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To most of us, school means classes, teachers, schedules, grades and tests. But for the children at Sudbury Valley School in Massachusetts, school is very different.

Firstly, there are no lessons. All the children, aged between 4 and 19, do whatever they want. There are no teachers, only “staff members”. The idea behind this is that you do not need to make children learn, because children want to learn anyway. “You do not need to say to a three-year-old, ‘Go explore your environment.’ You can’t stop them!”says Daniel Greenberg, a founder of the school. “But if you make children do what you want all day… they will lose all taste of learning.” At Sudbury Valley School, you will find children talking, reading, painting, cooking, working on computers, studying French, playing the piano, climbing trees, or just running around. Two boys spent three years just fishing!

The other way that Sudbury Valley School is different is that the children can decide the rules. Every week, there is a school meeting where both children and staff have one vote (投票)each—even the four-year-olds. They decide the school rules, how to spend the school money, and even which staff they want and do not want anymore.

When the school first opened in 1968, people said it would never work. But today, the school has 200 students, and 80% of its students go on to college. Even the two boys who went fishing all the time have successful careers today. One of them is a musician and the other is a computer scientist.

1.What's special about the school?

A. There is nobody but students there.

B. All the students are of the same age.

C. There are no classes for the students.

D. There are no rules in the school.

2.What do the students do in the school?

A. They learn everything there from the staff members.

B. They grow up there without learning anything.

C. They spend all the time with their parents.

D. They do whatever they are interested in.

3.The school seems to believe that children________.

A. learn best when they are doing what they want

B. are too young to learn anything by themselves

C. can look after themselves without any help

D. can't go to college without any hard work

4.The last paragraph wants to tell us that_          .

A. the writer doesn't like the idea of the school

B. the school is quite successful in its work

C. most of the parents don't believe in the school

D. younger students learn better there than older ones

5.The underlined word career in the last paragraph most probably means_.

A. family   B. money    C. lifestyle    d. job

 

What do you like most when you can get one of such things: freedom, true friends, love, honesty and so on? Here are some choices of students:

Chen Cheng, 14, Jiangsu: I think I need a true friend. I had some friends before. However, it seemed that they didn't treat(对待) me well. I told them my secrets but they didn't share（分享） theirs with me. What's worse, they told my secrets to others, which made me very unhappy. I hope to find a true lifelong（终身的） friend who can share happiness and sadness with me and keep my secrets.

Gan Xiaoning 14, Heilongjiang: Freedom is what I want most. I am a bird in two cages（笼子）. In school, I have to follow the school's rules and listen to teachers. At home, my parents don't allow me to do what I like, either. I have to do everything that they tell me to do: study, study and study some more. So, freedom is the only thing I really want!

Yuan Siyu, 15, Guangxi: I am a boy from a poor family. My father works very hard but only makes a little money every month to support(支撑) the family. I want to go to a key university （重点大学）so that I can find a good job in the future. Then, I can earn enough money to get my family out of poverty(贫困) and offer my parents a happy life.

Qu Yi, 15, Hebei: I want a complete family. My parents got divorced(离婚) three years ago. Since then, I have had no chance to be together with both of them any more. Now, I am living with my mom and get her love, but I also want my dad's love. I am envious(羡慕) of my classmates who live with their parents. So, I would have a complete family if I could.

1.What is not mentioned in the passage?

A. freedom     B. love         C. a true friend      D. hobby

2.Who is facing the problem of poverty and decides to fight?

A. Qu Yi       B. Chen Cheng    C. Gan Xiaoning        D. Yuan Siyu

3.As for Chen Cheng, she wants a friend_______.

A. who often tells lies to her    B. who only cares about her own happiness

C. who can play with her      D. who can share her feeling and keep secrets

4.Which of the following is true?

A.Qu Yi's father works very hard and makes much money to support his family.

B.Chen Cheng gets along very well with his friends

C.If Qu Yi's parents didn't get divorced, he would be much happier.

D.Gan Xiaoning says he is a bird because he wants to fly like a bird.

 

“The only thing holding you back is yourself. Never say never”, said a rising 17-year-old singer, Justin Bieber, who was just an ordinary boy in Canada a few years ago.

After the accident of falling from the 18^th floor and lying in the snow for three hours, my hands were frozen and my spinal cord (脊髓)was seriously injured. All the doctors and professors in the famous hospitals in Beijing told me that there was little chance for my hands and my body to recover (康复).

After half a year of medical treatments and recovering exercises, I could not make any more progress for over a year. What was worse , I suffered a lot from depression (绝望). On top of this, I suffered from insomnia, making every minute of the night seem to last forever. Hopelessly, mom and I came back to my hometown, which is small town in Guangdong.

At that time, I thought that I would never be able to walk again. I would never love and be loved. I would never be able to earn even a penny. I would never be able to repay the kindness I got from my parents and many nice people. Life was meaningless.

