阅读理解：先阅读短文，然后根据短文内容从文后每小题的四个选项中，选出一个能完成所给句子或回答所提问题的正确答案。

　　President (总统) George W Bush is visiting an elementary school today and visits one of the 4th grade classes. They are in the middle of a discussion(讨论) of words and their meanings.

　　The teacher asks the President if he would like to lead the class in the discussion of the word“tragedy”. So the President asks the class for an example of a“tragedy”.

　　One little boy stands up and says,“If my best friend, who lives next door, is playing in the street and a car comes along and runs him over, that would be a tragedy.”

　　“No,”says Bush,“that would be an accident.”

　　A little girl puts up her hand,“If a school bus carrying 50 children drove off a cliff(悬崖), killing everyone in the bus, that would be a tragedy.”

　　“I am afraid not,”explains the President.“That is what we would call a GREAT LOSS(损失).”

　　The room goes quiet. No other children answer. President Bush looks around the mom.“Is not there someone here who can give me an example of a tragedy?”

　　At last, in the back of the room, a boy named Johnny puts up his hand. In a quiet voice he says,“If Air Force One, carrying you and Mrs Bush, was hit by a missile(导弹) and blown up to pieces, that would be a tragedy.”

　　“Right,”exclaims(大叫)Bush,“that is right, and can you tell me why that would be a tragedy?”

　　“Well,”little Johnny says,“because, as you just told us, it would not be an accident, and it sure as well would not be a great loss.”

1．President Bush tells the students ________.

[　　]

A．to welcome him

B．to give an example

C．to make a sentence

D．to ask some questions

2．Johnny is ________.

[　　]

A．in the front of the classroom

B．in the back of the classroom

C．in the middle of the room

D．on the left

3．Air Force One is ________.

[　　]

4．“Tragedy”means ________.

[　　]

5．What does the sentence“…and it sure as well would not be a great loss”mean?

[　　]

A．Of course, it's not a great loss, either.

B．It's OK that it would not be a great loss.

C．It's sure if it is not a great loss.

D．I'm sure that it would be a great loss, too.

Most American students have said goodbye to fancy (高档的)fruits these days.

In school canteens across the country , cheaper fruits like apples and oranges have taken their place. “People are afraid to spend now,” said Linda Morrow, who owns a shoe and handbag store. “They don’t know want the future will bring.”

During the financial crisis（金融危机）, several of the country’s biggest banks have been forced to sell or close. This has made lots of Americans afraid to buy expensive goods. Samira Marino, a restaurant owner in Miami, has found everyone is ordering water instead of juice and more people are sharing meals.

In more than two-dozen interviews with The Associated Press across the country last month, Americans talked about their concerns, from worries about small businesses to doubts（怀疑） about simply making ends meet.（维持生计）

The crisis began last year. Experts think it was because US banks lend money too easily. Last year a lot of people and companies, who borrowed money, have found themselves unable to pay it back. This left the banks, as well as the people who put their money in the banks, without money. Since the banks borrowed money between themselves and even across borders（国界）, the whole world was in trouble. This month the US government agreed on a $700 billion plan to try to save the financial market. But no one is sure whether it will help or not. President George W. Bush has warned it will take some time . Last week top finance officials from 20 countries promised to work together to find a way out of the money trouble.

51.Why are people in the US afraid to spend?

A. Because they think it’s unnecessary.

B. Because they don’t have the habit of spending money .

C. Because they worry about their future .　

D. Because they don’t have enough money.

52.The underlined word “concerns” mainly_______.

A. worries　 B. conditions　 C. hobbies　　 D. experiences

53.The fifth paragraph mainly _________.

A. tells what it is like in a crisis B. explain why there is a crisis

C. warns people of the danger of the crisis D. asks people not to borrow money from banks

54. People feel ______ about the US plan to save the market .

A. satisfied　 B. doubtful　　 C. hobbies　　 D. angry

55. The best title for the story is ________.

A. Ways to Make Ends Meet　　　 B. The Money Problem Facing the World

C. Healthy Fancy Fruits D. The Art of Borrowing

If you have a brother or sister, you already know you are different from each other. You live together in the same house and with the same parents, but you have different personalities.

Why is this? One possible reason is the way your parents treat you.

    First–born children receive all the attention from their parents. Most families have twice as many photos of a first–born than any other child．Parents usually give first–borns more responsibility（责任）and depend on them to take care of younger brothers and sisters. As a result, first–borns are often responsible, hard–wording and serious. They often want to do well at school and work. There are more first–born American presidents than second or last-born children—for example, George W. Bush, George Washington, and Lyndon Baines Johnson.

When a second child arrives, parents are not so excited．The second child has to compete with the first–born for the parents’ attention and love. These children often choose different sports and hobbies to do well at school and work, but have to be creative to get their family’s attention. They are often friendly and cool. Many famous talk-show hosts were born last.

（　 ）1. The writer thinks that the second children are often _______.

A．outgoing and serious                     B．cool and friendly

C．hard-working and serious                D．creative and responsible

（　 ）2. The underlined word “personalities” means _______ in the passage.

A．友好                   B．冷静                 C．个性                 D．智商

（　 ）3. _______ is usually the happiest in the family according to the passage.

A．The eldest child                                       B．The second child

C．The youngest child                                  D．The father

（　 ）4. We can learn from the passage that ________.

A．the second child is very similar to the first-born child

B．brothers and sisters usually have the same personalities

C．it’s easy for the second child to get his or her parents’ attention

D．there are more first-born successful people than second or last-born people

（　 ）5. The passage is mainly about          .

A．birth order and personalities

B．the personalities of the second child in a family

C．the personalities of the eldest child in a family

D．the personalities of the youngest child in a family