Life is full of challenges. School has to be the most challenging difficulty in the lives of youth today.

Elementary school brings about a few challenges characteristic of those years spent there. There’s the challenge of coloring in lines, a very real problem to any youngster. Or how about the challenge of remembering to raise one’s hand before one speaks? There are hundreds of rules and regulations that govern these children. The one thing that keeps these children in line is the hope of reward. Yes, this is the brass ring. The reward for a clean desk is an extra five minutes of rest! The prize for having all homework done, a shiny – new pencil topper! These small wonders keep small people in line. They make the children love challenge.

Middle school is not so easy. It is not easy for the students, and it also isn’t easy for the teachers. The challenge of staying out of trouble, or writing that research paper – these are the new challenging of an older, wiser group. This group has outgrown the rest and pencil – topper tricks. They know that their efforts have to bring them something really useful, so daybreak and pop are pulled onto the scene. How does five, ten dollars for each “A” sound? Or, how about no telephone if one doesn’t do good in school? Need I say more?

By the time high school arrives a student’s place in educational excellence or else their unlikelihood to even graduate has been founded. Little can be done now to make life’s challenges seem interesting, especially where school comes in. The lazy are rewarded with a nice job at a gas station, and a fifteen – year – old Ford. The diligent are rewarded with an SAT score of over 1100, acceptance into Yale University, and a ticket to life. By meeting the challenges of school, sticking it out, and pulling through, they are given their greatest reward: success. (from Creating Miracles by Yourself, The Most Beautiful English)

1．Which of the following is NOT correct according to the passage?

       A．Some small wonders may make the students in primary school like challenge.

       B．Reading research paper would make the students in middle school upset.

       C．Hard – working students may be admitted to one of the top universities.

       D．Success could be the reward to a senior student pulled through challenge.

2．According to the writer,           is the most testing for the young.

       A．society                B．life                      C．school                 D．desire

3．A student rewarded with a fifteen – year – old Ford shows           .

       A．he is a good student                             B．he studies hard

       C．he is bright                                          D．he is lazy

4．What we can make out from the passage is             .

       A．that everyone was forced to fight with others for their social position at school

       B．that you couldn’t find a better job in society if you don’t beat others at school

       C．that school is so cruel that we don’t need to break our wonderful friendship

       D．that school is the battlefield for they young because it makes us fail or succeed

 I took my 9-year-old daughter，Suzan and 5-year-old son，Robbie to the shopping centre．As we got there，we saw a big sign that said，“Petting Zoo”．The kids jumped up and asked，“Daddy，can we go?”

    Both my wife and I were out of work．However，I said，“Sure”，giving them a quarter each. They went away, leaving only fifty cents left in my pocket．

    A petting zoo is made up of a hundred of little baby animals of all kinds．Kids pay their money and stay in the enclosure(围场)pleased with the little animals while their parents shop．

    A few minutes later，I saw Suzan walking along behind me．I was surprised and asked what was wrong．

    She said sadly，“Well，Daddy，a ticket for Petting Zoo costs fifty cents．So I gave Robbie my quarter．” Then she said the most beautiful thing I ever heard．She repeated the family motto(座右铭)，which is “Love is Action!”

    I knew clearly no one loves little animals more than Suzan. She had watched both my wife and me do and say "Love is Action!” for years，and now she had put it into her lifestyle．It had become part of her，because she knew the whole family motto．It’s not only “Love is Action”；it’s “Love is SACRIFICAL(牺牲的)Action!" Love always pays a price．

    I was moved．We went back to the Petting Zoo．Suzan stood with her hands and chin(下巴)resting on the fence and just watched Robbie go crazy petting and feeding the animals．I had fifty cents burning a hole in my pocket. I put my hand into my pocket and took out the money．Sure，I must do that !

41．What is the best title for this passage?

  A．A Petting Zoo．                  B．Try Your Best to Help Others．

  C．An Attractive Shopping Centre．     D．Love Is Sacrificial Action!

42．From the passage we can learn that        .

  A．the family lived a hard life    

 B．Suzan didn’t like playing with pets

  C．the author was strict with the children

  D．Robbie didn’t want to play with Suzan

43．The underlined part “the most beautiful thing” in Paragraph 5 refers to    ．

  A．the Petting Zoo    B．the family motto

  C．their lifestyle      D．the ticket for Petting Zoo

44．Which of the following best describes Suzan?

  A．Unselfish．    B．Healthy．    C．Childish．    D．Clever．

45．What might happen next according to the story?

  A．The author would buy Suzan some candies．

  B．The author would get angry with Robbie．

  C．Suzan would play happily with the little animals．

  D．The author would play together with Suzan．

Unchangeable Love

One day I visited an art museum while waiting for my husband to finish a business meeting．I was expecting a quiet   36   of the splendid artwork．

A young    37    viewing the paintings ahead of me    38    nonstop between themselves．I watched them a moment and decided the lady was doing all the talking．I admired the man's   39   for putting up with her   40   stream of words．  41   by their noise, I moved on．

I met them several times as I moved   42   the various rooms of art．Each time I heard her continuous flow of words, I moved away   43   ．

I was standing at the counter of the museum gift shop making a   44   when the couple approached the   45   ．Before they left, the man   46   into his pocket and pulled out a white object．He   47   it into a long stick and then tapped his way into the   48   to get his wife's jacket．

"He's a   49   man．" the clerk at the counter said．"Most of us would give up if we were blinded at such a young age．During his recovery, he made a promise his life wouldn't change．

So, as before, he and his wife come in   50   there is a new art show．"

"But what does he get out of the art?" I asked．"He can't see．"

"Can't see! You're   51   ．He sees a lot．More than you and I do," the clerk said．"His wife   52   each painting so he can see it in his head．"

