I’ve loved my mother’s desk since I was just tall enough to see above the top of it as mother sat doing letters. Standing by her chair, looking at the ink bottle, pens,   and white paper, I decided that the act of writing must be the more wonderful thing in the world.

Years later, during her final illness, mother kept different things for my sister  and brother. “But the desk,” she’d said again, “it’s for Elizabeth. ”

I never saw her angry, never saw her cry. I knew she loved me; she showed it in action. But as a young girl, I wanted heart-to-heart talks between mother and    daughter.

They never happened. And a gulf opened between us. I was “too emotional(易动感情的)”. But she lived “on the surface(表面)”.

As years passed I had my own family. I loved my mother and thanked her for our happy family. I wrote to her in careful words and asked her to let me know in any way she chose that she did forgive(原谅) me.

I posted the letter and waited for her answer. None came.

My hope turned to disappointment(失望), then little interest and, finally, peace— it seemed that nothing happened. I couldn’t be sure that the letter had even got to mother. I only knew that I had written it, and I could stop trying to make her into someone she was not.

Now the present of her desk told, as she’d never been able to, that she was    pleased that writing was my chosen work. I cleaned the desk carefully and found    some papers inside —a photo of my father and a one-page letter, folded(折叠) and refolded many times.

Give me an answer, my letter asks, in any way you choose. Mother, you always chose the act that speaks louder than words.

1.The writer began to love her mother’s desk ______.

A．after Mother died

B．before she became a writer

C．when she was a child

D．when Mother gave it to her

2.The passage shows that ______.

A．mother was cold on the surface but kind in her heart to her daughter

B．mother was too serious about everything her daughter had done

C．mother cared much about her daughter in words

D．mother wrote to her daughter in careful words

3.The word “gulf” in the passage means ______.

A．deep understanding between the old and the young

B．different ideas between the mother and the daughter

C．free talks between mother and daughter

D．part of the sea going far in land

4.What did mother do with her daughter’s letter asking forgiveness?

A．She had never received the letter.

B．For years, she often talked about the letter.

C．She didn’t forgive her daughter at all in all her life.

D．She read the letter again and again till she died.

5.What’s the best title of the passage?

A．My letter to Mother

B．Mother and Children

C．My mother’s Desk

D．Talks between Mother and Me

6.选A。由But she lived “on the surface ”. 和全文内容可知，作者的母亲表面上很冷漠，但心里充满了对作者的爱，正确

That year , in the local school, there was a new math teacher, as well as some new pupils. One of the new kids was the stupidest child anyone had ever seen. It made no difference how quickly or how slowly they tried explaining numbers to him; he would always end up saying something enormously stupid. Like two plus two was five, seven times three was twenty-seven, or a triangle had thirty corners……
Before this boy arrived, math lessons had been the most boring of all. Now they were great fun. Encouraged by the new teacher, the children would listen to the pieces of nonsense spouted by the new kid, and they would have to correct his mistakes.
Whenever the new teacher asked questions, the stupid kid would stand up but made the wrong answers, the other students all wanted to be the first to find his mistakes, and then think up the most original ways to explain them. To do this they used all kinds of stuff : sweets, playing cards, oranges, paper planes, etc. It didn’t seem like any of this bothered the new kid.
However, Little Lewis was sure that it was bound to make him feel sad inside. Lewis was sure he would see him crying. So, one day, he decided to follow the new kid home after school. On leaving school, the new kid walked a few minutes to a local park, and there he waited for a while, until someone came along to meet him……
It was the new teacher!
The teacher gave the new kid a hug, and off they went, hand in hand. Following from a distance, Lewis could hear they were talking about math.
【小题1】根据短文第二三段描述，可知这位新老师的工作很有创造性，故选A。
【小题2】根据短文最后一段Following from a distance, Lewis could hear they were talking about math.描述，可知选B，这个所谓的最蠢的学生其实比其它学生知道的多。
【小题3】根据Lewis was sure he would see him crying. So, one day, he decided to follow the new kid home after school.描述，可知选B。
【小题4】联系上文To do this they used all kinds of stuff :可知选C。
【小题5】The math lessons became interesting again because of the new teacher’s ___________.

