I got out of the train station with my father. A woman came to him and said that her  1  had been stolen. She asked if he could  2  her some money to go back home. My father gave her what she asked for and told her not to  3  paying it back. I was shocked. How could my father be so  4 ? It was clear that she was telling a lie, staying at the station all day long  5  money.

“She was lying!” I shouted.“ 6  did you give her anything? ”

My father looked at me. He was a bit  7  . “And what would you like me to do?” he said. “Should I tell  8  that I am a college professor and I can see through her scam(诡计)?” I did not understand him at all, and then he told me something that I have  9  forgotten. “First, she would not do this  10  she did not need the money. Second, I made her day, because now she thinks that she is  11  than me. It is more important to her than the money, but I do not  12  this.”

A week later, we were at the same  13  , and the same woman came to my father with the same story. “Not this time,” my father told her. “In your business, you should learn to 14  people. Try another story  15  me next week.”

1. A. money                  B. bicycle                     C. phone               D. child

2. A. borrow                 B. keep                         C. lend                  D. pay

3. A. give up          B. worry about             C. hurry up       D. turn off

4. A. clever           B. friendly                    C. strict          D. silly

5. A. asking for        B. dealing with             C. fighting for        D. picking out

6. A. What                    B. When             C. Why                 D. How

7. A. angry                   B. happy                       C. sad                   D. shy

8. A. them                    B. her                           C. you                   D. me

9. A. seldom                 B. often                        C. never                D. usually

10. A. unless                 B. until                         C. while                D. if

11. A. smarter               B. younger           C. taller                 D. better

12. A. close                  B. mind                        C. enter                 D. hear

13. A. stop                   B. hospital                    C. station               D. school

14. A. think for             B. recognize          C. know                D. understand 

15. A. of                      B. in                C. on                     D. at

I have a friend named Monty Roberts who owns a horse ranch (大牧场) in San Isidro. He lets me use his house to hold events to raise money for youth at risk programs.
The last time I was there he greeted me by saying, “I want to tell you why I let you use my house. It all goes back to a story about a young man who was the son of a poor horse trainer who would go from stable (马厩) to stable, farm to farm, training horses. As a result, the boy’s high school was continually interrupted (打断). One day in the last year of high school, he was asked to write a paper about what he wanted to do when he grew up.
“He wrote a seven-page paper about his goal of owning a horse ranch in great detail. He put a great deal of his heart into the project and even drew a detailed floor plan for the dream ranch. Then the next day he handed it in to his teacher. Two days later he received his paper back. But he got a low mark with a note that read, ‘See me after class.’
“The boy went to see the teacher after class and asked, ‘Why did I receive a low mark?’
“The teacher said, ‘This is an unrealistic dream for a young boy like you. You have no money. You come from a poor family. Owning a horse ranch requires a lot of money. There’s no way you could ever do it, your dream couldn’t come true . ’Then the teacher added, ‘If you will rewrite this paper, I will reconsider your mark.’
“The boy went home and thought about it long and hard. He asked his father what he should do. His father said, ‘Look, son, you have to make up your own mind on this. However, I think it is a very important decision for you.’
“Finally, the boy turned in the same paper, making no changes at all. He wrote, ‘You can keep the low mark and I’ll keep my dream.’
“I was that boy twenty years ago.” My friend said, smiling.
【小题1】Which of the following statements is TRUE about Monty Roberts?

I had the meanest mother in the whole world. While other kids ate candy for breakfast, I had to have cereal, eggs or toast. While others had Cokes and candy for lunch, I had to eat a sandwich. As you can guess, my supper was different from the other kids’ too. But at least, I wasn’t alone in my sufferings. My sister and two brothers had the same mean mother as I did.

My mother insisted upon knowing where we were at all times. She had to know who our friends were and where we were going. She insisted if we said we’d be gone an hour, then we should be gone one hour or less -- not one hour and one minute. And she always insisted upon us telling the truth. Now you can see how mean she was.

The worst is yet to come. We had to be in bed by nine each night and up at eight the next morning. We couldn’t sleep till noon like our friends. So while they slept - my mother actually had the courage to break the Child Labor Law. She made us work. We had to wash dishes, make beds, and learn to cook. We had to wear clean clothes and take a bath every day. The other kids always wore their clothes for days. We reached the height of disgrace because she made our clothes herself, just to save money. I believe she laid awake at night thinking up mean things to do to us.

Through the years, things didn’t improve a bit. We could not lie in bed “sick” like our friends did, and miss school. Our marks in school had to live up to expectations. Our friends’ report cards had beautiful colors on them, black for passing, red for failing. My mother, being as different as she was, would be satisfied with nothing less than ugly black marks.

As the years rolled by, first one and then the other of us was put to shame. We graduated from high school. With our mother behind us, talking, hitting and demanding respect, none of us was allowed the pleasure of being a drop-out.

My mother was a complete failure as a mother. Out of four children, a couple of us attained some higher education. None of us have ever been arrested or divorced. Each of my brothers served his time in the service of this country. She forced us to grow up into God-fearing, educated, honest adults. I am now trying to raise my three children. I am filled with pride when my children call me mean. Why? Because now I thank God every day for giving me the meanest mother in the whole world.

