Mrs Black is sixty-nine years old. She has only a daughter named Sandra. Mr Black died twelve years ago. She was very sad and lived in her house alone. Two years later her daughter had a baby. The woman was busy all the time and no time to look after her son James. She asked her mother to live with with them.
The old woman had to sell her house and moved there. She was strong and could do all the housework. And the family liked her.
Last autumn Mrs Black went to do some shopping. A car hit her and her leg was hurt. She had to be in hospital for three months. She couldn’t do anything after she came back. At first her daughter was kind to her, but soon she began to tired (讨厌)of her. The old woman wanted to leave, but she had no money to buy a house and nobody could take care of her. She didn’t know what to do.
One morning Mrs Black broke a plate. It made her daughter angry. She told James to buy a wooden(木制的)for her grandma. That afternoon James came back with two wooden plates. She was surprised(惊讶的) and asked “Why did you buy two plates, son”
“One is for my grandma,” answered the boy. “The other is for you.” She cried for long. She’s kind to her mother as she did before.
【小题1】 Sandra asked her mother to live with them because________

Reading Oliver James'Affluenza, I thought about what often happens at home. My 12-year-old daughter is in tears."I have so take a test tomorrow. I don't understand any of it," she cries out. After shouting and shutting her door, she calms down enough to go through her notes. The following dry I ask her how the test went and the just says "OK,I got a nine".
"Wow. well done!" I say, before she finishes with "But I never get a ten!"
According to James, this obsession with getting top marks has been a bad development, which encourages people to think of education in terms of work and money. To test this, I asked my daughter why she was so worried about her tests. She looked at me as if I was thick. "Well, if I don't get good grades, I won't be able to afford nice things like a car and stuff."
I was quite surprised, because I don't consider myself a pushy parent. But James suggests and it leaves students feeling failures even if they are very bright. He points to the Danish system（体制）of education as a better model. Creating happy citizens who have good social skills is seen as more important than high achievements at school or the needs of business.
For me, I cannot remember the last time I had to work out the area of a circle, recite a Shakespeare poem or grammar rules, yet I have lived a happy life. What I really needed to learn at school was how to make polite conversations, or how to avoid getting into debt or how to develop good personality.
This is in fact similar to what Oliver James really has in mind. And he is looking for schools where students are encouraged to find and follow their own interests, something more like Tongjon. Tongjon has been developed in some Korean private schools. It is quite different from the more rigid system of learning things by heart that is used in Korea, and indeed in many other school systems around the world.
As the Russian poet Pushkin said," Inspiration(灵感）is needed in geometry(几何学）just as much as in poetry ",and inspiration does not come from endlessly revising for tests or getting worried about them .
【小题1】What does the writer probably think of his/her daughter?

Reading Oliver James'Affluenza, I thought about what often happens at home. My 12-year-old daughter is in tears."I have so take a test tomorrow. I don't understand any of it," she cries out. After shouting and shutting her door, she calms down enough to go through her notes. The following dry I ask her how the test went and the just says "OK,I got a nine".

"Wow. well done!" I say, before she finishes with "But I never get a ten!"

According to James, this obsession with getting top marks has been a bad development, which encourages people to think of education in terms of work and money. To test this, I asked my daughter why she was so worried about her tests. She looked at me as if I was thick. "Well, if I don't get good grades, I won't be able to afford nice things like a car and stuff."

I was quite surprised, because I don't consider myself a pushy parent. But James suggests and it leaves students feeling failures even if they are very bright. He points to the Danish system（体制）of education as a better model. Creating happy citizens who have good social skills is seen as more important than high achievements at school or the needs of business.

For me, I cannot remember the last time I had to work out the area of a circle, recite a Shakespeare poem or grammar rules, yet I have lived a happy life. What I really needed to learn at school was how to make polite conversations, or how to avoid getting into debt or how to develop good personality.

This is in fact similar to what Oliver James really has in mind. And he is looking for schools where students are encouraged to find and follow their own interests, something more like Tongjon. Tongjon has been developed in some Korean private schools. It is quite different from the more rigid system of learning things by heart that is used in Korea, and indeed in many other school systems around the world.

