Since Erica was a young girl, she had always wanted to meet an alien. Then one day, something truly
unbelievable happened. 
     Erica woke up early one bright, sunny Saturday morning. It was a beautiful day, so she went outside
to enjoy her breakfast in the sunshine. Then she heard a strange sound coming from the garden. She looked
up and saw a short, green creature standing in the middle of the garden. It had two big brown eyes and three
ears on top of its head. It was an alien.
     The alien and Erica stared at each other, neither of them moving. Though meeting an alien was a dream
to come true, she was not quite prepared for it. She had to keep up the courage to talk to the alien. So Erica
walked over to it cautiously.
     Suddenly, the alien opened its mouth and said, "Prue." The alien then picked one of the flowers and
handed it to Erica. "Prue." the alien said again and pointed to the flower.
     Erica was very excited to finally meet a real, live alien. Even though they were speaking in completely
different languages, they could understand each other. Erica spent the whole day accompanying the alien.
They walked around Erica's garden and picked up different things that they saw-flowers, grass and other
plants. Erica showed the alien some of her old toys, saying the English words for all these things and hoping
to teach it English. After Erica said each English word, the alien said something in its language. They were
teaching each other!
     When the sun began to set in the evening, the alien looked up at the sky. He pointed to the sky, and said,
"Keeta m'gul arul." "I understand," said Erica. The alien smiled at Erica, and she smiled back and waved at it.
The alien then walked off and disappeared right before her eyes. Although Erica was sad to see the alien go,
she was happy because one of her lifelong dreams had finally come true.

1. The alien was _____ when Erica first saw it.

A. holding a glass of orange juice
B. standing in the garden
C. playing with a toy
D. holding a flower

2. The alien and Erica were able to communicate by _____ things and speaking.

A. talking about
B. smelling
C. pointing at
D. walking around

3. "Keeta m'gul arul." probably means _____.

A. "I like the day"
B. "Hello"
C. "It's a flower"
D. "I have to go home now"

     A rich man was once riding along the road and saw an old man digging in his garden. On the ground lay
a young tree, ready to be planted. The rich man called out to the old man, "What kind of tree are you planting
there, my good man?" 　　
     "This is a fig (无花果) tree, sir." he said. 　　
     "A fig tree?" the rich man was very surprised. "Why, how old are you, may I ask?" 　　
     "I am ninety years old." 　　
     "What!" cried the rich man. "You're ninety years old. You are planting a very young tree now and it'll take
years to give fruit. You certainly don't hope to live long enough to get any fruit from this tree." The old man
looked around the garden. Then he said with a smile, "Tell me, sir. Did you eat figs when you were a boy?"
"Sure." the rich man did not know why he asked this question. "Then tell me this," he said, "Who planted the
fig trees?" "Why? I don't know." "You see, sir," went on the old man, "Our ancestors planted trees for us to
enjoy and I am doing the same for the people after me." 　　
     The rich man was quiet and said, "You are right, my good man. We should do some good things for the
people after us. Thank you very much." Then he rode away.

Title: The Story of A Fig (1)_______
The rich man He felt (2)_______ when he saw the old man (3)_______ a fig tree.
He at last found the old man did a good (4)_______ for the people after him.
The old man He was 90 years in (5)_______.
It would be a rather (6)_______ time before he got any fruit from the fig tree.
He thought it (7)_______ to do good things for the people after him.
The rich man came to (8)_______ what the old man meant, and (9)_______ of them thought they should do
good deeds for the people after (10)_______.

     One day an old woman was traveling alone in the mountains. Suddenly she saw something shining in the
stream. When she came close, she found it was a precious stone. She put the stone into her bag and went on
with her trip.
     The next day the old woman met a young man, who was also a traveler in the mountains. The young man
looked very hungry, so the old woman opened her bag to share her food. The hungry traveler saw the precious
stone and asked carefully, "The stone is beautiful. Would you like to give it to me?"
     "Sure. Why not?" the woman said, and handed the stone to him.
     The young man left happily with the stone. He knew it was worth enough to give him security for a lifetime.
But a few days later he came back to return the stone to the woman.
     "I've been thinking," he said. "I know how valuable the stone is, but I give it back and hope that you can give
me something even more precious. Give me what you have within your bag."
     The woman opened her bag. It was almost empty. She looked at the young man and smiled, "I have nothing
special in my bag, but I do have something precious-the joy of giving!"
     The young man felt ashamed and left silently.