I learned something about patience,   53   and love that day．I saw the patience of a young wife describing paintings to a person without __54_ and the courage of a husband who would not   55   blindness to change his life．And I saw the love shared by two people as I watched this couple walk away, hand in hand．

36．A．touch                                          B．view            C．wander             D．scenery

37．A．lady               B．man               C．couple             D．clerk

38．A．chatted            B．argued             C．discussed           D．spoke

39．A．knowledge          B．confidence          C．wisdom             D．patience

40．A．vivid              B．constant            C．tasteless           D．exciting

41．A．Adopted            B．Discouraged         C．Surprised           D．Disturbed

42．A．through            B．in                  C．towards            D．from

43．A．anxiously           B．seriously            C．quickly             D．angrily

44．A．comment                                       B．decision         C．purchase            D．list

45．A．entrance           B．exit                C．front               D．queue

46．A．put                B．held                C．reached             D．turned

47．A．made              B．lengthened           C．brought             D．changed

48．A．shop              B．counter             C．hall                D．coatroom

49．A．brave             B．kind                C．rough              D．blind

50．A．wherever                                       B．whatever         C．whichever           D．whenever

51．A．wrong             B．silly                 C．humorous           D．unique

52．A．describes                                       B．draws           C．shows              D．tells

53．A．curiosity           B．pride              C．enthusiasm          D．courage

54．A．support          B．sight               C．expectation         D．hesitation

55．A．get                B．hope               C．allow               D．stop

Most of what I really need to know about how to live, and what to do, and how to be, I learned in kindergarten. Wisdom was not at the top of the graduate school mountain, but there in the sandbox at nursery school.

These are the things I learned: Share everything. Play fair. Don’t hit people. Put things back where you found them. Clean up your own mess. Don’t take things that aren’t yours. Say you’re sorry when you hurt somebody. Wash your hands before you eat. Flush. Warm cookies and cold milk are good for you. Live a balanced life. Learn some and think some and draw and paint and sing and dance and play and work some every day.

Take a nap every afternoon. When you go out into the world, watch for traffic, hold hands, and stick together. Be aware of wonder. Remember the little seed in the plastic cup. The roots go down and the plant goes up and nobody really knows how or why, but we are all like that.

Goldfish and white mice and even the little seed in the plastic cup – they all die. So do we.

And then remember the book about Dick and Jane and the first word you learned, the biggest word of all :LOOK. Everything you need to know is in there somewhere. The Golden Rule and love and basic sanitation, ecology and politics and sane living.

Think of what a better world it would be if we all – the whole world – had cookies and milk about 3 o’clock every afternoon and then lay down with our blankets for a nap. Or if we had a basic policy in our nation and other nations to always put things back where we found them and clean up our own messes. And it is still true, no matter how old you are, when you go out into the world, it is best to hold hands and stick together.

1．In this passage, the author intends to           .

      A．inform the readers of what he learned in kindergarten

       B．show the importance of enlightening (启蒙) education

       C．call on people to hold hands and stick together

       D．tell people how to live a successful life

2．What does the author mean by the underlined sentence?

       A．The author wonders why the roots go down and plants go up.

       B．A person should be curious about plants.

       C．The author likes seeding in the plastic cup.

       D．Everything develops in its natural way.

3．What didn’t the author learn to do while in kindergarten?

       A．Cook cookies and dishes.

       B．Keep the things he used in place.

       C．Look out for traffic.

       D．Make an apology to someone he hurt.

4．We can infer from the passage that the author            .

      A．must be a success thanks to the good habits.

       B．has learned to share everything with others

       C．expects harmony and unity

       D．is at an old age now

5．In which column of a magazine can you probably find the passage?

       A．Popular Science.                                  B．Entertainment.

       C．Fashion.                                             D．Life Guide.

　　Life is what you make lt. The choices you make influence what happens to you in life. I never really brought into that idea, but I din’t even have a choice when my mom announced I was going to a summer camp. Everything I’d heard about camp had to do with bugs（臭虫）, poison ivy（常春藤）, and bad food. Mom insisted, however, since she thought it would benefit me to learn more about the world around me.

　　When I got to the camp, I didn’t see anything I wanted to learn more about, and after four days I was ready to scream.

　　During free time one day, I wandered down a lonely path into the woods and sat against a tree. Then I saw one of the camp counselors（辅导员）approaching me.

　　“Hey,” he said, “mind if I have a seat?” I shrugged. I wasn’t going to encourage him, but I couldn’t exactly stop him either. He sat down and said, “I’m Gary, and you’re Erica, right?” I nodded. “It seems that you’re not having a good time,” he began.　　I crossed my arms. “Look,” I said, “I didn’t want to come to camp, I’m not having fun.” I glared（怒视）at Gary.

　　“So there’s nothing here at all for you, huh?” he asked.

　　“Nothing.” I answered.

　　“Lot me show you something,” said Gary. He got up, and I followed him along the path until I heard a sound like a roaring train.

　　“What’s that?” I asked.

　　“Wait and see,” he repiied, with a smile.

　　When we rounded the corner, I couldn’t believe what I saw. There was the biggest waterfall I could ever imagine, right in front of me. I could feel my eyes getting bigger and a smile tugging at my mouth.

(1)How did Erica feel when she got to the camp?

[　　]

(2)Which word best describes Gary, the counselor?

[　　]

(3)It can be inferred from the passage that ______.

[　　]

A．Erica’s mom didn’t love her

B．summer camp was not good for kids

C．Erica was excited to see the waterfall

D．most kids didn’t know much about nature

(4)What can be the best title for the passage?

[　　]

A．Life is what you make it

B．How to make choices

C．An unforgettable summer camp

D．How choices influence life