I went home one Saturday afternoon in the autumn of 1993 to get some work done in the garden. While
sweeping leaves on the ground, my five-year-old son Nick came over and asked me to write something on
a piece of paper to make a sign for him.
     "What for?" I asked.
     "I'm going to sell some of my stones," he answered.
     Nick was fascinated with stones and had collected many stones from all over.
     "I'm too busy to do that for you. Go and ask your mum for help," I said.
     A short time later, Nick, returned with a sign, reading, "Stones, One Dollar Each". He took the sign, a
small chair and 4 of his best stones and walked to the road in front of our garden. There he put the stones
in a line and sat down on the chair.
     After half an hour, nobody passed by. I walked to him and asked him to go back, but he didn't.
     Another half hour later, a small car came down the road. I watched as Nick stood up, holding his sign up.
A woman rolled down a window and read the sign. I couldn't hear their talk, but I saw the woman turn to the
driver and the man reach for his pocket.
     I sat in the yard, as Nick ran to me. Waving the dollar, he shouted, "I told you I could sell one stone for
a dollar-if you believe in yourself, you can do anything."

1. Why didn't the writer help his son?

A. Because his wife is better at making a sign.
B. Because he didn't know what to write.
C. Because he was busy sweeping leaves.
D. Because he didn't want his son to sell the stones.

2. The underlined words "was fascinated with" mean ______.

A. was far from
B. was afraid of
C. was famous for
D. was interested in

3. Nick was a boy _____.

A. who was kind
B. who had a strong mind
C. who was honest
D. who had many hobbies

4. Which is the best title (题目) of the story?

A. My son's first sale.
B. Let's collect stones.
C. How to sell a stone.
D. A hobby that can make you rich.

5. From the passage we know _____.

A. the story happened in spring
B. the car was driven by a woman
C. Nick spent half an hour selling one stone
D. the writer might be moved (感动) by his son

                                                          
      Mrs Green was walking along a San Francisco street. Suddenly a man took her purse and ran. Mrs.
Green was very angry. She had ten dollars, her bus pass, and the keys to her house in her purse. Mrs.
Green ran after the thief. The thief ran one block (街区), two blocks, three blocks.
      The thief was a young man, so he could run fast. Mrs. Green was not a young woman - she was
73 years old - but she could run fast, too. Mrs. Green stayed right behind the thief. Mrs. Green was
wearing two chopsticks in her hair. The chopsticks had sharp (尖的) ends.
      Mrs. Green took the chopsticks out of her hair. "Maybe I can stab (刺，戳) the thief with these
chopsticks," she thought. "Then he will drop my purse." 
      The thief ran into a building. Mrs. Green followed him. "Help! Stop him!" she shouted. "He has my
purse!" Two police officers were walking near the building. They heard Mrs. Green and ran to help her.
One police officer stayed with Mrs. Green. The other police officer ran after the thief.
       The police officer found the thief at the corner of the building. The thief was looking in Mrs. Green's
purse. When he saw the police officer, the thief dropped the purse and ran away.
       A few minutes later the police officer caught the thief. He was found under a car and taken to jail
(监狱). The thief will stay in jail for a long time. But the thief was lucky. He was lucky that the police
caught him! Why?

1. What did the thief take from the woman?

A. Ten dollars
B. Keys
C. A purse
D. A bus pass

2. Where did the thief hide?

A. In the building.
B. Under a car.
C. In jail.
D. At the corner of the street.

3. A few ___________ later, the police caught the thief.

A. minutes
B. hours
C. days
D. weeks

4. What is the best title of the story?

A. A Lucky Thief
B. Two Police Officers
C. A Clever Granny
D. A Pair of Useful Chopsticks

     On the night of October 8, 1871, a fire started in Chicago and burned for 27 hours. More than 17 000
(1)h______ were burned down. But it was (2)1______ that only a few people lost their lives. It is said that
the fire was started when Mrs. O'Leary's cow (3)k______ over a kerosene (煤油) lamp with (4)i______ head.
Although this story-still goes on today, what really caused the fire is not (5)k______ yet. Many poor people
stayed in their homes until the (6)1______ moment in order to save the little that they had in the world.
(7)H______, they were forced to leave when the fire reached their houses. (8)T______ of people were left
homeless, but Chicago was completely rebuilt in two years. Because of the fire and the need for safer buildings,
the high building (9)w______was built of steel and stone was developed (10)b______ the Chicago architect
(建筑师) Louis Sullivan.

