Many years ago, a rich man found that someone wan taking valuable things from his house. He locked all the doors and all the windows .Still the things went. It must be one of the servants! How could he catch the servant? He thought of a good plan.
Late one evening. When it was dark, he called all the servants together, “There is a thief in the house, but I know how to catch him.”He said.”In the next room there is a square box. In that box there is a chicken which is magic. Each of you must go into the room alone. It is quite dark in the room. You must feel your way to the table and press the first finger of your right hand on the top of the box. If you are not the thief, nothing will happen. If you are the thief, the chicken will make such a loud sound that everyone in the house will hear it.”Some of the servants said that they did not want to do this. They were frightened of the magic chicken. But the man said that they must do what he said. If they had done nothing wrong. They had nothing to fear.
So the servants went into the dark room one at a time, while the rest listened carefully. Soon everyone had been in the room. but the chicken made no sound.”Good “said the man.”Now I know who the thief is! The servants looked very surprised.“Show me your right hands! The chicken did not make a sound for a very good reason. There is no chicken in the box at all! But the top of the box was covered with paint. You all have paint on your fingers, except for one person. That person is the thief, and he was afraid to put his finger on the box.”He pointed to one of the servants.”Your finger is clean! You are the thief!”
【小题1】Were the rich man call all the servants together?
A. Yes, they were.  B. No, they weren’t.   C.I don’t know.
【小题2】When did the rich man call all the servants together?
A. In the morning B. In the afternoon C. In the evening
【小题3】Did the rich man catch the thief at last?
A. Yes, he did B. No, he didn’t   C. He gave up the plan
【小题4】Which of the following is NOT true?
A. There was paint on the box.
B. All of the servants touched the box.
C. All of the servants went into the dark room.
【小题5】What do you think of the rich man?
A. Brave.   B. Clever   C. Friendly.

Do you know what Oscar is? When did it start? Maybe you can find the background of the awards in the following passage.

The awards started in 1929. Their full title is “The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Awards”. The Academy is a group of people who have worked in the film industry for many years. They decide who will receive the awards. The awards are often referred to as the “Oscar”. This is a nickname given to the awards by a lady called Margaret Herrick. She was once the director of the Academy and she once said that the little gold statue(雕像) reminded her of her uncle Oscar!

The Oscar is always an exciting event. Each year, at least one unusual thing happens. When the Italian actor and director Roberto Benigni won an Oscar for best foreign film, he danced on stage! When Gwyneth Paltrow, the star of Shakespeare in Love won the Oscar for best actress, she could not make her acceptance speech because she was crying so much with happiness!

In 1987, Roberto Benigni won the award for best director for a film about the last emperor of China. Since then, Chinese film and actors have started to make an impact at the award. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon was a huge success and it won the award for best foreign language film in 2001. It also won several technical awards for its amazing “flying” people. We expect to see more awards for Chinese film in the near future.

It’s time for the Oscar again. Once more, the stars will dress up in their finest and go to Kodak Theater. There, they will find out who had won the awards for best actor, best actress and best director. Millions of people watch the awards every year to find out who the winners are. Some people watch it to see the stars crying and laughing as they receive their awards.

1.Who give the awards?

A. In 1927.

B. Oscar.

C. The Academy of Nicknames. 

D. A group of people who have worked in the film industry for many years.

2.What did Gwyneth Paltrow win an Oscar for?

A. Best Director.   B. Best Foreign Film.   C. Best Actress.  D. Best Actor.

3.Which Chinese film won an award for best foreign film?

A. Crouching Dragon, Hidden Tiger.

B. Crouching and Hidden Dragon and Tiger.

C. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.

D. Crouching, Dragon, Hiding Tiger.

4. Where are the Oscars held?

A. At the Academy.                     B. in a Los Angeles restaurant. 

C. At Oscar’s house.                    D. At Kodak Theater.

5.Why do some people watch Oscars?

A. To see the restaurant.                 B. To see the fashion. 

C. To see a film.                      D. To see the stars crying and laughing.

 

 Rudi Matt lived in a small village in the Swiss Alps in 1865. What he wanted most in the world was to climb   31   highest peak (山峰) in the Alps.   32   mother and his uncle, Franz, a mountain guide, wanted him to stop   33   and start working in a hotel. Rudi would not  34   his dream and secretly got in touch with an English mountain climber   35  was planning to climb the highest peak.

Franz was very angry when he found out   36   Rudi had done, but he finally agreed to let Rudi go if he went climbing, too. Franz also didn’t want to see Emil Saxo, a guide from another village, got to the top   37    him.

Rudi turned out to be a very good climber,  38   as they got close to the top, the Englishman got sick and couldn’t go on farther. Franz   39   behind to take care of him, but Saxo continued, wishing to be the   40   to the top. Rudi went after Saxo, hoping to   41   him to the top. When they met, Saxo fought with Rudi and fell down by accident. Saxo was   42   and hurt. Rudi must decide whether to carry Saxo back down to safety or to continue alone to the top.

He thought Saxo’s life was more   43   than his dream and helped him down. During that time, the Englishman and Franz continued the climb, and finally   44  reached the top. Later, the villagers   45   knew Rudi was the real conqueror (征服者) of the mountain.

1. A. the               B. a                C. an           D. /

2.A. Rudi           B. The Rudi’s       C. Rudis’           D. Rudi’s

3. A. climbing      B. climb            C. to climb     D. climbed

4. A. try out           B. give up      C. go over      D. work out

5. A. what          B. which            C. whom         D. who

6.A. which          B. what         C. that         D. where

7.A. after          B. behind           C. before           D. over

8.A. but                B. so           C. or           D. for

9.A. walked         B. rested           C. stayed           D. watched

10. A. first            B. second           C. third            D. last

11.A. take          B. beat         C. push         D. help

12. A. helpful          B. helping      C. helps            D. helpless

13.A. popular           B. successful       C. important        D. interesting

14.A. he                B. they         C. them         D. him

15. A. both         B. none         C. either           D. all