It’s easy to see how to help some people, but what about those whose needs are not so clear? This story may have happened not long ago--- but it was a lesson which has stayed with me and helped me ever since.
It was Thanksgiving and I was volunteering with my parents at a shelter for the needy. We served hot food to whoever came in. Most of our dinners looked like they had been having hard times; their clothes were worn out and dirty. Then, a man came in, who looked anything but needy. He was well dressed. I wondered what he was doing there and my jaw (下巴) dropped in amazement when he joined the line for food. The closer he came to my service station , the more I muttered (小声抱怨). What was this man doing? Surely he wasn’t going to take food which was meant for those who were really in need!
Then my mother quietly took me to one side. She said, “You have thought that the needs of the people who come here must be purely physical, hunger, etc. And this gentleman doesn’t seem to have any of those problems. But what if his needs are emotional(情感的)? What if he needs comfort, friends, or just to be among other human beings? Her words hit me like a ton of bricks! I felt like I should apologize to the man--- but I didn’t.
About a week later the shelter received a large donation from an anonymous source. I can’t help but wonder if it came from that man.
Now, whenever I meet someone I remember my mother’s lesson and try to send kindness their way, no matter how they look. Needs aren’t always seen. But kindness always makes a difference.
1.How did the author feel as the well-dressed man joined the line for food?
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A.Surprised |
B.Excited |
C.Nervous |
D.Hopeless |
2.The author’s mother mainly wanted to tell the author that we ______.
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A.shouldn’t judge a man by his appearance. |
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B.shouldn’t complain about others |
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C.should give others what they want. |
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D.should accept everything we meet |
3.What does the underlined word “anonymous” in Paragraph 4 probably mean?
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A.Important |
B.Unknown |
C.Independent |
D.Excellent |
4.From the last paragraph, we learn that ______.
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A.seeing is believing |
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B.it’s difficult to be kind to others |
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C.some rich people pretend to be poor. |
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D.we should help people in the way they need. |
5.What would be the best title for the text?
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A.My mother’s influence on my growth |
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B.The importance of volunteering |
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C.One of my most shameful experiences |
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D.My mother’s simple lesson in kindness |
Not all vegetables need lots of sunshine. Mark Hoffman and his wife own a bed-and-breakfast guesthouse in rural Kempton, Illinois. They often serve their guests fresh products from the garden.
The Hoffmans have been growing food and flowers for twenty-five years. For almost ten of those years, Mr. Hoffman has been experimenting and working with shade (阴凉) plantings. He says, “The bottom line here is that most plants will produce more in full sun. But if you do not have full sun, there are other choices.”
For example, he grows tomatoes near oak trees. Oak trees can produce a lot of shade. But Mr. Hoffman says his tomato plants grow as long as they get five hours’ direct sunshine a day, especially morning sun. Not only does this go against the traditional advice that tomatoes need six, eight, even twelve hours’ full sun a day. It also shows how plants and tree roots can share nutrients and water.
Mr. Hoffman says plants with wider leaves seem to do better in shady environments. He also found that his potatoes did better partly in shade than in full sun.
Moving them out of the sun helped control an insect problem. Mr. Hoffman does not use pesticide (农药). Instead, he planted the potatoes in the shade, especially on the east side of the tree. The potatoes get morning sun, but they are shaded during the hottest part of the day. Some insects dislike shade, and the hottest part day is when they do the worst of their damage.
Time of day, sun intensity (强度), shadows from trees, walls and buildings all influence how much sunlight falls on plants. And people interested in shade planting should also remember something else. The term “shade” can describe different amounts of darkness. It can even mean different things in different parts of the world.
1.How many hours of sunshine are enough to keep tomato plants growing in Hoffman’s garden?
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A.five hours a day |
B.Six hours a day |
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C.Eight hours a day |
D.Twelve hours a day |
2.From the passage we can know that ______ .
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A.plants with wider leaves produce more in full sun. |
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B.as a matter of fact, plants don’t need to grow in full sun. |
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C.the more sunshine plants get, the more they will produce |
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D.plants with wider leaves grow better in shadows |
3.All of the following can influence how much sunlight falls on plants EXCEPT ______.
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A.length of day time |
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B.brightness of the sun |
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C.changes of the season |
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D.shadows |
4. Which of the following can best describe Mr. Hoffman?
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A.Curious |
B.Experienced |
C.Easy-going |
D.Funny |
5.We may read the passage on a website in the section of ______.
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A.environment |
B.travelling |
C.agriculture |
D.lifestyle |
The clock rules our lives. The more we try to save time, the less time we seem to have. In every area of our lives we are doing things faster. And many of us live in towns and cities which are getting noisier and more stressful as each day passes. But now a worldwide movement, whose aim is to slow life down, has started. Its supporters are people who believe that a happier and healthier way of life is possible.
The Slow Food movement was founded the day that an Italian journalist, Carlo Petrini, saw that McDonald’s had opened a restaurant in a beautiful square in Rome. He thought it was sad that many people today live too quickly to sit down for a proper meal and only eat much fast food. He decided that he had to try to do something about it and so he started the Slow Food movement. Slow Food has become a global organization ever since and now has more than 80,000 members in 100 countries.
Slow Food also encourages people to eat local and regional food, to use local shops and markets, to eat out in small family restaurants, and to cook with traditional recipes.
The idea of Slow Cities was inspired by the Slow Food movement. The aim of Slow Cities is to improve people’s quality of life. Towns which want to become a Slow City have to reduce traffic and noise, increase the number of green areas, plant trees, build pedestrian zones, and promote local businesses and traditions. Now it has spread to other countries all over the world, from the UK to Japan and Australia. There are now 135 Slow Cities in 24 countries across the world that have been named since founding of the organization in 1999. Gao Chun County, in east China’s Jiangsu Province, is expected to be named the first “Slow City” in China next year.
“Slow Cities are about having a community life in the town,” said a local resident. “It is not ‘slow’ as in ‘stupid’. It is ‘slow’ as in the opposite of ‘worried’ and ‘stressful’.”
But not everybody is happy. For teenagers, who have to go 25km to Norwich, the nearest city, to buy CDs, living in a Slow City is not very attractive. “It’s all right here,” says Lewis Cook, 16. “But if you want excitement, you have to go to Norwich. We need more things here for young people.”
1.What’s the aim of the Slow Food movement?
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A.To call on people to eat out. |
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B.To make people enjoy cooking. |
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C.To drive McDonald’s out of Rome |
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D.To encourage people to slow down. |
2.All the following are necessary to be a Slow City EXCEPT ______.
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A.reducing traffic and noise |
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B.increasing the number of green areas |
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C.building more department stores |
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D.promoting local businesses and traditions |
3.From the fourth paragraph, we know that ______.
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A.the Slow Food was founded in 1999 |
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B.there is no Slow City in China now |
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C.Slow Cities are mainly in the UK |
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D.there are about 24 Slow Cities in the world |
4.What’s Lewis Cook’s attitude to living in a Slow City?
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A.Positive |
B.Neutral |
C.Negative |
D.Indifferent |
5.What would be the best title for the passage?
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A.Slow down and you’ll move fast |
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B.Time flies never to be recalled. |
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C.Eat slowly and you’ll be healthy. |
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D.Pay attention to the quality of life. |
Ted, there’s a boy at front door who says he has news for you.
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A.the; / |
B.the; the |
C./ ; the |
D./ ; / |