Before I even started school, people felt that I was not going to amount to much. At the age of four, I started speech lessons because even I could not speak well enough to be understood.
First grade was a struggle. I not only had difficulty speaking, but I was expected to learn to read and I just couldn't do it. My parents grew more and more frustrated. They bought books and offered great rewards if I could read one of them from start to finish to them. Well, with my speech problems and now my reading problems, I did not like to do reading and so refused to do it whenever possible.
Second grade was not much better. It was in the second grade that the teacher decided that I needed special education. I remember the days of taking the physical exams. However, after all that, they decided that I did not qualify for special education.
It was in third grade that a new school was built close to where I lived. I remember going there with my parents and helping to get the school ready so that we could transfer(转学). It was a happy day that we started school at Vandalia. However, things did not get better as my parent expected.
It was now time for fifth grade. Mrs. Wakefield was my teacher, and if ever there was a teacher that deserved a gold star, it was her. She did not make me feel upset. Instead, she helped me in so many ways and built my self-confidence so that I actually did believe that I could do something special. And that is just what I did.
For the past 22 years, I have been a fifth grade teacher. Because of Mrs. Wakefield's influence in my life, I am now encouraging students who have had difficulties in their lives to believe that they can overcome and become someone. I have won a large number of awards but I know that all of them belong to one fifth grade teacher who believed in me and challenged me to be all that I could be.
I still have a class picture of her with her fifth grade class hanging on the wall of my office, encouraging other teachers to reach out to their students.
【小题1】 What does the underlined phrase “amount to much” mean in Paragraph l?

A．get rich.	B．get successful.
C．get recovered.	D．become healthy.

【小题2】From the second paragraph we know that______________.

A．the writer's parents lost confidence in the writer completely

B．the writer's speech problems didn’t stop him from reading

C．the writer's parents tried many things to encourage him

D．the writer couldn't improve his speech ability from reading

【小题3】What can we infer from the passage?

A．The writer’s parents believed he could get improved in his speech ability.

B．The new school was not far away from where they lived.

C．The teachers in the new school were gold stars

D．The writer himself wanted to transfer to a new school.

【小题4】In which grade did the turning point in writer's life appear?

A．In Grade Two.	B．In Grade Three
C．In Grade Four	D．In Grade Five

【小题5】.What can we learn from the passage?

A．A good teacher is hard to find in our lives.

B．Many students have speech difficulties,

C．Confidence is very important in one's life

D．Different teaching methods work the same

Except for a few times, Americans are not big present-givers. There's no exchange of presents among business people, and if one American tries to give another a present, it may look like that he wants to bribe (贿赂) him. Americans have learned that in some other countries people like to give presents to others, but among ourselves we don't see the need for presents.
Even friends may never exchange presents. When I go to foreign countries, I try to bring back little things for close friends, but nobody would feel unhappy if I didn't. I don't often re­member a friend's birthday, and few people outside of my family remember mine. If someone gave me presents too often, I'd get unpleasant. But a present from a foreigner - that kind from his or her homeland — won't go wrong, except to government employees (政府职员) who can't be given presents.
You usually open a present at once and in front of the person who gives it except Christmas and birthday presents. You should only say, "It's so nice. Thanks…" when you get Christ­mas or birthday presents.
You may want to bring a bottle of wine (葡萄酒) or flowers to a dinner party, but you're
never asked to.  Nobody will mind if you bring wine, but your friend may not use it that evening.
At Christmas we often give presents to our family and sometimes our friends. We also give presents to people who have been helpful during the year- doormen, babysitters, housecleaners, newspaper senders— anyone who has often helped us.
【小题1】   What does "close friends" mean in the passage?

A． The friends who are very kind.

B． The friends who live close to each other.

C． The friends who were once classmates.

D． The friends who you like most.

【小题2】  What kind of presents don't Americans usually open in front of the givers?

A．The small presents.	B． Christmas or birthday presents.
C． The expensive presents.	D． The presents for dinner party.

【小题3】           Why do Americans also give presents to housecleaners at Christmas?

A． To pay them.	B． To help them.
C． To thank them.	D． To make them work harder.

【小题4】   Which of the following do you think is right?

A． American business people don't want presents because they are rich enough.

B． The writer of this passage must be an American.

C． Everyone must give presents to one's family and friends at Christmas.

D． Government employees can get little presents from a foreigner.

【小题5】   What is the main idea of the passage?

A． Present-giving in the United States.

B． Customs (习俗) in the United States.

C． American people and present-giving.

D． When and how to give presents.