Maria's best friend is funnier than she ________.

1. A.
   does
2. B.
   do
3. C.
   are
4. D.
   is

Dear Reader,

Imagine an 11-year old girl whose days are often spent washing clothes, looking after a baby, working hard in the field.

Imagine a little girl who knows there will not be enough food for dinner, who can’t fill her stomach with water because it’s polluted, and who has watched life slip away from her father, little brother and sister because the family is too poor to see a doctor.

Is it hard to believe? For Maria Pastora, these are the real life.

Maria would gladly walk miles to school, but her mother, now alone, needs her badly at home. If Maria grows up without any schooling, what will be her future?

But for just 52 pennies a day, you can sponsor a child like Maria. Through “Save the Children”, you can help Maria’s mother get the tools and ways she needs to turn their poor food into a good dinner and the money she needs to buy clothes and school things for Maria.

To help Maria most, your money is put together with that of other sponsors, so hard-working people can help themselves. Build a school, a hospital…bring in clean water. This is what “Save the Children” has been about since 1932.

For you there are many rewards. Have the chance to write to or hear from your sponsored child. Receive photos or progress reports. Know you are reaching out to another person. Not with a handout(施舍物), but a “handup”. That’s how “Save the Children” works. But without you, it can’t work. Please take a moment now to fill in and post the form below to help a child like Maria and her village.

It can make such a difference in her life and yours.

1.We can most probably read the letter in __________.

A．somebody’s diary                      B．a newspaper

C．a progress report                       D．a storybook

2.From the passage, we can infer （推断）that _________

A．Maria is an 11-year-old girl.

B．Maria’s family is very poor.

C．Maria has to do a lot of hard work.

D．Maria is hoping to get schooling.

3.What is “Save the Children”?

A．An organization to help poor children go to school.

B．An office of the government to collect money.

C．A program shown at theatres to help the poor.

D．A group who works for children in poor places.

4.The underlined word “sponsor” means “__________” in Chinese.

A．回报             B．资助　　　　　    C．感恩　　　　      D．抢救

5.What does the last sentence in the letter mean?

A．If Maria goes to school, you will be rewarded.

B．What you give is more than what you take.

C．Both Maria’s life and yours will change a lot.

D．Marie and you can help each other at school.

My teenage son Karl became withdrawn after his father died. As a single parent, I tried to do my best to talk to him. But the more I tried, the more he pulled away. When his report card arrived during his junior year, it said that he had been absent 95 times from classes and had six falling grades for the year. In this way he would never graduate. I sent him to the school adviser, and I even begged him. Nothing worked.

One night I felt so powerless that I got down on my knees and asked God for help. “Please God, I can’t do anything more for my son. I’m at the end of my rope. I’m giving the whole thing up to you.”

I was at work when I got a phone call. A man introduced himself as the headmaster. “I want to talk to you about Karl’s absences.” Before he could say another word, I choked up（哽咽）and all my disappointment and sadness over Karl came pouring out into the ears of this stranger. “I love my son, but I just don’t know what to do. I’ve tried everything to get Karl to go back to school and nothing has worked. It’s out of my hands. ” For a moment there was silence on the other and of the line. The headmaster seriously said, “Thank you for your time”, and hung up.

　　Karl’s next report card showed a marked improvement in his grades. Finally, he was even on the list of the best students at school. In his fourth year, I attended a parent –– teacher meeting with Karl. I noticed that his teachers were surprised at the way he had turned himself around. On our way home, he said, “Mum, remember that call from the headmaster last year?” I nodded. “That was me. I thought I’d play a joke but when I heard what you said, it really hit me how much I was hurting you. That’s when I knew I had to make you proud.”

1.Which of the following has the similar meaning as the underlined word “withdrawn” in the  first paragraph?

2.There was silence on the other end of the line because _ _________.

3.Who was it that telephoned Karl’s mother that day?

4.From the passage we can learn that _____________.

What do you do if you're stranded（处于困境的）on a lonely island? Surely you need to find a way to get in touch with the outside world. Your best chance of doing this is to draw the attention of a passing plane.

　　Body signals（信号）

　　Pilots from different countries understand body signals if they have the correct training. When you wave your arms up and down in a straight line, it means "yes". When you point downwards and swing your arm from side to side, it means "no". If you want the pilot to know that it's safe to land, push your hands out in front of you and bend（弯曲）your knees. If you want to say that it's not safe to land, put your arms in the air and move them to one side.

　　Smoke signals

　　The smoke from a fire can be seen from far away, so it's a good way to draw attention. If the weather is dry, it isn't hard to start a fire. Remember, however, that fires can be very dangerous if they get out of control. Never light a fire unless you're sure that it can't spread. If the ground is dark, light smoke can be seen more easily. Green grass and leaves produce light smoke.

　　Ground-to-air signals

　　It's a good idea to build some signals, too. Use large pieces of wood to make the symbols(标记). If you can't find any wood, use earth. Some useful symbols are:

　　F "I need food and water."

　　II "I need medicine."

　　I "I am badly hurt."

　　X" I am unable to move from here."

　　Pilots' replies

　　If the pilot lowers the plane's wings from side to side, this means "message received and understood". (At night, the pilot flashes the plane's green lights.) If the pilots flies the plane in a clockwise circle, this means "message received but not understood".(At night, the pilot flashes the plane's red lights.)

However, there is no signal which means "message not received". Why not?

1. Which picture means "it's not safe land"?

2. What can we learn from the passage?

　　A. Swinging your arm from side to side means "yes".

　　B. If the ground is dark, light smoke can't be seen.

　　C. If you need some medicine, make a symbol "II".

　　D. The pilots make replies with a blue light at night.

　　3. What is the passage mainly about?

　　A. The explanation of building signals on an island.

　　B. The importance of making signals on an island.

　　C. Ways of sending out signals on a lonely island.

D. Ways of receiving signals from a lonely island