When I was 19 years old, I was at a dance club. As we were walking to my car one cold night, a man walked up to us. Behind him was a woman carrying a small child. The child had a jacket on but it wasn’t buttoned up（扣上）. The man began to tell us he wanted to borrow some money for the night to get his wife and kid into a hotel. He had a job but no place to live in and was waiting for he first paycheck. He said he could get our mailing address and mail the money back.
The guy I was with reached into his pocket to give this man a $20 bill. As the other man was extending his hand out to take the money, I put my hand on my new friends’ hand and said, “ Can I talk to you for a minute?”
I told him that every day people asked my mother for money on her way to work. She said they made more money than she did, simply begging for money. These people were scamming those with soft hearts. And if they were truly worried about their child suffering from the cold, they would have at least buttoned his jacket or covered him with his blanket.
My new friend looked at me with disappointment and said, “Michelle, I know there are people out there that take advantage of others. I also know there are people out there that are one paycheck away from being homeless. If I give $ 20 to 10 people and only one of them really needs it and uses it for the right thing, it is worth it.”
I am now 37 years old and have never forgotten what he said to me. I don’t even remember his name. But I do remember that that experience changed the way I look at different situations.

1. 1.

   What do we know about the stranger according to the passage?
   

   1. A.
      He had been begging for a long time near the dance club.
   2. B.
      He would spend the cold night at an expensive hotel.
   3. C.
      He was careless and didn’t take good care of his child.
   4. D.
      He might be just lying in order to get some money.
2. 2.

   Why did the author put her hand on her new friends’ hand?

   1. A.
      She wanted to tell him to give some more money to the stranger.
   2. B.
      She believed her mother had already given the stranger some money.
   3. C.
      She wanted to warm him not to be cheated by the stranger.
   4. D.
      She asked her friend to pay more attention to the baby instead.
3. 3.

   Which of the following can take the place of the underlined word “ scamming ” in the 3rd paragraph?
   

   1. A.
      cheating                    
   2. B.
      respecting           
   3. C.
      disappointing               
   4. D.
      understanding
4. 4.

   We can safely say that the author’s friend was_________.
   

   1. A.
      funny                          
   2. B.
      kind                        
   3. C.
      rich                        
   4. D.
      brave

One day an out of work mimic(滑稽演员) is visiting the zoo and attempts to earn some money as a street performer. As soon as he starts to draw the crowd，a zoo keeper grabs him and drags him into his office. The zoo keeper explains to the mimic that the zoo's most popular attraction，a gorilla(大猩猩)，has died suddenly and the keeper fears that attendance at the zoo will fall off. He offers the mimic a job to dress up as the gorilla until they can get another one. The mimic accepts.

So the next morning the mimic puts on the gorilla suit and enters the cage before the crowd comes. He discovers that it's a great job. He can sleep all he wants，play and make fun of people and he draws bigger crowds than he ever did as a mimic. However，eventually the crowds tire of him and he tires of just swinging on wires. He begins to notice that the people are paying more attention to the lion in the cage next to his. Not wanting to lose the attention of his audience，he climbs to the top of his cage，crawls across a partition(隔离物)，and dangles from the top to the lion's cage. Of course，this makes the lion very angry，but the crowd loves it.

At the end of the day the zoo keeper comes and gives the mimic a raise for being such a good attraction. Well，this goes on for some time－the mimic keeps taunting the lion，the crowds grow larger，and his salary keeps going up. Then one terrible day when he is dangling over the angry lion he slips and falls. The mimic is terrified.

The lion gathers itself and prepares to attack. The mimic is so scared that he begins to run round and round the cage with the lion close behind. Finally，the mimic starts screaming and yelling，“Help me，help me！”But the lion is quick and attacks. The mimic soon finds himself flat on his back looking up at the angry lion and the lion says，“Shut up，you idiot！Do you want to get us both fired？”

1.The mimic visits the zoo to________.

A．take care of the dying gorilla           B．beg some money from the zoo keeper

C．ask for a job there                     D．perform and earn some money there

2.The zoo keeper offers the mimic a job to act as the gorilla because________.

A．it is more expensive to hire a real gorilla

B．the real gorilla died but the keeper does not want to lose its visitors

C．he likes the mimic's performance

D．he wants to help the mimic who is out of work

3.What does the mimic feel about the new job at first?

A．He likes it because he has enough freedom in the job.

B．He likes it but he prefers to working as a mimic.

C．He doesn't like it for people do not respect him.

D．He doesn't like it because he gets little pay.

4.The mimic climbs to the lion's cage because________.

A．he finds it more interesting to climb the cage

B．he wants to play with the lion

C．he wants to attract the attention of his audience

D．he has never seen a lion before

5.What does the passage mainly tell us?

A. The mimic and his job                  B. The mimic and his success

C. The actor and the mimic               D. The mimic and his animals

 (CNN News)－In his work for a humanitarian(人道主义)agency in Afghanistan, Lex Kassenberg asks an important question when he visits schoolchildren: What will you do when you grow up?“I want to be president,”is an answer Kassenberg often hears from girls.

   But for all the admiration Kassenberg has for a youngster's ambition, the 53-year-old CARE aid worker knows that in Afghanistan, the idea of a female national leader remains unlikely to be realized in the immediate future. Only recently, women had suffered a lot under the rule of the militant(激进的)Taliban.

  The importance of education, especially for girls, is not ignored by the Afghan people or humanitarian agencies trying to improve their living conditions. That's why the World Bank partnered with CARE to investigate how education can succeed when there are increasing violent attacks on Afghan schools.

