The mid­term exam is coming，so the students are________it.

A．preparing for                                    B．preparing

C．prepared                                          D．prepare for

The child of today owes much of its pleasant school life to the work of Maria Montessori and others who felt as she did.

Maria Montessori was born in 1870 in northern Italy.Both her parents were well educated.

While Maria was a student，she took great interest in the study of the particular nature of the child’s mind.It came to her that small children should have freedom to learn.

Maria became a doctor and professor at Rome University.In 1907，after working with backward students，she was given a chance to try out her ideas on children.There were sixty children，aged three to six，in the Children’s House.The rooms were bright and colourful.Maria let the children make their own choice of what they wanted to do and work with their own speed.They became busy，peaceful and happy.

Maria Montessori was one of the world’s greatest teachers.She traveled in Europe，America and Far East.She thought that true education，providing for the real needs of the child，would produce wise and happy grown­ups and therefore a peaceful world.Her original way of education has changed our whole idea of what childhood is.

Maria Montessori died in Holland at the age of eighty­two.

41．The short passage is mainly about________.

A．the education of backward students

B．a new idea of education

C．the importance of proper education

D．the life of Maria Montessori

42．Maria traveled a lot in the world to________.

A．teach the backward students

B．enjoy her life in real nature

C．spread her ideas of teaching

D．study the situation of education

43．In what way did Maria teach the children in the Children’s House?

A．She taught them the best way of learning well.

B．She let them learn in a very pleasant way.

C．She taught them by showing them how to do things.

D．She just let them choose the most interesting subjects.

44．We learn from the passage that________.

A．Maria left her homeland in order to study abroad

B．Maria didn’t get married

C．Maria’s own parents were her teachers

D．Maria fully understood the child’s mind

45．Which of the following best explains why Maria was one of the world’s greatest teachers?

A．She created a new way in teaching，which changed the old idea of children’s education

B．She taught the backward students very successfully and produced a peaceful world.

C．She showed great love for the children and trained them in a new way.

D．She taught backward students in many different countries and let them learn freely.

—________ made Daisy wild with joy?

—Her success in the A­level exam this year.

A．How was it that 

B．When was it that

C．Why was it that 

D．What was it that

Seventy­two hours passed.More than one hundred workers remained ________ in the coal mine, though fifty had been saved.

A．trapping  B．trapped

C．to be trapped  D．being trapped

In a time of low academic achievement by children in the United States，many Americans are turning to Japan，a country of high academic achievement and economic success，for possible answers.However，the answers provided by Japanese preschools are not the ones Americans expected to find.In most Japanese preschools，surprisingly little stress is put on academic instruction.In one investigation(调查)，300 Japanese and 210 American preschool teachers，child development specialists，and parents were asked about various aspects of early childhood education.Only 2 percent of the Japanese respondents(答问卷者) listed “to give children a good start academically” as one of their top three reasons for a society to have preschools.On the contrary，over half the American respondents chose this as one of their top three choices.To prepare children for successful careers in first grade and beyond，Japanese schools do not teach reading，writing，and mathematics，but rather skills such as persistence(毅力)，concentration，and the ability to function as a member of a group.The vast majority of young Japanese children are taught to read at home by their parents.

In the recent comparison of Japanese and American preschool education，91 percent of Japanese respondents chose providing children with a group experience as one of their top three reasons for a society to have preschools.Sixty­two percent of the more individually oriented(强调个性发展的) Americans listed group experience as one of their top three choices.A stress on the importance of the group seen in Japanese early childhood education continues into primary school education.

Like in America，there is diversity(多样性) in Japanese early childhood education.Some Japanese kindergartens have clear aims，such as early musical training or potential development.In large cities，some kindergartens are attached to universities that have primary and middle schools.Some Japanese parents believe that if their young children attend a university­based program，it will increase the children's chances of eventually being admitted to top­rated schools and universities.Several more progressive programs have introduced free play as a way out for the heavy intellectualizing(智力化) in some Japanese kindergartens.

22．We learn from the first paragraph that many Americans believe ________．

A．Japanese parents pay more attention to preschool education than American parents

B．Japan's economic success is the result of its scientific achievements

C．Japanese preschool education attaches greater importance to academic instruction

D．Japan's higher education is better than theirs

23．In Japan's preschool education，the focus is on ________．

A．preparing children academically

B．developing children's interests in music

C．discovering children's potential

D．shaping children's character

24．Free play has been introduced in some Japanese kindergartens in order to ________．

A．lighten children's study load

B．encourage children's creativity

C．broaden children's views

D．enrich children's knowledge

25．Why do some Japanese parents send their children to university­based kindergartens?

A．They can have no problems in their future studies.

B．They can have clear aims in life.

C．They can succeed in developing in every way.

D．They can have better chances of getting a first­rate education.