My teenage son Karl became withdraw 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. At this rate 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 pleaded 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 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 end 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 even made the honor roll. In his fourth year, I attended a parent-teacher meeting with Karl. I noticed that his teachers were astonished 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 I. 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.”
【小题1】By saying “Karl became withdrawn”, the author means that the boy changed entirely and _____.

A．preferred to stay alone at home	B．often escaped school
C．refused to talk to others	D．began to dislike his mother

【小题2】There was silence on the other end of the line because _____.

A．the speaker was too moved to say anything to the mother

B．the speaker waited for the mother to finish speaking

C．the speaker didn’t want the mother to recognize his voice

D．the speaker was unable to interrupt the mother

【小题3】What is the main idea of this passage?

A．Children in single-parent families often have mental problems.

B．Mother’s love plays an important role in teenagers’ life.

C．Being understood by parents is very important to teenagers.

D．School education doesn’t work without full support from parents.

Wherever she goes, Molly leaves her mark. Without saying a word, she speaks to people with her kind eyes. Even when she walks away, she leaves an impression．Molly's mark is a smile, stamped into the ground by the horseshoe at the bottom of her false leg．
A few years ago, Molly was badly attacked by a dog．The dog bit all four or Molly’s legs and left large cuts in her face. Molly's owner, Kate Harris, took her to an animal hospital．Doctors there were able to save Molly’s life, but soon one of her legs became very infected(感染).
At first, doctors thought Molly would have to be put to sleep．But Molly changed their minds. This pony, doctors noticed, shifted her weight, and rested her good leg from time to time. Doctors knew t hat Molly had amazing intelligence, and that she wanted to live.
Several doctors operated on Molly, and removed her infected leg. A false leg was made for her. The leg was a hollow cast with a pole at the bottom for balance. Doctors gave Molly a special horseshoe at the bottom of the leg. This horseshoe she had had a stamp of a smile face in it!
After the operation, Molly walked around on all four legs, as if nothing had ever happened to her! Now, with every step she takes, she stamps a smile in the dirt．But she leaves her m ark in other ways, too.
Kaye Harris took Molly to the false leg center. There were children there who, like Molly, had artificial arms or legs. They were amazed to see a pony with a false leg. Molly made them smile and gave them hope. Soon, Molly began to visit schools, nursing homes, army bases and hospitals. A book was even written about Molly!
【小题1】Molly is the name of a__________.

A．dog

B．horse

C．parent

D．child

【小题2】Which of the following is true according to the text?

A．Molly can speak to people in kind words.

B．Kay Harris took Molly to a children’s hospital after the attack.

C．In the beginning, doctors had planned to end Molly’s life.

D．Molly sometimes leaves smiling marks on people’s faces.

【小题3】What is unique about Molly?

A．Molly has a false leg with a horseshoe shaped like a smiling face.

B．Molly ran a race and won the first prize.

C．Molly often visits places such as schools and parks.

D．Molly has become a symbol of hope for people of all ages.

For most people, graduation is an exciting day – the culmination (顶点) of years of hard work. My graduation day... was not.
I remember that weekend two years ago, Family and friends had traveled far to watch our class walk across the stage. But like everyone else in my graduating class, I had watched the economy go from bad to worse during my senior year. We graduates had degrees, but very limited prospects (前景). I hadn’t secured a job, and I knew that the next day, when my lease (租约) ended, I would no longer have a place to call home.
The weeks ahead weren’t easy. I gathered up everything I couldn’t carry and put it into storage. Then, because I had no opportunities in my small university town, I packed up my car and drove to California to find work. But what I thought would take a week dragged into two, then four, and 100 job applications later, I found myself still jobless. The due date to begin paying back my student loans was creeping even closer.
Have you ever felt utter dread? That feeling became a constant in my life. The most frustrating part was no matter how much I tried, I just couldn’t seem to make any progress.
So what did I do to maintain my sanity? I wrote. Something about putting my words on a page made everything clearer. Something about writing gave me hope.
I channeled my frustration into a children’s book. Beyond the river was the story of an unlikely hero, a little fish who refused to give up.
And then one day, with no writing degree or contacts in the writing world – just hard work and perseverance – I was offered a publishing contract for my first book. After that, things were in place, I was offered a second book deal. Then, a few months later, I got an interview with the Walt Disney Company and was hired shortly after.
The moral of this story is… don’t give up, even if things look bleak now.  Two years ago I was drinking cold soup right out the can. Things change. All we need is the courage to push beyond the river.
【小题1】When it was time to graduate, the author felt _____.

