I didn’t think I had a passion(激情). I would sit in front of the TV all day, thinking about nothing but the next show. It was not long ago that I first learned how important having a passion is to life.
That day I went with my mum to drive my sister to the gym. I was bored. Then, as my mum stopped at a red light, someone on the side of the road caught my eye（吸引我的世界）. It was a man dressed in rags (衣衫褴褛). He was homeless. That didn’t interest me, for I had seen many like him before.
But in some ways he was different. This man was not sitting down with a sad expression(表情). He had a radio in his hand and was dancing happily to the music. The radio seemed to be the most precious(珍贵)thing he had.
“Mum, why does that man have a radio even thought（尽管） he’s homeless?” I asked.
“He bought it,” she replied. I was still unable to understand.
“But if he’s homeless, why doesn’t he use the money to buy food or clothes? He wasted it on something he doesn’t need.”
“Well, Sarah, sometimes food and clothes aren’t the most important things. We need happiness, too.”
The man must care too much about music to buy a radio instead of food clothes. I soon realized（意识到）that happiness is the key to life. Without it, there’s nothing to look forward to.
Since then I’ve never gone a day without thinking of what’s truly important. A home, a meal, clothes—these things are only part of the picture. What’s often forgotten is that we all need a pleasure, a light in a dark day. We all need a passion.
【小题1】How would Sarah spend her days long ago?

A．She watched TV all day.

B．She used to read a lot.

C．She did nothing but thinking.

D．She was always sleeping.

【小题2】Who caught Sarah’s eye when her mum stopped the car at a red light?

A．A man dressed in rags.

B．A man dressed in new clothes.

C．A man sitting down with a sad expression.

D．A man singing happily to the music.

【小题3】 Why was the man different?

A．He wore new clothes.

B．He was sitting with a sad expression.

C．He was homeless.[来源:Z。xx。k.Com]

D．He lived an active life though he was very poor.

【小题4】What did Sarah do after she understood the fact?

A．She thought all day without doing anything.

B．She bought a radio just like the man’s.

C．She had a passion with everything from then on.

D．She always danced to the music on the radio.

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

A．Sometimes food and clothes are the most important things in our life.

B．Happiness is the key to life and it is what we are looking forward to.

C．Music is more important than food or clothes.

D．Money is the most important thing for a person.

Most people will rest and relax when they are old. They do not work. And most people are certainly not famous. But Grandma Moses is different. She starts a new job at the age of 76.

    This is her story. She was born in a poor farmer's family in 1860. Her parents named her Anna Mary Robertson. She married Thomas Moses in 1887. He was a farm worker.

    Now it is 1930. Anna Mary Moses is 70, and is a grandmother. She begins to paint pictures. She does paintings of country life. One day, her daughter takes her paintings to a store in town. Her paintings are put in the window. A man from New York sees the paintings in the window and

buys them. And he wants more!                                                                       

    The man likes Grandma Moses' paintings. He wants to help her. So he takes her paintings to galleries(美术馆) in New York City. Otto Kallir has a famous gallery there. He likes the paintings by Grandma Moses. Now it is 1940 and Grandma Moses' paintings are in Kallir's gallery. She is 80 years old.

    Grandma Moses suddenly becomes famous. Everyone wants her paintings. So she paints more and more. She wins many prizes for her paintings. She becomes famous in the United States and Europe.

    When she is 100 years old, the State of New York makes her birthday “Grandma Moses' Day". After her 100^th birthday, she paints 6 more paintings. She dies at age 101 and a lot of people think she is amazing.

1.How is Grandma Moses different from most other old people?

     A. She has more grandchildren.          B. She has her own art gallery.

     C. She lives an easy life.              D. She starts a new job.

2. Grandma Moses' paintings are first bought by _______.

     A. a man from New York               B. her daughter

     C. Otto Kallir's gallery             D. the owner of a store in town

3.The writer of the passage thinks that _______.

    A. Grandma Moses is too old to paint at age 100

    B. people like her paintings but do not like her

    C. it is never too late to start a new job

    D. many people prefer paintings by old ladies

4.What would be the best title for the passage?

    A. Grandma Moses and New York State    B. Grandma Moses and Painting

    C. Grandma Moses' family               D. Grandma Moses' Day

 

 

A:Hi,Susan. What movie are you watching tonight?