     A man and a woman had a son many years after they married. They had a happy family and the boy
was the apple of their eyes. When the boy was four years old, an accident happened. One night the father
was very tired after work, so he asked his wife to meet their son and take him home. The mother was very
busy in the kitchen, and she forgot about it.
     Later the boy lost his way in the street. When the mother found this, she went to look for him, but she
couldn't find him. Then she went to the police station to ask for help. She was very sad and didn't know
how to face her husband. After hearing the bad news, the father hurried to the police station. When he saw
his wife, he didn't blame (责备) her. Instead he said, "I love you, darling!"
     "If I had picked him up or found this earlier, this would not have happened," the father said to himself.
He thought there was no point in blaming anyone. His wife also lost her only child. What he could give her
was just understanding. Several weeks later, with the help of the police, they finally found their lost son.
From then on, they became closer than before.
     When something bad happens, people always spend lots of time blaming others instead of giving them
support. Try to learn to forgive (原谅), and then you will find the world is much more wonderful.

1. The father didn't pick the boy up that day because he was ________.

A. sick
B. tired
C. busy

2. The mother asked ________ for help when she couldn't find her son.

A. her husband
B. her neighbor
C. the police

3. The underlined sentence "the boy was the apple of their eyes" means ________.

A. the boy was loved deeply by his parents
B. the boy liked eating apples
C. the boy's face was round like an apple

4. Which of the following is TRUE?

A. The mother was angry with her husband.
B. The father thought his wife should be blamed.
C. The boy was safe and sent home by the police at last.

5. The passage mainly tells us that we should _________.

A. forgive and understand others
B. blame each other
C. take good care of children

     Mr Wang is a bus driver. He goes to work at 6:20 in the morning. Every day he is very busy and
gets home very late. Sometimes he comes back at about 12 at night. He likes helping other bus drivers
do more work. He is the first driver to come to the Bus Station and the last driver to leave. Mr Wang
has a daughter, Mary. She and I are in the same class. She is taller than I. She says she loves her father
and wants to be a bus driver like him. But her mother wants her to be a doctor and wants her to study
hard like her brother.

1. Mr Wang works in a _____.

A. shop 
B. railway station    
C. Bus Station  
D. factory

2. He goes to work at _____.

A. six fifteen  
B. six forty-five   
C. six twenty   
D. twenty six

3. There are _____ people in Mr Wang's family.

A. 4  
B. 5 
C. 3   
D. 2

4. Mary and I are _____.

A. in different classes 
B. students 
C. sisters   
D. in different schools

5. Which of the following is NOT right according to the passage?     

A. Mr Wang doesn't come back very early.     
B. Mr Wang is the last to leave the Bus Station every day.    
C. Mr Wang works very hard and his son studies hard.
D. Mr Wang's wife is a doctor.

     A well-dressed (衣着很好) man goes into a  restaurant one day. He sits down at a table near
the window.
     A waiter comes up to him and says ,"Can I help you , sir?"
     The man says. "Yes. please. Can I see the menu (菜单)?"
     "Certainly," answers the waiter. The man .wants a good meal .and he Wants a lot office dishes.
After a moment, the waiter brings them to him. The man is having his meal happily. At this time, a boy
comes in and sits down besides the man. He asks the waiter to give him an ice cream. The man says,
"I will be back in 5 minutes. "Then he goes out. After the boy eats his ice cream,the boy stands up ad
goes to the door. "Excuse me, your father did not give the money for the meal and your ice cream,
"The waiter stops him and says .
      "Father? You are wrong. He is not my father. I do not know him. I met him in the street. He said
he would give me an ice cream if I came here at twelve o'clock."

