About six years ago I was eating lunch in a restaurant in New York City when a woman and a young boy sat down at the next table. I couldn’t help overhearing parts of their conversation. At one point the woman asked: “So, how have you been?” And the boy—who could not have been more than seven or eight years old—replied, “Frankly, I’ve been feeling a little depressed lately.”

This incident stuck in my mind because it confirmed my growing belief that children are changing. As far as I can remember, my friends and I didn’t find out we were “depressed”, that is, in low sprits, until we were in high school.

Undoubtedly a change in children has increased steadily in recent years. Children don’t seem childlike anymore. Children speak more like adults, dress more like adults and behave more like adults than they used to.

Whether this is good or bad is difficult to say, but it certainly is different. Childhood as it once was no longer exists. Why?

Human development is based not only on born biological states, but also on patterns of access to social knowledge. Movement from one social role to another usually involves learning the secrets of the new status. Children have always been taught adult secrets, but slowly and in stages: traditionally, we tell sixth graders things we keep hidden from fifth graders.

In the last 30 years, however, a secret-revelation（揭示）machine has been installed in 98 percent of American homes. It is called television. Television passes information to all viewers alike, whether they are children or adults. Unable to resist the temptation, many children turn their attention from printed texts to the less challenging, more vivid moving pictures.

Communication through print, as a matter of fact, allows for a great deal of control over the social information to which children have access. Reading and writing involve a complex code of symbols that must be memorized and practiced. Children must read simple books before they can read complex materials.

1.According to the author, feeling depressed is________.

A．a sure sign of a mental problem in a child

B．a mental state present in all humans, including children

C．something that cannot be avoided in children’s mental development

D．something hardly to be expected in a young child

2.Traditionally, a child is supposed to learn about the adult world________.

A．through connection with society

B．gradually and under guidance

C．naturally without being taught

D．through watching television

3.According to the author, that today’s children seem adultlike results from ________.

A．the widespread influence of television

B．the poor arrangement of teaching content

C．the fast pace of human scientific development

D．the rising standard of living

4.What does the author think of communication through print for children?

A．It enables children to gain more social information.

B．It develops children’s interest in reading and writing.

C．It helps children to read and write well.

D．It can control what children are to learn.

5.What does the author think of the change in today’s children?

A．He feels their adultlike behavior is so funny

B．He thinks the change worthy of note.

C．He considers it a rapid development.

D．He seems to be upset about it.

 

Cheektowage Central Middle School can be a lot of fun. It has game nights and student dances, after-school activities, and sports teams. However, students at the school must earn the right to join in the fun. If they don’t do their homework, participate in class, and behave at all times, they’re banned(禁止) from participating in after-school activities.

Students and parents say the threat of being excluded(排除在外) appears to be working. Kenny T. of Reno, Nev., says it taught him that actions have consequences: “I learned that I need to be balanced in both my work and athletics to be rewarded for working hard.” Parent Sondra LaMacchia told The New York Times that her 14-year-old daughter is learning responsibility at Cheektowaga Central. The teen used to perform poorly in her studies, but then she was banned from a school dance. The message got through loud and clear. “It’s nobody’s fault but hers,” LaMacchia said.

Although exclusion may help teach responsibility, some psychologists say it can also be threatening, especially for students who often cause, or may cause, trouble in school. They might become more aggressive and antisocial, which is exactly what schools like Cheektowaga Central want to prevent.

Should schools exclude students from activities to get them to behave? I believe teens need school activities and that inclusion can be the answer. For some troubled students, activities can be their motivation to stay in school. “Activities such as sports may be the only thing keeping certain students in school,” says Duace Wood, a teacher at Mohonasen High School in Rotterdam, N.Y. Getting involved in after-class activities keeps troublesome students in class. Even if they don’t do as well as their classmates, they are still learning. The more time they spend at school, the less time they have to even think about starting trouble. Teams also provide support and role models, and they help build the confidence that students need to succeed. If students who don’t behave are banned from activities, they might give up on school altogether.

1.Paragraph 2 is developed by _______.

A．analyzing causes                        B．giving examples

C．examining differences                    D．following the time order

2.Parent Sondra LaMacchia supports the policy of exclusion because _______.

A．it provides role models

B．her daughter is aggressive

C．her daughter hates taking exercise

D． it helps teach responsibility

3.In Paragraph 3 and 4, the author mainly talks about________.

A．students who are good at sports

B．students who often cause trouble

C．teens who do well in their studies

D．teens who always behave themselves

4.What is the author’s attitude towards the school’s policy of exclusion?