  “Knowledge on Fire”, CARE's education report made known to the public Monday, found that community-based schools are the most sound and workable in Afghanistan.“Education-related violence is an alarming trend in Afghanistan,”said Helene Gayle, president of CARE. “But this study suggests that an approach of building support for education at the local level can reduce the risks of attacks.”

  Because government school are often associated with a Kabul administration viewed by the Taliban as a pupper(傀儡政府)of the United States, they are likely to be attacked, Kassenberg said. And schools built with reconstruction dollars are associated with the military. Between January 2006 and December 2008, 1,053 education-related attacks or threats were reported in Afghanistan, according to CARE. The number of incidents was almost three times as much as that in 2005.

1.The World Bank cooperated with CARE in order to       .

A. know how to educate Afghan boys and girls successfully during the war.

  B. know how to give money to Afghan boys and girls.

C. know the condition of education in Afghan schools.

D. know if the education of Afghan boys and girls is successful

2. The passage implied that         .

  A. Afghan people suffered a lot               B. Afghan boys suffered little                           

  C. Afghan girls didn't suffer at all            D. Afghan girls suffered more than boys            

3.Why have attacks on schools been on the rise since 2005?

A. The Taliban thought schools are connected with the military.

  B. The Taliban thought the Kabul administration would cooperate with it.

C. The Taliban thought schools were built by the American government.

D. The Taliban thought schools were built with reconstruction dollars.

4. According to the last paragraph, attacks on Afghan schools in 2005 amounted to      .

  A. 670               B. 1, 053               C. over 1,700         D. about 350  

Carly Zalenski’s eyes were filled with tears as the dusty bus ran down a dirt road in southern Vietnam. She and her parents had travelled to Ho Chi Minh City by plane from Canton, Ohio of the USA. As they became     to the village, hundreds of cheering      stood in lines at the      to the Hoa Lac School, a two-story building that Carly had      money for.

  Carly started helping      when she was eight. She often walked about to send Thanksgiving baskets at church to families in need. When she saw one girl      very little in a snowy day and others didn’t have warm     , she went door-to-door asking for      coats, hats, gloves, and scarves, then handed them     to the poor families with the baskets.

  However, Carly wanted to do     more—she wanted to “change these children’s     with her efforts”. She remembered that her grandmother’s Rotary club had collected money to build a     in Vietnam a few years ago. She wanted to build a school,      .

  She put together a short show on the people and culture of Vietnam to his audience.    her new braces(脚支架) made it      to make the speech, she was full of enthusiasm, “I want to give them a place to     their lives better.”

  That summer, Carly     with her family across Ohio, visiting three or four Rotary clubs a week. “We travelled like      people to all these meetings,” said her mother. In two years, Carly had raised $50,000. At the donation    in Hoa Lac, the school principal was deeply    by the little girl. “How wonderful it is,” he said, “that a girl at her age wants to do something for kids so far away.”

1.A. farther                     B. closer                C. higher                        D. faster

2.A. adults                       B. farmers                       C. workers                  D. children

3.A. entrance        B. centre                    C. top               D. exit

4.A. collected                   B. borrow                      C. saved             D. earned

5.A. another          B. the others                     C. others            D. the other

6.A. wearing                    B. putting on                     C. dressing           D. taking off

7.A. houses           B. beds                          C. clothes                     D. food

8.A. new                        B. beautiful                      C. used              D. broken

9.A. out              B. up                            C. back               D. over

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

11.A. moods         B. works                        C. studies                      D. lives

12.A. church        B. village                 C. library                        D. school

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

14.A. Because                 B. Unless                C. Although                    D. When

15.A. hard           B. funny                 C. easy                        D. happy

16.A. remain        B. make                         C. turn                         D. allow

17.A. set off                    B. take off                        C. turn off                      D. pay off

18.A. sick                       B. disabled              C. crazy              D. friendly

19.A. ceremony    B. tradition                       C. currency          D. condition

20.A. surprised                B. pleased                       C. excited            D. touched

Many people influenced various aspects of my life, based on their personal characteristics, accomplishments (才艺）, and values. I have been fortunate to have had numerous teachers and professors who I respect for their patienceand intelligence. There are artists that have inspired me by their natural talents and original creativity. I value many political leaders, who have inspired me by their contributions to society, and their ability to change our future. But of all the people I have known in my life, the person I admire most is my father.
As the youngest girl in my family, I always considered myself to be “Daddy’s little girl.” While growing up, it always made me sad to see so many of my friends and neighbours without a father or father-like figure around. This helped me appreciate how my father always takes an interest in his children’s lives. In my early life my father continuously pushes me to excel, so I could accomplish my work outstandingly among my people. Whenever I feel like giving up, or having a question or a concern, I know I can always call on him for advice. From him I have also learned that sometimes you have to put others’ needs ahead of your own, but not to the point they will begin to take advantage of you. His strength seems to be unbreakable during hard times, and he is extremely determined to accomplish anything he sets his mind on, no matter how tiny it is. I highly respect him for how he stands up for what he believes in, and will never back down. I have always admired his open mind, enthusiasm for work and people around, and sense of understanding. He is a very reserved man, but to everybody’s surprise, he has a great sense of humor, and always knows how to put a smile on the faces of his wife, his children and his friends.
Living in his affection and instruction, I am very proud of my father. He also professes how proud he is of his children, and is still there to support us in whatever we are involved in.
【小题1】What is the best title for the passage?