Sandra Cisneros was born in Chicago in 1954 to a Mexican American family. As the only girl in a
family of seven children,she often felt like she had "seven fathers",because her six brothers,as well as her
father,tried to control her. Feeling shy and unimportant,she retreated(躲避) into books. Despite her love of reading,she did not do well in elementary school because she was too shy to participate.
     In high school,with the encouragement of one particular teacher,Cisneros improved her grades and
worked for the school literary magazine. Her father encouraged her to go to college because he thought it would be a good way for her to find a husband. Cisneros did attend college,but instead of searching for a
husband,she found a teacher who helped her join the famous graduate writing program at the University of Iowa. At the university's Writers' Workshop,however,she felt lonely-a Mexican American from a poor
neighborhood among students from wealthy families. The feeling of being so different helped Cisneros find her "creative voice."
     "It was not until this moment when I considered myself truly different that my writing acquired a voice. I knew I was a Mexican woman,but I didn't think it had anything to do with why I felt so much imbalance in my life,but it had everything to do with it! That's when I decided I would write about something my
classmates couldn't write about."
     Cisneros published her first work,The House on Mango Street,when she was twentynine. The book
tells about a young Mexican American girl growing up in a Spanishspeaking area in Chicago,much like the neighborhoods in which Cisneros lived as a child. The book won an award in 1985 and has been used in
classes from high school through graduate school level. Since then,Cisneros has published several books of poetry,a children's book,and a shortstory collection.

1. Which of the following is TRUE about Cisneros in her childhood?

A. She had seven brothers.  
B. She felt herself a nobody.
C. She was too shy to go to school.  
D. She did not have any good teachers.

2. The graduate program gave Cisneros a chance to ________.

A. work for a school magazine      
B. run away from her family
C. make a lot of friends      
D. develop her writing style

3. According to Cisneros,what played the decisive role in her success?

A. Her early years in college.      
B. Her training in the Workshop.
C. Her feeling of being different.    
D. Her childhood experience.

4. What do we learn about The House on Mango Street?

A. It is quite popular among students.
B. It is the only book ever written by Cisneros.
C. It wasn't a success as it was written in Spanish.
D. It won an award when Cisneros was twentynine.

5.  According to the text,we know that ________.

A. her brothers treated him very kindly  
B. she didn't enjoy reading
C. she met a Mexican American girl  
D. she lived an uneasy life in her childhood

     As my dad unwrapped the new bicycle helmet (头盔) that I got him for his birthday, I realized that a
number of people ride their bicycles every day without the protection of a helmet.
     Due to cold winters across the country, riding has become increasingly dangerous as many roads have
potholes and are torn-up (磨损的). Not everyone realizes that there are laws requiring the wearing of helmets
in many places.
     Where I live, there has been a law in place since October l, 1992 stating that cyclists of all ages are required
to wear helmets. Unfortunately, accidents can happen to the best of riders. My dad has been a cyclist for many
years, and he often rides around my county and to Rockland Lake State Park.
     One afternoon, as he was just entering the park, he lost control of his bicycle and flew off and landed on a
nearby patch of grass, breaking his helmet into pieces and losing consciousness. When he was just awakening,
a lovely couple found him and brought him back to our house, where he attempted to recap the events leading
up to his fall. Later that day, a CAT scan revealed that he had a concussion(脑震荡). That evening, while my
dad was showing me the pieces of his broken helmet, we both came to a shocking realization.
     If he had not worn his helmet, he probably would have cracked his skull and perhaps died. Today, when
my dad and I go out cycling, the wearing of our helmets is not even a question. Regardless of age, everyone
should wear a helmet whenever they get on a bicycle.

1. According to the passage, which of the following statements is TURE?

A. Young men needn't wear helmets.
B. The writer's father didn't wear a helmet until the writer bought him one.
C. People don't have to wear helmets on smooth surface roads.
D. Accidents do not happen to the best cyclists.

2. In the writer's opinion, why should people wear bicycle helmets?

A. Because a law requires them to do so.
B. Because many people like wearing bicycle helmets.
C. Because people have realized the importance of wearing helmets.
D. Because the conditions of roads are very poor and it is dangerous to ride on them.

3. The underlined part "we both came to a shocking realization" in Paragraph means "____".

A. we understood how lucky the dad was to have worn a helmet
B. we were shocked to see the broken helmet
C. we realized that young people needn't wear helmets
D. only old people should wear helmets

4. From the accident that happened to the writer's dad, we can infer that ____.

A. the cyclists should follow the law
B. his dad was not worried about this accident
C. it is necessary for cyclists to wear helmets
D. everyone should care about life

     Maja Kazazic looked closely down into the aquarium (水族馆). For two years, she'd been watching the
injured dolphin named Winter swim around the tank. From a distance, the dolphin seemed approachable
enough. Still, as Kazazic prepared to jump into the water, a little panic gradually came into her excitement.
     The young woman eased herself into the pool. Despite her fear, she felt strong wearing her new leg.
She was ready to make good on a promise from long ago.
     In second grade in Mostar, Yugoslavia, Kazazic's five-year-old cousin, Jasmina, died of leukemia (白血
病). Kazazic swore that she would honor the little girl by swimming with a dolphin, an anirnal they both
adored. "Jasmina never got the chance to do it," says Kazazic, 32, "so I decided that someday I'd do it for
her."
     In 1993, during the Bosnian civil war, 16-year-old Kazazic was badly injured. Her left leg was cut off
just below the knee and was brought to the United States for treatment. A few months later, Kazazic received
her first artificial leg. Because her right leg was also damaged, walking was still very painful. Nonetheless,
she managed to graduate from a local high school.
     After receiving a BA in psychology, she moved to Florida's Gulf Coast. She liked watching the dolphins
play at the aquarium. A young dolphin,Winter, who had lost her tail in a crab trap, caught Kazazic s eye:"She
swam more like a shrimp (虾) than a dolphin."
     After one doctor's visit, trainers fit Winter with a high-tech tail. When it was done, Winter swam away
fast. Kazazic was impressed. She approached the trainers, who put her in touch with the inventors. Within
ten days, she had a new leg and she could walk without pain again.
     Eight months later, Kazazic was ready to keep the promise she had made in honor of Jasmina. "After
being in a war zone, this should be a piece of cakc," Kazazic said as she lowered herself into the tank. She
held out a hand to Winter, who approached cautiously, and then moved away. After a few minutes, the
dolphin let Kazazic move her hand gently over her back. The two started an hour long swim around the
pool. When Kazazic climbed out, her parents hugged her. She would have shouted with joy had she not
been aware of dolphins' sensitivity to noise. Instead she quietly said, "I felt I owed somebody something,
and now I've paid my debt." Out in the parking lot, she got into her car and shouted loudly and happily all
the way.

