Even before my father left us, my mother had to go back to work to support our family．Once I came out of the kitchen, complaining, “Mom, I can't peel potatoes．I have only one hand.”
Mom never looked up from sewing．"You get yourself into that kitchen and peel those potatoes," she told me. “And don't ever use that as an excuse for anything again!”
In the second grade, our teacher lined up my class on the playground and had each of us race across the monkey bars, swinging from one high steel bar to the next．When it was my turn, I shook my head．Some kids behind me laughed, and I went home crying．
That night I told Mom about it．She hugged me, and I saw her "we'll see about that" look． The next afternoon, she took me back to school．At the deserted playground, Mom looked carefully at the bars．
"Now, pull up with your right arm," she advised．She stood by as I struggled to lift myself with my right hand until I could hook the bar with my other arm．Day after day we practiced, and she praised me for every rung （横档） I reached．I'd never forget the next time, crossing the rungs．I looked down at the kids who were standing with their mouths open．
One night, after a dance at my new junior high, I lay in bed sobbing．I could hear Mom come into my room．"Mom," I said, weeping, "none of the girls would dance with me．"
For a long time, I didn't hear anything．Then she said, "Oh, honey, someday you'll be beating those boys off with a bat．" Her voice was soft and weak．I glanced at her to see tears running down her cheeks．Then I knew how much she suffered on my behalf．She had never let me see her tears．
【小题1】Which of the following expressions can be used most suitably to describe Mom's attitude when she made the child peel potatoes?
A．Cruel．         B．Serious．   C Strict．          D．Cold．
【小题2】From the passage, we know monkey bars can help a child train ____．

B
“It was all his own idea, ” says Pat Peters, the 38-year-old wife of Palo Alto, California high school football coach Bob Peters, 39. Bob had just drawn up a “motherhood contract” --a document stating that for 70 days this summer he would take over the care and feeding of the couple’s four children, plus all household chores. Although he didn’t even know how to make coffee when he signed, he was quite confident.(He thought the experience would make a nice book.)
After 40 of the 70 days, he was ready to give up. “I was beaten down, completely humbled（挫败的）,”  admits Peters. Three weeks later he spoke to the local press, stating, “Not only is motherhood a difficult task, not only is it never-ending, it is an impossible job for any normal human being.”
Bob and Pat were high school sweethearts. After they were married in 1960, she worked as a secretary to help put him through university. Since then Bob has been the football and wrestling coach at Palo Alto’s Cubberley High while Pat raised the kids. Then two years ago Pat went back to work as a secretary at Cubberley. “I had been around children so much,” she sighs, “I couldn’t talk to a grown-up.” She continued to run the household, however----until Bob signed the contract, therefore, she decided to relax and enjoy it. 
Although Peters had consulted(咨询) with his school’s home economics teachers and the head of the cafeteria, his meals were sometimes a disaster. “I tried to slip the butter I’d forgotten under the eggs after they were frying, ” he says. For the last three weeks, the family ate out a lot—sometimes having Macdonald’s hamburgers for lunch and dinner.
As for housekeeping, a home economics teacher had told Bob that a room always looks clean if the bed is made. “I found an easier way-I shut the doors, ” he says. Soon the kids were wearing the same clothes for a week. “I made them wear their shirts inside out, and when we went to pick up Pat at work they turned them right side out so they would look clean.”
Now that Bob has publicly admitted he was wrong, he is routinely sharing the child-raising and household tasks with Pat. The tentative（暂时的） title of his book about the summer is taken from something he shouted at the kids one day.
45. The couple signed the contract because _______.
A. Pat complained a lot about her doing the housework all by herself
B. Bob loved taking care of children and wanted his wife to have a good rest
C. they agreed that husband and wife should share household tasks
D. Bob thought it easy to take care of the family and wanted the experience for a book
46. It was agreed that if Bob failed to keep to the contract, he would have to _______.
A. pay a certain amount of money
B.  admit publicly he was wrong about motherhood 
C. say sorry to his wife         D. do all the housework for years
47. What can we learn about Pat Peters?
A. She was hard-working and selfless.   B. She was pretty and kind-hearted.
C. She was tired of the child-raising and household tasks.
D. She did not love Bob any longer.
48. Which of the following can best end the news story?
A. “Wait till your mother gets home!”    B. “My experience of being a mother.”
C. “I’m proud of you all, my dear!”     D. “Motherhood: an impossible job for anyone.”

If you are human, you can’t help but experience times when everything seems to be going wrong and you feel as if your life is completely out of control. It is during those “down times” that words of encouragement from family, friends, co-workers or even strangers can lighten your spirits. It is also during those times that destructive words can sink you deeper and deeper into depression.

For example, consider this story about a group of frogs who were traveling through the woods when two of them fell into a deep pit （坑）. All of the other frogs gathered around the pit. When they saw how deep the pit was, they told the two unfortunate frogs they would never get out.

