阅读下面短文，从短文后所给各题的四个选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。

There was a boy who was sent by his parents to a boarding school（寄宿学校）.1 being sent away, this boy was the 　2 student in his class. He was at the top in every 　3 always with high marks.

But the boy changed after 　4 home and attending the boarding school. His grades started

5 . He hated being in a 　6 . He was lonely all the time. And there were especially dark times when he 　7 committing suicide（自杀）. All of this was because he felt 　8 and no one loved him. His parents started 　9 about the boy. But they even did not know what was 　10 with him. So his dad decided to travel to the boarding school and 　11 him. They sat on the bank of the lake near the school. The father started asking him some casual questions about his classes, teachers and 　12 . After some time his dad said, “Do you know, son, why I am here today?” The boy answered back, “To 13 my grades ?” “No, no .” his dad replied. “I am here to tell you that you are the most 　14 person for me. I want to see you 　15 . I don’t care about grades. I care about you . I care about your happiness. YOU ARE MY LIFE.” These words 　 16 the boy’s eyes to be filled with tears. He 　17 his dad. They didn’t say anything to each other for a long time.

Now the boy had 　18 he wanted . He knew there was someone on this earth who cared for him deeply. He 　19 the world to someone and today this young man is in college at the top of his class and no one has ever seen him 　20 !

1．A．After 　　 　　B．Before　　 C．When 　　 D．While

2．A．hardest　　 B．naughtiest　　 C．brightest　　 D．dullest

3．A．exam　　　 B．activity　　　 C．game　　　　　 D．class

　 4．A．coming　　 B．returning　　 C．leaving　 D．reaching

5．A．rising　　 　 B．increasing　　 C．reducing　　　 D．dropping

6．A．group　　　 　 B．term　 　　　 C．company　 D．party

7．A．led to 　　 　　B．felt like　　 C．thought back　 D．looked for

8．A．worthless　　 B．careless　　　 C．concerned　　 D．annoyed

9．A．caring　　 　 B．turning　 C．worrying　　　 D．speaking

10．A．crazy　　　　 B．true　　　　　 C．possible　　　 D．wrong

11．A．talk with 　 B．listen to 　　 C．tell to 　　　 D．care about

12．A．family　　 B．friends　 C．study　　　　 D．grades

13．A．realize　 B．analyze　 C．check　　　　 D．test

14．A．outstanding　 B．important　　 C．famous　　 D．familiar

15．A．happy　　 B．excellent　　 C．interested　　 D．satisfied

16．A．caused　　 B．wanted　　 C．encouraged D．forced

17．A．answered B．ignored　 C．hated　　　　 D．hugged

18．A．nothing　 B．something　　 C．everything　　 D．anything

19．A．showed　　 B．meant　　 C．intended　　　 D．expressed

20．A．sad　　　 B．angry　　　　 C．pleasant　　　 D．joyful

It's hard being an astronaut's son．I mean, everybody　 1 you to be special or perfect, and I'm just a （n）　 2　 student, and I'm also ordinary, too…when it　 3　 basketball, football, soccer and baseball．

I often wonder how my father 4 had a son like me．I mean he is so special and so good at everything． 5 I used to dream about doing something unusual to 6 my father and make him proud of me．

In one class, my teacher 7 a Father's Day essay contest for us and the winner's essays would be read in front of all the parents and students．After school, I walked home, 8 about my father, who I would write about in my essay．

He sat with me in the 9 when I was a kid and had a nightmare （恶梦）．He 10 me with a new puppy （小狗） at my eighth birthday party．He sat and tried to 11 death to me when Grandpa Bob died．To me, he wasn't a world famous astronaut, 12 my dad．

I wrote about all these 13　 in my essay．

One of our neighbors said, "I 14 you will win the contest, David．You are the only one in town who could write about being the son of an astronaut．”I 15 ．

I hadn't shown anyone the essay, but now I almost hoped I wouldn't win．I didn't want to win just 16 my father was an astronaut．

I won the second prize．When I finished reading my essay, the audience （听众） applauded．I saw my father blowing his　 17 ．I went back to my seat．Dad nodded to me, 18 his throat and put his hand on my shoulder．"Son, this is the 19 moment of my life, he said．

