When other nine-year-old kids were playing games, she was working at a petrol station. When other teens were studying or going out, she struggled to find a place to sleep on the street. But she overcame these terrible setbacks (挫折) to win a highly competitive scholarship and gain entry to Harvard University. And her amazing story has inspired a movie, “Homeless to Harvard: The Liz Murray Story”, shown in late April.

Liz Murray, a 22-year-old American girl, has been writing a real-life story of willpower(意志) and determination. Liz grew up in the shadow of two drug-addicted(吸毒) parents. There was never enough food or warm clothes in the house. Liz was the only member of the family who had a job. Her mother had AIDS and died when Liz was just 15 years old. The effect of that became a turning point in her life. Connecting the environment in which she had grown up with how her mother had died, she decided to do something about it.

Liz went back to school. She threw herself into her studies, never telling her teachers that she was homeless. At night, she lived on the streets. “What drove me to live on had something to do with understanding，by understanding that there was a whole other way of being. I had only experienced a small part of the society,” she wrote in her book Breaking Night.

She admitted that she used envy to drive herself on. She used the benefits that come easily to others, such as a safe living environment, to encourage herself that “next to nothing could hold me down”. She finished high school in just two years and won a full scholarship to study at Harvard University. But Liz decided to leave her top university a couple of months earlier this year in order to take care of her father, who has also developed AIDS. “I love my parents so much. They are drug addicts. But I never forget that they love me all the time.”

Liz wants moviegoers to come away with the idea that changing your life is “as simple as making a decision”.

Her mother died when Liz was ____________.

A. 9 years old    B. 15 years old     C. 22 years old     D. studying in high school

In which order did the following things happen to Liz?

a. Her mother died of AIDS.

b. She worked at a petrol station.

c. She got admitted into Harvard.

d. The movie about her life was put on.

e. She had trouble finding a place to sleep.

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

The main idea of the passage is ________.

A. how Liz managed to enter Harvard University

B. what a hard time Liz had in her childhood

C. why Liz loved her parents so much

D. how Liz struggled to change her life

What actually made her go towards her goal?

A. Envy and competition.          B. Willpower and determination.

C. Decisions and understanding.     D. Love and respect for her parents.

When she wrote “What drove me to live on...I had only experienced a small part of the society”, she meant that ________.

A. she had little experience of social life    

B. she could hardly understand the society

C. she would do something for her own life  

D. she needed to travel more around the world

When other nine-year-old kids were playing games, she was working at a petrol station. When other teens were studying or going out, she struggled to find a place to sleep on the street. But she overcame these terrible setbacks to win a highly competitive scholarship and gain entry to Harvard University. And her amazing story has inspired a movie, “Homeless to Harvard：The Liz Murray Story” , shown in late April.

Liz Murray , a 22-- year-- old American girl, has been writing a real--life story of willpower and determination. Liz grew up in the shadow of two drug--addicted parents. There was never enough food or warm clothes in the house. Liz was the only member of the family who had a job. Her mother had AIDS and died when Liz was just 15 years old. The effect of that loss became a turning point in her life. Connecting the environment in which she had grown up with how her mother had died, she decided to do something about it.

Liz went back to school. She threw herself into her studies, never telling her teachers that she was homeless. At night, she lived on the streets. “What drove me to live on had something to do with understanding, My understanding was that there was a whole other way of being. I had only experienced a small part of society,” she wrote in her book Breaking Night.

She admitted that she used envy to drive herself on. She used the benefits that come easily to others, such as a safe living environment, to encourage herself that "next to nothing could hold me down". She finished high school in just two years and won a full scholarship to study at Harvard University. But Liz decided to leave her top university a couple of months earlier this year in order to take care of her father, who has also developed AIDS. "I love my parents so much. They are drug addicts. But I never forget that they love me all the time."

　　Liz wants moviegoers to come away with the idea that changing your life is "as simple as making a decision".

1. The word “setback” in the first paragraph most probably means___________?

2.What’s the best title of the passage?

3.What actually made Liz throw herself into her studies ?

4. According to the passage, which is NOT true about Liz?

We were on our way home from Houston one Saturday morning. We decided to stop at a local gas station to get coffee and something to snack on since it was a good hour and a half before we got home.

When we were done, we got back into our car and before I started it, we noticed a man standing outside in front of the building. He was a homeless man with worn clothes and it looked like he had gone in and gotten himself some coffee or something warm to drink since it was cold this time of the year. He must have not had enough money to get something to eat.

Then a dog walked up to the front of the building. I could tell she was a “she”, because you could tell that she had baby dogs. She was terribly in need of something to eat and I felt so bad for her. I knew if she didn’t eat soon, she and her baby dogs would not make it.

