It was a spring day for end-of-the-year conferences(会议). Mrs. Lake reminded everyone that both parents and students should take part in these important reports, 20 minutes for each family.

Lauri’s name was at the end of the list. But it didn’t matter much to her. Despite the many phone calls her teacher had made, Lauri knew her parents would not be coming. Her father always got drunk, and her mother could do nothing but cry and quarrel with him.

Now Lauri watched all day long as each child went to the door leading into Mrs. Lake’s office, where parents would greet their sons and daughters with proud smiles. Lauri imagined how it might feel to have her parents greet her at the door.

When at last everyone else’s name had been called, Mrs.Lake opened the door and signed for Lauri to come in. Silently Lauri went in and sat down on a chair. As she felt rather uneasy that her parents had not come, she looked down. Mrs Lake had Lauri raise her face so she could see her in the eye. “First of all,” the teacher began, “I want you to know how much I love you.” Lauri saw things she’d never seen: kindness.

   “Second,” the teacher continued, “you need to know it is not your fault that your parents are not here today.” Again Lauri looked into Mrs Lake’s face. No one had ever talked to her like this. No one.

“Third,” she went on, “you deserve to hear how well you are doing and how wonderful I think you are.” In the following minutes, Mrs Lake held a conference just for Lauri. She showed Lauri her grades, papers and projects, praising her efforts. She had ever saved a pile of watercolors Lauri had painted.

Lauri didn’t know exactly when, but at some point in that conference she heard the voice of hope in her heart. And somewhere a change started. It was then that Lauri realized, for the first time in her life, that she was lovable. 

41. Why were parents required to come to the conferences?

   A. To see how important it was to encourage their children.

   B. To learn how their children had performed in their studies.

   C. To report to the teacher how their children were doing at home.

   D. To see how their children were getting along with their classmates.

42. How did Lauri feel at the end of the conference?

   A. Encouraged     B. Ashamed     C. Challenged    D. Disappointed

43. What does the underlined word “deserve” mean?

   A. 必需　　　　　B. 得到　　　  C.　应该　　　　D.　可能

44. We learn from the text that Mrs. Lake ____________.

   A. disliked Lauri’s parents    

B. filled Lauri with hope and self-respect.

   C. was worried about her poor performance

   D. was dissatisfied with the end-of-the-year conferences.

45. What is the best title of this text?

   A. A Parents’ Meeting                  B. Mrs Lake’s Kindness

   C. Lauri’s Spring Day                  D. A Progress Reports Meeting

 Perhaps the only test score that I remember is the 41. I was in high school. The test was the final for the class. It was a rather  36  test. I didn’t know how  37  I had done but I knew there were things on   38   that I didn’t know.

   I remember   39    waiting for the result. When Mr. Bales  40  my paper on my desk, I was   41    . There in big  42   numbers, circled to draw attention, was my grade — 41! I  43  my paper so that others couldn’t see it. A 41 was not   44   that you wanted your classmates to see. Finally, Mr. Bales stood behind the desk and   45   the class. “The grades were not very good;   46  of you passed,” he announced. “ The highest grade in the class was a 41, so all of you failed.”

   A 41. That was me. Suddenly my dismal(阴沉的) face didn’t look quite so bad. I had the highest grade. I felt a lot   47   . As soon as I got home, my mother asked me, “How did you do on your test?” “I made a 41,” I said. My mother’s    48   changed suddenly. “You failed.” “But I had the highest grade in the class!” I replied. “ I don’t    49   what everyone else had. You failed. It doesn’t matter if everyone else failed too; what matters is what you do,” my mother  50   answered.

   For years, I thought that was a harsh judgment. My mother was always that  51  . It didn’t matter what the other kids did; it only mattered what I did and  52  I did it excellently.

   We often don’t understand the wisdom of good parents until we ourselves stand   53  the parenting shoes. My mother’s philosophy（人生态度）has   54    me throughout life. The path of the crowd is wide but the path to pass the tests of life is   55   and there are very few people on it.