The two frogs ignored the comments and tried to jump out of the pit. The other frogs kept telling them to stop. Finally, one of the frogs took heed of what the other frogs were saying and simply gave up. He fell down and died. The other frog continued to jump as hard as he could. Once again the crowd of frogs shouted at him to stop the pain. The more they shouted, the harder he jumped and finally he made it to safety.

When he got out, the other frogs asked him why he continued to jump when they were all shouting at him to simply quit. The frog explained to them that he was a little bit deaf. He thought they were encouraging him the entire time.

Every time you have a chance to say either something positive or negative to another human being, do choose the chance to say something positive! Don’t let those opportunities get away from you. Your words have a large amount of power. Use them wisely. You really never know just how much they can mean to someone else.

68. The first paragraph tells us that words play an important part especially when         .

A. we stay with our family, friends and co-workers

B. we hear strangers say something to us

C. we get through hard times in life

D. we make some big mistakes

69. The underlined phrase “took heed of ” had the similar meaning with “     ”.

A. acted according to            B. had some doubt

C. held on to                   D. got used to

70. The more they shouted, the harder he jumped and finally he made it to safety. That’s because        .

A. he struggled to prove that they were wrong  

B. he thought they were encouraging him

C. he was angry with what they said              

D. he didn’t want to let them down

71. After reading the passage, readers should learn a lesson that        .

A. we can use encouraging words to help others out 

B. having a positive attitude is important in life

C. never give up until we win   D. we must believe in ourselves rather than others

If you are human, you can’t help but experience times when everything seems to be going wrong and you feel as if your life is completely out of control. It is during those “down times” that words of encouragement from family, friends, co-workers or even strangers can lighten your spirits. It is also during those times that destructive words can sink you deeper and deeper into depression.

For example, consider this story about a group of frogs who were traveling through the woods when two of them fell into a deep pit （坑）. All of the other frogs gathered around the pit. When they saw how deep the pit was, they told the two unfortunate frogs they would never get out.

The two frogs ignored the comments and tried to jump out of the pit. The other frogs kept telling them to stop. Finally, one of the frogs took heed of what the other frogs were saying and simply gave up. He fell down and died. The other frog continued to jump as hard as he could. Once again the crowd of frogs shouted at him to stop the pain. The more they shouted, the harder he jumped and finally he made it to safety.

When he got out, the other frogs asked him why he continued to jump when they were all shouting at him to simply quit. The frog explained to them that he was a little bit deaf. He thought they were encouraging him the entire time.

Every time you have a chance to say either something positive or negative to another human being, do choose the chance to say something positive! Don’t let those opportunities get away from you. Your words have a large amount of power. Use them wisely. You really never know just how much they can mean to someone else.

68. The first paragraph tells us that words play an important part especially when         .

A. we stay with our family, friends and co-workers

B. we hear strangers say something to us

C. we get through hard times in life

D. we make some big mistakes

69. The underlined phrase “took heed of ” had the similar meaning with “     ”.

A. acted according to            B. had some doubt

C. held on to                   D. got used to

70. The more they shouted, the harder he jumped and finally he made it to safety. That’s because        .

A. he struggled to prove that they were wrong  

B. he thought they were encouraging him

C. he was angry with what they said               

D. he didn’t want to let them down

71. After reading the passage, readers should learn a lesson that        .

A. we can use encouraging words to help others out 

B. having a positive attitude is important in life

C. never give up until we win   D. we must believe in ourselves rather than others

A. appliance          B. separate             C. professional       D. potentially         E. techniques

F. apply         G. absolutely      H. unplug       I. contact J. external

Government statistics recently revealed that in the UK, more than 3,000 people a year experience electric shocks in their home. A smaller number are electrocuted(触电死亡) after   41   with power lines outside the home. Electric shocks can cause a person’s heart or breathing to stop, can also cause burns and are potentially fatal. It is essential for people to learn basic first aid   42  to deal with such emergencies.

What to do?

If you are the first person to reach someone who has had an electric shock, don’t touch him or her!

If they are still holding the appliance that has given them the shock,   43   it or turn off the power at its source. Under no circumstances should you try to move the   44   with your hand!

If you can’t turn off the power, use a piece of wood, like a broom handle or a chair, to   45   the victim from the appliance or the power source. You may even be able to do this with a folded newspaper.

The victim must remain lying down. If they are unconscious, victims should be placed on their side. But they should not be moved if there is a possibility of neck or spin injuries unless it is   46   necessary.

It is necessary to maintain the victim’s body heat, so make sure you cover him or her with a blanket before you do anything else. If the victim is not breathing,   47   mouth-to-mouth way. Keep the victim’s head low until   48   help arrives.

If the electric shock has been caused by a(n)   49   power line, the dangers to the victim and to anybody providing first aid are much greater.