I and my wife sat there and looked at her. We noticed that people walked by and didn’t even pet her, like most people do when they walk by an animal in front of a store. We still did not do anything. But the homeless man, who I thought did not buy himself anything to eat, went back into the store. And what he did brought tears to me and my wife. He had gone into the store and with what money he may have had, bought a can of dog food and fed that dog.

This story plays a great part in our lives. You see, that was Mother’s Day weekend. And a lot of people forget that some animals are parents too.

It took a homeless man, to show me what I should have done. He make me a better man that day.

The homeless man only had something to drink because _______.

A. he didn’t have enough money for food           B. he was thirsty only

C. the store only provided drinks                       D. he felt cold that day

Seeing what the poor man did for the dog, the author and his wife ________.

A. were puzzled                                              B. were greatly moved

C. regretted they hadn’t done anything                      D. were indifferent

If the homeless man hadn’t given the dog food to eat, she and her babies would ________.

A. not survive                                                B. have to attack people

C. not have to die                                           D. lose their homes

Which of the following is the most suitable title for this passage?

A. A kind Homeless Man                                 B. A Lucky Mother Dog

C. Mother Day’s Weekend                               D. Animals Are Parents Too

根据下列句子中首字母，写出各个单词的完整形式。
【小题1】If we work with a strong will, we can o___________ any difficulty, however great it is.
【小题2】The actress always g_______ her fans with a smile and a nod.
【小题3】Charlie Chaplin, a little homeless tramp in his childhood, wrote, d_______ and starred in many films.
【小题4】After 10 years in prison, he was given f__________ again.
【小题5】Henry was too nervous in the driving test.T      , he was likely to fail to pass it.
【小题6】Nowadays children in larger cities are lucky to have enough choices to enjoy themselves in t________ parks on weekends, like the Disney Land, the Future Paradise, etc.
【小题7】Disneyland offers its visitors v_________ activities.
【小题8】The most universal f____  expression is ,of course ,the smile―its function is to show happiness and put people at ease.
【小题9】His words were so c_________ that we all believed him and followed him.
【小题10】Hangzhou is f_____ for  the  West  Lake .

Until the 1980s, the American homeless population comprised (组成) mainly older males. Today, homelessness strikes much younger part of society. In fact, a 25-city survey by the U. S. Conference of Mayors in 1987 found that families with children make up the fastest growing part of the homeless population. Many homeless children gather in inner cities; this transient(变化无常的) and frequently frightened student population creates additional problems — both legal and educational — for already overburdened（负担过重的）urban school administrators and teachers.
Estimates of the number of homeless Americans range from 350,000 to three million. Likewise, estimates of the number of homeless school children vary radically. A U.S. Department of Education report, based on state estimates, states that there are 220,000 homeless school-age children, about a third of whom do not attend school on a regular basis, But the National Coalition for the Homeless estimates that there are at least two times as many homeless children, and that less than half of them attend school regularly.
One part of the homeless population that is particularly difficult to count consists of the “throwaway” youths who have been cast of their homes. The Elementary School Center in New York City estimates that there are 1.5 million of them, many of whom are not counted as children because they do not stay in family shelters and tend to live by themselves on the streets.
Federal law, the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act of 1987, includes a section that addresses the educational needs of homeless children. The educational provisions of the McKinney Act are based on the belief that all homeless children have the right to a free, appropriate education.

1. 1.

   It is implied in the first paragraph that ____.

   1. A.
      the writer himself is homeless, even in his eighties
   2. B.
      many older homeless residents are going on strike in 25 cities
   3. C.
      there is a serious shortage of academic facilities (设施).
   4. D.
      homeless children are denied the opportunity of receiving free education
2. 2.

   The National Coalition for the homeless believes that the number of homeless children is _____.

   1. A.
      350,000
   2. B.
      1,500,000
   3. C.
      440,000
   4. D.
      110,000
3. 3.

    One part of the homeless population is difficult to estimate. The reason might well be ____.

   1. A.
      the homeless children are too young to be counted as children
   2. B.
      the homeless population is growing rapidly
   3. C.
      the homeless children usually stay outside school
   4. D.
      some homeless children are deserted by their families
4. 4.

   The McKinney Act is mentioned in this passage in order to show that ___.

   1. A.
      the educational problems of homeless children are being recognized
   2. B.
      the estimates on homeless children are hard to determine
   3. C.
      the address of grade-school children should be located
   4. D.
      all homeless people are entitled（有权利的） to free education
5. 5.

   The passage mainly deals with ____.

   1. A.
      the legal problems of the homeless children
   2. B.
      the educational problems of homeless children
   3. C.
      the social status of older males
   4. D.
      estimates on the homeless population