A．Bored

B．Relieved

C．depressed

D．hopeful

【小题2】After the author’s graduation, _____.

A．he went on a short trip with his family to California

B．things turned even worse than he had expected

C．he focused on writing instead of applying for jobs

D．he found his salary was hardly enough to pay back his student loans

【小题3】When did the author’s career life begin to run smoothly according to the article?

A．After he got his first publishing contract.

B．After he began to write his book Beyond the river.

C．After he finished his book Beyond the river.

D．After he got hired by the Walt Disney Company.

【小题4】What is the main message the story intends to convey?

A．Opportunity lies everywhere.

B．Perseverance is essential to success.

C．It’s important to adapt yourself to society.

D．We should devote ourselves to whatever we do.

A jobless man applied for the position of “office boy” at Microsoft. The HR manager interviewed him and then watched him cleaning the floor as a test.
“You are employed,” he said. “Give me your e-mail address and I’ll send you the application to fill in, as well as date when you may start. ”
The man replied, “But I don’t have a computer, neither an e-mail. ”
“I’m sorry,” said the HR manager. “If you don’t have an e-mail, that means you do not exist. And who doesn’t exist cannot have the job. ”
The man left with no hope at all. He didn’t know what to do, with only ten dollars in his pocket. He then decided to go to the supermarket and buy 10kg tomatoes. He then sold the tomatoes from door to door. In less than two hours, he succeeded to double his capital. He repeated the operation three times, and returned home happily with 60 dollars.
The man realized that he can survive in this way, and started to go every day earlier, and return late. Thus, his money doubled or tripled every day. Shortly, he bought a cart, then a truck, and then he had his own fleet of delivery vehicles. Five years later, the man is one of the biggest food retailers in the US.
He started to plan his family’s future and decided to have a life insurance. He called an insurance broker and chose a protection plan.
When the conversation was concluded the broker asked him his e-mail. The man replied, “I don’t have an e-mail. ”
The broker answered curiously, “You don’t have an e-mail, and yet have succeeded to build an empire. Can you imagine what you could have been if you had an e-mail?” The man thought for a while and replied, “Yes, I’d be an office boy at Microsoft!”
【小题1】Why can’t the man have the job at Microsoft?

A．Because he was lazy.	B．Because he didn’t pass the test.
C．Because he didn’t have an e-mail.	D．Because he didn’t have a computer.

【小题2】The underlined word “triple” can be replaced by ______.

A．become large	B．become 3 times
C．increase quickly	D．decrease quickly

【小题3】According to the passage, which of the following is TRUE?

A．The man is one of the biggest food retailers in the world.

B．The man didn’t give up though he failed the interview.

C．He started his career by selling tomatoes in the supermarket.

D．Those who have e-mails can work at Microsoft.

【小题4】The man can be described as _______.

A．helpful and considerate	B．positive and generous
C．smart and hardworking	D．stubborn and unselfish

【小题5】Which proverb can best describe the story?

A．Misfortune may be an actual blessing.

B．Where there is a will, there is a way.

C．Accidents will happen.

D．No pains , no gains.

