To most of us, school means classes, teachers, schedules, grades and tests. But for the children at Sudbury Valley School in Massachusetts, school is very different.

Firstly, there are no lessons. All the children, aged between 4 and 19, do whatever they want. There are no teachers, only “staff members”. The idea behind this is that you do not need to make children learn, because children want to learn anyway. “You do not need to say to a three-year-old, ‘Go explore your environment.’ You can’t stop them!”says Daniel Greenberg, a founder of the school. “But if you make children do what you want all day… they will lose all taste of learning.” At Sudbury Valley School, you will find children talking, reading, painting, cooking, working on computers, studying French, playing the piano, climbing trees, or just running around. Two boys spent three years just fishing!

The other way that Sudbury Valley School is different is that the children can decide the rules. Every week, there is a school meeting where both children and staff have one vote (投票)each—even the four-year-olds. They decide the school rules, how to spend the school money, and even which staff they want and do not want anymore.

When the school first opened in 1968, people said it would never work. But today, the school has 200 students, and 80% of its students go on to college. Even the two boys who went fishing all the time have successful careers today. One of them is a musician and the other is a computer scientist.

1.What's special about the school?

A. There is nobody but students there.

B. All the students are of the same age.

C. There are no classes for the students.

D. There are no rules in the school.

2.What do the students do in the school?

A. They learn everything there from the staff members.

B. They grow up there without learning anything.

C. They spend all the time with their parents.

D. They do whatever they are interested in.

3.The school seems to believe that children________.

A. learn best when they are doing what they want

B. are too young to learn anything by themselves

C. can look after themselves without any help

D. can't go to college without any hard work

4.The last paragraph wants to tell us that_          .

A. the writer doesn't like the idea of the school

B. the school is quite successful in its work

C. most of the parents don't believe in the school

D. younger students learn better there than older ones

5.The underlined word career in the last paragraph most probably means_.

A. family   B. money    C. lifestyle    d. job

It was Mother’s Day, but the young mother was a little unhappy, because she was 800 miles away from her parents. In the morning she phoned her mother to wish her a happy Mother’s Day, and her mother told her about the beautiful lilacs(丁香花)in the garden.
Later that day, when she told her husband about the lilacs, he said, “I know where we can find all that you want. Get the children and come on.” So they went, driving down the country roads. There on a small hill, they saw a lot of beautiful purple lilacs. The young woman ran quickly to enjoy the flowers. Carefully, she picked a few here and there. On their way home there was a smile on her face.
When they were passing an old people’s home, the young woman saw an old granny sitting in a chair. They stopped the ear and the young woman walked to the old woman, put the flowers in her hands, and smiled at her. The old granny thanked her again and again. She smiled happily, too.
When the young mother came back to her car, her children asked her, “Who is the old granny? Why did you give our flowers to her?  I don’t know her,” their mother said. “But it’s Mother’s Day, and she has no children. I have all of you, and I still have my mother. Just think how much those flowers meant to her.”
【小题1】The young woman was a little unhappy on Mother’s Day because________.

In the United States, sixteen, eighteen, and twenty-one are important ages in a person’s life. There are no special celebrations for these birthdays, but each is a time when a person can do new things to mark their transition(转变) into adulthood.

After turning sixteen a person can work, get a driver’s license and leave home. Many high school students learn to drive and get part-time jobs soon after celebrating their sixteenth birthday.

At the age of eighteen a person in the United States can vote and smoke, but they are prohibited from going into nightclubs, buying wine or gambling(赌博) until they are twenty-one.

In many Latin(拉丁的) cultures, a young woman’s fifteenth birthday is important. At this age, she is regarded as an adult. To mark this special day, families with teenage daughters have a celebration called a Quinceanera. The day begins with the young woman and her family going to church. Later, there is a party and many guests are invited.

In Japan, young people became adults at twenty. At this age, they can legally(合法地) vote, drink wine and smoke. The second Monday in January is a national holiday called “Coming of Age Day”. On this day, twenty-year-old celebrates by first going to church to pray with their families. Later, they listen to speeches given by city and school leaders. Afterward, they may celebrate with family or friends late into the night.

In some countries, birthday celebrations continue through adulthood. Some people celebrate their fortieth and fiftieth birthdays, or their retirement(退休) year, with a huge party.

1. In the United States, age sixteen marks the time when you can ___________.

  A. vote and drive    B. drive and get a job   C. drink wine and smoke  D. go into nightclubs

2.Which of the following is not the turning point in a person life in the USA?

    A. The 15^th birthday.    B. The 16^th birthday.  C. The 18^th birthday.  D. The 21^st birthday.

3.What is the meaning of the word “prohibit”?

    A. 允许             B. 禁止             C.  终止          D.  停止