1. The man comes to the restaurant ______.     

A. to meet the boy 
B. to buy a newspaper
C. to eat an ice cream
D. to have a good meal

2. The man has ______ in the restaurant.   

A. breakfast
B. lunch
C. supper
D. dinner

3. ______ asked the boy to come to the restaurant.     

A. The waiter
B. The boy's father
C. The man 
D. Nobody

4. The waiter stops the boy because ______.     

A. the man didn't pay for the meal and the ice cream     
B. the boy didn't have the meal     
C. the boy's father came back soon
D. the boy wanted to run away

5. Which of the following is TRUE?    

A. The boy is the man's son.     
B. The boy knows the man very well.     
C. The waiter pays the meal and the ice cream.
D. The man is a cheat (骗子). 

     Mr. Green and Mrs. Green have a son,Tom. They love him very much. Tom is only three years old.
He likes asking questions.
    One day Mr. Green is sitting in a chair. He is reading a book and he has a banana in his hand. He
likes to eat one while (当…时候) reading. Tom comes in. He asks Mr. Green "Daddy, what's that?"
Mr. Green is interested in the book. He doesn't hear Tom. Tom shakes (摇动) his father's leg and asks
again, "What's this? Tell me!" "A leg!"says Mr. Green.
     Tom goes out and says to Mrs. Green. "Mum. I want to eat a leg."

1. Mr. Green and Mrs. Green are Tom's ______.

A. friends 
B. teachers
C. classmates
D. parents

2. Mr Green likes to eat  ______ while reading.

A. a banana
B. a book 
C. a  hand 
D. a leg

3. There are ______ people in this story  

A. two 
B. three 
C. four 
D. five

4. Tome asks Mr. Green what he is ______.  

A. reading
B. shaking 
C. eating 
D. cooking

5. Which of the following is RIGHT?  

A. Tom likes answering questions. 
B. Tom wants to read the book.  
C. Mr. Green gives Tom a leg.    
D. Tom wants to eat a banana.

      Xiao Ling is a middle school student. She likes English very much and she is good at it. She often
 tells her parents about her. English study . Now she is talking with her father about her English study 
again. Xiao Ling says," Look, Dad, this is our new English book. There are a lot of interesting stories 
in it. "        
     "Mmm, not bad. Do you only speak English in class?" Dad asks.        
     "Oh, no! We speak English for most of the time in class! Our teacher speaks to us only in  English. 
Sometimes it's not easy for us to understand her, but she says listening and speaking can help us a lot , "
 Xiao Ling answers.        
     "I think she's right. Does she speak English very slowly?" asks Dad.        
     "Not always Sometimes we don't understand her. Then she has to say it again," answers Xiao Ling. 
     "It's interesting to study English, isn't it?" Dad says.         
     "Yes, it is. And I'm going to work harder at it. in the new school year. I'm going  to  do my best ," 
says Xiao Ling.         
      "That's good. I'm sure you can do better, " Dad says.

1. Xiao Ling does _________ in English.             

A. well    
B. good    
C .bad    
D. badly

2. _________ often talk(s) about her English study with her.

A. Her father           
B. Her mother
C. Her parents          
D. Her teachers

3. Do the students only speak English in class ?              

A. Yes, they do      
B. No, they don't.              
C. That's OK        
D. Of course.

4. The teacher _________  speaks to them in English in class.              

A. often              
B. usually              
C. always              
D. sometimes

5. What is Xiao Ling going to do?

A. She is going home.
B. She is going to school.
C. She is going to drop English.
D. She is going to do her best and work harder at English.