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It was so dark outside the car window that it was hard to see anything.

“ Can I have a carrot, Mom?” Bruce asked.

“I don’t have any carrots,” his mom said. “How about an apple?”

“No,” said Bruce. “It has to be a carrot.”

“Why do you want a carrot?” asked his mom

“You always say carrots help your eyes.” said Bruce. “If I eat one now, it might help me see in the dark.”

Would eating a carrot really help Bruce? What is special about carrots? What makes a carrot special is its color. Carrots are orange because they contain(包含) bta-carotene( 胡萝卜素). Beta-carotene is a way of saying vitamin A. Your eyes need vitamin A. It helps them work.

When light hits your eye, very small parts inside turn the light into messages. The messages go to your brain（大脑）, and then you know what you’re looking at. Your eye can only turn light into messages when it has a special chemical(化学物质). Your eyes use vitamin A to make the special chemical. Every time your eye changes light into messages, a little bit of the chemical is used up. By the end of the day, you’ve looked at hundreds of things. That uses up a lot of the chemical. Your eyes need to make more.

What should you eat if you don’t like carrots? Don’t worry. Other fruits and vegetables have vitamin A, too. The secret is in their color. Most orange or red fruits and vegetables contain beta-carotene, or vitamin A, Sweet vegetable, red peppers（胡椒）, Mangoes(芒果) are a few foods that have the same orange secret.

1. Bruce wanted a carrot because he thought _______.

A. he liked it

B. it could help him see in the dark

C.  it was sweet and delicious

2.How does vitamin A help your eyes work?

A. The special chemical can stop your eyes from using up vitamin A.

B. The special chemical is used to make Vitamin A which turns the light into messages

C. Vitamin A is used to make the special chemical which turns light into messages.

3. Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?

A. Carrots are orange because they store beta-carotene.

B. Any food which is orange or red must have some Vitamin A.

C. Most fruits that are orange or red store some beta-carotene or Vitamin A.

4. Sweet vegetable, red peppers, and mangoes don’t have the same orange secret, do they?

A. No, they don’t.      B. Yes, they do.     C. I’m not sure.

5. The passage mainly tells us that _______.

A. we can’t see in the dark unless we eat many carrots every day

B. we can’t see unless we eat a lot of orange or red food every day

C. we should eat some food containing vitamin A so that we can see well

How hard we have all prayed(祈祷) to grow up quickly, and looked forward to the pappy days of being a grown-up and enjoying the many interests that a youth should have.

At last, you have grown up. At least you are no longer a child. They call you ‘young lady’. You then enjoy the pleasure of being a young lady. You are proud of being a grown-up teenager. People welcome you—this young lady heartily. You are glad that your prayer has been answered.

But this is always something that troubles you a lot. You say, “Papa and Mama, give me some money please. My pocket money is all gone already.’

‘No,” they say, “Your age is a dangerous age. If you have too much money to spend, it won’t do you any good.’ Then you have to stay at home because you dare not go out with an empty pocket.

Another time you tell your grandma, ‘Grandma. See, I am a grown-up now.’

‘Good, now, you can sit here and knit(编织) this for me while I go and have a rest.’ To show that you are no more a child, you have to sit there the whole afternoon doing the work, which only a grown-up can do. After an hour, you find it hard to do, and give the knitting basket back to your grandma. Your grandma criticizes your work. You hear what she says, “Such a bad girl can’t do such easy work.’ You wish then you were a child again.

(　　 )51. The passage is told about ________ problem.

　　　 A. a grown-up boy’s　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. a teenage girl’s

C. an old woman’s　　　　　　　　　　　 D. an old man’s

(　　 )52. It is clear that the writer, as a teenager, ________.

　　　 A. is pleased with the present life　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. is unhappy about growing up

　　　 C. doesn’t think her present life happy enough　　 D. is sad about being a kid

(　　 )53. How does she know her prayer had been answered?

　　　 A. People treat her as a young lady.

B. She doesn’t need to play with kids now.

C. People begin to call her teenager.

D. She can join women in all kinds of activities.

(　　 )54. From what her parents say, we know ________.

　　　 A. the girl always has much money in her pocket

　　　 B. it’s dangerous for a girl to spend money

　　　 C. they love her more than before

　　　 D. they still regard her as a child

(　　 )55. Why does he promise to help her grandma do some knitting?

　　　 A. Because she likes doing knitting

　　　 B. Because she wants to show that she has grown up.

　　　 C. Because she has much more free time.

　　　 D. Because her grandma is very tired.