It was the proudest moment of my life, too．Maybe I'll never be a great hero or win a Nobel Prize, but just then, it was 20 just to be my father's son．

1．A．hopes　　　 　　　　　 B．expects 　C．imagines　　　　 　　　 D．supposes

2．A．average　　　 B．excellent C．stupid　　　 　　　　　　　 D．bright

3．A．refers to　　　 B．relates to 　C．occurs to　　　　 　　　 D．comes to

4．A．ever　　　　　 B．never C．just　　　 　　　　　　　　 D．already

5．A．For　　　　 　　　 B．As　　　　 　　　 C．But D．So

6．A．influence　　 B．appeal 　C．impress　　　　 　　　 D．interest

7．A．announced　　 B．offered 　C．reminded　　　　 　　　 D．confirmed

8．A．caring　　　　 B．worrying 　C．thinking　　 　　　　　　　 D．talking

9．A．panic　　　　 B．dark 　C．sadness　　 　　　　　　 D．distance

10．A．pleased　　　 B．supported 　C．encouraged　　　 　　　 D．inspired

11．A．account　　　 B．explain C．declare　　　 　　　　　　 D．claim

12．A．still　　　　　 B．already C．thus　　　 　　　　　　　 D．just

13．A．memories　 　 B．affairs C．accidents　　　　 D．experiences

14．A．deny　　　　 B．bet 　C．argue　　　　　 　　　 D．guess

15．A．shrugged　　 B．stared C．nodded　　 　　　　　　　　 D．smiled

16．A．because　　　 B．like C．while　　　　 　　　　　　 D．if

17．A．mouth　　　　 B．face C．nose　　　　 　　　 D．eyes

18．A．cleaned　　　 B．cut 　C．cleared　　　 　　　　　 D．opened

19．A．proudest　　　 　　 B．best C．biggest　　　 　　 D．fittest

20．A．hopeful　　　 　　 B．enough 　C．natural　　　　　 D．happy

After my husband died suddenly from a heart attack，my world crashed around me. My six children were all under 10，and I was burdened with the responsibilities of earning a living，and caring for the children. I was fortunate to find a wonderful housekeeper to care for the children during the week，but from Friday nights to Monday mornings，the children and I were alone.
One Friday evening I came home from work to find a big pretty German Shepherd（牧羊犬）on our doorstep. This dog seemed to intend to enter the house. The children liked “German” immediately and begged me to let him in. I agreed to let him sleep in the basement. That night I slept peacefully for the first time in many weeks.
The following morning we made phone calls and checked lost-and-found ads for German’s owner，but with no results.
On Sunday I had planned to take the children on a picnic. Since I thought it best to leave German behind in case his owner came by，we drove off without him. When we stopped to get gas，we were amazed to see German racing to the gas station after us. No way was he going to be left behind.
Monday morning I let him out for a run. He didn’t come back and we were all disappointed. We were convinced that we would never see him again. We were wrong. The next Friday evening，German was back on our doorstep. Again he stayed until Monday morning，when our housekeeper arrived.
This pattern repeated itself every weekend for almost 10 months. We grew more and more fond of German. We took comfort in his strong，warm presence，and we felt safe with him near us. As German became part of the family，he considered it his duty to check every bedroom to be sure each child was cozy in bed.
Each week，between German’s visits，I grew a little stronger，a little braver and more able to handle; every weekend we were no longer alone and enjoyed his company. Then one Monday morning we patted him on the head and let him out for what turned out to be the last time. We never saw German again.
56．The dog first came to the family when _______________.
A．it was needed most
B．the writer became strong enough
C．the writer was away on a business trip
D．the writer was busy on the weekday
57．The family planned to go on a picnic without the German Shepherd because ____.
A．it was too wild to control
B．it was too young to walk so far
C．the owner might come by to pick it up
D．it might spoil the trip
58．The writer was ____________ the German Shepherd.
A．afraid of　　　　　　　　　B．grateful to
C．cruel to 　　　　　　　　　D．annoyed with
59．Which of the following can’t be used to describe the dog？
A．Loyal 　　　　　　　　　B．Helpful
C．Lovely 　　　　　　　　 D．Wild