B: 1. It's my second time watching it.

A: Man on Wire...Hmm...

B: 2.  

A: Yeah, I do. It's a great movie.

B: I agree. 3.

A: Oh, I remember. And it was in New York. I love that city.

B:Me, too. 4.  

A: I'd love to ,but I have to stay at home with my mom. 5.

B: Sorry to hear that.Hope your mom will be better soon.

A:Thanks. Enjoy your night.

 

Most people will rest and relax when they are old. They do not work. And most people are certainly not famous. But Grandma Moses is different She starts a new job at the age of 76.

    This is her story. She was born in a poor farmer's family in 1860. Her parents named her Anna Mary Robertson. She married Thomas Moses in 1887. He was a farm worker.

    Now it is 1930. Anna Mary Moses is 70, and is a grandmother. She begins to paint pictures. She does paintings of country life. One day, her daughter takes her paintings to a store in town. Her paintings are put in the window. A man from New York sees the paintings in the window and buys them. And he wants more!

    The man likes Grandma Moses' paintings. He wants to help her. So he takes her paintings to galleries(美术馆) in New York City. Otto Kallir has a famous gallery there. He likes the paintings by Grandma Moses. Now it is 1940 and Grandma Moses' paintings are in Kallir's gallery. She is 80 years old.

    Grandma Moses suddenly becomes famous. Everyone wants her paintings. So she paints more and more. She wins many prizes for her paintings. She becomes famous in the United States and Europe .

    When she is 100 years old, the State of New York makes her birthday "Grandma Moses' Day". After her 100^th birthday, she paints 6 more paintings. She dies at age 101 and a lot of people think she is amazing.

1.How is Grandma Moses different from most other old people?

    A. She has more grandchildren.         B. She has her own art gallery.

    C. She lives an easy life.               D. She starts a new job.

2. Grandma Moses starts to paint pictures_______.

    A. when her daughter asks her to do that   B. when she gets married

    C. at the age of 70                    D. in the year 1940

3.Grandma Moses' paintings are first bought by _______.

    A. a man from New York              B. her daughter

    C. Otto Kallir's gallery                D. the owner of a store in town

4.The writer of the passage thinks that _______.

    A. Grandma Moses is too old to paint at age 100

    B. people like her paintings but do not like her

    C. it is never too late to start a new job

    D. many people prefer paintings by old ladies

5. What would be the best title for the passage?

    A. Grandma Moses and New York State    B. Grandma Moses and Painting

    C. Grandma Moses' family              D. Grandma Moses' Day

 

There was a little boy with a bad temper（脾气）.His father gave him some nails（钉子）to drive into the fence (栅栏)when he lost his temper .The first day the boy drove 37 nails into the fence .Then it began to become less . He found it was easier to hold his temper than to drive those nails into the fence .

Finally the day came when the boy didn’t lose his temper at all . He told his father about it and the father suggested that the boy should now pull out one nail for each day that he  held his temper .The days passed and the young boy was finally able to tell his father that all the nails were gone .

The father took his son by the hand and led him to the fence .He said , “You have done well ,my son ,but you look at the fence . It will never be the same .When you say things in anger ,they leave a scar（痕迹）just like this one .You can put a knife in a man and draw it out . It won’t matter how many times you say I’m sorry ,the wound (伤口)is still there .A verbal （言语）wound is as bad as a physical(肉体)one.

1.Who was in a bad temper ?

A．the boy’s father	B．the boy’s friend
C．the little boy	D．a man

2. The word “it” in “it began to become less”refers to (指) ________ .

A．the first day	B．the fence
C．the nails	D．the boy’s temper

3.The way of pulling out nails is to _________.

A．make one’s temper less

B．make one hold one’s temper

C．leave a scar on somsone

D．hurt someone .

4. The boy thought that _______

A．it was easy for him to drive the nails into the fence .

B．driving nails into the fence is easier than holding his temper .

C．holding his temper is easier than driving nails into the fence .

D．it was easy for him to lose his temper after driving nails .

5.We learn from the reading that _______ .

A．the father was a man with bad temper .

B．it took a long time for the boy’s temper to become less.

C．the father was good at helping one who is easy to lose temper .

D．the boy was good at driving nails into the fence .