A． Negative         B．Sympathetic        C．Satisfied          D．Supportive

 

Many Chinese high school students are tired of their parents’ nagging（唠叨）. They think their parents’ high expectations are burdens (负担). But a recent survey found that they are much luckier than teenagers in Japan, the Republic of Korea and the US, who also find their parents annoying . The parents of foreign teens have even higher expectations of their children than Chinese parents. 62% of Chinese fathers and 66%of Chinese mothers have high expectations of their children at high school age. They rank third and fourth among fathers and mothers of four countries. Japanese mothers top the list with 76% having high expectations, while 70% of Korean fathers expect too much of their children. Japanese teens are the most deeply troubled by their parents constantly (总是) comparing them with other kids.

The survey also found that Chinese students are the most satisfied with their parents. They blame them less, and also receive less criticism than those from the other three countries . However ,satisfaction doesn’t mean they are happy. Of the four countries, Chinese children are not the happiest at home. They get the least praise from their parents and they don’t feel able to express their unhappiness to them,

“Results from the survey show that in spite of different cultural backgrounds, generation gaps （代沟）exist in many countries other than China. It’s even bigger elsewhere,” said Sun Yunsxiao, from the China Yonth and Children Research Centre. He said that Chinese parents are used to burying their feelings deep in their hearts, which makes their children not want to talk openly with them. “ This survey shows that both parents and teenagers in China need to work on communicating and understanding each other. ”

Besides their family life, students were also questioned about their opinions on themselves and others in the world. US students showed more “individuality,” with 88% agreeing that “people should follow their own interests instead of those of others”. Koreans were the next most independent, followed by the Chinese and Japanese.

53. The text is mainly about________.

A. the unlucky school students’ troubles

B. the different generation gaps in different countries

C. the comparation of students’ family situations in different countries

D. the relationship between children and parents

54. Japanese students think it most troublesome that their parents______.

A. often compare them with other children

B. have the highest expectations

C. are not satisfied with them

D. seldom talk openly with them

55. Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?

A. Chinese teens are happiest at home for they are most satisfied with their parents.

B. Chinese parents blame or criticize their children less and praise them more.

C. Generation gap in China is much bigger than that in other countries.

D. Chinese parents don’t often talk openly with their children

56.         students are the most independent

A. US         B. Japanese       C. Korean   D   . Chinese

 

Two thieves came to a house to steal something. They dug a hole in the wall of the house.

　　There lived many mice in the house. The woman in the house saw a mouse crawl(爬行) into the house in the moonlight. “Look! In comes one,” she said to the man in the house. The thief was so frightened that he hurriedly crawled out of the house and said to the one waiting outside, “She found me when I was just in.” But the thief outside didn’t believe him, so he said, “Let us try to crawl into the house together.” At that time two mice happened to crawl into the house, too. The woman saw the mice and shouted, “In come two, catch them!” The two thieves were terribly frightened. The man in the house said, “You saw them come in but where are they? I will catch them tonight.” The two thieves started running away at once.

　　The two thieves wanted to make it clear whether they had been found or not the night before. The next day they acted as men selling sweet potatoes and came before the house. The man and the woman were ploughing in their fields. The rope broke and the woman came home for a rope. She saw two men selling sweet potatoes and wanted to buy some. She picked out two which looked like mice. At the time the man couldn’t wait for her any longer in the fields and he ran back from the fields to hurry her up. The woman showed the sweet potatoes to the man and said, “How they look like the two of last night.” The man said, “I asked you to fetch a rope, why don’t you hurry for it?” The two thieves ran away very quickly without their sweet potatoes.

1.The two thieves failed to steal anything from the house because _____.

A．they were found out

B．they were frightened by what they had heard in the house

C．they didn’t work together well with each other

D．mice stopped them from doing so

2.From the last paragraph, we know that _____.

A．the two thieves were famous selling sweet potatoes

B．the woman recognized the two thieves

C．the woman pretended to know nothing about the two thieves and made fun of them

D．the two thieves didn’t know that they were not found at all

3.When the woman said, “How they look like the two of last night!” _____.

A．she referred to the two thieves	B．she meant nothing
C．she said it on purpose	D．she referred to the mice

4.“____________”is the best title for this passage.

A．Two Clever Thieves	B．Terrible Mice
C．Hit the Mark by a Fluke(侥幸)	D．A Clever Coupe

5.Which of the following statements is NOT true?

A．The two thieves not only failed to steal things but also lost their sweet potatoes.

B．Whenever they found mice, the people in the house would try to catch them.

C．The two thieves ran away at once, because they thought the woman had seen them.

D．The man let the woman go home for a rope, which would be used for catching the thieves.

