C

It was at least tow months before Christmas, when nine-year-old Almie Rose told her father and me that she wanted a new bike. Her Barbi bike was just too old, and it needed repairing as well.

As Christmas came nearer, her dream for a bike seemed to disappear, so we thought, for she didn’t mention it again. We were busy buying some beautiful storybooks, a doll house, a holiday dress and toys. Then much to our surprise, on December 24, she said she really wanted a bike more than anything else.

Now we didn’t know what to do. It was just toot late. We were busy with Christmas dinner and packing children’s presents, parents’ presents, a brother’s present and friends’ presents till midnight.So there was no time to take to buy the “right bike” for our little girl. Thinking that we were parents who would make their children unhappy, we felt guilty and sad.

Suddenly my husband came up with an idea. “What if I make a little bike out of clay(泥土) and write a note(便条) that she could trade in(交换) the model bike for a real one?” So he spent the next five hours carefully working with the clay to make a small bike.

On Christmas morning, we were so excited for Almie Rose to open the little box with the beautiful red and white clay bike and the note. She opened and read the note loudly.

She looked at me and Ron and said, ”So does this mean I can trade in this bike for a real one?” Smiling, I said, “Yes.”

Almie Rose had tears in her eyes when she replied, “I would never trade in this beautiful bike that Daddy made me. I prefer to keep it rather than get a real bike.” At that moment, we would have moved the God to buy her every bike on the Earth.

1.Rose’s wish was to____ on Christmas Day.

A．get a new bike                         B．make a clay bike

C．receive a doll house                     D．repair her old Barbi bike

2.Rose’s parents didn’t buy her a bike because she____.

A．didn’t want a bike any more

B．changed her idea to some story books

C．didn’t mention it in the last tow months

D．asked for it only on December 24

3.The word “guilty” in the third paragraph(段落) means____.

A．unhappy          B．worried           C．happy            D．sorry

4.Rose’s father got a good idea to____.

A．spend five hours finishing making a small bike with clay

B．make a small bike red and white

C．make her old bike red and white

D．put the present in the box

5.From Rose’s words in the last passage , we know that she____

A．still wanted to get a real bike

B．didn’t know the meaning of the note

C．preferred a real bike to a model bike

D．was greatly moved by what her father had done

C
It was at least tow months before Christmas, when nine-year-old Almie Rose told her father and me that she wanted a new bike. Her Barbi bike was just too old, and it needed repairing as well.
As Christmas came nearer, her dream for a bike seemed to disappear, so we thought, for she didn’t mention it again. We were busy buying some beautiful storybooks, a doll house, a holiday dress and toys. Then much to our surprise, on December 24, she said she really wanted a bike more than anything else.
Now we didn’t know what to do. It was just toot late. We were busy with Christmas dinner and packing children’s presents, parents’ presents, a brother’s present and friends’ presents till midnight.So there was no time to take to buy the “right bike” for our little girl. Thinking that we were parents who would make their children unhappy, we felt guilty and sad.
Suddenly my husband came up with an idea. “What if I make a little bike out of clay(泥土) and write a note(便条) that she could trade in(交换) the model bike for a real one?” So he spent the next five hours carefully working with the clay to make a small bike.
On Christmas morning, we were so excited for Almie Rose to open the little box with the beautiful red and white clay bike and the note. She opened and read the note loudly.
She looked at me and Ron and said, ”So does this mean I can trade in this bike for a real one?” Smiling, I said, “Yes.”
Almie Rose had tears in her eyes when she replied, “I would never trade in this beautiful bike that Daddy made me. I prefer to keep it rather than get a real bike.” At that moment, we would have moved the God to buy her every bike on the Earth.
【小题1】Rose’s wish was to____ on Christmas Day.

缺词填空（根据短文内容及首字母提示，填入所缺单词）（共10空，每空1分，满分10分）

Many books have been written about “the art of giving”. But what about the art of r  1  ? Sometimes, receiving a gift can be difficult, especially when someone buys you a gift you don’t want!

“I remember when I was about twelve years old, my parents b  2  me a purple purse,” laughs Guo Xiaojing. “It really made me feel embarrassed(尴尬), because I thought the purse was really ugly！Still, I pretended (假装)that I liked it b  3  I knew it would make my parents happy!”

Han Ling agrees. “That sounds like my grandparents！A few years ago, my grandparents gave me an orange sweater f  4  my birthday. I used to wear it every time I visited them, but when I left their house, I took it off! Of course, this made me feel g  5  . It was a very nice thought, but my grandparents have different taste from me! I think it’s hard to buy clothes or other personal things for people.”

To make things easier, some people would rather just give money. In some cultures, h  6   , receiving money can make people uncomfortable. “When someone gives me money, it j   7    makes me think they’re being lazy,” says John Wilson. “In England, we have a saying: It’s the thought that counts. When s   8   gives me money, I feel they don’t think at all. I prefer to receive a gift that has some thought behind it. I don’t mind if it’s something I don’t need. If someone has thought about a g   9   for me, it always makes me happy.”

Different people have very different thoughts on this subject! So maybe the art of receiving is e 10   more difficult than the art of giving! What do you think?