The winter skies are grey and it’s cold outside. The nights come early and we spend a lot more time __1__ and alone. Many people __2__ winter: so cold, so dark, so boring. But I like winter because I have more time to read.

For many students reading means school; it means __3__. Reading is something your teacher assigns and it’s something you’re __4__. Reading is something you have to do, not something you want to do. But for me and many other people, reading is the most __5__ thing we can imagine. Getting lost in a good book can __6__ a cold winter evening disappear. Dull grey skies are no __7__ for the fantastic adventures of Frodo in The Lord of the Rings《指环王》or for romantic trouble-making of Jane Austen’s Emma《爱玛》, or for the youthful problems of Holden Caulfield in The Catcher in the Rye《麦田守望者》.

      All of those books are studied in North American high schools. They are interesting and well written books that __8__ young people. __9__, even there, many high school students don’t enjoy reading the books because they are __10__ their school work: “Oh, my God! Two hundred pages! I’ll never be able to read __11__ much.” But sometimes a funny thing happens. They begin to read and they begin to follow the __12__. Suddenly, the world inside the book becomes more exciting and more wonderful than the world they __13__. At the moment the thought __14__ reading is work disappears and reading becomes __15__.

      Reading anything is __16__ but reading good books is a terrific （极好的） way to improve your English. Good writers write English very well and __17__ you with good examples to follow. And good books will tell you more about English __18__: what people think, how they talk, how they interact with each other. But don’t let me __19__ it by telling you that reading is good for you. Just think of it as a good way to __20_ on a cold winter evening.

1．A．indoors                       B．indoor               C．outdoors                  D．outside

2．A．like                             B．prefer               C．hate                         D．love

3．A．job                              B．worry               C．try                          D．work

4．A．checked                      B．tested on           C．examined                 D．based on

5．A．enjoyable                     B．reasonable          C．comfortable             D．considerable

6．A．want                           B．cause                C．make                       D．force

7．A．contest                        B．challenge           C．competition              D．match

8．A．appeal to                     B．respond to        C．react to                    D．reply to

9．A．Fortunately                  B．eventually         C．Unfortunately           D．Accidentally

10．A．free from                   B．part of              C．in place of                D．far from

11．A．not                            B．very                 C．this                         D．that

12．A．story                         B．subject              C．idea                          D．theme

13．A．leave for                    B．care about         C．flee from                 D．live in

14．A．what                         B．that                  C．this                         D．which

15．A．a comfort                  B．a failure            C．a success                 D．a pleasure

16．A．bad                           B．mean                C．great                       D．grand

17．A．provide                      B．offer                 C．give                         D．award

18．A．custom                      B．language            C．culture                     D．art

19．A．break                        B．spoil                 C．make                       D．develop

20．A．keep warm                B．stand still          C．stay calm                 D．stay cool

The winter skies are grey and it’s cold outside. The nights come early and we spend a lot more time  1   and alone. Many people __2__ winter：so cold, so dark, so boring. But I like winter because I have more time to read.

       For many students reading means school; it means __3__. Reading is something their teacher assigns and it’s something they’re __4__. Reading is something they have to do, not something they want to do. But for me and many other people, reading is the most __5__ thing we can imagine. Getting lost in a good book can __6__ a cold winter evening disappear. Dull grey skies are no __7__ for the fantastic adventures of Frodo in The Lord of the Rings《指环王》，or for romantic trouble-making of Jane Austen’s Emma《爱玛》, or for the youthful problems of Holden Caulfield in The Catcher in the Rye《麦田守望者》.

       All of those books are studied in North American high schools. They are interesting and well written books that __8__ young people. __9__, even there, many high school students don’t enjoy reading the books because they are __10__ their school work： “Oh，my God! Two hundred pages! I’ll never be able to read __11__ much.” But sometimes a funny thing happens. They begin to read and they begin to follow the __12__. Suddenly, the world inside the book becomes more exciting and more wonderful than the world they __13__. At the moment the thought __14__ reading is work disappears and reading becomes __15__.

