The Story of a Broken Bowl

Henry is a boy of nine. Three years ago he began to go to school. He studied hard and does well in his lessons. His parents like him very much.

Henry’s grandpa is a single man. But once he lost a leg in a traffic accident. And now he can’t work. He often tells the boy all kinds of interesting stories. Sometimes he makes a kite or a cage. And he teaches the boy how to catch the singing birds and how to give them food. The boy admires him very much and always stays with him when he’s free. But Henry’s mother didn’t like the old man. She always thought him useless and dirty, and didn’t let her son play with him but the boy didn’t listen to her. When they sat at table, she put some food on another table and filled a broken bowl with rice and porridge. The old man was very sad but he dared not say anything. Henry was angry with his mother about it. One day he saw a broken bowl on his way home. He picked it up and put it into his bag. His mother found it and asked, “ Why have you brought a broken bowl home, dear?” “ I keep it for you.” said Henry, “When you’re old like my grandpa, I’ll fill it with rice for you !” Having heard this, the woman began to cry. Since then she’s been good to the old man.

1. His parents like Henry because _____________.

A．He’s good to his grandpa

B．He’s a polite boy

C．He does well in his lessons

D．He’s learned to catch singing birds

2.Henry admires his grandpa because ____________.

A．he tells him a lot of interesting stories

B．he knows how to catch singing birds and give them food

C．he can make kites and cages

D．he’s very able old man

3. __________, so she didn’t let her son play with him.

A．The woman hated the old man

B．The woman hadn’t enough food to give the old man

C．The old man did nothing at home

D．The old man lost a leg in the traffic accident

4. Henry brought the broken bowl home to _____________.

A．play with it                            B．frighten his mother

C．beat his parents                        D．fill it with rice

5.The woman was afraid _________, so she’s good to the old man.

A．her husband wouldn’t love her

B．the police would know about it

C．her son would be bad to her when she was old

D．the old man wouldn’t leave her any money

 

Your peers are people your age or close to it. Besides close friends, your peers include other children you know who are the same age------like people in your grade, sports team, or neighborhood. Peers may have a positive influence on each other and play important roles in each other’s lives:
Positive examples
Peers set plenty of good examples for each other. Having peers who do well in school or do their best in a sport can influence you to work hard to realize your dream, too. Peers who are kind and helpful can influence you to build these qualities in yourself. Even peers you’ve never met can be role models(模范). For example, watching someone your age compete in the Olympics or give a piano concert might inspire you to go after a dream of your own.
Feedback(反馈) and advice
Your peers listen and give you feedback as you try out new ideas. They can help you make decisions, too: what courses to take, whether to get your hair cut or let it grow, or how to solve a problem. Peers often give each other good advice. Your peers will be quick to tell you when they think you’re making a mistake or doing something dangerous.
Socializing（交际）
Being with your peers----such as classmates or teammates----gives you a chance to learn how to make friends and deal with disagreements with people.
New experiences
Your peers might get you involved(参与) in clubs, sports, or volunteer groups. Your world would be far less rich without peers encouraging you to try some new food for the first time, or listen to a CD you have never heard before.
【小题1】The first paragraph is mainly about     .

A．who your peers are

B．how to find peers whose interests are similar to yours

C．the negative influence of peers on each other

D．the difference between your close friends and your peers

【小题2】The author makes  points of how peers have a positive influence on each other.

A．three

B．four

C．five

D．six

【小题3】With which of the following may the author agree?

A．Peers you have never met cannot influence you.

B．You can ask your friends to make a decision for you.

C．You should not play with peers you don’t like.

D．Your peers may cause you to experience new things.

【小题4】The author mentions that good role models can influence you to      .
① work hard to realize your dream
② do something dangerous
③ build good qualities in yourself
④ have fewer friends

A．①③

B．②④

C．②③

D．③④

【小题5】From the fourth paragraph, we can learn that being with your peers gives you a chance to       .

