A

　　Michael Jackson has been on the road of performing since he was five years old. For anyone who wants to know,the road to fame and fortune is a long,hard way to travel.

　　Michael remembers those early years when he was young. “My father was a machine oporator. ”he explained, “and he worked at a steel plant. My mother worked as Sears,a big department store. But they were both musicians. ”

　　Mr. Jackson realized that his sons had a lot of talent,and he knew he could train them to become fine musicians. In those days there were plenty of music groups and some of them were very good. He knew if his sons were to stand out,they would have to be the best.

　　Ptactice makes perfect. And the Jackson boys practised!Gradually the group took shape. When the Jacksons took their first professional job,their total pay was only five dollars!They kept on working. They played at parties. They entered bigger contests(比赛). They worked at clubs. Then word of this group began to get around. All of a sudden,the Jackson Five became popular in the country；their first album(歌曲集)sold a million copies!Michael,11 years old then,was the star. It just didn’t seem possible that so much talent could come from such a young performer.

　　Then Michael got a chance to do some solo songs. For the following years Michael has always been on the top. One million records of his was sold in New Zealand,which has only a total population of three million!

　　When Michael was eighteen,he entered another field of his career：acting. “I plan to stair in movies. ”he told his friends, “but of course,my first love is music. ”

　　Michael wrote a lot of his own songs. “Songs came about in the strangest ways,”he said, “I’ll just wake up from sleeping and there is a whole song coming into my head. And then I put it down on the paper. ”Whatever he is doing,it works!

　　Still,with all his success,Michael manages to keep his head calm. “I just do a different job from other people,”he said, “but it doesn’t make me think I’m better than other people. ”

　　To be quite honest,his fans just love to hear and watch him !

　　1．Michael Jackson began performing with________.

　　A．his father

　　B．his mother

　　C．his parents

　　D．his brothers

　　2．Mr. Jackson knew only when his sons were the best musicians could they________.

　　A．make a lot of money

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p>　　B．go out of their hometown

　　C．be famous

　　D．support themselves

　　3．Which of the following is not mentioned in this passage?

　　A．When the group began to go round the world.

　　B．The songs sung by this group were very popular.

　　C．The Jacksons shocked the country.

　　D．People could hardly believe that young Michael was so talented.

　　4．Michacl Jackson wants to be________.

　　A．a solo singer and musician rather than a film star and actor

　　B．not only a film star and actor but a solo singer and musician

　　C．a solo singer as well as a musician

　　D．a film star as well as an actor

　　5．Michael means that he does something different from others,________.

　　A．so he is different from others

　　B．so he is better than others

　　C．still he is no better than others

　　D．he is as well as others

 

A

　　Michael Jackson has been on the road of performing since he was five years old. For anyone who wants to know,the road to fame and fortune is a long,hard way to travel.

　　Michael remembers those early years when he was young. “My father was a machine oporator. ”he explained, “and he worked at a steel plant. My mother worked as Sears,a big department store. But they were both musicians. ”

　　Mr. Jackson realized that his sons had a lot of talent,and he knew he could train them to become fine musicians. In those days there were plenty of music groups and some of them were very good. He knew if his sons were to stand out,they would have to be the best.

　　Ptactice makes perfect. And the Jackson boys practised!Gradually the group took shape. When the Jacksons took their first professional job,their total pay was only five dollars!They kept on working. They played at parties. They entered bigger contests(比赛). They worked at clubs. Then word of this group began to get around. All of a sudden,the Jackson Five became popular in the country；their first album(歌曲集)sold a million copies!Michael,11 years old then,was the star. It just didn’t seem possible that so much talent could come from such a young performer.

　　Then Michael got a chance to do some solo songs. For the following years Michael has always been on the top. One million records of his was sold in New Zealand,which has only a total population of three million!

　　When Michael was eighteen,he entered another field of his career：acting. “I plan to stair in movies. ”he told his friends, “but of course,my first love is music. ”

　　Michael wrote a lot of his own songs. “Songs came about in the strangest ways,”he said, “I’ll just wake up from sleeping and there is a whole song coming into my head. And then I put it down on the paper. ”Whatever he is doing,it works!

　　Still,with all his success,Michael manages to keep his head calm. “I just do a different job from other people,”he said, “but it doesn’t make me think I’m better than other people. ”

　　To be quite honest,his fans just love to hear and watch him !

　　1．Michael Jackson began performing with________.

　　A．his father

　　B．his mother

　　C．his parents

　　D．his brothers

　　2．Mr. Jackson knew only when his sons were the best musicians could they________.

　　A．make a lot of money

　　B．go out of their hometown

　　C．be famous

　　D．support themselves

　　3．Which of the following is not mentioned in this passage?

　　A．When the group began to go round the world.

　　B．The songs sung by this group were very popular.

　　C．The Jacksons shocked the country.

　　D．People could hardly believe that young Michael was so talented.

　　4．Michacl Jackson wants to be________.

　　A．a solo singer and musician rather than a film star and actor

　　B．not only a film star and actor but a solo singer and musician

　　C．a solo singer as well as a musician

　　D．a film star as well as an actor

　　5．Michael means that he does something different from others,________.

