Question

Francisco, a street musician, whom my friend happened to know from his own musician day, was playing the saxophone on a street corner. His name was Clifford, and he had attracted a large crowd with his performance. After he finished, my friend introduced him to me and his daughter. Clifford asked her if she played any instrument. When she replied that she was taking trumpet(小号)lessons and played in her junior high school band, he said, "That's fine, little lady. Learn your instrument well and you can play anything."

Somehow these simple yet wise words struck me as proper not only for a trumpet player but also for a reader. If you learn to read well, you can read anything you want—not just newspapers and magazines, but more difficult material like philosophy, film criticism, military history—whatever interests you as your confidence grows. You would not be limited(限制)in any way. If you have the vocabulary—or at least a good dictionary near at hand—you can pick up a book, concentrate on it, and make sense of the author's words.

In the United States, reading instruction often ends at elementary school, so students sometimes have difficulty as they progress through school. They must take their assignments, armed only with their elementary school reading skills. The result, too often, is frustration and loss of confidence. And the assigned reading in your college courses will be even greater than they were in high school. Developing Reading Skills is designed to accomplish(完成)several tasks: to show you the skills that will enable you to read with greater comprehension, to help you cope with reading assignment with confidence, and to teach you to become an active reader.

1.The talk between the girl and Clifford serves as an introduction to________.

A.the importance of reading

B.the connection between playing instruments and reading

C.the necessity of learning to play an instrument

D.the variety of reading materials

2.It can be inferred(推断)from the story that________.

A.Clifford was good at playing the saxophone

B.the author's friend was once a street musician

C.the 12-year-old girl played the trumpet very poorly

D.Clifford was a good music teacher

3.We can infer from the last paragraph that Developing Reading Skills________.

A.is directed to elementary school students

B.centers around vocabulary building skills

C.aims at helping students read better

D.offers elementary reading skills

4.The underlined word "struck" in Paragraph 2 most probably means "________".

A.impressed B.influenced C.proved D.awakened

5.With good reading skills, you can________.

A.understand anything you read without difficulty

B.work out the author's meaning only if you concentrate on the book

C.understand what you read with the help of a good dictionary

D.concentrate on whatever you read

Answer 1