1.A. easy                B. difficult                             C. exciting            D. disappointed

2.A. much                  B. good                                 C. well          D. long

3.A. this                     B. them              C. it               D. one

4.A. happily           B. anxiously           C. excitedly      D. calmly

5.A. fell            B. handed            C. dropped         D. lay

6.A.excited       B. worried                C. delighted                 D. shocked

7.A. red         B. black               C. blue          D. green

8.A. collected     B. gathered              C. hid                      D. kept

9.A. everything B. something                      C. anything           D. nothing

10.A. talked          B. declared                          C. announced             D. addressed

11.A. some                 B. each                                  C. none                 D. most

12.A. worse               B. better                          C. best                     D. good

13.A. looks                  B. appearance                     C. eyes          D. expression

14.A. understand      B. care                                  C. mind                        D. want

15.A. rudely               B. politely                    C. firmly                 D. impatiently

16.A. method             B. manner                            C. behavior      D. way

17.A. this               B. that               C. which              D. what

18.A. on                      B. at                            C. in                      D. of

19.A. taken                 B. brought                       C. fetched      D. carried

20.A. wide                  B. deep              C. narrow        D. straight

 

I made a promise to myself on the way down to the vacation beach cottage. For two weeks I would try to be a loving husband and father. Totally loving. No ifs, ands or buts.
The idea had come to me as I listened to a talk on my car radio. The speaker was quoting a passage from the Bible about husbands being thoughtful of their wives. Then he went on to say, “Love is an act of will. A person can choose to love.” To myself, I had to admit that I had been a selfish husband. Well, for two weeks that would change.
And it did. Right from the moment I kissed Evelyn at the door and said, “That new yellow sweater looks great on you.”“Oh, Tom, you noticed,” she said, surprised and pleased. Maybe a little puzzled. After the long drive, I wanted to sit and read. Evelyn suggested a walk on the beach. I started to refuse, but then I thought, “Evelyn’s been alone here with the kids all week and now she wants to be alone with me.” We walked on the beach while the children flew their kites.
So it went. Two weeks of not calling the Wall Street firm where I am a director; a visit to the shell museum though I usually hate museums. Relaxed and happy, that’s how the whole vacation passed. I made a new pledge to keep on remembering to choose love.
There was one thing that went wrong with my experiment, however. Evelyn and I still laugh about it today. On the last night at our cottage, preparing for bed, Evelyn stared at me with the saddest expression.
“What’s the matter?” I asked her.
“Tom,” she said in a voice filled with distress, “do you know something I don’t?”
“What do you mean?”
“Well…that medical checkup I had several weeks ago…our doctor…did he tell you something about me？Tom, you’ve been so good to me…am I dying?” It took a moment for it all to sink in. Then I burst out laughing.
“No, honey,” I said, wrapping her in my arms. “You’re not dying; I’m just starting to live.”
【小题1】From the story we may infer that Tom drove to the beach cottage __________.

A．with his family	B．with Evelyn
C．all by himself	D．with his children

【小题2】 During the two weeks on the beach, Tom showed more love to his wife because __________.

A．she looked lovely in her new clothes

B．he could afford time to care for her

C．he was willing to be a good husband

D．she was seriously ill

【小题3】The author says, “There was one thing that went wrong with my experiment.” What was the one thing that went wrong?

A．He praised her sweater, which puzzled her.

B．She insisted on visiting a museum, which he hated.

C．He knew something about her illness but didn’t tell her.

D．He was so good to her that she thought she would be dying.

【小题4】By saying “I’m just starting to live,” Tom means that __________.

A．he is just beginning to understand the real meaning of life

B．he is just beginning to enjoy life as a loving husband

C．he lived an unhappy life before and is now starting to change

D．he is beginning to regret what he did to his wife before

I made a promise to myself on the way down to the vacation beach cottage. For two weeks I would try to be a loving husband and father. Totally loving. No ifs, ands or buts.

The idea had come to me as I listened to a talk on my car radio. The speaker was quoting a passage from the Bible about husbands being thoughtful of their wives. Then he went on to say, “Love is an act of will. A person can choose to love.” To myself, I had to admit that I had been a selfish husband. Well, for two weeks that would change.

And it did. Right from the moment I kissed Evelyn at the door and said, “That new yellow sweater looks great on you.” “Oh, Tom, you noticed,” she said, surprised and pleased. Maybe a little puzzled. After the long drive, I wanted to sit and read. Evelyn suggested a walk on the beach. I started to refuse, but then I thought, “Evelyn’s been alone here with the kids all week and now she wants to be alone with me.” We walked on the beach while the children flew their kites.