　　A．so he is different from others

　　B．so he is better than others

　　C．still he is no better than others

　　D．he is as well as others

 

 (09·江西A篇)

Outside her shabby cottage, old Mrs. Tailor was hanging out laundry on a wire line, unaware that some children lay hidden in the leaves of a nearby tree watching her every move. They were determined to find out if she really was a witch.

They watched as she took a broomstick to clean the dirt from her stone steps. But, much to their disappointment, she did not mount the broomstick and take flight. Suddenly, the old lady’s work was interrupted by the cackling of her hen—a signal that an egg had been laid in the warm nest on top of the haystack.

The old broomstick was put aside as she hobbled off towards the haystack followed by Sooty, a black cat she had rescued from a fox trap some time back. With only three legs, it was hard for Sooty to keep up with the old lady. The cat provided proof—the children were sure that only a witch could own a black cat with three legs.

There, standing on a wooden box, was Mrs. Tailor, stretching out to gather her precious egg. Taking the egg in one of her hands, she began to climb down when, without warning, the box broke and the old lady fell.

 “We have to got and help her,” whispered Amy.

 “What if it is a trick?” replied Ben.

 “Don’t be silly, Ben. If she were a witch, she would have turned us into frogs already,” reasoned Meg. “Come on Amy, let’s go.” The girls climbed down the tree and ran all the way to the haystack.

Approaching carefully, they could see a wound on the old lady’s face. She had knocked her head on a stone and her ankle was definitely broken. “Go and get Dad,” Amy yelled to her brother. “Tell him about the accident.”

The boys did not need another excuse to leave. They ran as fast as thy could for help, hoping that Mrs. Tailor would not wake and turn the girls into frogs.

56. Were the children hiding in the tree?

A. They wanted to watch Mrs. Tailor do her housework closely.

B. They were playing a hide-and-seek game

C. They wanted to find out if the rumors about Mrs. Tailor were true

D. They were pretending to be spies

57. Mrs. Tailor stopped sweeping when____

A. her front steps were clean            

B. she noticed the children in the tree

C. she was ready to take a flight         

D. she heard the hen cackling

58. Ben did not rush in help Mrs. Tailor because_____

A. he thought that she could be necking them

B. he knew that they could not have been in the tree

C. he did not the old lady fall down

D. he was afraid of the three-legged cat

59. Which of these old sayings best suits the story’s lesson for us?

A. Make hay while the sun shines.

B. Never judge a book by its cover.

C. People in glasshouses should not the stones.

D. A bird in the hands worth two in the bush.

  

Outside her shabby cottage, old Mrs. Tailor was hanging out laundry on a wire line, unaware that some children lay hidden in the leaves of a nearby tree watching her every move. They were determined to find out if she really was a witch.

   They watched as she took a broomstick to clean the dirt from her stone steps. But, much to their disappointment, she did not mount the broomstick and take flight. Suddenly, the old lady’s work was interrupted by the cackling of her hen—a signal that an egg had been laid in the warm nest on top of the haystack.

   The old broomstick was put aside as she hobbled off towards the haystack followed by Sooty, a black cat she had rescued from a fox trap some time back. With only three legs, it was hard for Sooty to keep up with the old lady. The cat provided proof—the children were sure that only a witch could own a black cat with three legs.

    There, standing on a wooden box, was Mrs. Tailor, stretching out to gather her precious egg. Taking the egg in one of her hands, she began to climb down when, without warning, the box broke and the old lady fell.

 “We have to got and help her,” whispered Amy.

 “What if it is a trick?” replied Ben.

 “Don’t be silly, Ben. If she were a witch, she would have turned us into frogs already,” reasoned Meg. “Come on Amy, let’s go.” The girls climbed down the tree and ran all the way to the haystack.

   Approaching carefully, they could see a wound on the old lady’s face. She had knocked her head on a stone and her ankle was definitely broken. “Go and get Dad,” Amy yelled to her brother. “Tell him about the accident.”

   The boys did not need another excuse to leave. They ran as fast as they could for help, hoping that Mrs. Tailor would not wake and turn the girls into frogs.

. Why were the children hiding in the tree?

 A. They wanted to watch Mrs. Tailor do her housework closely.

 B. They were playing a hide-and-seek game

 C. They wanted to find out if the rumors about Mrs. Tailor were true

 D. They were pretending to be spies

. Mrs. Tailor stopped sweeping when____

 A. her front steps were clean             B. she noticed the children in the tree

 C. she was ready to take a flight          D. she heard the hen cackling

. Ben did not rush in help Mrs. Tailor because_____

 A. he thought that she could be tricking them

 B. he knew that they could not have been in the tree

 C. he did not see the old lady fall down

 D. he was afraid of the three-legged cat

. Which of these old sayings best suits the story’s lesson for us?

 A. Make hay while the sun shines.

 B. Never judge a book by its cover.

 C. People in glasshouses should not throw stones.

 D. A bird in the hands worth two in the bush.