Laura Brent is a manager in an important company. She has three children—the eldest is 10, and youngest is three. “My job was only possible because my husband David was prepared to take my place and become a house husband,” she says.
More and more couples are finding this arrangement suits them better in today’s world, where women are rising to the top of their careers faster and more easily than they did in the past. Many men, on the other hand, like the idea of staying at home and looking after the children. “My children see a lot more of me than I saw of my father when I was young, and I think it’s better for them, especially for the boys,” says David. “It works just as well for Laura.”
“Now I can come home from a hard day at work, and immediately relax with the children, instead of having to do the housework and the cooking,” she says.
Is there anything David misses about going out to work?
“Not really. I suppose the worst thing about looking after children and doing the housework is not having a lunch break! It’s a lot harder than most men think.”
【小题1】How many people are there in Laura’s family?
| A.2. | B.3. | C.4. | D.5 |
| A.Laura. | B.David. |
| C.The children. | D.David’s parents. |
| A.Cook for the family. |
| B.Take children from school. |
| C.Take a good rest with the children. |
| D.Wash dishes and sweep the floor. |
| A.Hard. | B.Easy. | C.Boring. | D.Fun |
| A.children hate to stay with their mothers |
| B.men are better at looking after the children |
| C.women do better at work than they did before |
| D.children want their fathers to help them with the homework |
| Xiang Jingyu a Pioneer (先锋)of the Women's Libration Movement(解放运动) | ||
| Birthday | September 4. 1895 | |
| Birthplace | Xupu county Hunan province | |
| Education | At Hunan Provincial No.1 Girl’sNormal School | |
| Joining CPC | 1922 | |
| Death | 1928, at the age of 33 | |
A. Xupu county B. Huitong county C. Chenxi county
【小题2】 Which of the following is True?
A. September 14 is Xiang Jingyu’s Birthday
B. Xiang Jingyu joined CPC in 1922.
C. She was killed at the age of thirty.
Edison often said, “1 will discover what the world needs, then I will try to invent it.” It is true that he did more than any other man of his time in inventing things. He made more than one thousand inventions in his life and all these have changed our way of living. Edison was one of the greatest inventors in the world. When Edison died in 1931, someone said people should turn off all the lights in their homes, streets and factories for several minutes in honor of this great man. Of course it was impossible to do so. And this shows what Edison's inventions mean to people's life.
【小题1】All the things Edison invented were _________ people needed at that time.
| A.what | B.that | C.then | D.which |
| A.took all his time | B.paid all his money |
| C.spent his most time | D.spent his most money |
| A.thousands of | B.over one thousand |
| C.only one thousand | D.less than a thousand |
| A.fifty | B.severity-six | C.sixty | D.eighty |
| A.possible | B.not true | C.nice | D.important |
One day, Tomas Jefferson, the president of the USA, was crossing a river with a group of travelers. The river was overflowing its banks. So it was very dangerous to cross it on a horse. Each man was fighting for his life! Then another traveler came and he wanted to cross it, too. But he didn’t have a horse. He watched the group and then asked Jefferson to take him. Jefferson agreed immediately. The man climbed on. After they were both safe to the other side of the river, someone asked the man, “Why did you ask present for help? Did you know him?” The man was shocked because he didn’t know Jefferson was the president. “All I know,” he said, “on some of your faces were written the answer NO, but there was the answer YES on his face.”
【小题1】Who was Tomas Jefferson?
A. He was a businessman. B. He was a teacher.
C. He was a captain. D. He was the president of the USA.
【小题2】How did they cross the river?
| A.In a boat. | B.On their horses. |
| C.By swimming. | D.By building a bridge. |
| A.water was flowing out of the river |
| B.it was windy and very cold |
| C.there were many empty boats in the river |
| D.everyone wrote a word on the face |
| A.both Jefferson and the man were safe to cross the river |
| B.only Jefferson crossed the river |
| C.only the man crossed the river |
| D.Jefferson’s horse died |
| A.all the travelers were kind | B.Jefferson was helpful |
| C.nobody knew the president | D.the man gave Jefferson some money |
In western countries, especially in America, some social customs have lasted still today. For example, ladies first, that is to say, women in those countries are respected(尊重) in many ways. In the U.S. and Europe, you will see men usually open doors for women and women generally walk ahead of men into a room or a restaurant unless the man have to be ahead of the ladies to choose the table, to open the door of a car or to give other services. On the street, men almost walk or across the street on the side of the ladies which is closer to traffic, but if a man walks with two ladies, he should walk between them.
【小题1】In this passage “customs” especially refer to _______.
| A.what a group of people usually do |
| B.what people in western countries do |
| C.what people in eastern countries do |
| D.what people in united states do |
| A.Men and women | B.Women and men |
| C.Gentlemen and ladies | D.Ladies and gentlemen |
| A.England | B.Italy | C.Japan | D.Germany |
| A.In Europe, a man generally follows a woman when they enter a restaurant together. |
| B.In America a man who walks ahead of a women always gives services. |
| C.In the U.S., women almost always walk closer to the running cars. |
| D.In the U.S. men should always walk by the side of the ladies. |
| A.In western countries, some social customs have lasted till today. |
| B.Women in western countries are respected in many ways. |
| C.Men usually open doors for women in the U.S. as well as in Europe. |
| D.Men show respect for women by giving them good services. |
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One day, Jack’s parents told him that his grandpa would retire (退休) after working for forty years. Jack said in surprise, “I’m only seven, so it means Grandpa has been … err… A really long time!”
His parents said, “Yes. That’s why we are going to have a surprise party for him.”
Jack loved his Grandpa and wanted to do something special for him. He remembered the business card his grandpa had given him two years before. He knew that his grandpa would no longer have the position (职位) on that card, so he decided to build a new one for his grandpa.
When the big day came, Jack was ready. But he didn’t want to put his gift together with others’. He carried it around with him the whole evening.
When all the other people left, he took his grandpa’s hand and brought him over to a chair and gave him the gift.
His grandpa smiled, “Well, it must be a beautiful gift. May I open it now?”“Sure!” Jack said excitedly.
As Grandpa opened the gift, tears came into his eyes. Jack gave him the greatest gift he had ever got! They were business cards with his new position: FULL-TIME GRANDPA! Jack said, “Now your full-time job is my grandpa!”
“Well, how much do I get paid?” his grandpa asked, smiling. “As many hugs (拥抱) as you want!” With these words, Jack gave Grandpa a hug. “Well, I guess that means I’m the richest man in the world!” said Grandpa.
【小题1】What did Jack decide to do for his grandpa?
| A.To build a new position for him. | B.To hold his hands warmly. |
| C.To give him a new business job. | D.To give him a warm hug. |
| A.Grandpa would be forty-one years old next year. |
| B.Jack was the last one to give the gift to his grandpa. |
| C.Others didn’t want to put his gifts together with Jack’s. |
| D.Jack’s parents give Grandpa some money for his job. |
| A.Because he would lose his position. |
| B.Because others didn’t like him at all. |
| C.Because he was moved by Jack’s gift. |
| D.Because Jack wasn’t with him that evening. |