       Reading anything is __16__ but reading good books is a terrific way to improve your English. Good writers write English very well and __17__ you with good examples to follow. And good books will tell you more about English __18__：what people think, how they talk, and how they communicate with each other. But don’t let me __19__ it by telling you that reading is good for you. Just think of it as a good way to __20 _on a cold winter evening.

1．A．indoors                 B．inside                  C．outdoors             D．outside

2．A．like                       B．prefer                  C．hate                    D．love

3．A．job                       B．worry                 C．try                      D．work

4．A．tested                   B．tested on             C．examined             D．examined by

5．A．enjoyable               B．reasonable           C．comfortable         D．considerable

6．A．want                     B．cause                  C．make                  D．force

7．A．contest                 B．challenge             C．competition         D．match

8．A．interesting             B．interested             C．interest                D．to interest

9．A．Fortunately            B．Luckily                C．Unfortunately       D．Accidentally

10．A．free from            B．part of                 C．in place of           D．far from

11．A．not                      B．very                    C．this                     D．that

12．A．story                   B．subject                C．topic                   D．theme

13．A．leave for              B．care about           C．flee from             D．live in

14．A．what                  B．that                     C．this                     D．which

15．A．a comfort            B．a failure               C．a success            D．a pleasure

16．A．bad                     B．uselessly              C．great                   D．wonderfully

17．A．provide               B．offer                   C．give                    D．award

18．A．custom               B．language              C．culture                D．art

19．A．persuade             B．spoil                    C．make                  D．develop

20．A．keep warm         B．stand still          C．stay calm        D．stay cool

Everyone knows about straight-A students. We see them frequently in TV situation comedies and in movies like Revenge (报复) of the Nerds. They get high grades, all right, but only by becoming dull laborers, their noses always stuck in a book. They are not good at social communication and look clumsy while doing sports.
How, then, do we account for Domenica Roman or Paul Melendres? Roman is on the tennis team at Fairmont Senior High School. She also sings in the choral group, serves on the student council and is a member of the mathematics society. For two years she has maintained A’s in every subject. Melendres, a freshman at the University of New Mexico, was student-body president at Valley High School in Albuquerque. He played soccer and basketball well, exhibited at the science fair, and meanwhile worked as a reporter on a local television station. Being a speech giver at the graduation ceremony, he achieved straight A’s in his regular classes, plus bonus points for A’s in two college-level courses.
How do super-achievers like Roman and Melendres do it? Brains aren’t the only answer. “Top grades don’t always go to the brightest students,” declares Herbert Walberg, a professor of education at the University of Illinois at Chicago, who has conducted major studies on super-achieving students. “Knowing how to make full use of your innate (天生的) abilities counts for more. Much more.”
In fact, Walberg says, students with high IQ sometimes don’t do as well as classmates with lower IQ. For them, learning comes too easily and they never find out how to get down. Hard work isn’t the whole story, either. “It’s not how long you sit there with the books open,” said one of the many-A students we interviewed. “It’s what you do while you’re sitting.” Indeed, some of these students actually put in fewer hours of homework time than their lower-scoring classmates.
The kids at the top of the class get there by mastering a few basic techniques that others can readily learn

1. 1.

   The underlined word “nerds” in paragraph 1 can probably be ________

   1. A.
      dull bookworms lacking sports and social skills
   2. B.
      successful top students popular with their peers
   3. C.
      students with certain learning difficulties
   4. D.
      born leaders crazy about social activities
2. 2.

   What can we conclude from the first paragraph?

   1. A.
      Most TV programs and films are about straight-A students
   2. B.
      People have unfavorable impression on straight-A students
   3. C.
      Everyone knows about straight-A students from TV or films
   4. D.
      Straight-A students are well admired by people in the society
3. 3.