1. How did the young man find the precious stone?

A. He found it in his food.
B. He dug it out in a valley.
C. He saw it in the woman's bag.
D. He noticed it shining in the stream.

2. What does the underlined word "security" in Paragraph 4 probably mean?

A. Money.
B. Worry.
C. Health.
D. Trouble.

3. The man returned the stone to the woman because _____.

A. he found the stone was not precious
B. he understood the real meaning of joy
C. he felt embarrassed at taking away the stone
D. he wanted to get something even more precious

4. Which of the following would be the best title of the passage?

A. A special stone
B. The joy of giving
C. A woman and a young man
D. An experience in the mountains

     Many years ago in a small village, an old man was hired to clear the spring (泉水) up on the mountain.
He patrolled (巡逻) the spring every day, and swept away all the leaves and other things that would dirty
the fresh flow of water. Soon, beautiful swans (天鹅) came to the clear spring, and the village became a
popular attraction for visitors.
     Years passed. One evening the town leaders held a meeting. As they looked at the salary list, one of them
said, "Why do we keep this old man on year after year? I don't think we need him or his work." Later, the
old man was asked to leave.
     For several weeks, nothing changed. By early autumn, the leaves began to fall off the trees, and the spring
was covered with leaves. A few days later, the water was much darker. Only a few months after the old man
left, all the swans left, as did the tourists. Disease reached deeply into the village.
     Quickly, the leaders held a special meeting. Realizing their mistake, they rehired the old man. Then within
a few weeks, the spring began to clear up. Soon new life returned to the village.
     So, my friends, do you see? No matter how small your work or your life seems to be, never overlook it.
Anything we can do will make a difference.

1. The leaders decided to ask the old man to leave because they thought _____.

A. his work was unnecessary
B. he did his work carelessly
C. he was too old to do the job
D. he could do other better jobs

2. How did the leaders feel a few months after the old man left?

A. Regretful.
B. Moved.
C. Excited.
D. Calm.

3. What does the underlined word"overlook" mean in the last paragraph?

A. Believe.
B. Ignore.
C. Praise.
D. Punish.

4. With this story, the writer wants to tell us that _____.

A. even a small job can be important
B. work can bring old people happiness
C. everyone should always respect others
D. everyone can be his own master

     Have you heard about the woman who put her wet dog in the microwave (微波炉) to dry it, and ended up
cooking her dog by mistake? Or did you hear about the man who died at his desk at work, and nobody in the
office noticed he was dead for five days? These stories have two things in common. They both are not true,
and they both are urban legends (传闻).
     Usually, legends are stories of events from long ago. Urban legends, on the other hand, are stories in the
recent past, perhaps even last week! Urban legends are that there are many different versions (版本) of the
same story, with local information changed to make the story seem more real. Today, the Internet has become
a common way for urban legends to spread very quickly.
     A good example of an urban legend is the story of the girl who was killed by her jeans. In the 1980s, it was
popular to wear very tight jeans. At that time, Levi's sold special jeans that shrank (缩水) when you washed
them. According to the story, a girl wanted to make her jean as tight as possible, so she wore them in the water.
Unluckily, they shrank so much that the girl died. In fact, this legend came from a Levi's advertisement on TV.
In the TV ad, a man stepped into the water and his tight jeans became the right size.
     However, some stories that sound like urban legends really come from real events. For example, there is a
story about muggers (抢劫者) using snakes to rob people. There have been real reports about this. The muggers
hold a snake in a person's face and then take the person's money. According to the legend, these muggers are
very common, so you should keep an eye out for (密切注意) strangers carrying snakes.

1. What's the main idea of the passage?

A. It tells readers some surprising stories.
B. It tells readers what urban legends are.
C. It tells readers how to make up urban legends.
D. It tells readers a TV ad.

