As an exchange student, I have been staying in a host family in Beijing for the past five months. The parents are   36  in their mid-30s and the son just turned 5. In exchange for room and board, I teach their son   37 .
Like in many of the other Chinese families, he’s an only child. And though he has   38 plastic trucks and boxes full of crayons, I don’t know   39  he has the time to play. When he’s not in the kindergarten, he’s taking after-school classes. On the weekends, the boy goes to more classes. He has one day off―Sunday.
Compared to his schedule, I feel like my childhood was   40  a waste of time. I learned how to climb trees and draw cartoons. I wasn’t learning Chinese at his age. But he and lots of other children are learning English. Both his parents dream that he will have   41  jobs, higher pay, and bigger houses.
The boy seems to take no interest   42  learning English. He doesn’t need a teacher, but a playmate. He is,   43 , only 5. When I think about my life as a 5-year-old, I know for sure I wasn’t half as   44  as he is.
In the evening, when his parents   45  him to speak with me in English, he gets   46 . He lies on the floors, hides under the table and climbs on the furniture. When he finally stops   47 , and starts talking, it isn’t in English, but it isn’t in Chinese,   48 . He speaks in his own language.
He   49  not be a very good student, but I’m not a great teacher. I just want to be his big brother   50  can speak in gibberish(胡言乱语) with him and help draw trucks, robots or spiders.

There is a big tree in front of the house. I can see a boy under it. He’s an English boy. His name is Mike. He’s reading a book. He’s in No. 5 Middle School in Beijing. Who’s that boy in the room? He is Mike’s brother - Jim. Jim is twelve. He is doing his homework. Mike has a sister – Kate. Kate is cleaning her room. Their parents are at home, too. Their father is writing a letter and their mother is watching TV.

Welcome to the Amazing kids Website! Here you can read about clever children all over the world.

Gina, who is thirteen years old, got first prize in the “Young Look of the Year” competition and is now writing her own recipe (烹饪) book for kids. "I want it to be fun to read and easy enough for children to use," she says. Gina learned by observing （观察） her father, who's also good at cooking, in the kitchen. She wants to encourage other children to cook because "everyone needs to eat, so it's a skill that will always be useful!

Fourteen-year-old Bren used to love running until he had a serious car accident three years ago. He lost part of one leg and didn't even expect to walk again. Now he's an athlete who has recently completed a marathon. "After my accident I wanted to give up," he says. "But now I'm happy to be alive and able to continue running."

Helga has always been good at science, but she thought it was too difficult to become an inventor. Then she heard about an accident that had happened when a car hit a train in her town. "That gave me an idea," says the clever sixteen-year-old girl. It took her over a year to invent a special machine that tells car drivers when a train is coming. One company is already interested in selling it, so it may be in the shops soon!

1.How is Gina trying to encourage other children to cook?

A. By observing her father.

B. By writing a recipe book for kids.

C. By giving them delicious food to eat.

D. By getting first prize in the competition.

2.Why is it surprising that Bren is an athlete?

A. Because he can' t walk. B. Because he lost part of one leg.

C. Because he gave up running. D. Because he used to love running.

3. Which of the following is true about Helga?

A. She saw a car hit a train in her town.

B. She sold special machines to car drivers.

C. She invented a special machine for car drivers.

D. It is impossible for her to become an inventor.

4.Which would be the best title for the passage?

A. Amazing Kids, Special Abilities      B. How to Be a Good Student

C Different People, Different Ideas      D. How to Get Living Skills

One Sunday afternoon, I went shopping at Wal-Mart . But I never thought I would have a life ­changing experience at WalMart.
Although my thoughts were only on speed, the checkout line I was standing in wasn’t moving as quickly as I wanted, and I looked towards the cashier.
There stood a man in his seventies, wearing glasses and a nice smile. I thought, well, he’s an old guy!
For the next few minutes I watched him. He greeted every customer before scanning the items. Sure, his words were the usual, “How’s it going？” But he did something different—he listened to people carefully and then he would reply to what they had said
I thought it was strange. I has grown used to people asking me how I was doing simply out of conversational habit. I could say, “I just found out I have six months to live，” and someone would reply, “Have a great day！”
But that wasn't the end.
He gave them the change, walked around the counter (柜台), and hugged them with his right hand in an act of friendship. He looked at the customers in the eyes. “I want to thank you for shopping here today,” he told them. “You have a great day. Bye-bye.”
The smiling looks on the faces of the customers were priceless. All had been touched by his simple gesture—and in a place they never expected. They would gather their things and walk out, smiling.
Of course, he did the same to me and I got to know his name—Marty.
Who was that guy? It was as if Sam Walton (沃尔玛的创始人)had come back from the dead and invaded this old guy’s body.
I had never walked away from that shop feeling like that.

【小题1】The underlined word “customer” mean________ in Chinese.