A blind boy sat on the steps of a building with a hat by his feet. He held up a sign which said, “I am blind, please help.” There were only a few coins in the hat.
A man was walking by. He took a few coins from his pocket and dropped them into the hat. He then took the sign, turned it around, and wrote some words. He put the sign back so that everyone who walked by would see the new words.
Soon the hat began to fill up. A lot more people were giving money to the blind boy. That afternoon the man who had changed the sign came to see how things were. The boy recognized(听出)his footsteps and asked, “Were you the one who changed my sign this morning? What did you write?”
The man said, “I only wrote the truth. I said what you said but in a different way.”
What he had written was, “Today is a beautiful day; I can not see it.”
Of course both signs told people the boy was blind. But the first sign simply sign the boy was blind. The second sign told people they were so lucky that they were not blind. Should we be surprised that the second sign was more effective (有效的)？
【小题1】The boy in the passage can not           .

A．see

B．walk

C．hear

D．speak

【小题2】 How did the man help the boy?

A．He gave the boy a lot of money.

B．He brought the boy back to his home.

C．He wrote some new words on the sign.

D．He sent the boy to a special school.

【小题3】The underlined words “held up” in the first paragraph mean          .

A．阻碍

B．举着

C．承受

D．坚持

【小题4】What happened after the man changed the sign?

A．The boy still got a few coins in the hat.

B．The boy got much more money.

C．No one gave the boy coins any more.

D．No one gave the boy coins any more.

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

A．Time can we learn from the story?

B．You should be brave even thought you’re blind.

C．Treating a thing differently brings a different result.

D．If we want to be rich, we should be honest.(结果)

Who is the greatest teacher in Chinese history? You can’t think of anyone else when you hear people read Confucius’ 2,500–year–old words: “All study but no thinking makes people puzzled. All think but no study makes people lazy. ”
September 28^th was Confucius’ birthday. He was born in the Kingdom of Lu(鲁国), in today’s Shandong Province. Chinese look upon Confucius as the greatest thinker and also the greatest teacher. He had about 3,000 students. For more than 2,500 years, Confucius’ ideas have been around in people’s everyday lives. Now they have gone far into Western countries and South Asia. People can still hear them today.
Why are his ideas so popular? They help not only in everyday life but also in society(社会). Confucius’ most important ideas are kindness and good manners. Confucius said young people should take care of the old. People should give up thinking of themselves and work for others. As a great teacher, Confucius said that all should go to school if they wanted to learn.
Some of Confucius’ popular words are “A kind person should care others” and “Be strict with yourself, but be kind to others.” People use his ideas to help themselves and society. Now, more than 100 internet web sites are teaching people about Confucius and his ideas.
“Kindness and honesty are the best values(价值) of the world today, ” said 79–year–old Kong Fanjin who is studying Confucius.
【小题1】Confucius was     .

A．born on September 28th, 3000 years ago

B．born in the in the Kingdom of Chu

C．taught students in today’s Shandong Province

D．not only a greatest teacher but also a greatest thinker

【小题2】Why are Confucius’ ideas so popular?

A．They are about money and power.

B．They help people themselves and the society.

C．They are about different customs and manners.

D．They only help people deal with everyday life.

【小题3】The underline word “them” in the second paragraph refers to     .

A．the greatest teacher and thinker	B．Confucius’ students
C．people in Western countries and South Asia	D．Confucius’ ideas

【小题4】Which of the following is NOT Confucius’ idea?

A．People should get education.

B．The young should take care of the old.

C．Be strict with others, but be kind to yourself.

D．All thinking but no study makes people lazy.

With a hat by his feet, a blind boy sat on the steps of a building. He held up a sign which said, “I’m blind, please help.”

Only a few people put   36  in the hat. A man was walking by. He   37  some coins into the hat. He then turned the sign   38 , wrote some words, put the sign back and left.

Soon the hat began to fill up. A lot more people   39  to give money to the blind boy. That afternoon the man came to see   40  things were. The boy recognized his footsteps （认出他的脚步声）and asked, “Were you the one who   41  my sign this morning? What did you write?”

The man said, “I only wrote the truth. I said what you said but in a   42  way.” What he had written was, “Today is a beautiful day,   43 I cannot see it.”

Both the   44  told people that the boy was blind. But the first sign simply   45  people to help by throwing some money into the   46 . The second one, however, told people that they were able to enjoy the   47  of the day, but the boy couldn’t   48  he was blind.

There are at least two lessons we can learn   49  this story. First, be thankful for what you have. Someone else has less. Help them if you can.   50  , be creative. Think differently. There is always a better way!

