All over the world, children in hospital are being treated with a new kind of medicine: laughter. Lucy is 23 and works for Theodora Children’s Trust. She is one of many clown doctors who bring a smile to the faces of sick children.

“I’m a Theodora clown doctor. I call myself Dr Looloo. I spend two days a week in children’s hospitals, making funny faces, telling jokes, and doing magic tricks. As I walk into the wards I blow bubbles, shake hands with the kids, and make up nonsense songs for those children well enough to sing. I take special balloons to make ‘balloon animals’ and tell funny stories about them.

I’m naturally a very cheerful person. I’ve always been a clown. In fact my father’s a clown and I started working with him when I was eight years old. I knew it was just the job for me and I became a clown doctor because I think it’s a great way to cheer up sick, frightened children in hospital.

Being a clown in hospital is very tiring both physically and emotionally. We have to learn not to show our feelings, otherwise we’d be useless. Clown doctors are sensitive but this is not a side most people see. To the children we’re happy all the time. I’m still learning to allow myself to feel sad occasionally. There are special kids you get really close to. At the moment I’m working with a very sick little girl from Bosnia who speaks no English, so our only common language is laughter.

At weekends I participate in events to raise money for Theodora Children’s Trust. It’s a charity, so we are paid with the money people give. Being a clown doctor makes the worries of everyday life seem small. All in all, I feel honored to do this job. ”

Lucy works as a clown doctor because      .

A．her father is a clown               she has been a clown since she was eight

C．laughter is a great help to sick children   D．working in hospital brings her extra money

What do clown doctors usually do in hospital?

A．Teach kids how to speak English.   Cheer kids up with funny stories.

C．Join in activities to raise money.    D．Develop kids’ sense of humor.

Lucy thinks that being a clown doctor is          .

A．an honorable and meaningful practice    an interesting job to make a living

C．a good way of getting rid of her worries       D．an experience of great fun

       In the course of working my way through school, I took many jobs I would rather forget. But none of these jobs was as dreadful as my job in an apple plant. The work was hard; the pay was poor and, most of all, the working conditions were terrible.

      First of all, the job made huge demands on my strength. For ten hours a night, I took boxes that rolled down a metal track and piled them onto a truck. Each box contained twelve heavy bottles of apple juice. I once figured out that I was lifting an average of twelve tons of apple juice every night.

      I would not have minded the difficulty of the work so much if the pay had not been so poor. I was paid the lowest wage of that time— two dollars an hour. Because of the low pay, I felt eager to get as much as possible. I usually worked twelve hours a night but did not take home much more than $100 a week.

      But even more than the low pay, what made me unhappy was the working conditions. During work I was limited to two ten-minute breaks and an unpaid half hour for lunch. Most of my time was spent outside loading trucks with those heavy boxes in near-zero-degree temperatures. The steel floors of the trucks were like ice, which made my feet feel like stone. And after the production line shut down at night and most people left, I spend two hours alone cleaning the floor.

     I stayed on the job for five months, all the while hating the difficulty of the work, the poor money, and the conditions under which I worked. By the time I left, I was determined never to go back there again.

49. Why did the writer have to take many jobs at that time?

A. To pay for his schooling.                                     B. To save for his future.

C. To support his family.                                         D. To gain some experience.

50. The following facts describe the terrible working conditions of the plant EXCEPT_______.

A. loading boxes in the freezing cold                        B. having limited time for breaks

C. working and studying at the same time                 D. getting no pay for lunch time

51. What is the subject discussed in the text?

A. The writer’s unhappy school life.                   B. The writer’s eagerness to earn money.

C. The writer’s experience as a full-time worker. D. The writer’s hard work in an apple plant.

52. How is the text organized?

A. Topic-Argument-Explanation                        B. Opinion-Discussion-Description

C. Main idea-Comparison-Supporting examples   D. Introduction-Supporting examples-Conclusion

阅读理解

阅读下列短文，从每题所给四个选项(A，B，C和D)中，选出最佳选项．

　　“I'm very tired of working here,”said Jean to her friend Kate.“I'm on my feet from morning to night. For the first quarter of the day, I clean up the counter(柜台)and set the tables. For the next quarter, I help in the kitchen. For the second half of my workday I take orders at the counters.”

　　“Kate, I wish I had your job,”Jean went on.“For hours you just sit at the cash register(收款处)taking in money.”

　　“But I spend two more hours in the kitchen than you do,” said Kate, “It's tiring to cook over a hot stove. I don't think you'd really want my job. In fact, I'd like your job.”

1．Both Jean and Kate probably work in a ________.

[　　]

2．From the passage we can see that ________.

[　　]

A．they are both interested in their work

B．their work is neither tiring nor busy

C．both of them are tired of their work

D．they've decided to give up their work

3．Give a proper proverb(谚语)to Jean and Kate.

[　　]

A．It's never too late to learn.

B．It's no use crying over spilt milk.

C．The grass is always greener on the other side.

D．One swallow(燕子)does not make a summer.

All over the world, children in hospital are being treated with a new kind of medicine: laughter. Lucy is 23 and works for Theodora Children’s Trust. She is one of many clown（小丑）doctors who bring a smile to the faces of sick children.

“I’m a Theodora clown doctor. I call myself Dr Looloo. I spend two days a week in children’s hospitals, making funny faces, telling jokes, and doing magic tricks. As I walk into the wards I blow bubbles, shake hands with the kids, and make up nonsense songs for those children well enough to sing. I take special balloons to make ‘balloon animals’ and tell funny stories about them.

I’m naturally a very cheerful person. I’ve always been a clown. In fact my father’s a clown a d I started working with him when I was eight year old. I knew it was just the job for me and I became a clown doctor because I think it’s a great way to cheer up sick, frightened children in hospital.

Being a clown in hospital is very tiring both physically and emotionally. We have to learn not to show our feelings, otherwise we’d be useless. Clown doctors are sensitive but this is not a side most people see. To the children we’re happy all the time. I’m still learning to allow myself to feel sad occasionally. There are special kids you get really close to. At the moment I’m working with a very sick little girl from Bosnia who speaks no English, so our only common language is laughter.

At weekends I participate in events to raise money for Theodora Children’s Trust. It’s a charity, so we are paid with the money people give. Being a clown doctor makes the worries of everyday life seem small. All in all, feel honoured to do this job. ”

1．Lucy works as a clown doctor because      .

       A．her father is a clown                            B．she has been a clown since she was eight

       C．laughter is a great help to sick children   D．working in hospital brings her extra money

2．What do clown doctors usually do in hospital?

       A．Teach kids how to speak English.          B．Cheer kids up with funny stories.

       C．Join in activities to raise money.            D．Develop kids’ sense of humour.

3．Lucy thinks that being a clown doctor is          .

       A．an honorable and meaningful practice     B．an interesting job to make a living

       C．a good way of getting rid of her worries                                D．an experience of great fun