 

Hans was an honest fellow with a funny round good-humored face. Living alone, every day he worked in his garden. In all the countryside there was no garden so lovely as his. All sorts of flowers grew there, blooming in their proper order as the months went by, one flower taking another flower’s place, so that there were always beautiful things to see, and pleasant odors to smell.

Hans had many friends, the most devoted being the Miller. So devoted was the rich Miller to Hans that he’d never go by his garden without plucking a large bunch of flowers or a handful of sweet herbs, or filling his pockets with fruits. The Miller used to talk about noble ideas, and Hans nodded and smiled, feeling proud of having such a friend.

The neighbors thought it strange that the rich Miller never gave Hans anything in return, though he had hundreds of sacks of flour, many cows and sheep, but Hans never troubled his head about these, and nothing gave him greater pleasure than to listen to all the wonderful things about the unselfishness of true friendship.

In spring, summer, and autumn Hans was very happy, but when winter came, and he had no fruit or flowers to sell, he suffered from cold and hunger. Though extremely lonely, the Miller never came to see him then.

“There’s no good in going to see Hans while the snow lasts.” The Miller said to his wife, “When people are in trouble they shouldn’t be bothered. So I’ll wait till the spring comes when he’s happy to give me flowers.”

“You’re certainly very thoughtful,” answered his wife, “It’s quite a treat to hear you talk about friendship.”

“Couldn’t we ask Hans up here?” said their son. “I’ll give him half my meal, and show him my white rabbits.”

“How silly you are!” cried the Miller. “I really don’t know what’s the use of sending you to school. If Hans came up here, and saw our warm fire, our good supper, and our red wine, he might get envious, and envy is a most terrible thing, and would spoil anybody’s nature. I am his best friend, and I’ll always watch over him, and see that he’s not led into any temptation. Besides, if Hans came here, he might ask me for some flour. Flour is one thing, and friendship is another, and they shouldn’t be confused. The words are spelt differently, and mean quite different things. Everybody can see that.” He looked seriously at his son, who felt so ashamed that he hung his head down, and grew quite scared, and began to cry into his tea.

Spring coming, the Miller went down to see Hans. Again he talked about friendship. “Hans, friendship never forgets. I’m afraid you don’t understand the poetry of life. See, how lovely your roses are!”

Hans said he wanted to sell them in the market to buy back his things which were sold during the hard time of the winter.

“I’ll give you many good things. I think being generous is the base of friendship.” said the Miller. “And now, as I’ll give you many good things, I’m sure you’d like to give me some flowers in return. Here’s the basket, and fill it quite full.”

Poor Hans was afraid to say anything. He ran and plucked all his pretty roses, and filled the Miller’s basket, imagining the many good things promised by the Miller.

The next day he heard the Miller calling: “Hans, would you mind carrying this sack of flour for me to market?”

“I’m sorry, but I am really very busy today.”

“Well,” said the Miller, “considering that I’m going to give you my things, it’s rather unfriendly of you to refuse. Upon my word, you mustn’t mind my speaking quite plainly to you.”

Poor Hans was driven by his friendship theory to work hard for his best friend, leaving his garden dry and wasted.  

One evening Hans was sitting by fire when the Miller came.

“Hans,” cried the Miller, “My little boy has fallen off a ladder and hurt himself, and I’m going for the Doctor. But he lives so far away, and it’s such a bad windy night. It has just occurred to me that you can go instead of me. You know I’m going to give you my good things, so you should do something for me in return.”

“Certainly,” cried Hans. He struggled into the stormy night, and got the doctor to ride a horse to the Miller’s house in time to save the boy. However, Hans got lost in the darkness, and wandered off into a deep pool, drowned.

At Hans’ funeral, the Miller said, “I was his best friend. I should walk at the head of the procession.” Every now and then he wiped his eyes with a handkerchief.

1.From the passage, we can learn that Hans ______.

A．was extremely wise and noble             B．admired the Miller very much

C．was highly valued by the Miller             D．had a strong desire for fortune

2.Hans worked a lot for the Miller because he ______.

A．was treated as a best friend by the Miller

B．owed the Miller many valuable things

C．was convinced of the Miller’s noble talk

D．intended to show off his unselfishness

3.What’s the main cause of Hans’ tragedy?

A．True friendship between them.             B．Blind devotion to a friend.

C．A sudden change of weather.              D．A lack of formal education.

4.The author described the Miller’s behavior in order to ______.

A．warn the readers about the danger of a false friend

B．show the friendship between Hans and the Miller

C．entertain the readers with an incredible joking tale

D．persuade people to be as intelligent as the Miller