E-cards are available for free on the Internet. Most electronic greeting card sites give you a wide selection of choices and let you personalize your card.

Unlike with traditional printed cards, you don’t schlep(拖曳) to a card store to make your selection, you don’t fork out any money. Delivery is immediate; there’s no postage required and you are not using paper.

But the best thing about these card sites is that they animate and play music, which makes them very cool to kids.

Most electronic greeting card sites are similar in set-up. Upon entering the site, you select a category of card that interests you. The next screen shows you a series of possible card choices. By clicking on one that appeals(有感染力) to you, the card will enlarge and may animate. If there is music with the card, it will start to play.

Usually there is a place to click to see the second (inside) page of the card. The site then offers you ability to personalize the card you have selected; you may be able to change the proposal message or add to it. At some sites, you can even add voice, video or photos to the cards.

Once you have personalized the e-card, you enter the e-mail address for delivery. Your recipient(接受者)will get an e-mail telling them to go to a specific web address to view the card you have made. You may be able to send the same card to multiple recipients. The delivery can be immediate, or you can choose to have it delivered on a specific day.

Most electronic greeting card sites, like many other fields, have lots of advertising. Many make their money by enticing(诱惑) people to buy extra stuff like gift certificates to add to navigate through this commercialism(利润第一主义)and to hand in areas that are fun and appropriate for them.

1．All of the following are the advantages of electronic greeting cards except cards except that　　   .

A. you still have to pay a small sum of money to send e-cards

B. e-cards are available for free on the Internet

C. e-cards are very cool to kids because they have cartooned pictures and some music to go with it

D. the delivery of e-cards is immediate

2．What’s the main topic of the first four paragraphs?

A. The advantages of using personal computer.

B. The development of modern postal and telecommunication service.

C. The reasons why children love to send and receive e-cards.

D. The advantages and disadvantages of traditional printed cards.

3．The underlined word“available”(in Paragraph 2)means　　   .

A. Interesting　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　   B. buyable

C. existing　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. able to be got or used

Children love to send and receive e-mails. The same with electronic greeting cards, for Valentine’s Day or many other occasions.

E-cards are available for free on the Internet. Most electronic greeting card sites give you a wide selection of choices and let you personalize your card.

Unlike with traditional printed cards, you don’t schlep(拖曳) to a card store to make your selection, you don’t fork out any money. Delivery is immediate; there’s no postage required and you are not using paper.

But the best thing about these card sites is that they animate and play music, which makes them very cool to kids.

Most electronic greeting card sites are similar in set-up. Upon entering the site, you select a category of card that interests you. The next screen shows you a series of possible card choices. By clicking on one that appeals(有感染力) to you, the card will enlarge and may animate. If there is music with the card, it will start to play.

Usually there is a place to click to see the second (inside) page of the card. The site then offers you ability to personalize the card you have selected; you may be able to change the proposal message or add to it. At some sites, you can even add voice, video or photos to the cards.

Once you have personalized the e-card, you enter the e-mail address for delivery. Your recipient(接受者)will get an e-mail telling them to go to a specific web address to view the card you have made. You may be able to send the same card to multiple recipients. The delivery can be immediate, or you can choose to have it delivered on a specific day.

Most electronic greeting card sites, like many other fields, have lots of advertising. Many make their money by enticing(诱惑) people to buy extra stuff like gift certificates to add to navigate through this commercialism(利润第一主义)and to hand in areas that are fun and appropriate for them.

1．All of the following are the advantages of electronic greeting cards except cards except that　　   .

A. you still have to pay a small sum of money to send e-cards

B. e-cards are available for free on the Internet

C. e-cards are very cool to kids because they have cartooned pictures and some music to go with it

D. the delivery of e-cards is immediate

2．What’s the main topic of the first four paragraphs?

A. The advantages of using personal computer.

B. The development of modern postal and telecommunication service.

C. The reasons why children love to send and receive e-cards.

D. The advantages and disadvantages of traditional printed cards.

3．The underlined word“available”(in Paragraph 2)means　　   .

A. Interesting　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　   B. buyable

C. existing　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. able to be got or used

When I was nine years old I lived in a small town. I found an ad for selling greeting cards in the back of a children’s magazine. I thought to myself I could do this. I begged my mother to let me send for the kit (配件). Two weeks later the kit arrived. The next three hours later, I returned home with no card and a pocket full of money shouting, “Mama, all the people couldn’t wait to buy my cards!” A salesperson was born.

When I was twelve years old, my father took me to see Zig Ziegler. I remember sitting in the dark hall listening to Mr. Ziegler raise everyone’s spirits up to ceiling. I left there feeling like I could do anything. When we got to the car, I turned to my father and said, “Dad, I want to make people feel like that.” My father asked me what I meant. “I want to be a motivational speaker just like Mr. Ziegler,” I replied. A dream was born.

Recently, I began pursuing my dream of motivating（激励）others. I realized that everything I had achieved — a good education, the successful sales career, speaking appointments, training and managing for a major fortune 100 company as a senior manager— had prepared me for this moment. I told my boss I would leave the company though I might not reach such a height(高度) in career. He told me to move on and he believed I would succeed.

Having made that decision, I was immediately tested. One week after I quit(辞掉) my job, my husband was laid off from his job. We had recently bought a new home and needed both incomes to make the monthly mortgage (抵押) payment and now we were done to no income. I even planned to turn back to my former company, knowing they wanted me to stay but I was sure that if I went back, I would never leave. I decided I still wanted to move forward instead of ending up with a mouth full of “if onlys” later on. A motivational speaker was born.