A．influence other people

B．play an important role

C．learn how to make more friends

D．improve your English skills

When you are about to do something brave, a cheerful wish of “Good luck!” from a friend can be helpful. But if you think you need lots of luck, what else might you do?
In the UK and US there are some strange traditions for bringing yourself a little more good luck. Some are hundreds of years old and some are much newer.
Have you heard the saying “When you wish upon a star”? If you are looking up at the sky on a clear night and you see a sudden flash of light, it is probably a shooting star! Seeing one doesn’t happen very often. The saying goes that if you see one you have been very lucky, and so if you make a wish, it will come true.
Maybe you have heard of the lucky rabbit’s foot. Some people believe that rabbits are lucky animals, so they carry a part of the rabbit, its foot, for good luck. There are all kinds of strange, unclear rules about which of the rabbit’s feet is the luckiest. It is said that this good luck tradition is the oldest one of all. However, as the funny saying goes, “Depend on the rabbit’s foot if you will, but remember it didn’t work for the rabbit!”
People in Britain love trees. If it is autumn and leaves are falling from the trees, some people try to catch the leaves as they fall because they think each leaf they catch will bring them a lucky month in the following year—they will need to catch 12 falling leaves to have a whole of good luck!
【小题1】______ is mentioned in the oldest good luck tradition.

A．A rabbit’s foot	B．A falling leaf
C．A cheerful wish from friends	D．A shooting star

【小题2】From Paragraph 3, we know that ______.

A．shooting stars can often be seen

B．people can see a shooting star on a rainy night

C．your wish may come true if you see a shooting star

D．people believe that it’s unlucky to see a shooting star

【小题3】British people try to catch 12 falling leaves because ______.

A．the leaves fall in autumn

B．there are so many leaves to catch

C．the leaves can bring them a lucky month

D．they want to have a whole year of good luck

【小题4】In Paragraph 5, the underlined word “them” refers to（指）______.

A．trees

B．people

C．leaves

D．years

【小题5】The passage is mainly about ______.

A．how to wish upon a star	B．things that bring good luck
C．British people love leaves	D．which of the rabbit’s feet is the luckiest

　 I heard a story about a famous scientist who had made several very important achievements.What made him 　41 from others?

　 He said it all came from 　42 that happened when he was two years old. He tried to 43 a bottle of milk away from the fridge, but the slippery(光滑的) bottle fell, spilling its milk all over the 　44 floor.

　 When his mother came in, 45 shouting at him, she said, “Robert, what a great mess(一团糟) you have made! I have never seen such a big puddle(水坑) of milk. Would you like to get down and play in the milk for a few minutes 　46 we clean it up?”

　 Indeed, he did. After a few minutes, his mother said, “Robert, when you make a mess like this, you have to clean it up at last. So, 　47 would you like to do that? We would use a towel or a mop. Which do you prefer?” He chose the towel and together they cleaned up the milk.

　 His mother then said, “We had a failed 48 in how to carry a big milk bottle with two small hands in the kitchen. Let’s go out and fill the bottle with water and see if you can 49 a way to carry it without dropping it.” The little boy learned that if he held the bottle at the top near the lip(杯口) with both hands, he could carry it without dropping it.

　 This scientist then said that it was at that moment that he knew he didn’t need to be afraid to 50 .So, what have you learnt from the story?

41. A. serious　　 　　 B. similar　　　　　　 C. different　　　　 D. important

42. A. an experience　　 B. advice　　　　　　 C. a promise　　　　 D. an idea

43. A. pass　　　　　　 B. bring　　　　　　 C. drink　　　　　　 D. take

44. A. kitchen　　　　 B. bedroom　　 　　 C. bathroom　　　　 D. living room

45. A. from　　　　　 B. with　　　　　　　 C. because of　　　 D. instead of

46. A. after　　　　　　 B. before　　　　　　 C. as soon as　　　　 D. since

47. A. when　　　　　 B. what　　　　　　 C. how　　　 　　　D. why

48. A. experiment　　　 B. condition　　　　 C. survey　　　　　 D. research

49. A. look　　　　　　 B. discover　　　　　 C. recognize　　　 D. develop

50. A. clean the floor　　 B. spill milk　　　　 C. make mistakes　　 D. realize mistakes