Being sociable looks like a good way to add years to your life. Relationships with family, friends, neighbours, even pets, will all do the trick, but the biggest longevity (长寿) boost seems to come from marriage or an equivalent relationship. The effect was first noted in 1858 by William Farr, who wrote that widows (寡妇)and widowers  were at a much higher risk of dying than their married peers. Studies since then suggest that marriage could add as much as seven years to a man’s life and two to a woman’s. The effect holds for all causes of death, whether illness, accident or self-harm.
　　Even if the odds are stacked against you, marriage can more than compensate. Linda Waite of the University of Chicago has found that a married older man with heart disease can expect to live nearly four years longer than an unmarried man with a healthy heart. Likewise, a married man who smokes more than a pack a day is likely to live as long as a divorced man who doesn’t smoke. There’s a flip side, however, as partners are more likely to become ill or die in the couple of years following their spouse’s death, and caring for a spouse with mental disorder can leave you with some of the same severe problems. Even so, the odds favour marriage. In a 30-year study of more than 10,000 people, Nicholas Christakis of Harvard Medical School describes how all kinds of social networks have similar effects.
　　So how does it work? The effects are complex, affected by socio-economic factors, health-service provision, emotional support and other more physiological (生理的) mechanisms. For example, social contact can boost development of the brain and immune system, leading to better health and less chance of depression later in life. People in supportive relationships may handle stress better. Then there are the psychological benefits of a supportive partner.
　　A life partner, children and good friends are all recommended if you aim to live to 100. The ultimate social network is still being mapped out, but Christakis says: “People are interconnected, so their health is interconnected.”
【小题1】William Farr’s study and other studies show that _________.

Being a mother is apparently not like it was in the good old days.

　　Today’s parents yearn for the golden age that their own mothers enjoyed in the 1970s and 1980s, researchers found. Mothers have less time to themselves and feel under greater pressure to handle work and family life than the previous generation. As a result, 88 per cent said they felt guilty about the lack of time they spent with their children.

The survey of 1,000 mothers also found that more than a third said they had less time to themselves than their mothers did – just three hours a week or 26 minutes a day. And 64 per cent said this was because they felt they ‘had’ to go out to work, while nearly a third (29 per cent) said they were under constant pressure to be the ‘perfect mother’, the report found.

Other findings showed social networking and parenting websites, as well as technology such as Skype, were important in providing help and support among female communities. Kate Fox, a member of the Social Issues Research Centre, which conducted the survey for Procter & Gamble, said: ‘With increasing pressure on mothers to work a “double shift” — to be the perfect mother as well as a wage-earner — support networks are more important than ever.

It comes as a separate report examining childcare in the leading industrialised nations found that working mothers in Britain spend just 81 minutes a day caring for their children as a ‘primary activity’. Mothers who stay at home, on the other hand, manage twice as much time – more than two and a half hours – looking after their offspring, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

　　Critics say the pressure on women to work long hours, and leave their offspring in the hands of nurseries or childminders, is putting the well-being of their children at risk.

　　The study also reveals that, despite the fact that more and more modern mothers go out to work, the burden of childcare still falls on them - even if their husband is not in work. A father who is not in work tends to spend just 63 minutes a day looking after his child - 18 minutes less than a mother who goes out to work. Working fathers spare less than three quarters of an hour with their children.

1.. What does the passage mainly talk about?

   A. The good old days of mothers in the 1970s and 1980s.

   B. The great sufferings of today’s children.

   C. The statistics of working mothers and full-time mothers.

   D. The big problems that today’s working mothers face.

2.. What does the underlined phrase “yearn for” probably means ___________.

A. hate            B. miss           C. abandon         D. control

3. Which of the following problems is NOT mentioned in the passage?

A. Today’s mothers have less time left for their children and themselves.

B. The working mothers can hardly strike the balance between work and family.

C. Most of the mothers can not control their husbands nowadays.

D. Modern fathers do not spend enough time with their children.

4. From para. 4, we can infer that ___________.

   A. working mothers can seek help on line

   B. Skype is a very famous expert in studying social issues

   C. working mothers’ double shift is to be a wife and a mother

   D. Kate Fox has opened a website offering help to working mothers

5.. What critics say means that _____________.

   A. it is wise for working mothers to put their kids in nurseries or childminders

   B. too much time in nurseries or childminders is bad for kids’ mental and physical health

   C. nurseries or childminders are dangerous places for children

   D. children do not like nurseries or childminders at all