As the Russian poet Pushkin said," Inspiration(灵感）is needed in geometry(几何学）just as much as in poetry ",and inspiration does not come from endlessly revising for tests or getting worried about them .

1.What does the writer probably think of his/her daughter?

A. She sets herself a goal too high to reach.

B. She should be more polite to her parents.

C. She is hard-working but not very bright.

D. She takes her grades much too seriously.

2.What does the word "obsession"in paragraph 3 mean?

A.A plain and unavoidable fact.

B.A satisfied and very proud state.

C.A practical and widely-used way.

D.A fixed and often unreasonable idea.

3.What can we infer from the passage?

A. Social skills are as important as high grades.

B. Interest in grades can shake self-confidence.

C. The writer regrets not having studied hard at school.

D. Danish educational system is for very smart students.

4.The writer wants to tell us that____.

A.learning happily is the key to self-development.

B. top marks may be helpful to increase one's interest.

C. tests should be improved to give children inspiration.

D. education should meet one's needs for word and money.

Once, in a small village, lived a family with eight children. Two of the children loved   31   very much, but the family was so poor that it was impossible to send   32    of them to study at the art college at the same time. After many discussions, the two boys finally  33    a plan. They would toss(抛) a coin. The loser would go  34  into the mines (煤矿) and, with his earnings(赚得的钱),   35   his brother studying at the college. Then, when the brother who won the toss finished his studies, after four years, he would support the other brother studying at the   36   .  

     James won the toss and Jack went down into the mines. James worked with all his heart and his paintings were much   37   than those of most of his teachers, and by the time he   38  , he was beginning to make a lot of money for his paintings.

        39   James returned, the family held a big dinner for his great success. Soon after the meal began, James  40  up from his seat to drink a toast (举杯祝酒) to his dear   41   .  He said, "Jack, now you can go to the art college and your   42    will come true. I will take care of you. "

     But Jack said   43   , "Brother, the four years in the mines has done too much to my hands, so it' s too  44   . Now I can' t even hold a glass. "

     To show his great love and respect, James drew his brother' s hands with   45   towards the sky.

He called his drawing "The Praying Hands", which became very famous years later.

1.A. paintingB. booksC. schoolD. money

2.A. anyB. allC. bothD. neither

3.A. looked outB. worked outC. took outD. got out

4.A. offB. awayC. upD. down

5.A. supportB. agreeC. followD. let

6.A. homeB. mineC. collegeD. school

7.A. betterB. worseC. cheaperD. older

8.A. arrivedB. graduatedC. walkedD. waited

9.A. BeforeB. WhenC. ThoughD. While

10.A. pickedB. turnedC. lookedD. stood

11.A. brotherB. sisterC. fatherD. mother

12.A. wayB. ideaC. dreamD. practice

13.A. happilyB. surprisedlyC. angrilyD. softly

14.A. earlyB. lateC. goodD. helpful

15.A. legsB. feetC. armsD. fingers

完形填空

Once, in a small village, lived a family with eight children. Two of the children loved   1  very much, but the family was so poor that it was impossible to send   2   of them to study at the art college at the same time. After many discussions, the two boys finally   3  a plan. They would toss(抛) a coin. The loser would go  4 into the mines (煤矿) and, with his earnings(赚得的钱),   5  his brother studying at the college. Then, when the brother who won the toss finished his studies, after four years, he would support the other brother studying at the   6     
James won the toss and Jack went down into the mines. James worked with all his heart and his paintings were much   7  than those of most of his teachers, and by the time he   8  , he was beginning to make a lot of money for his paintings.
   9  James returned, the family held a big dinner for his great success. Soon after the meal began, James  10 up from his seat to drink a toast (举杯祝酒) to his dear   11    He said, "Jack, now you can go to the art college and your   12   will come true. I will take care of you. "
But Jack said   13  , "Brother, the four years in the mines has done too much to my hands, so it’s too   14   Now I can’t even hold a glass. "
To show his great love and respect, James drew his brother' s hands with   15  towards the sky.
He called his drawing "The Praying Hands", which became very famous years later.