In this age of Internet chat, videogames and reality television, there is no shortage of mindless activities to keep a child occupied. Yet despite the competition, my 8-year-old daughter Rebecca wants to spend her leisure time writing short stories. She wants to enter one of her stories into a writing contest, a competition which she won last year.

As a writer, I know about winning contests – and about losing them. I know what it is like to work hard on a story only to receive a rejection letter from the publisher. I also know the pressure of trying to live up to a reputation created by previous victories. What if she doesn’t win the contest again? That’s the strange thing about being a parent. So many of our own past scars and destroyed hopes can resurface in our children.

A revelation (启示) came last week when I asked her, “Don’t you want to win again?” “No,” she replied, “I just want to tell the story of an angel going to first grade.”

I had just spent weeks correcting her stories as she spontaneously (自发地) told them. Telling myself that I was merely an experienced writer guiding the young writer across the hall, I offered suggestions for characters, conflicts and endings for her tales. The story about a fearful angel starting first grade was quickly “guided” by me into the tale of a little girl with a wild imagination taking her first music lesson. I had turned her contest into my contest without even realizing it.

Staying back and giving kids space to grow is not as easy as it looks. Because I know very little about farm animals who use tools or angels who go to first grade, I had to accept the fact that I was co-opting my daughter’s experience.

While stepping back was difficult for me, it was certainly a good first step that I will quickly follow with more steps, putting myself far enough away to give her room but close enough to help if asked. All the while I will be reminding myself that children need room to experiment, grow and find their own voices.

1.What do we learn from the first paragraph?

2.What did the author say about her own writing experience?

3.Why did Rebecca want to enter this year’s writing contest?

4.The author took great pains to improve her daughter’s stories because _______.

5.The underlined sentence probably means that the author was _______.

6.What’s the author’s advice for parents?

In this age of Internet chat, videogames and reality television, there is no shortage of mindless activities to keep a child occupied. Yet despite the competition, my 8-year-old daughter Rebecca wants to spend her leisure time writing short stories. She wants to enter one of her stories into a writing contest, a competition which she won last year.
As a writer, I know about winning contests – and about losing them. I know what it is like to work hard on a story only to receive a rejection letter from the publisher. I also know the pressure of trying to live up to a reputation created by previous victories. What if she doesn’t win the contest again? That’s the strange thing about being a parent. So many of our own past scars and destroyed hopes can resurface in our children.
A revelation (启示) came last week when I asked her, “Don’t you want to win again?” “No,” she replied, “I just want to tell the story of an angel going to first grade.”
I had just spent weeks correcting her stories as she spontaneously (自发地) told them. Telling myself that I was merely an experienced writer guiding the young writer across the hall, I offered suggestions for characters, conflicts and endings for her tales. The story about a fearful angel starting first grade was quickly “guided” by me into the tale of a little girl with a wild imagination taking her first music lesson. I had turned her contest into my contest without even realizing it.
Staying back and giving kids space to grow is not as easy as it looks. Because I know very little about farm animals who use tools or angels who go to first grade, I had to accept the fact that I was co-opting my daughter’s experience.
While stepping back was difficult for me, it was certainly a good first step that I will quickly follow with more steps, putting myself far enough away to give her room but close enough to help if asked. All the while I will be reminding myself that children need room to experiment, grow and find their own voices.

1. 1.

   What do we learn from the first paragraph?

   1. A.
      A lot of amusements compete for children’s time nowadays.
   2. B.
      Children have lots of fun doing mindless activities.
   3. C.
      Rebecca is much too busy to enjoy her leisure time.
   4. D.
      Rebecca draws on a lot of online materials for her writing.
2. 2.

   What did the author say about her own writing experience?

   1. A.
      She was constantly under pressure to write more.
   2. B.
      Most of her stories had been rejected by publishers.
   3. C.
      She did not quite live up to her reputation as a writer.
   4. D.
      Her road to success was full of pain and frustrations.
3. 3.

   Why did Rebecca want to enter this year’s writing contest?

   1. A.
      She believed she possessed real talent for writing.
   2. B.
      She was sure of winning with her mother’s help.
   3. C.
      She wanted to share her stories with readers.
   4. D.
      She had won a prize in the previous contest.
4. 4.

   The author took great pains to improve her daughter’s stories because _______.

   1. A.
      she wanted to help Rebecca realize her dreams of becoming a writer
   2. B.
      she was afraid Rebecca’s imagination might run wild while writing
   3. C.
      she did not want to disappoint Rebecca who needed her help so much
   4. D.
      she believed she had the knowledge and experience to offer guidance
5. 5.

   The underlined sentence probably means that the author was _______.

   1. A.
      trying not to let her daughter enjoy her own life
   2. B.
      trying to get her daughter to do the thing as the author wished
   3. C.
      making sure that her daughter would win the contest
   4. D.
      helping her daughter develop real skills for writing
6. 6.

   What’s the author’s advice for parents?

   1. A.
      Children should be given every chance to voice their opinions.
   2. B.
      Parents should keep an eye on the activities their kids engage in.
   3. C.
      Children should be allowed freedom to grow through experience.
   4. D.
      A writing career, though attractive, is not for every child to pursue.