A．creativity

B．imagination

C．responsibility

D．curiosity

【小题6】The passage implies that the stupidest child____________________________.

A．was in great need of math teacher’s help after class

B．knew much more about math than other classmates

C．had no much gift for math and was slow to learn it

D．disliked both the new math teacher and his lessons

【小题7】According to the passage, Lewis followed the stupidest in order to ______________.

A．learn about where he lived	B．find out if he felt upset
C．say something to comfort him	D．make friends with him

【小题8】 What does the underlined word “this” in the third paragraph refer to ?

A．To find the stupidest kid’s mistakes.

B．To think up the most original ways to explain.

C．To use all kinds of stuff.

D．To follow him home after school.

Win $ 50 in the Coolest Gadget of the Week

Look at what’s the coolest gadget (vote for a chance to win $ 50).

Cryo S: A Cool Netbook Cooler

Like the other devices of NZXT, the Cryo S was designed to provide a competitive advantage at PC gaming. It has two adjustable(可调节的) 120mm fans(风扇) that provide powerful cooling.

The full post(帖子) can be found on Trends Updates.

Starry Night Bed

Are you having trouble getting that good nights sleep that you’re needing? Well, not any more. Why not take a look at the Starry Night Bed? The Starry Night Bed is a great new invention which will revolutionize the way in which you sleep. Not only is this bed fashionable and comfortable but it’s also a gadget heaven. With this bed you get many added gadgets including anti-snore technology, movie projector with speakers, temperature control and many more.

The full post can be found on Tech Styling.

Fugoo—talking gadgets

Fugoo gets all your appliances(装置，设备) talking to each other so your alarm clock could first wake you up and then tell the coffee machine to start working while checking traffic conditions online to tell you how long it will take you to get to work.

The full post can be found on Decide What to Buy.

Vote  What is this week's coolest gadget?

〇 A Cool Netbook Cooler

〇 Starry Night Bed

〇 Fugoo—talking gadgets

1.Where can you find the full post of the “Cryo S”?

A．Tech Styling.       B．Super Cool Pets.    C．Decide What to Buy. D．Trends Updates.

2.If you buy a Starry Night Bed, you can get all the following gadgets EXCEPT ___________.

A．temperature control                     B．movie projector

C．adjustable fans                         D．anti-snore technology

3.From this passage, we learn that Fugoo can_________.

A．check traffic conditions                   B．wake you up       C．take you to work D．make coffee

4.Where does this advertisement probably come from?

A．A magazine.        B．A website.         C．A newspaper.      D．A textbook.

 

Most of us are the only child in our family. We have no brothers or sisters. Our family mainly consists of our mom,our dad and us. We are growing up in a world differently from our parents’. And we will be the future leaders of China. Some day we have to work hand in hand with each other and make China more and more beautiful. So we must learn to love each other like brothers and sisters.
It’s hard to think how difficult life would be if we had a sibling(同胞，手足).We never have to share anything at home. Of course, we might have cousins, but we don’t have to live with them! Our parents try to give us the best, and the best doesn’t need sharing between two or three children. Do we ever ask ourselves if we are (宠坏) spoiled?
A recent study has found that many children don’t know how to love others! We don’r know the value of money. We don’t know how hard our parents are to support us. We don’t want others to regard us as spoiled, do we? Well, why not start now to help our parents at home, share a game with one of our friends or value the opinions of our classmates, even if we don’t always agree? In a word, we must learn to love each other!
【小题1】The underlined phrase “consists of ” means ____________in Chinese.

A．由...组成

B．由...反映

C．由...提示

D．由...覆盖

【小题2】As Chinese teenagers, what’s our duty in the future?

A．To save money

B．To learn to love each other

C．To look after our brothers and sisters

D．To make China more and more beautiful

【小题3】Why do some people think we are spoiled?

A．We don’t know how to love each other

B．We only share games with our friends

C．We don’t know how to use money

D．Our parents work hard to support us.

Is this the reason ______ at the meeting for his carelessness in his work?

  A. he came up with                   B. what he came up with  

C. how he came up with               D. why he came up with