2. The passage tells us that urban legends _____.

A. usually take place in the country, or in small towns
B. have the same version in different places
C. none of them come from real events
D. are immediately known because of the Internet

3. What happened to the girl in the jeans story?

A. She shrank.
B. She played a part in a TV ad.
C. Her jeans became too small.
D. A man stepped into the water, too.

4. Which story in the passage really happened?

A. The dog in the microwave.
B. The dead man in the office.
C. The girl killed by her jeans.
D. The muggers using snakes.

     A beautiful and very successful actress was the star for a new musical show. Her home was in the
countryside, but she did not want to go back there every night, so she bought an expensive house in the
centre of the city, got some beautiful furniture and got a man to paint the rooms in new colours.
     It was very difficult to get tickets for her show, because everybody wanted to see it. So she decided
to give the painter two of the best seats. She hoped that this would make him work better for her. He took
the tickets without saying anything, and she heard no more about them until the end of the month, when
she got the painter's bill (帐单). At the bottom of it were these words:"Four hours watching Miss Hall sing
and dance: 3 pounds," with this note:"After 5 p.m. I get 15 shillings (先令) an hour instead of 10 shillings."

1. The actress bought a house in the centre of the city because _____.

A. she liked to live in the busiest place.
B. she didn't like to live in the country.
C. her home was far away from where she worked.
D. she didn't want to go back to her hometown any longer.

2. In order to make the painter work better for her, the actress _____.

A. gave him two tickets for her show
B. sang and danced for him for hours
C. paid him 3 pounds
D. decided to pay him 15 shillings an hour

3. The actress got the painter's bill _____.

A. to ask for the money of his painting work.
B. to ask to pay for his watching her show
C. in which he showed his thanks for the tickets
D. in which he expressed his dissatisfaction

4. It can be learned from the text that one pound is _____ shillings.

A. 10
B. 12
C. 20
D. 15

5. What kind of man was the painter?

A. He was a careful man.
B. He was a poor man.
C. He was not friendly to others.
D. He knew little about music and dances.

     When I was growing up in America, I was ashamed of my mother's Chinese English. Because of her
English, she was often treated unfairly. People in department stores, at banks, and at restaurants did not take
her seriously, did not give her good service, pretended not to understand her, or even acted as if they did not
hear her.
     My mother has realized the limitations of her English as well. When I was fifteen, she used to have me call
people on phone to pretend I was she. I was forced to ask for information or even to yell at people who had
been rude to her. One time I had to call her stockbroker (股票经纪人). I said in an adolescent voice that was
not very convincing, "This is Mrs. Tan..."
     And my mother was standing beside me, whispering loudly, "Why he don't send me check already two
week late. "
     And then, in perfect English I said: "I'm getting rather concerned. You agreed to send the check two weeks
ago, but it hasn't arrived. "
     Then she talked more loudly. "What he want? I come to New York tell him front of his boss." And so I
turned to the stockbroker again, "I can't tolerate any more excuse. If I don't receive the check immediately, I
am going to have to speak to your manager when I am in New York next week."
     The next week we ended up in New York. While I was sitting there red-faced, my mother, the real Mrs.
Tan, was shouting to his boss in her broken English. When I was a teenager, my mother's broken English
embarrassed me. But now, I see it differently. To me, my mother's English is perfectly clear, perfectly natural.
It is my mother tongue. Her language, as I hear it, is vivid, direct, and full of observation and wisdom. It was
the language that helped shape the way I saw things, expressed ideas, and made sense of the world.

1. Why was the author's mother poorly served?

A. She was unable to speak good English.
B. She was often misunderstood.
C. She was not clearly heard.
D. She was not very polite.

2. From Paragorph 2, we know that the author was _____.

A. good at pretending
B. rude to the stockbroker
C. ready to help her mother
D. unwilling to phone for her mother

3. After the author made the phone call, _____.

A. they forgave the stockbroker
B. they failed to get the check
C. they went to New York immediately
D. they spoke to their boss at once

4. What does the author think of her mother's English now?

A. It confuses her.
B. It embarrasses her.
C. It helps her understand the world.
D. It helps her tolerate rude people.

5. We can inter from the passage that Chinese English _____.

A. is clear and natural to non-native speakers.
B. is vivid and direct to non-native speakers.
C. has a very bad reputation in America.
D. may bring inconvenience in America.