When I held fast to my dream, even during the tough times, the miracles（奇迹） really began to happen. In a short time period my husband found a better job. We didn’t miss a mortgage payment. And I was able to book several speaking appointments with new clients (客户). I discovered the incredible power of dreams. I loved my old job, my workmates and the company I left, but it was time to get on with my dream. To celebrate my success I had a local artist paint my new office as a garden. At the top of one wall she marked, “The world always makes way for the dreamer.”

53．Why was the kit sent for?

A. Selling greeting cards.                                   B. Collecting greeting cards.

C. Buying greeting cards.                                  D. Sending greeting cards.

54．When did the author decide to become a motivational speaker?

A. After buying a new home by mortgage.

B. After leaving her secure position in the company.

C. After finding a job in a major fortune 100 company.

D. After listening to Mr. Ziegler’s inspiring speech.

55．Which of the following statements is NOT TRUE?

A. She was once an excellent manager.

B. She left her post at the height of her career.

C. She was not sure whether the former company could accept her.

D. She didn’t miss paying the monthly mortgage payment.

56．What does the underlined sentence mean in the last paragraph?

A. Carry on with your dreams and you will be successful.

B. You will succeed if you have dreams.

C. The world is full of people with dreams.

D. Everyone will realize their dream in the world.

It was Andria Baker’s high school graduation party, and the time had come for her father to make good on a promise that he had made her years ago, when she was a fourth-grader. “After you started on your first day of kindergarten and continue it through your last day of high school, and I’ll buy you a car.” Tim Baker had told the child.

  Through the years, Andria Baker kept up her end of the bargain, willing herself to go to school on those days even when she felt under the weather. She did carry out her 13th year of uninterrupted coming to the classroom with her final day at Constantine High Sehool even when she was ill.

At Sunday’s party, her father gave the young woman the keys to a new, $17 000 Pontiac G6. Tim Baker, who teaches seventh grade at Constantine Middle School, said he has no regrets about the deal. “Without a doubt, it was worth every penny I spent,” he said. The look on his daughter’s face when she saw the car was great. Baker said, “When she turned around after seeing the car, she did not know what to do. We got her into the car and she just sat there. Then she ran into the house to get her driver’s license, and she and her best friend got in the car and drove down the road.”

Andria Baker, 19, said she thinks she would have gone ahead with that even if a new car had not been promised her. “A lot of my friends thought I was crazy, but I just kept going.” she said. Baker plans to go after an education degree at Alma College.

“In my sophomore year I hurt my ankle in a basketball game, and it was really painful,” she said. “Also that day I caught a cold and the teacher looked at me and said, ‘I’m not the teacher who’s going to send you home.’”

61．What does the phrase “she felt under the weather” mean?

A. She felt that the weather was very cold.                B. She didn’t feel good.

C. Her body changed with the weather.                     D. She liked the weather very much.

62．When Andria Baker saw her present, she felt ________.

A. surprised and excited                                    B. sad and crazy

C. frightened and worried                                  D. upset and angry

63．From the text, we can know that ________.

A. both Andria Baker and her father stayed in the same school

B. her father made the promise from the day when she began her school

C. her father didn’t regret having bought her a new expensive car

D. Andria Baker is now studying at Alma College for a degree

64．Andria Baker could come to school every day because ________.

A. she was helped by all of her friends                B. she wanted to get a new car

C. she never got ill                                            D. she just wanted to keep on doing that

PART THREE READING COMPREHENSION（30分）
Directions: Read the following three passages．Each passage is followed by several questions or unfinished statements．For each of them there are 4 choices marked A,B,C and D．Choose the one that fits best according to the information given in the passage．
Short reader – submitted stories – for the woman you should think of today!
——Compiled by Amy Zerello
Great Minds Reminded of Mom
After a long, exhausting day, a friend of mine, Allen, headed home. On the road, he passed an elderly woman who was standing by a car with a flat tire. If that were his mother, he thought, he would want someone to help her. With a tired sigh, he turned around and drove back.
Just as he reached the stranded woman, a truck pulled up and a burly farmer got out. "Kindof reminds you of your mom, too?" the man asked as the two of them pitched in together to change the tire for the woman.
-- Contributed by Katherine L. Houge
Your Biggest Fan
While waiting in a bookstore for a guest author to sign her latest book, I leafed through some of the Civil War novels she had written. The woman in line behind me commented, "Those are the best books I've ever read. I couldn't put them down." Before I could reply, the author frowning, looked over and said, "Oh, come on, Mom!"
-- Contributed by Marilyn Kopp
Head of the Household
My husband, Jeff, and I came across several problems while assembling our new computer system, so we called the help desk. The man on the phone started to talk to Jeff in computer jargon(行业术语), which confused us even more.
"Sir," my husband politely said, "please explain what I should do as if I were a four-year-old."
"Okay," the computer technician replied. "Sweetie, could you please put your mommy on the phone?"
-- Contributed by Lena Worth
How does it feel to tickle your mom’s funny bone?
Now send your own funny story to us! You could earn up to $ 300!
56．Who would the burly man be in the first joke?
A．Another kind helper.       B．The old lady’s son.
C．Allen’s friend.         D．A policeman.
57．What was the guest author’s mom trying to do in the second story?
A．Push hard to get her daughter’s signature.
B．Promote her daughter’s books by pretending to be a fan.
C．Show her pride in her daughter’s achievement.
D．Persuade Marilyn Kopp to buy her daughter’s book.
58．The computer technician on the phone in the third story________.
A．actually could find no way to solve Jeff’s problems
B．teased Jeff about his poor knowledge of computer jargon
C．wanted to talk to Lena instead
D．believed that Jeff’s mom would know more computer jargon
59．What is the main purpose of the jokes?
A．To make fun of moms.    B．To honor moms.
C．To educate moms.           D．To amuse moms.
60．The passage is most possibly found________.
A．in a storybook         B．in a commercial ad
C．in a magazine          D．in a student’s textbook