1.	A．eggs B．coins C．toys D．pencils

 

2.	A．got B．lost C．took D．dropped

 

3.	A．on B．off C．back D．around

 

4.	A．asked B．began C．hoped D．continued

 

5.	A．how B．what C．whose D．which

 

6.	A．put B．found C．changed D．cleaned

 

7.	A．usual B．simple C．different D．dangerous

 

8.	A．as B．so C．for D．but

 

9.	A．signs B．men C．boys D．lessons

 

10.	A．told B．took C．helped D．ordered

 

11.	A．bag B．hat C．pocket D．basket

 

12.	A．food B．songs C．beauty D．pictures

 

13.	A．because B．unless C．before D．though

 

14.	A．about B．with C．from D．except

 

15.	A．First B．Second C．Third D．Fourth

 

As we know, there are differences between western culture and Chinese culture. We can see differences when we pay attention to the way words are used. Let’s look at the words about animals and plants. Most expressions in Chinese about the dog, for example, “a homeless dog”, “a mad dog”, “a running dog” and “a dog catching a mouse”, have negative(消极的)meanings. But in western countries, dogs are thought to be honest and good friends of people. In English, people use the dog to describe positive(积极的)actions. For example, “you are a lucky dog” means you are a lucky person. And “every dog has its day” means each person has good 1uck one day. To describe a person’s serious illness, they say “sick as a dog”. The word “dog-tired” means very tired. However, Chinese love cats very much. But in western culture, “cat” is often used to describe a woman who is cruel(冷酷的). There are many other examples of how “cat” is used differently as well.
The rose(玫瑰)is thought of as a symbol of love in both China and some western countries. People think the rose stands for(代表)love, peace, courage and friendship. And the rose is the national flower of England, America and many other countries.
The words about plants and animals are used in positive or negative ways in different cultures. We can learn about many differences in cultures by comparing(比较)how some words are used.
【小题1】The word “dog” in Chinese usually_________.

A．shows peace	B．stands for friendship
C．has a negative meaning	D．has a positive meaning

【小题2】“Every dog has its day” means “_________”.

A．each person lives his own way of life

B．if one works hard, he is sure to succeed

C．everybody in the world is lucky

D．everybody has a time in 1ife to be lucky

【小题3】Western people usually use “cat” to refer to(指代) “_________.”

A．a tired person	B．a brave man
C．a homeless person	D．an unkind woman

【小题4】Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A．Words show differences in different cultures.

B．Chinese people like dogs better than cats.

C．Western people think of cats to be good friends.

D．Rose is the national flower of all western countries.

【小题5】What’s the best title for the passage?

A．Negative or Positive.

B．Different Countries Have Different Cultures.

C．Rose Means the Same in Chinese and English.

D．What Dog and Cat Mean in English.

As we know, there are differences between western culture and Chinese culture. We can see differences when we pay attention to the way words are used. Let’s look at the words about animals and plants. Most expressions in Chinese about the dog, for example, “a homeless dog”, “a mad dog”, “a running dog” and “a dog catching a mouse” have negative(消极的) meanings. But in western countries, dogs are thought to be honest and good friends of humans. In English, people use the dog to describe positive(积极的) actions. For example, “you are a lucky dog” means you are a lucky person. And “every dog has its day” means each person has good luck sometimes. To describe a person’s serious illness, they say “sick as a dog”. The word “dog-tired” means very tired. However, Chinese love cats very much. But in western culture, “cat” is often used to describe a woman who is cruel(残酷的)。
The rose is regarded as a symbol (象征) of love in both China and some western countries. People think the rose means love, peace, courage and friendship. And the rose is the national flower of England, America and many other countries.
The words about plants and animals are used in positive or negative ways in different cultures. We can learn about many differences in cultures by comparing how some words are used.
【小题1】“Every dog has its day.” Means “__________”

A．Everybody in the world is lucky.

B．Each person lives his own way of life.

C．If one works hard, he’s sure to succeed.

D．Everybody has a time in life to be lucky.

【小题2】Western people usually use “cat” to refer to “___________”.

A．a tired person

B．a brave man

C．a homeless person

D．an unkind woman

【小题3】Which of the following is true according to the passage?

A．Words show differences in culture.

B．Chinese people prefer dogs to cats.

C．Western people think cats to be good friends.

D．Rose is the national flower of all western countries.

【小题4】What’s the best title for the passage?

A．Negative or Positive

B．Different Countries Have Different Culture

C．Rose Means the Same in Chinese and English

D．What Dog and Cat Mean in English and Chinese