One night I was sitting in my room half-listening as my 15-year-old brother Tommy fought with my 12-year-old brother Kevin. I didn’t pay attention when Kevin rushed up the stairs with the hurt on his face.
About 20 minutes later, as I was walking upstairs I heard Kevin crying inside the bathroom. I knocked on the door and asked, “Hey Kevin, do you want to talk?”
No answer.
I tried again, “Why don’t you come out of there?”
Again, no answer.
So, joking around, I grabbed a stack of （一摞）cards and a pencil and wrote, “If you don’t want to talk, we can write notes to each other.”
An hour later I was still sitting on the floor outside the bathroom with two stacks of cards in front of me. One was blank and one was cards from Kevin on which he had translated all his yucky feelings into words for me. As I read one of Kevin’s notes, tears came to my eyes. It said, “Nobody in this family cares about me. I’m not the youngest, and I’m not the oldest. Tommy thinks I’m silly and Dad wishes he had the other Kevin as a kid because he’s better at basketball. And you’re never around to even notice me.”
Tears came to my eyes as I wrote back to him. “You know Kevin, I really do love you and I’m sorry I don’t always show it. I am here for you and you are loved in this family.”
There was no answer for a while, but then I heard a tearing sound coming from inside the bathroom. Kevin, who had run out of cards wrote on a torn paper cup. “Thanks.”
I wrote back “For what?” it returned to me with “Loving me” on it.
Since then, I try my best to never only half-notice my family members any more. Kevin and I have a closer relationship now. And sometimes when one of us notices that the other is upset, we’ll smile and say “Write it on a paper cup.”
【小题1】The underlined word “yucky” most probably means ____.

A．upset

B．exciting

C．terrible

D．amazing

【小题2】What could be the reason that Kevin’s Dad doesn’t like him?

A．Kevin is not as clever as his brother.

B．He is neither the youngest nor the oldest.

C．Kevin doesn’t like to make friends with others.

D．Kevin is not good at playing basketball.

【小题3】What do we know about the writer?

A．She has two children in her family.

B．She didn’t pay enough attention to Kevin before.

C．She used to show her love to Kevin.

D．She has a closer relationship with Tommy after that.

【小题4】What does the writer want to tell us?

A．Everyone should show how they love their family members.

B．It’s hard to get on well with family members.

C．It’s important to keep peace in the family.

D．We should try our best to stop our children from fighting.

Long ago, Bluebird’s feathers were the colour of dust. She did not like her ugly colour. She was attracted by the colour of the lake near her home. It was as blue as the sky after a storm. Bluebird wanted to be the colour of that beautiful lake very much. Flapping her wings one morning, Bluebird flew from her tree to the blue lake. Then she bathed in the water three times. After each bath, she sang, “Blue water. Still water. I went in. I am blue.” Bluebird repeated this every morning. On the third day, she came out of the lake with beautiful blue feathers.

Now Coyote was a trickster(骗子)—and hungry too. He stayed behind Bluebird’s tree for a long time every day and watched her go to the lake. He pretended(伪装) to be interested in everything she did. He wanted Bluebird for lunch, but he was afraid of the blue water. On the third morning, Coyote saw Bluebird come out of the lake with beautiful blue feathers. Impressed, he sat next to Bluebird’s tree and waited for her. When she returned, he asked, “How did you get blue feathers? I want to be blue like the mountains too.” Bluebird didn’t believe Coyote, but she taught him how to bathe three times each morning and how to sing her song. Coyote did what she said, and after three days of bathing in the lake, his white fur turned deep blue.

Convinced(确信的) that blue fur was even more beautiful than blue feathers, Coyote forgot all about being hungry. He ran as fast as he could to the top of the hill. Standing on his back legs, he raised his front legs off the ground and howled. But Coyote slipped(滑倒) and rolled down the hill. He couldn’t stop himself, and the dust and dirt covered his new blue fur. He rolled and rolled until he hit into Bluebird’s tree heavily. No matter how much he tried, foolish Coyote could not shake the dust from his fur. And so the fur of all coyotes had the dull colour of dust to this very day.

1.How many times did Bluebird bathe every morning before she had beautiful blue feathers?

A. Three times.        B. Four times.        C. Five times.         D. Six times.

2.Why was Coyote a trickster?

A. He wanted to fly like Bluebird near the mountains.

B. He wanted to eat Bluebird but pretended to be curious.

C. He wanted to swim in the lake but was afraid of the water.

D. He wanted to sing Bluebird’s song but didn’t know the words.

3.Where did Coyote go after his fur turned blue?

A. To the lake.         B. To the tree.         C. To the cave.       D. To the hill.

4.Why did Coyote forget all about being hungry?

A. Because his fur had the dull colour of dust.

B. Because the dust and dirt covered his new blue fur.

C. Because he thought blue fur was much more beautiful. 

D. Because he hit into Bluebird’s tree and hurt himself.

5.What words does the writer use to help you imagine the colour blue?

A. sky, lake, mountains  

B. bird, coyote, storm  

C. flapped, climbed, bathed  

D. fur, feathers, dust

 

Once I thought love meant flowers, gifts and sweet kisses. So, I really doubted whether there was any love between my parents. Every day they were working hard to pay for my high school. They didn’t act in the romantic ways that I read in books and saw on TV, and they certainly didn’t send flowers to each other on Valentine’s Day (情人节).

