they weren’t confident about the mother’s chances.

??? About a week later, I found out she was going to live. We named her Scarlet because of her reddened skin.

??? I was happy to see Scarlet get together with the kittens again. She touched each of them, nose to nose. She had been in danger for five times and it had paid off. All of her babies had survived.

??? As a fireman, I see heroic acts every day. But what Scarlet showed me that day was the kind of bravery that can only come from a mother’s love.

1.Which of the following is TRUE according to the story?

A. The writer went to look for the cats as soon as he heard them crying.

B. The firefighters put out the fire quickly and no one was hurt.

C. The writer didn’t find the cats until the smoke and heat were gone.

D. The mother cat moved all her babies out of the fire to a safe place.

2.Why did the writer decide to save the cats?

A. Because he was amazed at the mother cat’s courage.

B. Because the cats attracted many people’s attention.

C. Because he didn’t want to see any living things die.

D. Because it had taken him much time and effort to save them.

3.The writer talks about the cat’s story to show that ________________.

A. animals should be taken good care of

B. mother’s love can be great and brave

C. it is meaningful to help others

D. a cat always has nine lives

We were doing the best to control the fire of the burning garage (车库). Outside, I heard the sounds of cats crying. I couldn’t stop—I would have to look for the cats after the fire was put out.

    It took a long time to finally bring the big fire under control. No one inside was hurt. At that point I was free to find out where the cat noises were from. There was still a lot of smoke and heat coming from the building. I followed the meowing to the sidewalk in front of the garage. There, crying and huddled (挤作一团) together, were five frightened kittens (小猫). They must have been inside the building, as their fur was badly hurt.

    I wanted to find the mother cat. It was clear that she had gone into the burning garage and carried out all her babies, one by one—unbelievable.

    We finally found her. Her paws and face were blackened, and her fur was burned all over. You could even see her reddened skin under the burned fur. She could hardly move. I picked her up, and she relaxed in my arms as much as her pain would allow. I decided to save this brave little cat and her family.

    The vet told me they would watch the kittens and their mother for the night, but they weren’t confident about the mother’s chances.

    About a week later, I found out she was going to live. We named her Scarlet because of her reddened skin.

    I was happy to see Scarlet get together with the kittens again. She touched each of them, nose to nose. She had been in danger for five times and it had paid off. All of her babies had survived.

    As a fireman, I see heroic acts every day. But what Scarlet showed me that day was the kind of bravery that can only come from a mother’s love.

1.Which of the following is TRUE according to the story?

A. The writer went to look for the cats as soon as he heard them crying.

B. The firefighters put out the fire quickly and no one was hurt.

C. The writer didn’t find the cats until the smoke and heat were gone.

D. The mother cat moved all her babies out of the fire to a safe place.

2.Why did the writer decide to save the cats?

A. Because he was amazed at the mother cat’s courage.

B. Because the cats attracted many people’s attention.

C. Because he didn’t want to see any living things die.

D. Because it had taken him much time and effort to save them.

3.The writer talks about the cat’s story to show that ________________.

A. animals should be taken good care of

B. mother’s love can be great and brave

C. it is meaningful to help others

D. a cat always has nine lives