In this age of Internet chat，videogames and reality television，there is no shortage of mindless activities to keep a child occupied．Yet，despite the competition，my 8-year-old daughter Rebecca wants to spend her leisure time writing short stories．She wants to enter one of her stories into a writing contest，a competition she won last year．
As a writer I know about winning contests，and about losing them．I know what it is like to work hard on a story only to receive a rejection slip from the publisher．I also know the pressure of trying to live up to a reputation created by previous victories．What if she doesn.t win the contest again？That’s the strange thing about being a parent．So many of our own past scars and dashed hopes can surface．
A revelation（启示）came last week when l asked her，”Don’t you want to win again？” “No,” she replied，“I just want to tell the story of an angel（天使）going to first grade．”
I had just spent weeks correcting her stories as she spontaneously（自发地）told them．Telling myself that l was merely an experienced writer guiding the young writer across the hall. I offered suggestions for characters，conflicts and endings for her tales．The story about a fearful angel starting first grade was quickly“guided”by me into the tale of a little girl with a wild imagination taking her first music lesson．I had turned her contest into my contest without even realizing it．
Staying back and giving kids space to grow is not as easy as it looks．Because I know very little about farm animals who use tools or angels who go to first grade，I had to accept the fact that I was co-opting（借用）my daughter’s experience．
While stepping back was difficult for me，it was certainly a good first step that l will quickly follow with more steps，putting myself far enough away to give her room but close enough to help if asked．All the while I will be reminding myself that children need room to experiment，grow and find their own voices．
【小题1】What did the author say about her own writing experience？

In this age of Internet chat，videogames and reality television，there is no shortage of mindless activities to keep a child occupied．Yet，despite the competition，my 8-year-old daughter Rebecca wants to spend her leisure time writing short stories．She wants to enter one of her stories into a writing contest，a competition she won last year．

    As a writer I know about winning contests，and about losing them．I know what it is like to work hard on a story only to receive a rejection slip from the publisher．I also know the pressure of trying to live up to a reputation created by previous victories．What if she doesn.t win the contest again？That’s the strange thing about being a parent．So many of our own past scars and dashed hopes can surface．

A revelation（启示）came last week when l asked her，”Don’t you want to win again？” “No,” she replied，“I just want to tell the story of an angel（天使）going to first grade．”

I had just spent weeks correcting her stories as she spontaneously（自发地）told them．Telling myself that l was merely an experienced writer guiding the young writer across the hall. I offered suggestions for characters，conflicts and endings for her tales．The story about a fearful angel starting first grade was quickly“guided”by me into the tale of a little girl with a wild imagination taking her first music lesson．I had turned her contest into my contest without even realizing it．

Staying back and giving kids space to grow is not as easy as it looks．Because I know very little about farm animals who use tools or angels who go to first grade，I had to accept the fact that I was co-opting（借用）my daughter’s experience．

While stepping back was difficult for me，it was certainly a good first step that l will quickly follow with more steps，putting myself far enough away to give her room but close enough to help if asked．All the while I will be reminding myself that children need room to experiment，grow and find their own voices．

1.What did the author say about her own writing experience？

    A．Most of her stories had been rejected by publishers．

    B．She did not quite live up to her reputation as a writer．

    C．Her way to success was full of pains and frustrations．

    D．She was constantly under pressure of writing more．

2.Why did Rebecca want to enter this year’s writing contest？

    A．She wanted to share her stories with readers．

    B．She was sure of winning with her mother’s help．

    C．She believed she possessed real talent for writing．

    D．She had won a prize in the previous contest．

3.The author took great pains to refine her daughter’s stories because       ．

    A．she was afraid Rebecca’s imagination might run wild while writing

    B．she did not want to disappoint Rebecca who needed her help so much

    C．she believed she had the knowledge and experience to offer guidance

    D．she wanted to help Rebecca realize her dreams of becoming a writer

4.What’s the author’s advice for parents？

    A．Parents should keep an eye on the activities their kids engage in．

    B．Children should be allowed freedom to grow through experience．

    C．A writing career，though attractive，is not for every child to pursue．

    D．Children should be given every chance to voice their opinions．

In this age of Internet chat，videogames and reality television，there is no shortage of mindless activities to keep a child occupied．Yet，despite the competition，my 8-year-old daughter Rebecca wants to spend her leisure time writing short stories．She wants to enter one of her stories into a writing contest，a competition she won last year．

    As a writer I know about winning contests，and about losing them．I know what it is like to work hard on a story only to receive a rejection slip from the publisher．I also know the pressure of trying to live up to a reputation created by previous victories．What if she doesn.t win the contest again？That’s the strange thing about being a parent．So many of our own past scars and dashed hopes can surface．

A revelation（启示）came last week when l asked her，”Don’t you want to win again？” “No,” she replied，“I just want to tell the story of an angel（天使）going to first grade．”

I had just spent weeks correcting her stories as she spontaneously（自发地）told them．Telling myself that l was merely an experienced writer guiding the young writer across the hall. I offered suggestions for characters，conflicts and endings for her tales．The story about a fearful angel starting first grade was quickly“guided”by me into the tale of a little girl with a wild imagination taking her first music lesson．I had turned her contest into my contest without even realizing it．