Some people bring out the best in you in a way that you might never have fully realized on your own. My mom was one of those people.
My father died when I was nine months old, making my mom a single mother at the age of eighteen. While I was growing up, we lived a very hard life. We had little money, but my mom gave me a lot of love. Each night, she sat me on her lap and spoke the words that would change my life, “Kemmons, you are certain to be a great man and you can do anything in life if you work hard enough to get it.”
At fourteen, I was hit by a car and the doctors said I would never walk again. Every day, my mother spoke to me in her gentle, loving voice, telling me that no matter what those doctors said, I could walk again if I wanted to badly enough. She drove that message so deep into my heart that I finally believed her. A year later, I returned to school — walking on my own!
When the Great Depression (大萧条) hit, my mom lost her job. Then I left school to support the both of us. At that moment, I was determined never to be poor again.
Over the years, I experienced various levels of business success. But the real turning point occurred on a vacation I took with my wife and five kids in 1951. I was dissatisfied with the second-class hotels available for families and was angry that they charged an extra $2 for each child. That was too expensive for the average American family. I told my wife that I was going to open a motel (汽车旅馆) for families that would never charge extra for children. There were plenty of doubters at that time.
Not surprisingly, mom was one of my strongest supporters. She worked behind the desk and even designed the room style. As in any business, we experienced a lot of challenges. But with my mother’s words deeply rooted in my soul, I never doubted we would succeed. Fifteen years later, we had the largest hotel system in the world — Holiday Inn. In 1979 my company had 1,759 inns in more than fifty countries with an income of $ 1 billion a year.
You may not have started out life in the best situation. But if you can find a task in life worth working for and believe in yourself, nothing can stop you.
【小题1】What Kemmons’ mom often told him during his childhood was ______.

A．caring

B．moving

C．encouraging

D．interesting

【小题2】According to the author, who played the most important role in making him walk back to school again?

A．Doctors.

B．Nurses.

C．Friends.

D．Mom.

【小题3】What caused Kemmons to start a motel by himself?

A．His terrible experience in the hotel.

B．His previous business success of various levels.

C．His mom’s support.

D．His wife’s suggestion.

【小题4】Which of the following best describes Kemmons’ mother?

A．Modest, helpful, and hard-working.

B．Loving, supportive and strong-willed.

C．Careful, helpful and beautiful.

D．Strict, sensitive and supportive.

【小题5】Which of the following led to Kemmons’ success according to the passage?

A．Self-confidence, hard work, higher education and a poor family.

B．Mom’s encouragement, clear goals, self-confidence and hard work.

C．Clear goals, mom’s encouragement, a poor family and higher education.

D．Mom’s encouragement, a poor family, higher education and opportunities.

Lying in the sun on a rock, the cougar(美洲豹)saw Jeb and his son, Tom, before they saw it. Jeb put his bag down quickly and pulled his jacket open with both hands, making himself look big to the cougar. It worked. The cougar hesitated, ready to attack Jeb, but ready to forget the whole thing, too.
Jeb let go of his jacket, grasped Tom and held him across his body, making a cross. Now the cougar’s enemy looked even bigger, and it rose up, ready to move away, but unfortunately Tom got scared and struggled free of Jeb.
“Tom, no!” shouted his father.
But Tom broke and ran and that’s the last thing you do with a cougar. The second Tom broke free, Jeb threw himself on the cougar, just as it jumped from the rock. They hit each other in mid-air and both fell. The cougar was on Jeb in a flash, forgetting about Tom, which was what Jeb wanted.
Cougars are not as big as most people think and a determined man stands a chance, even with just his fists. As the cougar’s claws(爪子)got into his left shoulder, Jeb swung his fist at its eyes and hit hard. The animal howled（吼叫）and put its head back. Jeb followed up with his other fist. Then out of the corner of his eye, Jeb saw Tom. The boy was running back to help his father.
“Knife, Tom” shouted Jeb.
The boy ran to his father’s bag, while Jeb stated shouting as well as hitting, to keep the cougar’s attention away from Tom. Tom got the knife and ran over to Jeb. The cougar was moving its head in and out, trying to find a way through the wall Jeb was making out of his arms. Tom swung with the knife, into the cougar’s back. It howled horribly and ran off into the mountains.
The whole fight had taken about thirty seconds.
【小题1】Why did Jeb pull his jacket open when he saw the cougar?

A．To get ready to fight	B．To frighten it away
C．To protect the boy	D．To cool down

【小题2】What do we know about cougars?

A．They are afraid of noises

B．They hesitate before they hit

C．They are bigger than we think

D．They like to attack running people

【小题3】How did Jeb try to hold the cougar’s attention?

