“Are you listening, Simon?” Simon’s teacher asks.

Simon smiles and shakes his head. He doesn’t often listen or try hard in class. _31_ is so much better. He wants to be heard. That evening, Simon starts to feel a little bit sick. By bedtime, his throat feels really bad. He has ice cream and hot chocolate to make his throat feel better, but he isn’t sure it’ll _32_.

The next _33_. When he opens his mouth to say, “Good morning,” nothing comes out but a “Guh”.

When he gets to school, Mrs.jacobs says ”hello” to him, and he just nods. When his friends start to ask him what TV shows he watches, he just can’t say anything. By the time they start _34_, almost everyone is looking at him as if he’s got a third eye.

Simon sits in class, bored _35_ he can’t talk to his classmates. He watches them talk to each other, but he can’t even do that.

You know what? It isn’t that bad. He can really do his _36_ that night. It gives _37_ more TV and game time because his work is all done.

The next day, his voice is _38_ back, but he stays quiet again. The third day, he can talk _39_, but he doesn’t talk. He listens and puts up his _40_ to speak.

What a difference that one day makes!

1. shake 摇晃   2. throat 咽喉    3. nod 点头     4. bored 无聊的     5. quiet 安静的

31. A. Standing            B. Sitting                C. Talking              D. Listening

32. A. work               B. study                 C. go                 D. use

33. A. evening             B. morning              C. week               D. time

34. A. work               B. class                 C. school              D. game

35. A. so                 B. after                  C. but                D. because

36. A. homework          B. housework             C. writing             D. reading

37. A. her                B. him                   C. it                  D. them

38. A. coming             B. going                  C. turning             D. giving

39. A. alone              B. hard                   C. back               D. fine

40. A. car                B. head                   C. hand               D. arm

Do you have any friends from other countries? Do you know what they are like?
The Germans (德国人) are very quiet and they don’t get excited easily. They don’t want to say more words. They look serious (严肃的), but they like all kinds of amusements (娱乐). They work hard and like tidiness. Most German women like to keep their houses clean.             
In some ways, the English look the same as the Germans. They are also quiet and never talk too much with others. They are really polite, so we often hear “Thank you.” or “Sorry.” from them.
The French have long holidays. They like travelling and usually spend their long time in other countries. The French are more outgoing (外向的) than the Germans. It is very easy to make friends with them.
Compared  to (与……比较) the French, the Americans are more outgoing. And they are even opener. They don’t like to depend on (依靠) others. So it is very popular that students do part-time jobs. In Americans’ eyes, working and success are important

1. 1.

   From the passage, we can learn that　　　 are very quiet

   1. A.
      only the Germans
   2. B.
      only the Englishmen
   3. C.
      only the French
   4. D.
      both the Germans and the English
2. 2.

   What does the underlined word “tidiness” mean in Chinese?

   1. A.
      整洁
   2. B.
      安静
   3. C.
      时尚
   4. D.
      随意
3. 3.

   　　　 are the most outgoing

   1. A.
      The Germans
   2. B.
      The French
   3. C.
      The Englishmen
   4. D.
      The Americans
4. 4.

   What can we learn about the French from the passage?

   1. A.
      They are more outgoing than the Americans
   2. B.
      It is very easy to make friends with them
   3. C.
      They like travelling in their own country
   4. D.
      They don’t like to be too excited and are always hard-working
5. 5.

   Which is the best title of the article?

   1. A.
      Different people’s hobbies
   2. B.
      Who are more outgoing?
   3. C.
      Characteristics (特征) of the people in different countries
   4. D.
      Working hard is an important part in people’s life