1. Which is the correct order of the following events?
    a. Kazazic was brought to the USA for treatment. 
    b. Kazazic's five-year-old cousin, Jasmina, died of leukemia.
    c. Kazazic swam with a dolphin named Winter.
    d. Kazazic's left leg was cut off below the knee.
    e. Kazazic had a new leg and could walk without pain.

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

2. Which of the following sentences BEST indicates Kazazic is a woman who keeps her word?

A. Despite her fear, she felt strong wearing her new leg. (Paragraph 2)
B. "so I decided that someday I'd do it for her." (Paragraph 3)
C. "I felt I owed somebody something, and now I've paid my debt." (Paragraph 7)
D. "After being in a war zone, this should be a piece of cake,"… (Paragraph 7)

3. Which of the following words can we use to describe Kazazic?

A. Ashamed, faithful and outgoing.
B. Hard-working, shy and hesitant.
C. Unsatisfied, determined and grateful.
D. Determined, considerate and faithful.

4. Which of the following wrould be the best title for the passage?

A. A new life of a disabled dolphin.
B. An earnest promise of a disabled woman.
C. The true love between a woman and her cousin.
D.A  good relationship between a woman and a dolphin.

     I was wondering when it would happen. As everyone who lives in London and other cities
around Britain will know, urban foxes are now commonplace. I recently saw one in the middle
of the day, wandering along a street in Pimlico. Twenty years ago, that sight would have stopped
the traffic. Now, it is barely worth a remark. Foxes are large animals, as big as many dogs. Of
course, as in the terrifying incident at Homerton, one would attack a baby sooner or later.
    Actually, this has already happened. In 2002, at Dartford in Kent, a fox bit a 14-week-old boy
in the living room of the family home while his mother was sleeping. The last government preferred
to ignore the incident; it was, after all trying to ban foxhunting at the time. It could see that some folk
love urban foxes, perhaps having the same affection for wildlife as the people I have seen in London
parks feeding rats along with squirrels and ducks.
    The foxites even include animal scientists, who would seem to have persuaded Bristol City
Council (whose advisory Living with Urban Foxes has been adopted by the Chartered Institute
of Environmental Health) that foxes never attack humans. But then they also deny that country foxes
target lambs, when every hill farmer I know would tell them differently. A lamb is much the same
size as a baby. It is no more difficult to get into a house than into a hen cage.
    According to Living with Urban Foxes, “the fox population is stable”, and has not significantly
increased. Is this true? When I first lived in London in the late 1970s, urban foxes had an almost
mythical status. They were like yetis. You never saw one; you weren’t sure they really existed.
Now, they are part of the scene. I wouldn’t be surprised to find one. Friends in the suburbs are
plagued（困扰）with them. A study in Bristol showed that an astonishing 8 percent of pets caged
in gardens are killed by foxes each year.
    Surely, if foxes are now harming babies, it is time for something to be done about them, yet this is
not as straightforward as it might seem. While country residents refer to foxes as harmful animals,
that is not how they are officially classified; this means that local authorities do not have a statutory
obligation（法定的义务）to control them. It would be an easy thing for this government to change
the legislation.

1.What is the author’s purpose in writing the passage?

A. To urge the government to control urban foxes.
B. To show how to provide food for urban foxes.
C. To protect urban foxes from traffic accidents.
D. To prove urban foxes are not dangerous as expected.

2.The underlined word “foxites” in Paragraph 3 probably refers to those who ______.

A. hate urban foxes
B. love urban foxes
C. support foxhunting
D. oppose foxhunting

3.What is the author’s attitude toward Living with Urban Foxes?

A. Support.
B. Praise.
C. Disbelief.
D. Tolerance.

4.What kind of people is the author worried about most?

A. Farmers.
B. Students.
C. Drivers.
D. Babies.

     It was a sunny Saturday afternoon in Oklahoma City.My friend,a __1__(pride)father,Bobby Lewis was taking his two little boys to play miniature golf(小型高尔夫球)．__2__(walk)up to the fellow at the ticket counter,he asked,"How much is __3__to get in?"
     "Three dollars for you and three dollars for whoever is older than six," the young man replied,"We will
let them in free __4__they are six or younger.How old are they?"
     Bobby replied,"One is three and the __5__is seven,so I guess I need to give you six dollars."
     The man at the ticket counter said with a surprised look on his face,"Hey,did you just win __6__prize
or something?You could have saved yourself three dollars.I wouldn't have known the __7__(differ)if you
hadn't told me that the older one was seven."Bobby replied,"__8__(sound)true,but the kids would have
known that."
     In challenging times __9__ethics(道德准则)are more important than ever before,you'd better make
sure you set a good example __10__everyone you work and live with.