A．By keeping shouting and hitting

B．By making a wall out of his arms

C．By throwing himself on the cougar

D．By swinging his fists at the cougar’s eyes

【小题4】Which of the following happened first?

A．The cougar jumped from the rock

B．Tom struggled free of his father

C．Jeb asked Tom to get the knife

D．Jeb held Tom across his body

Today, when a man steps on to the moon, or something new and important happens, the world learns about it immediately. What did the newspapers say about that first flight in 1903? Strangely enough, they said hardly anything about it at all. There are only a few reports about it in the papers. These reports said very little. Some of the things they said were not even correct.
In 1904 the Wrights built a second machine. They called it “Flyer No. Two”. They invited some reporters to a field near Dayton to watch them fly. Unfortunately, there was some mechanical(机械的) trouble with the plane and it did not fly at all that day. The newspapermen went away. They were disappointed and did not come back. The Wrights went on with their work. In 1905, they built an even better machine, “Flyer No Three”. They were able to stay upon the air for half an hour and more in the machine. Farmers and travelers on the road around the Dayton often saw them flying, but when three people told newspapermen about it, they refused to believe them.
The Wrights offered “Flyer No. Three” to the United States government. The government was not interested. They seemed to think the Wrights wanted money in order to build a plane. They did not understand the Wrights had already done this, and flown it as well. Experts were still saying that mechanical flight was impossible. At the end of 1905, the two brothers took their planes to pieces. The parts were put into a huge wooden box. It seemed nobody was interested.
【小题1】The reporters were disappointed in 1904 because________.

A．the Wrights did not invite them

B．the plane could not stay long in the air

C．the plane did not fly at all that day

D．they had wanted to see a better machine

【小题2】The U．S. government could not understand that________.

A．the Wrights had already built a machine that could fly

B．experts still thought flight was impossible

C．the Wrights wanted more money to build an airplane

D．“Flyer No. Three” was now in a wooden case

【小题3】The Wrights took their plane to pieces because________.

A．they planned to go to Europe

B．nobody was interested

C．the government didn't give them any money

D．the newspapermen didn't report their flights

【小题4】What does the underlined word “Flyer” mean?

A．Pilot.

B．Drive.

C．Plane.

D．Kite.

【小题5】Which of the following is NOT true?

A．Today, people are very interested in new things.

B．People in the past talked little about new things.

C．Reporters are now as interested in new happening as in the past.

D．People in the past even told each other wrong things.

A long time ago, there was a seed and because he was only a seed, nobody noticed him. Thus, feeling inferior (低级的), the seed gave no importance to his existence (存在). Then one day, a wind picked him up and threw him on an open field in the sun. Later, he was given rain. Years later he saw a traveler sitting by his side. "Thank you God for this. I really need some rest," he heard the traveler say. "What are you talking about?" the seed quickly asked. He thought the man was making fun of him. No one ever spoke to him like that. "Who just spoke?" the shocked man asked. "It is me. A seed." "A seed?" The man looked at the big tree. "Are you joking? You are not a seed. You are a big tree!" "Really?" "Yes! Why else do you think people come here?" "What do they come here for?" "To feel your shade (树阴)! Don’t tell me you didn’t know you had grown over time." A moment passed before the traveler’s words brought him pride. The seed thought and smiled for the first time in his life. The years of torture (折磨) by the sun and the rain finally helped him grow up. "Oh! That means I’m not a little seed anymore! I was actually born to make people feel comfortable. Wow! That’s great!"
【小题1】The seed didn’t realize the importance of his existence because __________.

A．nobody looked after him

B．he was thrown into the open air

C．he can’t not grow up

D．he didn’t believe in himself

【小题2】The traveler sat by the seed’s side to _____________.

A．escape from the rain

B．thank God for offering him a tree

C．have a rest and enjoy the shade

D．talk with the big tree

【小题3】How did the seed feel after hearing the traveler’s words at last?

A．Sad.

B．Proud.

C．Funny.

D．Sorry.

【小题4】The author’s purpose of writing the passage is to ________.

A．tell us a very interesting story

B．praise the seed for his strength

C．teach readers a lesson: don’t laugh at others

D．tell us that we should never lose hope

【小题5】Where does the passage most probably come from?

