Big Brothers Big Sisters is based on the simplicity and power（力量） of friendship．It is a program which provides friendship and fun by matching vulnerable young people (ages 7-17) with a volunteer adult who can be both a role model and a supportive friend.
Volunteer tutors come from all walks of life—married, single, with or without children. Big Brothers and Big Sisters are not replacement parents or social workers. They are tutors: someone to trust, to have fun with, to talk and go to when needed.
A Big Sister and Little Sister will generally spend between one and four hours together three or four times each month for at least twelve months. They enjoy simple activities such as a picnic at a park, cooking, doing sports or going to a football match. These activities improve the friendship and help the young person develop self-respect, confidence and life direction.
Big Brothers Big Sisters organizations can be found throughout the world. It is the largest and most well-known provider of tutor services internationally and has been operating for 25 years.
Emily and Sarah have been matched since 2008. Emily is a 15-year-old girl who has experienced some difficulties being accepted by her schoolmates at school. “ I was pretty sure there was something wrong with me.”
Emily’s mum came across Big Brothers Big Sisters and thought it would be of benefit to Emily by “providing different feedback about herself other than just depending on schoolmates to measure(测量) her self-worth.
Sarah wanted to get involved(使参与) in a volunteer program. “I googled it and found out how to be a part of it. I thought it would be fun for me to get involved in making time to do something because sometimes it is all work and no play.”
Big Brothers Big Sisters has been of great benefit and enjoyment to both Emily and Sarah. They love and look forward to their time together and the partnership has certainly helped Emily be more comfortable in being the wonderful and happy girl she is!
【小题1】According to the passage, “vulnerable young people” are probably those who are   _________.

A．popular at school	B．rather weak physically
C．easily hurt emotionally	D．confident in themselves

【小题2】A volunteer is usually expected to work within a year for at least______．

A．72 hours

B．48 hours

C．36 hours

D．24 hours

【小题3】Why did Sarah want to get involved in the program?

A．She felt a bit bored with her life.

B．She used to be a volunteer.

C．She needed a part-time job.

D．She wanted to get a difficult job.

【小题4】What is the purpose of Big Brothers Big Sisters?

A．To offer students public services．

B．To help students improve their grades．

C．To organize funny sport activities for young people．

D．To provide partnership and fun for young people．

Once, there was a beautiful girl who didn’t like herself, because she was blind, she couldn’t see anything.

In fact, the girl  1.  nobody except her boyfriend, for he was always  2.   to help her. She used to tell her boyfriend, “3.  I could see the world, I would marry you.”

One day, someone donated a pair of  4.  to the girl. When the bandages came off，she was able to see  5. ,including her boyfriend for the  6.   time. He asked her, “Now that you can see the world, will you  7.  me?” The girl looked at her boyfriend and was greatly surprised to see that he was blind,  8.   . She had never expected that, and she would not like to be with a blind husband for the rest of her life, so she  9.   to marry him.

Her boyfriend left in tears and a few days later wrote a  10.  to her, saying, “My dear, take good care of your eyes. Before they are yours, they were  11. .”

So, this is how the human brain often works when our status changes. Only a very few remember  12.   life was like before. And we often ask for more than we need. Life is a gift. Today, before you complain about the  13.   of your food，think of those who have nothing to  14. . Before you complain about life，think of some ones who went to heaven too early. Before you complain about your old  15. , think of the people who are living in the streets. And when you are tired and complain about your job, think of those who have no jobs.

In a word, enjoy the things you have and don’t forget your past.

16.               A．forgot          B．loved          C．disliked    D．needed

 

17.               A．ready          B．exciting        C．angry     D．sad

 

18.               A．Though         B．Because        C．If D．But

 

19.               A．shoes          B．glasses         C．pants D．eyes

 

20.               A．something      B．nothing         C．everything D．anything

 

21.               A．first           B．second         C．next D．1ast

 

22.               A．follow          B．love           C．marry D．see

 

23.               A．too            B．also           C．either D．neither

 

24.               A．decided        B．agreed         C．refused   D．wanted

 

25.               A．diary          B．note           C．song  D．story

 

26.               A．yours          B．your           C．mine D．my

 

27.               A．which          B．what           C．that D．how

 

28.               A．taste           B．size            C．color D．shape

 

29.               A．do            B．wear           C．eat   D．make

 

30.               A．food           B．house          C．clothes    D．car

 

 

