Story 1

  In America in 1940，the twin boys went to live with two different families almost as soon as they were born．The two brothers never saw each other again until1979，when they met by chance at a party．When they started talking to each other，they discovered some amazing similarities(相似处)．First，they found out that they both enjoyed making things out of wood．Later on，they discovered that they had both married women called Linda，and that they both had one son whose first and middle names were James and Alan．Besides，both brothers had called their dogs by the same name-Toy．As if that wasn’t enough，they also found out that they both took their family holiday at the same place every year．

Story 2

    In 1996，a Filipino woman called Mrs. Jimena told other people that her three children could breathe underwater like fish．Mrs. Jimena said that her children had three small holes on the sides of their necks below each ear，and that these were like the gills(鱼鳃)on fish．Mrs. Jimena said that she didn’t know how to swim and that her children were just starting to learn. Her family lives in a mountain village far from the sea． According to Mrs. Jimena，the holes in her children’s necks become larger when they are underwater, allowing them to stay underwater for up to six minutes．

Story 3

    On 11th October，1994，a 10-year-old English girl called Vicky Willmore told her mother that she had a headache．Soon afterwards，Vicky began writing in mirror image(镜像)．She wrote letters and numbers either upsidedown or back-to-front．Although she could read what she wrote，no one else could．She was examined by different doctors，but none of them could find out what was wrong with her．Vicky became very upset，and soon stopped reading and writing altogether．Instead she started watching TV all the time．On 27th ，September 1995，Vicky was watching her favourite football team，Manchester United，play on television．When the team scored a goal，she became so excited that she jumped out of her seat and fell backwards，hitting her head on a coffee table．The next day，Vicky could read and write properly again．

1．The twin brothers didn’t meet each other until _________．

  A．1940            B．1979             C．1994               D．1996

2．The twin brothers_______．

  A．grew up in two different families

  B．didn’t have any similarities at all

  C．had two sons named James and Alan

  D．didn’t like making things out of wood

3．Mrs Jimena’s children could stay underwater for up to 6 minutes because ________．

  A．their mother was the best swimmer

  B．their village was close to the sea

  C．they had holes like gills below ears

  D．they bad gills like fish in their necks

4．The 10-year-old English girl changed her proper writing habit _______．

  A．soon after she had a headache one clay

  B．while she was watching a football match

  C．when she hit her head on a coffee table

  D．as soon as she stopped reading and writing

5．From the third story we know that ___________．

  A．Vicky wrote backwards for nearly three years

  B．doctors didn’t know what was wrong with Vicky

  C．hitting one’s head can make him write backwards

  D．watching football on television can cause trouble

6．This passage consists of three __________stories．

  A．traditional    B．historical         C．frightening             D．amazing

There was once a stonecutter who was not happy with his life．

    One day, he passed a rich man's house．Through the windows he saw many fine things and important visitors．’’How great that rich man must be!’ thought the stonecutter．He wished that he could be like him．

    To his great surprise，he suddenly became the rich man．He began to enjoy all the good things in life．But then one day he saw a high official passing by，carried in a chair．Everyone had to bow before him．“How great that official is!” he thought．“1 wish that I could be like him.

    He became the high official，carried everywhere in his chair, and was hated by all the people．It was a hot summer day, and the official felt very uncomfortable in his chair．He looked up at the sun．“How great the sun is!” he thought．“l wish that I could be the sun!”

    He became the sun，shining down on everyone．But a huge black cloud moved between him and the Earth，so that his light could no longer shine down．“how powerful that storm cloud is!” he thought．1 wish that I could be a cloud!”

    He became the cloud．Everyone who didn't like clouds shouted at him．He soon found himself pushed away by the wind．“How great the wind is!” he thought．”I wish that I could be the wind!”

   Then he became the wind，blowing the roofs of houses．After a while，he ran up against something that would not move—a huge stone．“How great that stone is!’ he thought” I wish I could be a stone!”

    He became the stone．But as he stood there，he heard the sound of a hammer and felt himself being changed．“What could be greater that I become a stonecutter than a stone!” he thought．He looked down and saw far below him a stonecutter．

1．The stonecutter wanted to be a high official because                   ．

A．he wanted to enjoy the good things in life

B．he wanted people to bow down to him

C．he enjoyed being carried around all day

D．he enjoyed talking with important visitors

2．The stonecutter became                 after he was the wind．

A．the sun                  B．a cloud                  C．a stone                   D．an official

3．From the story we understand the stonecutter might have become                    after being a stone．

A．a stonecutter          B．the wind                C．a rich man              D．the sun

4．How many times does the stonecutter change in the story?

A．five                       B．six                        C．seven                     D．eight

5．The story mainly tells us that                 。

A．it's never too late to mend 

B．time lost cannot be won again

C．well begun is half done

D．the grass isn’t always greener on the other side