1.The author’s mother wanted her children to _________.

A. do their best at school and be educated and respected citizens

B. be top students in school and graduate with honors  

C. stop seeing her friends who pretended to be sick to skip classes

D. bring home colored report cards like her friends did

2.Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the text?

A. The author has a deep hatred for her mother.

B. The author’s mother set timetables for her children whenever they went out.

C. Some of the children weren’t able to go to college because of their mean mother.

D.As a parent, the author is following her mother’s example.

3.It can be inferred from the passage that________.                                                                                                                                                                                                       

A. All the other kids at school studied better than the author.

B. The author worked hard and usually got good grades in studies.

C. Mother was punished for breaking the Labor Law.

D. The author’s family lived a miserable life.

I have a friend named Monty Roberts who owns a horse ranch (大牧场) in San Isidro. He lets me use his house to hold events to raise money for youth at risk programs.

The last time I was there he greeted me by saying, “I want to tell you why I let you use my house. It all goes back to a story about a young man who was the son of a poor horse trainer who would go from stable (马厩) to stable, farm to farm, training horses. As a result, the boy’s high school was continually interrupted (打断). One day in the last year of high school, he was asked to write a paper about what he wanted to do when he grew up.

“He wrote a seven-page paper about his goal of owning a horse ranch in great detail. He put a great deal of his heart into the project and even drew a detailed floor plan for the dream ranch. Then the next day he handed it in to his teacher. Two days later he received his paper back. But he got a low mark with a note that read, ‘See me after class.’

“The boy went to see the teacher after class and asked, ‘Why did I receive a low mark?’

“The teacher said, ‘This is an unrealistic dream for a young boy like you. You have no money. You come from a poor family. Owning a horse ranch requires a lot of money. There’s no way you could ever do it, your dream couldn’t come true . ’Then the teacher added, ‘If you will rewrite this paper, I will reconsider your mark.’

“The boy went home and thought about it long and hard. He asked his father what he should do. His father said, ‘Look, son, you have to make up your own mind on this. However, I think it is a very important decision for you.’

“Finally, the boy turned in the same paper, making no changes at all. He wrote, ‘You can keep the low mark and I’ll keep my dream.’

“I was that boy twenty years ago.” My friend said, smiling.

1.Which of the following statements is TRUE about Monty Roberts?

2.From Paragraph 3, we know Monty Roberts _____.

3.The teacher thought Monty Roberts’s dream was _____.

4. From the end of the text, we can infer that Monty Roberts was very _____.

5. The purpose of the text is to tell readers that _____.

I had the meanest mother in the whole world. While other kids ate candy for breakfast, I had to have cereal, eggs or toast. While others had Cokes and candy for lunch, I had to eat a sandwich. As you can guess, my supper was different from the other kids’ too. But at least, I wasn’t alone in my sufferings. My sister and two brothers had the same mean mother as I did.
My mother insisted upon knowing where we were at all times. She had to know who our friends were and where we were going. She insisted if we said we’d be gone an hour, then we should be gone one hour or less -- not one hour and one minute. And she always insisted upon us telling the truth. Now you can see how mean she was.
The worst is yet to come. We had to be in bed by nine each night and up at eight the next morning. We couldn’t sleep till noon like our friends. So while they slept - my mother actually had the courage to break the Child Labor Law. She made us work. We had to wash dishes, make beds, and learn to cook. We had to wear clean clothes and take a bath every day. The other kids always wore their clothes for days. We reached the height of disgrace because she made our clothes herself, just to save money. I believe she laid awake at night thinking up mean things to do to us.
Through the years, things didn’t improve a bit. We could not lie in bed “sick” like our friends did, and miss school. Our marks in school had to live up to expectations. Our friends’ report cards had beautiful colors on them, black for passing, red for failing. My mother, being as different as she was, would be satisfied with nothing less than ugly black marks.
As the years rolled by, first one and then the other of us was put to shame. We graduated from high school. With our mother behind us, talking, hitting and demanding respect, none of us was allowed the pleasure of being a drop-out.
My mother was a complete failure as a mother. Out of four children, a couple of us attained some higher education. None of us have ever been arrested or divorced. Each of my brothers served his time in the service of this country. She forced us to grow up into God-fearing, educated, honest adults. I am now trying to raise my three children. I am filled with pride when my children call me mean. Why? Because now I thank God every day for giving me the meanest mother in the whole world

1. 1.

   The author’s mother wanted her children to _________

   1. A.
      do their best at school and be educated and respected citizens
   2. B.
      be top students in school and graduate with honors
   3. C.
      stop seeing her friends who pretended to be sick to skip classes
   4. D.
      bring home colored report cards like her friends did
2. 2.

   Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the text?

   1. A.
      The author has a deep hatred for her mother
   2. B.
      The author’s mother set timetables for her children whenever they went out
   3. C.
      Some of the children weren’t able to go to college because of their mean mother
   4. D.
      As a parent, the author is following her mother’s example
3. 3.

   It can be inferred from the passage that________

   1. A.
      All the other kids at school studied better than the author
   2. B.
      The author worked hard and usually got good grades in studies
   3. C.
      Mother was punished for breaking the Labor Law
   4. D.
      The author’s family lived a miserable life