I had the meanest mother in the whole world．While other kids ate candy for breakfast, I had to have cereal, eggs or toast．When 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' also．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．We had to wear clean clothes and take a bath everyday．

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 nerve to break the Child Labor Law．She made us work．We had to wash dishes, make beds, learn to cook and all sorts of cruel things．I believe she lay 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 be up to par．Our friends' report cards had beautiful colors on them, black for passing, red for failing．My mother, being as different as she was, would settle for nothing less than ugly black marks．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．Using this as a background, 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．

What can we infer from the passage?

       A．The author is not happy to have such a mean mother．      

       B．The author's mother broke the Child Labor Law to make money．

       C．The author's mother failed to educate her children to be honest adults．

       D．The author is strict with her children．

Why couldn’t the author eat candy for breakfast?

     A．Because she preferred cereal, eggs or toast to candy．

     B．Because her mother couldn’t afford for candy．

     C．Because her mother thought it not good to eat candy for breakfast．

     D．Because her mother had to give candy to the author’s sister and two brothers．

The author’s mother made her children work because _________ ．

     A．she had trouble falling into sleep．

     B．she could not keep such a big family without her children’s help．

     C．she was teaching her children to live by themselves．

     D．she had no time to do the housework．

Do you know this girl?

I was in the park with my elder sister, Cathy, on Friday. My sister left her jacket on a chair while we talked to some friends. When we went back to the chair, a girl in a red T-shirt was sitting there. She had some money in her hand. When she saw us, she got up and walked away.

I asked my sister, "Did you have any money in your jacket?"

She said, "Yes, Anna, I did."

I said, "Look in your jacket quickly."

Cathy looked in her jacket, but her money was not there.

"That girl stole it!" I said, and we both ran after her. We caught her quickly.

My sister was very angry and she said, "Give me the money." The girl gave the money to Cathy and ran away. We both ran after her, but we lost her.

Then we went home. But before we could tell our parents, my mother said to Cathy, "You left your money at home. It's on the table in the sitting room. You must be more careful with money."

So the girl in the red T-shirt was not a thief! She probably thought we were thieves! We felt terrible.

Please telephone us if you know this girl! We are very sorry for our mistake. We would like to say sorry to her and give the money back to her.

Our number is 512667. My name is Anna.

1.

Cathy thought the money in the girl's hand was        .

A. from her jacket                  B. the girl's own money  

C. from their home                  D. from the chair

2.

The girl gave the money to Cathy because        .

A. she was afraid               B. Cathy asked her nicely 

C. it was Cathy's money             D. she wanted to help them

3.

Hearing their mother's words, they knew that        .

A. they did a good deed            B. the girl was a thief

C. the money was Anna's             D. they had the girl's money

4.

 The writer writes the passage to        .

A. telephone the girl               B. say thanks to the girl

C. say good-bye to the girl         D. return the money to the girl

 

Last winter, when I was heavily pregnant, I was visiting my sister and brother-in-law's house and had to park in a nearby parking lot because they didn't have accessible parking. The snow was extremely heavy and there was lots of ice on the ground --- not many people had ventured out that evening!

When I returned to my car around 11pm, I noticed that I was the only car left. Nervously, I hopped into the car and let it warm up a bit. When I finally tried to drive away, my wheels began to spin. I was stuck! I spun and spun and wondered what to do.

All of a sudden, in my rear view mirror, I saw four teen-aged boys approaching my car. They were walking side by side in a line and dressed a bit like gang members --- at least I thought that's what they looked like. My car was in a very isolated area and I began to panic. I was certain they were coming to my car to harm me. Terrified, I just froze. One of the young men tapped on my window and said "Excuse me, Ma'am, can we help you? You seem stuck." Still afraid and fearing the worst, I said "I am stuck." And the young man said "It's okay, stay in your car and we'll push you out of the snow." And they did!

When they finally got me out of the snow, they smiled and waved. I rolled down my window and thanked them, embarrassed to have judged them so poorly.

1.Why did the author just freeze when the four young men walking toward her car?

A．Because she was afraid of being harmed.

B．Because she sat in her car for too long a time.

C．Because she was cold indeed in that freezing evening.

D．Because she knew they would rob her of the car.

2.Which of the following words can best describe the four young men?

A．Impolite.

B．Ill-mannered.

C．Unfriendly

D．Warm-hearted.

3.Which of the following is true according to the text?

A．One of the four teenagers was a gang member.

B．The kids wanted to help the author out of trouble.

C．The author would have a baby in her car.

D．The young men enjoyed pushing cars out of the snow.

4.The best title for the text would be___________．

A．Every man has his faults

B．Fortune favors those who use their judgment

C．Don't judge a book by its cover

D．Think twice before you do.

 

---  My sister is very upset today.

   --- It is your fault. You ________________ the bad news to her yesterday.

A. should tell   B. should have told

C. shouldn’t tell  D. shouldn’t have told

 

----- She doesn’t play the piano, but she likes singing and dancing.

-----_________.

A. So I am      B. So it is with my sister    C. So am I      D. Neither do I