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A man called his son in New York the day before Christmas and said,  “I have to tell you your Mom and I are going to divorce(离婚) ! Thirty years is quite a long time.”

“Dad, what are you talking about?” the son cried.

The father said:“We are sick of each other. I don’t want to talk about it anymore. You call your sister in Chicago and tell her about the news.”

When the daughter got the news, she is very surprised at it.

“What? They are getting divorced.” She shouted, “I’ll stop them.” She called her father immediately, and cried to her father,” Don’t do anything until I get home. I’m calling my brother back, and we’ll both be there tomorrow. Wait for us, please.”

The old man hung up his phone and turned to his wife. “OK” he said, “they’re coming for Christmas and paying their own way.”

1.The old couple have been married for____ years.

A. twenty B. thirty C. fifty D. fifty-five

2.Why did the old man call his son on the day before Christmas?

A. Because he wanted to spend Christmas with his children

B. Because he couldn’t stand his marriage any longer.

C. Because he and his wife were sick of each other

D. Because he was sick of talking about his marriage.

3.Who called the father in this story? 

A . The sick man    B. The wife     C. The son    D. The daughter

4.The son and daughter would go back home on Christmas because___. 

A. they wanted to stop their parents divorcing        

B. they wanted to see their parents

C. they wanted to spend Christmas with their parents

D. they wanted to give their parents the presents

5.Which of the following sentences is Right ?

A. The two old men were really sick of each other

B. The two old men didn’t really want to divorce

C. The son and the daughter often went home for holidays

D. The son and the daughter knew that their parents were not going to divorce.

A boy and a girl catch(捉住) a bird and put ____ __ in a birdcage(鸟笼). They ________ it very much and look at it every day. A cat _______ the bird and wants to eat it ________ dinner. ______ the bird is in the cage. She can’t catch it. So she is very ________.One day, she __________ the door of the cage and tries to (尝试) catch it. But the bird can fly, so it flies away(飞走). The cat can’t _______, and she _______ have ways(办法). The two children come back home and see the bird isn’t in. They are very angry and put the             into the cage.

Have successful people ever felt sad? Do they have any "secrets" to success? The answers to these questions can be found in US president Barack Obama's "back to school" speech. Here is a small part of his speech.

I know that sometimes, after watching TV, you may feel that you can be rich and successful without any hard work--that your ticket to success is through rapping (饶舌音乐) or basketball or being a TV star. But when chances come, you may not succeed.

The truth is, being successful is hard. And you may not succeed at everything the first time you try. That's OK. Some of the most successful people in the world have had the most failures. JK Rowling's first Harry Potter book was rejected(退稿)12 times before it finally came out. Michael Jordan lost hundreds of games and missed thousands of shots during his career (职业生涯). But he once said, "I have failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed."

These people succeeded because they understand that you can't let your failures beat you--you have to let them teach you. You have to let them show you what to do differently next time.

No one's born being good at things. You become good at things through hard work. Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Don't be afraid to ask for help when you need it.

And even when you're struggling(挣扎), even when you're discouraged(泄气), and you feel like other people have given up on you--don't ever give up on yourself. Because when you give up on yourself, you give up on your country.

1.Why does Barack Obama talk about JK Rowling and Michael Jordan in the second paragraph?

A. To show that these two famous persons are different.

B. To show that writing and sports are difficult skills.

C. To show that the two persons were treated unfairly.

D. To show that being successful is hard.

2.Barack Obama believes ____________ in his speech.

A. you can be rich and successful without any hard work

B. you may succeed at everything the first time you try

C. you can't let your failures beat you

D. you shouldn't ask other people for help

3.What does the underlined sentence mean?

A. If you're discouraged, you should give up on yourself.

B. You should believe in yourself no matter how difficult it is.

C. When you're struggling, you'll feel like other people have given up on you.

D. If you are not struggling or discouraged, you can give up on yourself.

4.What's the best title of this small part of Mr. Obama's speech?

A. The way to succeed               B. Failures can help you

C. Don't give up on yourself            D. Barack Obama's success

Today Chinese people can enjoy longer and more holidays, such as the two“Gold Week Holidays” — the Spring Festival, National Day and Mid-autumn Festival and so on. They have more time to travel. Rising incomes(收入)also make it possible for ordinary(普通的) Chinese people to travel abroad .

Zhang Haitao, a middle school student in Shanghai will go to Japan with his par­ents during the Spring Festival. “Overseas(海外) touring has always been a dream of mine ,”Zhang Haitao said. “ How will you go to Japan, by air or by ship?” I asked him. “By ship. Traveling by ship is more enjoyable than a rushed trip by air.”“But a plane is much faster than a ship. ”“Yes. but you can't see much during the flight while a sea trip will make you happier, because you can see waves, islands and even big fish.”

"Will you travel at your own expense(费用) ?"

"Certainly. Though my father's job is to recycle rubbish, I'm very proud of him. He has saved lots of money in the last three years. What's more, he has made a contribution（贡献）to protecting our environment.”

1.Now it is possible for the Chinese people to travel abroad（国外）because of  _______

2.Zhang Haitao will go to Japan __________.

3.Zhang Haitao is__________.

4.Zhao Haitao is proud of his father because his father ________.