Now two years has passed. My hands are 80% recovered. I can even type faster than a healthy person! Up to now, I have worked for a law firm as an interpreter for half a year already. Although I don’t earn as much as before, I am able to pay for the food and clothes I need. What’s more, I even have extra money to buy thanksgiving presents for my parents and my boyfriend. Through my blogs (博客) , many people get to know me and like me. I can bring happiness to them. I can help those who are still suffering from depression and the pain of illnesses by chatting with them….You see, I am living a meaningful life and I am happier than ever I could have dreamed.

So, my friends, never say never. As long as you are alive, there is always hope and possibilities. It is never too late to take action to realize your dreams.     (382 words)

1.What’s the writer’s present job?

  A. A singer.              B. A typist .               C. A professor .     D. An interpreter.

2.What does the underlined word “insomnia” in the third paragraph mean in Chinese?

  A. 失眠                B. 失忆                  C. 麻木           D. 低烧

3.All of the following words can be used to describe the writer’s present life EXCEPT___________.

   A. helpful              B. meaningful              C. painful         D. hopeful

4.According to the passage, which of the following statements about the writer is TRUE?

   A. She gets a lot of help through her blogs.         

B. She is in love with a young man at present.

   C. She got medical treatment soon after the accident. 

D. She had no job and earned little before the accident.

 

 

                                            

     Charles Chaplin was born in London on April 16, 1889. His parents were music hall actors. The Chaplin family were very poor, and life was difficult in London. Charlie, as he was called, used to do his mother's job in the theatre when she was ill.

     When he was only 17 years old, Chaplin got his first real job as an actor. What he did was to do silly things to make people laugh in the theatre. Seven years later he went to the USA. And over the next four years, he formed his own way of art. He developed the character (~J ~, )of a homeless gentleman which became very popular.

      From the 1920s to the 1950s, Chaplin made his most famous films. The film Modern Times (1936) shows his care about the modern industry workers. Many of his films describe the poor life and hard time of the working people during that period.

     Although Charlie Chaplin was British, he lived in the USA until 1953. But he never got US nationality. Then Chaplin, his wife' and his five children had to move to Switzerland where he lived until he died. When he was 83 years old, he won his only Oscar for the music he wrote for the film Limelight. He was named Sir Charles Chaplin at the age of 85. Charlie Chaplin died in Switzerland on December 25th, 1975.

    1. Chaplin used to __ when his mother was ill.

           A. look after her                              B. do the housework

           C. do his mother's job                        D. do his father's job

    2.From Paragraph 2, we can know that __

           A. Chaplin went to the USA when he was 24 years old ~

           B. Chaplin became famous when he was 17 years old

           C. people liked Chaplin because he was a homeless gentleman

           D. Chaplin did many silly things to make people laugh in the street

     3.  __ Chaplin made his most famous films.

           A. From 1889 to 1936                        B. From the 1920s to th~ 1950s

           C. From 1953 to 1975                        D. From the 1950s to the 1980s

    4. We can infer.from the passage that Chaplin left the USA because of __

           A. his family                                  B. his work

           C. the US government                         D. the Swiss government

    5. Chaplin won the Oscar for __ when he was 83 years old.

           A. the acting         B. the art             C. the film          D. the music

 

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Lisa never had the chance to know her father. He and her mother divorced when she was just a young child. Even though he didn’t move far, he never came to visit his children.

Lisa often wondered about her father. What did he looked like and what he was doing. All she knew was his name: Jeff White.

After Lisa grew up, she became a nurse at a hospital, where she would help provide medicine and comfort for patients in their final days. A few weeks ago, she receieved a new patient whose name was Jeff White.

When Jeff came into his room, Lisa asked him if he had any children. Jeff told her that he had two daughters, Lisa and Elly. Lisa couldn’t hold her tears back. She told him, “ I am Lisa, your daughter.”

Jeff embraced her, saying that he was not a good father. And the daghter held his hand and kissed him. Then Jeff began to sing This Magic Moment.

Jeff could have just weeks left to live, so Lisa wanted to make the most of the time she had with him. Lisa also brought her kids to the hospital to meet their grandfather. The kid made cards for him with the words, “ I love you.”

Forgiveness is also a kind of love.

1.what happened to Lisa when she was young?

A. Her father lost his job.

B. Her mother died.

C. Her family moved to another country.

D. Her father left the family.

2.What did Lisa know about her father?

A. Her father’s looks

B. Her mother’s name

C. Her father’s hobby

D. Her father’s job

3.What does the underlined word “patient” mean in this passage?

A. 医生        B. 病人       C. 家属         D. 手术

4.From the passage we know that__________

A. Lisa has a brother.

B. Lisa hates his father.

C. Lisa has a sister.

D. Lisa’s father hates her daughter.

5.This passage mainly tells us that _______

A. Kids should love their father.

B. The father should love his kids.

C. Forgiveness is also a kind of love.

D. Fathers shouldn’t leave their families.