One night I was sitting in my room half-listening as my 15-year-old brother Tommy fought with my 12-year-old brother Kevin. I didn’t pay attention when Kevin rushed up the stairs with the hurt on his face.
About 20 minutes later, as I was walking upstairs I heard Kevin crying inside the bathroom. I knocked on the door and asked, “Hey Kevin, do you want to talk?”
No answer.
I tried again, “Why don’t you come out of there?”
Again, no answer.
So, joking around, I grabbed a stack of （一摞）cards and a pencil and wrote, “If you don’t want to talk, we can write notes to each other.”
An hour later I was still sitting on the floor outside the bathroom with two stacks of cards in front of me. One was blank and one was cards from Kevin on which he had translated all his yucky feelings into words for me. As I read one of Kevin’s notes, tears came to my eyes. It said, “Nobody in this family cares about me. I’m not the youngest, and I’m not the oldest. Tommy thinks I’m silly and Dad wishes he had the other Kevin as a kid because he’s better at basketball. And you’re never around to even notice me.”
Tears came to my eyes as I wrote back to him. “You know Kevin, I really do love you and I’m sorry I don’t always show it. I am here for you and you are loved in this family.”
There was no answer for a while, but then I heard a tearing sound coming from inside the bathroom. Kevin, who had run out of cards wrote on a torn paper cup. “Thanks.”
I wrote back “For what?” it returned to me with “Loving me” on it.
Since then, I try my best to never only half-notice my family members any more. Kevin and I have a closer relationship now. And sometimes when one of us notices that the other is upset, we’ll smile and say “Write it on a paper cup.”
【小题1】The underlined word “yucky” most probably means ____.

A．upset

B．exciting

C．terrible

D．amazing

【小题2】What could be the reason that Kevin’s Dad doesn’t like him?

A．Kevin is not as clever as his brother.

B．He is neither the youngest nor the oldest.

C．Kevin doesn’t like to make friends with others.

D．Kevin is not good at playing basketball.

【小题3】What do we know about the writer?

A．She has two children in her family.

B．She didn’t pay enough attention to Kevin before.

C．She used to show her love to Kevin.

D．She has a closer relationship with Tommy after that.

【小题4】What does the writer want to tell us?

A．Everyone should show how they love their family members.

B．It’s hard to get on well with family members.

C．It’s important to keep peace in the family.

D．We should try our best to stop our children from fighting.

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, pretended（假装） not to understand her, or even acted as if they did not hear her.

My mother has realized the disadvantages 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 a voice that was not very convincing, “This is Mrs. Tan.” And my mother was standing beside me, whispering loudly, “Why he doesn’t send me the check. It’s already two weeks late.”

And then, in perfect English I said: “I’m getting rather anxious .You agreed to send the check two weeks ago, but it hasn’t arrived.” Then she talked more loudly. “What does he want? I’ll come to New York and say it in front of his boss.” And so I turned to the stockbroker again, “I can’t accept any more excuses. If I don’t receive the check immediately, I 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 (使困窘) 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 clear and direct. It was the language that helped me form the way I saw things, expressed ideas, and made sense of the world.

1.Why was the author’s mother poorly treated?

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 Paragraph 2, what can we know about the author?

A. She was good at pretending.

B. She was rude to the stockbroker.

C. She was ready to help her mother.

D. She was unwilling to phone for her mother.

3.Even after the author made the phone call to the stockbroker,__________.

A. they forgave the stockbroker

B. they failed to get the check

C. they moved to New York immediately

D. they wrote to their boss at once

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

A. It’s hard for her to understand.

B. It embarrasses her.

C. It helps her understand the world.

D. It helps her forgive rude people.

 

根据短文内容，从Ａ、B、C、D四个选项中选择一个最佳答案。（15分，每小题1分）

 There was a blind girl who hated herself because she was blind. In fact, she    nobody except her boyfriend, for he was always     to help her. She used to tell her boyfriend, “If I could see the     , I would marry you .”

    One day, someone donated (捐赠) a pair of    to her. When the bandages (绷带) came off, she was able to see everything, including her boyfriend, for the     time. He asked her, “Now that you can see the world, will you     me?” The girl looked at her boyfriend and was greatly surprised to see that he was     . She had never expected that. She would not like to be with a blind husband for the rest of her life, so she     to marry him.

    Her boyfriend left in tears and a few days later wrote a      to her, saying, “My dear, take good care of your eyes.    they are yours, they are mine.”

    This is how the human brain (大脑) often works when our status (地位) changes. Only a very few remember what      was like before. And we ask for more than we need. Life is a gift. Today, before you complain about the     of your food, think of someone who has nothing to   . Before you complain about life, think of someone who went to heaven (天堂) too early. Before you complain about your old     , think of the people who are living in the streets. And when you are tired and complain about your job, think of those who have no jobs. So      what you have and don’t forget your past. 

1.A. forgot         B. loved          C. disliked         D. thanked

2.A. ready         B. unhappy        C. angry           D. sad

3.A. sight          B. world          C. earth           D. people

4.A. shoes         B. glasses         C. trousers         D. eyes

5.A. first          B. second          C. next           D. last

6.A. follow        B. love            C. marry          D. see

7.A. ugly          B. sick            C. short          D. blind

8.A. decided       B. agreed          C. refused         D. wanted

9.A. diary         B. note             C. song          D. story

10.A. Before       B. After            C. Once           D. Since

11.A. mind         B. work           C. school          D. life

12.A. taste         B. size             C. color           D. shape

13.A. do           B. wear            C. eat            D. make

14.A. food         B. house           C. clothes          D. bus

15.A. forget        B. spend           C. enjoy           D. Pay