So it went. Two weeks of not calling the Wall Street firm where I am a director; a visit to the shell museum though I usually hate museums. Relaxed and happy, that’s how the whole vacation passed. I made a new pledge to keep on remembering to choose love.

There was one thing that went wrong with my experiment, however. Evelyn and I still laugh about it today. On the last night at our cottage, preparing for bed, Evelyn stared at me with the saddest expression.

“What’s the matter?” I asked her.

“Tom,” she said in a voice filled with distress, “do you know something I don’t?”

“What do you mean?”

“Well…that medical checkup I had several weeks ago…our doctor…did he tell you something about me？Tom, you’ve been so good to me…am I dying?” It took a moment for it all to sink in. Then I burst out laughing.

“No, honey,” I said, wrapping her in my arms. “You’re not dying; I’m just starting to live.”

 

1.From the story we may infer that Tom drove to the beach cottage __________.

A. with his family                              B. with Evelyn

C. all by himself                               D. with his children

2. During the two weeks on the beach, Tom showed more love to his wife because __________.

A. she looked lovely in her new clothes

B. he could afford time to care for her

C. he was willing to be a good husband

D. she was seriously ill

3.The author says, “There was one thing that went wrong with my experiment.” What was the one thing that went wrong?

A. He praised her sweater, which puzzled her.

B. She insisted on visiting a museum, which he hated.

C. He knew something about her illness but didn’t tell her.

D. He was so good to her that she thought she would be dying.

4.By saying “I’m just starting to live,” Tom means that __________.

A. he is just beginning to understand the real meaning of life

B. he is just beginning to enjoy life as a loving husband

C. he lived an unhappy life before and is now starting to change

D. he is beginning to regret what he did to his wife before

 

I made a promise to myself on the way down to the vacation beach cottage. For two weeks I would try to be a loving husband and father. Totally loving. No ifs, ands or buts.

The idea had come to me as I listened to a talk on my car radio. The speaker was quoting a passage from the Bible about husbands being thoughtful of their wives. Then he went on to say, “Love is an act of will. A person can choose to love.” To myself, I had to admit that I had been a selfish husband. Well, for two weeks that would change.

And it did. Right from the moment I kissed Evelyn at the door and said, “That new yellow sweater looks great on you.” “Oh, Tom, you noticed,” she said, surprised and pleased. Maybe a little puzzled. After the long drive, I wanted to sit and read. Evelyn suggested a walk on the beach. I started to refuse, but then I thought, “Evelyn’s been alone here with the kids all week and now she wants to be alone with me.” We walked on the beach while the children flew their kites.

So it went. Two weeks of not calling the Wall Street firm where I am a director; a visit to the shell museum though I usually hate museums. Relaxed and happy, that’s how the whole vacation passed. I made a new pledge to keep on remembering to choose love.

There was one thing that went wrong with my experiment, however. Evelyn and I still laugh about it today. On the last night at our cottage, preparing for bed, Evelyn stared at me with the saddest expression.

“What’s the matter?” I asked her.

“Tom,” she said in a voice filled with distress, “do you know something I don’t?”

“What do you mean?”

“Well…that medical checkup I had several weeks ago…our doctor…did he tell you something about me？Tom, you’ve been so good to me…am I dying?” It took a moment for it all to sink in. Then I burst out laughing.

“No, honey,” I said, wrapping her in my arms. “You’re not dying; I’m just starting to live.”

 

1.From the story we may infer that Tom drove to the beach cottage __________.

A. with his family                              B. with Evelyn

C. all by himself                               D. with his children

2.During the two weeks on the beach, Tom showed more love to his wife because __________.

A. she looked lovely in her new clothes

B. he could afford time to care for her

C. he was willing to be a good husband

D. she was seriously ill

3.The author says, “There was one thing that went wrong with my experiment.” What was the one thing that went wrong?

A. He praised her sweater, which puzzled her.

B. She insisted on visiting a museum, which he hated.

C. He knew something about her illness but didn’t tell her.

D. He was so good to her that she thought she would be dying.

4.By saying “I’m just starting to live,” Tom means that __________.

A. he is just beginning to understand the real meaning of life

B. he is just beginning to enjoy life as a loving husband

C. he lived an unhappy life before and is now starting to change

D. he is beginning to regret what he did to his wife before