   Some students become super-achievers mainly because ________

   1. A.
      they are born cleverer than others
   2. B.
      they work longer hours at study
   3. C.
      they make full use of their abilities
   4. D.
      they know the shortcut to success
4. 4.

   What will be talked about after the last paragraph?

   1. A.
      The interviews with more students
   2. B.
      The role IQ plays in learning well
   3. C.
      The techniques to be better learners
   4. D.
      The achievements top students make
5. 5.

   What can we infer from the passage?

   1. A.
      IQ is more important than hard work in study
   2. B.
      The brightest students can never get low grades
   3. C.
      Top students certainly achieve all-around developments
   4. D.
      Students with average IQ can become super-achievers

Everyone knows about straight-A students. We see them frequently in TV situation comedies and in movies like Revenge(报复)of the Nerds. They get high grades, all right, but only by becoming dull laborers, their noses always stuck in a book. They are not good at social communication and look clumsy while doing sports.
How, then, do we account for Domenica Roman or Paul Melendres?
Roman is on the tennis team at Fairmont Senior High School. She also sings in the choral group, serves on the student council and is a member of the mathematics society. For two years she has maintained A’s in every subject. Melendres, a freshman at the University of New Mexico, was student-body president at Valley High School in Albuquerque. He played soccer and basketball well, exhibited at the science fair, and meanwhile worked as a reporter on a local television station. Being a speech giver at the graduation ceremony, he achieved straight A’s in his regular classes, plus bonus points for A’s in two college-level courses.
How do super-achievers like Roman and Melendres do it? Brains aren’t the only answer. “Top grades don’t always go to the brightest students, ” declares Herbert Walberg, a professor of education at the University of Illinois at Chicago, who has conducted major studies on super-achieving students. “Knowing how to make the most of your innate(天生的)abilities counts for more. Much more.”
In fact, Walberg says, students with high IQ sometimes don’t do as well as classmates with lower IQ. For them, learning comes too easily and they never find out how to get down.
Hard work isn’t the whole story, either. “It’s not how long you sit there with the books open, ” said one of the many-A students we interviewed. “It’s what you do while you’re sitting.” Indeed, some of these students actually put in fewer hours of homework time than their lower-scoring classmates.
The kids at the top of the class get there by mastering a few basic techniques that others can readily learn.
【小题1】The underlined word “nerds” can probably be________ .

Everyone knows about straight-A students. We see them frequently in TV situation comedies and in movies like Revenge (报复) of the Nerds. They get high grades, all right, but only by becoming dull laborers, their noses always stuck in a book. They are not good at social communication and look clumsy while doing sports.
How, then, do we account for Domenica Roman or Paul Melendres? Roman is on the tennis team at Fairmont Senior High School. She also sings in the choral group, serves on the student council and is a member of the mathematics society. For two years she has maintained A’s in every subject. Melendres, a freshman at the University of New Mexico, was student-body president at Valley High School in Albuquerque. He played soccer and basketball well, exhibited at the science fair, and meanwhile worked as a reporter on a local television station. Being a speech giver at the graduation ceremony, he achieved straight A’s in his regular classes, plus bonus points for A’s in two college-level courses.
How do super-achievers like Roman and Melendres do it? Brains aren’t the only answer. “Top grades don’t always go to the brightest students,” declares Herbert Walberg, a professor of education at the University of Illinois at Chicago, who has conducted major studies on super-achieving students. “Knowing how to make full use of your innate (天生的) abilities counts for more. Much more.”
In fact, Walberg says, students with high IQ sometimes don’t do as well as classmates with lower IQ. For them, learning comes too easily and they never find out how to get down. Hard work isn’t the whole story, either. “It’s not how long you sit there with the books open,” said one of the many-A students we interviewed. “It’s what you do while you’re sitting.” Indeed, some of these students actually put in fewer hours of homework time than their lower-scoring classmates.
The kids at the top of the class get there by mastering a few basic techniques that others can readily learn.
【小题1】The underlined word “nerds” in paragraph 1 can probably be ________.