Staying back and giving kids space to grow is not as easy as it looks．Because I know very little about farm animals who use tools or angels who go to first grade，I had to accept the fact that I was co-opting（借用）my daughter’s experience．

While stepping back was difficult for me，it was certainly a good first step that l will quickly follow with more steps，putting myself far enough away to give her room but close enough to help if asked．All the while I will be reminding myself that children need room to experiment，grow and find their own voices．

What did the author say about her own writing experience？

    A．Most of her stories had been rejected by publishers．

    B．She did not quite live up to her reputation as a writer．

    C．Her way to success was full of pains and frustrations．

    D．She was constantly under pressure of writing more．

Why did Rebecca want to enter this year’s writing contest？

    A．She wanted to share her stories with readers．

    B．She was sure of winning with her mother’s help．

    C．She believed she possessed real talent for writing．

    D．She had won a prize in the previous contest．

The author took great pains to refine her daughter’s stories because       ．

    A．she was afraid Rebecca’s imagination might run wild while writing

    B．she did not want to disappoint Rebecca who needed her help so much

    C．she believed she had the knowledge and experience to offer guidance

    D．she wanted to help Rebecca realize her dreams of becoming a writer

What’s the author’s advice for parents？

    A．Parents should keep an eye on the activities their kids engage in．

    B．Children should be allowed freedom to grow through experience．

    C．A writing career，though attractive，is not for every child to pursue．

    D．Children should be given every chance to voice their opinions．

The first time I decided to leave home was when 1 was in high schoo1．1 was having trouble getting along will my parents．I had about a hundred dollars in my pocket，and so I thought about leaving home, It took me 6my three weeks away from home when I stared to feel homesick. Living on my own is a totally different experience for three main reasons：being more responsible, more decisive and more creative

       First of all，I have learned that living on my own requires that I become more responsible．My parents usually tell me to carry out my work and duties almost every day．men I fail to do the work，I only get scolded. However now that I am on my own，I get to deal with my duties without being told to．When I fail to do my duties，I must also deal with the result by myself

       Another different experience for me while living on my own is that now I have become more decisive. ·I have to be more careful since I am on my own because my parents are not here to give me their advice. I must make my own decisions．For example，I must make the best decisions for myself without hurting anybody’s feelings and without my parents，guidance．

       Therefore，I became more creative just by living on my own．I could make my own future plan-l have made rules for myself to follow．This to me is a good experience，because I usually think that being creative is the．nicest thing in the world．However, when 1 was with my parents

l found it hard for me to be creative simply because I always followed their ideas．

      In conclusion，these are the things that usually happen when I am with my parents and when I am alone. Besides，I think that it is better for everyone to love their parents and themselyes before they love anyone else．They should leam how to live on their own. but meanwhile learn how to follow every technique that was given to them by their Parents．They can make use of their freedom of choice to lead to wherever they want。

According to the text，the author decided to leave home because

      A．he would like to live in the school with fellows

      B．he found it hard to get on well with his parents

      C．he had to go on with．his studies in．another city

      D．he felt he was old enough to live on his own

What did the author think matters most in the world?

       A．Being independent．          B．Being responsible．

       C．Being creative．          D．Being more decisive．

The passage mainly tells us that     .

       A．one Can be, free of trouble by living on one’s own

       B．one can enjoy more freedom by living on one，s own

       C．living alone can help one keep good relationships with parents

       D．1iving alone helps one become responsible，decisive and creative

How is the text developed?

       A．Explanation—Examples—Conclusion

      B．Explanation—Research—Conclusion

      C．Argument—Information—Conclusion

      D．Argument—Reasons—Conclusion

完形填空：（共30分，每小题1.5分）
My 14-year-old son, John,  and I                       
Spotted（挑出，察觉） the coat at the same time.  It was              
hanging at a （an）  36   clothing store. 
The coat had a black velvet collar（天鹅绒衣领）,  delightful
tailoring,  a Fifth Avenue label （标签） and a （an）37   price of  $28.
We looked at   38  , saying nothing, 39  John’s eyes shone.  Dark, woolen topcoats were popular just then with   40  ,  but could    41  several hundred dollars new.
John  42  the coat.  He turned from side to side, eyeing himself in the mirror with a serious,  studied 43 that soon changed into a smile.  The  44  was perfect.  John wore the coat to school the next day and came home wearing a big smile.  “How did the kids like your coat? ”  I asked.  “They love it. ” He said, carefully    45 it over the chair and smoothing it flat.
Over the next few weeks, the _____46_____came over Jone. Quiet reasoned discussion was____47____argument. He became more thoughtful and eager to ___48______.“good dinner, Mum”he would say every evening .One day when I suggested that he might start on homework before dinner, John said,“You are right, and I guess I will.”
When I    49  this to one of his teachers and remarked that I didn’t know   50 caused the changes,  she said with laughter,  “It must be his coat! ” At the library,  we  51 to meet a friend who had not seen our children for a long time.  “  52 this be John? ” He asked,  looking up to John’s new height and coat,  and extending his hand,  one gentleman to another.
John and I both knew we should never 53 a person’s clothes for the real person within them.  But there is something to be said for   54  a standard of excellence for the world to see,  for practicing standard of excellence in thought,  speech and behavior,  and for   55 what is on the inside with what is on the outside.

【小题11】

A．happiness B．satisfaction C．change D．generosity