12．I had worried myself sick over Simon's mother coming to see me．I was a new teacher，and I gave an honest account of the students'work．In Simon's case，the grades were awfully low．He couldn't read his own handwriting．But he was a bright student．He discussed adult subjects with nearly adult comprehension．His work in no way reflected his abilities．
So when Simon's mother entered the room，my palms （手掌心） were sweating．I was completely unprepared for her kisses on both my cheeks．"I came to thank you，"she said，surprising me beyond speech．Because of me，Simon had become a different person．He talked of how he loved me，he had begun to make friends，and for the first time in his twelve years，he had recently spent an afternoon at a friend's house．She wanted to tell me how grateful she was for the self-respect I had developed in her son．She kissed me again and left．
I sat，stunned，for about half an hour，wondering what had just happened．How did I make such a life-changing difference to that boy without even knowing it？What I finally came to remember was one day，several months before，when some students were giving reports in the front of the class，Jeanne spoke quietly，and to encourage her to raise her voice，I had said，"Speak up．Simon is the expert on this．He is the only one you have to convince，and he can't hear you in the back of the room．"That was it．From that day on，Simon had sat up straighter，paid more attention，smiled more，and became happy．And it was all because he happened to be the last kid in the last row．The boy who most needed praise was the one who took the last seat that day．
It taught me the most valuable lesson over the years of my teaching career，and I'm thankful that it came early and positively．A small kindness can indeed make a difference．
36．We can infer that when Simon's mother entered the room，the writer feltB．
A．satisfied
B．nervous
C．happy
D．surprised
37．Why did Simon's mother come to visit her son's teacher？B．
A．Because she worried about her son's poor work．
B．Because she wanted to show her gratitude to the teacher．
C．Because Simon asked her to do so．
D．Because she wanted to know her son's performance in the school．
38．What the teacher said in paragraph 3is intended toA．
A．encourage Jeanne to speak louder
B．encourage Simon to work hard
C．ask Jeanne to convince Simon
D．tell the students that Simon was expert on that．
39．The purpose of the passage is toD．
A．tell the story of Simon
B．tell teachers how to be kind to students
C．advise the readers to be kind to others．
D．share a valuable lesson with readers．
分析 本文是一篇科教类阅读，属于记叙文，我担心自己生病了西蒙的妈妈来看我．我是一个新老师，我对学生工作很认真真诚．本文以此展开谈论，主要讲述了作者的一个善意举动给他的学生带来了影响，家长来感谢他的故事．
解答 36．答案：B．细节理解题．根据"I had worried myself sick over Simon's mother coming to see me．"可知，作者的心情是紧张的，当Simon的妈妈来见他时．故选B．
37．答案：B．细节理解题．根据"．"I came to thank you，"she said，surprising me beyond speech．"可知，Simon的妈妈来见我是为了表达感谢之情．故选B．
38．答案：A．细节理解题．根据"Jeanne spoke quietly，and to encourage her to raise her voice，I had said，"Speak up．Simon is the expert on this．He is the only one you have to convince，and he can't hear you in the back of the room．""可知，作者之所以那样说是为了鼓励Jeanne提高音量．故选A．
39．答案：D．主旨大意题．阅读全文，根据文章内容，尤其是"It taught me the most valuable lesson over the years of my teaching career，and I'm thankful that it came early and positively．A small kindness can indeed make a difference．"可知，本文作者分享了自己的一个善意举动给他人带来了影响的故事．故选D．
点评 本文是一篇科教类阅读，题目涉及主旨大意题，细节理解题．做题时学生应仔细阅读原文，把握文章主要内容，联系文章上下文内容并结合所给选项含义，从中选出正确答案，一定要做到有理有据，切忌胡乱猜测．