A．A history book.

B．A science book.

C．A story book.

D．A guide book.

Famous as “the king of chefs and the chef of kings,” Auguste Escoffier helped raise the position of cooking from a laborer’s task to an artist’s job. Escoffier was born on October 28, 1846, in the small village of Villeneuve-Loubet, near Nice, France. Among the key figures in the boy’s life was his father, who worked primarily as a blacksmith（铁匠）. His grandmother, an enthusiastic cook, was perhaps more responsible than anyone for introducing the boy to an appreciation of the delights of cooking.
Young Escoffier attended the local school until age 12, upon which time his father thought it necessary that the boy learn a trade. In school he had shown a talent for drawing, yet he was told to regard this art only as a hobby, and to find his career in a more practical profession. Thus his father took him to Nice in 1859, where he would work as an apprentice（学徒）in his uncle’s restaurant, the respectable Le Restaurant Francais.
At Le Restaurant Francais, Escoffier was not treated as the close relative of the boss. Rather, he experienced a classically demanding apprenticeship. For this strictness of training he would later, in his memoirs（回忆录）, express gratefulness. During this time Escoffier also attended night school, and had to deal with his studies as well as the demands of a promising career.
When Escoffier was 19 and had taken on yet more responsibilities in his uncle’s restaurant, a customer recognized his skills and offered him work in Paris. This was the owner of Le Petit Moulin Rouge, one of the finest restaurants in Paris, where Escoffier was to become a sous-chef, ranking below the head chef. After three years in this position, he rose to the level of head chef, wearing the respected chef’s hat.
【小题1】It was his __________ who first influenced Escoffier to be interested in cooking.

A．father

B．mother

C．uncle

D．grandmother

【小题2】We can infer that as a schoolboy, Escoffier might hope to be __________.

A．a chef

B．a businessman

C．an artist

D．a blacksmith

【小题3】According to Paragraph 3, Escoffier __________.

A．was badly treated by his uncle	B．showed great interest in writing
C．disliked working as an apprentice	D．was thankful for the strict training

【小题4】Which of the following can best describe Escoffier?

A．Hard-working.

B．Honest.

C．Warm-hearted.

D．Modest.

【小题5】What is the text mainly about?

A．How to become a chef in France.	B．The influence of Auguste Escoffier.
C．What an apprentice is required to do.	D．The early life of a famous French chef.

Many people cannot forget the beautiful thousand hand dance performed by disabled people during the 2005 CCTV Spring Festival Gala(晚会). Many of these dancers cannot hear or speak, but their performances are wonderful.
The leading dancer is a beautiful young woman, Tai Lihua, who was born healthy  but lost her hearing when she was two years old because of a fever. Not long after that, she also became mute and, from then on, her world was silent. She did not realize this at first, but when she was five, she played a game about sounds with her school friends and discovered she was different. She felt very sad. Her father went to many places looking for treatments for her disabilities, but nothing worked.
    When she was seven years old, Tai Lihua went to a school for deaf and mute children, where she did very well in her studies. Her teacher said she used her brain more than other children and was very good at expressing her feelings through movements.
Then when she was fifteen, she started learning to dance. At first, she found it difficult but she didn’t give up. She spent a lot of time practicing and became a brilliant dancer. In the last few years, she has performed in many countries and is much admired by foreign audience. Dancing has changed her life and brought her world wide success and fame.
【小题1】Which of the following is expressed in the passage?

A．Where there is life, there is hope.

B．No one is too old to learn.

C．Where there is a will, there is a way.

D．The early bird catches the worm.

【小题2】What’s the meaning of the underlined word “ brilliant”?

A．very gentle

B．very beautiful

C．very talkative

D．very successful

【小题3】We can learn from the passage that ________.

A．Tai Lihua was born healthy.

B．Tai Lihua isn't successful now.

C．Tai Lihua’s parents didn’t take good care of her.

D．Tai Lihua had a natural ability to dance very well.

【小题4】Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?

A．A disabled girl.

B．A dancer in a silent world.

C．A beautiful dancer.

D．Dance performance in the CCTV Spring Festival Gala.