    One day, my mother was sewing a quilt (被子). I asked her if there was any love between her and my dad. She stopped and raised her head in surprise. Then she went on with her work without saying anything. I was very worried because I thought I had hurt her feelings. But after a few minutes she said, “Look at this thread (线). Sometimes it appears, but most of the time it disappears in the quilt. If life is a quilt, then love is the thread. It can hardly be seen anywhere or at any time, but it’s really there, and makes the quilt long-lasting.” I listened carefully but I didn’t understand her until the next spring.

    My mother suddenly got seriously ill and had to stay in hospital for about a month. Every morning and evening after she returned from the hospital, my father helped her walk slowly along our country road. There were many beautiful flowers, green grass and trees, and the sun gently shone through the leaves. All of this made the most beautiful picture in the world. Reading their eyes, I knew they love each other deeply. From this experience, I realized that love is just a thread in the quilt of our lives. Love is inside, making life strong and warm.

1.What does the underlined sentence in the third paragraph suggest?

A. There is beautiful scenery where the writer lived.

B. There is true love anywhere in the world.

C. There is no love without beautiful flowers.

D. There is true love between the writer’s parents.

2.Why didn’t the writer’s mother answer his question immediately?

A. Because her husband didn’t love her.   

B. Because she was thinking of a better answer.

C. Because she didn’t love her husband.   

D. Because the writer had hurt her feelings.

3.What is the best title of this passage?

A. Love Is Everywhere                               B. Love Is Always Romantic

C. Love: Thread in Quilt                              D. Love Can Last Forever

 

 

 

A young man from a village called Nawalapitiya married a young woman from Maiyuwa, a small village. They lived with the man’s big family－his parents, his brothers, their wives and husbands and children. The family kept an elephant, in which the woman soon took a great interest. Every day she fed it with fruit and sugar.

Three months later, having quarreled with her husband, the woman went back to her parents’ home. Soon the elephant refused to eat and work. It appeared to be ill and heartbroken. One morning after several weeks the animal disappeared from the house.

It went to the woman’s home. On seeing her, the elephant waved its trunk and touched her with it. The young woman was so moved by the act of the animal .So she went back to her husband’s home.

1.The woman left her new home ______.

A. to visit her own parents in Maiyuwa

B. to see if the elephant would follow her

C. because she was angry with her husband

D. because she was tired of the large family

2.The word “disappeared” in the reading means “______”.

A. ran away                          B. lost                           C. hid                           D. remained

3.After the young woman left her husband’s home, the elephant______.

A. returned to the forest                                        B. was sad because it missed her

C. went to look for a new home                            D. was sick because nobody fed it

4.How did the elephant express its feeling when it saw the young woman?

A. It waved its trunk and smiled.                           B. It touched her with its trunk.

C. It touched her and cried.                                   D. It waved its trunk and ran around her.

5.The writer wrote the story in order to______.

A. show that elephants are very clever

B. tell how a woman trained a wild animal

C. show that women care more for animals than men do

D. tell how an animal got a husband and a wife together again

 

My life suffered a lot in a summer five years ago. My father died in a car accident, leaving my mother, my two younger brothers and I alone. At that time, I was a senior high school student. After my father’s funeral (葬礼), I had no choice but to drop out of school and work in a factory.
I really wanted to return to school and wanted to go to college, but I couldn’t. I only hoped to bring up my two younger brothers. Life was not easy for me, for I can’t afford their tuition (学费) even if I worked from day to night without stopping. Without my father’s protection, I thought I was a slave (奴隶) to the fate.
Later on, something changed my life. I still remember that it was a rainy day. I put myself in the rain and walked slowly in the street.
Suddenly the rain stopped! I raised my head and found “the sky” was in fact a dark blue umbrella. Then I noticed a middle-aged man with one leg on crutch (拐杖) standing behind me. He said to me, “Why not run without an umbrella? If you didn’t run, you would get drenched.”
The man told me that he was promoter (推销员). He once dreamed of being a policeman, but an accident ruined (毁灭) his dream. Though his present job was not suitable for his legs, it was wonderful start to him. He was very happy that he didn’t lose heart and still “ran” on the road of life…
I was encouraged by the man’s words. I went to a big city and I became an assurance representative (保险代理人). After two years’ running, I did well and my family condition turned better little by little. Later I returned to school and succeeded in my entrance to university.
Life is like this. When you are in rainy days in your life, if you couldn’t find a way to prevent you from being wet, you would be overwhelmed (被制服). But if you decide to get rid of it, you’ll discover that the rainy days last not so long as you imagine.
【小题1】What happened to the writer at the beginning of the story? 

A．His father died in a car accident six years ago.

B．He didn’t have money to hold the funeral for his father.

C．He had to drop out of school to look after his sick mother.

D．He couldn’t afford his two brothers’ tuition even if he worked from day to night.

【小题2】About the middle-aged man with one leg on crutch, which of the following is NOT true?

A．He lost one leg in an accident.

B．He had dreamed of being a policeman.

C．He became a promoter after an accident.

D．He had a good job which was suitable for him very well.

【小题3】What does the underlined word “drenched” mean in Chinese?

A．干燥的

B．湿透的

C．紧张的

D．舒服的

【小题4】What’s the main idea of the sixth paragraph?

A．The writer learned from the man and the situation soon got better.

B．The writer didn’t want to listen to the man and left without any word.

C．The writer had to give up his dream and became a promoter as the man.

D．The writer made friends with the man and they got on well with each other.

【小题5】Which is the best title for the passage?

A．Try to Be Independent.

B．Care for the Disabled Person.

C．Run out of the Rainy Season of Your Life.

D．Get to Know More About Middle-aged People