Three 1ago, my family got our first computer. 2the beginning of this summer, I found it was too old and I wanted to get a3one. After my father. and I talked for a long time, he4. We went to many shops and read many ads.5we bought an HP computer.
During the first week, I noticed6our computer had some problems. I spent many hours7to fix it, but it8work. So I9to phone the HP compa­ny and ask them10to work out my problem. They told me to wait until the next morning because all their workers were11that day.
The next morning two workers came. It took them many hours to mend it, but the computer12 did not work. My dad had no other way but to return the whole thing.
A few days later, we decided that I should go on the Internet and order some parts to build a new computer by13.
It was not an easy job for me to build a new computer. I tried many times, and in the end I was successful. From these setbacks(挫折), I have learned a lot. Now I be­lieve that if the HP computer hadn't had any problems,14I would not have learned how to build the new one. Even though I spent lots of time on it, I know it wasn't15.

1. 1.
   1. A.
      days
   2. B.
      weeks
   3. C.
      months
   4. D.
      years
2. 2.
   1. A.
      At
   2. B.
      On
   3. C.
      To
   4. D.
      For
3. 3.
   1. A.
      big
   2. B.
      new
   3. C.
      cheap
   4. D.
      small
4. 4.
   1. A.
      won
   2. B.
      paid
   3. C.
      agreed
   4. D.
      received
5. 5.
   1. A.
      At first
   2. B.
      At last
   3. C.
      At once
   4. D.
      At times
6. 6.
   1. A.
      if
   2. B.
      that
   3. C.
      what
   4. D.
      how
7. 7.
   1. A.
      try
   2. B.
      tried
   3. C.
      to try
   4. D.
      trying
8. 8.
   1. A.
      do
   2. B.
      did
   3. C.
      don't
   4. D.
      didn't
9. 9.
   1. A.
      hoped
   2. B.
      have
   3. C.
      had
   4. D.
      liked
10. 10.
    1. A.
       how
    2. B.
       what
    3. C.
       why
    4. D.
       where
11. 11.
    1. A.
       free
    2. B.
       sad
    3. C.
       busy
    4. D.
       exciting
12. 12.
    1. A.
       already
    2. B.
       always
    3. C.
       still
    4. D.
       usually
13. 13.
    1. A.
       themselves
    2. B.
       himself
    3. C.
       itself
    4. D.
       myself
14. 14.
    1. A.
       or
    2. B.
       then
    3. C.
       so
    4. D.
       and
15. 15.
    1. A.
       a waste of time
    2. B.
       a successful job
    3. C.
       a good computer
    4. D.
       a bad company

Three  21  ago, my family got our first computer.  22  the beginning of this summer, I found it was too old and I wanted to get a  23  one. After my father. and I talked for a long time, he  24 . We went to many shops and read many ads.   25  we bought an HP computer.
During the first week, I noticed  26  our computer had some problems. I spent many hours   27  to fix it, but it   28  work. So I   29  to phone the HP compa­ny and ask them   30  to work out my problem. They told me to wait until the next morning because all their workers were 31 that day.
The next morning two workers came. It took them many hours to mend it, but the computer    32 did not work. My dad had no other way but to return the whole thing.
A few days later, we decided that I should go on the Internet and order some parts to build a new computer by  33 .
It was not an easy job for me to build a new computer. I tried many times, and in the end I was successful. From these setbacks(挫折), I have learned a lot. Now I be­lieve that if the HP computer hadn't had any problems,   34  I would not have learned how to build the new one. Even though I spent lots of time on it, I know it wasn't    35   .

Three  21  ago, my family got our first computer.  22  the beginning of this summer, I found it was too old and I wanted to get a  23   one. After my father. and I talked for a long time, he  24  . We went to many shops and read many ads.   25   we bought an HP computer.

During the first week, I noticed  26   our computer had some problems. I spent many hours   27   to fix it, but it   28   work. So I   29   to phone the HP compa­ny and ask them   30   to work out my problem. They told me to wait until the next morning because all their workers were 31 that day.

The next morning two workers came. It took them many hours to mend it, but the computer    32 did not work. My dad had no other way but to return the whole thing.

A few days later, we decided that I should go on the Internet and order some parts to build a new computer by  33  .

It was not an easy job for me to build a new computer. I tried many times, and in the end I was successful. From these setbacks(挫折), I have learned a lot. Now I be­lieve that if the HP computer hadn't had any problems,   34   I would not have learned how to build the new one. Even though I spent lots of time on it, I know it wasn't     35    .

1. A.  days       B.  weeks        C.  months        D.  years

2.A.  At         B. On            C. To             D. For

3.A.  big         B. new          C. cheap           D. small

4. A.  won        B.  paid         C.  agreed         D.  received

5.A.  At first      B. At last         C. At once         D.  At times

6.A.  if           B.  that         C. what            D.  how

7.A.  try          B. tried          C.  to try         D. trying

8.A.  do           B.  did         C.  don't          D.  didn't

9.A.  hoped        B.  have        C. had             D. liked

10.A.  how         B.  what         C.  why          D.  where

11. A. free           B. sad           C.  busy          D. exciting

12.A. already         B. always        C.  still          D.  usually

13.A. themselves      B.  himself      C.  itself         D.  myself

14.A.  or            B.  then         C.  so           D. and

15.A. a waste of time    B. a successful job C.  a good computer   D.  a bad company